Chapter Thirty-Three

ASH

Though her words had stung, he knew deep down it was just his alpha pride that was injured and pushed the feeling aside.

The most important thing was helping her through this next week, and whatever made it easier for her was what he would do.

He was grateful that she felt comfortable enough with him to be open about what she wanted; he could tell she felt conflicted about it.

He knew her senses were becoming more heightened as the transformation began to take hold and that included the link of the mate bond. It was a lot for her to handle.

Luca had knocked on the door shortly after their conversation, bringing a cup of broth for Keyara and checking on her status.

He watched quietly in the background as she sipped from the steaming mug, struggling at first to keep it down, but slowly adjusting to the intake of sustenance.

He had managed to block out his feelings of worry and dread from reaching her as she struggled.

Though the effort of cutting off the link was emotionally taxing, he had already seen an improvement in Key’s demeanor for not having to process his emotions along with her own, which was encouraging.

But he knew he couldn’t keep it up for much longer.

~“Stay with her,”~ he told Luca.~ “I need to run.”~

~“Don’t go too far,” ~came the reply.

He nodded to Luca before kissing Keyara’s hand. “I'll be back soon,” he told her.

She watched him carefully, her expression unreadable, sipping slowly from the mug in her hands.

He undressed as he approached the edge of the woods, leaving his clothes in a scattered trail. He passed the men on watch, nodding to them in greeting.

They nodded back, but no one questioned his actions, likely sensing the darkness of his mood.

Once he was bare he shifted, stretching out his expanded canine form before breaking into a run, the trees flying by in a blur. Faster and faster his paws pummeled the earth as he let his frustrations manifest into speed.

It felt good to run, to push his muscles to the limits and erase all the worries from his mind, losing himself to the animal instincts of his wolf.

He ran circle after circle around the settlement, careful not to venture too far from his mate. He lost count of the laps he ran, running until there was a trail worn into the soft grass of the forest floor.

When he finally felt some sense of peace, he slowed to a walk. His muscles burned, but the feeling was satisfying.

He didn’t know how much time had passed, but he carefully opened the link to Keyara. He huffed in relief to sense that she was asleep.

He trotted back to where he had shifted, stopping when he reached his leather breeches crumpled against the grass. He quickly shifted back into human form, pulling the leather over his hips and fastening the laces at his waist.

He gathered his shirt a few feet away, bunching it into a ball carelessly, and picked up his boots by the laces when he reached them a few steps later. They swung with the motion of his steps.

When he entered the chamber where Keyara was sleeping, he found Luca reading silently in the armchair in the corner.

Her face was peaceful, and he was glad to see it. Luca stood as his alpha entered the room, setting the book aside.

~“Thank you for watching over her.”~ Ash spoke through the link, not wanting to wake her.

~“Of course, Alpha. She is strong,”~ Luca replied. ~“She is doing very well. I have a good feeling about the outcome.”~

Ash nodded, setting his boots down by the door and tossing his shirt into a corner before crawling into bed beside Keyara, his tired muscles relaxing immediately as he took her in his arms.

He hoped his beta was right.

KEYARA

She had watched Ash leave with a wave of guilt. She knew he was trying to give her what she needed and loved him for it, but she was afraid of pushing him away in what could very well be the final days they had together.

Luca brought her another steaming mug of broth after some time had passed without her system rejecting it. She sipped it slowly, feeling the fat and protein absorb into her system.

She felt better with the boost of energy it gave her, and the intense pain in her head eased a bit. He had been right that her body needed nutrition.

Luca distracted her and passed the time with idle chatter. It was not at all awkward, even though they had barely spoken before this.

He told her all about his mate, Jill, and how they had met last year at the final meeting of their diplomatic visits.

He had literally run into her on the docks and had basically kidnapped her, much to her initial dismay.

He described her habit of speaking about her actions out loud when she was in the middle of working on something difficult, and how he always teased her for it.

The adoring way in which he spoke of her made Keyara smile.

He moved on to stories of Ash as a child. They had grown up together, he explained to her, and had gotten into quite a bit of mischief as youngsters.

She hadn’t realized they were such good friends in addition to Luca being his beta.

Her favorite story had been about the time Ash had attached a giant paper mustache to the portrait of his grandfather, while Luca acted as lookout in the hallway.

It had been on full display in the pack meeting room for several weeks before anyone had noticed.

When it was finally spotted, it was during a formal visit from the alpha of a nearby pack, who had commented with amusement on the change before a joint pack meeting of great importance.

She had laughed along with Luca as he described the extra laps Ash had to run as punishment, berating Luca through the mind-link the entire time for the fact he had gotten off the hook.

Ash had not divulged his involvement, Luca had told her proudly. It felt good to laugh, even though the discomfort was ever present. Luca’s lighthearted company was a good distraction.

As the discomfort returned, she closed her eyes, trying to shut it out. Luca had selected one of the books, reading out loud to her.

His steady voice in the background to focus on was exactly what she needed. It eventually lulled her to sleep, and her last thought was how nice it was to have made a friend.