Alpha King’s Wolfless Mate by Scarlett Higgins

Chapter 49: A Heartbreaking Talk

**Nora POV

Jeremy’s soldiers stood around us protectively.

“Where are you hurt?” I asked, putting my hands on Jeremy’s chest.

He said he would be okay, but he hadn’t tried to get up. When he breathed, he wheezed and winced, each breath rough and ragged.

“My side,” Jeremy said.

Lifting Jeremy’s blood soak shirt, my fingers shook when I realized how much blood there was. It was bad! I saw someone had vicious bitten him. Blood oozed from the wound. Jeremy’s face was starting to grow pale.

“I’m sending someone for help,” I told him.

“Nora.” he breathed, grabbing my arm as I tried to stand.

“Just… don’t move,” I said.

I motioned to one of Jeremy’s soldiers. He stepped away from the others and shifted back to human so we could talk.

“Can you go get help? There’s a clinic in the village with medical supplies. Jeremy is badly injured,” I said.

“We can’t leave you unprotected, Jeremy’s orders, he said, shaking his head.

“Helen and her wolves are gone. We’ll be fine. Jeremy needs medical attention,” I whispered, nodding toward him.

I didn’t want Jeremy to hear me talking about how bad his injury was.

A few soldiers broke off and headed back into town. I went back to Jeremy and knelt beside him.

“How are you feeling?”

“I’ll be okay,” he said again.

“Jeremy I… thank you for protecting me,” I said. I grabbed his hand and squeezed it gently.

“I didn’t do a very good job,” he said, coughing. He winced and pressed his free hand to his chest.

“You did great,” I said, trying to keep his morale up.

“I’m alive, aren’t I?”

“You are,” Jeremy muttered, nodding as much as he could without hurting himself.

“I’m sorry I’ve been so cruel to you. I know how much you care about me. Even though I don’t feel the same, I still want us to be friends. I forgive you,” I said softly.

Jeremy sighed and coughed again. “It’s that bad, huh?” he asked.

“No, you’re going to be fine,” I insisted, squeezing his hand again.

“Oh. I wouldn’t bet on that.” Helen’s shrill voice came from between the trees.

My head snapped in her direction.

She was standing at the edge of the treeline and I saw dozens of glowing eyes in the darkness behind her.

Half of Jeremy’s soldiers had gone into town. We were outnumbered before, and now it was even worse!

“Thank you for doing my work for me and shrinking your protective force,” Helen said, smirking. “Now, I can finally finish the job. Everyone, attack!”

Helen’s wolves flooded into the clearing.

Jeremy’s soldiers immediately came around us to defend us. I threw my b*dy over Jeremy, trying to protect him.

“AWOOOO!”

The fight in the clearing screeched to a halt and everyone listened to the new howls in the woods.

“Don’t stop! It is a trick. It is probably just Jeremy’s soldiers returning from the village,” Helen said.

Her wolves snarled and started closing in again.

Just then, a huge swarm of wolves came into the clearing.

Helen screamed and shrieked as they surrounded her and her group of warriors. Quickly, she was pushed back and forced to retreat.

The new wolves circled around the clearing, making a wall between us and Helen.

I could still hear her screaming in frustration as she retreated from the fight.

“Wh-what’s happening?” Jeremy asked.

“It looks like Moonery sent some reinforcements,” I said, patting his hand.

“No. They couldn’t. They didn’t know…”

“Well, well, every time I turn around, you seem to be moving in on my wife.” Blake’s smooth, cool voice entered the clearing.

I froze, a shiver going through me. When I looked up, I saw Blake come into the clearing. His warriors parted automatically for him.

He knelt beside Jeremy, opposite from me, and lifted his shirt, checking the wound. His l*ps curved down in a small frown. It confirmed how bad I thought the injury was.

Blake snapped to some of his warriors. Three of them left the perimeter and shifted back to humans.

“Take him and get him medical care. I want him stabilized.” Blake ordered.

His soldiers nodded and carefully lifted Jeremy.

Jeremy groaned and his b*dy jerked but I could tell how careful Blake’s men were being, handling him like he was as delicate as an infant.

When they left, Jeremy’s soldiers followed to keep an eye on him.

Blake stood up and walked away from me.

Slowly, I got to my feet, my heart racing in my chest, galloping like a horse. My palms were clammy and my knees were wobbly.

I wanted to run to him and hug him. So long, I’d been missing him and wishing I could feel his arms around me. He was just a few paces away, close enough to touch.

I took a step forward and a stick snapped under my shoe.

Blake whipped around, a dark look in his eyes, face stony and serious.

Shoving my hands in my pockets, I looked down. He was mad. He had every right to be mad. I waited for him to unleash his anger, knowing that I deserved it.

Blake sighed heavily and I looked up at him. His clenched fists eased, and even though the veins in his n*eck and arms still popped out like he was ready to explode, he forced a smile.

It was a very strained smile, but he took another deep breath and came toward me.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

He stopped right in front of me. Lifting his arms, he made to reach for me and then stopped. His arms dropped back to his sides.

I got the sense that he didn’t want to touch me because he thought he might hurt me. He was teetering between a massive angry outburst and trying to do the right thing.

I was impressed.

“Um… yeah… I’m fine,” I said, nodding.

This wasn’t like Blake at all.

He sighed again, his arms relaxing a little more.

“Don’t worry about Jeremy. We’ll get him fixed up.” he assured, forcing another strained smile. This one looked a little less tense.

“I’m not worried. I trust vou.” I whispered.

“Nora I…”

I met Blake’s eyes and we were both at a loss for words. His face was drawn, eyes deep and questioning.

“Why do you keep leaving? Is it something I did?” he asked.

His voice was even and professional like he was addressing a pack issue. That probably meant I’d hurt him badly and if he didn’t keep himself cool and detached, he’d show too much emotion.

“No, it was nothing like that,” I said, shaking my head.

My throat tightened and I tried to swallow and couldn’t. I rubbed my hands on my thighs and looked around the clearing. How could I tell Blake why I’d left? Would he understand?

I’d hoped he wouldn’t find me until after the Moon Dance and after he’d had his chance to find his mate.

“You keep running away from me. Is it so horrible to be with me?” he asked.

Blake reached out and brought his hand to my face.

He stopped just short of touching me and let his hand fall again.

“What is it?” he pressed, his jaw tensing.

“It isn’t you. And no, being with you wasn’t horrible I just… it’s complicated,” I said, shrugging. “I really want to check on Jeremy.”

“He’ll be fine,” Blake insisted. “You’ll get to see him soon enough. First, we need to talk.”

“I don’t have anything to say,” I said, shaking my head. I took a step back and bowed my head.

“Nora, don’t shut me out. Not after everything we’ve been through,” Blake said, an edge of desperation in his voice.

My brow creased and I curled my arms around myself. My heart ached, hearing how sad and upset he was. He wasn’t lashing out or making threats. I was trying to stand my ground but how could I when he was being rational?

Blake sighed again, relaxing his posture. “I miss you.” His voice was a soft murmur, almost a whisper.

I wasn’t sure I’d heard him at first and I had to strain my ears.

“It has been lonely without you,” he confessed, keeping his eyes away from me.

I got the feeling he didn’t want me to look into his eves because I’d see his true feelings. Chewing my lower l*p, the armor around my heart cracked. I took a step toward him and timidly placed a hand on Blake’s crossed arms.

“Trust me, I left for your own good,” I assured gently.

Blake sniffed and flicked his eyes at me. They were ablaze with anger and confusion. “Really, my own good?” he asked.

I cringed away from him. Here it was, his temper.

Blake grabbed my upper arm in a vice-like grip.

“You honestly think that what I’ve been going through has been for my own good?”

“Believe me, it is,” I said, keeping my voice calm and soft.