Page 30 of Wolf Mate

“Come on.” Slade lifted my hand and pulled me out of the classroom.

I shouldn’t leave, but after what had happened, I wanted to run away and never return.

When we stepped into the hallway, we almost ran into a woman with dark, wavy hair. She wore a modest red suit with crimson lipstick and looked like she could have just exited a catwalk. Yes, she was dressed nicely, but it was more about the air she held.

“Why are you two leaving?” she asked, arching a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. “Class is about to begin.” Her attention darted over my shoulder. She scowled. “What happened?”

“Something you’re going to need to fix.” Slade quickly filled her in, and the woman’s dark-gray eyes scrutinized me.

“She’s the human with magic.” She sighed. “I’ll alter their minds before someone posts about it online. You two stay here for a second.” She marched into the classroom and shut the door behind her.

She was a vampire. Lovely. A vampire statistics teacher. What were the odds?

I rubbed my hands together, hating that everyone saw how badly Raffe affected me. “I’m sorry.”

“Hey, he’s a jackass and a bully.” Slade turned so we were facing each other. “He says whatever he wants, thinking there won’t be repercussions. He should never have interrupted our conversation. Maybe now he’ll think twice about upsetting you after what happened in there. It’s good for him to be uncomfortable.”

Some of the worry in my chest unknotted. This was good. Slade thought I was upset because Raffe was bossing me around. He had pissed me off, but that wasn’t what had set me off. “What’s Professor Haynes going to do?”

“Alter the human students’ memories and force them to delete anything they may have captured on their phones.” He smiled. “Adam and Raffe were keeping an eye on things. They wouldn’t let anyone do something that would risk exposing our world.”

He was right. I rolled my neck. “Were you serious about helping me?” In my life, a lot of people had promised things that they never followed through on.

“Of course.” He tilted his head, gaze steady.

“Good.” I blew out a breath, not caring how desperate I might sound. “Because I need help.” My blood jolted as my vision blurred.

“And you’ll get it,” he vowed, pulling me into his arms and kissing the top of my head. “I promise.”

I cringed at his gesture, and my mouth went dry. I believed him, which wasn’t normal for me. I often doubted people’s sincerity, but he seemed genuine in his desire to help me. I had to hold on to that, or I would crumble, especially with everything that had happened in the classroom.

The door opened, and Professor Haynes waved us back in. Everyone in the classroom, aside from Raffe, Adam, and the professor, was frozen in some sort of daze. Raffe stood by my seat, and my legs moved way too quickly toward him.

The professor slipped out just as I sat back at my desk. Before she closed the door, she said, “And you remember everything that happens from this point forward.”

The classroom buzzed back to life.

Raffe sighed, and I watched his body straighten. “You’re nothing but an accident waiting to happen—so that’s why I interrupted your conversation with Slade. You’re nothing but trouble, and anyone who associates with you will be tainted by that.”

My face burned, and I wanted to sink into the ground. He was continuing his original interruption as if nothing had happened. Was he trying to force me to mess up again so the board would revoke my scholarship?

Acid burned my throat. Here I was, at a new school, being treated the same as always—ridiculed and demeaned. Well, too bad. I refused to let yet another person run me off and make me feel unwelcome. My blood fizzed, and I realized we were coming dangerously close to creating another situation.

Everyone but Slade laughed, and I opened my binder and kept my body facing forward. I couldn’t prove Raffe right and lose control again.

The star quarterback had just labeled me a social pariah.

Normally, the girls bullied me while the guys chuckled in the background. This was a whole new low for me, and of course,Raffe would be the person behind it. And that stupidtugstill wanted me to move closer to him.

Because, you know, that was healthy.

Professor Haynes reentered the room as if she were arriving for the first time, and I got lost in something that made sense to me.

Numbers.

When class ended, I was out of my seat and running to the door. I didn’t want to see any of the inevitable looks of pity people would cast my way. At least my next class was chemistry, which would keep me distracted.

I tromped down the stairs and out the front door, wanting to put distance between me and everyone back in that classroom.

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