Chapter 7

• Rocking myself on my ass, I pulled at my hair. So, my manipulation not only played a trick on me, it shoved it into my face! My fucking turned wolf mate shifted into a human body, because I told him we were incompatible!
• I let go of my lip that I had been vigorously chewing on, feeling it hurt like crazy, and stared at him. The sun had come out probably an hour ago, while I was still shell-shocked and rocking back and forth. I looked at my mate who was sitting next to me, his right side facing me. He was studying his hands. One, two, three... Damn it! Five fingers on each hand, five fingers on each foot! He was human!
• This was impossible! I couldn't believe it! My brows knitted. Was I dreaming? 'Cuz if I was, I wanted to wake up. I pinched my arm hard and yelped. I started rubbing on it as my mate's eyes turned to me. We locked gazes. His hair was so messy and his brows were thick and arched. But the look on his face was distrustful and anger-filled. He couldn't believe it either? I barked a laugh and Wolf... Human frowned. He straight-out frowned!
• “So... mate, how is this possible?” I reached out and touched his bicep, confirming he was absolutely real. Fuck it. What was I going to do?
• “Mate?” I repeated, hoping to somehow get a clue.
• He turned towards me, showing me his nudity, but my eyes remained on his face. He supported himself on his hands and lifted his left one, reaching for my face.
• I held my breath when his fingertips touched my cheek and for the first time, I felt the sparks of the mate bond. I didn't know why now, when I had touched him before, but here they were, galloping through my whole body and reaching every corner of me.
• “M-mate...” he rasped in a rough, unused voice.
• A turned, soulless beast shifted for me and spoke his first word. I knew I had wished for him to be different, but this was the first time my wish came true and I wasn't sure if I was happy about it. But one thing was certain.
• I had to get him to my Alphas.
• If this was happening to other turned werewolves... My heart thundered, threatening to break my ribcage and Mate felt it. He slid his hand down and put it between my breasts, listening to my racing heartbeat. He tilted his head to the side, making a concerned expression. It was so much easier to read him like this. But this opened the door to so many more dangers. Like him trying to mate and mark me. I squeezed my thighs and pulled my jacket down, hiding my intimate zone. No good.
• ...
• The next hours I spent watching him study his new body and learn how to walk. First on his fours, then on his feet. When he finally managed to stand up, I confirmed how tall his human body was. His human had been a strong man. His body was beautiful and his legs were long and muscular. I avoided the crotch area in horror and clenched my jaw. But in reality, he was such a quick learner. Just in the span of a few days, he was able to pronounce a word, shift into a human, and now even walk. I chuckled. Oh, the miracles the mate bond did.
• When he stumbled into a rock, he fell forward and supported himself on his hands. Mate sat on his haunches and lifted his palms, getting the small pebbles out of them. He glided his fingers on his palm, watching in interest as the flesh healed.
• I swallowed.
• “Mate...”
• He whirled his head to me, his eyes a bit wider.
• “Are you hungry?” I forced a smile and unzipped my jacket.
• He growled at me, his face contorting into something scary. Oh, yeah, he was so easy to read.
• I stood on my feet and dropped the jacket behind me.
• “I'm not going to run away,” I said truthfully. I needed him. “I'm going to get us something to eat and I'll come back, okay?”
• I took my pullover off, a bit worried about exposing my skin to him. Now I had a reason to. After all, he did all this to become compatible. His eyes kept following me in distrust as I took my boots off and then my jeans. His jaw clenched and his nostrils flared as he stared at my naked figure. I gasped and instinctively put my arms over my breasts and squeezed my legs. But this was stupid. I inwardly scoffed at myself. He was an animal and I wasn't going to let myself be controlled by an animal.
• I shifted into my wolf and sprinted out of the cave, searching for food.
• ...
• I had missed a few of my targets. My brain was still reeling over what happened in the cave. I couldn't believe this, I just couldn't. But it was reality and I was going to use it for the good of my people. Holding the two gooses in my mouth, I lifted my head and looked at the skyline. It was starting to get dark.
• During all the way to the cave, my brain kept storming for ideas. I had to devise a plan. As the view of the lake opened up in front of my eyes, my pace slowed down. Wolf was next to the water, pushing his hands into it and splashing some of the liquid in his hair. Was he trying to bathe himself?
• I approached him, and for the first time ever, a smile appeared on his face. My heart skipped a beat and he touched his stretched lips in confusion. Wolves couldn't smile. I chuckled, but the sound came out as a grunt. I pushed his goose in his knees and lay down next to him, eating mine. I couldn't eat raw meat in my human body. I just... couldn't.
• After I was done, much slower than him, even if I was the one with sharp canines at the moment, I stepped into the water and cleaned my muzzle into it. I turned to Wolf and flinched when I saw the blood all over his face and neck. Combined with his amber eyes and similar hair, he could play a monster in a movie without additional make-up.
• Still looking at him, I lowered my head and lifted my paw, pretending to clean it. He watched me for a bit, not missing even a beat of what I was doing, and then did the same. Mate lowered himself to the water and splashed more of it on his face, rubbing the blood off. Good. He really did learn fast.
• ...
• “Mate,” I said in the cave after I put my clothes on.
• He turned to me and I shivered at his naked state. He was still wet from his improvised shower.
• “Aren't you cold?” I blinked innocently, watching his every move.
• Wolf stood up from his place next to the wall and approached me. My muscles locked in visible tension and he noticed. When he knelt next to me, he tilted his head to the side and pursed his lips.
• “M-mate...” he growled out, gesturing with a hand between us.
• I clenched my jaw but froze when he put his arm behind my head and snuggled his head into my neck. It was a gesture of affection and flirting. My guts knotted and I held my breath. He didn't smell bad anymore, the bath had helped and his skin was much cleaner than his furry state.
• “Y-you need clothes,” I stuttered and anger blazed through me by the uncertainty and fear in my voice.
• He pulled back and studied me. After a moment of staring at each other's eyes, he shuffled closer and snuggled into me again. I lifted my shaking hands and put them on his skin, weirded out. He felt so human. But he wasn't.
• “You're cold. Your human body is not as resilient as your wolf body. You need clothes.”
• He pulled back and stared at me.
• “Clothes,” I repeated and pulled at my sleeve.
• He followed the gesture.
• “Clothes.” I touched his scarred chest and his lips parted, his head lowering to track my hand on him. His heart sped up. I could feel it through his flesh.
• “Mate.” Nodding, I firmly placed my hand on him and pushed lightly. I moved it to me. “Mate. Casey.”
• My name made him frown and he made a sound of discomfort and annoyance.
• “Casey,” I repeated. Did he want to say my name?
• “Clothes.” I tugged at my pullover again and he removed my hand from it, trying to undress me.
• “No!” I gasped in horror and pushed him away. “Cold, mate!” I raised my voice and he growled.
• “No mating! Wait!” My eyes turned hard, but then I held back and fixed my pullover. “I want you to come to my pack! I need you to join it. I'm loyal to my pack and having my mate with me there would make me the happiest werewolf in the world! Then, after we're officially together, we'd be able to mate and mark each other!” I exclaimed, making an overly exaggerated happy face.
• He gaped at me and the first big smile I had given him. But I had no reason to smile. I had lost a dear friend and the man I was in love with. So this was something I didn't think I would do soon.
• Mate's lips twisted up in a huge grin and it was my turn to gawk at him. He had a small dimple on his left cheek and his expression was so human-like that I lost my words for a moment.
• Was there really nothing left of the human he had been before? This creature had spent two years living here in the wilderness like an animal, but now that he had shifted back to his original body... could there be a person inside it somewhere? Was it even possible?
• No, it didn't seem so. He didn't even know what clothes were.
• We lay on the ground to sleep and Wolf, still in his human body, snuggled closer to me, warming my back and legs. When his arm draped over me and touched my face, I jumped and twisted to him. He raised his brows, his eyes set on me, and I grabbed my bag. I had no more jackets, and I doubted if I even had, they'd fit him, but I found my big wool scarf. I took it out and looked at him.
• “Sit up,” I ordered and motioned with my fingers.
• After a moment, he lifted himself up and I smirked at the idea that popped in my head.
• “Clothes. Scarf.” I showed it to his face and took its both ends, lifting it over his head and putting it on his shoulders.
• Wolf gasped and grabbed its ends, the scarf's warmth immediately reaching his skin. His fingers touched mine and I tried to pull them away, but he held on me and leaned closer.
• “Mate...” he breathed out with slightly shining eyes and I pursed my lips.
• “Casey, mate. My name is Casey.”
• His brow shot up and his lips pulled into a smirk. Did he even realize all the faces he was making? This was making me uncomfortable.
• “Casey...” he repeated so smoothly, I gasped.