Running To Nowhere

Zayla

Grabbing hold of my arm, her eyes are so full of concern.

“Zay, what’s wrong?”

I try to calm myself before I tell her, but the words spew out like vomit.

“They saw Soren’s mark and assumed it was from a random! The twins basically called me a whore, saying my mate would be ashamed of me.”

Anger flashes on her face. I may have only just told Paisley yesterday, but she knows me better than anyone.

She’s made comments and voiced concerns over my fucked-up mood swings in the past, but I always brushed it off.

Knowing about Soren now, she knows the emotions were never fully mine, but my wolf’s.

Because my dad was right, your wolf has to complete the bond. It physically hurts not to if it’s your mate, and that’s my fucking problem. That’s my wolf’s fucking problem.

Her emotions and wanting to be marked all this time have had my emotions in a tailspin. Half the time her sadness and anger have overpowered my own emotions to the point where I can’t control it.

But now!

With a fresh mark on my skin, she’s trying to chew through the chain that binds us together just to get to him. Her need to complete the bond has me oversensitive and more over-reacting than usual.

Her obsession with him has always been overpowering, but it grew uncontrollable when we smelled his arousal. That was a sign that he wanted us, whereas before he was there but practically nonexistent.

Whether he meant for us to smell him or not we did, and that sent my wolf further into a state of madness, her hunger and need for him burning brighter than ever before.

“I’ll talk to them,” Paisley finally says after a moment. The words come out soft, but I can hear the anger in them. Anger for me, for the hurt I’m feeling that I shouldn’t be.

“I can’t have you do that, Paisley.”

“Yes, you can. Now go clear your head!” She pushes my shoulders, causing my body to turn around, before shoving me forward, effectively getting her point across.

Giving her a nod and a quick thank you, I let my wolf take over, running through the trees at a quick pace, with nowhere in mind to go.

After a few minutes of running, my mind begins wandering to last night. I was so happy that he touched me, so euphoric with the feeling of his teeth piercing my skin.

The happiness slowly returns as I think about it, that is until the conversation with my family comes back into the forefront of my mind.

I know my family is trying to protect me, but fuck do they have a way to do it. I’m so pissed about it I want to explode, but at the same time I want to break down some more and cry.

My wolf continues to run mindlessly as I continue to run through my emotions. No one emotion’s strong enough to take the lead.

My body is in a state of emotional distress.

All the lies and hiding things from my family and friends have been weighing down on me for so long.

My wolf’s need and desire to parade the information around to everyone is always so strong, but my need to protect myself from scrutiny overshadows her at every turn.

I have no doubt in my mind that holding in these strong emotions wasn’t the smartest of ideas; my mental health has been taking constant blows since I first heard his voice.

My mind continues to race back and forth between emotions and memories before my wolf and I are halted in our tracks.

A smell hits us so strongly our muscles lock in place. Frozen.

Sitting nestled in between the trees, right on the border of our pack line, is a cute little cottage-style house.

Confusion takes over my emotions. I’ve run this line a million times and I’ve never seen this house.

Where did it come from?

Breathing in a deep breath, all I smell is him.

Soren.

Taking back control over my body, I transform back into my human self. Sucking in an unsure breath, I walk closer to the house.

The lights are all off, making it seem abandoned. Getting to the window of the little cottage, I cup my hands and look in.

The room is simple yet cluttered—books and things taking over space on the table and couch.

I stand there for a minute, unsure what to do, just breathing in Soren’s scent before finally getting the courage to touch the doorknob. I walk in.

The smell of him from before is nothing compared to inside the house. It’s so strong that it has my wolf purring as it envelops me in a blanket of comfort.

A sense of being at home soaks into my body as I walk around taking in everything in Soren’s living room.

Going toward the fireplace, I notice a few pictures that instantly catch my eye. Walking closer to them, I notice why they caught my eye.

In front of me, sitting neatly on Soren’s fireplace, are several pictures of me and my wolf.

All taken from a distance and all while I’m smiling off at someone or something. The few pictures of my wolf show her completely in her element. She’s completely relaxed and happy in each one.

Picking up the picture that looks the newest, I turn it over to see the back, hoping to get some sort of indication of when it was taken. But instead I’m met with something else.

~Nothing like seeing my beautiful Lux smiling to warm the soul and melt the heart~ is written beautifully in thin, clean cursive lines.

Setting the picture down before my heart explodes at the sweetness of the words, I make my way around the house, walking through the kitchen and hall.

I spot more pictures randomly throughout the house. All of them are my wolf, and I am happy.

Along the way I find a few empty bedrooms and a bathroom before coming to the end of the hall.

Opening the shut door, I find myself in Soren’s bedroom. The smell of him is stronger here than anywhere in the house.

Diving headfirst onto his giant antique four-poster bed, I’m smothered in his scent. My body is so calm and my wolf so at ease here that I quickly fall asleep to thoughts of my one true love.

My Soren.