Page 38 of Come for Me
Standing at the refreshment table is Caleb, holding a beer in his bandage-free hand, talking with Tyler. Judging by the red on Caleb’s cheeks, he’s had a little too much to drink. They laugh together, but Caleb stops when he sees me. His eyes widen like a deer in headlights.
I leap down and approach him, and he scans the courtyard, likely looking for Dax.
I curse Dax for making Caleb so scared to be around me.
“You can stop worrying. He’s not here.”
He relaxes but doesn’t move or speak.
I roll my eyes and grab his arm, pulling him away.
“What’re you doing here? If he catches you with me, he’ll kill me. He’ll kill you.”
Caleb isn’t wrong. Dax would kill him in a heartbeat. Unfortunately, death is not something he’d grant me. Getting away from him would never be that easy.
“Relax, Caleb. He doesn’t want me.”
Caleb chuckles. “Yeah, his whole wanting to tear out my throat could’ve fooled me.” He swigs his beer.
I take a deep breath. “I found him with his fiancée’s legs wrapped around him.”
Caleb almost spits out his drink.
Wiping the dribble on his mouth, he says, “Fuck, Alaina, I’m sorry. He’s an idiot.”
I see it in his face that Dax was right. Caleb still cares.Which means I still have a shot at everything I want.
“We can still be together,” I say.
Sam’s eyes bug. “Are you crazy?”
“You could take me as your chosen mate and take over for your father.”
He shakes his head. “He’d kill me. No way.”
“He has a fiancée who can unite our species. It’s probably why he let you live. He was always going to reject me.”
Caleb looks away, contemplating.
He’s wanted to lead ever since he was a pup. The council would never agree to a vampire as Dax’s mate over his fated, but my heart aches at the thought that Dax might prefer her anyway.
I turn Caleb’s head toward me, my wolf sickened to touch a male who isn’t my mate. Those sparks I feel when I touch Dax are absent.
“Please,” I whisper to Caleb, “make me yours.” I smash my lips into his.
At first, he doesn’t move. Then his touch and kiss are soft and sweet. My wolf whimpers, and I feel like I’m going to hurl. My wolf craves Dax and everything about him. Caleb’s smell of beer and bonfire don’t compare to Dax’s heavenly scent of spiced leather. Caleb hesitates and is gentle, while Dax takes what he wants and doesn’t treat me like I’m fragile.
The harsh reality hits me. I’m missing Dax.
I consider running back to Dax, apologizing for leaving, and begging for him to mark me. I consider what life would be like if I stayed with him.
Then I remember his fiancée, my pack, and everything waiting for me back home.
I’ve heard stories about the mate bond increasing after meeting them.
My heart and body ache for my mate, yet I focus on the harsh truth: Dax is probably enthralled with his vampire fiancée, not missing me at all. I recall how he didn’t flinch or move away when she wrapped her legs around him. How lovingly she looked at him. He’d probably keep me for strength and keep her on the side. A guy like him couldn’t possibly be satisfied with just me.
Could he?
