The Awakening Aidan - By Abby Niles Page 0,12

or go cold from her emotions, made him want to rip the veins from his body and destroy the connection to her. He didn’t even want to think about the episode he’d had yesterday.

He’d been powerless—to her. Caught so deep in her emotions, her damned happiness, that he felt the warmth of her smile, heard her laughter, saw the delight shining in her eyes. The worst part was he hadn’t wanted to leave. He was with her, where he was supposed to be, and even if it was in the confines of his own mind, at that moment, it had been enough for him.

Fucking pathetic.

The crackle vibrated in his chest again. Liam froze. Was his beast…purring?

It only purred when…

He snapped his head up. Not fifty feet away, Ava stood on the sidewalk, right outside the coffee shop she owned. Her red apron was tied tightly around her waist. How many times after closing had he used those ties to bind her hands above her head so he could do what he wanted with her body? Did she even think about the way she used to tug against the restraints as she put the apron on each day? How she’d beg for him to end the teasing and take her? And how he would. Each. And. Every. Time.

He clenched his hands. He never should’ve driven down the mountain for a walk in town. He’d thought he was safe. She always took Fridays off. Always. He guessed dumping him wasn’t the only thing she’d changed.

She turned slightly, revealing a cell phone pressed to her ear. Her strawberry-blond hair fell forward, curtaining her face as she bent forward, pressing a finger into her other ear.

The noise from the people on the sidewalk didn’t affect his hearing. He siphoned through the rumble of the crowd until the sweet resonance of her voice stood out. All the other sounds became only a hum in the background.

Her throaty laughter sent an ache to his chest.

“Jimmy. You’re so bad.”

Jimmy? Liam ground his teeth. Who the hell was Jimmy and what the hell had he said that merited such a seductive laugh? A laugh she’d used with him, teasing him until he’d snapped and taken her right where she stood. She liked it hard. Rough. Was she priming a new man to take her the same way?

Why the hell was his goddamn beast still purring? Stupid cat.

“Yes. We’re still on. Eight o’clock. I want every juicy detail of everything you plan to do.”

Liam turned around. She’d said that to him once. She liked dirty talk. Wanted it whispered in her ear while he took her. What he planned to do next. What he wanted to lick, pinch, or smack.

He stepped forward.

His beast growled. As he stepped farther and farther away from her, his beast thrashed around inside him, howling.

Shut up, you stupid animal. She no longer wants us.

If she was moving on, it was time for him to do the same. Maybe coming down the mountain hadn’t been a bad thing. Maybe he needed to see this. Maybe now he could finally start getting himself back.

His beast snarled, then gnashed its teeth at the air.

Fuck you.

He hopped into Brit’s Jeep and tore back up the mountain. By the time he pulled up to Aidan’s ten minutes later, snarls vibrated from under his ribs, foam dripped from his beast’s mouth, its sides heaved.

Liam tightened his grip on the wheel, scowling.

His beast’s rage should’ve brought on the change. He should’ve become a roaring mass of steely muscle and fur. He’d wondered why he hadn’t shifted since the Dsershon. Even at his angriest his beast had failed to emerge.

Now he had the answer.

He was no longer connected to his beast. He was only, completely, connected to her.

Not only had she taken away his manhood, she’d taken away his beast.

He slammed out of the Jeep and rushed inside. Aidan sat on the couch, typing at his laptop. Liam stood silent in the doorway, willing his beast to emerge, willing himself not to lose everything.

His friend looked up and then shot to his feet. “Liam. What’s wrong?”

He swallowed back the dread. No more. He would get himself back. “I want to see the doctor.”

Aidan blinked. “Say that again.”

“Dr. Avgar. I need to see her.”

Aidan’s brows furrowed. “You okay?”

He refused to talk about what he was going through, and he sure as hell wasn’t going to talk about what he’d just seen—what he’d just learned.

“I’m fucking fine. Now will you get off your ass