Page 43 of The Reluctant Wolf and His Fated Mate
She drew in a sharp breath that felt like shards of ice in her dry throat. “What’s going on?”
He raised a hand, palm facing her. "I can explain."
She covered her chest and stepped backwards, heart and lungs still pumping at downhill speed. “What the hell did I just see?” She shook her head. “No, wait. I don't think I want to know.”
He exhaled and his broad shoulders sagged. “I didn’t want you to find out like this.”
“Find what out?” Her mind raced, questions churning at a manic speed. She scanned him from head down. "Why would anyone strip naked in the snow like this? It's crazy.” She raised her hands to her temples and shook her head. “Wait—are you crazy or has someone drugged me?”
"You're not drugged, and I’m not crazy.” His voice was low and slow, like he was trying to calm someone who was irrational. “I can explain why you’ve seen wolves."
She released a slow exhale. "Okay, why?" She pursed her lips.
"Because—" he began. "Because—I’m a wolf shifter."
“Awhat?” Sophie threw her hands in the air and snorted. “Crazy it is, then.” She motioned between them. “I think fourteen gray hairs just popped out of my skull.”
“I’m not crazy, Sophie. My pack lives here on the mountain. Another pack lives over there.” He pointed across the range.
“Pack? As in a wolf pack?” Her eyes bulged. Her gut hollowed. Devastation dug deep. It was like the shock of finding Bobby with her cousin all over again, only this time, it felt a thousand times worse because it was Damon.
Although she’d only known him for such a short time, she’d sensed something between them. A connection. One that was deeper than anything between her and Bobby, which now seemed shallow in comparison.
“It was you that I saw fighting the other wolf. You lied to me. Tried to convince me I’d seen coyotes.” Her voice was uneven. His deceit cut like shards of glass exploding from her chest.
“I didn’t.” He rubbed his jaw. “Yes, it was me, but it’s not like what you think.”
“Well then, what do you want to call this—leaving out the fact that you are a wolf?” Wait, what was she saying? It wasn’t possible. Yet, she’d seen him change. She rubbed her eyes. Exhaustion suddenly weighed on her as if she’d spent the entire day skiing the trails and had returned home on jelly legs.
Damon’s shoulders sagged. “I’m sorry. I know it seems that way, but it’s not solely up to me. Our pack—we have secrets for a reason. Humans knowing what we really are could be dangerous.”
She pointed to her chest. “You think I’m dangerous? Why would you sleep with me then?”
“No, Sophie. Of course not. It’s others. Think about it—if the wrong humans found out about our true nature, think of how they would try to exploit us.”
His words made sense on one level. A government or military organization would almost certainly seek an opportunity to achieve their means.
Still, the bottom line was he’d deceived her.
Just like the others.
Her heart twisted and tumbled insides, as if she’d been crushed rolling downhill in an avalanche. She thought Damon was better than them. She was wrong.
“How can I ever trust you?” Her voice caught in her throat.
He lowered his head. “I don’t know.” He glanced behind him. “Let me grab my clothes and we can go back to my place where we can talk.”
Sophie wrapped her arms around herself and walked in a clouded daze back to his cabin. Before she stepped in, she hesitated. Who was he really, this man she had slept with? Did she even know him at all?
She sighed and walked by the hot tub and through the patio doors. So much for her expectations for the night—shattered, like how her heart—torn to tatters.
Damon followed soon after, now clothed again. His eyes implored her as he asked, “What can I do to make it up to you?”
Hot tears scalded her eyes. She blinked them back and demanded, “How about you start by telling me the truth?
Chapter 14
Sophie
