Having spent the day sitting by Aria’s side, I had received a mindlink to visit Micah. Being my closest friend, and of course, the pack Alpha, him mindlinking was not out of the ordinary. He would check in with me most days. Wanting to know how my mate was doing. But, him asking me to visit was something that seemed out of the ordinary. He knew I did not like to leave her side.But, I knew I should do as my friend and Alpha wanted, as he was already showing me a lot of lenience. And, in truth, I was more than a little curious what it was he wanted with me. Had they found more information on the rogues who had attacked us the day my beautiful girl was hurt? If so, I was ready to take those fuckers down and make them suffer the consequences...So, I waited until Aria had dropped off. Having shared a story with her of our first Christmas together. Her eyes flickered over my face as I spoke, like she was interested in my words, but there was that emptiness behind her gaze that told me she
Had I heard that right? I felt the anger building. No, this cannot be right. How can I be scaring her? This is my fated mate. The one chosen for me. What irritated me more, was that my friend, my supposed best friend, had called me away from my mate's side to tell me this. Could he not have done this via mindlink, or on the occasional visit he made to the hospital?! He had to know the pain this was going to cause.“No.” I murmured, anger evident in my tone, as my hands shook. “Just no, that is not right. I would not be scaring her. I am being there for her. The way that I should as a fated mate.” I snapped, standing suddenly from the stool I was sitting on, causing it to fall loudly to the floor.“Rocco, come on, calm down.” Anna was by my side. “I know this likely came as a shock, and it hurt, but you need to try to understand how Aria is feeling. She is likely scared by everything right now…” her voice faltered, as my eyes focused on her angrily. Was she agreeing with all of this?!
I had awoken in the night, like I so often did, the downside, I suppose, of drifting off to sleep during the day. But as my sleepy eyes adjusted to the dim lights within my room, I guess I was expecting to find those big blue eyes upon me, but my room was empty. The thing that shocked me the most, was that I felt strangely lonely.I could not help but wonder where Rocco might be. I believe he has been here every time I have woken, since I came around in this very room… had something happened to him? But as I pondered this, I knew this could be of my own doing. I had spoken to the nurse when she had helped me bathe, expressing that he scared me a little. Was I wrong in saying that though?I did not think it was in such a terrible way, just that his gaze was intimidating. So intense… I believe that stare could scare even the strongest of men. The more I thought about it, the more I wondered if maybe the nurse had spoken out? Could something have been said to him? Had that stopped him f
Having stormed from Micah’s home, I did not know where to go, nor what to do. Usually, when angry, I would allow Ciro out for a run, but right now I did not have my wolf to turn to. My wolf was missing in action. He had retreated, struggling with the situation we found ourselves in. Leaving me to battle it out alone. I felt I was drifting out to sea, barely keeping my head above the water right now. I did not know what to do.This was not a position I had ever been in before, and was never a position I expected myself to be in. So, it was not one I had prepared for. When I met Aria, I thought all my problems were solved. That my life was complete. Happiness and contentment had filled me and taken over... everything I had wanted was there, and my wolf felt the same. And now it felt like it had all been torn out from under me with no warning... had I done something wrong?! Did I deserve this pain and the suffering?I contemplated heavily as I wandered aimlessly through the familiar pat
It took no time at all for me to reach the training field. And as I sat on the wall that was close to it to wait for the imminent arrival of my Dad, my heart felt heavy. I didn’t know what to do anymore. I didn’t even know if I was able to carry on.I had always felt so capable as a man... as a werewolf. So strong. Confident. And when I came of age, my wolf only enhanced that. A Beta wolf was only second in strength to the Alpha, and my wolf, Ciro, was certainly a wolf to be proud of. A wolf to fear. So feeling the loss of him right now was like a bullet through my heart. Part of me felt like I was missing, and I did not know how to cope with that. It did not feel real. Was this what it felt like to fall apart?“Rocco?” I heard my Dad speak before I had even heard him approach, which told me just how distracted I was. Distracted by my own thoughts, and also clearly weaker in my abilities due to the lack of my own wolf right now.I looked up and met his concerned gaze. A sympathetic lo
I lay under the trees watching the night sky, stars seeming to move slowly above me. The peace and tranquility of the surrounding forest was almost calming. I felt content out here. I loved the feel of the forest floor under me, and the security I felt. With no other person around for miles. It felt the safest place to be.The sky was a deep shade of almost a deep blue-purple color, lit up by the gentle glow of the moon. I could see almost the full moon in the small clearing I had brought myself to, and it fascinated me. Something so far away, yet it brought light to our planet. It was truly beautiful lighting up our night sky and I felt blessed to be able to see it so clearly out here…As I lay admiring the natural beauty of the sky of stars, there was a rustle in the trees nearby, causing me to turn my head. I knew people did not come out here, so I did not feel panicked. This was my safe space, and I was sure it was nothing more than a small animal exploring the forest. But I hear
I pressed my eyes shut once more, urging sleep to wash over me once again. Perhaps if I could fall asleep then the dream would return... continue where it had left off, and maybe I could discover who the mystery man had been. The man who had shifted in front of me. Would he reveal himself to me again? I desperately wanted to know who this man was and if I knew him. He felt familiar. I needed to see him. Then I would know. I squeezed my eyes together even tighter, willing the sleep to come. But the harder I tried, the more wide awake I seemed to feel, and the more frustrated I became. It seemed I would not get my answer...I opened my eyes with a deep sigh, looking up at the ceiling, my mind running over the dream. Trying to relive every aspect. But, I came back to the same thoughts. It was too familiar. Something seemed recognizable about where I was. About the wolf. Like I had been around them before... Those blue eyes... yet my mind did not seem to want to work properly right now, a
After a long talk with my father, whilst walking through our pack, it was decided I would stay with my parents until the doctors decided Aria was able to move home. The thing I feared most about this plan was that even if they say she is well enough to be discharged, what if she continues to have no knowledge of me… of our home… then where would that leave her when it came to returning home with me? For I saw the look of fear in her eyes when I reached to touch her, and it was not a look I wanted to see again. So forcing her to return to a house with me… a house she would not know, with a man she deemed a stranger… well, it was asking for failure, wasn’t it?I had tossed and turned most of the night in the bed within the spare room, before taking a shower and edging my way downstairs, hearing my parents talk within the kitchen as I approached.“I don’t know Lucia. I will suggest he heads to work.” I heard my Dad saying to my Mum, and I had a feeling I had caught the end of a conversat
Ciro whimpered heavily in my mind at the sight of our mate in the arms of our friend, but I don’t think it was because of the fact she was being held by another man. A man that by all accounts would be considered stronger and more powerful than me, it was the way she had looked at us. The way her eyes lit up when they met mine…But, I knew I did not have time for emotion right now. Aria needed to know we were here for her. “Tesoro, are you okay?” I reached for her, but those beautiful eyes flickered closed once more, as Micah rushed her away from the car, just as a rush of heat englufed us. Flames were taking over the car, and we had done exactly the right thing in following my gut and getting Aria out when we did. A moment longer and it would have been too late. The thought does not bear worth thinking about...That heat from the increasing fire behind us was radiating across our bodies, so we moved faster. Micah using all her had to increase the speed with which he was moving, know
My eyes are darting over the damage to the car. This is not how I had wanted to find my mate. I had wanted to find her well. Be able to convince her to return with me. Tell her what a fool I had been. Knowing that in spite of everything she had fallen for me again meant the world to me. We had found one another once and fallen for one another, and in a cruel twist of fate, she had forgotten me, and fallen for me all over again... I had been blessed, not just once but twice. I could not let my girl die.I looked to Micah. His eyes were doing the exact same thing as mine. I could see the concern across the face of my friend, as his dark eyes took in the damage to the car. There has certainly been some sort of impact to it. Aria had to have been thrown around inside of her car. My heart ached at the thought that my mate may well be injured further... but I noticed my friend's eyes are currently lingering on that leaking fuel. The thing that is concerning me the most right now…‘We need t
Ciro ran. Faster than I think I have felt my wolf run before. His feet pounding along the floor of the packlands until we had crossed the borders onto the lands beyond. Micah’s wolf, Zane, had wasted no time in shifting and running alongside me. But I was paying little attention to the wolf by our side. My focus was through the eyes of my wolf. Looking for the car accident that my Alpha had mentioned.The car accident that my mate may well be laying in…The thought that Aria could be laying injured in a car somewhere tore at my heart strings. Knowing that she had been fleeing me when that had potentially happened made it even worse. This was not how my life was meant to go. Never how I envisioned meeting my fated mate would be. It had been enough of a shock to disover she was a human. But, I had thought I was strong enough to protect her. A matebond is everything to a wolf; and I truly thought ours would be. Evidently, I was wrong. I had
I stood from the bed, needing some space, but Micah blocked my way. “You think I am going to allow you to get away with this? Abandoning your fated when she needs you the most? That is not what we do, Rocco and you know it is not.” he demanded. “You know this is not the way to do this, Rocco. Yes, this has got tough, but as her mate you deal with the tough as well as the good. That is part of being a mate.”I shook my head at my Alpha, not willing to get into a grand debate over it all. This was not his choice anyway. My mind was made up. Aria had evidently made her choice the moment she wrote that letter. She had been planning to find a way to escape. She had made the decision in her mind that all of this was some sort of game. I don’t think there would ever be a way for her to trust me. I had known deep down all along, I would never gain my Aria back. The one I had fallen for was gone to me. The one in front of me all these we
I picked the second piece of paper up, and began to read. My heart aching at the thought my mate had been developing feelings for me once again and I had been oblivious to it, despite it being what I had hoped for all along. Or I had simply been too scared to notice…Well, you did not come back to me. I waited all day, and a great portion of the night in the hope you would come to see me. Not just upon one day, but many. Yet on each and every single one of those days, as my hope slipped away, all I received was a brief moment when you came in to place a coffee upon my table, before making some fandangle excuse before rushing off again. Anyone would think you did not want to be around me Rocco. And I have still to understand why - believe me I have tried. My heart dropped at her words. I imagined her sittng in her room trying to understand what was happening. Why I had been avoiding contact with her. I had stayed away, not because I did not want to be around her, but because I was wo
I looked to the nurse with confusion. “Letters?” I asked, and she smiled at me, all fear that had been displayed upon her face moments ago now gone, as she nodded at me.“Yes, Beta. I have not looked at them, but she must have been thinking of you to be writing to you these last few days. I think she missed your visits.” She suggested, and my heart twisted at her words. My rushed calls had been causing her pain? I know the reason behind my swift visits to the hospital was more to avoid my discomfort but I believed it would help Aria too. I thought she would appreciate the space. The awkward tension between us…“Do you think so?” I asked quietly, and the nurse smiled again.“I think the fact she was asking for paper each day to write to you says a lot, do you not, Beta?” she said, offering me the letters again. I tentatively took them, before sitting myself upon the edge of Aria’s bed, my heart inexplicably pounding as I looked down to the papers within my hands. “I will leave you in p
I paced the corridors of the hospital. Mindlink after mindlink being sent to as many people as I could think of to assist in my hunt for Aria. I needed as many of the senior people within pack, past and present to know she was missing. They needed to begin a hunt for her. My mate had been safe whilst we knew where she was. She had been safe within our care. Now, we did not know where she was. She was still healing. I needed to know she would be okay...I needed to know where Aria was. None of this made sense. My mind was spinning with the possibilities of where my mate could have gone. She had been mere steps away. Uable to walk at speed. I did not understand how she had got away from me. I cursed myself for even talking to those doctors now. I should have gone after her. I should never have given her the time she needed to calm down. Giving her space had been the thing that may have lost me my mate...There was no plan to my search. It was a franctic dash back and forth down as many
I had my outburst and I walked away. Admittedly, not all that fast, but I did my best to storm away. I half expected Rocco to rush after me, but instead I heard muffled voices behind me, making me assume he and the medical staff were discussing things… or more specifically, me. I had most definitely given them plenty to talk about.But, I had no intention of turning back. I kept walking, the pain in my legs still there, but not quite as bad as it had been, which I have to say was a relief. Each step I made I expected Rocco to appear, but he never did, and as I reached the bottom of the corridor, where it veered off into two directions, I was surprised to say the least. I had most certainly exected him to be here by now, it would not have taken him much to catch up with me.I turned to the right, opting for that corridor because it was the emptier of the two, hoping there may be an empty room I may walk past that I would be able to hide in for a time, until I was
It felt like the world had stood still. Hearing her yell like that had been a shock. Aria had broken down, not only telling me how she felt, but all those involved in her care. It was truly heartbreaking to hear what she was going through. And, everything she said was right, we did not know what it was like, because we were not the ones experiencing it. And, the thing was, I doubted even if we did, would it be the same for us. This was something unique, and none of us knew the best way to help Aria. We had tried, and it seemed we had failed. Miserably. Never had it occurred to me that was how she was feeling. And I was supposed to be able to pick up on her feelings. I felt like a failure.Some of her thoughts made sense, but others, I do not think I could have ever have thought of. And it broke my heart she had gone through them alone. Never speaking out until now. Until she felt pushed into a corner. I fear because she was scared about coming to live with m