Tangled

Unshift 152

Unshift 152

152 Lucas: A Lesson in Patience

LUCAS

My mate has the guiltiest look on her face, looking everywhere but

at me.

On the one hand: It's good to know that she's a terrible liar, once caught.

But it takes every ounce of control within me to not rage at the danger she somehow placed herself in.

I don't understand any of this, but I'm determined I will before I leave the apartment.

Keeping my mouth shut is a lesson in patience, but it works. Ava slowly drips more information my way. It's a struggle to keep the smile on my face even as my molars grind together in frustration. And I remind Even when her life is on the line, and every molecule in my body is screaming to protect her.

The words come at an agonizing trickle from Ava's lips, spilling secrets I struggle to comprehend. The vampire attack. Sister Miriam's concern. Fae food-not that we understand much about it - that compels honesty. Bizarre magic that spirited her out of this room and into another place, from right beneath my nose.

Each revelation twists my gut, stoking the embers of my barely restrained fury.

152 Les ALOGOHLENationco

"Why would a vampire help a wolf?" The question escapes before I can temper it, my voice rough with the effort of control.

Ava blinks, confusion clouding her features as she evades my gaze once again. "I don't know."

"You didn't think to ask?" I press, the wolf within me prowling, eager to break free and demand answers.

She fidgets, twisting her hands in her lap. "I'm pretty sure I did? But Sister Miriam was evasive. She didn't give me a straight

answer."

you can just waltz into danger blindly? My molars grind together, my

snarls in the recesses of my mind, seething at the risks

smile. Encourage her to continue. Because as much as I want to roar my frustration, I know it will only push her away. And right now, I need her to trust me. To confide in So I listen, even as every instinct screams to spirit her away to safety. To lock her

tension slowly drains from her shoulders as she speaks, her body relaxing inch by painstaking inch when

ounce of discipline honed over years of leadership. But I maintain the

A Lesson

the terror, lies something

Love.

I can sense her meeting me halfway.

me without hesitation.

not going to ruin this

waited for so fucking

my veins, fierce and unrelenting. It tempers my fury, softens my edges. It whispers in my

protect.

from her

meet her tentative gaze with a steadiness I don't feel, offering silent support as

when she admits to truths that

fact that Selene isn't just a dog, but her

Mine. My wolf whispers in my head, and I finally understand his obsession with that damned husky. He's not mated to a dog. He's mated to a

of our body. We share mind, soul, and body.

Ava is extraordinary in every way,

00

Lucas. A Lesson

never once berating her for her silence-for her fears-she seems to finally, finally, let her guard down. Her voice is raspy from talking and overuse, so I give her

sliding her hand into mine, and my

Lucas. It's a mess,

Yeah, it fucking is.

her hand gently. "We'll

mean to dump it

I pour her a glass of water, and she hovers beside

read, now that her