Page 56 of Wolf Forgotten

They'd locked my mate up too?

A growl tore from me and she stepped back with wide eyes. Damn it, I scared her.

Whining, I changed course and crawled forward toward the bars. Was she going to go get the men now that I’d frightened her? Why was she even here in the first place?

"Why don't you shift back? I have some cooked steak here for you. You might like it better as a human." She knelt down just out of range of where I would be able to touch her. "They aren't going to let you out of here until you shift."

Of course they weren't.

My belly ached with the need for food. I was sure my human form was in even worse shape. My wolf had locked him out for weeks, or maybe it was months. Why shift when my wolf could open doors and get along perfectly fine without me? It was easier this way; the pain less.

I sniffed the air and moved a little closer, my eyes on the plate she set down. Once my nose was just between the bars and could go no further, she smiled.

"Oh, geez. I totally just had the urge to saygood boyto you. That's probably a wolf shifter faux pas." She certainly was chatty. I wasn't used to the auditory stimulation.

She pushed the plate right up to the bars, but I couldn't get the meat that way. A line formed between her eyebrows, and she pulled the plate away. She seemed to concentrate on her thoughts, and then she nodded, picked up a piece, and put it in her palm.

"I know this is stupid of me, but I'll heal, right? I don't want you to have to eat off the dirty floor." She laughed nervously.

The thought of biting her repulsed me. She moved closer and stuck her hand out as I stepped back so her hand could come through the bars. She had really nice hands, hands that would feel great rubbing the spot behind my ears I could never get.

I took the piece of meat gently off her hand and swallowed it down without chewing. My mate grabbed another piece and continued feeding me through the bars of the cage. When the meat was all gone, she turned the glass plate sideways and put it through the bars, letting me lick the juices and tiny meat pieces that were left.

"If they come down here later to feed you, pretend you didn't have leftover steak, okay?" She poured water from the bottle she had onto the plate and I lapped it up. "Cole said I'm not allowed down here alone, and if he finds out I didn't listen..."

I growled again, not liking the sound of Cole. If he laid a hand on her—

The door upstairs opened, and she sucked in a breath. I pulled myself to my feet on wobbly legs, willing to defend her if Cole came at her. I didn't know how with being locked up, but I would.

But I knew the scent coming down the stairs. It was the wolf who tried to lick me. I growled as he came completely into view at the bottom of the stairs.

"Ivy, we told you not to come down here alone. He's dangerous." He didn't sound mad, but the worst type of anger was the kind that lurked silently.

I'll show you dangerous.I showed my teeth and my hair bristled.

"He's not. Maybe he needs human contact to want to shift back. Who knows how long he's been like this." She stood and crossed her arms. "You brought him a blanket."

He shrugged. "Well, since Cole said he can't sleep in my room, I figured I'd bring my room to him."

I really didn't like the sound of this Cole guy. My head tilted to the side in curiosity as he hugged a blanket to his chest. It had been a long time since I'd felt the comforts of a blanket.

"But he's too dangerous for me to come visit and feed when there are bars and chains keeping him away from me? Unbelievable. No wonder both of you are single." My mate defending me made me puff out my chest. Normally my wolf would balk at the idea, but desperate times and all.

"We aren't single anymore, are we?" He gave her a lopsided smile that was both infuriating and cute.

"That's not the point. The point is locking him up in a cage is hurting him even more. He's not going to bite me." She reached back in my cage and petted the top of my head. "See, harmless."

"Ivy!" He rushed forward, and I lunged for him, snapping my teeth at the bars as he pulled her away from the cage. "We have no clue what his deal is. All signs point to him not having shifted in a while."

"Why would something like that happen?" She picked up the blanket he had dropped in his haste to save her from the big bad wolf.

"A lot of reasons. He could have been kicked out of his pack, someone special to him could have died, he could be sick. No matter the reason, he has already showed signs of aggression."

He would have tried to attack any male that had his hands on his mate too. I was protecting what's mine.

"But it's perfectly fine for you to want him in your room."

I'd much prefer to be inherroom. I could see myself curled up next to her, her hand stroking my head as I drifted off to sleep.

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