Taylor's POV
I won't stop running. My legs are giving out, but I won't transform.
All I see is my mate's face, his ember eyes, the way his lips move when he tells me not to run. His words echo in my head.
My wolf is excited, but I don't understand why. 'Give him a chance,' my wolf says. But chances are what got us here.
Every day, my wolf convinced me to give my father a chance and not say anything. But it never did chang anything. A thousand chances and I'm still like this."
“He may be kind, Taylor. Not everyone is like-’’
“Like dad?’’ saying that alone, brought tears to my eyes. Finally, I found myself on the riverbank. At least the territory that was close to home would help me unwind all these troubles and have some peace of mind.
“You don't understand this, Hazel. If we let another man into our life, all he's going to do is hurt us just like Father does.’’
“You are not sure about that. I can feel it inside me, Taylor. He is our mate and he wants to protect and cherish us. He can't hurt us, you know…’’
"I don't know anything…!" I spat and quickly sat on the dirty ground, placing my head between my knees, lost in thought about the first time I saw Ryan. He was standing at the school gates, talking to his friend. I knew right away that he was the future Alpha of the Black Knight pack, but no one else seemed to know. Ryan kept his identity hidden, and I made sure to go unnoticed too. I kept my grades above average to avoid drawing attention to myself. But now, everything has changed. I just found out that Ryan is my mate, and I'm so shocked.
"Why didn't we know this before?" I asked.
"I don't know…" came the reply from my wolf.
I'm asking myself the same thing. Why didn't I know that Ryan was my mate four years ago when I saw him? Something must have changed, I think. I can only assume that our souls connected during the full moon season, otherwise, we would have gone our whole lives without ever knowing each other. I'm perfectly fine with that.
Now, I need to come up with a plan to keep Ryan from finding me again. I can change my classes and reorganize my schedule to avoid this and prevent it from repeating itself.
"Just because he's going to be an alpha doesn't mean he'll be like your father." my wolf said.
Finally, the words pierce my heart. My wolf knew me perfectly. And she knows the things we have gone through. For some reason, however, she remains a positive Part of Me. The optimistic side. She will always see the good in everything no matter how bad and horrible it is. No matter its appearance. I find this a weakness. Because with everything that we have gone through, She should be more vigilant and skeptical.
“He doesn't have to be like Father, he could be worse.’’
“Is that the picture you could paint about him? You are judging him already. You are judging our sorry mate without giving him a chance.’’
The words of my wolf echo inside my head. I know that she is hurt. I know that she is desperate for his touch and his love. but I cannot shake the feeling that he is going to abandon us and hurt her just like my father did to my mother.
Silence falls between us again. I let my mind replace the image that we had of him with that of a monster. At Least I would try to not feel anything for him. But the connection was still going to remain. I still wanted him to embrace me. I still yearned for his touch. I still want him to kiss me. To hug me. To make me feel loved and cared for.
“It's not about judgment, I have to take care of us. I have to protect us. even if it means being away from him.’’
There was an unsettling feeling at the bottom of my stomach. my world isn't this made by my words. I know that the mate bond affects mainly my beastly side. But if I let Ryan come close to us, he’s going to hurt us.
I am afraid of vulnerability. He made me weak in his presence. He made me feel defenseless. Exactly how weak my father makes me feel. I'm not going to let another man have the liberty of taking over my life like that ever again, reminding me that I can't defend myself. I will not give another man the power to break me apart, to shatter my heart into several pieces and leave it at the doorstep.
My father has done enough. He has caused enough damage and yet it won't stop. How can I allow myself to bring in yet another man that would only amplify the torture for me? Ryan is meant to be the alpha of the biggest pack in all of the east, that means he's going to be so powerful. Powerful people can do whatever they want. Even if that means anything fun at the expense of their mate's life.
I will not allow myself to be the subject of such torture and animosity. Not in the hands of the man who's supposed to take care of me and protect me. Obviously, the moon goddess made a mistake. But I was going to rectify it. I was going to stay away from him.
Ryan’s POV “Principal Bradford, what a lovely surprise.’’ “Ryan, what are you doing standing there?’’ The words of the principal do not shock me. I am quick with my movements, shaking his hand as I pull him away from his office door. “My father told me something quite alarming, and I thought it best to run it by you.’’ I watch the expression of Fear in his eyes. The principal didn't know who I was. None of the teachers or students did. But my father had given him a corresponding explanation that would play the perfect role. I am the son of a rich and wealthy man. And my father had made a significant donation towards the school's funding. The last thing that the principal wants is having a problem with the man that can aid this school financially. “Oh.. ofcourse Ryan, why don't we go to my office and talk about it. I believe…’’ “No.. no.. no… it's not that big of a deal and we can finish the conversation in the cafeteria. I want to show you something.’’ I do not let him respond
Ryan’s POV “Taylor Brooke, daughter of David Brooke, lives on the east side of the riverbank, an Old settlement between the forest, where a cabin was built during human revolution. Street 1247.’’ Brooke. That's not a name I have heard. Yet I know all the families of wolves that live across this area. And the name Brooke does not ring any bell. I pick up the documents from Philip and I decide to glance at them myself. The information is perfectly stated. The land that she lives in is owned by her father. I fail to understand why she and her father will choose to live on their own in the middle of a forest. It's unsafe. Something about it just doesn't sound right. Not even a mad man would be willing to live in the middle of nowhere, unless they had something to hide. Something wasn't adding up and I was going to figure out what it was. “Any other family?’’ “That's the only thing that was stated in the other documents. All she has is her father. But we never truly know the truth.
Ryan’s Pov We Stand on the forest floor woven with ancient tree roots. I can hear the distant river and breaking tree branches from a distance. The car cannot go any further. Philip and I decided to walk. The drive from school appeared to be longer than I expected. All I can wonder is how she managed to get to school every single day without a car. Did buses really come all the way here? The forest is silent yet again. There is a direct pathway that leads inside. All I can ask myself is why I had not taken the opportunity to visit nature once again. Everything looked breathtakingly beautiful. Nature has always been part of the Moon goddess. And it ought to be the responsibility of every werewolf to take care of it. Perhaps that's why my mate lives here to begin with. I can only assume that she is a lover of nature. “Do you think she's home right now?’’ “She has nowhere else to go; you saw her class records. She hardly ever misses any day. She has perfect attendance at school. She i
Taylor’s Pov “What the fuck did I do?’’ I hear the sound of my father's voice as soon as I enter the room. He seems to be conversing with himself. Something he hardly ever does unless he is having a nightmare about the day my sister died. Today however, he's standing in front of the mirror in our living room, reprimanding himself or something. “What did I fucking do? I should have told them that…’’ Suddenly, his head flips in my direction and the color of his eyes direct to darker ones. His wolf is almost emerging and I haven't seen my father in this state of anger before. “You little bitch, I told you countless times to mask your scent. I told you to be careful and no one should know who you are or where you live.’’ he clenches his fists as he approaches me. I can see the hatred in his eyes. His emotions are much different from his normal ones. He is looking at me like he could tear me apart any moment now. It scares me. My father is capable of doing anything cruel and inhuman. “
Ryan's POV All my life I have learnt to keep my emotions in check. To understand them and to balance them resourcefully. But with her, I find myself losing control, letting my emotions run wild, and it is the most beautiful feeling in the world. Each day with her feels like a blessing, and I am grateful for every moment I spend with her by my side. I cannot help but feel that the universe has brought us together for a reason. I will be honored to be her partner, her protector, and her lover. I will spend the rest of my days cherishing her, loving her and making her happy. That was why, when I stared at her in that broken and painful situation, it crushed my heart. It took everything in me not to tear her father apart. “Son.’’ the voice of my father resonates over the room as he enters. There is a curious expression plastered on his face as he moves towards me and embraces me. “Father.’’ “I heard what happened, is the girl okay?’’ he asked the question with a hint of worry lac
Taylor's POV When I open my eyes, the first thing that intrudes is the sharp light that almost blinds me. I have a splitting headache but yet there is a feeling that this is the least of my worries. I'm laying on a warm surface, my wolf is suddenly awake inside me and I feel that I'm in danger. Using what little strength I feel I have left, I kick and fight against the person holding the hands down. “Easy there, little one.’’ the masculine voice says with almost a hint of mockery and laughter. My struggles and attempts to save myself are in vain. I am weak and feeble, unable to move and unable to do anything for myself. It only reminds me of who I am. How pathetic am I? Is this one of my father's main games? Is this his idea of getting rid of me now? “The alpha assigned me to take good care of you because he trusts me the most. I think that should be enough to get you to understand that I'm not here to hurt you, Taylor.’’ The man holding me down is a wolf just like myself. I ca
Ryan's POV I knew that it was going to be difficult. I expected a challenge from her. I understood why she didn't trust me. Yet at the same time, I had expected that she would feel the bond between us and she wouldn't have this much doubt. When she asked me that question however, nothing broke my heart as much as that. The very idea that my mate would think of me as a person that would harm her. As werewolves we are taught that the only people who we can rely on and depend on are the mates whom the moon goddess has blessed us with. I have lived my life thinking about how I'm going to love and protect my mate and want to meet her. I would burn down the whole world if she was in danger. But she thinks so low of me. The idea of even poisoning her or lacing her food would never cross my mind. Not in a thousand light-years. “I am hurt that you think so low of me.’’ her beautiful blue eyes as she looks into mine makes me feel like I'm connecting to her in ways that are not possible. Ho
Taylor We had a civilized conversation. Or at least I would think so. I haven't really been able to sit down and talk to another person in a long time. “You still managed to be the invisible girl despite being extremely intelligent.’’ Ryan spoke, setting aside his plate. Before any of these, I hadn't even realized where the conversation began. All I know is that one moment, we were sitting in silence having our meal, and then the next, we were engrossed in a conversation so deeply that I felt like I had known him for a thousand years. “ It's not really about intelligence. If I answered all the questions correctly, then I'll get an unwanted attention.’’ I said, with my head lowered. “You made yourself average on purpose?’’ he asked me, looking all serious like he was expecting more from me. And of course he was. I remain silent for a moment. There is an unfamiliar feeling of Joy inside of my heart, something I haven't felt in a long time, but talking about my grades will only