The Forsaken Luna

CHAPTER FOURTY-ONE

Mackenzie

The drive home is painful. Being stuck in one car for almost a day with a silent father, an upset she wolf and my own mate, who is scent is driving me crazy isn't the highlight of my life.

Dad hasn't spoken a word ever since he heard of the plan. I like to think it's because he's thinking through my plan, not because he's pissed off about it and Rebecca has been closed up as well. Ever since she cried in Elliot's arms, she's been avoiding any type of eye contact or conversation. Which left an awkward silence between all of us in the car.

We stopped a few times to stretch our legs and change the driver. Dad was far too tired to drive us back, since he drove the whole way here. Rebecca was the first to drive, but I realized soon after we left she's tired as well. She must be tired from crying so much. So I insisted I drive us back home.

And this is how I ended up behind the wheel, with Rebecca sleeping on the passenger seat and dad snoring in the back. Elliot is sitting behind me in the car, his head turned to the side to look through the window. We haven't had a proper conversation ever since the incident in the bathroom and I don't know how to start one in the moment.

I felt awful. He has been going through hell this past three months and only now do I know what that hell felt like. I can't believe he had so much self-restraint to stop himself from pouncing on me in the middle of the night when we were sleeping in the same bed. I feel bad I put him through this.

I glance down to the display, noticing that we are almost out of gas. Luckily, there is a gas station just up ahead. So I turn on the blinker and swerve to the gas station. I sense how Elliot picks up his head to look at the back of my neck when I stop and turn off the car. I open the door of the car and step out, closing it carefully enough not to wake up dad or Rebecca.

When my back is turned to the car, I hear another door open up. The smell of caramel dances over to my nose and I almost curse out aloud. When I turn to the car, I almost press my nose against Elliot's chest. His body tenses and he takes a step back to make some space between us.

"You don't have to ignore me, you know." He tells me and takes the gas pump out of my hand. He props it into the car and holds it, his eyes scanning the flipping numbers on the display of the gas dispenser. "I'm not." I state, crossing my arms over my chest. Elliot's eyes flick over to me for just a second and I can see the corner of his lips turning down slightly. "Yeah, right." He scoffs.

My own lips turn down slightly and I feel guilt wash over me. Okay, maybe I am trying to avoid him. Only because I don't know how to talk to him in the moment. Should I apologize for torturing him for the past three months? Or should I just flat out tell him I want him to mark me? That would be selfish now, wouldn't it be?

Elliot takes the gas pump away and closes the gas cap hatch. He hangs the gas pump, his body leaning close to mine while he does that. His body traps me against the gas dispenser and I close my eyes in fear. The caramel scent he has makes my head spin and my wolf growls in delight. I suppress the urge to lean forward and lick his neck from his collarbones to the sharp edge of his jawline.

Elliot leans back and his hazel eyes look down at me. The way he looks down on me makes my knees weak. Like he would know what I was just thinking right now and the idea thrills him.

"I don't want things to be awkward between us." Elliot tells me. I press my lips together and glance away from him. He reaches his hand up to my face, wanting to turn my face back to his, but his hand halts, only ghosting over my cheek. I hold my breath, wishing him to grab my face and turning it over to him, but also wishing his hand away. I'm too afraid to lose control in the open. I don't trust myself with my wolf.