Taze (Rise of the Pride #11) - Theresa Hissong Page 0,26
late?”
Calla had been so busy with work and school over the last two years, it didn’t even cross her mind she’d never gone into heat after she reached maturity.
“We really don’t know,” Luna sighed. “You could’ve been a late bloomer. We usually follow our mothers in our maturity, and since you never had a chance to talk to your own mother about hers, you have to just accept what you get.”
“She was older when she had us.” Calla relaxed as the medicine began to work. The cramps in her belly eased, but the wetness between her legs remained. “That’s all I know.”
“I’m sorry,” Luna offered.
“It’s okay,” Calla said as she covered a yawn.
“I’m going back to the pride for a couple of hours so you can sleep,” Luna announced. “Call me if you feel the pain coming back before I return. I can be here in twenty minutes.”
“Thank you, Luna,” Calla said, touching the female’s hand. “Thank you for everything.”
Luna cupped Calla’s face and pushed some hair behind her ear. “You’re going to be just fine.”
Calla closed her eyes and let the medicine take her away. She slept for two hours before waking with a parched throat. Her lips were dry and cracking; her body covered in dried sweat. She peeled off her clothes and turned the water on in the shower. Savage’s cabin in the woods had all the amenities she needed, and his promise of privacy was solid.
The only people who knew where she’d fled were Savage and his mate, the healer and Luna, and the alpha and Liberty. She didn’t tell her brother nor did she tell Taze. If she’d let them know, both men would be at her side, and she didn’t need either of them there, for obvious reasons.
She thought of Taze often. Especially during the worst part of her heat. She craved his seed, and her panther was on edge, pushing at her skin to shift and find him. It would’ve been so easy to just go back and beg him to touch her, but she didn’t. The last thing she needed to do was make decisions when in that condition. Plus, the idea of mating caused the panic to race through her mind.
As for the information on the Amburo family, it was on hold. She had to think of herself, and even the alpha agreed she needed to step away from the investigation if she was worried. It was dangerous, but she didn’t want to stop helping the pride.
The hot water washed over her body as she lathered up a clean bath cloth. She moaned as she washed between her legs. The need for a male’s seed was causing her body to do things she’d never experienced before. She wasn’t a virgin, but she was as inexperienced as one.
A wave of nausea overcame her as she jerked her hand away from her sex. She couldn’t bring herself pleasure…she wouldn’t.
Tears sprung from her eyes as she realized she’d never be the female mate Taze deserved. Calla was better off sticking to her current path, studying for her degree and using that to change laws and defend her species in the human courts. It would keep her brother from losing his shit, and it would save her a lot of stress in the long run.
She let her hair dry naturally as she grabbed water from the small refrigerator, downing the bottle before gabbing another. Luna had stocked the cabin with basic foods, most of it protein. She didn’t have enough energy to cook for herself, so she opted for a bag of jerky one of the elder women in the pride had made after the last hunt they’d done on the winter solstice.
She sat on the bed and ate in silence, trying her hardest not to think of Taze, but she failed. He had to be looking for her by now, and Calla hoped the alpha had put his foot down with both of them if they vowed to find her. She didn’t want it to be that way, but it had to be done. Her brother would panic because of her disappearance, but the males of the pride would keep him from going on a rescue mission for her. Gods knew she didn’t want to be found.
Talon promised to keep her location secret from everyone, and she could sleep better knowing no one was going to pop up at the cabin. Only Luna had a key, and that was perfectly fine with Calla.