My Love but Not My Mate

Chapter 9

‘...’ – speech in wolf form

“...” – speech in human form

Chapter 9

   After ten long, draining minutes, I stopped my legs and leant against a rock for support as my legs shook under my weight. How could I have been so stupid? To even let myself have feelings for another wolf, I had a mate even if he had rejected me. Blake had brought my life back to me after all my fleeing from my pack, and now I was finding myself falling for him.

   Gritting my teeth and clamping my eyes shut, I tried to push out the thought of him; but it was no use. The previous realisation of the relationship he shared with his sister was too much of a reminder of mine with my own brother. Ever since Jasper was born, I was so protective of him and wanted him to find someone he would be happy with for the rest of his life, in the way that I wanted but never was with Tyson.

   My ears started twitching of their own accord and I suddenly realised that I was no longer alone; and I knew without a doubt who it was that had followed me.

   ‘Hello, Blake,’ I said with shuddering shoulders. It was dark around us, and I could barely make out the outlines of any objects, but I could see his shadowed shape through two trees to my left.

   ‘Layla, why are you out here alone? Why did you run off like that?’ His voice was very delicate as though he didn’t want to say the wrong thing. I turned my head away, my eyes once again shut tight. ‘You can tell me,’ he added, trying to assure me things would be okay. The sound of his steps became a little louder as he stepped closer.

   ‘Blake, don’t. Just stay there.’ Running out of words and courage, I began to cry.

   ‘What did my sister say to you?’ Clearly he had been watching without my knowing. ‘It must have been bad if you ran off the way you did.’

   I just leant there, trying to control myself and my overreactions. ‘It wasn’t what she said that made me so upset. It was what I began to think. Your sister was just trying to talk, about you and me. She knows, Blake.’ I stopped talking and waited.

   ‘I know she knows. Layla, I was the one who told her. She spoke to me one day and she wanted to know what was going on and why we always disappeared together. She’s my sister, and she notices things and she knows when I’m lying, so I told her.’

   ‘Why?’ My voice was high pitched from my constricted throat still.

   He took another pace towards me. ‘Because she’s family. She hasn’t told anyone else as it’s my business; she’s just trying to protect me. What made you run off like that? She likes you, as everyone in my pack does. They trust you.’ That was news to me, I still had always thought they were wary of me still and had some trust issues with me being an outsider. But as always, I eventually opened up and told Blake everything that had played through my mind since his sister first sat down beside me. He listened without a word or a reaction, and when I had finished he still remained silent as he thought over all he had heard.

   ‘So you thought it best to run off and be by yourself? That’s silly to me, you’re not alone anymore; I care about you more than Tyson ever did, and I won’t leave you alone.’ He sounded closer than he had before. Looking around over my left, I couldn’t see him. ‘Look to your right and up,’ he described; I did so and saw that he had perched himself on top of the rock I had been leant against. Jumping up, I placed my front paws on a little alcove in the stone, and reached forward with my muzzle to which he touched his on the side of mine. ‘Feel better now you’ve let it all off your chest?’ he asked while looking into my eyes with one of his.