Page 25 of Destined Mate

Two chairs were now facing each other like he’d moved them so he could use one to rest his feet. That was why there’d been so much noise.

My face flamed, and I wanted to avert my gaze, but something stronger inside me refused to let me cower. I’d been scared and protected myself. I had nothing to be ashamed of.

Bodey’s expression changed as he took the lamp from me. The concern washed away as his expression soured. He dropped his hands and turned to the guy. “I told you someone was resting in the bedroom, and you were out here doingthis?”

The guy, who had an inch or two on Bodey, winced, even though he had an equally strong wolf inside him.

“Honestly…I forgot.” The guy grimaced. “I came out here to chill after dinner, which was clearly a mistake.”

“No, it’s fine. I’m sorry. I was being paranoid.” The breeze picked up, and I remembered I was wearing only shorts and a shirt. “I just thought…” I trailed off. I wasn’t sure what to say to improve the situation. If Bodey had been concerned about my well-being before, this probably exacerbated the problem.

The guy shook his head. “No.I’msorry. Bodey mentioned you had a bad injury and your alpha hasn’t been kind to you. I didn’t mean to startle you.” He held out his hand and smiled softly. “By the way, I’m Samuel.”

Samuel. The almost eighteen-year-old heir to the throne. The future king of the Northwest territory. His coronation was in two weeks.

And I’d attacked him.

That sounded about right.

When Zeke learned of this, he might actually kill me.

I reached out and shook his hand. “Callie. And sorry for…that.”

“Hey, a future king needs to be prepared for anything.” He chuckled, his irises softening and sparkling in a way that tugged at my heart but in a different way than Bodey’s did. “That’s what you and your dad always tell me, right, Bodey?”

“Right.” Bodey took a step back and smirked. “Though I gotta say…this was unexpected, even for me.” He looked at me intently. “You’re full of surprises.”

“Believe me, I surprise myself sometimes.” Way too often for my liking. I glanced off the side of the deck, noting the night sky. The moon was already halfway to its peak. From this angle, I could see the house across from us and a few across the street. They were modern but with a colonial feel to them and in various light, natural colors.

The prickling sensation of being watched ran down my spine.

“Have we met before?” Samuel asked.

That was strange, especially since I’d thought the same thing. I looked at him again, and that eerie feeling washed over me. For the life of me, I couldn’t place him. “I don’t think so.”

He frowned. “Yeah, me neither.”

Bodey cleared his throat and strolled past me to the door that led into my bedroom. He said, “It’s cold out here. Why don’t we head downstairs? Samuel, Jack, Miles, Lucas, and I ate dinner earlier, but when I checked on you, you were sleeping. I didn’t want to wake you, so I put up a plate for you. I’ll go warm it up downstairs.”

Goose bumps pebbled my skin. “Okay. I want to take a shower. I didn’t earlier, and I feel kind of gross. Can I do that before eating?”

“You did a lot of yard work today.” He mashed his lips into a line. “Do you remember where the bathroom is?”

I nodded. “I’ll be down in fifteen minutes.” I went back into my room, relieved to be alone again. All these people unnerved me. Not because of how strong they were but because of the type of people they were and the way they looked at me. It wasn’t with judgment, but they saw me as weak.

From my bag on the bed, I pulled out a long fuchsia T-shirt and a pair of black yoga pants. I walked out of the room and down the hall, but I paused in the hallway to the bathroom. The two of them were still outside but weren’t saying a word, most likely pack linking.

Finally, Samuel said quietly, “That woman looks like an older version of her, at least from what I’ve seen in pictures.”

“You’re not wrong.” Bodey sighed. “But we both know it’s not her.”

Silence descended, and I moved again. Bodey would come inside at any second to head downstairs and warm up my dinner.

As I stepped into the bathroom, the door from the deck to my bedroom opened. I wanted to march back in there to see what was going on, but I just closed the door as silently as possible. I had nothing to hide. Further, I trusted Bodey. Somehow, I knew he wasn’t snooping, and this was his house.

Taking note of the cool, dark-gray tile underneath my feet, I turned toward the double sink, choosing to look in the closest mirror.

I froze. I didn’t recognize the girl staring back at me.

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