Resisting the Moon (Royal Shifters #2)(22)

Back at our cabin, I could sense Sebastian was near. His torment was thick in the air. I had to find him.

Shifting back into my wolf form, I took off into the forest and followed his scent. Thankfully, he wasn’t hiding it from me. Coming to a stop at a lake that was partially frozen over, I waited as Sebastian rolled around in the water. When he was done, he traipsed out and shook off his fur, no longer covered in blood.

I approached him slowly and he never took his gaze off of mine. Rubbing my head under his chin, a satisfied growl rumbled in his chest. I just wanted him to come back to me. I nudged him with my nose and licked the side of his neck, only to come away with the taste of blood in my mouth. My mind whirled and a flood of emotions exploded inside of me. What the hell did I just do?

His feelings became my own and I could see everything inside of his mind. The pain became too much and I screamed as I shifted back, clutching the sides of my head. I closed my eyes and fell to the ground, hoping it would stop. Usually when you tasted a mate’s blood, a vision of your future would occur, but there was only pain, hatred, and rage.

“Tyla!” Sebastian pulled me into his arms and held me tight. “Tyla, what’s wrong?” He grabbed my hands and jerked them away from my face.

I looked into his eyes, and realized what he’d been keeping from me this whole time. “Sebastian, it’s too much,” I thought to him, knowing he’d hear me in his mind.

Eyes wide, he shook his head and shut me out. The relief was instant, but his agony was just below the surface. It wouldn’t stay hidden for long. “Dammit, Tyla, you weren’t supposed to see all of that.” Lifting me up, he carried me back to the house.

My eyes burned. “I didn’t realize it was that bad.” And all because of me. To top it all off, I hadn’t received a vision of our future. That could only mean one thing . . . death.





Tyla

I wanted to talk to Sebastian about what had happened, but he was struggling to keep it together. He sat on the couch, watching TV like nothing was wrong, but I knew the truth. He thought he was shutting me out, but I could still see his thoughts. He had seen me get slapped across the cheek and that vision was on loop in his mind. He blamed himself for not getting there fast enough.

Sneaking away, I tiptoed upstairs to the bedroom and dialed Bailey’s number. She knew Sebastian better than anyone.

“Tyla, oh my God,” she said, forgoing the usual greeting. “What’s going on? I heard about your family. I’m so sorry.”

“And it gets worse. We were attacked today. It appears there’s more to this whole story that we haven’t figured out yet.”

“Do you need help? We can send others out there to you.”

Sighing, I sat down on the bed. “The more of us around, the more attention it’ll bring. And unfortunately, we have another problem.”

“What?”

Closing my eyes, I concentrated on Sebastian’s mind. He was afraid I was scared of him after seeing him today. My heart broke. “Sebastian’s a lot worse than I thought. I accidentally drank some of his blood today.”

“Did the link open up?” she asked.

“It did. And what I saw terrified me,” I whispered. “There wasn’t a vision either. I just knew there’d be no happy ending for us.”

“You don’t know that. The visions could be tainted because of his rage. Besides, the future always changes with the decisions we make.” She blew out a sigh. “What else happened?”

“He not only killed the wolves who attacked us, he shredded them apart. I’ve never seen him like that before. His mind is in a dark place, Bailey. He’s trying to keep me out, but it’s not working. It’s taking him over.”

“What are you going to do? Please don’t make him suffer. I love him and I know you do too.”

My eyes burned as Sebastian’s words echoed in my mind, “If you don’t finish this, you will surely lose me. The rage will drive me insane and I won’t be able to control it. You need to make the choice, your fear . . . or my life.”

“Tyla, you there?” Bailey said desperately.

I blew out a shaky breath. “I know what to do.”

“You do?”

“Yep. I’ll call you soon.” I hung up and started for the door, heart racing. Sebastian was still on the couch with an arm draped over his eyes. His breathing was heavy, but he wasn’t asleep. He was fighting his demons, visions of red flashing through his mind. I tiptoed over and watched him, wondering if he was going to acknowledge me.

“I know you’re there.” His voice was low and dark.

Biting my lip, I took a step forward. Slipping my pants and underwear down my legs as quietly as I could, I closed the distance. When I ran my hands up his thighs, his body jumped at the contact and then relaxed, mind clearing for a brief second.

“What are you doing?” he murmured.

Climbing up on his lap, I straddled his waist. “A little bit of this,” I said, sliding his hand up my shirt. “And a little bit of that . . .” I ran my hand over the zipper of his jeans and rubbed his arousal. He sucked in a breath and dropped his arm, eyes blazing.

“Don’t start something you can’t finish,” he warned.

I knew what I was getting myself into. I couldn’t let him suffer any longer, not when I could see what he was going through. His pain was now my pain. I leaned down and kissed him, biting his lip between my teeth. “I guess it’s a good thing I plan on finishing then.”