Moon Touched (Zodiac Wolves: The Lost Pack #1)(61)

“This can’t happen ever again," he said. Then he left without another word. The slam of the door was so loud it vibrated through me.

I closed my eyes, the mortification filling me. Once again, I'd been rejected by a man I thought might actually care about me. How the hell was I supposed to live in this house with him now?





Chapter Twenty-Five





I wanted to shower, but I didn't think I could move. I was tired, yes, but underneath that was only shame as I came back to myself more solidly and realized the full gravity of the situation. The heat had passed, the mating frenzy over, and I couldn't believe I'd really done and said all those things.

I’ll never leave my room again, I thought and shoved my face into the pillow. I considered screaming into it, but I was too tired to even do that. There was no way I could face Kaden again, let alone any of the pack. Nope, this room was my home now.

I managed to drift to sleep for a while and was grateful for the reprieve from my own spinning thoughts. My body ached as if I’d done ten trainings with Kaden in a row, as if he’d had me punch the bag for hours on end, instead of the twenty-odd minutes he usually had me do. Well, you certainly went several rounds with him, my brain quipped at me. Shut up, I told it, and turned over in bed, wincing at the way my muscles twinged.

A knock came at my door at about midday. “Are you all right?” Stella asked through the door, and I winced again. “Did Kaden do something?”

Why, yes. He did a lot of things, in all different positions, I thought, and almost laughed out loud at the thought of Stella’s face if I’d said that. “I’m fine,” I called back and hoped that she couldn’t hear the blatant lie. If I opened that door I'm sure she would see a big sign with I JUST HAD SEX WITH YOUR BROTHER ALL NIGHT emblazoned on my forehead.

"Okay." She paused for way too long. "Let me know if you need anything."

I wondered if she could smell it. Shit, I wondered if the entire town had heard me last night. They’d probably figured out what was wrong with me, much like Kaden had. He hadn’t gotten me out of there in time, and I wondered if they all knew what exactly went down in Kaden’s house. It wouldn’t take much imagination. Which meant I could never face any of them again either.

I could never live down this embarrassment. I punched my pillow into a better shape, mostly just to punch something. I’d hated feeling so out of control of my body. I’d felt more animal than human, as if I had no control, no judgment. Last night, in the middle of the heat with Kaden draped over me, doing his best to answer the overwhelming desire in my body, I wouldn’t have cared if the entire pack had been watching us.

I groaned and tried to find a more comfortable position. I’d do anything to get rid of this mate bond. I hated it. It had turned me into a beast, unable to control myself, and even worse, it would happen again and again because I was never going to be with Jordan. Not even if he showed up out of the blue with flowers and candy and begged me to be his mate. Yeah right, and the sky is falling, I thought bitterly. Which meant I was doomed to spend every full moon in this state.

I managed to avoid leaving my room all day, sleeping on and off, and letting my body rest. I got up to shower eventually, and Stella, bless her kind heart, left me some food outside my door. I devoured it as if I'd never eaten before, then chugged a ton of water. My body needed it all to recover.

Another knock sounded at my door just after night fell. I sighed, wondering if Stella was going to come in and question me after all. “I’m fine, Stella. Just tired.”

“It’s me,” Kaden’s voice said, and I sat up straighter, any drowsiness gone. What could he want? “Can I come in?”

I paused, unable to stop the wild thought that he might be coming back to apologize and tell me how much last night had meant to him, but then I shook that fantasy away. "Yeah."

I tried to figure out what the hell to do with my limbs as he came in. I finally settled onto the bed, legs crossed and hands in my lap. Not that it would have mattered.

Kaden glanced around the room, carefully avoided looking at me. “Are you willing to go on a supply run tomorrow to get some things?”

Wow, so we weren't going to talk about last night at all. Just move on, back to business, as if it had never happened. Like I didn't know the sound he made when he came inside me. "Sure."

"Be ready at 7. Don't be late."

I crossed my arms. "It won't be a problem."

Kaden opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something else, but then nodded and walked back out, closing the door behind him. I let out a long breath, my shoulders sinking. I hadn’t expected anything different from him, but it was still disappointing. I almost wished he'd been mad at me or something. At least if he’d exploded at me, we could have addressed what had happened. But no, we’d let this sit and fester between us until the end of time, which I was certain Kaden could do.





I woke almost exactly at dawn, feeling much more aware and alert, and I sprung out of bed to get ready. I showered and dressed, but skipped breakfast, still too guilty to face Stella. There was no avoiding Kaden though. He stood at the door of the van that was parked in his driveway, talking with Clayton in a low tone. I swallowed, realizing there were other people in the van too. Would they say anything about the other night? Maybe we could all just pretend it never happened and move on like Kaden had done. I was starting to think that was the best move.