A Luna Scorned

Chapter 11

“Ky? What are you doing here?”

“Mom”. I cried and dropped my bags on the floor of the kitchen. She put the dish rag down on the counter and wrapped me in her arms, stroking my hair.

“Shhh.” She gently kissed my forehead. “You look lovely sweetie. That dress is beautiful.”

“Thank you”. I said as I composed myself.

“What happened? Why are you here? Here, sit down, let me get you some cocoa”. Hot cocoa was my favorite drink, mom knew it always made me feel better. I took a seat at the table and sighed. Mom set my mug down and sat across from me.

“Do you want to talk about it?” I explained everything that had happened. How I felt like I was coming between Liam and Rachel, and how Liam had reacted right before I left. “Oh, sweetheart.” Mom got up and hugged me again.

“I just couldn’t stay any longer mom.”

“Well, I can’t say that I blame you. That little glimpse we got of Liam before you two left here made dad and I wonder if this was the right thing or not. We have definitely been worried about you. Why don’t you stay here for now. Take some time and figure out what you want to do.”

“I want to stay here. I don’t want to go back. I know he’s my mate, but sometimes things don’t work out the way they are supposed to.”

“Well, take some time. You are welcome here anytime you need, for as long as you need to stay.”

“Thanks mom.” I put my cup in the dishwasher. “I’m going to go up to bed.” She smiled and returned to her dishes.

I woke up in my room, my bed. The sounds of the cattle drifting through the walls. It made my heart so warm. I had missed home so much. Cole, Ari and their whole family had made me feel so welcome and treated me as family. I appreciated it, but it didn’t feel like home. I felt like I had gotten the best night's sleep I had gotten in a while. Making my way out of bed I turned on the shower, steam quickly filling the bathroom. I sat on the floor of the tub and cried. I cried hard, like ugly cried. I let it all out. I had decided that I was going to cry one last time for myself, Liam and this whole situation. I would let it all out, and leave it all here, in the bathroom. Once I left this bathroom, I would not think about Liam or his pack, or that whole situation again. I would move on, back here at the ranch. I could maybe take a chosen mate if I was given the opportunity, but I would definitely be staying here for the remainder of my days. I’m not sure how long I cried, but my hands and feet were super pruney and purple. The water had gone from really hot, to warm. I quickly cleaned up, got dressed and headed down for breakfast.

“Ky. Your mom had said you were here.” My dad wrapped me in a hug. “I’m sorry about Liam and what happened. You don’t need to be with him. You are always welcome here and will always be a part of this pack.”

“Thanks dad. I’m glad you feel that way, because I've decided I'll be staying here.” I sat down at my usual place on the table. We were quickly joined by Luke and his mate.

“Ky? Homesick already?” He tossled my hair as he sat down next to me.

“No. I’m here for good.”

“Oh man. What happened? Was it Liam? I swear if he did anything to you I’ll ruin him.” Anger flashed across Luke’s face.

“Calm down.” I said as I shoved a piece of bacon in my mouth. “I wasn’t a good mate for Liam. I decided to come home.”

“So you’re here to stay?” Amy, Luke’s mate asked.

“Yep. I’m back.”

“You seem to be in a better mood today.” My mother smiled as she set a mug of hot cocoa down in front of me.

“Yes. I decided to let everything go. I’m not going to cry about anything that’s happened. As far as I'm concerned, it’s done and in the past. So, if you, dad and Luke don’t mind, I’d like to stay.”

“Mind? Sis, I would never mind you staying here. You are always wanted and needed here.”

“Thanks Luke. Now, if you’ll all excuse me, I’m going for a ride.”

“Good.” My dad said. “There’s a little yellow horse that has been depressed ever since you left.”

“Mom, would you mind making me lunch? I am probably going to be out all day. I need today to myself, then I'll get back to chores and my routine tomorrow, if that’s okay.”

“That’s fine. I’ll bring your lunch to the barn.”

“Thank you!” I said as I practically ran out of the house. I was excited to go for a ride. I had missed my little horse and our trail rides.

The air was warm and the sun beat down on my back as I rode through the trees. We rode down to the lake. I dismounted and tied my horse up to a tree, then sat down by the edge of the lake, leaning my back against a large boulder. I watched as a man across the lake helped a young boy wrangle a fish he had just caught. The man pulled the hook from its mouth and handed it to the boy. He proudly held it up for a photo. The man put his phone in his back pocket just as the fish wiggled free of the boy's hands. It flopped on the ground as the boy and the man tried desperately to catch it. The fish made it back to the water and I could see the boy hunch over in sorrow. The man laughed and patted his back. He got another fishing pole ready and handed it back to the boy. His sadness quickly dissolved to excitement. I bit into my apple and watched the man and boy until late in the afternoon. As soon as the last of the people cleared out of the lake I stripped down and slipped into the water. I missed the lake, and my evening swims. It was a great relief to be back home.

"Ky". I looked back towards the shore. Jensen and Sandie were standing there. I had completely forgotten that they were coming back today. I swam back towards the bank and gestured for Jensen and Sandie to turn around. I dried off the best I could and got dressed.

"I completely forgot you guys were coming back today!"

"Yeah, I had no idea you were too." Jensen said. "What happened?"

"You caused quite the drama today." Sandie added.

"I did? I wasn't even there."

"Yeah, that's the problem." Jensen pushed a small rock around the ground with his foot. "So...what happened?"

I explained to Jensen what happened after I left dinner and how I was feeling guilty for coming between Rachel and Liam, and wasn't going to stay there and be on the receiving end of Liam's anger.

"Well, Liam isn't handling it well." Sandie said. "He's really upset that you left."

"I didn't think he'd even notice, to be honest." I said.

"Oh, he noticed." Jensen laughed. "You didn't come down for breakfast this morning, so he went up to your room. When you didn't answer, Ari convinced him that you just needed some time. So he left. But then you didn't come down for lunch either. He made you a plate and brought it to your room. When you still didn't answer, he sat outside your door for a couple of hours trying to talk to you. We were supposed to leave after breakfast, but I wanted to say goodbye to you first. You didn't answer for me, so I waited around. But when you didn't come down for lunch, I knew something was up. I saw your truck wasn't there, and knew you'd come here. When we left, Liam had just unlocked your room and discovered you weren't there. He had ordered everyone to search for you. I'm guessing by now he knows you aren't there and he's heading this way. He'll probably be here soon."

"Do you think he'll really come here?"

"You're his mate. He's going to come for you."

"He has Rachel. He doesn't need me."

"And that leads us to problem number two." Sandie explained. "Rachel was pretty happy you left. Strutting around like she owned the place again. When Liam ignored Rachel all day for you, she got pretty upset and now even more determined to make sure you stay away."

"Well, I am gone, so I guess she can chill out now." I sighed.

"Not if Liam is coming for you."

"Well, I guess we should get back to the house then. Did you guys walk all the way out here?" I asked as I untied my horse.

"No, we shifted and ran." Jensen answered. "But, we'll walk back with you."

"Are you sure? It's not a short walk."

"Yeah. It's beautiful here. I'm down for a walk in the woods." Sandie snuggled up to Jensen as we began walking back to the pack house.

"Hey Sandie, how about a ride on a horse?" I winked at Jensen.

"Oh, yeah! Have you ever ridden a horse before?" Jensen asked her.

"No. I'm not really much of a horse person."

"Oh, come on! If you're staying here, you're going to be on one eventually. At least right now no one else is around!" Jensen picked her up and put her in the saddle. Her face was full of fear. I laughed and gave her a short run down of how to ride and control a horse. Jensen walked next to Sandie's leg and I walked in front of the horse as we made the trek back to the pack.