Mated Girl (Wolf Girl #4)(37)

Oh.
Ohhh.
Sawyer was less shocked than I, probably because he’d been living with the dude for a year.
“You can feed from me if you need to, and I can put out a call for volunteers to keep you supplied in the future.” Sawyer’s voice was calm, like he hadn’t just offered to let a vampire feed from him. Something surged inside of me, some need to protect him.
Alpha Sawyer letting a male vampire feed from him. It was … mind blowing.
‘He’s done it a couple times before,’ Sawyer spoke into my mind. He must have felt my anxiety. ‘They tried to starve him and kill him in prison. I kept him alive. I don’t like it, but I’d do anything for him. He’s one of my best friends, Demi.’ Sawyer had to keep drilling that in my head, because clearly it was hard for me to understand. Shit, it was so hard to just be thrown into each other’s lives like this. Not knowing or remembering who the new person was.
‘Okay,’ I told him, trying to be supportive.
“Actually…” Luka hesitated. “We were thinking of heading out into the human world, laying low for a while. We will only be a target on your pack if we stay.”
I felt the sadness rip through Sawyer in that moment, but he nodded. “All of you?”
The fey and troll nodded as well. “Nothing more here for us, bro,” Talon stated. “Nothing but a death sentence. We just said goodbye to Walsh.”
They were all wanted felons … this didn’t really hit me until now. They couldn’t be seen in Magic City without being arrested.
These people were Sawyer’s crew, his best friends. The thought of losing them tore at him, but he knew it was necessary. They’d been there for each other to survive, and now it was time to go their own way, do what they needed to do to endure on the outside.
“The hunters will come for you,” Sawyer warned.
It was the second time I’d heard of these human hunters…
Luka shrugged. “Hunted here, hunted there, what’s the difference? I can handle some weak human hunters.”
Bennett laughed, clapping Luka on the back. “Weak is not how I would describe them, brother. My cousin said they’re lethal, and not exactly all human.”
Luka’s eyes went stormy, almost black, as he squinted at Bennett. “Well, my aunt is more lethal, so until the time comes when I can have her killed, I need to hide out somewhere else.”
At the mention of killing his aunt, anger surged up inside of me. “She’s mine,” I growled, stepping forward, and then swallowed when all four guys looked up at me with surprise. I cleared my throat. “I’m sorry, but if anyone is killing your aunt, that honor will be mine.”
Luka grinned, and holy hell was he hot. He was like a black-haired James Dean.
“Alright, well, call me when you do that, Mrs. Alpha, and I’ll come home.” He tipped his head to me.
Luka then faced Sawyer. “We can stay and fight if you need us. Just say the word. I can be back over here in an hour or two after feeding.”
Sawyer waved him off. “Nah, you better go. We don’t need anyone else luring the vampires to us.” His words might have said go, but the tone of his voice said something else entirely.
Luka looked conflicted as he stared at Sawyer.
“Go on. We’ll be fine,” Sawyer urged him again.
Luka nodded, handing Sawyer a piece of paper. “This is the number of Bennett’s cousin who we’ll be staying with.”
Sawyer took the paper and tucked it into his pocket. The four guys stood there awkwardly for a moment, until finally Bennett stepped forward and pulled Sawyer into a bro hug, smacking him hard on the back. “I’ll never forget that one day at lunch with the tray,” he said as they pulled away.
Sawyer and Bennett burst out laughing at the inside joke and I was suddenly overcome with emotion. These dudes had created a bond unlike any other.
Talon was next, hugging Sawyer, before nodding. “Remember, finger to the eye.”
Sawyer and the other boys laughed again, and it made me so damn happy to see that they had these inside jokes, this bond. I also needed to know the details on all these stories later.
Luka was last. He stepped forward slowly and placed one hand on either of Sawyer’s shoulders. “I’m glad I didn’t kill you when I had the chance,” Luka told him with a twinkle of mischief in his eye.
Sawyer grinned. “Oh, please, I’d like to see you try.”
Luka chuckled, pulling Sawyer into a quick bro shoulder hug, and smacked him on the back with two flat palms.
“Call me when Demi finds out she has a long-lost sister who looks just like her,” Luka stated as he stepped away.
“Fuck you.” Sawyer ran toward him playfully, fist raised.
Luka beamed, jumping back with vampire speed, just out of Sawyer’s reach, and everyone smiled, then the smiles slipped from their lips one by one.
“Bye, Sawyer,” Luka said.
Sawyer cleared his throat. “Yeah, see you later.”
“Thanks for getting us out, Demi.” Luka bowed his head in respect to me.
I could only nod, seeing their brotherly love had really touched me. I had been wrong to judge Luka as a bad person just because of his family association. It was clear by this display that he was a good man and a good friend to my mate.
As the three guys turned to walk away, I felt Sawyer’s sadness rip through my chest. They were his brothers and he wasn’t sure when he would see them again. I came up behind him and wrapped my arms around him, resting my head on his back.
“We’ll get Wolf City back, kill the queen, and have the biggest, most amazing, delayed wedding reception anyone has ever seen, and we’ll invite your friends.”