Page 21 of Fated to the Warrior Wolf

“I want a paternity test.” He cut me off, apparently out of patience with my stammering and emotions.

The blood in my veins turned cold, and I swayed backward, shocked even though I shouldn’t have been. I’d told him I was with another man. Of course he wanted a paternity test, but?—

“Brielle says it’s safe, a simple blood draw. I’m going to follow up tomorrow and see about getting mine drawn. All I need is for you to provide a sample.”

“Okay,” I whispered, no fight left in me.

This wasn’t how this was supposed to go. I squared my shoulders, forcing myself to try again, even though it felt like he’d hollowed me out without even trying. “But Gael, I didn’t, Ihaven’t… I was just angry at you, and?—”

“And after the results come back, we’ll know. And if it’s not mine, you’ll never have to see me again.” His voice held a cold finality, and with one nod, he slipped inside his room and shut the door.

It.

My eyes fell closed at the pain. I should have pounded on the door, blurted it out. Forced him to hear me. But I couldn’t do that. I couldn’t bear the way he looked at me for one more second.

I barely made it into my own room before the waterfall of tears began, leaning against the back of the door as I slowly sank down to the plush carpet. And once they started, they didn’t stop.

TWELVE

Gael

Ileaned against the door and exhaled hard. She was going to kill me. I had to get away from her, or I was going to do something really stupid, like shove her up against the wall and kiss her until she forgot the other guy’s name.

And if it was just us, I might have done it anyway. But I couldn’t keep another man from his child. That would be wrong, and I sure as shit couldn’t watch her be with another man. I meant what I’d said, and if she was pregnant with anyone else’s baby, I was going to leave the pack. I couldn’t ask her to leave, and I couldn’t stay and watch. It would kill me.

We’d do the blood work tomorrow, find out the paternity, and then my fate would be set. If it was someone else’s, I couldn’t change that, but if she was mine…

My fingertips itched as my claws descended. My jaw ached as my fangs lowered in a half shift.

Fuck.

I paced away from the door, trying to get myself back under control. I couldn’t bite her just because she was pregnant. It was bad enough I’d knotted her in the heat of the moment. Thatwasn’t something youdidoutside of a mate bond, outside of a heat.

And I’d never been even close to having it happen like that, accidentally.

Not that she’d believed me.

I raked a hand through my hair, temporarily forgetting my claws and scoring my scalp with a curse in the process.

I needed to talk to Kane. Or Dirge. He was older and knew about the family dynamics in this part of the world.He’dunderstand why I couldn’t claim Leigh without mate marks. That would be better, because Kane already had too much on his plate.

Even if he didn’t, if I didn’t talk to someone, I was going to explode. But he was on guard, and I didn’t want to air my family’s dirty laundry in the hall for anyone to walk by and hear.

No, it would have to wait, and I’d have to get myself under control. I needed a run. A long, hard, exhausting run, until my sides heaved and there were no thoughts or what-ifs left in my head.

I quickly shucked off my nightshirt, leaving myself in just a pair of cut-off sweatpants, and let myself into the hall barefoot.

Dirge nodded at me as I headed out, quietly shutting my door and walking on silent feet out of the family wing and into the knights’ hall.

It was trippy, this castle. A strange mix of old and new, and the arched ceilings with the brightly colored pennants distracted me temporarily from my woes. How many men had stood here over the centuries? How many had fought great battles?

I could almost feel them looking down on me with judgment from the empty suits of armor, and it shone a spotlight on how far off the rails my life had gone.

Nothing was how it was supposed to be, and I was a helpless pup in the center of the mess. But not for much longer.

I opened up the back door, sucking in a steadying lungful of the clean, night air, and then let my wolf burst from my skin.

The next morning,I stood against the wall in the breakfast room, where Kane and Reed were in deep discussion about the politics on the ground among the local packs that I wasn’t listening to.

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