“Come in, why don’t you?” I say with little effort when Josh barges into my office.Savannah, some cheap tart I picked up in a bar not half an hour ago, jumps off my lap.After Gianna stumbled into the room earlier, catching me in a clinch with Claire, I needed to get out for a while.My day has been hell. The meeting I attended at a neighbouring pack was all well and good; nothing out of the ordinary happened.However, on the way home, a couple of rogues decided they’d try their luck. They stood no chance against me, and I’d soon torn them limb from limb.But when I got home, I was in the foulest of moods. I showered away the blood because I didn’t want to scare Gianna. Then I found out she wasn’t even home, and I almost lost my shit.

I’m out of my seat so fast; I’d be surprised if the wall behind me didn’t have a massive hole in it from the chair that just slammed into it.“Tell me what the fuck is going on!”“Claire and her cronies found Gianna in her room. I’m guessing she was trying to clean the cuts on her back as she wasn’t healing correctly. That in itself speaks volumes when Gianna seems to have immense healing ability.“I knew something didn’t feel right, so I went to check on things. I found Gianna slummed on the floor, battered, bruised and pumped full of wolfsbane.”My heart slams into my throat, my stomach tightens, and I have to slam my hand over my mouth.If Gianna was hurt, then why didn’t I feel it through the mate bond?

I take a deep breath before rushing to my room. There’s no way I’m going to see Gianna while I smell like another woman. She doesn’t deserve that.‘She didn’t deserve anything you did to her, but you still did it.’I ignore Valsurus and push my way into the bedroom. It’s already been cleaned, and I’ll have to thank Josh for that. He must have known I’d completely lose my shit if I saw Gianna’s blood anywhere.After a quick shower and changing into black jeans and a t-shirt, I make my way to the infirmary. I run my fingers through my long hair and tie it in a man-bun at the back of my head as I walk, ignoring the curious faces of pack staff.“Kale!&rd

After I showered and changed this morning and went down for breakfast, I found Lorcan waiting for me. I’d never seen him smile in my direction so sweetly before. He’d never looked more handsome than he did at that moment.I couldn’t help smiling back, and I took his hand willingly when he offered it to me. I sat beside my mate, and we ate together, then we spoke as if we’d never argued once in our lives.Once we’d finished eating, Lorcan told me that I could do whatever I wanted today. He wouldn’t get angry with me, and I had nothing to fear.I wanted to test the theory, so I asked if I could spend some time with Harper and Katy. I fully expected Lorcan to tell me that I couldn’t see my friends again after what happened. He certainly hasn’t let me train with them, though I put that down to him, wanting me to rest for

When the air starts to get chilly, evidence that winter is approaching, Lorcan and I head back to the packhouse. Lorcan carries the picnic basket in one hand while offering me the other. I smile and take it, and Lorcan shoots me a wink.Taking Lorcan’s hand doesn’t make me cringe as it once did. Now I feel the sparks from the mate bond racing along my skin. I know Lorcan feels it too, and that settles certain doubts in my head. I shouldn’t doubt my mate, but it’s hard not to after everything that’s happened.“I don’t want you to panic,” I narrow my eyes at Lorcan, but he isn’t looking at me. “But I’ve called a pack meeting. Everyone should be waiting on the training field for us to arrive.”“Why?” I quietly ask.It would have been too quiet for a hum