The Little Rose

Feeling it all

"Did she just say your name?"  Odin demanded, forcing him self to the forefront of my mind, anxious to get closer to this strange woman who was apparently our mate.  No matter how unwanted.

I sat there, frozen, my arms still under her as I stared own at that stunning face in shock at the sound of my name on her tongue, though her eyes had yet to open, she seemed to have let the name slip out in her sleep.  I tried to search my memory for any fragment of her within it.  But try as I might, she raised no flicker of recognition; other then her unsettlingly amazing smell and my name leaving her lips.

"Is your name common among humans?"  Odin asked curiously, growling softly when I began to move my arms out from under her,  but I ignored him, he may see his mate, but I just saw a new problem in my life that I did not need distracting me from my only purpose on this planet.  Keeping Odin contained.

"No, my name is not very common among the humans, though I do know it is used occasionally.  It's just a coincidence."  I grumbled back at him, grabbing the jumbled up sheet off the bed and pulling it over her body.  I didn't like that my body was reacting to seeing hers like this, especially while she was unconscious and vulnerable.  Part of my mind may be an animal, but I was not.

I forced myself to my feet and to turn away from her, making my legs carry me outside, I left the newly repaired door open and walked out into the twilight of the darkening sunset to sit on the edge of the porch.  Propping my elbows on my knees I dropped my head into my hands and for the first time in almost seven years, I wept.

So much pain was radiating through my body, my own heart felt like it was being stabbed with each beat it took.  She brought up every memory and feeling I ever had with and for Gracie by just her scent.  I knew this had to be some sick joke from the Goddess her self and I only hoped I had the strength to keep away from her, and reject her when the time came.  All I needed was a name.  

Vespian, my sister Luna's mate, had explained everything when he'd found Luna to be his mate and taken all of us in as family.  We'd been raised human and until Vespian's scent brought out Luna's Lycan Wolf spirit Ellaine.  I knew that I could reject a mate by simply saying their name, my own, and that I rejected them.  Easy.  

Apparently easier said than done.  Vespian explained that it was exceptionally rare for wolves to reject their destined mate.  The mate bond did everything to draw you in, it made your mate basically your very own custom drug, even now my body was craving her scent and her touch, my mind, even the part that wasn't Odin, was urging me to go back in and bury my face in her neck and just the though was enough to spark arousal. 

Pushing off the low lying porch I stripped my shorts off and walked into the lake.  It wasn't as cold as I would have liked for my current state, but I needed to do something to burn off some energy.  I tried to swim, but when the short distance of the lake offered no help in wearing me down, I strode from it and instead went out to the ocean surrounding the island and swam around my home, fighting the current at certain points helped to tire me out and within a few hours I was back at the late washing the salt water from my skin and hair and pulling my shorts back on.

My feet automatically took me back to the entrance of my cabin, but I stopped at the door, glaring at the wood as if it would magically disappear and I'd be able to see through it instead of having to enter and come face to face with the one other person on my little island sanctuary; and the last person I'd want to share this place with.  Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly I pulled the door open and stepped inside, closing it behind me.  The little room was dark with no lights or candles on, not that it mattered, with my wolf eyes I could see everything just fine, especially her, laying in the same position I had left her in, her hair splayed out around her like a fiery halo.  Her scent hit me like a ton of bricks the moment I had opened the door and I was trying like hell to ignore the sweet temptation in it.

Odin was now back and sniffing around enjoying every tantalizing second of her uniquely sweet fragrance enveloping us.  But I couldn't do it, I couldn't stay in here with that smell and keep my mind sane about me.  I stomped back through the door and shut it behind me, gulping in the humid night air and for once, enjoying the stickiness that clung to my skin instantly from the moisture in the air.  

She had to go.  

I'm wait until she woke up, make sure she was okay, find out her name, reject her, then take her back to the mainland.  Someone had to be missing her.  How had she even ended up here in the middle of the gulf?  Had a boat capsized and sunk?  If that was the case, was she the only one who'd survived?  There was to many questions for me to be comfortable about any of this. 

I grabbed my shirt from earlier and went out into the grass surround the small cabin, balling the shirt up I stuck it under my hear and laid there, on back, watching the stars.  The night sky here was more beautiful then anything else I had ever seen, besides my Gracie... and now this mysterious woman.  With no lights within miles of here there were so many stars in the sky there was no way to count them all, millions of twinkling lights, and shooting stars were often seen falling through the heavens, bright flashes of light as they burned up entering the atmosphere.  I never made wishes on them because the only thing I wanted, I could never have, and that was her, back here, with me.  

But tonight I couldn't help the wish that flinted through my mind even as my eyes drifted closed and I welcomed the sweet arms of sleep; "I wish to find peace."

"Hello!"  

I jerked awake the next morning to a feminine scream.  Jumping to my feet I squinted against the bright sun already beating down even though it was only around 6 am, seeing no one the events of the day before rushed through my mind and I turned towards the cabin, my heart racing in my chest.  She was awake.

"Hello?!  Is anyone there?"  I heard a sweetly melodic voice yell out from inside and I took a gulping a breath as I walked towards the door, attempting to steady my rising blood pressure.  I could hear her moving around inside as I stepped onto the porch, the sound of the wood squeaking must have alerted her to my presence because her movements stopped instantly.  This time when she called out, her voice was shaky.  "Hello?  Who's there?"

"Mate!"  Odin purred in my mind as he waited anxiously to officially meet her.

I on the other hand was less then pleased about this entire situation and had no intention of hiding that fact.  My legs ate up the last few steps between where I was and the door and throwing it up I stood face to face to the one person on this planet who I both craved and wanted nothing to do with.

"Who are you?" I demanded, I knew my voice was rougher and laced with anger, and I almost felt a twinge of guilt as her large and breath takingly beautiful blue green eyes met mine in fright, her slender hands pulling the sheet tighter to her chest.  With her crimson curls cascading around her like a wild curtain, she looked fragile and innocent, even though she stood only a few inches below my own 6'4. I had to stop my self from going to her and alleviating her fright.  Clasping my hands at my side I fought my desires to touch her and glared at her.  "I said, who the hell are you?!  And what are you doing here?"

"I don't know!"  She answered quickly, her knuckles going white with how tight she was holding the flimsy sheet over her breasts.  Her eyes looked around the room before landing back on me, and I saw confusion and fear there.  "I don't know... "

"What do you mean you don't know?  You don't know why you're here?"  I demanded again, barely keeping my voice from rising to a shout.  Her fear was tearing me apart, but I held my self together, refusing to budge, refusing to go closer. 

"No.  Well... yes.  I don't know why I'm here."  She answered shakily as tears filled her eyes.  "But also, I don't know who I am... do you?"

"Fuck." I growled as I stormed back out of the cabin and towards the beach.  With no name I couldn't reject her.  With no rejection the bound between us would continue to grow.  f**k.