Page 22 of Plus-Size Sold Mate
“You’re safer this way.”
“I care about choice, not just safety,” Sera mutters, cutting clean through me with her tone.
Choice…it’s something I’ve always had, even when my father disapproved, and even when his expectations felt too heavy to carry. At the end of it, the final decision was mine, and it still is.
But I denied her that, and the realization burns as it settles into my skin.
Raking a hand through my hair, I move over to one of the windows and pull in a deep breath, hoping it might settle the uncertainty running rampant. Outside, the waves crash asif mirroring what’s inside me. The words leave me like an admission. “I didn’t plan for it to be like this.”
Sera doesn’t say anything, but I can feel how she stills in her place from here.
“It was supposed to be practical, to keep you safe and out of Dawson’s grasp,” I mutter, glancing back at her.
She just looks at me with an unreadable expression. “And now?”
Now, it feels like she’s making up the entirety of my awareness. Every instinct is screaming at me to close the distance, to keep her against me, and to reassure my inner wolf that she’s here, and she’s safe. I want to make sure that nobody ever thinks they can get their hands on her but me.
And now, the thought of her sleeping in a different bed in another room is like having my bones scraped down.
The ceremony drained me more than I thought it would, and my control is fraying at the edges. Between the guilt of forcing her into this and the quiet demands my instincts are making, I’m in an impossible position.
But to her, I’m just being cruel.
Sera stares at me for a long moment, almost like she’s prepared to laugh. Instead, she turns abruptly and walks toward the staircase.
My patience trembles as I grit my teeth. “Sera.” When she doesn’t stop, feet thumping against the hardwood steps, I call back, “We’re not finished.”
“I am.”
Without sparing me another look, Sera disappears upstairs, and not long after, one of the doors shuts with a distinct sound that reverberates through the house. It all sounds so final.
I stand there completely still for a long beat before forcing out a breath and turning to face the window again. As my hands brace against the wood frame, I close my eyes and try so hard to keep it down.
I’ve faced many difficult challenges, be it pack-related or through my service, but none have involved a furious woman I’m forcing to see something in me. As much as I want to be firm in my decisions, she has me questioning everything.
Unsettled by the separation and turbulent emotions, the bond throbs like a dull ache.
Despite Dad’s warnings, I chose her. I chose this for both of us, even when I already knew she’d hate me for it.
And now, I have to find out if I’m strong enough to handle what she needs, and how to keep the pack from doubting us too.
Chapter 7 - Sera
Inside the cabin, the air feels too thick with him and his scent, and the invisible thread that now exists between us.
The only place I can somewhat manage to breathe is outside, so that’s where I spend most of my time.
When I slip through the patio doors just after sunrise, I feel the quiet but present pulse of the bond, letting me know he’s awake somewhere nearby, too. I don’t need to see him to know he’s already watching.
Ignoring the irritating feeling, I move across the deck, navigating the tiered levels before reaching the end of the dock. I sit in one of the chairs, placing the leather-bound book in my lap, and I watch as the waves move at a more languid pace, rather than the angry crashing from yesterday.
The low breeze is cool, but as the sun slowly moves higher, it helps warm my skin beneath the sweater Luke apparently had brought for me, along with several other articles. I can only assume someone from the pack had been here before us to set everything up.
As a few gulls fly overhead with their usual cries, I sit in the quiet and focus on how muted the bond feels from a distance. It’s not gone, of course, but it’s enough to seem like a semblance of a break.
Over the years, it never really bothered me having another sensation in my chest, like a living, breathing thing next to my heart. My magic always lived there, offering me a sense of companionship in a way.
But this is different. Luke’s heartbeat is tangled up with mine, and it feels more like an invasion than anything else.
