Page 8 of Untamed

“I made you a welcome basket. Though….” She appraises me. “Looks like you don’t need the tissues. Most people are a hot mess when they first get here.”

I lean against the doorframe. “Too pissed to be a hot mess.”

She shoves the basket into my chest, forcing me to take it as she walks inside my new domain. She sits down on the foot of my bed like we’ve been friends for years. The hair on the back of my neck raises, and I wonder if this is what it’s like to socialize with people. I’ve seen it from the outside, but I know nothing about friendly meetings.

Hanging out? Is that what this is?

“So, what’s your story?” she asks, peering around my room. When I don’t respond, she peeks at me. “You might as well tell me now. This place leaks like a sieve. We’re all the castoffs, so we have to find consolation in each other.”

“My mate rejected me,” I answer stupidly.

She rolls her eyes. “Duh.” Sighing, she says, “I’ll go first. My mate is a piece of shit who’s been dating the same girl for years. When we all shifted for the first time and he didn’t get matched with her, he rejected me. Oh, and she rejected the mate she’d been fated to also. We’re both here.”

My mouth drops. “No shit.” I had no idea people could be rejected for the dumbest fucking thing. Actually, Ishouldhave realized that. My rejection is fucking ridiculous, too.

“Your turn.” She leans forward eagerly, brown hair falling over her shoulders.

“My mate,” I snarl. Yep, still having problems saying that out loud, “rejected me because he thinks, and I quote, ‘Kinsey Walker has never tried to become part of Lunar Pack.’”

She grimaces. “Harsh.”

“Yeah. He’s security for our alpha, so apparently he wants a mate who will just do whatever he says.” I smile at the new girl. “That’s never been my thing.”

She smirks. “I like you, Kinsey. We should be friends.”

My wolf lifts her head. Just when I think she’ll most likely be avoiding others for the rest of our mutual life, she suddenly gains interest. Her ears flatten, attuned to what's going on. It’s weird because I can feel the move rather than see it. Evidently, she loves the idea of being friends with another wolf, even if we’re not in the same pack. “I’m not going to lie, Mia. I’ve never been friends with anyone before, so I’ll probably be a lot more trouble than it’s worth.”

She laughs, the sound ricocheting around the bare room. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but you’re the weirdest wolf I’ve ever met.”

If it weren’t for the light in her eyes, I might have taken offense, but really, I’m fine with that assessment.

I hold up the basket. “So, chocolate?”

“Girl, I thought you’d never ask.”

I break open all the bags and have a seat on the bed next to her. “Best part about being a wolf,” I proclaim, shoving a piece of chocolate into my mouth, “you never get fat.”

“I went on an eating spree once, just to make sure. I swear, I ate so many freaking calories I almost didn’t touch food for a month. It was around the time when that human swimmer Michael Phelps was all over the news for eating an insane number of calories a day. I was sure there was a threshold where I would start to put on some fat. Nope. Nothing.”

My wolf likes Mia, settling down as my possible new friend and I go back and forth about the positives of being a shifter. Before long, I lean against the wall and study my new surroundings. Reality starts to set in. There are a bunch of cool wolf things, but I’m stuck at Greystone Academy. “How long have you been here?”

She presses her lips together. “I’m not a good one to ask if you’re wanting a Cinderella story.”

That makes sense. The fact that she’s here means things aren’t working out for her. A blush creeps up her cheeks, and I hurry to assuage her worries. “Hey, I’m not going to judge. None of my pack likes me, so….” I trail off, hoping she gets what I mean. I’ll probably be here forever, too.

“Over a year.” She clears her throat, her face hardening. “He’s pretty fucking stubborn. He only shows up for his mandatory meetings, and we don’t even talk.”

“Mandatory meetings?”

She wipes chocolate from the corners of her lips. “It’s all in your manual. Pass me a pillow, would you?” I reach over to grab her a pillow, and she stuffs it behind her back before reclining against the wall. “Basically, there are mandatory meetings, almost like family visitation in human jail. Mated pairings are forced together to make it work. A lot of us try, and he pretended in the beginning, but that only lasted a few months.”

I mull over her words and what she’s previously told me about how she ended up here. Fated mates aren’t allowed to be with anyone else. “But…” I hedge, not wanting to call the only person who’s attempted to befriend me a liar, but something doesn’t add up.

“But why would he keep shunning me when he can’t technically be with her? Good fucking question. I can’t seem to get it out of him.”

I shake my head. “That’s fucked up.”

“Truly,” she snarls.

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