“Yes.”
“Say it. Tell me.”
“I’m yours, Wolfe. I’m yours, no matter what.”
“That’s my, good girl.”
She falls over the edge at my praise, clamping down, trying to drag me with her. I hold back for a few more minutes before giving in, biting down on my tongue to keep from saying anything else.
The words swirling around in my mouth taste foreign. They hint of the truth, but not one either of us is ready to have between us. For now, letting her know that she’s mine. Her agreeing; is enough.
Chapter66
Thea
Your mentor has a delivery. Retrieve it and follow the rules. Can you keep your whits about you?
I’m sitting at a table waiting for Wolfe to show. This is the first challenge where the instructions say I have to touch base with him beforehand. I watch him scan the restaurant before making his way over to the table.
“You have something for me?” I ask as he slides into the seat across from me.
“No. You’re sitting this challenge out.”
I drum my fingers on the table. “Is this you saying it, or have they told you I’m not included in this challenge?”
“Does it matter?” He scrubs his hand through his hair. “I’m saying it. This challenge is probably the most fucked up one yet.”
“What is it?”
“Thea-”
“Just tell me.”
He sets a box on the table between us. I look at it, and him, letting my absolute horror and revulsion show on my face. “If the challenge is to get married, then yeah, I agree. I’m sitting this one out.”
“Inside the box there’s a pill. You have to take it at the time noted on the paper on the inside flap and follow the rest of the instructions.” His jaw clenches. “It’s Lorazepam.”
Anti anxiety pills? “You’re sure?”
“It’s sealed in an aluminum package with the name written on it. I watched the doctor give one from the same sample pack to all the mentors.”
I open the lid of the ring box and read the note. In twenty-three minutes I’m supposed to take the pill, then retrieve the first challenge item I ever acquired and bring it to The Tomb.
Seems easy enough, except for the fact they’ve provided a depressant for us to take. Even if we all received the same dosage, the effects might hit some of us faster than others.
I closed the lid and ask, “What’s really bothering you?”
“This challenge mimics a guardian training exercise.”
“You recruit for that program, so if the guardians do it during training, why are you telling me not to?”
“Because none of the guardians are my girlfriend.”
I blink at him, processing his outburst. I mean,I knowI’m his girlfriend, but it hits differently hearing him say it out loud. I look down at the box, working out the timeline for this challenge in my head.
“Thea, I know you think you have something to prove, but you don’t. Not to them.”
I lift my head, meeting his gaze. The green’s darker, damn near obscuring the gold in his irises. “You should know me better than that. Everything I do is to prove something to myself.”