Page 21 of The Wolf's Pregnant Rejected Mate

Tess shook her off. “Ryder wants us to collect food. And it’s better than just sitting here waiting for something to happen.”

“Unless the demons have come back,” Elin argued.

“If they were around, that deer wouldn’t be so calm.”

“It shouldn’t be that calm! Not when I was screaming. It might be possessed,” Elin cried.

Tess opened her mouth but closed it again. Could demons possess animals? She hadn’t heard of them doing that, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t. It would be just like them to pose as something innocent to get closer to the two women.

As she hesitated, Elin shook her head. “I don’t have the luxury of being brave like you.”

The anger from before dissipated as Elin’s pained, timid voice cut through. Tess knew that voice. She’d spent most of her life speaking in that tone. With that feeling behind it. A long sigh whistled from her lungs.

“You’ve got that backward,” she said. “Being brave isn’t a luxury. It’s a matter of survival.”

Elin gave her a doubtful look, but Tess didn’t care to explain. Her stomach was cramped with hunger, and even the fear of the demons wasn’t enough to keep her from trying. The idea of being possessed was terrifying, but Tess had lived most of her life in fear. She had decided long ago not to let it rule her.

She stepped from the cabin—Elin showed no sign of wanting to leave—and watched the deer. When she clapped her hands, its head jolted up. Its nose twitched, and it bolted into the forest when it saw her. Tess waited a moment, but there was no sign that it or anything else was coming back. She carefully made her way back down the rocks. All the exertions she’d been doing already left her legs feeling wobbly.

Food would help. The deer had decimated the berry bush, so Tess took her wolf form and padded a little further into the forest. Her nose twitched as she rotated her ears, searching for any sign of food or danger. She soon caught the scent of a rabbit and, thinking of meat, followed the trail. It wound down the mountain, and after only a few minutes, she hesitated. Was she getting too far from the cabin?

The wind shifted, bringing with it the scent of blood—and brimstone. Tess’s heart leaped to her throat, and she wheeled around. Howling broke out all around her as she dashed back the way she came. Movement in the bushes caught her eye. They were waiting for her to get closer. She veered off-course, breaking away from the ambush waiting for her.

The demon-possessed wolves came at her, racing to get ahead and block her way. Tess focused, turning on the dime. She slipped through the space between two of the ambushers and ducked under a bramble bush. The demons tried to follow. One got tangled in the thorns while the others had to round it. And that bought her the few seconds she needed.

She got to the rocks and started to scramble up them. One of the demons burst after her. He jumped into the air, snapping his teeth at her heel. He shifted to human form and hurtled up the rocks after her.

“Elin!” Tess screamed.

Elin came out of the cabin and screamed as well. Tess thought she was going to jump back in and slam the door, but she grabbed a small rock and hurled it through the air. The rock smashed into the demon’s face just as he grabbed Tess’s ankle. His fingernails ripped through her skin, but he fell back, tumbling over the rock terraces.

Tess climbed up the last one and rolled into the protective circle. Elin seized her arm and half-dragged her back into the cabin. The door slammed with a resounding thud. The two women huddled together, panting. Tears ran down Elin’s cheeks.

“I told you it was dangerous,” she wailed.

Tess shook her head, too out of breath to speak.

They were trapped. If the men didn’t come back soon… Tess closed her eyes, trying to control her breathing. They’d be back. Soon. They had to be.

***

The demons prowled at the base of the stone terraces. A few of them climbed up sometimes and hollered obscene comments through the cabin walls. Tess and Elin kept the shutters closed and waited.

The tension was unbearable. Tess wished there was something to do. A deck of cards would be welcome. In the end, she and Elin had nothing to do but talk. They kept their voices down in case the demons had gotten close enough to listen.

“Are you and Ryder mates now?” Elin asked.

Tess’s cheeks went warm. Given the situation, she'd hoped Elin wouldn’t ask her that. But, of course, she had to know what happened between her and Ryder.

She tried to keep her voice steady and uninterested. “No.”

Elin gave her a startled look. “No? But you two…”

“No,” Tess repeated. “You don’t have to be mates to have sex. We were alone here together and… and wanted to pass the time.”

Despite her determination to pretend nothing was amiss, the memories washed through her. There was still a slight ache between her legs, reminding her of how recent it actually was. It felt like it had been ages ago rather than earlier in the day. It happened in this very cabin, which felt more like a prison than a sanctuary now.

Not mates.

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