Page 50 of Reign

“Shit!”

Increasing my speed, I bolted down the alley, wishing I knew how to shift. Mea howled, her frustration seeping into me.I know. I know.I wish I could too.It was too late to ask Connor to teach me. Maybe what I should ask him was why he hadn’t even mentioned shifting to me? Careening around a corner and not looking where I was going was mistake number two. Rubbish covered the small alleyway, and it was too late to avoid it. My sole slipped in some non-identifiable slime, and that was it. My momentum carried me forward while my body fell. My head hit the wall with a bang that sent stars flashing across my vision. The last thing I saw was the huge jaw of a bear hanging open above my face.

“Hey, come on, Em. Wake up.”

My skull had a hammer beating against it. I groaned, wrinkling my nose at the stink of urine and rotting food. A wave of nausea hit me, and I retched, spitting diet coke onto the ground, adding to the already disgusting layer on the alley floor.

Firm pressure on my head sent a new wave of pain into my skull. I knocked away the hand that held a wad of material against my head. A pair of grey eyes watched me, full of confusion.

“Why in the Mother’s name are you running from me?” the guy from the club said.

“Because I don’t know you. And dragging me off into the shadows was more than stalkerish behaviour,” I grumbled, more pissed off that I’d failed in my escape attempt than scared.

I swallowed back another wave of nausea and blinked against a dizzy spell. Yeah, running out of the club wasn’t my best idea ever. I should have gone back towards Connor and Sophie—except this big tree of a man had been blocking the way.

“Can you stand? This ground’s pretty grim.”

“Really? I hadn’t noticed.” Yeah, sarcasm probably wasn’t the best idea while I was vulnerable and alone in an alley with a bear shifter. Damn it, how did I get into these situations? My wolf whined and then huffed.Thanks for the supportI shot back at her.And it’s not always my fault.

It seemed churlish to refuse his help when the guy placed a firm hold under my arm and helped me up. “Sorry if I scared you.” He brushed me down, and something about that act of kindness seemed...familiar.

I peered more closely at him. His face… Under the streetlight, helookedfamiliar too. “I’ll survive. So, you know me?”

His smile made my heart ache. I rubbed my chest, not sure what was happening, but this man, er, male, meant something to me, I could feel it.

“Of course I do. What’s going on, Ember? Why don’t you remember me?”

My head was pounding, but the churning in my belly was marginally better. I heard voices, frantic voices, and felt Connor getting closer. I relaxed a bit. This guy might be almost as tall and stacked as Connor, but I didn’t feel any threat coming from him. If anything, he gave me the warm and fuzzies. Gingerly, I touched my head, and winced.

“You took quite a bash there. Are you okay? Here.” He held out his bloodstained shirt.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just a bit of a headache.” I accepted the offer of his shirt and pressed it against my head wound. “Listen, I’m sorry if you know me. I genuinely have no idea who you are. I lost my memory a few months ago and it isn’t back yet.” I felt tears prick my eyes, although I wouldn’t let them fall. I buried it most of the time but losing my whole life, my memories, my feelings, all the things that made me, well, me, had affected me deeply.

“Ah, that makes sense. But you are still with Connor?” He inhaled, and a huge, daft grin stretched across his face. “No need to answer. I can scent him on you.”

I eyed that ridiculously happy grin. The guy must be a little crazy. “I am. He found me…” My voice trailed off as a familiar voice roared. My attention snapped to Connor.

“Ember!” Connor stalked forward in beast form, huge and terrifying. Dark shadows swirled around him, his eyes burning. He walked on two legs, the claws on his hands longer than ever. His attention shifted to the guy who had moved to stand in front of me. I blinked. The guy was protecting me. I swallowed hard. Reaching out, I touched his shoulder. It just seemed the right thing to do.

Connor snarled, stalking closer.

“It’s okay, this is Connor, my mate,” I said, trying to reassure the bear shifter.

The guy’s stiff spine relaxed a little, his breath leaving him on a shudder. He turned sideways, his gaze bouncing between the King of Shifters and me. In a swirl of shadow, Connor disappeared, and then reappeared in front of us. “Rawson?” His voice was low and rasping.

It was my turn for the bouncing gaze. There was a moment of shock, wide eyes—the works. Then they were hugging each other. I didn’t want to interrupt, but...way to make a girl feel inconsequential. After a minute or two of letting them ignore me, I coughed, irritated at once again not having a clue what was happening.

“Umm, does one of you want to tell me what’s going on? You know, ‘cause memory loss girl here...and everything...” I let my words trail off. Connor glanced at me and grinned at my folded arms and flared nostrils. Yeah, I was probably acting childish, but I’d gotten used to my mate’s undivided attention, and I really didn’t like that this Rawson guy was someone Connor would hug, yet I couldn’t remember him. It just added to the hurt I carried about the void of my past. I moved my hands to my hips and tilted my head as I studied them, pressing my lips together. With his arm still around the man’s shoulders, Connor turned to me.

“Sorry, Firecracker. This is Cain Rawson. He’s like our very responsible older brother. He raised you and me, well, mostly, but he’s not old enough to be our dad, and I fucking refused to ever call him that anyway.”

Rawson grinned and pulled from Connor’s hold, playfully punching him in the stomach.

“Oomph,” Connor’s fake pain response didn’t fool me. I’d never seen him so goddamned happy. His smile was blinding, and I wished I’d been the one to put it there, but it was so good to see him like this.

Rawson gave me a grin, his grey eyes sparkling. “Mother Wolf, I’m so happy to see you two are still together.” He inhaled. “And with a fucking pup on the way.” He smacked Connor on the back while my world went cold. Connor’s face dropped so fast his smile could have been my imagination. The colour leached from his skin, and his gaze darted to me.

“Em?” He didn’t move or say another word. His eyes widened, and that’s when I felt it; the truth in those words. My stomach sank, and my legs shook.

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