Page 39 of Rejecting his Mate

One of the wolves, a big marl-colored one, turns and pads into the trees behind him. The others follow and Cade grabs my hand.

“They’ll keep us safe now.”

I already feel safe, but I nod anyway at his words. I don’t know why, but I trust him, so I let him scoop me back into his arms.

The walk feels like it takes hours, but it isn’t that long before we hit the edge of the tree line.

A road winds through the forest, which starts again on the other side of the asphalt. It feels like a border between my pack and his, though there are no signs or mile markers.

Mountains peek over the top of the trees, and for the first time in a long time, I feel at peace. Outdoors is where I am most happy. It is part of the reason I walked in the woods. Spending that time surrounded by natureand fresh air eased all my problems. How could I have any when surrounded by that beauty?

But I worry about Adeline. Is she being punished for my actions? What will Klaus and Dalton do to her?

I hope the Beauford name will offer her some protection from the brutality of the wolves who lost their family members. If my aunt has any sense, she’ll get the hell away from the pack as well.

The further we get from Dalton, the less I’m able to feel or sense him until he is nothing more than an impression in the back of my mind. It makes it easier for me to breathe, knowing he is not close enough to try to end my life again.

“Where is your pack territory?” I ask.

“On the other side of these woods,” Cade tells me.

There are two trucks parked up on the bend. Cade carries me over to the first one and lowers me to my feet, keeping hold of me as I wobble. As his eyes scan mine, his jaw tightens. “I should have killed him.”

“It would have solved a lot of problems,” I say with a smile that folds into a wince.

My eyes are burning. I duck down to look in the side-view mirror, and what I see horrifies me. The whites of my eyes are blood red, little spider webs of broken blood vessels crawling across the surface.

“I look demonic,” I mutter.

“It’s what happens when someone is strangled,” Cade says, letting out a little growl as he does.

He’s not happy about what Dalton did to me, either. I want to ram my fist into my former mate’s balls. “I don’t care what it takes,” I declare, “but I will sever themating bond. I don’t want to be connected to him in any way. I hate that I have his mark on me.”

“Witches can do it,” a voice behind us says.

I glance past Cade to see a very naked, very tall man standing there. Wolves aren’t ashamed of nakedness, but for some reason, I avert my gaze. I do not want Cade to think I’m ogling his friend.

In the quick glance I got of him, I realize he shares a lot of features with Cade, and both wolves have dark beards over their faces. His hair is brown rather than black like Cade’s, and Cade has piercing blue eyes, while the other man’s are brown, though.

“Get dressed,” Cade hisses, which makes the man snigger.

He goes to the back door of the truck and pulls it open. “If I didn’t know better, Cade, I’d say you’re jealous your little wolf friend is seeing this fine physique.”

Cade glares at him, and I fear for the other wolf’s safety.

“Dressed, Sawyer, now.”

He grabs a bag from the back of the truck and pulls on clothes.

The other two wolves that were with us shift, too. One is a redhead, the other is blond. Both are a little smaller than Cade and Sawyer but still stand over six feet.

Cade makes no attempt to introduce us, so I do it myself. “I’m Halle.”

“I’m Wyatt,” the redhead says, “and this is Jackson.”

“Thank you for helping us.”

“Think we got there a little too late to be of any use,” Sawyer says, handing a bag each to the other two wolves. They pull on clothes while Cade moves me away from them.

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