Page 55 of The Enforcer's Rejected Mate
“I’m safe,” I say out loud. It feels real when I say it. I take in another breath and let it out slowly. There’s nothing for me to do and nowhere for me to go. I’m meeting with Ronan today but not until later.
“He’ll have dinner for you. It’ll be so fun,” Clover told me that morning. Fun was never the word I’d use to describe any time spent with Alpha Ashford. I’d been scared for dinner but I’m not anymore. At least, not so much anymore. I’m safe. Bloodstone Pack is different already and maybe here fun is what a dinner with the Alpha would be like.
I open my eyes to go back to my paperback but that’s when I see him. Thorne. He’s standing by the Keep’s door like he just came out but he’s not walking, he’s standing there and looking right back at me.
I swallow hard. There’s a tug I feel towards him. I ignore it. It’s my wolf and she’s not in her right mind about Thorne. I frown and force myself to look away from Thorne. He’s not mine, even if my wolf is confused about the way she feels towards him. Maybe it’s left over from Keiran. Maud didn’t tell me much about the rejection and the only things I know are what I’ve read or heard in hushed whispers.
No one in Frostclaw has been rejected. It’s always someone they knew or heard of a pack over, or someone’s gran that’s no longer around.
I look down at my book and page through it. The words swim in front of me. I don’t know what I’m reading anymore. Not with Thorne here. I track him through my periphery. He hasn’t moved yet. I read the same paragraph three times before I see Thorne start to walk. When he leaves the courtyard I let out the breath I didn’t know I was holding. I look up from my book thesecond Thorne disappears through the massive double doors. Where is he going?
My wolf wants me to get up and follow him. I push her back and turn my attention back to my book.
“Relax, he’ll be back,” I tell her. It’s true. He will be and if we intend to stay in Bloodstone Pack we're going to have to adapt to being around him. We can’t hold our breath every time he’s around. I’ll pass out. I feel my wolf shut me out which suits me fine. I've got a book to read.
I spend the rest of the morning outside reading and soaking up the sun. By the time Clover comes to get me for lunch I’ve almost finished my book. I stand sheepishly. I hadn’t realized that I’d been out here that long.
“I can help with lunch. I’m sorry,” I tell her, tucking my book under my arm and dusting off my pants. I’m wearing my spare pair of jeans that I dried out in front of the fire last night. I thought about getting more clothes from the wardrobe but didn’t feel right about it without talking to Clover first. If I get the okay from Alpha Ronan, I’ll bring it up for sure.
“Sorry for what?” Clover asks.
“Well, you know,” I say and gesture towards the grass with my book. “I’ve been out here reading. Not doing anything to help.”
Clover makes a face. “You’re a guest,” she says and then adds, “but even if you weren’t, you deserve to rest. Life’s way too short to spend it working.”
“You work a lot,” I remind her.
She rolls her eyes. “I like keeping house and visiting. That’s what I do mostly. Plus, don’t think I’m not off taking my own little getaways when I need to relax. It’s good to get away and recharge. You’ll see that once you’re our healer. Don’t let the Defenders run you ragged over every little papercut they get.”
I smile at Clover’s words. She thinks I’m going to stay. Well and truly means it. I turn over Clover’s words about relaxing and not working my life away while we make lunch together. It’s a simple affair but good. Lasagna, a salad and more homemade bread.
We sit together and eat. It’s nice to have someone to talk to and just…be. I’m not rushed and neither is Clover. Even when I had a meal with Maud there was always something to get to, a pack meeting or a chore to finish off. There never seemed to be enough hours in the day to get everything done in Frostclaw. It was chaos. Not just for me but for everyone. Keiran was always rushing to and from things with the other enforcers.
The only time he wasn’t was when he was with me in the woods. Then it was just us, and instead of rushing I was willing time to stand still. Sadness washes over me like a tidal wave.
“You okay?” Clover asks me.
Shoot, she noticed. “Yeah, I-I just,” my voice breaks and it’s impossible to talk through the tears. Luna. I have to stop falling to pieces every time I think about him.
“Cordelia? Are you okay?”
I give her a watery smile. “I am. I promise, I mean, I will be okay.” I dab at my eyes with the edge of my napkin and take in a deep breath. If I want a friend, I have to tell her the truth. It was something that I learned from Keiran back when we were younger.
“Friends tell each other when they’re hurting. You can tell me anything, Cordy.”
I shut my eyes. Where did that boy go?
“We’re friends, right?” I ask her.
“Of course, we are.”
I open my eyes and nod. “Right. Then I should tell you why I’m really here. What pushed me to, you know, come here.”
“You don’t have to if you don’t want to.” Clover reaches over and squeezes my hand. “But I’m here to listen if you need.”
I squeeze her hand back. “I, ah, I’m one of the orphans,” I say. “I mean, the Bloodstone Orphans.”
Her eyes go wide. “Oh honey, I knew what you meant when you said orphans the first time.” She grips my hand like she’s double-checking that I’m real. “You-I, I never thought I’d meet one of you.”
