Page 32 of The Alpha's Shattered Bonds

“Excuse me for wanting to escape Linda giving me the stink eye.”

“She’s not even here!” Tara argued.

I shrugged, trying to sound nonchalant. “I want to get back—have a bath and use my altar.”See Tyler, I added silently to myself, my heart drumming with anticipation and nervousness.

“Of course you do,” she said, understandingly. “I bet you can’t wait to be back in your own space.”

Finally, Tara relented but insisted on walking me back to Tyler’s house. I hugged her goodbye before letting myself in through the unlocked kitchen door.

Taking a deep breath, I prepared myself for the first encounter I’d had with Tyler since he’d learned Logan and I were fated mates. He hadn’t visited me during my four days in the infirmary, something that I admitted stung. Yet, I told myself this space was for the best. Tyler was finally putting the distance between us that I had tried to create before our ascent up the mountain.

But disappointment swept through my stomach as I saw the note on the table:“At the Council Chamber if you need anything, Tyler.”Did he know I’d been discharged this morning? Had he deliberately avoided me? He ordinarily worked at the kitchen table, a steaming cup of coffee beside him, notebook open, unless he was seeing packmates.

I tried to find solace in meditation and a bath. After dinner alone, I got an early night. Much later, I heard Tyler return. In the morning, I heard him quietly leaving at an early hour. I got up to look out at the dawn, realizing we’d reversed roles. He was employing the same techniques I had used to evade confrontation before our journey up the mountain.

Over the upcoming days, the most I saw of him was his back as he skillfully evaded me. Conscious that I should feel relieved by his distance, I focused on myself. With the packmates healed and enough jedra infused into bottles, I worked on exercising my magic. After drawing so much from it, rebuilding my capacity was crucial.

I roped Tara into sparring with me during the first few days, but when she had patrol duty, I thought I’d be forced to skip it. Logan insisted he could help, though. I hesitated to accept his offer, knowing that I should be fostering distance between us now that I was out of the infirmary. But as ever, he proved persistent, even promising me that sparring with him wouldn’t be any different from sparring with Tara.

Unexpected duties had come up earlier for Logan, and by the time I stepped into the training ring, night had settled in, enveloping everything in a deep, velvety darkness. The air was crisp and biting, hinting at the onset of fall. A gentle snowfall swirled lazily in the low light.

Flaming torches flickered in the darkening sky, casting an amber glow across the snow-dusted ring. I peeled off my hoodie, the chill hitting my bare arms, and tucked my tank top neatly into my leggings.

Logan stood with his feet planted firmly, exuding a quiet confidence. But it was the intensity in his gaze that caught me off guard. It wasn’t the determined look that Tara often shared with me, but something primal—fiery and consuming. His dark brown eyes burned as they swept over me, igniting heat in my cheeks and making me uncomfortably aware of how different this felt to sparring with Tara.

Logan’s tall, muscular figure exuded strength in his lightweight training gear, too. The form-fitting, long-sleeved top clung to his ripped physique while his combat pants showed off his defined legs.

He went to hand me a sparring pole, but I shook my head. “I don’t need one. I’m working to build my magic, remember?

“Sure, but what if you overexert yourself? You’re still—”

“Healing, I know.” I rolled my eyes. “But I have to push myself. If I want my capacity to grow again, I need to use it. With Tara, I just yelled ‘Timeout’ when I needed a break. We can do the same.”

His brow furrowed as he considered it. “A safe word. All right,” he acquiesced, a suggestive smile on his lips.

Uh, again, this was so not the vibe when training with Tara.

Awkwardness bristled along my skin. I began to suspect that he’d only been eager to train with me as he hoped that if we got hot and sweaty together,otherfeelings might spark. But I gritted my jaw, determined to feel nothing but the determination and exhilaration that rebuilding my magic brought.

I laid the pole aside on the snow-dusted earth of the training ring and straightened my stance. Centering myself, I felt my magic thrum beneath my skin, anticipating Logan’s strike as he leveled his stare on me.

Logan ran toward me, his pole connecting with my shimmering magic shield as he struck. I countered by sending a pulse of energy radiating around me—a dome of energy that held me within its protective embrace. However, that power waned a moment after, fading like a candle snuffed out.

Restraint etched itself across Logan’s features, and he didn’t take advantage of the lull in my defenses.

“Come on—Tara was much fiercer,” I ribbed, dodging sideways as he swung his pole toward me.

With a chuckle, he twisted, his movements fluid and precise. I stepped back to evade him, his strike barely grazing my shoulder.

He smiled, but it was tinged with the same protectiveness that had become all too familiar lately.

“My magic needs this!” I thrust my hands forward, unleashing a wave of force that collided with him, sending him staggering back.

At last, determination solidified on his wide face, his jaw tightening. “All right. But you asked for this.”

With newfound energy, Logan sprang toward me, swinging his pole with force. Excitement surged through my veins as I met his strike head-on, a flare of magic bursting forth from my palms like flames igniting tinder. He had to duck and roll to evade it.

Logan tested me, pushing harder as I summoned my power, weaving patterns of energy to match his strikes. Each of his swings was met with shimmering spells erupting from my fingertips, bending the air around us.

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