Chapter 4

• On the next morning, the first thing Helena did was to check Keiran's room. When nobody answered from the inside, and she took a peek, her face paled.
• He wasn't there.
• She gasped and dashed to the kitchen. Where was he? Had he run out again? What if someone saw him? Her heart drummed in her chest in dread and worry as she jumped down the stairs. She hoped her imagination was worse than reality because since last night, it had started showing her unimaginable and disastrous things. And each one of them broke her heart.
• Slamming the kitchen door open, Helena was flooded with relief when she saw Keiran and Shawn sitting at the table, casually talking to each other.
• “Good morning!” Shawn greeted her. His gray eyes were pleased and excited. He was much calmer than last night while they were fixing the fridge. Not that he had said anything, but his pursed lips were proof of what he was thinking.
• Keiran also smiled, and this put some of the tension in Helena to rest. He was fine with her Beta, they were even having breakfast together.
• “We are going to the mall today!” Shawn cheered and ruffled his sandy blond hair.
• “Oh, I was going to propose the same thing,” Helena said, feeling like she had to catch up and had missed out on spending time with her mate. “After the mall, we're going to buy some meat too.”
• “Lots of meat.” Keiran nodded playfully, but then his expression changed and became dark. “I'm sorry I broke the freezer yesterday!”
• “Don't worry!” Helena sat in front of him. “It's still working for now. But just in case, let's add a new fridge to the list of shopping tasks today!”
• “Great! In the meanwhile, I can take this one here and move it to my kitchenette in my part of the house!” Shawn proposed with an excited glint in his eyes.
• Helena huffed and gave him a teasing look. She was certain he wanted to store tons and tons of beer and sausages. He was a person who loved midnight snacks and watching sports games on the TV.
• “No, let me get you a new one.” Keiran caught Helena and Shawn's attention, and they gaped at him. Although his voice was strong and confident, guilt was swimming in his eyes. Helena noticed the way his hands were fisted over the table.
• A moment of silence passed as she and her Beta studied her mate. They both kept their calm on the outside, but she knew Shawn was going through the same emotions as her. Surprise and satisfaction. This was a very kind gesture on Keiran's behalf.
• “Keiran, don't worry about it,” Shawn said, his pride not remaining hidden in his voice. “I've had my eyes on this fridge for a while now, and I don't want to let this opportunity slip from my hands. I almost broke the door while I carried it here on the day Helena bought it. Her face was hilarious.”
• Helena growled at him, signaling for him to shut up, but he wiggled his eyebrows and grinned.
• "I even have a photo. Do you want to see it?"
• Keiran chuckled and glanced at his mate. "I think that would make her uncomfortable. She looks like she wants to kill you."
• "If she looks like that now,"—Shawn pointed at her—"you should've seen her back then."
• "Shawn!" Helena barked and felt a vein tick on her forehead.
• Keiran laughed and shook his head. "No, it's my fault the fridge is like that. I wouldn't feel comfortable if I let you use it. We don't know how much life it still has left."  He straightened his back, and waves of authority oozed from every part of his existence.
• Helena's lips tugged up. His attitude caressed her confidence and pride. He looked like a fair person, and if he showed this kind of care for Shawn when he didn't even know him... She had the keen sense he was a good person. Her heart quickened, and hope bloomed in her, just like something new was starting in her life. And perhaps it was. Her mate looked so mature and confident, just the way a leader should be.
• Keiran's gaze turned to her for her confirmation and approval. He was yet to get some money of his own. He didn't have any documents or debit cards. But now that he was finally with his mate and she was the one taking care of a whole pack, he was going to share the duty and the money Helena had as an Alpha. They were both going to share the burden and the benefits.
• And it looked like he was willing to step into that role immediately.
• ...
• Even with clothes sizes too big on him, Keiran still gathered the girls' attention at the mall. But still, all his attention was focused on Helena. She couldn't believe the bolts of tension that had pulsed through her when Shawn got an important call and disappeared somewhere. Everything was going well.
• Browsing through the end of the ladies' zone, she glanced at her mate. He was holding a few sets of clothes he had chosen and was checking out a white shirt. A young girl who looked to be around his age approached him.
• Helena froze, and her hearing grew bold and clear in expectation. She couldn't deny she wanted to get to know him better, and that included testing where his loyalty stood. Lycans loved having fun and thoroughly enjoyed the carnal pleasures. It was easy to say, they could be shameless cheaters if they decided to.
• Keiran's expression hardened when he turned to the teenager. He glanced at the item she was trying to give him (which was probably her phone number) and shook his head.
• “I'm here with my fiancee,” he said, and both Helena and the girl gawked at him.
• The innocent human apologized and ran away, and Helena blushed. A fiancee... This was a huge step. They were not officially dating, but finding your mate and accepting him almost equaled that. Not that they had officially done that, either. But to say they were even engaged... Keiran was a whole other thing. He definitely knew how to reject invitations he did not desire. Her heart was speeding up in a fit of panic and trepidation.
• He was going too fast.
• Keiran turned around and approached her.
• “What do you think about this one?” He lifted the shirt he was examining a minute ago and smiled.
• Noticing her dazed expression, he smirked and grabbed her hand. He led her to the fitting rooms and entered one, with her waiting outside for him. Helena shuffled on her feet, unable to believe what was happening. Just two days ago, she'd thought she would never find him and was scared for her future, and now... he claimed they were engaged. Her thoughts slammed to every corner of her conscience, struggling to form something coherent. But all she heart was 'fiancee, fiancee'.
• When Keiran opened the fitting room, showing himself, Helena lifted her eyes to him and lost her words. The dark jeans he had put on stood perfectly on his long, muscular legs, and the red-black shirt defined his lean body in all the necessary places. She realized she was staring and tried to get a hold of herself. She smiled approvingly and gave him a small nod. He was gorgeous. How could he be so gorgeous? She swallowed. By the time she got a hold of herself, Keiran had already left the fitting room and was reaching for her waist, pulling her back inside with him.
• He shut the door and leaned into her, just a breath away. He inhaled her scent and opened his shining eyes.
• “I had to hide you here, your drool was sliding down your chin,” he teased with a sly smile.
• Helena squeaked, and her heart jumped to her throat. Just a few hours with him, and she was already going crazy. If he continued doing this, she didn't know if she would last a week more.
• “U-um, I can't be here with you. You need to try clothes on, not distract yourself with me,” she stammered, feeling herself get hot.
• Keiran smiled again and pecked her on the lips.
• “I'm going to try them on with you here. It's going to be much more fun this way.”
• She gasped, and her cheeks set on fire. He was unpredictable, and no matter how nice or attractive he was, he was going too fast. They needed boundaries. Yes, they were mated by the laws of nature and maybe fate, but it didn't mean they were dating.
• They had to talk.
• She exited the fitting room and brushed her hands through her hair, taking a deep breath. His scent was still all around her, rooting for her madness to kick in. It seemed that they walked hand in hand, and she was defenseless against them.
• ...
• After their shopping spree, Helena led her mate to the food floor, and they noticed her Beta. He was talking to three human girls at one of the tables, and he seemed quite intimate with one of them.
• “Is this his important job?” Keiran asked with a frown and squinted.
• “It seems so.” Helena shrugged. It wasn't the first time she caught Shawn flirting with some humans.
• “Doesn't he have a mate? He doesn't smell like there is any close female shifter to him besides you,” he commented with a distant look in his eyes.
• “He hasn't found her yet.” Helena forced a smile, sensing the tension in him. Why was this subject making him so uncomfortable?
• “And he's not going to wait for her?” Keiran arched his brows and returned his green eyes to her.
• She bristled. “He's not sure if he's ever going to find her. We all go through this fear, but I guess he has gotten tired of waiting for something that might not happen at all. He recently turned twenty-five.”
• He narrowed his eyes and pulled his lips in a thin line.
• “So, you would've done the same if I hadn't shown up?” he gritted out.
• “No.” She jerked her chin up, and confidence blasted through her. This was one of the things she was most certain about in her life. She would've waited for him for her whole life. “But I'm a different person, and I can't judge him. Shawn can make his own decisions. He needs to release his stress, he needs company, and well... contact. Shawn respects our traditions and especially the mating one, but he's still just a person and feels lonely. His wolf side is going crazy without his mate, and I don't know how much longer he'd be able to bear it. We, as werewolves, live in packs and need our other halves. Even if most of my generation is trying to disprove this and get rid of the idea of mates. The thought that his own mate could be one of them discourages him even more. Maybe she's seen him before, but she never told him. Maybe she's dead or sick...”
• Keiran's expression changed into a grim painting of pain and misery. Shadows passed over his face, dancing around him like they were a part of his soul.
• “I understand his need for her. It's hard to contain your instinct and bear it all alone when all you need is one particular person. The only person who can give you peace and completion.”
• Helena stared at him, and confusion and sadness hit her like heavy bricks, but he grabbed her hand and led her out of the mall. His hunger was all forgotten.