Free TerrIIItory by Susan A. Bliler

recognized that you’re one of us.  She knew you’d protect us.  Even now, the only time she comes forth is when you’re near, and I’m…I’m sorry Evander.”  She shook her head. “My wolf has attached herself to you because you came for us.  Because she needs your strength.”
    “You truly don’t think you’re mine, do you?”
    She flinched at the wounded look that flashed across his face.  “I’m sorry, Evander.  I’m just so…so damn sorry.”
    He shoved his plate aside and braced his elbows on the table.  “There are two things you need to know with absolute certainty, Beth.  One, it is the wolf who should be relied upon in times of great distress.  If she’s coming to me, it’s because she knows.  Two, you are mine.  I know it to the very depths of my soul.”
    “Look at me.” Bethany thrust an arm forward, yanking up her sleeve to reveal bite-marred flesh.  Evander growled at the sight.  “I’m not healing, Evander.”  She slumped back in her chair and whispered, “I’ve rested, I’ve eaten, and I carry your mark, but I’m still not healed.  It can only mean one thing.”
    “My mark on you isn’t even hours old.”  He nudged her plate forward.  “Eat.  Tonight, you’ll sleep.”  His lips curled in self-assurance.  “And in the morning, when you’re healed, you’ll know the truth.”
    Hope sparked deep inside, and Bethany knew it shone in her eyes when Evander smiled and nodded.  It made sense.  Everything else took time; a mate mark would as well.
    Eyeing her plate with a renewed sense of promise, Bethany grabbed her burger and took a healthy bite while Evander smiled his approval.
    Minutes later, both their plates were clean and Evander eyed his watch.  “Let’s get you back to the house.  I think an early night is in order.  You’re going to need your rest.”
    Butterflies flitted to life in her belly, and it suddenly felt like Christmas Eve.  If Evander’s theory were true, she’d wake and have proof that she was, in fact, his mate.  Nodding once, she eased from the booth and let him escort her back to his jeep.

Chapter 12
    Back at the compound, Evander hurried around the jeep to open Bethany’s door.  She couldn’t help but smile at the romantic gesture.  He was lifting her out of the jeep when he stopped, holding her in mid-air.  “How about a quick walk before you turn in?”
    She nodded and was rewarded with a smile as he lowered her to the ground and captured her hand.
    They walked in silence for a while.  Bethany allowed him to lead her around the property as the forest around them settled in for the night.
    “What do you do to relax?” he finally asked, breaking the silence.
    “Umm, I like to write.”
    “Really?”  He sounded genuinely interested.  “What do you write?”
    “Poems, short stories, stuff nobody wants to read.”
    He chuffed a laugh.  “Doubtful.  I bet you’re a great writer.”
    “It really is pretty lame stuff.”
    “You should let me read something you’ve written sometime.”
    Bethany curled her nose and shook her head, countering with, “What do you do to relax?”
    “I read.”
    She giggled, but quickly silenced when she realized he wasn’t joking.  “Really?  Me too.  But I doubt you’re into the kind of gooey smut I’m into.”  She kicked at a rock.  “So what do you read?”
    He was silent so long she didn’t think he’d answer when he finally recited in an even tone.  “Now this is the law of the jungle, as old and as true as the sky, and the wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the wolf that shall break it must die.”
    Bethany knew the poem well.  Rudyard Kipling’s ‘The Law for the Wolves’.  She finished the next line. “As the creeper that girdles the tree trunk, the law runneth forward and back; for the strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the pack.”
    Kane smiled at her.  “You too?”
    She shrugged. “Yeah, I guess. I assumed