Chapter 5 – What Are We?
1110 Words
Liam’s POV
The phone had stopped vibrating hours ago.
Liam stared at it, jaw tight, guilt curling heavy in his chest. Missed calls. Messages stacking one after another.
Mom.
Dad.
They would be frantic by now.
No signal reached this high into the mountains. He had known that when he drove here. Had counted on it. Still, the weight of it pressed down on him like a stone.
(They’ll think something terrible happened.)
(And they won’t be wrong.)
Selena moved quietly behind him, padding across the wooden floor. He felt her before he saw her. His senses still hadn’t returned to normal. Every sound, every scent, every shift of air pulled at him.
Her.
Always her.
He closed his eyes briefly, steadying himself.
(Control.)
(She’s your sister.)
(You can’t forget that.)
But the wolf inside him didn’t understand those rules.
Or maybe it did, and it didn’t care.
“Liam?” she said softly.
He turned.
She stood near the kitchen counter, wrapped in one of the sweaters from the wardrobe. His sweater. It hung loose on her frame, sleeves too long, collar slipping off one shoulder.
Something hot twisted low in his gut.
(Don’t.)
“I’m going to make lunch,” she said, forcing a smile. “Unless you already did?”
“No,” he replied quickly. “I’ll help.”
They moved around each other in the small kitchen, careful at first. Too careful. Like touching might spark something neither of them was ready to face.
Their hands brushed.
Electric.
Selena sucked in a breath and pulled back too fast.
(Why did that feel like that?)
Liam turned away before she could see his expression.
(Mate.)
The word whispered through his mind, unwelcome and undeniable.
The memories from the night before flickered, his thoughts during the change, the way his mind had clung to her, her face, her scent, her voice.
And the old story.
A whisper from childhood.
A wolf will know his Luna the moment the blood moon rises.
And she will bear the mark before she ever knows why.
His chest tightened.
They ate together, talking about nothing and everything. School memories. Childhood stories. Safe things.
They laughed.
Too easily.
Selena had such a good time she didn’t even remember there was anyone named Ethan.
The snow began falling sometime in the afternoon, thick white flakes drifting past the windows, wrapping the cabin in silence and beauty.
Selena watched it, arms wrapped around herself.
“It’s beautiful,” she murmured.
“Yeah,” Liam said.
(You are.)
He swallowed the thought down hard.
To keep her distracted, to keep himself sane, he dragged an old projector from storage. Set up blankets. Dimmed the lights.
“A movie night?” she asked, surprised.
He nodded. “Thought it might help. Since you like both horror and romance, which would you like to watch?”
“Romance,” she replied, smiling softly at him.
Something in his chest ached painfully.
They sat together on the couch, a careful distance between them. The cassette movie flickered to life, warm light dancing across the walls.
Snow fell harder outside.
Time slowed.
Minutes stretched into hours. Day became night.
And somehow the distance between them disappeared.
Selena’s POV
She told herself it was just comfort.
That everything they’d been through made closeness normal. Necessary.
(We’re just watching a movie.)
But her body didn’t listen. Didn’t feel normal.
She shifted on the couch, restless, heat coiling low in her stomach, wetness between her legs, stubborn and insistent. Butterflies waltzed wildly in her stomach.
(Why can’t I stop noticing him?)
(And is it me or is he so hot?)
(His body temperature is super hot.)
She leaned back without thinking, just slightly, until her shoulder brushed his chest.
Liam inhaled sharply.
He didn’t move away.
His arm came around her instead, slow and hesitant, resting at her side like he was giving her time to stop him.
She didn’t.
She curled closer and asked, “Why are you burning up? Are you sick? You have a fever?”
She was genuinely worried.
“It’s fine. I’m not sick. I’m okay. Thank you for asking,” he whispered, his voice low and intimate.
His warmth surrounded her. Solid. Safe. Overwhelming.
Her breath caught.
(This is wrong.)
(He’s my brother.)
But her body reacted anyway. Her body, soul, and spirit ached, responding to him in ways that made her dizzy.
Thoughts of him touching her, making love to her on the couch clouded her mind. She moaned softly at the images.
She could feel him, hard against her.
(He wants it too.)
Her face burned.
Her body answered with a needy warmth that made her thighs press together instinctively.
She couldn’t stay still anymore and began to rub her hips slowly against his.
Liam felt it.
(Oh f**k, what is she doing?)
“Selena, are you okay? You’re making strange noises,” he said, trying to sound innocent, though deep within him the wolf stirred, alert and possessive.
(She’s mine.)
(What she’s doing feels so good.)
(I want to make love to her.)
(I can’t.)
She tilted her head up.
Slowly.
Her eyes met his.
The look on his face stole the air from her lungs.
Not brotherly.
Not gentle.
Barely controlled.
His hand shifted, resting against her stomach, thumb brushing there in a slow, absent motion that sent a shiver through her entire body.
Her lips parted. “Ah… mmm.”
She leaned in.
He leaned down.
Their foreheads brushed.
Breaths mingled.
The world narrowed to his mouth. His scent. The pull between them that felt inevitable and terrifying and needed.
(Please.)
Their lips hovered a breath apart.
A sudden ruffle tore through the trees outside.
Branches snapped.
Something was out there.
A long, low howl sliced through the night.
Close.
Too close.
Selena gasped, jerking back.
Liam was on his feet instantly, every muscle rigid, eyes dark.
“What was that?” she whispered.
“Stay here,” he said sharply. “I’ll go check it out.”
Another sound echoed through the forest, not a howl this time, but movement. Presence.
(Whatever it is, I must kill it before it harms Selena.)
Snow continued to blanket the world as Liam left her alone.
Before he left, he boarded the windows shut and told her to apply the three-lock system from inside. She was to open the door only if it was him and only if he could answer a question that only the real him could answer.
Selena stood frozen, heart racing, fear and confusion tangling inside her as she watched him disappear into the darkness of trees and frost.
- Writer
