No, wait. That’s not him. That’s his… wolf.
He’s just… feeling guilty for taking me from my family. He wishes there was something else they could do, but there is literally nothing.
There is something else though. Something that is at the forefront of his mind.
“Soulmate?” I blink up at him.
Aiden pulls back, tilting his head to the side.
“You can… hear me?” he asks, stumbling over his words.
I nod.
He’s kind of cute when he’s nervous.
He swallows hard. “I can hear you too.”
My face grows warm and I let go of his arm. My thoughts are private, and I don’t want him to hear them.
I can still hear you.
That’s…
Aiden’s voice.
In.
My.
Head.
My breath is coming in too quickly now.
“Her eyes are black again,” Cole says, voice rising with each word.
“She’s panicking,” Aiden warns. “The link in our minds is permanent.”
“Get out of my head!” I yell.
He flinches when I yell at him and I feel a little guilty. But he’s in my head! It’s his fault. He touched me when I told them not to.
“I told you guys not to touch me for a reason.” I shudder and rub at my forehead. “It doesn’t usually happen like this though.” I pace back and forth in the small room. “Usually it’s one-sided. And it’s like… a movie. I can see everything that has ever happened in somebody’s life in a moment. I can feel their emotions and hear their thoughts. But it’s only supposed to go one way.”
“Just breathe.” Liam’s tone is gentle, and he moves to stand in front of me. He tries to touch me, so I back away, just out of his reach.
“Don’t touch me,” I snap, my voice coming out harsher than I intended.
I’m already linked to one of these guys though. I can’t link myself to more of them.
Even now, I can feel the worry coming off Aiden.
Liam is frowning, but I can see the hurt in his eyes.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “I just freaked out. I shouldn’t have yelled at you.”
“It’s okay.”
But is it really?
He still looks hurt.
I want to reach out and touch him. To stroke his cheek and show him how truly sorry I am. But what if I touch him and it opens a link like I have with Aiden? What if all these boys open a link?
An even scarier thought—what if every supernatural I touch does this?
“They won’t,” Aiden assures me as he shifts closer.
“What?” I ask, shaking my head in confusion.
“The only reason we have this link is because you’re my soulmate.” His eyes are bright as he reveals this information. “Other supernaturals won’t have this link with you.”
I lick my lips.
Right.
I forgot he was in my head for a moment.
I’m never going to have privacy again, am I?
Thankfully, Aiden doesn’t answer the question this time. Still, he feels guilty for touching me without my permission.
I guess if I’m going to be stuck in anybody’s head, I’m glad it’s him.
He’s the nice one.
But then something scratches at my head.
“What did you mean by soulmate?” I ask.
COLE.
Penelope knows that Aiden is her soulmate, but she doesn’t know that I am too.
I want to tell her. I want to touch her. I want to make her mine.
But Liam is right. We can’t overwhelm her with us. I’m not sure how long we will be able to keep it all a secret. I’m hoping not long, but I can do this. For her.
I’m so mad at Aiden. Why did he get to be the one to touch her first? She didn’t back away from him like she did from me.
I swallow hard, my chest feeling heavy.
She rejected me.
No… she didn’t reject me on purpose. I know this. But my wolf doesn’t seem to get the memo.
She almost touched me last night when I was a wolf. She was half an inch away from my fur. I should’ve just leaned into her, but I was scared she would pull away—and she did.
I grin, thinking about how red her face was when I started stripping my clothes off—how red her face was when I changed back and didn’t have any clothes on. I always forget how modest humans are, but it was funny to see her embarrassed.
She’s so beautiful.
How did I get so lucky to have her as my mate?
Should I be jealous that I have to share her with three other guys? Because I’m not jealous. It’s almost like some kind of supernatural force has made me okay with this. Maybe that’s what it is.
Still, if I have to share my mate, I’m glad I get to share her with my three best friends. Can you imagine having to share a mate with somebody that you hated?
I wonder what everybody will think when we get back to the school. I don’t care, but also I’m worried it will be hard for Penelope. A lot of girls will be disappointed the Liam is off the market. He’s the future alpha—all the girls are hoping he will be their mate. The last thing I want is for Penelope to be a target.
At least we don’t have to be in the dorms anymore. They never make mated pairs stay in the dorms. They always get their own place outside of campus.
I wonder how that will work. There is usually just two people—not five.
No matter what happens, I know we will have to protect Penelope. And I will hurt anybody who tries to hurt her.
Within the next hour, we should be arriving at the school. From this point forward, things are going to change.
A big part of me is excited about showing off my mate to everybody. But there is another part of me that is nervous for her.
One thing is certain, I am not going to be letting her out of my sight. Not ever again.
Chapter Eight
Ready or not.
PENELOPE.
Aiden thinks he’s my “mate.”
Mate as in soulmate.
He thinks we’re meant to be together.
I don’t want to hurt his feelings, but how can we be meant to be when I literally just met him? I don’t know him well enough to be together with him.
Plus, the fact that whatever I feel for him, whatever connection we have, I also have that same connection with the other three guys. I try to keep that out of my mind, but it’s impossible. I cringe, thinking about him listening in on my private thoughts. He’s talking with Liam at the moment. He’s on the other side of the deck, but I know he can hear me.
I groan.
Great.
Now my “mate” knows that I also have feelings for his three best friends. This thing is turning out great so far.
I’m also worried about my family. Liam told me I can call them once I arrive at the school, as long as I promise not to talk about the fact that I’m at a school for werewolves.
They don’t like being called werewolves. They say they’re wolf shifters and that there are all kinds of shifters at the school where we’re going. It’s still hard to wrap my brain around that. I also hope that I don’t turn into some kind of animal. Like, no offense to these guys, but the last thing I want to do is turn into a furry creature.
I look up and see Aiden smirking at me.
My face grows warm and I look away.
Am I ever going to remember that he can hear my thoughts?
This isn’t normal.
Though, who am I to judge what normal is? With one touch, I can read every thought and ever emotion that anybody has ever felt and thought through their entire life. That isn’t normal.
Why couldn’t I see Aiden’s entire life?
I’m kind of glad I didn’t see. I want to learn about his past because he wants to tell me and not because we accidentally touched.
Okay, it wasn’t an accidental touch, but he feels guilty enough, so I don’t want to think abou
t that.
I see something off in the distance.
Is that an island?
As we get closer, I realize that it is an island. A big island. And there is a… castle?
Why is there a castle?
Wait… where are we?
“That’s the school.” Parker points to the castle as he comes up beside me. He keeps a small distance from me. He’s closer than I’m comfortable with, but I know he won’t reach out to touch me.
“Where are we?” I ask. “And why have I never seen this castle before? We can’t be that far from Florida. I mean, how long was I out?”
He laughs. “We left from Key West. This island is a ways off the coast. We have it cloaked with magic so nobody will find it.”
“How does that work?”
“If anybody gets close, they automatically go around it,” he says. “They will never even realize they turned by the time they’re away from the island.”
“Huh, that’s cool.”
I look at the castle off in the distance. As it gets closer, I realize just how big it is.
Of course it’s big. It’s a castle.
“Welcome to Hogwarts,” I mumble to myself.
“Hog what?” Parker asks.
“Hogwarts,” I repeat.
“What?”
“You know,” I say. “The school from Harry Potter.”
“Who’s Harry Potter?”
I narrow my eyes as I look at him.
He’s got to be messing with me, right?
But, no. Parker looks genuinely confused.
“It’s a book. And a movie.”
“Ah,” he drawls out. “We don’t really like human entertainment.”
“You guys have books and TV though, right?”
He nods. “We just have our own shows and stories.”
That’s… kind of cool, actually. A whole new world of books and movies to explore. Though, something tells me I won’t be having much time to do things like that with these guys around. They’re far more entertaining than anything I could watch on TV.
Uh, I’m supposed to be mad at them. They kidnapped me. And they sent somebody to mess with the minds of my family. How am I just okay with them?
Maybe it’s because I’ve always known I was different. I’ve wanted answers, and now I feel like I’m finally about to get them. Somebody is bound to know what is wrong with me. Why do I have these powers? I’m just human.
Or am I?
I’ve always questioned if I was adopted. Mom and Dad laughed it off whenever I asked, but I was genuinely curious. I know they love me, and I love them, but I’ve never really fit in. I don’t look like them and I don’t act like them. I’ve always thought of myself as the black sheep of the family, but what if it’s something else?
“Are you okay? Your eyes are gray again.” Parker’s gaze flicks back and forth between my eyes as he studies me with a concerned expression.
“Sorry.” My shoulders slump as I heave out a sigh. “I was just thinking about my family.”
“You miss them?”
I nod.
I will miss them so much.
“My older sister, Alyssa, was about to give birth. She’s about two weeks out from her due date,” I say, hating the tears that fill my eyes. “She’s having a girl. My first niece.”
“We will arrange a way for you to go see them when she gives birth.”
“Really?”
Parker nods.
“Thank you,” I whisper.
I throw my arms around his waist, careful not to touch my skin to his. He, too, is cautious as he hugs me back.
“You’re welcome.”
His voice is low, and it vibrates through my entire body.
Am I seriously thinking about how sexy his voice is right now? Is making fun of Paige for being so boy crazy for all those years finally catching up to me?
I back away from his embrace first. I don’t think I’m ready to let him go, but the hug was already lasting too long to be normal. I just… really like the feeling of being in his arms. Which makes me feel guilty because Aiden thinks he’s my soulmate and he’s listening to my every thought.
I cautiously look over at him and he’s smiling at me.
Okaaaay…
Maybe he’s fine with me having feelings for his best friend.
Or maybe he’s just not listening. That could be it. Maybe he’s trying to give me my privacy.
Come to think of it, I can’t hear his thoughts right now.
I’m just blocking you so I don’t overwhelm you.
That is so freaky.
Will I ever get used to hearing Aiden’s voice in my head?
When I look back at the island, I see that we’re almost there. My heart pounds and I feel a bit sick to my stomach.
This is it.
My new school.
My new life.
Ready or not, it’s happening.
I think I’m going to be sick.
PARKER.
She hugged me.
Maybe that wouldn’t be a big deal if she were anybody else, but she’s not. She’s Penelope. My mate. The other half of my soul.
She doesn’t like touching, and yet she reached out to me and wrapped her arms around me. The second she did that, my heart melted.
Aiden opened his mind to the rest of us, but blocked out Penelope, so we can all hear her thoughts through him. Her thoughts are cute. She has feelings for me. She has feelings for us all.
We won’t have to wait too long before we tell her the truth—that she belongs to all of us and not just Aiden. That we belong to her, because this goes both ways.
I’m impatient. I want to tell her now, but I see why we haven’t. It’s a lot already. We’ve introduced her to the supernatural world and now we’re bringing her to Shifter Academy. We took her from her family and the only life she’s ever known. She needs time to process that before we drop another bomb on her.
Liam and Cole are the most impatient though. It was initially Liam’s order for us to wait, but I think he partially regrets that now, even though he knows it’s for the best. He and Cole are both fighting against their own nature not to touch her. The fact that they’ve shown so much self-control shows just how much they care about her.
It’s crazy that a few days ago I didn’t even know her. Now, I couldn’t live without her.
How did I exist before her?
Chapter Nine
Touching.
PENELOPE.
People are staring at me.
Do I call them people? Well, I guess they’re technically people, but they’re more than human. They’re shifters. Shifters that could probably rip me to shreds in two seconds flat if I pissed them off.
Still, they’re staring at me. They’re probably wondering what I’m doing here. That is a question I wish I knew the answer to myself. Yet, here I am, in a castle where I’m about to attend school.
“Do the stairs change positions?” I whisper to Liam, since he is the closest to me.
He raises an eyebrow. “Why would they do that?”
“Never mind,” I mumble.
Right.
I forgot.
They don’t even know what Harry Potter is.
“Explain yourself,” he demands, not leaving me room to argue.
I roll my eyes.
Liam truly is the “alpha.”
“It’s from this movie,” I say, waving my hand. Though, it’s much more than just a movie. It’s easier to explain it this way though.
“We will watch this movie with you.”
It’s not a question.
Great. Glad we settled that.
When you first walk into the school, there are marble floors, large archways that are three stories high, balconies where other students are walking, and the ceiling is partly glass so you can look up and see the sky from inside. It’s impressive.
I want to continue to explore, but they say we have to go speak to the dean of the school.
> I’m sandwiched between the guys—Liam is to the right, Cole to the left, Parker in the front, and Aiden behind me. I’m not sure if it’s intentional or if it’s just coincidental.
No, everything with these boys is intentional. It warms my heart that they want to protect me, but it also worries me. What are they trying to protect me from? The other students? Is it dangerous for me to be here? What’s going on?
My questions have to wait, however, because right now I’m going to meet the dean of this school. I have no idea what’s about to happen. Are they going to ask permission for me to go here? What if the dean says no? Will I get to go back home?
My heart races at the thought of seeing my family again, but it drops just as quickly at the thought of leaving these boys. As much as I miss my family, I can’t imagine not being here with these four guys. I’ve grown kind of used to having them around, and I like it.
I look up at the ceiling one last time as we pass under the archways that lead down a long hallway. The marble floor is replaced with a deep red carpet and the ceilings are still high, but not as high. I almost expect to see torches on the wall and knights in metal suits, but that’s just silly.
“There isn’t a moat either,” Cole pipes up from my side.
Wait… what?
How did he know what I was thinking?
But before I can ask, we walk through a big wooden door. There is a large, spiral staircase that goes up, but behind that, there is a desk. A young girl is sitting there—she can’t be older than seventeen.
“Liam, what a nice surprise.” The girl is grinning entirely too big at him.
I kind of want to claw her face off for looking at him like that.
Oh, my gosh. What is wrong with me? I’m not jealous. I can’t be. Liam isn’t my boyfriend. He isn’t my anything. I just met him.
So why do I want to smack this girl and tell her to take her eyes off him?
I’m losing it.
The girl finally stops checking out Liam and frowns when she sees me.
“We’re here to see Margot,” Liam says.
“Who is she?” The girl sniffs the air. “Better yet, what is she?”
“She is none of your business,” he nearly growls. “Call Margot now and tell her we’re on our way up. That’s a command.”
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