Page 22 of Stay With Me

It was only supposed to be for one night… I wasn’t supposed to steal someone else’s forever!

Last night, I didn’t really care about tomorrow—but now it’s tomorrow, and that was precisely the attitude that got me banished from Accalia last summer. I committed the most cardinal sin among our kind: I tried to worm my way between a pair of fated mates. Ryker rejected Gem because of me, and he spent the next twelve full moons in a pair of chains because of me.

I found Duke in chains, suffering the madness that goes along with the moon fever. I knew what that meant. From the moment I saw him like that, it was obvious that he was restraining himself to keep from going after his female.

And what did I do? I went afterhim.

He thought I was a hallucination. He knew I was Trish, but he didn’t think I was real.

Well, when he wakes up and discovers that I’m gone, maybe he’ll think it really was a dream.

Too bad the scars on his neck will tell a totally different story…

* * *

River Run isthe nearest shifter territory to Accalia.

I always knew that. Growing up, they weren’t our allies per se, but we could rely on them in a pinch. That’s why, when I got banished from Accalia, the obvious thing to do was hope Kendall Rivers—the Alpha of River Run—would take me in.

I’m not made to be a lone wolf. I’m a pack shifter through and through, and if I couldn’t stay on the mountains, I at least wanted to be around my own kind.

Kendall was willing. I’ll give him that much. But the price to gain entrance to his pack was one I couldn’t pay, even after being banished. I had to forsake my family, forsake my friends, and give up any chance of ever returning home. If I didn’t, if I betrayed River Run after pledging my loyalty to Kendall, he told me he would take it as a challenge and hunt me down.

I respected him being up front with my choice. Knowing I could never give up hope on returning home, I had to decline, and I was scavenging on the land between his territory and Ryker’s when Gem’s vamp friend, Aleksander, found me and told me what to do and say to earn my ticket back to the Mountainside Pack.

Did I know he was using me? Of course. After Shane, I was beginning to be a pro at recognizing the signs when a male was manipulating me. He wanted Gem, he thought I still wanted Ryker, and he thought putting me back on the mountains would get us both what we wanted.

He was wrong. I gave up on Ryker even before I was banished, and all I wanted to do was rejoin my pack and make amends for my behavior. And I did—until Barrow slipped under my guard and tricked me…

When I left Ryker’s old cabin earlier this morning, I didn’t go home. Duke would know to look for me there, and I needed some time to figure out how I was going to deal with my reckless behavior. There was no taking back what I did. I marked him under the full moon, and I only hoped the fact that he didn’t mark me means that I can salvage our friendship.

His mate might never forgive me for leaving those scars on his throat. I still can’t understand why he wouldn’t heal him, though I guess the moon does strange things to us all. Before yesterday morning, I didn’t think I’d jump a chained-up Duke Conlon, either, so here we are.

On my run out, I realized that there probably wasn’t anywhere in Accalia I could hide from him. He’d find me, if only to apologize, and that… I didn’t like the idea of that, either.

So I kept on running.

I stayed in my skin for no other reason than my wolf was pissed at me. She didn’t want to come out and aid in my escape, not when she thought I should’ve stayed behind with Duke. I can still run pretty quickly in bare feet, so I do, and before I know it, I’m edging up to the south side of River Run territory.

Because he’s as anal and protective of an Alpha as Ryker, I’m not surprised to see Kendall pacing the lengths of the border as I approach.

I could avoid him. Technically, I haven’t breached his territory yet. I was just heading for a place that I knew well enough that allowed me to put some distance between me and my mistakes. No surprise, then, that I took the same path I did right after I was banished.

I could avoid him. I don’t.

I jog over to where he’s standing, making sure to keep a good amount of distance between us as I wave over at the Alpha.

“Hey, Trish. Long time, no see.”

“You, too, Kendall. Looking good.”

“Always.” That’s an Alpha for you. I might be vain, but there’s no shifter vainer than an alpha wolf. “What are you doing around here?”

If it was anyone else, I might have gotten out of having to answer that. I’m too ashamed to admit the truth, but this is Kendall Rivers. He’s an Alpha whose only loyalty is to his people. And while I tried to petition to join his pack last year when I was banished, he knew all along thatmyloyalty was to Mountainside. If he thinks I present any threat to his people, he’s not going to let me walk away without telling him why I’m here.

He sniffs. Before I can say a word, he nods. “Look at that. I guess congratulations are in order.”

“Congratulations?”

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