Evangeline yawns as we walk through the front door, and I carry her bags upstairs to the guest bedroom. She stumbles in and flops down on the bed. “I feel like I could sleep for days.”
“Sleep as much as you like,” I say, sitting down beside her. Her breathing starts to slow and deepen. “You’re going to love it here, Evangeline.”
Her eyes flutter open. “I have no doubt. Now get out of here. I know you’re dying to run.”
My wolf paces back and forth inside of me, the anticipation exciting us both. “I’ll see you in the morning.” I tiptoe out of her room, and Chase is in the living room, waiting for me.
His eyes glow a brilliant blue as he takes off his clothes. “Want to race?”
I snort. “Please. You don’t stand a chance.” My eyes rake down his body, all muscular and robust. My insides tremble with the need to be with my mate.
Smirking, Chase heads for the patio door that leads to the back of his house and the woods. “I may not be able to outrun you, but I’ll sure as hell be hard to beat.” He bolts outside, and I run after him, only to see him in wolf form, sitting on his haunches in the grass with his tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth.
After taking off my boots, I smile when I feel the grass beneath my feet. I wriggle out of my clothes, loving the way Chase’s eyes glow with need as he watches me. The magic of the moon washes over me, the beginning of the shift making my skin tingle. I want to relish in this moment for as long as I can. It’s been so long since I shifted.
The aura around my body turns hazy but with a glittery shimmer as my wolf comes to the surface. One second, I’m standing on two legs, and the next, I’m on all fours, my giant paws pressing into the ground. Chase saunters over and rubs his body against mine.
“You are so beautiful,” he says through our bond.
“Thank you.” I playfully nip the back of his leg as he passes. “Ready to get left behind?”
He growls. “Let’s see what you got.”
Chase sprints off, and I race after him, making sure to stick close on his heels. I want to see how fast he is.
“Trust me, princess, this is nothing.” Then, as fast as lightning, he disappears through the trees, and I can hear his laugh in my mind. “Is that fast enough for you?”
“I’m impressed. Now let’s see how you like this.”
With all the strength I can muster, I push my body to the limit to where the forest flies past me in a blur. I weave in and out of the trees, following Chase’s scent. He’s close.
“But not close enough,” he teases in my mind.
I’ll show him. With being a royal, there are things I can do that he can’t. I close off my mind and use my magic to shield my presence. That way, he won’t know what hit him when I attack. The second I shut him out, I can feel him try to push his way back in.
“What are you doing, princess?”
Instead of answering, I keep up the silence. I can see Chase in the distance, a gray blur one minute, but then he stops and scans the woods. Hunkering down, I hide behind a bush, waiting for my time to strike. The second he turns his back, I leap onto him, and we roll across the ground until he’s pinned beneath me.
Staring down at him, I give him a wolfy wink. “Gotcha.”
He doesn’t try to get up, but there’s a twinkle in his eyes. “I knew you were there.”
“I bet you did. I think someone was afraid he’d get left behind.” The next thing I know, I’m on my back, and he’s on top of me. It happened so fast I can’t even process how he did it. “How is that possible?”
Chase licks the side of my face and chuckles in my head. “I’m faster than you think, princess.”
“I’m impressed. Maybe you are royal material.”
His laugh echoes through our bond and he lets me up, only to take off through the woods. I catch up to him, and we run until Chase circles around, then we head back the way we came. When we get close to his house, I slow down and walk the rest of the way to give myself more time as my wolf. Chase jumps up onto his back deck and shifts into his human form, smirking down at me.
“Want to stay outside and talk?” he asks.
The magic takes over my body, and I shift back. “Sounds good to me.”
He winks. “I’ll be right back.”
A few seconds later, he emerges from the house with two blankets. He wraps one around my shoulders and nods toward the U-shaped couch that sits around his fire pit. “I’m sure Evangeline wouldn’t want to look out the window and see us butt-ass naked.”
“True,” I agree. Chase takes my hand, and we sit down on the plush couch. The fabric feels good against my heated skin. “But I think we’re safe. She’s passed out right now.” I can hear her in the guest bedroom, her breathing deep and slow.
Chase drapes his arm around my shoulders, and I lean into him. “The full moon is in six days.”
I know what he’s implying, but I play coy. “And that’s supposed to mean what, exactly?”
His lips pull back slyly. “Nothing important. I just thought maybe you’d want to do something that night. If not, it’s totally fine.”
It takes all I have not to laugh. “If you want me, Chase, I’ll be ready.” My stomach curls in knots. “The only thing we have to worry about is your pack. They don’t like me.”
Blowing out a sigh, Chase squeezes my shoulders. “I need to have a pack meeting and tell them about us. What they need to understand is that you being my mate will make the pack stronger. Not to mention, we’ll have Evangeline’s magic.”
Shivers run across my skin. “I’m nervous.”
Chase kisses the top of my head. “Don’t be. You survived the Royal pack. They were the ones you needed to prove something to. And we got through that together, just like we’ll do with my pack.”
“Do you think we can hide out for one day to give me a break?”
Chase chuckles. “That’s fine. Tomorrow it’ll be just us, but then Monday, it’s down to business.”
31
CHASE
Sunday flew by in a haze, and a part of me wishes we’d just had the pack meeting then instead of waiting for today. There were times where Kara had flashbacks in her mind of Sierra knocking her down and of the other females making snide comments to her. With Kara having her power back, I know the others are probably terrified. The pack meeting is going to be tense, that’s for sure. Especially since none of them know about Kara being my mate. Cameron assured me he hadn’t told a single soul.
The bistro is closed to the public tonight, so Evangeline, Kara, and I arrive before the pack. I figured it’d be best to go ahead and break the news about Evangeline as well. Not that I’m worried about anyone objecting to her joining us. Anyone can sense that her magic is light.
Kara’s heart races, and I can feel her unease. However, looking at her standing behind me with her face calm, you’d never know she’s a ball of nerves. Evangeline is also nervous, but she smiles and gives me a thumbs-up.
“It’ll be okay,” I murmur in Kara’s mind.