Page 71 of Awakened and Betrayed
“Oh, perfect, just who I was looking to speak to.”
“About what?” Sabin growls from behind me his hand flexing on my shoulder.
I should have known that Captain Cockblock would have been the one to literally cockblock Torrez by shielding my eyes.
Torrez gestures to the guys. “How do I go about applying to be one —you know, a mate?”
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“Wait, what?” Valen asks, just as confused as I am.
“She said I had to talk to you guys about getting added into the group. How does that work? Shifters usually do the one on one thing, occasionally we mix it up with a two on one, but I don’t know how you guys establish the group. In the pack, we’d probably fight it out and choose based on the winners, but I don’t get the impression that’s how you casters do things.”
All eyes turn to me like somehow I’ll offer clarification to whatever in the hell is going on here. I narrow my gaze at Torrez.
“I did not tell you that you couldapplyto be my mate. I said I already had mates and then I’m pretty sure I threatened to kick your ass. So feel free to go blow some other house down; this one is brick.”
To punctuate myrun alongmessage, all the guys take a step towards me.
“Now, Witch, I have to disagree with your version of events. I remember things very differently. I touched the runes on your shoulder, and you liked it, but that got you all worried, so you stomped off. I followed you to make sure you got wherever you were going safely, and that’s when you told me that I had to go to your mates to get to you.”
My eyes dart back and forth between Torrez’s brown irises. I can’t tell if he’s trying to start shit or if that’s really how he thinks things went down.
“He activated your runes?” Bastien asks me, and I don’t miss the anger tinged hurt in his voice.
“I didn’t know it was him. I thought one of you somehow showed up. I turned around and saw it wasn’t one of you, and told him not to touch me again. We don’t know shit about how my runes work; it could happen anytime someone messes with them. Don’t read more into it than that.”
“Witch…”
“Stop calling her that!” Ryker demands.
Torrez takes a deep breath, and I wonder what he’s scenting now. Isthis group of casters is about five seconds from giving me a beat downa smell?
“Vinna, you want me. You might be in denial about it in your head, but the rest of you screamsdesireloud and clear. I can see you’re worried about your mates, but that’s why I’m coming to them, so we can all figure it out. So...what happens now?”
The guys start arguing with Torrez, and for some reason each other. I grab Knox’s phone out of his pocket and dial Mave’s number, and she picks up on the third ring.
“Hello?”
“Mave, it’s Vinna.”
“Heyyy, how’s it going? You free for lunch? We seriously need to catch up!”
“Not right now, but later this week would probably work.”
“Cool, I’ll check my appointment schedule and get back to you. What’s up?
“Can you call your Alpha and have him call off his watchdog? I don’t need another stalker, especially one that thinks he can apply to be my mate.”
I expect Mave to laugh or something, but when the line is quiet, it freaks me out.
“Hello, you there?”
“Yeah, I’m here. You’re talking about Torrez right?”
“The very one.”
“Um Vin, Torrez left the pack. He had to in order to pursue you. I thought you knew.”
