Chapter 6: Chapter Five

SAVANNAH

I was seething. The nerve of him. Mocking me and then just walking away. Leaving me red-faced in front of my roommate and his little posse.

I bit back a string of expletives. “I’m ready to leave,” I announced to Jaka.

She nodded, bidding farewell to Kayden and Stephanie, and hurried to keep pace with me.

“You’re mad?” she asked, her voice laced with concern.

“I’m ~beyond~ mad,” I muttered. “I just want to strangle him. Why is he so infuriating? And… “

“Hot?” she offered, a teasing glint in her eyes.

I glanced at her, her button nose and strawberry blonde hair bouncing in a ponytail. “Annoying,” I corrected. “He just knew I needed help—”

“He sensed it,” she interjected. “All mates can. And when he marks you, you’ll both feel each other’s emotions.”

I halted abruptly, nearly tripping over the loose gravel of the parking lot. “What do you mean mark me? Isn’t that what the lycan was talking about too?”

Jaka swallowed, nervously twirling the end of her ponytail. “Maybe we should talk about it over some ice cream. It might make the news easier to swallow.”

“It can’t be that bad, can it?”

***

I finished the last of my ice cream cone and curled up on my bed, tucking my feet under the blanket. “He’ll bite me, Jaka? Seriously?”

She shrugged, pulling her long T-shirt over her head and hopping into her bed. “Yeah. It’s how mates officially claim each other. You’ll wear his mark, and he’ll wear yours. It’s romantic, Savannah.”

“No, it sounds a bit cannibalistic to me,” I mumbled.

~This is madness. But why doesn’t the thought of Dax biting me feel as horrifying as it should?~

I glanced at the picture of Trent and me. A pang of sadness shot through my chest.

“You know it’s not going to work out with your boyfriend back home. You should probably just go ahead and cut him loose.”

I shot her a sharp look. “You’ve never met him. I love him—”

“Yeah, but he isn’t your mate, and if you reject Dax, it’ll shatter him. Literally. Some wolves die from rejection. He probably wouldn’t die, being an alpha, but he’d become ruthless and mean.

That’s why he needs a luna, which is why you’re here at Werewolf U. You’re here to learn to be what he needs.”

To be what he needs.

“Is he here to learn how to treat me?”

A smile tugged at her lips. “Seems to me he already knows how. Did you see the way he defended your honor tonight?”

I rolled my eyes, even though I hadn’t been able to stop replaying that moment. The fury he displayed for someone else touching me felt visceral.

I bit my bottom lip, trying to imagine meeting him under different circumstances. Would I have been attracted to him then? Without this eternal mate bond?

Jaka chuckled. “I know you feel it. The pull. It’s just not as strong for you because you haven’t shifted yet.”

“What’s that like?” I whispered.

“Shifting?” Jaka asked, turning to face me in her bed. “It’s liberating to finally shift. It’s like releasing an animalistic side that you didn’t even know was there. When you’re in your wolf form … I can’t explain it.

You’ll probably shift soon. I looked at your schedule. You have combat tomorrow and then after Luna 101 on Wednesday you have a free period with Mrs. Jamieson. I’m sure they’ll work with you on shifting.”

I chuckled, then closed my eyes in disbelief. I couldn’t believe I was buying into any of this. I turned my back to Jaka, not wanting to meet her gaze as I plotted my escape.

“Good night,” I said.

Knowing it would be the last time I saw her.

I waited until Jaka was sound asleep, deep into the night, before I grabbed my purse and slipped out of the dorm room. I didn’t even grab my clothes, not wanting to risk waking Jaka.

The dark hallway sent a chill down my spine, but my desire to escape this madhouse outweighed my fear.

The RA’s office light was off, thankfully, so I tiptoed out of the dorm and into the night. The silence enveloped me like a heavy cloak, rooting me to the spot.

It took several seconds for my eyes to adjust, and I wished they hadn’t. Long shadows stretched across the ground, casting eerie shapes around me.

I’d never really been afraid of the dark, but knowing what lurked around me sent my fear skyrocketing.

I quickened my pace, needing to get off campus before someone spotted me. I jogged through the courtyard and towards the iron gates.

I blocked out the sounds of wildlife, the howl of a wolf, and the cicadas humming in the distance. I focused on the iron gates that I realized were firmly shut.

I tugged at them, but they wouldn’t budge. They were too close together to slip through, and climbing over was out of the question. I bit my lip, trying to keep my panic at bay.

I didn’t want to stay here. I wanted to go home. Grammy hadn’t answered my calls since I arrived, and I couldn’t tell Trent everything I wanted to.

Only because if they said I was one, too, I didn’t want him knowing I was some kind of freak. The tall brick wall that connected to the gate and guarded the university didn’t look too difficult to scale.

I hoisted the strap of my purse higher on my shoulder and began my ascent up the brick wall. Each upward movement sent a jolt of pain through my fingertips. My toes slipped, and I tumbled backward onto the ground, the wind knocked out of me. I groaned in frustration.

“You won’t make it.”

I sprang to my feet, spinning around, half-expecting to see Dax. Instead, it was Professor Braxton, clad in a guard-like uniform, his salt-and-pepper hair tousled by the wind and a lopsided smile on his face.

“I could have made it,” I retorted, adjusting my purse. “Are you following me?”

He casually shoved his hands into his pockets. “No, I’m on night patrol. Ensuring we don’t have any intruders, especially after the lycan game. We don’t usually have students trying to escape.”

I brushed a stray black hair from my face. “Well, there’s a first time for everything. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a wall to climb.”

He chuckled. “Come on, Savannah. Do you really want to leave?”

“~Uh~, yes, I do. I don’t belong here. I’m not a werewolf, I don’t want to be one, and I don’t want a mate.”

I’m tired of him following me around and showing up thinking I need rescuing. I have a boyfriend that I really want to go to LSU with, and I feel trapped here.”

Braxton leaned back on his heels and cleared his throat. “I understand,” he said. “But we can’t let you leave. Your parents requested that you learn about your heritage, your true self, and to give you a chance to find your soulmate.

At least stay and learn about your family tree. About your mother’s and father’s abilities. They wanted that for you.”

A hard lump formed in my throat. He would pull out the dead parents card, wouldn’t he? I glanced off into the dark night and debated. I wasn’t getting over the wall, I needed another plan, more time.

I could stay and figure it out. Find out about Mom and Dad. Gain some trust from people, and then bolt.

It seemed like my only choice. “Okay,” I whispered.

Braxton nodded and gestured for me to follow him with his head. “I’ll walk you back. It’s pretty dark out here, especially for a girl who can’t defend herself.”

I fell into step with him and scoffed. “I could defend myself a little.”

He glanced down at me. “Oh yeah? Against a male werewolf?”

I shrugged. “Probably not. My lack of fangs might hinder me.”

“You know Dax just cares about you, right? I’m from the same pack as him. His father is a good man and raised him right. He’ll treat you good.”

My stomach tightened at the thought of getting closer with him. But I knew deep down I couldn’t just drop Trent. I didn’t know this guy. “If he wants to prove that to me he can try, but no promises. I’m taken.”

Braxton lifted a brow at me. “Werewolves don’t share. Remember that, Savannah.”

~So I’ve been told.~

~***~

The next day, I got up and went to grab breakfast with Jaka. She seemed excited about combat class, which I wasn’t so sure about.

She said it was self-defense class in our human form, which was good, because that was the only one I knowingly had.

We were told to dress in athletic clothing. So I pulled on my high-waist black leggings and a peach tank top that Trent always loved on me.

Jaka had too much pep in her step for nine in the morning, but maybe it was my lack of excitement that kept me from following her.

“I’m soooo excited!” she said. “I can’t wait to learn some combat,” she said, doing karate arms.

We neared an open clearing behind a softball field where other girls stood. Someone, who I assumed was the professor, stood in the middle, waiting for class to start.

She was shorter with dark-brown hair and catlike eyes that shifted over us like prey. When her gaze landed on me, I cringed, but she smiled softly, obviously knowing who I was, which made the situation worse.

Everyone on the entire campus knew about me.

“Okay, class. I’m Mrs. Kelly,” she said, her voice surprisingly more southern than I imagined. “We are going to stretch first. Follow me. It’s very important to stretch our muscles so we don’t have any pulls.”

Jaka elbowed me. “That’s Professor’s Braxton’s mate,” she mumbled. “The sexy silver fox. The one from Dax’s pack.”

Oddly, they went together, even though she seemed younger than him.

We were halfway into our stretch when some of the girls started giggling and elbowing one another. Mrs. Kelly glanced over and smiled. “Finally, I thought I was going to have to come get y’all.”

Professor Braxton walked up with several guys, who I recognized from the alpha party, in tow. “You know it’s hard getting alphas out of bed after a football game.”

Nerves skated down my spine. The smell. It was here, which meant ~he~ was here.

“What are they doing here?” I choked out.

Jaka shrugged but didn’t hold back her happiness at seeing them.

Dax strolled in the midst of the alphas, and my mouth dried at the sight of him. His broad shoulders were bare in a tank top, and a pair of black athletic pants hung loosely on his slim hips.

His dark gaze slid over all the girls and stopped on me. Heat soaked my insides when he lazily let his gaze lower over me and back up.

His jaw twitched and I felt like I stood at the base of a volcano.

“Okay, ladies. This semester, we’re going to be practicing with the boys. It’s always beneficial to spar with someone stronger than you—it helps build your own strength.”

Jaka squealed with delight next to me, clapping her hands in anticipation. But my attention was solely on Dax. He stood a few feet away, silent, but his eyes spoke volumes.

“When I call your name, please pair up with your partner.”

~No. No. No.~

As she went down the list, everyone found their partners. But Dax and I remained locked in a silent standoff. I accepted his unspoken challenge, narrowing my eyes at him.

Jaka darted over to a towering redhead, looking like a doll next to him. It didn’t seem like a fair match to me, given her petite stature, but no one had asked for my opinion.

“Savannah Harper,” Mrs. Kelly called out. My heart pounded so loudly in my ears, I was sure Dax could hear it. The corner of his mouth twitched in response. “You’re paired with Daxton Allaire. Let’s get started, everyone.”

My fingers curled into tight fists. I shot a glance at Braxton, but he quickly looked away. They had planned this. The bastards.

Daxton took a few steps toward me, his gaze lingering on my lips before dropping to my chest. His body heat radiated onto me, and I hated how his proximity calmed me.

“Looks like you’re stuck with me,” he murmured. “Good thing, too. I wouldn’t let any of these other alphas lay a finger on you.”

I scoffed and raised my hand. “Mrs. Kelly.”

“Yes, Savannah?”

“Can I please have a different partner?”

All eyes turned to us, and Dax grinned, as if he already knew the answer.

“No switching partners. Everyone line up. We’re starting with basic drills.”

I clenched my jaw. “Don’t think this gives you the right to touch me however you please,” I warned him.

Dax raised an eyebrow and scratched the stubble on his square jaw. “Hmm, we’ll see about that. Those leggings look damn good on you.” He stepped closer. “But I’m sure you look even better without them.”

~Asshole!~