The next she heard was someone pounding on the door. “Neha, Kiel? You two in there?” David shouted from outside.
Neha shot upright. David was at the door. That only meant one thing—she and Kiel had slept in. She grabbed her cell phone off the nightstand. She hadn’t turned off the alarm. It should have gone off. The reason why it hadn’t worked quickly became apparent when the screen remained black when she touched it to bring it awake. The battery was dead. Without electricity in the cabin, she’d forgotten she needed to charge it in Kiel’s pickup with the car charger.
“Neha, are you there?” David called loudly.
“Oh shit,” Neha said as she shot out of bed.
Kiel sat up with a growl as he scanned the room. “What? What’s the matter?”
She grabbed her bathrobe from her suitcase and slipped it on. “We slept in. The others are here already. Can you answer the door while I take a quick shower? Then you can have one after me.”
Neha didn’t wait for Kiel’s answer. She raced out of the bedroom and into the bathroom where she brushed her teeth as fast as she could, then tried to set a new world record for the fastest shower. After she dried off, she didn’t bother combing her hair, didn’t even look at her reflection in the mirror to see if she had dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep. If they were there, Joan would have to fix it.
She returned to the bedroom. Kiel was there. After a quickly glance, she saw he was dressed only in jeans. “Is David upset?” she asked.
Kiel grinned. “No. He just wants us to hurry. I told him to keep everyone out of the cabin until you were done your shower. I’ll go take mine now. You can let them in once you’re ready.”
Neha nodded as Kiel walked out of the room. She hurriedly pulled on a blouse and a pair of jeans. She didn’t bother putting anything on her feet. Once she accomplished all that, she went to the cabin door and opened it. Joan and Ron stood on the porch, holding the tools of their trades.
“About time,” Ron said. He looked at her hair. “In a bit of a hurry, were you? Thank goodness my hair dryer and irons are all rechargeable. With no electricity in this place, we’d be doomed.”
The two got set up, then Neha sat in one of the kitchen table chairs Ron was using so he could do her hair. As she sat, the bathroom door opened and Kiel came out wearing only a towel. She followed him with her gaze, the love she had for him taking her breath away.
Once the bedroom door closed, Ron said, “Hon, you are one lucky woman. That man is seriously hot with a drool-worthy body.”
Neha smiled. “And he knows how to use it, if you know what I mean?”
Ron shook his head. “Don’t tease.”
He then proceeded to comb out her hair before he took the hair dryer to it. He did the sides first. The warm air caught inside the top of her blouse, which she hadn’t buttoned very high. His gaze became fixed on a spot on her neck.
“Ah, hon,” Ron said, “I hope you made the right decision with that. You just started seeing Kiel. I would have thought getting something so permanent would be a big decision.”
Neha’s brows drew together. “What are you talking about?”
“The tattoo. Is that why you got David to shut down the shoot early yesterday? So you could go into Helena to get the same tattoo as Kiel has?”
She laughed. “You must need glasses. I don’t have a tattoo.”
Ron picked up the hand mirror he’d placed on the table, pulled the left side of her blouse open for her to see her neck and shoulder. Neha sucked in a sharp breath when her gaze landed on where the two met and saw the identical Celtic knot work, except it was colored with jewel tones, and wolves all in black that Kiel had.
“What the hell?” she asked as she rubbed at the mark. It didn’t even smudge. She handed the mirror to Ron. “Give me a minute.”
Neha stood and marched into the bedroom. She closed the door behind her, then crossed over to where Kiel stood pulling on a pair of jeans.
“Can you tell me how this mark came to be on my neck?” she asked as he turned to face her. She pulled the collar of her blouse to the side.
Kiel blew out a breath. “I planned to tell you this morning before everyone got here, but we slept in. I guess you didn’t see it when you took a shower.”
Neha’s gaze landed on Kiel’s tattoo, which had changed. His knot work was colored the same as hers. “What did you do? Please don’t tell me you drugged me, then tattooed me.”
“It’s not a tattoo.”
“Did you use permanent marker? It’s not coming off.”
“It’s a brand. A mate brand.”
“You actually want me to believe you burned it into my skin. I’m sorry, but I would have remembered that, and it would hurt like hell even now.”
“I would never do that to you. A mate brand is something that appears when a male and female of my kind become mated.”
“What? Your kind?”
“I’m not like you.” Kiel took her hand in his. “I’m a wolf shifter, and yesterday I claimed you as my mate. When I bit you, I linked us and the mate brand marked you as it marked me before I found you.”
“You want me to believe you’re a man who can turn into a wolf? And that I’m your mate?”
“Actually, I’m a wolf who is able to turn into a man. You’ve already seen me in my base form. I was the wild wolf who spent the night with you.”
“Riight,” she said. “Do you know how crazy you’re sounding? I thought you were perfect. I guess you were too good to be true. And I had to fall in lov—” Neha cut herself off there.
Kiel met her gaze. “You fell in love with me last night. As I did with you. That’s the way of a mated pair. The male claims his female and they’re bonded for life.”
Neha was about to call Kiel crazy when Ron opened the door and peeked around it. “Sorry to interrupt, but David is getting antsy. I need to finish with your hair, Neha, like now before he gets pissed off.”
She pulled her hand out of Kiel’s grip, then walked toward Ron. “Coming.”
As she walked out of the bedroom, Neha didn’t look back at Kiel. Everything had been going so perfect before he’d spouted all that crazy ass shit about him being a wolf shifter and mates.
* * * *
During the photo shoot, Neha kept taking sideways glances at Kiel. Why did he have to be a nut job? Even though she knew he was one, her feelings for him hadn’t changed. She was stupidly still in love with him. She had a feeling the only way she could break it would be for her to return to New York and never come back to Canyon Creek.
The day ended up being longer than she’d expected. David pushed them, wanting to have the shoot finished that day. Neha kept her distance from Kiel unless they were posing. Mia must have noticed since she sent Neha questioning looks, which she ignored. Kiel didn’t push her, but his gaze seemed to follow her wherever she went.
Vlad also must have noticed the change in hers and Kiel’s relationship. They’d just finished the last few pictures when he asked to talk to her. Neha reluctantly agreed, thinking she’d use the opportunity to make it very clear they would never get back together, even if things hadn’t worked out with her and Kiel.
He led her away from everyone else and into the trees that surrounded the cabin until they were out of sight of it. Neha remembered she’d done the same thing with Kiel the day before and how good it’d been to be held in his arms as he’d kissed her senseless.
She quickly brought herself back to the here and now as Vlad stopped walking and turned to face her. “Whatever it is you want to say, hurry up and finish,” she told him.
“Things haven’t worked out with Kiel, have they?” Vlad asked as he took a step closer. “I’ve made it no secret I want you back. Now that you’re done with him, give me another chance.”
“Vlad, I’ve already told you repeatedly back in Yellowstone my answer is no.”
“I can change your mind if you’d let me.” He took another step closer.
Neha walk
ed backward to put more space between them, but Vlad followed her. She came up short when her back hit a large tree. “I’m not interested.”
“We’ll see about that.”
He was on her before she realized what he intended. She yanked her head to the side as he tried to kiss her. His mouth landed on her cheek as he brought his hand up and squeezed her breast. He used his body to keep her pinned to the tree.
“Get the fuck off me, Vlad,” Neha said in a raised voice. She tried to push him away, but he was stronger than her.
“No. Not until I’ve showed you how good we are together. Not until you take me back.”
She reached up to smack him, but he caught her wrists in his hands and lifted them over her head. He held them there as he continued to try to take her mouth with his and ground his body against hers. Neha struggled and was about to work her leg up to nail the asshole in the crotch when a loud animalistic growl came from behind Vlad.
“Get the hell away from my mate.” Kiel’s voice was not very loud, but it was threatening all the same.
Vlad let her go and turned in Kiel’s direction. Neha sidestepped until she no longer had the tree at her back and wasn’t behind Vlad. She had a perfect view of Kiel, who stood facing the other man with his hands fisted at his sides.
“She’s not yours,” Vlad said with a sneer. “So butt out.”
“You touch Neha again and you will pay for it.”
Vlad laughed. “I will, will I? How? You going to beat me up? You do and I’ll go to the police and get your ass put in jail for assault.”
“Go ahead. Try to explain this to the police without them thinking you’re crazy.”
Kiel’s body blurred and a huge black wolf took his place. It was the wild one Neha had spent a night with. He’d been telling the truth. He was a wolf shifter.
She was frozen in place as Kiel the wolf lowered his head, his gaze fixed on Vlad. He snarled and growled deep in his throat. Kiel took a step toward Vlad, then another and another. His hackles rose the closer he came.
Vlad let out a shriek that would have done any five-year-old girl proud and ran through the woods in the direction of the cabin, bouncing off trees and tripping over fallen branches.
Once he was gone, Neha turned her gaze on Kiel, who was still a wolf. He padded over to her and licked her hand. She didn’t move. It definitely was the one from the other night. The one who she’d petted and talked to, and had even slept beside. She didn’t have to worry about him hurting her. If he’d wanted to he would have had plenty of opportunity during the long hours they’d spent together.
She just had a hard time accepting the fact that everything Kiel had told her was true. Did she want to be a mate to a wolf who was capable of turning into a man? It was almost too much for her brain to handle.
The wolf’s body blurred and Kiel was Kiel once more. “Neha, say something.”
“What do you want me to say?”
“That you’ll accept me for what I am. That you are my mate, claimed.”
“I can’t do that. You took my choice away. This is so out of the realm of the normal world. It’s too much.”
There was pain in Kiel’s eyes as he looked at her. “You’re the first human a wolf shifter has claimed as a mate. I might have gone about it the wrong way. I was afraid you would reject me if I told you what I was before I made you mine. For a male wolf shifter, once the mate brand appears on his skin, he only has a limited time to find his mate. Three weeks, to be exact. If he doesn’t or she rejects him, he loses his humanity, becomes a true wild wolf. I didn’t want that to happen to me, especially when you came into my life.”
“What if I reject you now?”
“I’ll let you go, even though it’ll be the most painful thing I’ve ever had to do. Wolf shifters mate for life. I claimed you, were mated. You can leave, but there will never be anyone else for me but you. I will continue to love you until the day I die.”
Neha shook her head, feeling as if she didn’t get away from him she would hyperventilate. “I can’t do this. I’m going to go to the hotel with the others. Then tomorrow I’ll catch a plane to New York. I’ll try to put this all behind me.”
Kiel jerked as if she’d physically struck him. “I won’t stop you. Just know that I’ll be here. You can come back any time. I won’t hold this against you.”
She gave a curt nod, then hurried away. Neha told David to wait for her before she ran into the cabin to collect her things. Once she returned outside, the others were just about finished packing up the van. She got into it and found Vlad already there. He looked out the window, then shifted as far away from her as he could get. She turned her gaze to look out as well and saw Kiel standing nearby.
Neha took one last lingering look at him before David put the van into gear and they drove down the dirt path that would take them to the main road. Kiel stood still as a statue with no expression on his face.
* * * *
After Neha and the others left, Kiel went to his parents’ cabin to tell them what had happened. They offered to come up with ideas to help bring Neha back to him, but he told them there was nothing they could do. He wouldn’t try to keep her with him if that wasn’t what she truly wanted.
He returned to his place, already missing Neha. It was as if he’d lost a part of himself and he would never be whole again without her. It didn’t help that her scent still lingered inside his home. Kiel ached for what he’d had for so such a short time.
As day turned into night, he went to bed, hoping he could escape from his loss while he slept. Neha’s scent had permeated the sheets and was deep inside his pillows, though. Sleep escaped him.
He finally gave up in the early hours of the morning. He’d made a decision. He couldn’t let Neha walk out of his life without talking to her one last time. Not sure when her flight to New York would be, Kiel dressed and headed for the airport in Helena.
As he made the thirty-minute drive, he rehearsed what he wanted to say to Neha. He thought of what he could do to convince her to stay with him. What he could do to prove to her that he may be a wolf shifter, but he was still the same person she’d come to love. And he knew she loved him. She’d almost admitted it to him, which told him her feelings for him had solidified the same as his for her the night they’d spent in each other’s arms. The link that had formed between them as he’d claimed her as mate hadn’t been only one-sided. Just like a female wolf shifter, Neha had felt it too. All of it.
After he arrived at the airport, Kiel went to the big board that listed all the flights coming and going. He found all the departures for New York. The earliest one was three hours from then. If Neha had managed to book a seat on that one, he had an hour before she showed up for her two-hour check in time. It was the longest hour of his life. He’d paced, worried he wouldn’t be able to change his mate’s mind about leaving him.
All the breath punched out of his lungs as he saw Neha walk through the airport doors. At first, she didn’t notice him. With his keen wolf shifter eyesight, he saw the dark circles under her eyes. It looked as if she hadn’t slept either.
As she pulled her rolling suitcase in his direction, her gaze landed on him. Neha’s steps slowed. Kiel walked toward her, drinking her in as he hoped this wouldn’t be the last time he ever saw her.
“Hi,” he said as he closed the distance between them.
“Hi,” she replied quietly.
“You managed to book a seat on the early flight to New York?”
“Yeah.”
The silence stretched between them before Kiel spoke again. “I couldn’t let you leave without seeing you. I miss you, and to be honest, I don’t know how I’ll survive with you gone.” He sighed. “I won’t do anything to stop you from leaving, but I’ll tell you this. I love you. I know you don’t understand what it means to be a mate to a wolf shifter, and that the whole idea of what I am is scary. But don’t be afraid of me, of us. I’m no different than I was before you found out. If you stay with me, I
’ll do everything in my power to make you happy. I’ll even live with you in New York, even though as a wolf I’ll feel closed in, caged. And if you’re willing to live with me in the cabin, I’ll modernize it. It might take a while, but it can be done. Just please don’t walk out of my life.”
She looked at him and shook her head. “I can’t stay.”
*
Tears filled Neha’s eyes, even though she fought to keep them at bay. She said she couldn’t stay with Kiel, but seeing him again, her resolve wavered. She hadn’t so much as slept a wink last night. He consumed her thoughts. He missed her, well, she missed him too. So much so she ached to be in his arms. She loved him, goddamn it, and no matter what she’d said to herself about him basically being an animal wouldn’t change that.
Kiel nodded. “Okay. Fine. I’ll let you go.” He leaned in and kissed her forehead. “Just remember you’ll always be in my heart, my mate,” he whispered before he pulled away.
He looked at her with such longing Neha had to bite her bottom lip to stop it from quivering. Kiel ran his gaze over her, as if memorizing everything about her, then walked around her.
Neha watched his retreating back as he headed for the terminal’s entrance. He was leaving. He was going to let her go. And he loved her. He would always love her.
It hit her like a ton of bricks. She started to hyperventilate, but unlike the day before it wasn’t from fear of him being a wolf shifter. It was from the thought of what her life would be like without Kiel in it. That she would get on that plane and never see him again. Ever. That scared her more than anything.
Neha called Kiel’s name as she ran after him, her suitcase bumping along behind her. He came to a stop, and once she reached him, she threw herself into him and held him tight.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” she said. “I won’t leave. I can’t do it.”
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