Chapter 39 Go back to the hotel, Esme urged. "He's waiting for us. He'll take care of us. I can't "Why not? He wants us. We want him. It's natural! Because if I see him like this. I'll lose control completely. I pressed my palms against my burning cheeks. I'll throw myself at him like some desperate amega in heat The gas station was empty. Thank god. The symptoms were getting worse. Every fiber of clothing felt like sandpaper. The leather seat was too warm against my back. Even the air conditioning couldn't cool the fire burning inside me. I need to get away from here. Away from his scent. Away from any possibility of going back to him. The forest. There were woods behind this gas station. I could see the treeline in my headlights. Change. Run. Get as far away as possible. I drove to the darkest corner of the parking lot, behind the building where the security cameras wouldn't reach. The engine died with a soft click. My hands shook as I reached for my jacket. Every movement sent fresh waves of sensation through my hypersensitive skin. I peeled off the shirt, gasping as the fabric dragged across my nipples. This is insane. My jeans were next. The denim stuck to my damp thighs as I wiggled out of them. My underwear was soaked through. The cool night air hit my bare skin like a shock. I stuffed my clothes into the backseat and grabbed the car keys. Hide these somewhere safe. I tucked the keys under the driver's seat and stepped out into the night. - Gravel bit into my bare feet as I ran toward the trees. The shifting would be painful in this state every nerve was already overloaded. But wolf form would give me better control over these primal urges. The treeline swallowed me in darkness. I found a small clearing bathed in moonlight and let the change begin. Pain exploded through my body as bones began to reshape. Usually this took five minutes. Tonight it felt like hours. My sensitive skin screamed as it stretched and reformed. Muscles lengthened and changed. My spine curved and extended. But when four paws hit the forest floor, relief flooded through me. Better. This is better In wolf form, the burning need was still there but more manageable I could think past the base of desire. The scent of moss and pine filled my nostrils. I ran deeper into the woods. 1/3 Chapter 39 Ah paws and a game trail that sound to Tween Baks Branches rough manam wares, eating the person the forefin A meme crock baddled my monk atmes leaped down the halles band and was the flow The cold wate hit my heated him lits electricity instead of coding me down, it mads every section or inaniach Aruptet tete like you' 134 I scanded of the creek, dating water from my for. This was making everything wor** The fowl raped before I could stap i hechoed through the quiet forest not a cry of pain, but the deep, threaty call of a female wulf seeking her mate Did I post did I just call for him? Fomey satisfaction radiated through nun shared consciousness Good Let him know where we are Noi clamped down on the urge to howl again Thor's exactly what I'm trying to avoid Why are you fighting this? Your body knows what it wante! Bevat I'm not ready? I found a massive oak tree and pressed my wolf body against its rough bark. I just ended a three year relationship I can't jump into bed with someone else, even if he is my mate "It's not someone else Its CAFLAN That makes it worse, not better I curled into a tight ball at the base of the tree, my tail wrapped around my legs. The bark felt cool against my overheated fur, but it did nothing to ease the ache inside me My body writhed against the forest floor. I couldn't stay still. The urge to run back to him, to submit to these primal demands, grew stronger every minute. Carlan POV A checked my watch for the hundredth time. Sable should have been back. My fingers drummed against the mahogany desk where I'd been pretending to review territory reports. The words blurred together on the screen. I couldn't fus on anything except the empty suite Where is she? I reached for my phone to call her when it hit me. A surge of pure, desperate want slammed through my body like lightning Heat exploded in my chest, racing downward until my cock swelled painfully against my jeans "What the fuck? I doubled over, gripping the desk edge. Storm erupted in my consciousness with a feral foar Find Sublet Now! She needs us! 2/3 Chapter 39 What's happening? "Mate heat! Go to her!" Even without marking Sable, even without a complete bond, I could feel her. The Lycan King's connection ran deeper than ordinary wolves understood. Across the city, my mate was burning with need. And I could taste it on my tongue like honey and fire. I closed my eyes, letting my awareness stretch along the invisible thread that connected us. Not at the hospital. Not at any restaurant. Not anywhere in the city center. The pull led north. Toward the wilderness. Forest. She's in the forest. I found her car behind the gas station, tucked into the shadows where security cameras couldn't reach. The Bentley sat empty under the fluorescent lights. Relief and panic warred in my chest as I parked beside her. At least I'd found the right place. I opened her driver's door. Her clothes lay scattered across the backseat - jeans, sweater, underwear still damp with arousal. She shifted. She's running wild. My hands shook as I stripped off my own clothes. Bones cracked and reformed. Muscles stretched and thickened. Within minutes, a massive black wolf stood where I'd been. I gathered my clothes in my jaws and bounded toward the treeline. Her scent hit me immediately - strawberries and roses twisted with raw, desperate need. The smell went straight to my head like alcohol. I ran deeper into the woods, following the trail she'd left. Broken branches. Disturbed earth. The lingering musk of a female in heat. Then I heard it. A howl that pierced the night air like a blade through my soul. Pain and longing and desperation wrapped into one primal cry. She's calling for me.