Wolf Slayer (The Order of the Wolf, #2)(15)
He stood, wanting to speak, to move to her and wrap her up, protect her from her pain. A pain he didn’t totally understand.
“I’m not the right one for you either, Jay. I was meant for something else.” She paused again. Breathed in deep, blew it out. “Or at least I thought I was. Now I think my destiny is to be alone.” She slipped her clothes on quickly and, without another glance in his direction, walked away from him.
And then he knew. He’d had suspicions after what she’d said at dinner about her sister finding her mate. Aubrey had no idea she was a Huntress. For whatever reason, Aubrey believed that—where her sister had been chosen and claimed by her destined Hunter—she didn’t have the same potential. She had no idea it was only a matter of time before a Hunter came looking for her. And she wanted it. She wanted it badly. To belong. To be claimed. Just as she’d been raised to believe.
She’d just upped the stakes. He needed to break down her walls and get that heart of hers, because the first chance a Hunter got would be the only chance the bastard would need.
Chapter Ten
She’d been avoiding him for days. Probably not the most mature thing to do, but facing him was more than difficult and not because she was embarrassed or because she didn’t like him. Certainly not because she thought she’d made a mistake, even though that was what she’d told him. Sex had not been a mistake. She’d made a conscious choice. Sleep with Jaylon, put a wedge between herself and the Hunters. Tainted by another man. No longer pure, untouched. No longer waiting for something she could never have. She’d made that choice and it hadn’t been a mistake.
What she hadn’t been even remotely prepared for was how intensely she’d feel for him in that moment. That moment when they both reached the peak of ultimate release. That moment of pure bliss. Eyes locked, a link forming that she couldn’t bear. A connection she couldn’t understand. Who was this man? What had he done to her? In that moment, she had forgotten about her sorrow, her loss, she had forgotten about her pathetic life and being an outcast. In that moment, she belonged with him. Only him.
And that was some scary shit.
Shit she didn’t want to deal with.
Just like she didn’t want to deal with her sister, who’d been calling and calling her for days. Leaving message after message. She’d listened to the first one, where Corra was almost unintelligible, ranting about some prophesy, just another ruse to get Aubrey to call her back. She’d stopped listening to those that came after that.
Aubrey was in full on avoidance mode. Letting the calls go to voice mail and only seeing Jaylon at the forced “family” dinners, where she would eat quickly then sequester herself in her room, claiming a headache or planning—or something.
Luckily, she didn’t see him ever during the day and Darcy kept her busy with trips out of town, shopping, shows, whatever. So, with the exception of the fifteen tension-filled minutes it took her to fork a bunch of food into her mouth at dinnertime, she didn’t have to even think about Jaylon.
Right.
Except for the dreams she was having about him. Or the fantasies that always led to touching herself. Or the hoping—always hoping—that she’d turn the corner and bump into him.
Yeah, she wasn’t thinking about him at all.
What she was doing was attempting to keep busy. Planning the upcoming tour, looking at maps of the various venues, hotels, et cetera. Training, always training.
She picked up a menu, scanned the page for the hundredth time, then put it down again. She was waiting at a small pub for the two men she’d contacted about joining her security team. She was missing out on a “family” dinner, with Mayhem’s permission of course. She wanted to feel relieved at the break from the band, but all she felt was restless, agitated, like that fifteen minutes of just being in Jaylon’s presence at dinner was sorely missed. It was ridiculous how much he invaded her thoughts, her emotions. For goodness sake, the man was practically a stranger.
Yeah, a stranger who you’d been deeply intimate with. A man you gave your virginity to. Ugh.
She shoved those thoughts away, trying desperately to keep herself focused on the task at hand. Hire security.
“Bree. Nice to see you again.”
She snapped her gaze up to find Chris—blond, built, and hotter than hot. She’d known him most of her life, his family being Order supporters just as hers was. Young, early twenties, he was part of her and her sister’s cohort of Hunter/Huntress hopefuls, training together at times, socializing together often. He was a trusted family friend—someone she could count on to watch her back.
“Chris,” she said as she stood and quickly embraced him.
“This is Gareth.” Chris nodded to the right, where another hulking young man stood.
Aubrey shook hands, knowing Gareth to see him but not ever having spoken. He was handsome as well, dark where Chris was fair, totally on par with what she liked. And yet she felt nothing, no spark, no interest. If anything, looking at Gareth made her miss Jaylon even more. She gave her head a minute shake, hoping to rattle her brain back into working order and dislodge Jaylon once and for all. “Thanks for coming. Why don’t we order some food?” She motioned for the men to sit. “And I’ll fill you in on the job details.”
Aubrey briefed the men as they inhaled their dinners. Big men, big appetites. She pecked at hers, not at all feeling the urge to consume anything, her thoughts stubbornly shifting to the band and how they were probably all sitting around the grand dining room table, eating, talking, joking.