Page 7 of Starlight Mates

“I don’t give a shit what your boyfriend’s name is, but I’ll kill him. You step one foot outside this city, I’ll cut him from head to toe and serve you his remains. His family too. Do you understand, Sun?” My heart races as I stare into his blue eyes and see he isn’t joking.

He will kill the boy who cared for me, trained with me, and treated me like family.

Tears threaten to fall, and my shoulders drop as I imagine Harry dead. I don’t bother correcting him a second time by telling him he isn’t my boyfriend. Or that my name isn’t Sun. “I got it.”

He shoves past me, and I look at the rest of my so-called mates. Hollis is smirking, Onyx looks tired, Alek is frowning, andRhodes is half out of his seat with a worried expression. Hollis beats him, coming over to me and touching a tear on my cheek. “Why did you reject our Nexus bond?”

I would almost believe he cares, but he is a good liar. I know because I’m one too.

Still, I want to tell him it was to protect him. It was to stop my wolf, my monster,it, from destroying this world. That I am a danger to them, and they have successfully trapped me here. That they need to let me go before I lose control of it.

There is no compassion in his voice, nothing but hate. “Or are you too selfish to even answer?” He huffs when I don’t speak. “I wish you hadn’t, because if you’d given us half the chance, if I’d taken one look at you, I would have rejected the bond too. You’re a weak coward, Gwen.” I can barely hold in the tears from that statement, from the pure hate in his eyes. Hollis looks over his shoulder at Onyx. “I’m not her fucking babysitter. I’m not taking her anywhere. Figure it all out yourself, but I’m done.”

My wolf howls in my chest, whining in pain at the firmness of the worddone. I wonder if they can hear it as all four of the rest of them look straight at me for a second, like the echo of the Nexus bond between us that I broke is vibrating. I don’t trust myself to say a word without crying.

The door opens behind me, and I turn around to see Rochelle strolling in like she knows this place well. Rochelle is still blonde, very skinny, but as beautiful as she was when we were teenagers and had nothing to do but have petty arguments. She isn’t someone I expected to see though. She looks me up and down, sighing loudly, walking past me into Hollis’s open arms. He smiles at her like she is his world and then kisses her, passionately, clearly to show me my place. She has her own Nexus mate, so why is she here and all overmine?

But he isn’t mine.

I rejected him and I deserve every bit of this pain.

I have to dig my nails into my palms to push my Nexus down. The wave of jealousy coming from it is like nothing I’ve ever felt, and the feeling clashes with my pain, almost toppling me over. My feet feel like they are moving on their own as I turn, running to the front door and straight out into the open just to gasp in the air like a much-needed drug.

I don’t stop running.

Chapter

Four

Ibarely see the street around me as I run; only the feeling of the wind in my hair and the cold air freezing my breath catches my attention. The cobble pavements, the towering trees, and everything else is a haze. All of it is nearly like I’m running through a dream, because all I can focus on is the thumping of my heart, the feeling of my Nexus clawing in my chest, begging and trying to come out. It’s angry, it’s jealous, and I get why. I didn’t expect them not to have relationships and sex. They are handsome and powerful. Why wouldn’t they? I bet half the Nexus girls have thrown themselves at my mates. I’ve been gone five years. Of course they had relationships, but I guess I wasn’t expecting to be faced with it so soon.

Or it to be her.

She was like a glaringly obvious beacon of truth that my Nexus wanted to eat for supper to mark its territory. In fact, I think it felt like destroying the entire world because of Hollis and Rochelle. I don’t know how to stop it, but I keep running, hoping it will calm down when I’m not around our mates. The pounding of my feet on the pavement is almost soothing, but I’m aware that someone’s chasing me. Stopping at a crossroads, I glance behind me to see Rhodes. He’s a few feet away, even though Ifeel like if he wanted to, he could close the distance between us in a second. He pauses with me, keeping an eye out around us before his eyes lock with mine…just for a second.

For a second, I imagine running to him. Telling him everything and hoping he doesn’t hate me. Hoping he understands why I need to get away from them—from Starlight. But he wouldn’t understand. Hewouldhate me. His mouth opens, but I turn away before I can hear what he shouts. I sprint across the crossroads and down a shorter path next to a busy road. Cars swoop past, but not just cars, horses…Nexus shifters. Three of them, all white, run past me, and I watch them, feeling my Nexus watching too.

The pathway opens up into an alleyway, and on the other side, I see a much busier street. The walls are old down the alleyway, thick grey brick and brown mortar somehow holding it all up. Moss has sneaked in the cobblestone in the alleyway, but as I step onto the street, it’s flawless and clean. Old buildings line the row, with a big clearing path in the middle that looks like it cuts through the city from one side to the other. All the buildings are ancient, old Scottish houses that have been kept and tidied up, so close to the original that it feels like stepping back in time. Each of the shops nestled in the townhouses have triangular roofs with small animal designs in stone. No one notices me as I slip into the crowd and disappear like a ghost. One of my favourite things to do.

I keep running until I stop and realise that I’m hidden in a swarm of people. Of Nexus. I glance around, but no one’s looking my way, and it’s strange to be around so many. There are a few humans here too, but they must know about Nexus or be married in. I’m not sure what the rules are on humans, but I know Starlight is hidden from human knowledge for the most part. Some are shifted into their Nexus; wolves, snakes, bears, and a tiger stroll on like it’s a normal day. Two tiger cubs runafter the mother, and I smile, watching them for a moment and just letting myself enjoy the moment of peace after the storm.

Yes, I’m trapped in the city, but I’m safe for now. My Nexus mates aren’t hurt, and I have my monster under control. It won’t stay under wraps for long, but I have a few weeks before it will need to hunt. I make sure my Nexus is tucked away where no one can sense it before I walk with the crowds.

I can feel one of my mates following near—Rhodes, I assume, but I can’t tell the feelings apart. I think the only way I’ll be able to do that is by spending more time with them, and I’m not doing that. Somehow, I have to get away from them all. I don’t think Onyx or Rhodes will hurt me or force our Nexus to mate, but I don’t trust the others. Hollis might just attempt to hurt me, and I have to watch my back with him.

My eyes drop to the most beautiful golden retriever as a human walks it past. He sees me looking and pauses. “This is Gentle. I would let you stroke her, but she has a temper around Nexus. My Nexus wife puts up with her because I love her.”

I fall to my knees in front of Gentle and hold my hand out. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, gorgeous girl. I won’t stroke you unless you want me to.” She stares at me with her big brown eyes before nudging my hand with her nose, and I take that as a hint to stroke her neck.

Her owner laughs. “It must be because she is having pups. She is never this nice.”

I rise to my feet and grin. “I love dogs and I’ve always wanted a golden retriever. Thank you for letting me say hello.”

“Are you new? Only, you look fam?—”

I leave before he can figure out why I’m familiar. I only get another mile down the street before Rhodes is standing in my path, right in front of a tea shop. The smell of tea fills my senses as Rhodes crosses his arms. “You can stop running now. We canwalk together and talk. Chasing you is getting old when there is nowhere you can run that I won’t follow, Gwenieve.”

I have the feeling he’s definitely going to be the one that plays good cop with me. “Are you my guard for the day?” I spread my arms out. “I hate to tell you this, but bodyguards don’t need to talk. In fact, looking muscular and scary is all the job requires.”

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