Chapter 4

Chapter 4

We wound up moving from my bed to the sofa in Elena’s bedroom, which I slept on some nights. My blankets were piled across the back along with the pillow I’d stolen from her when I first moved in. 

She gracefully let me have it. Mostly because she knew I’d never give it up.

I had issues sleeping, and the only person who knew about it was Elena. Staying in her room kept me free from the poisonous silence I avoided at all costs. My mind wasn’t a kind place. It was a stretch of road sliced through a barren wasteland. My bare feet slapped against the asphalt, bloody and sore. The feeling of being chased lingered in my coiled muscles, always bracing for impact.

A storm cracked in the distance, each one a memory I fought to outrun. 

A piece of popcorn pelted me in the forehead, leaving behind a chocolate smear from the candies Elena had dumped into the bowl. 

“Georgia Carpenter said you made the squad, by the way.” She made a sour face and rolled onto her stomach, propping her head in her hands. Earlier she’d been laying on her back, dropping the pieces into her mouth one by one, trying to catch them. “You were named captain of the all-girls squad, but since you weren’t there to answer the coach’s call she gave it to her second option.”

My eyes narrowed into slits. I kicked my favorite candy heart blanket to the floor. “Who?”

Elena tapped her chin, and let out a thoughtful hum. “A good friend wouldn’t tell you while you have that murdery look on your face. It’s just not right, really.” Those lips stretched into a grin, and she giggled. Immediately I felt the urge to laugh. “A sister on the other hand would. She gave it to Joanna Taylor.”

I snarled as I snatched up one of my pillows and slapped it over my face to muffle the tirade I was about to go on. 

“I know,” Elena cooed tenderly. “Let it out. Let it all out.”

Joanna was just another beta she-wolf with a superiority complex. Always staring down her nose at me, and that was when she was forced to look my way. She wasn’t the only she-wolf on the team to hate that I had been captain.

I was sure they’d all be thrilled that I was replaced.

“I need to shower,” I jumped to my feet and headed to the bathroom. Pausing halfway, I turned to Elena. “With my luck it’ll wash off in the shower and I’ll be a wolfless little human again.”

“Quit being a downer and go clean yourself,” she pinched her nose. “You still smell like you’ve been in the woods for seven days.”

“It’s too soon for crappy jokes.” I slammed the door shut.

When I finished showering again I went into my own bedroom to grab a change of clothes. I had just slipped on an oversized t-shirt and a pair of underwear when there was a knock at my window. Specifically, it was four soft knocks and two hard ones.

It was a code we came up with when we were kids.

Nudging the bathroom door shut, I went over to the window and spotted Kota gripping onto the windowsill. Our initials were carved just a few inches past his fingertips.

“Open up,” he mouthed, pointing at the lock. When I hesitated he rolled his eyes and pouted.

I slid the window open and stepped back, arms folded over my chest in defense, as he slipped inside. He’d changed since earlier, and showered too. The scent of his minty body wash was overpowering. 

Lifting my chin at him, I swept my eyes from the window to his face. “This is still my bedroom, just so you know. Did you stop by to make sure I didn’t come back for the furniture?”

“Damn, Chlo. Retract your claws. I thought about what you said, and I want to hear the truth.” Claiming the spot at the end of my bed, he kicked his shoes off and waited, jaw tensed. “I’ll admit, there are some things that don’t add up, but think about it from my side. If I had left some note and ran away–”

“I would have known it wasn’t you.”

“You don’t know that.” Eyes glued to my face, he frowned at the prospect. Doubt slashed at his rugged features. “I didn’t come here to argue. I just want the truth.”

It was painful swallowing the uncertainness in his voice. Kota had never doubted me before, not once. It didn’t dawn on me until now how precious his and Elena’s trust was. How much I valued it, because not once had I experienced it with anyone else.

“You want the truth?” I replied thickly. The same feeling hit my gut, warning me to keep my mouth shut, but this was Kota we were talking about. “Something happened to me, and the only way I can explain it is to show you.”

Chills swept down my body as my t-shirt fell to the floor.

Kota’s eyes landed on my chest, but quickly trailed up to my shoulders, landing on the handprint branded into my body.

His jaw unhinged. “I don’t understand.”

“Yes you do,” I said softly. “You know what this is. I don’t know why it happened to me, but it did. Our goddess–”

“But you don’t have a wolf.” His tone brought a snarl to my lips. It was like he was trying to remind me of something I knew. Something I dealt with every single day. I knew that wasn’t his intention, but it didn’t matter at the moment. I stepped back when he approached, his comment zinging through my body like electricity. His hands met my arms, fingers grazing over the goddess mark once, then twice, then a third time.

The sincerity in his gaze, the way it pulled me in and brought me home, had me rooted in place.

“You know I didn’t mean it that way. I’ve never cared about that, not once. I’m just stunned. There isn’t a wolf alive that thinks they’ll live to meet one of the goddess-touched, let alone become one. You’re incredible.” His eyes continued to roam the handprint.

I glanced away. “You made it sound like I didn’t deserve to be goddess-touched because I don’t have a wolf.” 

He lifted my chin, a new emotion sparkling in his eyes. I had no clue what it was, but it brought out the whispers of forest green I couldn’t get enough of. “If anyone deserves it, it’s you. You’re special, Chlo. Anyone who’s close to you knows that.”

Stepping into the warmth his body oozed, our lips collided and a sigh slipped out. The knot that had been strangling my insides was loosening as the feeling of home returned. Everything was as it should be. Well, it was close. Once I found the person who left that note then everything would be as it should. 

Slipping my arms around his neck, I let out a squeal as he grabbed my legs, wrapping them around his waist. He settled back onto the bed, his hands on my hips as our lips joined a second time. Warmth spread throughout my body, but the spot between my legs was unusually hot. 

I bit down on Kota’s lip, swallowing the sting as he grumbled a complaint. Hands squeezing into my waist, he started playing with my breasts, rolling my nipples between his fingers.

“I’m not going to break, you know.” I grinded against his hardness and smirked when he groaned into my mouth. “You don’t have to treat me like I’m made of glass.”

The pressure of his hands increased along with the temperature in the room. After slipping my hands beneath his shirt, it quickly found its way onto the floor. My skin was prickling with heat that only Kota could douse. 

I was unzipping his pants when the bathroom door swung open and Elena walked inside. 

“Oh, shit. I’m so sorry. I wasn’t even thinking.” She yelped, jumping a solid foot into the air. Nearly losing her balance she grabbed onto the corner of my dresser for support. “I heard the bed bang against the wall and I didn’t know what was going on. We’ve all been a bit jumpy lately.”

There was no reason for me to feel guilty, and yet I did. There were dark circles around her eyes, and her hair wasn’t nearly as shiny and smooth as it usually was. She wasn’t wearing makeup, either. 

I covered my breasts with my arm. It wasn’t like she hadn’t seen them before, given we had skinny dipped several times at the cabin over the years, but I wasn’t nearly as blessed in the chest department as she was. 

Maybe I could become a plastic surgeon? Nah, not what I was looking for.

“It’s fine,” I replied. “We’ve all been through it. Maybe we just need to have one of our sleepovers, binge junk food, and watch movies that’ll probably give us nightmares. We need a bit of normal. 

Elena exhaled, her shoulders relaxing. “Yeah, I could use normal.”

“I second that.” Kota said from beneath me, his chocolate hair tousled and a lopsided smile painted across his handsome face.

“Normal it is.”

Then tomorrow I would start my search.