Mated

Keeping Distance

For the second time in just a few days, Lyric woke with a start and the familiar taste of blood on her lips. She leapt from the bed and hurried to the bathroom to brush the foul fluid from her mouth. She pushed the bathroom door shut behind her and stopped when it just hit the frame and bounced back. When she looked closer, she saw that the frame was a splintered mess, and all thoughts went to her mate.

"Kieran?!" she screamed, running to the living room to search for him. She was half expecting to find a bloody corpse. Instead, she found him bundled on the couch—fully alive. He jumped from the couch when he saw her and she tackled him back to its surface with a bear hug. "Oh, Kieran!" she cried. "I was so scared when I saw the bathroom door! What did I do?"

Her mate carefully pried her off and got up, putting the couch between them. She stood up, giving him a puzzled look, and tried to walk to him. Kieran immediately retreated to the furthest part of the kitchen and eyed her with caution. Lyric didn't understand and could feel the tears welling up in her eyes.

"You need to get cleaned up," her mate said with a strained voice. "You're all I can smell." The last word came out half a growl and he shook his head hard back and forth. "Don't worry about closing the door all the way, I'll go outside. Once you're done, I'll explain what happened."

With a quick glance down, she saw what he meant and she took off in embarrassment to the restroom once more. She heard a door open and close as soon as she left and did her bet to close the heavy wooden bathroom door. The shattered frame prevented it from closing all the way, but it only hung open a few inches—giving her enough privacy for now. Lyric looked around the bathroom for more signs of her change, but saw only sparkly clean space. Brown paper bags were stored under the towel rack and she fished through them in search of new underwear and the pads she'd told Max to buy. Once she found what she needed, she stripped down and got into the tub to clean up.

Even though she knew Kieran was outside, she still darted as fast as possible to the bedroom in search of clean clothes. She found a pair of plain black pajama bottoms and a T-shirt for some band that she had never heard of and pulled on both. Then she took care of the bedding and the towel on the bed, rinsing them out in the tub and then letting them soak. Finally, she made her way outside.

Kieran was standing at the far end of the deck, staring out at the calm lake, and she went up to him. As soon as she got close, he moved away from her, and she felt tears prickle her eyes again. Why was he so keen on staying away from her?

"What did I do?" she whispered, wiping a stray tear from her cheek. "I changed again, didn't I? Am I the one who destroyed the door? Why did I have blood in my mouth again?"

"Yes," he murmured, "you changed. But the door was all my doing. What's the last thing you remember?"

"Hearing you shout at Max to leave," she said. "Then nothing until I woke up. Will you please tell me what I did?"

"Your wolf made it very clear that I'm to keep my distance from you while you're in heat," he said, putting even more space between them. "Me and probably ever other male in the Pack."

"I bit you again, didn't I? Where?"

"Just on my finger tips," he said, wiggling the tips of his right fingers at her. "I deserved it. I touched you."

What the hell? She thought angrily. You made me change to tell him what I already told him to do?

Didn't think he'd take the point from just you, her wolf snorted in her head. You're too weak in this form to stop him.

He respects me! She shot back.

Even more now. Her wolf chuckled and then went silent.

"You ok?" Kieran asked, cocking his head at her. "You and your wolf communicating?"

"How did you--?" she started.

"You make faces and your breathing changes," he said with a small laugh. "Now, I think I should pack up and head home. I'll call Gram and have her come get me."

"What?" she squeaked. She didn't want him to actually go. Just give her space and time to think and to control himself. Was that too much to ask?

"Look, your wolf is dead serious about me leaving you alone," he said. He moved around her to try and head inside.

"Please," she whimpered. "Please don't leave me. Am I asking too much that you just stay? And just. . . Keep your distance?"

"Lyric," he sighed, "you don't get it. I've been around other females in heat and what I felt was nothing compared to how I feel around you right now. I would kill a guy for looking at you. Literally kill him. I think I would have hurt Max if you hadn't changed. Your smell is," he stopped talking and inhaled deeply, "erotic and exotic and I can't be sure I won't do something I'll regret. Even with your warning. Every molecule in me is screaming out for you. Don't you feel the same thing?"

Lyric stopped and put all her focus into her body. Her body wasn't screaming out for him or whatever he had said. All she craved right now was to have her hair played with, a heating pad for her on coming cramps, and about three gallons of chocolate ice cream. She closed her eyes and tried to focus even more. There was a soft flutter of anxiety in her chest at the thought of him leaving her all alone but no yearning for him more than usual. She opened her eyes and shook her head. He let out a pained chuckle and scrubbed a hand over his face.

"Lyric, you know I care about you," he said. "But me staying here with you in your condition is literal torture for me. I have to go." He had a husky sound to his voice and he spun on his heel, heading inside.