Chapter 29: Ada's Mate

Blake

“Oh, dear goddess,” Ada murmurs as she closes her eyes.

My blood is boiling as I fight my wolf. It kills me to stand here while he openly threatens her.

“We should get back,” Zoe gives Ada a sympathetic look as she gets up.

“Yeah,” Ada sighs. “You go ahead, I need time to think and will walk home.”

“That’s too dangerous,” Reese protests as he walks to her.

“No, it’s not,” Ada says irritated. “Clyde is in the dungeon and the rouges went home.”

“Ada, please,” Reese pleads with her.

“Leave me alone,” she snaps as she starts walking into the woods.

“I’ll follow her,” I whisper to Reese. “You ensure everybody gets home safely.”

“No,” Reese grunts. “I’ll stay with her.”

“You don’t have your wolf, Reese,” Cooper intervenes. “It’s safer if Blake goes.”

“Cooper is right,” Zoe adds and Reese growls softly before he turns around and storms off to where the Omegas are cleaning.

“She won’t even know I’m following her, I’ll keep my distance,” I say softly before I start jogging in the direction Ada has disappeared to.

I was about to get to the point of panic when I finally spot her. For a person with a cane, she is pretty fast. I keep my distance and silently move from one tree to another until she goes to stand still in a clearing. She looks up at the sky and screams.

It is filled with so much anguish that it cuts through my bones and saddens me. I remember her words from last night and without thinking twice, I walk to her.

“Ada,” I say softly and startled she swirls around.

“What are you doing here?” She demands angrily. “I told you I need time alone.”

“I know,” I whisper as I put my arms around her waist and pull her into my embrace. “I also know that you’re tired of being strong and fighting to keep your head above water.”

“Just go,” she murmurs.

“Not yet,” I pick her up and go sit with her underneath a tree. I hold on tightly to her as I cradle her head in my neck. “You’re not alone, Ada. We are going to sit here and you can just let go of everything. I’ll keep you safe while you let down your guard.”

“What have I done to make people hate me this much?” She sobs as she buries her face in her hands. I do not say a word as I hold her and stroke her hair.

By the time her tears have dried up, my legs are asleep from being in the same position.

“Thanks,” she sniffs against my chest. “I needed this.”

“Are you feeling better?” I ask softly.

“I feel lighter,” she snuggles closer to me. “Sorry about the pity party.”

“You have so much to learn,” I chuckle and roll my eyes. “This was not a pity party. You had a momentary breakdown because people want to kill you. A true pity party is when you sulk for years about a mate’s betrayal and take it out on everyone around you.”

She laughs softly at my self-deprecating joke and my heart flutters at the sound.

“We should get back,” she says as she sits up.

“I need a moment,” I grunt.

“Why?” She frowns.

“My legs are sleeping,” I grin sheepishly.

Ada

“I’m so sorry,” I frantically try to get up. I was so caught up in my misery that I never realized his discomfort. “You should’ve said something earlier.”

“Don’t move,” he says quickly, and I obey. “Pins and needles, you’re making it worse.”

“Suffer through it,” I roll my eyes and place my hands on his chest to push myself away, but he places his hand over mine and I look at him questioningly.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” He asks sincerely.

“I am,” I look into his eyes and suddenly the atmosphere changes for me. All that I am aware of, is him. The warmth of his chest under my palms and his eyes searching mine for answers.

I know I decided to stay away from him and Reese until I know which one is my mate but at this very moment, it is extremely hard to keep my distance. For heaven’s sake, the man is a Greek god and he is interested in me. I am not a corpse. I feel things and right now, I feel like doing unholy things with him.

“Will you tell me about this?” I press my fingers against his scar. Hopefully, the story will distract me from my dirty thoughts.

“Her name was June,” he starts.

“You don’t say,” I make my eyes big at him and he chuckles as he squeezes my fingers gently.

“And I met her the year before I was to take over as alpha from my dad,” he continues as he scoots me off his lap. He repositions himself and opens his legs before he pulls me closer.

“Naturally, she was over the moon about becoming the pack’s new Luna,” he pulls my back against his chest and wraps his arms around my waist. I intertwine our fingers and rest my head against his shoulder.

“But it was a busy time for me,” he sounds miles away as he talks. “Between training and learning the pack’s business, I hardly saw her during the day. And most nights, I was so exhausted, I only wanted to stay at home and relax.”

“Let me guess,” I cut in. “She wanted to go out and socialize.”

“Yes,” he admits. “But in her defence, she was cooped up the entire day with my mother, preparing for her Luna duties. And my mother is very … uhm, precise. She and June constantly fought because she couldn’t get it right like my mother wanted. Every night I had to listen to her complaining about my mother. It drove me insane.”

“Naturally,” I nod. “One should never be in the position to take sides between your parents and significant other.”

“June perceived my hesitance as a lack of interest,” he sighs. “So, she turned to her bodyguard and vented towards him.”

“And one thing led to another,” I turn my head to look at him.

“I was late for dinner that night,” his voice is low as he stares into the darkness. “When I felt the first pain in my chest, I knew what was happening. But I told myself I’m wrong. She’s at home with my family. There’s no one she can cheat on me with. I found them in the garden shed. I lost it. I ripped the guard to pieces and walked away, leaving her there hysterically. She ran after me, but I didn’t want to hear it. She kept pleading with me to forgive her all the way back to the house. I told her to give me space, and for a moment she backed off until she saw me entering my dad’s office. She knew I was going to tell him and then it was over for her. My mother already didn’t like her. She came after me and I just had enough. We were standing in front of my father when I started rejecting her as my mate and she went berserk. She picked up a silver dagger from my dad’s display and stabbed me right in front of him before I could finish my rejection. He jumped up and killed her.”

“No,” my heart cringes for him and I sit up. “You had to feel the pain of her infidelity and her death.”

“Yes,” he sighs.

“I’m so, so sorry,” I turn to him and cup his beautiful face. “I had no idea it was so bad.”

“Nobody does, not even Cooper,” he gives me a crooked smile. “Except you and my parents. I didn’t want to relive it and explain why two people lost their lives.”

“I’m sorry for the nasty things I’ve said last night,” I say softly. “You didn’t deserve it.”

“I’m glad you said those things,” he pulls me closer. “I needed to hear it to pull me out of my misery.”

For a moment I only look at him. I was hoping his story would distract me from my pestering hormones, but it backfired. Now I am not only attracted to him, but I also have this overwhelming urge to comfort him.

“I want to kiss you,” I confess as I trace his bottom lip with my finger. “But I don’t want to cause you any more pain.”

“I’ll risk it,” his fingers curl around my neck and his lips capture mine.

“This is against my rules,” I pant as he kisses my neck and my arms snake around his neck.

“You always break the rules,” he murmurs as he continues his journey to my bare shoulder.

“Not at the cost of others,” I breathe before he captures my lips again. My fingers get lost in his silky hair and I quiet my protesting mind as I feverishly return his kisses. My desire for him is much stronger than reason.

His hand slides underneath my skirt and up my thigh and every one of my senses come alive. I know it would be wise to stop him but I am a puddle of lust. Anticipation pulls tighter and tighter when his fingers glide over my underwear but his fingers move to my knee.

“Blake,” I whimper against his lips. I am on the verge of begging him to rip my clothes off and do with me as he pleases.

“We should go back,” I betray my body. Honestly, I am about to spontaneously combust with desire.

He pulls me impossibly close to him and kisses me tenderly before he lets go of me.

My legs are jelly when he helps me up. He smiles softly at me before he steps back.

“Hop on,” he says before he shifts.

“You’re beautiful,” I say in awe as I glide my fingers through his wolf’s fur before I climb on.