Made in Moonlight

Eight

I wake up in the middle of the night, muscles sore and head pounding.

For a minute, I stare dazedly up at the cabin ceiling. It's still dark outside, but the moon is bright in the sky. I move my eyes to the window and frown at the moon.

Why am I awake?

Why does my head hurt so much?

It takes me a moment to realize. I take a slow breath through my nose and the smell hits me.

Earthy, like the forest, but human. Familiar.

"What is happening?" I whisper to myself, lifting a hand to cover my nose. It's so strong, overwhelmingly so, that my head is killing me.

Beneath it, I can smell other things. The starchy scent of my bed sheets. The lingering smell from dinner, still in the air. My toothpaste on my breath.

What is going on?

There's no way I'll be able to sleep with all these smells around me.

I press my fingers into my temples and start rubbing circles there.

I think I've finally snapped. Between discovering the existence of werewolves, and training for hours every day, something in my brain has finally twisted out of place.

I'm going crazy.

I exhale a long breath and close my eyes.

Maybe this is all just a really weird dream. A nightmare. Any second now, I'll wake up and everything will be back to normal. Well, as normal as living with three werewolves can be.

Except, I can still smell my bed sheets, and my toothpaste, and with my hands this close to my face, I think I can even smell my skin.

This isn't working.

"No," I mutter, pressing my hands over my eyes. A burning feeling erupts behind my eyes, and I think I might cry out of pure frustration.

Instead, I huff and slam my hands back down by my sides. They hit the mattress and I turn my head to glare out at the moon. Somehow, I think this is its fault.

My muscles groan as I shift my body. I force myself to sit upright, my legs hanging off the bed.

Well, there's no way I'm sleeping tonight.

I don't even know what time it is. My bedroom is so empty, there's not even a clock on the wall, and my phone is still dead. The moon is still high in the dark sky. I couldn't have slept more than a few hours.

Rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I stand and head for the kitchen.

Maybe some tea or warm milk will lull me back to sleep.

As soon as I open my bedroom door, that earthy smell grows stronger. I squeeze my eyes shut. It's strong, but not unpleasant.

And it's so familiar.

I turn towards the end of the hall. Blake's room.

As if in a trance, I find myself walking towards it, that smell growing and growing. The silver string between us sparks to life and I wonder if he's awake—if he sees it too.

I lift a hand to knock on his door. My fingers hover over the wood and I freeze.

What am I doing?

It's the middle of the night and I'm sneaking into the room of a man I barely know?

Except, he's not a stranger, I realize. He's my mate. I've been through these steps before.

The thought makes me uneasy.