[1st draft] Bora's near-death experience caused a brief separation from Gemma, but to live in peace, he must end the Seven Shadows.
Bora Hawk, the polar wolf, has an unexplained target on his back. His enemies want him dead, caged, or becoming the...
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My fingers jitter as I pick up my heather gray crochet sweater off the lounge. I hope my father doesn't bring up the deal I made in the moment of my weakness. He still has this type of guardian ownership over me where Bora is the outsider, the one intruding. But he is family. We practically raised each other. Ugh. I was so stupid for taking my father's help.
A sense of presence was lingering. As I fastened the buttons, I couldn't help but look back, half-expecting someone to be there, but the area remained empty. I could've sworn someone was here. I guess it was nothing.
We made it back to Colorado Springs, shuffling up the stairs to the FRL laboratory entrance in the mountains as I dreaded going inside. While my mate was ahead of me, he was noticeably slower than the rest of the group. He paused in front of me and turned with haste to come face to face with me while I stumbled over him. He caught my arm. "Tell me what you are hiding." I widen, sucking in air through my pipes. "We are alone now, so there is no need to feel ashamed. Out of respect, I didn't want to humiliate you in front of them by making you tell me the truth. Here and now tell me what's wrong?"
It caught me in between the truth and the lie stuck in my throat. How do I answer the question? With deceit or the real, he would sense any BS I try to explain, anyway. I opened my mouth, but nothing was coming out. Lying is not what I want to do. What can I do? If I tell him I know he will see me differently, I just know it. But, keeping it from him isn't good either. That man caged him, then used him for experiments, and I accepted my father's offer for selfish reasons.
"Bora, I-"
"Gemma!" My father came through the sliding doors with an over-the-top joyful, yet dead look. You have got to be kidding me. He will tell him. No doubt about that.
My gaze fixed on Bora like a race against time. "I tried to have your baby by getting artificially insinuated." I glanced at my father while came closer. "By John's nurse/assistant with your swim team." The heat from my cheeks flushed my chest. The lapse motion in his eyes sent my gut on a roller-coaster. If I lose him, at least I told the truth to give him a chance to decide.
He blinked out of it and stood in between me and my father. "You are not to come near her, ever."
"I think I will let my daughter decide that." His face fell, annoyed, trying to see past him.
"You betrayed her. The sick things that came out of your mouth. Let me know everything about you. You come near her when I say it. The reason we are here is for this one thing."
Quinn handed him the electric gun. "Is this yours?" He pushed it to his chest.
He glanced at the weapon, then side eyes up at Bora. "I thought you were dead?"
The beast came out of him, making the biggest unhinged scene I have ever seen. My father clambers to the ground, clutching his chest. Then his eyes glossed with amazement. "You truly are a beautiful creature." He looked at Quinn. "Well, aren't you going to do something?"
