Focus. I clear my throat. “I’m your what? Your mate? That’s what Gabriel said. What does that mean?”
“Adele.” Rafe drops his head to the side with a mournful gaze. “I can’t claim you. My world is so dangerous, and you’re just a human.” He shakes his head. “You’re so fragile. Look at the trouble I brought upon you.” Now he gestures in the direction of Gabriel’s exit.
But I can’t focus on Gabriel. All I hear is you’re just a human. I know Rafe’s secret, and it still isn’t good enough. He doesn’t want me.
Deep down, I knew this from the beginning. He may have been attracted to me, but he was always fighting it. Fighting me. He wants me, but he wishes he didn’t. And he’s already made a decision. Rafe won’t claim me, whatever that means.
I didn’t know why before, but now I do. And I’m done.
I blink away the burning in my eyes. “Okay, well, this fragile human is out of here,” I say, pulling out my phone.
“Adele–” He reaches for me, and I bat his hand away.
“Don’t. Don’t touch me, Rafe.” My voice wobbles on his name, and I force myself to meet his sorrowful gaze. “Please.”
He holds his hands in the air. “Okay,” he chokes, stepping back. “I won’t touch you. Just let me get you home safely.”
“No.” I already have my phone out. “I’m calling a rideshare. We’re done.” I open up the app and request a car.
“I never meant to hurt you.”
“Well, you did, but that’s life.” I shrug, lifting my chin, fighting back the tears. Saving them for when I’m away from here. When I’m alone.
I open the door to wait outside, but Rafe follows me out, still butt naked, except for the dish towel. “You wait inside,” he coaxes. “I’ll stay out.” And with that, his motion blurs, and he drops to all fours, once more the beautiful, terrifying wolf.
I go back inside the house, but I don’t take off my coat. Don’t move past the foyer. I’m getting the hell out of Utah.
No wonder he was running hot and cold, pushing me away. He was keeping a secret from me. Many secrets. Do his friends know? Does his brother know?
What does claiming a mate even mean?
Who is Gabriel Dieter, and why did they hate each other?
I’m in a world where nothing makes sense. Where I don’t belong.
Good thing I packed light. Technically, I brought nothing…
When my ride gets here, I have no idea where Rafe is. As if his wolf is lurking nearby, I dash from the front door to the car like I’m being chased. The poor driver looks at me like I’m insane. “Drive,” I gasp. “Just drive.”
With the glee of an amateur race car driver, she hits the gas. We’re halfway down the mountain when I spot him. A huge black wolf with orange tipped ears, sitting on a snowy hill. Adrenaline jolts through my body. I always imagined wolves as big, wild dogs, but nope, this thing is to a dog what a hatchback sedan is to a tank. Way bigger. Way more dangerous. The wolf’s muzzle is closed, the fangs hidden, but it’s lethalness is on display in every line of its big body.
That's Rafe. Impossible, but true. My heartbeat slows as if my body recognizes Rafe.
The wolf regards me, its posture regal, bright eyes fixing me to the spot. There’s a flash of green as they catch the light.
He’s beautiful. The orange tipped ears twitch forward, but the wolf is otherwise still. It doesn’t look angry. It just looks... Sad.
Goosebumps run over my body as I put my hand to the glass. “Rafe,” I mouth.
The wolf throws back his head and howls. The mournful sound follows me as the car swings around a corner, and the wolf that’s Rafe drops out of sight.
10
Rafe
“Took you long enough,” Deke says when I call him.
I’m not in the mood to explain why it took me so long to call. My wolf wouldn’t let me change back into human right away, so I took him for a run. A sign I’m losing control. The moon madness, taking hold.
“Adele’s fine. Got a last minute flight to Albuquerque. Sadie picked her up from the airport.”
“Alone?”
“Sadie insisted. Said they needed a ‘girl chat.’ I thought it was a good idea. But I’m following them. You think I’d let Sadie out of my sight with all this shady shit Dieter’s pulling?”
Once he says it, I hear the sounds of his big Mercedes’ engine. My shoulders drift down an inch. “All right. Teddy’s picking me up.”
“You’ll beat her to Taos, then. We’ve got some drive time. By the way, if my phone cuts out, it’s because I’m in the canyon. What are your orders, Sarge?”
“We need to find out what the fuck Gabriel Dieter is up to.”