Page 104 of Wolf Blood

He didn't even say anything while I stripped, or stepped beneath the water.

The shower's glass walls felt too transparent as he leaned up against the cabinets, facing the door instead of me.

My body trembled, just a little bit.

We weremates.

Permanently.

Unbreakably.

Fate had intervened, but that didn't make the link between us any less real or any less permanent.

Rhone was the only person I would ever be with again.

The only person I would ever bite.

The only romantic partner I would ever have.

And he didn't want me. Not really.

I'd never been a cheater, and I never would be. I valued loyalty too much, and cared too deeply. I knew what it was like to be a burden. To be unwanted by the people you wanted to love you the most.

I would be Rhone's, even if he eventually wished I wasn't or regretted what we had become.

I lifted a shaky hand to the back of my neck. The water wasn't stinging the skin, so I knew the wound had healed already. Bloom had mentioned that mate bites scarred quickly.

My fingers brushed bumpy, uneven skin.

I closed my eyes, turning my back to Rhone.

Given my adoration for short bobs, it would always be on obvious display.

The idea gave me a little bit of dark thrill.

Someone banged loudly on my apartment's door, and when I glanced over, I caught Rhone's back as he left the bathroom.

It would be Bloom and Maverick.

No one else would dare knock on our door right after Rhonebitme.

They didn't like either of us enough to take that risk.

Growling erupted as soon as the door opened.

I turned the shower off so I could hear what the guys were saying. Bloom was already slipping into the bathroom, shutting the door behind herself while I grabbed a towel off a hook.

She gave me a tight smile. "You okay?"

"It's debatable."

"Yeah. That was... something. Can I see your neck?"

I turned around, showing her the scarred wound.

She made a strangled sound. "That is... also something."

"Is it brutal?"