Page 8 of Bear It All
I didn’t know how to respond. Emotions clogged my throat. Freya knew what I was, knew I thought she was my mate, but she was dismissing it. As much as that angered and hurt me, I recognized the strongest emotion behind everything she was saying: fear. When we got to her floor, she stopped.
“Thank you for helping me the other day, and fortonight. Take care of yourself, Mikhail,” she ended with a soft smile.
I hated the finality in her tone and the defeated look on her face. Before she could resist, I pulled her against me. She inhaled sharply, and I swooped down and claimed her mouth. Freya remained frozen for a second before melting into me. I stood up to my full height, lifting her against me, her feet dangling in the air.
Soon, the kiss turned passionate, a duel between us. Everything unsaid was revealed in that kiss. Slowly breaking away from her, I watched as she lazily opened her eyes before I lowered her feet to the ground.
“Go to your room. Lock the door. Stay safe, my sweet Freya,” I said to her, gently steering her toward the room.
She stumbled into action quickly, giving me one last anguished look before going in and locking the doors behind her. With a weary sigh, I headed back to my own room. Even though she was just in my arms, Freya felt further than ever.
Lying awake, sleep eluded me as I tried to figure out what to do about my stubborn mate.
Chapter 9
Freya
Misha.How did he always find me? My own personal hero at my beck and call. Except I never call him; he manages to show up, whether I asked him to or not. Once back in my room, I changed out of my wet clothes, but couldn’t bear to get rid of his shirt. It was mostly dry when I slipped it back on before bed. His scent surrounding me was a balm to my ragged nerves.
He wasn’t going to give up. Misha wasn’t going to stop pursuing me. It would hurt us both in the end. Not to mention Bianca would be up my ass even more. There was something dangerous in her eyes. Not her animal, but something closer to determination—or even scarier, desperation. With Mikhail stalking through the building shirtless after leaving my room, the whispers when I entered a space were bound to increase. Attention and questions I couldn’t answer would be aimed at me.
Part of me wanted to use that as a reason to give in, indulge in those foreign feelings and desires Misha had stirred up in me. A wave ofloneliness washed through me. I missed my parents. For obvious reasons, I couldn’t speak to my father anymore, but the forced silence between my mother and I was much harder.
While I was hiding out at Bartholomew, Mom was going dark to get anyone off our trail—no contact between us until graduation. It was heartbreaking, but I knew she was doing it to protect me. I hated it. I missed my family, knowing someone had my back. Misha wanted to be that person, but he didn’t know what it meant, all that he would be signing up for.
There was a knock at my door, stirring me from my thoughts. I hesitated, worrying—or worse, feeling excited—that it might be Misha. I gently climbed out of bed and stood by the entrance, listening for any sounds. When I didn’t hear anything, I opened it a crack, but no one was there. I looked down to see my clothes and phone in a pile on the ground.
Scrambling, I pulled them inside and locked the door behind me.Who would have brought them back?I dropped the clothes in my laundry basket, then plugged my phone in. As the cord powered on the device, I was surprised at the amount of notifications littering my screen. I didn’t text. I had social media, but I didn’t post anything, only using it to keep track of school gossip.
Quickly unlocking my phone, I clicked the most recent notification. It opened to reveal a new post that appeared to come from my account. Upon closer inspection, it was a picture of me floatingin the lake. From the angle, only my stomach and breasts were visible above the water, making my body look bloated and distorted. Shame and embarrassment ran through me as I tried to delete the original post, but it had already been shared multiple times across several platforms.
Meet the new mascot! The Bartholomew beluga!
On an angry yell, I tossed the phone across the room. Instead of helping, it appeared the sound was on, and the pings of alerts were now coming from my laundry basket. Angrily, I ran over, digging through the basket to get the phone when I felt a piece of paper. Pulling it out, I saw that it was a hand scribbled note.
Freya,
Wanted to make sure you got these back.
Misha
Mikhail did this? Does he know about the picture? Was everything he said a lie? A distraction to keep me out long enough for Bianca to set this up?Powering the phone off, I ripped his shirt off my body and threw it out the window.
Filled with rage, I was livid. That hypocritical oaf had the audacity to say he was looking after me when all he was doing was causing more trouble. Dressing hastily, I left the room and made my way over to his dorm. It had gone on for enough time. I had played the doormat for too long.
Windows flew open as I passed by. As I walked through the atrium, the leaves curled away from me on a hiss. Clouds filled the night sky, mirroring the storm brewing within me. I didn’t bother knocking, swinging the door open. On a snarl, Mikhail leaped out of bed until he recognized me.
“Freya? What’s wrong? What happened?” He approached me as if ready to pull me into his arms, but I stepped back.
“What’s happened? You. But more importantly, Bianca,” I said, staring at him.
“I told you, there’s nothing going on between us. I broke things off with her as soon as I saw you.” He growled.
“I never asked you to do that,” I said pointedly, and I watched as confusion and anger tinged his face.
“What? I don’t understand.”
“I didn’t ask you to break up with your sycophantic girlfriend and put me in her line of fire. Even if I believed I was your mate, why would I want you as mine when you’ve done nothing to protect me so far? ” He jerked back at that.
