It's That 'I Hate You' Kind of Love

Chapter Forty

**When you see ITIHYKOL that stand for It's That I Hate You Kind of Love**

I was spitting and spitting and spitting until my mouth was dry and all I could taste was copper.

"This seems very offensive," Carson called from where he still sat on the ground before the flameless pit several feet away. "But it's also kind of funny."

"I can't believe I broke through skin!" I yelled, turning away from him and touching my front teeth, "is there blood on my teeth? This is disgusting, why didn't you tell me that this was going to be disgusting? Germs? Why didn't I think of all the germs? Are you even clean? When did you last shower?"

I sounded like Emily. My mood darkened slightly as I realized, 'well, the Emily before she met Ben'.

I turned quickly and pointed, "If you gave me some sort of werewolf disease Carson, I swear..."

Carson was laughing, like head thrown back, arms clutching his sides and laughing at me. I scowled at him.

"I don't see why you're laughing four legs, look at your damn shoulder!"

After he calmed down a bit he did. His shoulder was soaked in blood, running and staining his white tee shirt a violent red. "It will heal." He shrugged, but I was still shaking with shock, worry and anger. Carson seemed to notice and his smile slowly dimmed. "Hey, it's okay Charlotte."

"It's not." I snapped back. It was definitely not okay. I watched him stand up and walk towards me. Cautiously, he held out his arms, but I crossed mine tightly across my chest and didn't move. Carson stepped forward, drawing me close and wrapping his arms around me.

"It's okay," He soothed again, and I didn't realize just how much I was shaking until then; I was trembling like the ground during a stampede. I uncrossed my arms and hooked them around his waist, finding comfort in my werewolf's embrace for the tenth time. 'I really need to stop relying on him for stuff like this,' I thought bitterly as I pressed the side of my face into his chest, but Carson gave the best hugs: they were like wrapping a warm blanket fresh out the dryer around you on a cold night.

"I didn't think I would break through skin," I said harshly, fully knowing that my anger was disguising how worried and sick I was that I had done that to a person; done that to him. When I was little I never bit my brother till he bled. "I didn't think I would. I didn't know you would bleed like that when I bit you, I didn't mean to make you bleed. Did I really hurt you?"

Carson still seemed a bit amused by his chuckle, but I really wasn't. "No, you didn't really hurt me. This is what's supposed to happen Charlotte."

"You're supposed to bleed out until you look like a dry sponge?"

He laughed softly again and I felt the vibration of his chest against my cheek. "No. But there is always blood. It's apart of marking, but usually the mate licks it away." I stiffened.

"That's warning for a tetanus shot, Carson." I paused and looked up at his smile. "Do I have to lick you because-"

"It's healed enough already," Carson said, lifting up one hand from my side and leaving me ultra aware of the sudden chill to my right, and pulling his tee shirt collar to the side. In the midst of all the blood, I could still see a faint silver bite mark gleaming at me in the moonlight.

"It hasn't faded."

He looked thoughtful. "It must not matter that you're human after all. Marking is marking."

"Don't say 'marking is marking' ever again." I said.

"Why?"

"Just don't."