Page 45 of Rejected Pregnant Mate

Their wounds closed, and they looked up at me with something that almost looked like reverence.

"Mate of the Alpha," the ponytailed man breathed, "Forgive us."

It was done. Now that it was over, I let the magic slip away and stopped pulling on Scott's power. I felt cold as it retreated, but ignored it.

"Woah," Gwen whispered, her mouth dropping open. "Who are you and what have you done with Nayeli?"

The last thing to leave me was the hints of darkness, and I could almost taste them on my tongue like bitter poison. All the power and magic were gone, and I was left feeling like an empty vessel. I swayed on my feet but locked my knees, not wanting to appear weak.

But I didn't just feel weak. I felt like I was on the verge of passing out, darkness creeping in at the edges of my vision.

"Leave," I said, pressing the heel of my hand to my forehead as dizziness set in, "Get out of—"

The door to the coffee shop slammed open with such force that the glasses behind the counter shook. Scott stalked in, his gaze taking me in before he turned to the two fighters, who now looked sheepish. I could feel the anger rolling off him.

"What the hell is this?" he growled, "You two fighting in my shop, breaking the things I own? Scaring my employees? What the hell is wrong with you?"

The men exchanged nervous glances but stayed quiet.

"I swear to God I—" Scott cut himself off when I stumbled, grabbing the edge of a table to steady myself as Gwen rushed to my side. His face instantly shifted from fury to worry, and it was like he'd just realized what part I'd been playing before he showed up. "Nayeli, what happened? I felt you call me through the pack bond, and I felt you draw on my power...what did you do?"

"She's okay," Gwen said, waving him off. "She handled these two jerks just fine, thanks to your Alpha-ness. But it's so weird, she reminded me more of Kiera than Samson, or maybe like a mix of the two—"

I knew by the end of the night Gwen would have figured it out. I'd healed the men and thrown them apart, and that wasnotan Alpha ability. My friend was just too shell-shocked to puzzle it out in the moment.

I opened my mouth to tell him that I was fine, and that I just needed to sit down, but my tongue felt weirdly heavy. Before I could react, my vision blurred and my legs buckled. I didn'teven feel Scott catch me at first, but he lifted me effortlessly into his strong arms, pulling me against his chest. I was on the verge of unconsciousness, but I still hummed in contentment at the feel of him, and how his touch fed into the bond.

"Damn it, Nayeli," Scott sighed, and I felt him brush his lips over my clammy forehead before he spoke to Gwen and the two male wolves. "You two clean this place up, and if it isn't exactly as it was before you decided to be fucking idiots and fight I swear you'll be relegated to the bottom of the pack. Gwen—" his tone changed completely, professional with an edge of concern. "Close the store once these idiots are done and take tomorrow off. Paid. I'm taking Nayeli home."

Home. When I pictured it, I didn't see my apartment anymore, or even the guest room covered with my things. Instead, it was Scott's face. He felt like home to me, and as exhausted as I suddenly was, home was the only thing I wanted.

Chapter 18 - Scott

If I had been just five minutes faster, I'd have gotten there in enough time to stop the fight with Nayeli, having to expel her magic like that. I was kicking myself the entire way back to the house, Nayeli sleeping in the passenger seat using my suit jacket as a blanket.

She was right there next to me, safe and snoozing, but I couldn't get the image of her pale and weak, ready to faint, out of my mind. I'd been in danger plenty throughout my life, and I'd been in fights that led me closer to death than I was comfortable with, but nothing had ever made me feel the way I felt when I had to dive to catch my mate.

Worst of all, it was my fucking fault. She'd sat there across from me at the bar and told me that the male toxicity within my pack was going to cause trouble, and I pushed it off for another time. And when a fight finally broke out, my sweet Nayeli had to break it up. If I'd laid down the law earlier, telling my pack that fighting over Omegas or belittling the female wolves in any way was forbidden, they would have never fought in the first place, and Nayeli wouldn't have had to drain her magic. I was guilt-ridden, my knuckles white as I clenched the steering wheel. Never again.

I was determined to make it right when I finally got her home. It had started raining, just a slight drizzle, and the city was filled with the scent of the sea and petrichor. I shielded her from the drops as I carried her in, sitting her on the edge of the couch where she smiled up at me sleepily.

"Stay here," I told her. She was still too pale for my liking, and there was a tremor in her hands that worried me. "I'm going to take care of you. Don't move."

For once, she didn't even look like she wanted to argue. "Okay."

I went to my bathroom, the larger one connected to my bedroom, and turned on the hot water to fill the jacuzzi-style tub. On a whim, I grabbed some of the lavender oil from Kiera's gift basket and dumped it in.

Then I went to retrieve my mate. She hadn't moved, but was still staring out the window, her brows drawn together. She looked like an angel, all soft curves and shimmering hair in a halo around her heart-shaped face.

I didn't deserve her.

"Nayeli."

She looked up at me, and her eyes were clouded, not with confusion or fatigue, but something else. Guilt? Worry? Whatever it was, she didn't need to be feeling it. This was all my failing, not hers.

"I've got a bath running for you. Can you walk, or do you want me to carry you?"

She gave a soft, tired smile. "I think I can make it. Thanks."

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