Untamed (Rejected Mate Academy #1) - E. M. Moore Page 0,88
threads his fingers through my hair. Before long, the day catches up with me, and I start to doze. I’m not used to running in my wolf form. Hell, I’m not even used to shifting yet.
In his arms, I don’t have to worry about what my true lineage means for my mom and dad. Or for me. I know we’ll handle it together. And with the Livestrongs completely on our side, I have more family than I’ve ever had.
28
The sun’s rays warm my face. For a moment, I think I’m lying in the garden, soaking up nature’s energy source. But everything comes crashing down on me again when I move my arm and find the bed empty next to me.
I sit straight up, heart pounding, sniffing the air, but my surroundings are so unfamiliar that I can’t sort through the different scents to find Jonah. He was so adamant about saving me yesterday that I wouldn’t put it past him to run out, leave me here, and do just that. I hop out of bed, and lunge for the door. When the knob turns freely in my hand, I breathe a sigh of relief. At least he hasn’t tried to lock me in here.
Stepping out into the long hallway, I pause to search for any sign of him. The house is calm; quiet. My wolf comes to attention since she knows we’re searching for Jonah, and it’s the first time I’ve felt her since she gave up control yesterday. I let her lead the way, picking up his delicious aroma as we make our way through the foreign house. In the kitchen, I find a closed door. I turn the knob and reveal a set of steps that lead down to the basement. His scent is potent here, so I follow the footsteps and begin to relax when I hear his low murmur.
The basement is nothing like the upstairs. Instead of boasting a washer and dryer or a dank, mildewy smell like most houses, this downstairs is set up like a high-tech detective’s office. Several TV monitors run footage of the house’s surroundings. A locker filled with guns sits along the opposite wall, and on a corkboard to the right of that, a map of Lunar and the other pack territories is pinned down.
Jonah turns toward me, brow furrowing as I make myself known. He motions me to him, and I come closer. He places his arm around my hips while he leans against a counter, a landline phone in his hand. “When is this going to be?” he questions, staring at me but talking into the receiver.
His tone makes my wolf scratch to the surface. It’s as if she’s reacting to Jonah’s wolf on some other level. “What’s going on?” I whisper.
He squeezes my hip but ignores my question. Instead, he says, “Yeah, it’s Kinsey. She just woke up.” He pauses for a moment. “She’s okay.”
I rest my head on his chest. Being close to him helps soothe me, and I need a whole lot of that.
“We’ll stay here and wait this out,” Jonah remarks. My shoulders straighten. Whatever he’s referencing, I don’t think I’m going to like it. He grips the phone tighter. “Talk soon,” he says before hanging up.
I pull away. “What’s going on?”
He sits on a stool, tugging me into his embrace. “It’s Lydia. She’s putting your parents on trial.”
I breathe out through my nose as trepidation sings through my veins. It’s what we expected, but it doesn’t make it any easier to hear.
“She has the DNA results in hand, so she can punish them for their transgressions.”
I stare at him straight in the eye. “We can’t let her do that, Jonah.”
“My dad believes she’s trying to draw you out of hiding. Your existence is what she’s fighting against. Lydia Greystone has always been a purist. Now that she has evidence you’re not from a fated pair, she’ll do everything she can to stop you from mating with me and force you out of Lunar. We can’t play into her hands.”
I shake my head. “Jonah, their punishment won’t be just a slap on the wrist. She’ll cast them out of the pack. Even if by some small chance that doesn’t happen, the truth will be out there for everyone. It will completely ruin them. Especially my mother. They’ll make her out to be nothing. Less than nothing. If you thought the bullying at the party was bad for me, it’ll be worse for her because now