A Luna Scorned

Chapter 12

We arrived back at the pack house and were greeted by a dark gray SUV parked out front.

“That would be Liam”. Sandie slipped off the back of the horse. “Thanks for the ride. I actually kind of enjoyed it.”

“Any time.” I said. “I’ll be in the barn, getting her cleaned up and fed. You guys might want to steer clear of the house.”

“Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. Hey baby, let's go grab something to eat. Mom probably has dinner on and I don’t know about you, but I’m starving.” Jensen put his arm around Sandie’s shoulders as they walked away. A wave of fear began to wash over me as I looked through the kitchen window. Liam and Riley were sitting at the table, my father and Luke sat across from them. No one looked very happy. I led my horse to the barn and began to untack her.

“Why is he here?” I thought to myself.

“For us!” Natalie yelled. She had been pretty silent since we left. It was only a couple of days, but not hearing from your wolf in a couple of days is a long time.

“He doesn’t need us. He has Rachel.”

“But he belongs with us. We are his mate. He knows that. This is why he came. He came to get us back.”

“Natalie, I'm not sure I want to go back.”

“Hey.” I was snapped out of my mind so quickly I swear I must have jumped ten feet in the air. I turned to see Liam standing in the doorway of the barn. I buried my head in my horses’ mane and sighed. I felt a hand on the small of my back and I quickly stepped to the front of my horse. A wave of hurt washed across Liam’s face. ‘Why was he hurt?’ I thought to myself.

“Kyrie, I..”

“Why did you come here? Why couldn’t you just leave me alone?” I snapped at him. Liam picked up a brush and began to help me brush down my horse.

“Why did you leave?”

“Why did I leave? You really have to ask me that?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“If you can’t think of one reason why I left, why in the world would you want me to come back? Why would you think I would want to come back?”

“Was it really that bad?” He actually sounded sad.

“Yes. It was. I hated being there. I hated that I felt like I was coming between you and Rachel. I hated how you treated me, I hated how you showed nothing but anger and lust towards me, but you gave nothing but love and caring to Rachel. I don’t belong there, I don’t belong with you.”

“I’m sorry about what happened.” Liam sighed.

“Which time?”

“Well, specifically the confrontation on the stairs. I’m guessing the one right before you left. Look, I would never hurt you. I didn’t mean to scare you or make you think that I would ever hurt you. I saw you walk in and you looked phenomenal. But I wasn’t the only one who couldn’t keep my eyes off you. I got upset when I saw all of those other guys staring at you. On top of me already being upset about what you said to me earlier that day.”

“You deserved it.”

“I did. I haven’t been treating you like a mate, or a friend for that matter.”

“Liam, I don’t really want your sorry. I know you are in love with Rachel, and her with you. It killed me to see her cry that night at dinner. Her heart is breaking, and so is yours, and it’s all because of me. If I wasn’t here, you all could continue to live happily ever after.”

“You’re my mate. We’re supposed to be together.”

“You wouldn’t be interested in me in the slightest if it wasn’t for the mate bond. I think the bond is stupid anyway. I mean, I didn’t always. It was such a fantasy when I was a kid. You grow up hearing about how the moon goddess has paired you with your perfect match, and it becomes such a dream. You dream about the day you find your mate, and your parents talk about the sparks, and the instant attraction and the need to be with this person. But no one talks about how forced it is. I didn’t even see it until you. How you and Rachel are so much in love, then I come along and ruin everything. Because of the mate bond, I am tearing apart your relationship with Rachel. How is that supposed to be fair? It’s not fair to you and Rachel, or me. All these fantasies I had about finding my mate were smashed to pieces when I found out you already had a mate…”

“She’s not my mate.” He cut me off.

She is though. Whether you want to admit it or not. You love her, and she loves you. You two chose each other. The only thing that is stopping her from being your mate is that you haven’t marked her yet. Why haven't you? Had you marked her, we wouldn’t be in this situation right now. You’d be saving me a lot of trouble.”

“I haven’t marked her because she isn't my mate. You are.”

“Liam, please.”

“No, Kyrie. It’s my turn to talk, and your turn to listen. I had those same dreams of meeting my mate. Everyone makes it sound so amazing. They talk about the spark, the instant connection. I had that when I saw you. You took my breath away. You were so stunning in that green dress. I knew I had to have you.”

“But only because of the mate pull. Your heart belongs to Rachel. Not me. I wish there was no such thing as a stupid mate bond.”

“I don’t. It’s stupid for wolves to get involved with someone else when they know that their destined mate is out there. I knew that when I got involved with Rachel. We never should have gotten so attached. We were both waiting for our mates, but it’s turning out to be a lot harder to let go than I thought it would. Even with our bond. When you’re not around, she is, and I get wrapped up with how our life used to be before you. I’m sorry that you are caught in the middle of this. I really am. If I could do it again, I wouldn’t get involved with anyone.”

“I don't expect you to forget her. I don’t want you to forget her. I want you to be with the woman you love. That woman is Rachel. Liam, I’m begging you now, please reject me.”

“You know how painful that is.”

“Either way, it’s painful for both of us. I can at least save Rachel that pain.”

“You could die. I can’t risk it. You have such a beautiful heart Kyrie. This whole time you have been so considerate of Rachel and how she feels. You are more concerned with me getting what I want than you getting what you deserved. To be honest, Rachel has never been concerned with anyone but herself. I want to get to know you. Please, come back with me. Let's start over. Give me one more chance?” Liam gave me the saddest puppy dog eyes I had ever seen. I sighed and slid down to the floor.

“You said that I am so busy making sure everyone gets what they want, that I give up what I want. Do you know what I want? I want you to reject me.”

“That’s really what you want?”

“Yes.” I said as a single tear rolled down my cheek.

“I don’t think that is what you really want.” Liam gently wiped the tear from my face and pulled me close. My head resting on his chest filled my lungs with his calming scent. “What do you want? Really want?”

“I want my happily ever after.” I whispered.

“Then let’s make it happen. You’re destined to be with me. That is what the moon goddess said is supposed to be your happily ever after. Mine too. I tried to make my own happy ending, and I was wrong to do so. I didn’t think what it would do to my destined mate, to you. I didn’t think of anyone but myself. I will be hurting Rachel, and I hate to do it. But she has to understand. What if this was her and her mate. She would leave me in a heartbeat for him, and she rightly should. I will help her try to find her mate. We will hold a big ball and invite every single male we can. Her mate is out there somewhere, and if I can help her find him I will. But right now, I found my mate, and I haven’t exactly treated her as I should have. But I'm begging you to give me another chance. Please Kyrie.”

He kissed my forehead and pulled me in closer. We sat like that for what seemed an eternity. I mulled over what he had said. I wanted to be with him. He is my mate, and I want to be with my mate. I feel bad for Rachel, but Liam seems to have a plan to help her find her happy ever after as well. Maybe this could all work out. Her heart would be broken for a short while, but if we could find her mate, she would understand. She would get to feel how amazing it is.

“If I come back, things have to change. I will not be treated like a mistress.”

“I understand. I am so sorry that I made you feel that way. It was never my intention. It absolutely scared me to think that I had lost you. It made me realize that I want you. I need you. I have never felt like I needed anyone before. Mate bond or not, I wouldn't feel this way if it wasn’t meant to be.”

“One chance. But if you screw this up, you will either reject me, or you will accept my rejection. You have to swear to it.”

“I swear. But, you have to promise me that if you are ever feeling this way, you have to let me know. You have to give me an opportunity to fix it before you leave. I’m a dumb guy, I don’t always know how I make others feel. I will try my best to be more aware of your feelings, but you have to let me know.”

“Deal.” I said. I could feel Liam release the tension he had been holding in.

“What do you say we go inside now? Your mom was making dinner and I haven’t eaten since breakfast. You had me worried all day. You leaving never crossed my mind. I was so sad when we discovered your truck was gone.”

“I thought you would be relieved.” I half joked, half stated.

“Not in the slightest.” He helped me up off the floor. I brushed the dirt off my jeans and we made our way back towards the house.

“Can I hold your hand?” He was so sweet the way he asked I reached down and slipped my hand in his. I could feel an instant warmth radiate from our touch.

“This is how it should be.” Natalie cooed.