Filed to story: Tangled in Moonlight Unshifted Novel by Lenaleia
Showing mild irritation, Lucas grabs her by the scuff and yanks her away. To my surprise, Selene merely slinks low in submission as her cars tilt in my direction, blue eyes hard and suspicious. What’s that scent?
Slapping my hand over the new mate mark, right next to my crescent scar, I ask defensively, “What scent?”
Lucas sniffs at me. “You smell fine to me.”
There’s something new, she insists, pawing at my leg. What is it? What did you get into?
“I didn’t get into-
The string near my magic tugs, and I pause. “Oh. Maybe it’s that.”
“What?” Lucas nuzzles into my neck, brushing his lips against the raw skin of my mate mark. “Is something wrong?
“No. Selene can just sense something I almost forgot about. Sorry, Grimoire. “Actually, I-“
The string yanks again, almost painful in its insistence, and I pause. This isn’t a safe place to mention him. “I’ll tell you both later.” Where it’s safe, I add silently to Selene, wishing Lucas could hear me. Wait. Shouldn’t he be able to…?
“When?” he asks, answering my question. I guess he can’t hear me. I’ll have to ask Vanessa. Is it because I haven’t been brought into the pack?
“When you’re discharged home.” I pause. “To the place I’m staying, I guess. Is there another place you’d go? Do you know?”
He shakes his head.
“Okay. Then when they discharge you and I bring you home.”
You can tell me now, Selene points out..
Later. Let me focus on Lucas first.
She whines and rubs her head against his knee.
He seems to understand, because his hand squeezes mine and he changes the subject. “The should be home soon.”
The way he stresses the word home has my stomach flipflopping. We’ve shared a sleeping space before, but we haven’t necessarily cohabitated.
Though, there’s Lisaso I guess it isn’t exactly the same. Especially with one bedroom. But still.
“The sooner the better,” I agree. “I don’t like being apart. Most of our time as mates has been spent away from each other. It’s high time that ends.
I have a semiteacher now in the form of Grimoire. My magic seems stableish. We’re all in hiding due to the newfound apocalypse. As dire and terrible as it is, maybe it’ll finally afford us both a little time to deepen our bond with each other.
Silver linings and storm clouds, I guess.
Lucas’s arms wrap around me, pulling me close as I melt into his embrace. The warmth of his body and the steady thrum of his heartbeat bring me that clusive peace, strengthening our connection.
Oddly, I feel none of the frenetic desire of my last heat, content to just nuzzle into Lucas’ arms like this without needing more.
The mark helps.
Right. That would make sense. Lucas’ body seems to have lost its feverish temperature as well.
A low whine breaks the silence, followed by the insistent press of fur against my leg. I crack open. an eye to see Selene trying to wedge herself between us, her tail wagging with hopeful enthusiasm.
“Really?” I mutter, shifting to accommodate her bulk. “It’s just like having a real dog.”
Selene’s ears flatten against her head, and I feel a wave of indignation through our bond. I am not some common canine, she huffs, her mental voice dripping with disdain.
Lucas chuckles, the sound rumbling through his chest, vibrating against my head. His hand. reaches down to scratch behind Selene’s ears, and her eyes close in bliss despite her attempts to maintain her aloof demeanor.
“Don’t be too hard on her, Lucas murmurs, his voice soft and tinged with affection. “Selene’s the only reason I’ve stayed sane in this room.”
The admission sends a rush of warmth through me, and I feel Selene’s joy and pride surge through our connection. Still, she maintains her air of nonchalance, as if Lucas’s words mean nothing to her. But I know better. I can feel the depth of her emotions, the way his acknowledgment soothes an old wound.
I run my fingers through Selene’s fur, marveling at the complexity of our situation. My wolf, my mate, and meall tangled together. Only his wolf is missing.
He’s howling in my head about it.
I bet.
“I’m glad you had each other, I say softly, meaning every word. The thought of Lucas alone in thir atsella aff from kia mamarlan and his manki malina mui haart saha Phande uma five taking care of him, Selene.”
She huffs again, but I feel her pleasure at the recognition. Someone had to look after him, she replies, her mental tone softening. He’s important to us both.
A chuckle breaks out at her words. As if she would have ever admitted such a thing just weeks. ago.
A knock sounds at the door.
Selene’s ears perk. It’s our healer.
“Come in, I call out.
Vanessa enters, no longer looking tense and harried as her eyes touch on my neck before meeting my gaze. “Looks like you two made the best of your time together.
Heat rushes to my cheeks, but I nod as regally as I can manage. How are you supposed to act when people walk in knowing what you did? The smell is probably still in the air. On our skin. Everywhere.
God, I hope she can’t smell all of it.
And whoever was out there probably heard…
God. This is horrifying.
I meanno, she doesn’t know the details. But anyone can take a look at the mark on my neck and know what we were doing in here.
Whose idea was it to have sex in a hospital?
Terrible idea.
I was not made for this kind of public scrutiny.
Lucas doesn’t seem affected by this situation at all, merely nodding at Vanessa, his posture aloof and guarded.
I’m taken aback by the sudden tension radiating from him. This is Vanessa. Why would he react so defensively in her presence? Even if he doesn’t have any memories with her, he should have been told she’s one of his people.
He doesn’t remember her, Ava, Selene’s voice echoes in my mind. To Lucas, everyone here is a strangereven those who were once his closest friends and allies. Even his mate. Can he trust someone simply because they say he can?
Shit, I hadn’t really thought much about that. I was so focused on me, on him not recognizing me, that I didn’t think how it must have been for him with everyone.
How could I have forgotten, even for a moment? Lucas has lost everythinghis memories, his sense of self, even his wolf. And here he is, surrounded by unfamiliar faces, hearing whispers of betrayals by his own pack.
The pack he can’t remember. Can’t hear.
My heart aches. How terrifying and isolating it must be, to wake up in a place you don’t recognize, with people claiming to know you, to care for you, when you can’t remember a single thing. The vulnerability, the constant state of warinessit must have been exhausting.
I glance at Lucas, really seeing him now. The slight furrow between his brows, the tightness around his eyes, the way his muscles are coiled. He holds tension in every fiber of his body, carrying this burden alone, while I’ve been too caught up in my own emotions to understand what he’s going through
No wonder he didn’t react well to me coming around and telling him all about how we’re mates. It’s just noise at that point, isn’t it?
I reach out, gently tapping his arm to get his attention. When he turns those intense golden eyes: on me, I lean in close, my lips nearly brushing his ear as I whisper, “Vanessa can be trusted. I trust her with my life.”
I feel the change in him almost immediately. The tension in his muscles cases, just a fraction, but it’s there. He doesn’t relax completelyI doubt he’s capable of that right nowbut there’s a subtle shift in his demeanor.
Vanessa’s eyes widen slightly, and I know she’s sensed the change too. Her gaze flicks between
US.
“How are you feeling, Lucas?” Vanessa asks, her voice gentle and professional. “Any lingering pain or discomfort?”
Lucas shakes his head. “No pain. Fever’s gone. His voice is gruff, but not cold.
She glances toward me. “The fever came from the proximity to your mate’s heat. Now that the mating mark has been applied, it shouldn’t be quite so extreme. We did evacuate all unmated males once we realized her heat was approaching…”
Evacuate. Wow. It makes me sound like a natural disaster.