Page 44 of The Barren Luna

“It’s okay,” he cooed, rubbing my upper arms again, and I found myself leaning into his comforting touch as I had every time before. Did he feel tingles when he touched me? How could he even tell I was his mate?

“How could you even tell I was your mate?”

“Your smell was faint, but my wolf picked up on it immediately – clementines,” he inhaled deeply, “and it’s already getting stronger. I feel faint tingles when I touch you, but I can’t wait for those to turn into fireworks when your wolf comes back,” he grinned.

I remained silent, I was too confused.

“I know it’s a lot, Regina, that’s why I haven’t told you before. Not for the reasons you think. I didn’t want to tell you while you were drugged and traumatized and on trial. I wanted you tohave the time and space to process this without stress,” he used his thumb to wipe away more tears since they were now flowing freely.

“Dylan immediately advised me against telling you, claiming you needed more time, but I didn’t believe him. Then I went to get you some clothes for the hospital, and when I came back, I heard you crying in the shower,” he closed his eyes and looked pained.

“I wanted nothing more than to break down that door and comfort you, but after realizing how heartbreakingly devastated you were by everything that had happened, I realized that Dylan was right, you did need time. And you’ll probably need even more now that I’ve told you.”

I just nodded. That much even I knew was true.

“I know, love. You have a lot to process and many losses to grieve. I didn’t tell you this now because I wanted to pressure you, I told you this so that you could be prepared when your wolf comes back. I didn’t want to tell you before because the timing wasn’t right, but that was the only reason for my silence. None of what you said in your outrageous apology is true for me, okay? I will give you as much time and space as you want, I just want to tell you a few things, okay? Ready?” he jokingly shook his body like boxers did before matches, and despite my snot-filled nose and teary eyes, I smiled.

“Ready,” I nodded.

“You are a mate worthy of a general and a King. I hope you’ll realize that about yourself and, with time, see yourself the way I see you. We'll talk about this more as the bond materializes for you, but have no doubt in your heart: I consider our bond sacred, and I am grateful for it. I believe there is a good reason for every pairing, and I accept ours gladly and wholeheartedly. I don’t care that I’m your second mate, as long as I get to be your last one,”and with that electric jolt to my heart, he kissed my hand and stood up.

“Same time tomorrow?”

I simply nodded, and he left, whistling.

17 - David

Iquietly left Gina’s room at dawn, like I had gotten used to doing ever since she'd arrived here. I hated leaving her even briefly, but I knew that spending the night in her room, even in my wolf form, was pushing it. Being patient and going slowly went against everything I was, both as a wolf and as a male, but I also fucking loved my mate and would do everything in my power to help her overcome the horrors she’d been forced to endure.

The hours until breakfast couldn’t pass fast enough. I took a long, hot shower, then a shorter, cold shower, and then took my time picking out my clothes for the day. One of the two mating customs of my pack was that, after finding their mate, both males and females always made sure to wear some item of clothing or jewelry that was the color of their mate’s eyes. You could obviously go the easy route and just always wear a blue pendant or something, but most of us considered it lazy.

It was a sign of commitment and great attention to one’s mate to be intentional and elaborate about selecting, buying, and wearing such items. Not to mention females could drive their mates crazy by surprising them with seductive lingerie in the color in question, or so I’d heard. Would my savage little matedo something like that for me? The clock on the wall said I didn’t have time for a third shower, so I almost giddily made my way downstairs, knowing that I’d soon lay eyes on her again.

Regina looked both pleased and nervous to see me, as she often did. I couldn’t wait for the day when our wolves would be in sync with each other, and I’d be able to get an even better read on her feelings. Her face was pretty revealing most of the time, so that helped me greatly. I wasn't a romantically experienced male, and she had been through a lot, so the last thing I wanted to do was put my foot in my mouth. I looked her over and was secretly thrilled to see that she was wearing a ring with a blue stone – even if she hadn’t worn it intentionally to please me, I was excited to finally have a mate marked with blue.

“Good morning, Gina,” I said, trying not to mentally wag my tail like a lovesick puppy. “How did you sleep?”

“Good morning. So-so. You?”

“I slept well.”

Curled up next to you, inhaling your scent.

“Breakfast looks great. Oh, and they brought us that amazing dried venison again!”

“One would think that a chef like you would want to try different things each day?”

“Not this chef. I could eat the same thing every day for a month.”

“You’re joking, right?”

“If it was something I really love to eat and it was freshly made each day, I wouldn’t mind,” she shrugged in that sweet way of hers that she used to brush things off as being no big deal.

I wanted to reach over and tug on her hair a bit. Don’t ask me why.

“Do you hear yourself? Do you hear how crazy that sounds?” I glared at her in mock exasperation and she laughed.

I wanted to beat my chest like a caveman at the sound.I did that! I made mate laugh.I needed help, and fast. Dylan was right to offer.

---