Page 12 of Promise & Artem

“Yeah, all those construction detours and traffic turned a six-hour trip into a fifteen-hour one.”

“Owen and the others are already there, you in?” Kieran asked as he rocked back on his heels. “I hear it’s dollar drink night for the ladies.” He waggled his brows on the last word and Artem shook his head.

“You’re a nut. I’ll pass, I’m exhausted.” Which was true. But he was also supposed to fight tonight and needed to get ready to head out.

“Suit yourself. More ladies for me and my brothers.”

“Sure, sure.”

He finished locking up and drove his truck to his cabin, sending a text to his dad to let him know the four-wheelers were in the workshop and ready to be checked out.

Thanks for making the trip, sorry you guys had so much trouble.

No worries. All in a day’s work, right?

You bet. If you want to help me look them over tomorrow, I’ll get started after breakfast.

Yeah, unless I decide to sleep in.

Whenever you get over to the workshop, I’ll appreciate the help. Thanks again.

Sure. Night.

Good night, kid.

He smiled at his dad’s sentiment. He’d called him ‘kid’ for as long as he could remember. He sure wasn’t a kid anymore, but he still liked the term of endearment.

He changed into comfortable jeans and a tank, which he’d take off before he fought. As he put on his boots, he yawned and rolled his neck.

He wished he didn’t need to fight tonight but being cooped up in the truck all day had made his beast antsier than usual.

If he was only the sort of male who could go for a long run and work off steam, but it was just his luck that his minotaur liked to hit people. For a moment, he considered walking away from the fights. But he doubted that Nero would allow him to walk for something so shallow as being tired. Once he found his truemate, though, he’d definitely stop fighting because he wouldn’t need an outlet for the aggression anymore.

He couldn’t fucking wait.

When Artem climbed into bed at three a.m., his jaw bruised and aching from a lucky sucker punch by a wolf with mismatched eyes, he was thankful he’d managed to win all the fights and had only been matched up for three of them. His winnings hadn’t been that big, but he didn’t really do anything with themanyway. Because he’d killed that newcomer wolf, some of the fighters weren’t interested in going against him anytime soon, and that was okay with him. Hell, he didn’t need the money, he pretty much just stuck it all in a firesafe box under his bed where he could get to it if he needed it.

He rolled to his back with a groan and a yawn combined. His dad would be working on the four-wheelers around eight probably, which meant that Artem could get five hours of sleep if he wanted to help.

Assuming he could sleep, which seemed unlikely because he didn’t sleep much.

Once more he thought about telling his dad about the fights. But he didn’t want a lecture and he didn’t want him to be mad, so he pushed the thought away and closed his eyes.

Sleep, damn it.

Artem was walking in unfamiliar woods on a night with a sky full of stars and a bright moon that made everything look blue. Ahead he could see the flickering orange of a campfire, so he moved in that direction. His beast was excited, bellowing in his head as he reached a clearing with a huge firepit, and a wild bonfire that soared a dozen feet in the air.

Through the flames on the other side of the massive firepit, he could see a female with long, dark hair. He couldn’t make out her features, but he was certain as his heart clenched and his body tried to shift, that she was his truemate.

“Where are you?” he asked through clenched teeth.

He heard a whisper through the crackling fire but couldn’t make out what she was saying.

“You’re my truemate! Where are you? I’ll find you!”

She laughed and he immediately liked the musical sound. He tried to move to her, but the fire blazed so bright he had to shield his eyes.

When he opened them again, it was morning and he’d fallen asleep. As he sat up, the dream flitted through his mind like a movie. A female in woods he didn’t know, with a bonfire…what did it mean? Where was she? Who was she?

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