Page 17 of The Wolf's Kidnapped Mate

She grabbed my shoulders. “I swear to the goddess herself, Fred, if you’re joking right now—”

Goddess, the way her fingers burned through my cotton shirt was like radiant fire. It pulled me right toward her unwillingly—though I wasn’t complaining much about proximity with her eyes keeping my attention.

“I’m not joking,” I assured. “Blake’s orders. We’re going into town.”

Hope twinkled in her eyes. Though the rest of her expression drooped a bit, she seemed alright with the statement. Alright enough to loosen her grip on my shoulders.

But she didn’t let go. And she didn’t step back. “I like boba. And waffles.”

I nodded. “Then we’ll get some.”

“Right now?”

I glanced at the dim screen of my brick-like Nokia.Right nowmight be too soon for Liam to set everything up with the Blondes. Tomorrow would be better.

I took Kylie’s hand and tugged her toward the trees where the ocean and the wind weren’t roaring in my ears. Again, the burn came through her fingers, a singular flame seeming to exist in her palm that encouraged me to hold tight to her. Allegiance might have inspired that kind of feeling—or something else.

But I didn’t want to think about it.

“Tomorrow,” I told her as I marched forward. She tugged on her hand, but I wouldn’t let her go. “You’ll go tomorrow.”

“Fred, why are you dragging me through the woods?” she groaned as she fought against my grip.

I laughed. “I’m not even holding you that hard.” I peered over my shoulder. “What’s wrong, genius? Have you lost some of your strength?”

She tipped her head back with a defiant smirk as she dug her heels into the ground. My shoulder and elbow made a resonantpopsound as the joints were abruptly pulled taut. The motion allowed me to pivot about on my heel, so I was back to towering over her. For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out how to wipe that aggravating smirk off her lips.

It would have to be something smart, something that she wouldn’t expect.

Like a kiss.

“Oops,” she said with a shrug. “Guess I don’t know my own strength.”

I released her hand. Heat slicked my palm where our skin had practically fused together, the sudden sensation of cool, salty air making me feel like I was missing something without her hand in mine.

She rubbed her palms together, and it made me think perhaps she felt the same thing, until she opened those plump, glossy lips of hers. “If we’re not going now, whatarewe doing, soldier?”

“Going back to base.”

My eyes scouted the trees, branches, anything that moved—but never once did I feel like avoiding her gaze. Every chance I got, I looked right into those hazel delights, trying to tell myself that the warmth growing inside me was just excitement for the mission ahead.

Justfor the mission. Not for Kylie.

And certainly not for the hope that sparkled in her eyes.

Chapter 6 - Kylie

I stood on my front porch with my hands shoved in the pockets of my pleated skirt. The tank top I wore was the shade of pink coneflowers with a few swirling ivy designs on it in an elegant green. White tennis shoes, scuffed up from wearing them for everythingbuttennis, covered my feet decently enough. Maybe I needed new ones.

My eyes never left the dirt road. A couple people had passed by this late afternoon, but it had mostly been quiet since I’d come out here and leaned against the freshly painted posts. Faye was probably in her apartment—sectioned in half, so the left side was mine and the right side was hers—doing that sweaty yoga stuff she went on about. It got a bit musky in the foyer that separated our apartments on the days she practiced it.

I zoned out while staring at the cobblestones leading to the dirt road.

One year in hiding had pretty much robbed me of any good socialization. I mean, I couldn’t fault my pack for being weird with me—I was technically still a stranger around here—but I wasn’t sure how to interact with them. I didn’t know how to join their celebrations or talk to other people inside the community center.

Those compact offices were usually pretty busy most days, and I found myself drawn to the crowds just as much as I wanted to go for a ride on my bike. Yet no matter how much I tried to indulge myself with other people, I just missed too much.

Like the part where I got to act like everything was normal.

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