Caine

Macon woke me up at six in the morning sharp. I was surprised to hear a knock on my door so early. Since it was still too early for me, my senses weren’t exactly sharp. I simply assumed it was Adam or Liam bothering. I blinked a few times after I saw Macon standing right outside my door, with a smirk on his face.

“You’re up, good. We have a lot to do today,” he said.

“Macon…” I croak out, rubbing my eyes, which were begging me to close them.

“The Alpha gave strict orders about starting our day early,” Macon said, still looking too happy for my taste.

“It’s six in the morning. I’m sleeping.”

“I see you awake.”

He swerved out of the way when I tried to punch him in the face for being too chirpy so early.

“Caine’s coming home today.”

It was Macon’s turn to be surprised. It seemed like Caine had forgotten to tell other people that his trip had been cut short and he was returning home.

“How do you know?”

“He called me last night. Tristan and Derek apparently tried to give him a crap deal, so Caine decided to come home.”

“When?”

“When what?”

“When is he coming home? I was not joking when I mentioned all the work we have to do. I gave my word to Caine that it would all be done by the time he-”

Before Macon finished his sentence, I swung the door shut.

“I’ll see you at a decent hour!” I yelled.

I broke out laughing when Macon called me lazy, and a few other colorful words.

“You’re getting to comfortable, boy!”

I felt guilty when Macon apologized through our mind link. I had to remind myself that even though Macon and I spent a lot of time together, he still didn’t know when I was messing around.

“Caine’s coming back today,” I told Liam after he walked into the living room.

It was only ten in the morning, but I had been up for hours. Ever since Macon had woken me up, I hadn’t been able to go to sleep.

I figured that while I was awake, I might as well be productive. I called Leila. It had been around eight in the morning. I should’ve known that much like myself, other people also liked sleeping in. The phone rang three times, before Alpha Dylan answered.

To say that the pleasantries shared between us were awkward, was putting it mild. I cracked a joke about something, and I could feel Alpha Dylan wanting to reach through the phone to strangle me. Thankfully, he only asked, ‘Did you need anything else?’ His question and harsh tone would have made me cower away—that was before my Wolf came along. I growled at him, he growled louder and with more power at me, and I wasn’t sure when it was that we started yelling at each other.

We managed to wake up Leila, who took the phone away from him. After that, our talk was pleasant. Leila was nice enough to apologize for his mate. ‘He gets grumpy sometimes,’ she’d said. In the background, I heard Alpha Dylan yelling that he wasn’t sorry for anything he’d said. The phrase, ‘Alpha’s don’t apologize’ was thrown out, and that made me roll my eyes.

I didn’t care much for what happened with Alpha Dylan. Leila had felt really bad about how he had behaved, and I might’ve exaggerated how bad and scared he made me feel. When I asked her if Liam could take a longer break in our pack, Leila quickly agreed.

By the time Liam strolled into the room, I was energized and full of smiles.

“So soon?” Liam asked, running his hands through his hair, which was sticking up all over the place. He looked better. His hazel eyes were looking nice and bright.

“Did you sleep well? It looks like you did.”

“I can’t remember the last time I slept in.”

“I knew you weren’t sleeping well!”

“I’ve been taking the night and morning shifts at Midnight Moon, not that it’s helped all that much,” he said, frowning. He took a seat beside me on the floor. He was still wearing the shorts he’d been sleeping in, and he’d put on a t-shirt.

“I should call Leila,” Liam said. Instead of getting up, he rested his head back.

“No need to do that. I called her this morning. She said you can stay here for a few more days, weeks even. They don’t mind!” I sounded excited as I spoke, so it took me a while to notice that Liam wasn’t celebrating with me.

“Why did you call her?” His dark tone made it seem like if I’d done something horrible.

I narrowed my eyes at him when he pulled himself away from me, and got up from the floor. I tried to catch his hand before he got up, but he snatched it away from me.

“I didn’t ask you to intervene, Charlie.”

“I know you didn’t, but you need to take a break. You’ve been overworking yourself, and it’s obviously taking a toll on you. I can’t imagine what it’s doing to your Wolf!”

I got up, but it was mainly to try to be a match to him. It wasn’t exactly helpful. Even while we were both standing up, Liam was a whole lot taller than me.

“So you’re an expert on my Wolf?” he practically growled at me.

“I know you, Liam. But even if I didn’t, it doesn’t take a genius to see that you’re pushing yourself too hard. Leila told me you’ve been sleeping three or four hours a day, and that’s if you even go to sleep at all. You think that’s healthy? Who exactly are you going to be helping if Wolves attack and you’re falling asleep, or too weak to fight?”

I was trying to make him see where I was going. Instead, I only made him angry.

“You’ve had your Wolf for what— a few weeks? And you think you can teach me how to control myself? Look at who you’re talking to, Charlotte. Even with a blindfold I could beat your ass.” The quiet, solemn tone he’d spoken in made a shiver run through my body. It was safe to say he’d shaken both my Wolf and I up.

Before I even got a word out, he stalked out of the room. I heard the clothes shredding to pieces, and the long howl after he’d shifted into his Wolf.

I slumped myself on the floor, and closed my eyes. The only thing I could do was warn everybody that Liam was out, he was angry, and they needed to stay out of his way.

Caine arrived late in the afternoon. Liam hadn’t returned. Adam had gone to check the apartment to see if Liam was there. He wasn’t, but when Adam arrived, things were moved. We both assumed Liam had gone in to grab some things.

I was really hoping that Liam would stick around, and he wouldn’t go back to Midnight Moon. I didn’t want him to leave, especially if he was mad at me.

“Macon told me what happened with Liam,” Caine said, coming over to me.

I’d been holed up in the game room, watching mindless TV while Caine returned. Adam had taken off with some of the Rogues from the gang. He was worried about Liam. I was worried, but I knew he would be okay. Liam was pissed off, at me, which only made it worse. He needed time to cool off.

“There’s nothing I can do about it,” I shrugged.

Caine picked me up in his arms, sat on the circular couch I was in, and placed me on his lap.

“Can I ask you a question, and you promise you’ll be honest with me without being completely biased?”

I laughed at the look on Caine’s face. He wasn’t necessarily frowning, but he looked confused. I could count with my fingers the times I’d seen Caine looked confused, because it happened so very rarely. The look didn’t suit him.

“Is this a test?” he asked, unsurely.

“No, and it also has nothing to do with you and me. I mean, not you and me, exactly. It’s more to do with the pack, and stuff… but not really our pack. More like-” I could’ve kept going with my explanations, but Caine pressed his index and middle finger over my lips and nodded at me.

“You can ask your question. I’m curious now.”

“Who do you think is stronger— Alpha Dylan or Alpha Layton? Don’t pick Alpha Dylan just because he’s your friend,” I warned, looking at him pointedly.

Caine smiled, but after a few seconds he looked thoughtful. “I haven’t seen Layton fight. I imagine that once we got to war, they’ll be taking on each other. I’m confident in Dylan’s Wolf. Layton, however” Caine said, shaking his head, “is still a pup. I’m not saying he’s not strong. He’s an Alpha. I would have to see him fight.”

His words did little to reassure me. I wanted to know if Liam had any reason to be worried about a possible fight breaking out between Alpha Dylan and Alpha Layton. So far, it seemed like Alpha Layton was winning. Yes, he had lost Wolves. But he’d been playing it smarter, and that was bad for our side.

Caine sat with me for about an hour. He never complained, but I always felt like he hated watching TV. He considered a lot of things a waste of time. His attention was on me the whole time we were there. His hands were running over my thighs, my waist, or he was playing with my breasts.

“You’re acting like a little kid,” I told him, slapping his hand away.

I turned to find him smiling at me. “Maybe I should have let you come with me to Knight Pack. The hotel we stayed in was nice. The bed was big.” He bit my shoulder. I was wearing a t-shirt, and when he bit down, his teeth broke through the fabric.

“That’s not even funny,” I said, but I laughed.

“I wasn’t trying to be funny.” He slowly began running the tip of his fingers from my shoulders, down to my arm, his touch nothing more than a light caress.

“You’re never trying to be funny. It makes me wonder what kind of childhood you had.” I tried pulling away from him, but when I did, he tightly gripped both of my wrists in his hands.

“I never had any reason to be happy, not until I found you,” he said.

I leaned against him, and kissed his jaw. Caine interlaced one of his hands with mine, and wrapped his other arm around my waist, keeping me pressed to him.

“I’m watching TV,” I told him, but I allowed him to pepper kisses on the nape of my neck. “You’re not getting any, just so you know. I’m not exactly happy with you.”

Caine broke out laughing. I turned to glare at him, and that only made him laugh harder.

“You’re so happy, it’s making me think that you liked being away from me,” I grumbled, turning back to the TV, although I was hardly paying any attention to it.

“I’m here with you. Of course I’m happy,” he said, nuzzling his nose against my shoulder.

He was tugging the sleeve of my shirt down to kiss my skin. It was hard to think when he was kissing me, or running his hands over me.

“You’re so manipulative.” I was going to slap his chest, but once I touched him, all I wanted to do was run my hands all over him. Caine didn’t complain. He encouraged me by pushing me away for a second so that he could remove his shirt.

“I need you,” he growled, sinking his teeth into my marked neck, where his claim rested. The pain was faint, but it was still there, making a shiver run through my body. Either way, it felt good to have him touching me.

After Caine and I mated, we stayed lazing around in the TV room. We ended up in the floor because Caine was too big for the couch, and he kept moving me and turning me.

I always noticed the difference in our heights, but when we mated—it was just so obvious to me. I felt small in his arms. He was easily able to push me on my stomach or lay down over me.

Sometimes, just after he was done, but he wasn’t ready to let me go, he would lay down over me—all of his weight on my body. He was a lot bigger than me, but having my Wolf made my body stronger. It wasn’t gentle, but it felt so intimate… it usually left me craving more. We were so close, and it was hard to think about anything else, but how hot our bodies felt and how well our bodies complimented each other.

“We should eat, I’m starving,” I told him, lightly pushing his chest and shoving him away.

He tried to hold me down by wrapping an arm around my waist, so I took a hold of it and kissed his knuckles.

“Come on, get up.” I stood up from the ground, and pulled on his hand.

“I don’t feel like getting up just yet,” Caine smoothly said, trying to get me back on the ground.

“Come on, I’m starving. I’ll make something nice for you,” I offered.

“Charlotte…” Caine said— a lazy smile on his lips. “You aren’t the best cook.”

“Are you purposely trying to make me mad, or do you want to become celibate for the rest of your life?” I asked, crossing my arms.

“It’s hard to take you seriously when you’re doing that… while wearing no clothes,” Caine said, nodding towards my arms.

The warmth I felt stretched everywhere over my body. I couldn’t see my face, but even my arms… and my breasts were looking a pinkish color.

“Oh, shut up!” I snapped, but still picked up his shirt from the ground.

Thanks to Caine, my clothes were ruined. I didn’t wait for him to get up from the ground. He was too busy chuckling at my reaction to his comment. I took off upstairs. In case Liam or Adam arrived, I didn’t want them to find me half naked and with the smell of sex on me.

While I was in the shower, I heard Caine walking into the room. He was either confident or shameless—probably both. When he stepped into the bathroom, he was still naked. He’d walked from downstairs, all the way to our room, fully naked. He was leaning his shoulder against a wall in the bathroom, with his arms crossed—making his muscles and chest appear more pronounced—just staring at me while I showered.

“Some privacy would be nice,” I told him, rolling my eyes.

I knew he would be able to see me. The shower curtain was clear and he’d been roaming his eyes over my body. The hunger I saw burning there, amazed me, considering we’d just finished mating.

“Why? I’ve seen, touched and tasted every part of your body,” he said, his voice quiet but husky.

“Always so blunt,” I told him, turning away from him to face the wall in an attempt to hide my blush. When it came to our intimacy, there wasn’t anything Caine didn’t want to do or try out. He enjoyed touching me. He didn’t get embarrassed, and sometimes it annoyed him when I tried to hide myself.

When I had just shifted, I wanted to mate all the time. The feeling was still there, but I felt myself slowly regaining control of my lust for him. It didn’t mean that I didn’t get self-conscious when he was touching me or looking at me while I was naked. Sometimes, that was all he wanted to do. He didn’t mind just staring at me while I was undressed.

“Come here,” he said.

I turned back to him, and shook my head. “No, I’m sore.” I tried to use a playful tone. I didn’t want for him to think that I didn’t want him. I did, but I also felt slightly embarrassed with the way he kept looking at me, like if I was the most desirable girl he’d ever seen.

Caine grunted, and finally walked out of the room.

“Very romantic of you to walk away!” I yelled as he closed the door, knowing he’d hear me.

When I came out of the shower, I found Caine slipping into some slacks. There was a black polo shirt on the bed, and he’d also taken out a pair of socks.

“Where are you going?” I asked, frowning at him while he finished getting ready.

“You’re hungry. If we stay here, I’m going to keep touching you. We’re dining out.”

“We are?”

“It would be nice if you wore a dress,” he said, quietly. Timid didn’t really suit him, but that’s how he looked after he suggested the dress.

“A dress,” I sighed, thinking over his words, while keeping my eyes on him.

He started doing the buttons on his polo, and then distracted himself by putting on a belt. I could tell it was bothering him that I was still looking his way.

“A dress,” I repeated.

“You don’t have to if you don’t want to. I just thought we could go to a nice place.”

“But you won’t mind if I wear jeans?” I asked, holding on tighter to the towel I was wrapped in.

“You know I won’t,” he sighed.

“Alright, I’ll find a dress.”

It was nice to please him in something. He never complained about what I wore, and I didn’t exactly dress like a fashion model. Most of the time, I was wearing jeans or shorts, and a t-shirt or tank top. Even when Alpha Dylan visited, I’d been completely underdressed, especially compared to Leila. I couldn’t understand why she loved wearing dresses. I found them uncomfortable most of the time.

Caine left to his study while I finished getting ready. He wanted to talk to Victor about something, and Macon had been trying to reach him.

I continued getting ready. Considering how controlling Caine was at times, he never really talked about my decisions when it came to clothes or mentioned the fact that I rarely dressed up.

I wanted to look nice for him. Because of that, it took me a while to get ready. I had to blow dry my hair, and then straighten it. I’d made a disaster of my hair after I blow dried it, and it ended up looking like a puffy mess. Some chemicals and a few passes with the straightener, and I got it to calm down. By the time I put a headband in my hair, it was nice and tame.

I put on a pair of studs in my ear. When I finally slipped on a simple knee length white dress, and some flats, I had Caine downstairs asking and asking when I’d be done getting ready.

“Do you like it?” I asked Caine, while I looked down at my dress, smoothing it over.

“Perfect,” Caine said. Even though he stretched his hand for me to take, he slid it around my waist and pressed me to his side. “You look beautiful, Charlotte.”

He guided me into his car, one of the black ones he rarely used. Since I’d been in Locus Pack, I had seen him use it twice, and one of those times was the day before, when he’d driven it to Knight Pack.

It was a black sports car, fancy, and expensive looking—just like the rest of the cars that he owned.

“So, is the pack out of lockdown, or do we get the privilege to leave the territory because we’re Alphas?” I asked, smiling.

“We’re not on lockdown. Derek stayed in his pack. I still have two trackers making sure that he doesn’t get anywhere near pack boundaries,” Caine said, starting up the car.

Caine and I had gone on dates in the past—two or three to be accurate. It was strange every single time. We had fun. Caine was both relaxed and upset while we went out each of those times. Humans didn’t worry him. But he wasn’t a fan of the attention we attracted every time we were around them.

The woods had restricted access reserved for pack members. That didn’t mean that humans didn’t get curious and tried to go in. Several of them had already seen Wolves, or preached about Wolf attacks in the woods. It was the main reason the humans stayed away.

Every once in a while, there was one or a few that refused to believe Wolves were running around, and they tried to prove it by crossing into Locus Territory. It was a pain in the ass for the Wolves doing rounds, and it annoyed Caine to no end.

Everyone in town knew that Caine owned all the woods in the area, and it was a huge piece of land. They were also well aware that he practically owned half of the town itself. Caine was well respected, but most of all, he was feared by the humans. It didn’t help that whenever Caine was around them, he rarely talked and he always seemed mad.

The parking lot in the restaurant we went to in town was full. When we made it inside, it wasn’t any better. The place was packed. I heard people mumbling that they’d been or would be waiting between forty-five minutes to an hour. As soon as Caine and I walked up to the hostess, we were directed to a table. Caine had only to state that he wanted a booth, and the girl there was fast to please him.

“I feel bad for all those other couples,” I said. From where we sat, I could see the front area where people were waiting around to get seated.

“I’m surprised it’s so full,” Caine said, looking at the menu, not in the least bothered that we’d cut in line.

Dinner in the restaurant was a quiet affair. I heard the whispering around us, and the comments some of them made. They were mainly acknowledging Caine’s presence. He was rarely seen out and about, especially having dinner with someone. ‘The girl’ is what they kept referring me as. ‘Mr. Landon’, ‘Caine’, or ‘the man who owns this town’ was how they referred to him. Caine must’ve heard the hushed whispers, but he was either used to it or they didn’t bother him.

The only reason I was frowning when I heard them talking about us was because they kept wondering how old I was and if I was with Caine for his money.

I figured that when the humans brought up the age thing, Caine was going to make a bigger deal about it. “You’re the one who always kept saying how young I was,” I told him.

“You’re of age now. It no longer bothers me,” he casually shrugged.

“Caine, they are practically calling me a gold digger. I mean, you can at least see why I’m a little offended by that.”

“Hmm… Are you a gold digger?” he was brazen enough to ask.

“Are you joking right now?” I was already getting up from the table, but Caine grabbed my wrists with a lot of force and pulled me back to my seat.

‘Charlotte, they are curious.’ Caine spoke to me through our mind link, his green eyes focused on me.

‘They have no reason to be. I’m not a gold digger. If anything, I’m a sugar baby,’ I replied through our link, laughing out loud to see if I could get a reaction from him.

He chuckled, and shook his head at me. ‘They didn’t call you a gold digger. I agree with what they are saying, in some way. They think you are too beautiful to be with me, so you must have an ulterior motive. That only leaves my money. I don’t mind if they think you want my money. I know it isn’t true, and it is something simple enough for them to handle. What would humans do if they found out you were my mate, and how much you mean to me?’

Somehow, because he’d spoken those words to me through our link, I felt them deeply. I closed my eyes and sighed, while Caine slowly rubbed his thumbs in circles over my wrists.

“You’re horrible, I’m not beautiful, but that was really sweet. Thanks,” I admitted, feeling a blush creeping onto my face.

“I love you,” he said, picking up my hand from the table, and kissing over my wrist, in the area he’d been touching just moments before.

Caine wanted to go for a walk after we got back. We followed the trail that mostly everybody used—the one that ran right by the pack building.

On the drive home, I’d brought up Liam. It seemed like Caine wanted to distract me from him, because he quickly changed the subject, until he decided that we were taking a walk.

“Now that you’re a Wolf, we can have pups,” Caine suddenly said.

We’d been walking hand in hand. After his comment, I tried pulling my hand from his, but he held onto me tightly. He didn’t play fair. He was a lot stronger than me, and whenever I tried to get away, he’d simply keep me in place by holding on to me.

“We could’ve had them when I was a human, not that I want to start popping babies or anything,” I told him, feeling a shiver run through my body just at the thought.

“I’ve always been scared of that,” Caine said, frowning. “I’ve heard about it happening in the past— humans dying during pup births. When we have a pup, it will more than likely come when you’re five months in. Humans have theirs a lot later than that. It sounds…” he said, the frown growing deeper. He seemed upset. I never really considered Caine thinking about those things.

“My mother had me, and my dad’s human,” I told him.

“Yes, but your mother is a Wolf,” he said, looking down at me with a serious expression. “I’m not saying this to insult you. The first time I saw how fast you ran, I was extremely surprised. On She-Wolf standards, your Wolf is small.”

This time, I really pulled my hand from his hold. Yes, he’d said that he wasn’t trying to insult me, but it felt like a low blow for him to bring up my Wolf. It felt like one of those situations where someone says ‘no offence’, but they’re for sure going to offend you.

“I’m not small!” I snapped at him.

“You’re not, but compared to, say, Leila—you’re small.”

“Come on! Leila’s Wolf is a Beta—of course she’s freaken huge!”

“You’re smaller than Lesley, and she’s a regular She-Wolf,” Caine whispered, rather harshly.

“Okay, don’t add anything else unless you want me to smack you,” I said, stomping away from him.

“Charlotte,” he said, trying to catch my hand, but I snatched it away every time he tried to hold it. “Liam’s father is human.”

“So, what? Now you’re going to tell me you’re some type of hybrid hater, because that’s what it’s starting to sound like. I’ve been human most of my life, Caine. What you’re saying kind of sucks, big time.” I was still hurt, but I slowed down and allowed him to hold my hand.

“I would never say, or think that anything bad about humans, especially because I know it affects you. I know how important humans are,” he said.

“Good, I’m glad you do. Sometimes you guys forget that humans dominate this world. Yeah, we’re not stronger than you guys, but we’re still more!”

Caine smiled down at me. “Charlotte, you’re no longer a human,” he reminded me.

“But I was, not so long ago. Liam reminded me of that just today. I would really hate you if you started hating on humans. I’m serious. Derek kicked me out of Knight Pack and ripped me away from my life because I was a human.” I didn’t even feel like crying, so I was surprised when my eyes got watery. I had to turn away from Caine. I felt self-conscious to be crying in front of him, especially because I didn’t even think I wanted to cry.

“I’ll only say this— I’m glad that you got your Wolf. I don’t think I would have wanted pups if your Wolf hadn’t come along. I love you too much. I would be scared of losing you.” He placed his hands on either side of my face, and looked at me like he was trying to memorize every detail. “I love you so much.” I allowed him to wrap his arms around me. Somehow, I ended up with my legs around his waist. His hands were under my butt, keeping me up while he placed gentle kisses over my cheeks and on my lips.

“Okay, okay, I forgive you for making me think you were trying to insult me.” I couldn’t keep the smile from my face, which widened when Caine grinned at me.

“I wasn’t insulting you. If you shocked me with your speed, how surprised do you think Liam leaves me every time he shifts? Liam has one of the biggest Wolves I’ve ever seen, and he’s half human,” Caine said, while he started walking towards our house, with me in his arms.

“Yeah, but his granddaddy is an Alpha. It’s not really that much of a surprise. I kind of always thought that Liam was also meant to lead. He would make great Alpha.”

“The confidence you have in him…” Caine murmured, kissing my cheek.

Liam was home when we arrived. As soon as Caine saw him, his claws extended and his canines came out. Liam was definitely in a state. He was only wearing a pair of track pants, and a white undershirt that had dirt marks. It seemed like he’d been rolling around in his clothes. His cheek was bruised, and he had scratches all over his arms. I could smell blood from where I was standing, but not all of it was his. I briefly noticed Adam standing to the side.

‘I found him. He was picking fights with some Rogues. He’s drunk,’ Adam said, looking at me worriedly.

Adam didn’t have to tell me. I could smell the alcohol from where I was standing. I’d seen Liam drunk before, but it always took so much alcohol to get him there. His Wolf usually burned through it faster than he could drink it. It meant that Liam had been drinking a lot.

“Liam,” I called his name.

Caine tried keeping me behind him, but I sidestepped him. When Caine tried to get me back, Liam growled at him. Some part of his Wolf was out. I could see it. His eyes were a deep color, and his canines were out too.

“Come on, I’ll make you a coffee,” I told him.

When I tried to get closer to him, Caine again tried to pull me back.

“Charlotte, he’s not in control right now,” Caine warned me.

“I’m perfectly in control, Alpha,” Liam spat, but he was slurring his words. He didn’t look happy or upset. There was a just blank, glazed over look in his eyes.

“I’ll make the coffee,” Adam quietly said, and left to the kitchen without much fanfare.

Liam couldn’t even walk when I approached him. He placed his arm over my shoulders, and leaned heavily on me while I dragged him to the living room. Caine had to help me. If it weren’t for the strength my Wolf gave me, Liam would’ve tipped me over. He was heavy, and a foot taller than me.

Liam refused to sit on the couch. He slumped himself on the floor. I sat next to him, and he quickly laid his head over my legs, sprawling his body on the floor.

“I’m tired, Charlie,” he complained.

Caine didn’t take a seat. He was frowning down at us, looking at Liam with distaste. ‘This is the Alpha you root for?’

I rolled my eyes at him. He didn’t understand. ‘He’s having a tough time. Leave him alone,’ I said, giving him my best death glare.

Liam took me by surprise when he suddenly sat up, and wrapped his arms around my neck and waist. He was holding onto me so tight, I was shocked that he didn’t break something.

Caine was trying to pull him away from me, but Liam was holding on for dear life. Neither of us was expecting what happened next.

I felt Liam’s body shaking hard. I could feel his Wolf practically crawling out of him. I knew that if Liam shifted, and he was really worked up, there was a chance he would hurt me unintentionally. It was the reason Caine was trying to get Liam off of me.

It took me a moment to realize that Liam’s shaking wasn’t due to him shifting. He was sobbing, in my arms. At first, it was strange. I didn’t know how to react. When Caine and I both realized what was happening, we both just looked at each other. Caine backed off a few steps, until he finally awkwardly left the room.

‘I’ll be here if you need me,’ he said, and then just left.

I didn’t know what to do. Liam was growling and yelling. I could feel his claws digging into my skin, but I didn’t dare make a sound. I only held onto him as tightly as I could, while Liam continued to break down in front of my eyes. I didn’t realize when it was that I started crying. I just felt the tears rolling down my cheeks. Liam was hurting, and I felt so helpless.