Page 25 of Wolf Marked

Astrid scrambled for an explanation. “Er—I’m sorry. We didn’t know his name so—”

“Stefan… Stefan…” She repeated it over and over, as if she was getting the feel of it on her tongue. Then she smiled. “You know, because of the raid on our pack, I was never able to give him a proper naming ceremony. But Stefan… I like it. A strong name for my strong, little survivor.”

Astrid sighed in relief. “I thought so, too.”

“He’ll keep it,” the woman said. “Bless you for helping us. I truly believe you were sent from the sky spirits to save us. You and your destined mate.”

Astrid was going to tell her that she was mistaken, that Erec wasn’t her mate, but she refrained. It didn’t matter what she thought. They weren’t mates, so why embarrass herself with an explanation? It was better if she just let it go. Erec had made his intentions painfully clear at the pomple tree. He didn’t want to be with her, so they couldn’t be fated to one another.

A few sparks of a past anger flared inside her, but mostly it was disappointment that filled her chest. And no matter how many times she told herself to get over it, to let it go, the pain still lingered. But why?

Enough! Let it go, Astrid. Forget him.

Easy. Done. That was it. She had convinced herself.

She shook her head. Sweet Moons, she wished it could be that simple. Erec was here to help her save her pack. Nothing more. She could tell herself that a hundred times, but her heart didn’t seem to want to listen.

Her gaze swept the camp. She found Erec across the way, chatting to Kalle about something she couldn’t hear. Probably something about Claus and his watch. Then, as if he had sensed her stare, he stopped talking mid-sentence and turned to her.

Why did her chest feel so tight?

Dammit.She glanced away.

The rest of the group started to drift into their tents, ready to catch up on sleep for the remaining hours of the night. The hefty weight of her exhaustion piled on top of her burdensome thoughts. The pain in her calf was still biting, and she wanted nothing more than to close her eyes and get lost in a dream.

Slowly, she lifted herself onto her feet. She ignored the seizing in her muscles and the urge to look back at Erec again. Instead, she picked up her spear, limped over to her tent, and went inside.

She didn’t know how long she had lain under the blankets staring at the canvas ceiling and listening to the wind whip against the tent’s walls. The voices outside had quieted some time ago, and her inner wolf was starting to slip away like she normally did when the dawn approached. She wanted nothing more than to sleep. Her body had sunk into the warmth and softness of her quilts with ease, like an old welcoming friend, but for some reason that peace she longed for kept slipping out of her grasp. No matter how heavy her eyelids were, she couldn’t close them without replaying the scene of her and Erec together, with his hands roaming her body and his mouth on hers.

Her mind was torturing her.

She let out an aggravated sigh.

Then, the rustling sound of the tent’s flap being pulled back caught her attention, and the freezing night air rushed inside. Through the darkness, Astrid could just make out a shadowed outline of a head and wide shoulders.

She froze, her hand shooting to her spear lying beside her, but she heard Erec’s softvoice calling to her.

“Astrid? Are you awake?”

“Yes, I am.” She squinted. As her wolf side faded away, her sharp sight and other senses went along with it. She watched his silhouette move into the cramped space and crouch beside her. “Is everything all right?”

There was a spark, and bright orange light sliced through the blackness. Erec’s face appeared inches from hers, shadows defining the hard lines of his nose and jaw. She gasped.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, leaning back on his heels. He placed the lit candle on the floor by her head. “I should have warned you.”

Astrid sat up. “Is everything all right?” she repeated, heartbeat speeding up. She glanced at the new bandage covering the gash on his shoulder. Had Claus gotten away somehow? Was that why he was here? To warn her?

But Erec’s expression seemed conflicted, not panicked or concerned. “We aren’t under attack, if that’s what you mean.” When she didn’t reply, he added, “Couldn’t sleep, either. That’s all.”

Something about him being alone with her in the dark had tingling heat spreading over her skin.“Oh.”

He paused. “I actually…wanted to apologize for leaving you behind when we went to rescue Henrick and the others. It was a mistake on my part. But I—” He stopped himself and shook his head. “It was a mistake,” he said instead.

“You almost got both of us killed,” she replied, keeping her voice low and crossing her arms.

“Never again,” he said. “When I heard the howl and realized it was coming from the camp, I thought—and then, seeing your prints with the wolves’, I—” He ran a hand over his mouth and let out an exasperated grunt. “Never again.”

She didn’t quite know what he had been trying to say, or why he was struggling with his words, but at least he had said the part she wanted to hear—that he’d never leave her like that again.

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