Page 18 of Twisted Lies
Nine
It was too much. All of it. Anxiety threatened to take over as Mikah closed her front door, locking herself inside of her apartment. Not only did she have a mate, but he had marked her and expected to claim her. Warning bells chimed in her head.
“Calm down. This isn’t the end of the world,”her wolf chided.
“Easy for you to say. Your life won’t have all of the repercussions of accepting a mate like mine will. Do you have any idea how much our life will change if we continue on the path you’ve set us on?”
Life would be different. She’d have someone to answer to, someone who expected to know where she was going, who she was with and when she’d be home. It wouldn’t just be her against the world anymore. It wasn’t like she’d never been in a relationship before, she had—plenty of them.
“Not all relationships are bad. Look around at all of our friends who have found their mates. Look how happy they are.”
They were happy. All of them. But that happiness came at a price. Freedom. Freedom to do as you pleased. Freedom to be yourself without anyone questioning your choices—your dreams. She had given up everything to be with Shane. Her friends, her family, her life. It wouldn’t happen again no matter what man walked into her life.
“I won’t go back to that sort of life. You know that. So why are you pushing this matter?”Mikah asked her wolf.
It wasn’t like Mikah had been alone in her misery with Shane, her wolf had been right there with her to experience the pain and suffering he dished out on a regular basis. Yet her wolf had pushed forward and begged Jason to mark her. If Mikah hadn’t reclaimed control when she did, would her wolf have allowed the mating to take place?
***
The thought hung with her far longer than she would have liked…the rest of the day and into the evening to be exact. Hot water poured over her in the shower as she tried to ditch the feeling of betrayal from her wolf, but she couldn’t shake it no matter how long she stood there.
She microwaved a sorry-ass dinner and tried to watch a movie, yet the thought still consumed her. Even more disturbing than the thought itself had been her reaction to it. It was almost as if she had wanted the choice taken out of her hands.
“No! I don’t fucking think so!” Saying it out loud had to help with any doubt she may have had, right?
“Lie!”
Ugh. Mikah flopped onto her bed and closed her eyes, refusing to spend another second of her evening thinking about her mate and what could have happened. She refused to think about the tingling sensation she felt when her fingertips met bare flesh—or how hot he burned with each exploratory caress of her hand over his body. She didn’t want to think any more about how kissable his full lips looked or how his cock strained against his jeans.
“Oscar?” Mikah called for her cat.
He sprung onto the bed and crawled on her chest. His purrs were loud and plentiful, almost drowning out her own annoying thoughts.
“Why did you call that stray up here?” her wolf grumbled.
“Because I like him more than you at this moment.”
The cat snuggled against her chin, his claws kneading her neck.
Mikah had no idea how much time had passed as she lay there trying to clear her head. Something was different. Her thoughts had quieted, but that wasn’t what concerned her. Her backside was on fire. Heat like she’d never felt pressed against her. An arm snaked around her waist.
Freeze.
Do not move.
Do not make a sound.
Play dead.
Her breaths stopped. Her mind stopped. Her fucking heart stopped. She didn’t dare suck in the air her lungs begged for, not until she knew what the hell was going on and who the fuck was pressed up against her.
His scent washed over her as she finally gave in and sucked in the air her lungs demanded. That fabulous scent of cinnamon, spice, and wild male. His rugged scent wrapped around her and branded her during their brief time together near the cliff.
Mikah wanted to bask in his heat in his scent until she remembered he was in her bed. She sprung from the bed, wanting to know how he’d managed to get into her apartment—let alone in her bed.
The sexy smile plastered to his face nearly knocked her legs out from under her. Damn, he was one fine-ass male—and her mate. His eyes met hers in a smoldering glance that made Mikah want to rip off every single piece of clothing covering her body.
She paused. Something wasn’t right.
