It only occurred later, when dinner was over, that Connor didn't know how old Jamie was. They had said their good nights and everyone went on their way, even though Connor was dying to follow after Jamie. It killed him to know his mate was in his house, but he couldn't' reach him.

He needed to know Jamie knew who he was.

So he went outside and paced the grounds, impatient and frustrated. If Jamie was too young, Connor would have to wait, and he would. Except he had waited so long that more waiting seemed like torture. They didn't have to... do... anything, all Connor wanted to know for now is that Jamie knew who he was. That's all Connor wanted, damn it.

"Do you have ants in your pants or something?" Miguel asked, coming out of the shadows along with his brother.

Connor huffed. "It's none of your business."

"Whoa, what did you do, brother?" Daniel asked.

"Nothing," grumbled Miguel. "He's got issues, this one."

Connor stopped running and started stretching instead. "Shut up you two. I am not in the mood to babysit you tonight."

"Babysit us? The gall!" Miguel protested. "We babysit your ass, brother."

Daniel nodded. "You should be so lucky to have us in your miserable life. Now spill what is making you so lovely."

Connor growled, causing his friends to step away a little.

"Okay, that was no explanation..." Miguel said.

"Gods, just drop it, all right? Not everything's a joke, you two!"

Daniel, as the slightly more sensitive one, approached Connor like he'd spook or something, and said, "Hey Con, maybe tell us what the problem is and I promise I'll keep that one quiet."

Miguel snorted. "You can try."

Connor kept exercising, burning off his anger, but nothing made him feel better or more relaxed. He felt like a live wire.

"Is it the mating thing?" Miguel asked.

"No," Connor growled. "Well, not exactly." He doubled over, sweating, breathing like he'd swam across the whole lake.

"So what is it... exactly?"

Connor wasn't ready to tell anyone, not until he'd spoken to his true mate, and if the boy was going to hide in his room then... Connor would fucking go to him.

"I need some alone time," he said firmly. "Seriously, take the night off."

Daniel's eyebrows shot up. "If the Alpha heard about this..."

"What he doesn't know won't kill him."

The brothers stood their ground as though Connor was going to change his mind, but when he growled at them to 'get lost' they finally scampered away, leaving him alone. He even made sure he was alone by running in a zig-zag manner that allowed him to escape any possible tail he might have had.

Finally certain that he was alone, he headed for his house, where his true mate was. He took the back staircase which only his family knew to use and climbed to the third floor, where the guest bedrooms were located. He was in the West Wing, where his father kept the best guest rooms in the whole palace. They were as good as his own room, if not better.

Connor made sure nobody saw him as he followed the shadows to the rooms, and smelled around the floor, to make sure he got the right room.

When he sensed his mate's scent, just as strong as it was at dinner, he opened the door and closed it behind his back quickly. He just couldn't risk knocking and being heard by his other guests. Inside the room, a startled Jamie sat up on his bed with a book in his hand.

"What the–" he said.

"Sorry," Connor muttered, watching Jamie stare at him with wide eyes.

Jamie wore shorts and a white tshirt, and with his fucking scent permeating the air, Connor struggled to think clearly. He licked his lips.

What did he come to say exactly?

"What are you doing here, Connor?" Jamie asked, his arms across his chest, his eyebrows furrowed.

Connor frowned. Wasn't he happy to see him? "Uhh, I have to talk to you."

"About what exactly?" In the privacy of his own room, Jamie sounded more like a man and less like a boy. He looked fierce. Like he wouldn't let Connor give him any crap. Connor liked that.

"You know what."

"No, I don't know," Jamie enunciated. "And what the hell were you thinking coming here? What if my sister was here?"

"I checked first."

Jamie closed his eyes. "You are insane."

"Come on, Jamie, we have to talk about this."

"There's nothing to talk about," Jamie insisted. "And maybe next time you could wear something more... you could wear a shirt!"

Connor cocked his head, then looked down. Huh, he'd completely forgotten his chest was bare, as he preferred when he ran, and he was quite sweaty now that he thought about it.

He took a step toward Jamie, to apologize, but Jamie jumped out of the bed and took a step back, as though afraid that Connor would do something.

"Jamie, you know I'm not going to hurt you, right?"

"I don't know shit."

Connor rubbed the back of his neck. This was not going as he'd expected, definitely not as he had hoped. "Look, I'm sorry, maybe I should have waited for dawn."

"Great, let's do that," Jamie said.

"Fuck," Connor said. "So is that how it's going to be?"

Jamie looked away. "I don't know what you mean."

"You know exactly what I mean, Jamie, and just because you're doing your damnedest to avoid the issue, I won't drop it, you hear me?"

"I wish you would," Jamie said quietly.

That gave Connor pause. "Why?"

Jamie shrugged. "Because it doesn't matter."

"How can you say it doesn't matter?" Connor said, taking another step toward Jamie. "I have waited for you my whole life."

Jamie snorted. But when he saw Connor wasn't joking, he swallowed. "You... you have?"

"Yes, damn it, and we have to talk about this."

Jamie softened around the edges. A smile crept on his face, making Connor feel dizzy and excited. Then just as soon as it appeared, it faded to nonexistence. "I... can't."

"Why not?"

"Because you're mating my sister."

"But–"

"And because I already know who I'm going to mate."

That broke Connor's heart. He just stood there, watching his true mate, finally at arm's reach, so close it was painful not to touch him, and the words that came out of his mouth were that he didn't want him.

Well, fuck.

No, Connor definitely did not expect any of it.

***

Connor didn't sleep that night.

He'd snuck out of Jamie's room pretty much immediately after Jamie rejected him, and then he proceeded to shift and run circles around his pack's territory. His wolf was just as shaken as he was, so he kept running, his mind empty of anything to do with his true mate, other than his beautiful blue eyes and the way he smelled, so fresh and lovely.

The wolf was better at dealing with emotional problems because he couldn't go over everything that was said and done. However, the wolf felt just as despondent and betrayed as Connor had, if not more.

The wolf had wanted to claim his mate, but Jamie had said no. Jamie's wolf surely wanted him, though?

Connor's wolf shook his muzzle and howled at the almost-full-moon. Answering howls could be heard for miles and miles, and they all sounded much more serene than Connor's. The wolves could probably sense his wolf was hurting, so the howling loop went for a while, appeasing Connor's wolf slightly, but not quite succeeding.

It was the first time his wolf was not happy and in his element. He was restless, impatient, and dangerously close to going rogue – just going back and claiming Jamie, whatever the fuck the boy said. But no, Connor arose in the wolf's head, we can't take something that's not ours.

He's ours, the wolf growled and kept running, all night, until he tired himself out and fell on the bank of a mountain stream. He couldn't even listen for other predators. He, too, was heartbroken.

In the morning, when Connor opened his eyes, he vowed that he would mate Jamie, even if he had to make him see reason.

He would not give up something he'd waited for all this time.

He refused to let it slip through his paws.

Yikes! What do you think?

Who could be Jamie's future mate?