Page 19 of Owning His Mate

There must be something in the way I say this, because Wyatt nods. “You’ve been hurt before.”

I don’t want to talk about my past, but in the moment the idea of offloading onto someone who won’t judge me is appealing. “You could say that.”

It’s a massive understatement. I’d been destroyed by the people I trusted and who were supposed to love me. It turned out blood was not thicker than water. Pack links meant nothing. I was a dangerous enemy, someone feared, even though I did nothing to create that mistrust. The moment my first moon ceremony failed and I realized my wolf was not only latent but also weak, I knew my life as I knew it was over. My pack did what all packs do when they find tau in their midst—they tried to kill me.

“What happened?”

I try to keep my emotions closed down. The last thing I want is Kye to pick up on what I’m feeling through our bond as I take this trip down memory lane.

“My pack… They… They did things when they found out what I was and—” I suck in a breath, trying to stop the awful memories from flowing through me. “They tortured me for days. People I’d known my whole life took turns cutting me and hitting me. My own… my own family hurt me to keep their place in the pack.”

Even though this kind of violence against tau happens all the time, it feels good to tell someone the horror I endured.

“I’m sorry that happened to you,” he says. “It shouldn’t have. The witch hunt to destroy hybrids is horrifying, but are you worried about mating because you think Kye will do the same? Because he’s vargr, so he’s facing similar hate. Our kind aren’t exactly welcome at the table either.”

He’s right. They’re not. Vargr are an anomaly too, and plenty of wolves are just as scared of them as they are of tau.

“I think trusting people gets you hurt.”

“So reject him.”

I grip the counter behind me until my fingers ache. “That’s not an option, Wyatt. If we don’t nurture our mating bond, we are both in for a future of intense pain and suffering.”

It’s the cruelest twist when it comes to the bond. Sure, you can reject the mate the magic we channel chose for you, but it will kill you eventually. It’s a choice but a shackle for both parties.

“As opposed to a present full of intense pain and suffering?”

It’s a fair point, but it still doesn’t solve the issue. “Kye hasn’t done anything to me, and he didn’t ask for this either. I know I have to allow him in, but I don’t know if I can.”

Wyatt huffs out a breath, and the sadness in his expression squeezes my heart.

“We really lost the genetic lottery, didn’t we? Doomed to either spend a lifetime alone without finding our mate or tormented when we do because they may not be the one for us.”

My fingers trail over the back of my neck, where I can still feel Kye’s touch. Is he the one for me? My stomach flutters at the thought of him even as it revolts at the very idea of being tethered to him. “I know I have to accept him.”

“You don’t have to do shit, Apryle. Don’t let anyone tell you any different.”

“But we’ll both waste away.”

He pushes off the counter, coming to stand in front of me. “Yeah, but at least that’ll be your choice. You need that looked at,” he says, gesturing to my wrist. “I’ll go wake Halle.”

He leaves the kitchen, and I stare after him. I didn’t expect him to be in my corner. Most wolves are pretty focused on the mating bond once it’s in place, but Kye isn’t to blame here. I’m guessing this was the last place he expected to find his mate too.

He had been so concerned about my injury, and that hadn’t been feigned. He can lie with his expressions or his words, but he can’t hide his thoughts from me.

And he’s not trying to. I can feel his frustration, a hint of sadness, and worry for me.

I have to allow the bond to grow between us. I won’t let him suffer for something he has no choice in, but I won’t get close to him. That’s not a boundary I’m ever going to cross.

I’m sorry,I say through the bond, throwing out an olive branch.

When no response comes,it’s not anger or rejection I feel, but regret. It is a cruel twist of fate that the universe has saddled Kye with an unwilling and broken mate that he cannot fix.

Chapter 5

Kye

It’s getting harder and harder to stay away from Apryle, to give her the space she demands. I watch her every moment I can. Over the past few days, I’ve observed her while keeping my distance, but I want to be there for her, especially since I’ve noticed she doesn’t have much sense of self-preservation—a concerning trait to have, considering we’re at war.

---