The Human Mate

Chapter 22

RILEY

She knew, and she didn't tell me.

"Why? How—" I couldn't form the sentence to ask her. Margret looked at me, and her face softened. She understood what I was asking.

"Riley, Logan is a werewolf."

That confirms it. I wasn't losing my marbles. "Well, everyone here is."

What the hell?

My eyes widened as she continued to tell me more. "Forest Valley is the name of the pack the werewolves named after we lost everything." There was a hint of sadness, but she mustered through and explained more.

"We came here after an attack happened on our old territory. We held many meetings regarding this place and its purpose until everyone agreed to open it up to tourists about three years ago."

Margret's eyes lingered on me for a moment before she sighed. "I wanted to tell you about them, about everything, but Logan wanted to tell you once you got to know him. He should have told you when he first met you."

I could only nod at her, but my mind was racing. This was an information overload, especially after what happened earlier.

Margret smiled and leaned back in the chair. "I was like you. I'm not a wolf like the others, but I know what finding out the hard way about them is like. I met a guy and fell in love with him. He was a werewolf and told me I was his mate."

Looking deep in thought, Margret looked on as she recalled what she could remember. "I found out when my husband took me on our first date. He didn't have to fight anyone, but his wolf was too eager to meet me. He even shifted in front of me. The shock overwhelmed me, and I fled from the cafe, fearing for my life. His wolf ran after me until he cornered me by a tree. He stayed still and didn't move."

She let out a laugh. "I remember screaming at him to go away, but his wolf wasn't having any of it. The damn dog decided to come closer and place his paw on my lap. He caged me against the tree and licked my face."

Margret turned to face me and laughed. "I smelt like a wet dog for days."

I gave her a smile.

"How did you get over it?" I asked, keeping my eyes on her.

"Well, after I yelled for him to get off me, his wolf did, and he shifted back into his human self." Her eyes became dreamier looking, which was sweet to witness. "He became to tell me everything about his kind."

"Margret, I don't—" I began, but Margret shook her head. "Riley, you need to listen to me. I promise these wolves won't hurt you, especially not Logan."

The mere mention of Logan had my insides churning. I had so many questions, but I knew it wasn't her I had to hear this all from. It had to come from Logan, but something was bothering me.

"Why has Logan been hellbent on seeing me?" I blurted, which made Margret look at me with understanding.

"You're his mate," she said, which made me furrow my eyebrows, wondering what she meant by that.

"What the hell is a mate?"

"Well, a mate to a werewolf is a soulmate. Werewolves only get one mate, and Riley, you are Logan's mate," she said, cocking her head to the side.

I tried to let her words sink in, but it was hard too, since my mind was about to explode. Why is it hard to let it all sink in?

"I know you are wondering a lot, and I bet this is all too much to take in," she said as she reached over to my hand and gave it a squeeze. "It would be for anyone, even for us. Being human, when we get too much information, we can't put it into context, and trust me, all this is hard to bear, especially when it comes to Logan being an alpha."

"What's an alpha?" I asked, which made her smile.

"An alpha is the leader of a pack. Logan is the alpha of the Forest Valley Pack. The pack is small, made up of fifty to ninety wolves, and they all follow Logan's command," she said, squeezing my hand. "Since you are his mate, that would make you his luna, and a luna is an alpha's mate. She will help him run the pack, and Riley, that's you."

I said nothing; I was too stunned to speak. Alpha and luna, whatever next?

Margret stared at me and sighed. "Okay, how do you feel about Logan? Do you feel anything for him?"

I knew that answer but said nothing. My face must have said it all, which made Margret smile and sigh. I darted my eyes away from her and looked to the floor. I could feel her eyes on me. I knew how I felt about him. I never thought or felt like this about anyone, ever.

"You don't have to tell me, but I can guess that you have feelings for him, feelings that for a human would mean it was rushing into something too fast."

I looked up at her, and she smiled, giving me a knowing look. "It's scary to think you can fall in love with someone quickly, but this is not true for werewolves. When a werewolf finds his mate, the wolf part will do everything in his or her power to claim what is his, even the human side."

Margret's face hardened slightly. "You're lucky Logan is nice. Few humans would have mates like him. He would wait until you were comfortable with him and then talk about all this."

"What have other wolves done—" I asked, but she shook her head before I could finish.

"I won't give you any details, as many have had it worse, but some were forced to be mated and marked."

"Mated and marked, what's that?"

"Well, I assume you and Logan ended last night's date on a high," she said, making my cheeks burn, knowing what she was asking. I looked down, but she let out a giggle. "Sweetheart, it's natural to have sex with the man you like. That being said, you already mated with Logan. All that's left is marking you as his."

I arched my eyebrows at her, wondering if she was going to tell me what she meant by marking when suddenly, the bus stopped.

Margret opened and closed her mouth, her eyes leaving mine, and stared at the front windscreen. "Someone wants to see you," she said, motioning toward the window.

Looking away from her, I looked straight ahead and saw two bright blue eyes staring at me.

My mouth fell open. Sitting in the middle of the road is a giant wolf I have ever seen.

Wait, I know that wolf. I had seen it earlier.

An image of Logan shifting.

It's his wolf.

It's Logan.