Page 80 of Mate
A laugh hiccups out of me, a little wet. “Okay.”
“Good. I need to meet with the Assembly.” His thumb swipes against my cheekbone. “Do you want to come with me?”
Yes, with every single cell of my body.“Why would I come with you?”
“Because the idea of having you out of my sight makes me want to flip those cars one by one.”
I stifle my chuckle. “The Assembly is very concerned that you’re breaking your covenant. I doubt me coming with you would help your case.”
“Good point.” He seems to consider it. “On the other hand, fuck my case.”
I snort. Watch him rise to his feet. Feel my heart grow heavier as he walks away.
Then, just a few feet from me, he turns around. “Killer?”
“Yeah?”
There is a false start. Like the words are too foreign to flow out with ease. But then he says, “Before I leave, I think I need to hold you for a minute.”
I’m in his arms before I know how I got there. He bends down to scoop me up, and my forehead fits so perfectly into the valley of his already-prickly throat, this cannot be anything butfated. He lifts me higher, my feet no longer touching the ground, and hides his face in my neck.
A long, deep inhale. My pulse begins to dance.
He’s— I didnotplan on this. I have no business caring so much about him, but I can’t remember the last time I felt this close to someone. Koen is warm, as solid as any rocky cliffside. So what if people think we’re fucking?
So what if his heart ends up broken when I die in a few weeks?
So what if the Alpha’s authority becomes questionable right at a moment in which the pack is suffering from violent threats and political turmoil—
No.No.
“I’ll be fine,” I force myself to say, slowly ungluing myself from his body, pushing him to let me down and let go of me. I cover the stench of the lie with some truths. “I’m tired. I should probably sleep. Just . . . say hi to Karolina from me.”
He looks the kind of unhappy that comes from knowing that I’m hiding something. I feel, in the lingering of his hand on my shoulder, that he wants to press me back into him. But his muscles relax, and that’s the end of it. “I’ll be back tomorrow morning. If anything happens to me, what do you do?”
“Buy a black veil, pretend I’m a widow, cash in on your life insurance.”
“You call Lowe. Ask him to come get you.”
“What about your seconds?”
Koen’s jaw shifts. He seems to come to a bitter realization. “I trust them with my life, but apparently not with yours. Lowe can protect you better than anyone.” His hand lifts to my cheek. Falls back to his side without touching me. “Well. Anyone but me. You’ll be safe tonight. I have people patrolling around the cabin— ”
“The two cardinal points, yes.”
“I have twelve guards.”
“That is . . .” I close my mouth. I’m assuming he can spare the manpower. Clearly, the headline here isBig Man Needs Peace of Mind. “Excessive, probably. Anyone watching out for bald eagles?”
“There’ll be someone on the roof.” He nods like he’s about to leave again.
I can’t let him go without saying, “I’m sorry.”
He frowns. “None of this is your fault.”
“I know. But this is difficult for you, too. And he dragged your parents into it, which I can’t even imagine . . .” I swallow. “I’m sorry that you have to deal with this.”
His teeth clench. There’s a flicker of something unreadable in his face. “If I come back and something has happened to you, Serena, I’m going to be so fucking pissed.”
