Page 21 of One True Mate

I really did have a lot to learn!

“And someday, we hope, to his mate, if there's anyone out there who can actually put up with him, and if he's ever lucky enough to actually find her,” Lily piped in.

The look Kyle shot her to shut up did not go unnoticed by any of us. And I had to fight my wolf to maintain control. I didn't understand what they were talking about, but it clearly made my wolf very angry, and I had to bite my lip to keep from growling at her.

“Mate?” I couldn't resist asking when I felt some control coming back and noticed him pale a bit at the question, making me even more interested in the answer.

“You know, a mate, a….”

Kyle cut her off, “We have time to go over all that stuff another time.” He flashed another look at Lily that clearly screamed, shut the hell up, but why?

Lily busted up laughing.

“Lil,” Elise scolded, “clearly Kyle doesn't want to discuss mating in front of Kelsey. Show some respect.” Then she jabbed her sister with her elbow and winked down my way. “Don't worry, we'll fill you in on all the fun parts later.”

They both laughed and averted their eyes as Kyle stomped up the stairs passed where they were perched.

“We racing or not?” he grumbled at the door.

KYLE

Chapter 10

I didn't wait for them to follow me as I left Kelsey's house and headed for the woods just beyond. I knew they would come, and I could feel her the moment she left her house. Not just smell her, but feel her. It was an entirely new sensation for me.

Something profound had seemed to happen when I touched her and held her. It was like she was already bonding with me, which I didn't know was even possible. I tried to shake it off. For two years, I had watched her and warned off everyone, taking pain staking patience to not show too much favoritism, and to equally warn off women and men so as not to alarm anyone to my intentions. But the intensity to claim her grew tenfold after finally having her in my arms. I knew I would have to work extra hard to keep myself in check where Kelsey Adam's was concerned.

For now, I would enjoy openly running with my little she-wolf, and God knew I needed the relief it would bring me. Stopping at the far back corner of her property, I turned and waited for the girls to join me. When Kelsey walked ahead of my sisters and stopped in front of me, close enough to be considered inside my personal space, I couldn't keep the smile off my face. My wolf rejoiced, and I thought I would change on the spot when she reached out and placed her hand on my chest and looked up into my eyes, elevating her stubborn chin a little higher than necessary to ask, “Okay, so what's the rules?”

I knew she could feel my heartbeat increase, they could all probably hear it, but I didn't care. Kelsey was touching me on her own accord. She needed me just as much, and the sensation of that knowledge was overwhelming me.

I noticed the brief look shared between my sisters and I knew the questions would come. That's just what sisters did. They were going to kill me when they learned she was my mate and I'd never said a word in all this time. My stubborn resolve to have her make the first acknowledgment had never in a million years considered she truly just didn't know anything about us. But she would, and I would be the one to teach her.

“What is the plan? Race to the office?” Elise guessed.

“Yup,” I confirmed, not confident in what my voice would portray at Kelsey's closeness.

I loved when Kelsey's already big brown eyes grew bigger with amazement.

“I-I can't,” she stuttered. “I don't know the way through the woods.”

“You can't run through the woods and be timed, Kels, you need to stick to the roads. It's 5 miles from this point. Don't bother asking how we know,” Lily giggled. “Elise will be at the one mile marker just on this side of town to calculate your first mile run. I'm calling Liam to the four-mile mark so we can get a true reading on your last mile, which is typically your fastest. Then I'll be at headquarters to get your five-mile run time and we can see what you're averaging per mile. I already know Kyle will run the full five miles in under five minutes. He's an easy sixty miles per hour on average, so you'll really have to run if you want to keep up with him.”

Kelsey nodded, her back still to them and her hand still resting on my chest. She took a deep breath and I suspected she was breathing in my scent as I so often did hers, before turning to face them.

“What's the route?”

Elise quickly explained the exact path and made sure she knew it well. I, of course, already knew it like the back of my hand. Kelsey Adams wasn't the first wolf to challenge me in a speed race, albeit she was certainly the first she-wolf to ever attempt. I had run with her before and already knew she was fast, but I wasn't really worried and truth was, if anyone on this planet could outrun me, of course I would want it to be my mate. I wanted everything for her, so much it blew my mind.

Her nerves picked up slightly, changing her scent and bringing me back to the moment.

“What's wrong?”

“Are we running in, you know.”

She was so cute, she couldn't even bring herself to say 'wolf'. It saddened me all she had been through, and I knew her life was going to change drastically from here on. I only hoped I could make it a better one for her.

“Wolf form, Kels, we're running in wolf form.”

---