Page 85 of Wolf Mate

She blinked. “Slade is fine… or will be in a day or two. That’s not why I’m here.”

That didn’t relieve my panic. Instead, my anxiety strangled my lungs until I couldn’t breathe. This was it. She was going to tell me I had to leave EEU. Between my exhaustion and exploring Raffe’s body, I’d forgotten all about this pending threat, but now that it was here, my heart raced. If I left, what would that mean for Raffe and me? How would I learn more about my blood and supernaturals? I had to face the consequences of what I’d done, but I had so much to lose. “Oh, right.” I blinked, trying to hold back tears. “I can be out of here by the end of the day.”

Her brows furrowed. “Why are you leaving? I don’t think that’s best for any of us.”

I tilted my head. “Isn’t that why you’re here? To kick me out of the university for what I did to Slade?”

Face softening, she smiled slightly. “Of course not, Skylar. I want you to remain a student here. But may I come inside?” She glanced around the hallway. “I’d rather not have this conversation out here.”

Oxygen filled my lungs again, making me light-headed. I didn’t have to leave. Instead of becoming a melted mess of goo, I needed to get my head on straight. I forced myself to take a step back and waved her into the apartment.

Part of me didn’t want her here, especially with Raffe coming back any second. But what could I do? Tell her no? I doubted that would go over well, especially after I’d hurt her son.

When I shut the door, Lucy shouted out from her bedroom, “For the love of the gods, you two better be quiet or I’ll come out and kick both of your asses. Getting woken up at four in the morning with—”

“Priestess Olwyn is here!” I needed Lucy to shut upnow.

Priestess Olwyn arched a brow and rocked back on her high heels.

Silence stretched between us. Then Lucy cleared her throat. “Oh, okay. So it’s not Josie? My bad. I’m just going back to sleep, then.”

I wanted to kill her, but instead, I forced a smile.

The way Slade’s mother tapped a long, crimson fingernail on her bottom lip screamed she wasn’t buying it. “I didn’t realize you were close to Josie as well, especially after Raffe’s public display about you being trouble.”

That was equivalent to a punch in the gut. That particular memory caused my old wounds to resurface. That memory was fresh, but I still felt the need to defend him. “He was doing what he thought he had to. And Raffe has stepped up to help me several times when no one else did.”

Shetsked. “Not even my son?”

Yeah, I wasn’t sure how to answer that or if I wanted to. “He’s helped me in other ways—well, before this past weekend.”

“That’s why I’m here.” She strolled to the center of the living room, scanning the area. She wore another suit, this one black, and a pentagram necklace that settled within her cleavage. “To apologize for my son’s actions. After what Keith told me last night when he was helping me get Slade home, well … it made me sick. I’ve never been so disappointed in him before, especially since wolf shifters had to step in because of his actions.” She wrinkled her nose as if the words were disgusting to say. “I wanted to let you know that none of that will be a problem going forward, and I hope you can trust me enough to allow Slade, and myself, to train you to control your power.”

My legs almost gave out. Had the supreme priestess of the covens justoffered to train me? This had to be a dream … or nightmare. I wasn’t sure which. “You?” I squeaked, sounding most definitely not chill.

“If you would rather I not …” She trailed off and bit her bottom lip.

I gulped. “No, that’s not what I meant. It’s just, I struggle, and I would hate for you to waste your time with me. I’m sure you have better things to do.”

“Well, yes, I’m busy, but Skylar, I’d like to think of you as one of my own.” She placed a hand over her heart. “I hope that doesn’t sound too presumptuous.”

My jaw dropped. Had I heard her right? She wanted to think of me as part of her coven? I’d never had anyone be so welcoming before. But if I aligned with her, it would cause more issues between Raffe and me. We had enough stacked against us without me adding another wedge between us. “I’m honored. Truly.” I wrung my hands, unsure what to say or how to proceed. “But I want to focus on controlling my power before committing to a group of people. I hope you understand. I’m still trying tofind myself, and I don’t want to put the burden on anyone while I’m off balance.”

“The first problem I see is that people are making you feel like you’re a burden.” She shook her head. “It’s a damn shame that certain people—especially kings—could be so jaded toward someone they simply don’t understand.”

She wasn’t holding back. I had no doubt she was referring to King Jovian.

“I’m not asking for a decision today.” She took a few steps closer and placed a hand on my shoulder. “The offer still stands, and I’m confident you’ll feel comfortable soon and see where you belong.”

Now I knew where Slade got his pushiness from, but unlike her son, Olwyn was subtle. If I hadn’t grown up with bullies and learned how they escaped trouble, I would’ve missed the signs.

I had to play along. Otherwise, I could wind up on the wrong side of her wrath. “Thank you, and I would be honored if you and Slade would train me.” I needed someone to help me get myself under control before I accidentally killed myself.

She smiled. “Excellent. You’ll need to rest this week, but you should be ready to train soon.”

I hated to wait that long, but staying alive was sort of a priority, so I nodded. “Sounds good.”

I heard the lock buttons being pushed, and I tensed.Thiswas Raffe. I should’ve known he wouldn’t have knocked earlier. I turned to the door as it opened, and Raffe entered with a coffee from the campus coffee shop and three closed to-go plates.

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