♦ ♦ ♦

I had the best day with Reign. Finally seeing her come out of her shell. Even if it's in the form of using a bow and arrow, not that I'm complaining because it was unbelievably hot watching her hit the bullseye, shot after shot.

My stomach tightened and my chest was ready to explode. Never have I seen someone make a weapon like that look so sexy. And Reign had no idea what she was doing to my mind, considering she was just practising her old skills.

Fuck. I really need to get a life.

When Reign goes to bed I stay downstairs in my office. I've been on the phone to a local district for the last forty-five minutes. If anything I want to go to sleep, but most of all to see if Reign has fallen asleep in my bed.

The thought of going upstairs and seeing her tucked underneath my sheets sends goosebumps over every inch of my body. Hopefully another twenty minutes and this call should be done, I don't want to seem disinterested but I am. The only thing I can think about is my mate.

Especially after the amazing day we had together.

There is a soft knock at my door and I stir my attention to the sound, phone still connected to my ear. I clear my throat and the door slowly opens, Reign's blonde hair swishes into the room but her eyes are down.

I frown at her presence, she should be in bed at this time. And I know that something is wrong because she cannot meet my gaze, head hung low like she's guilty of something. My heart clenches and then skips a couple of beats.

Slowly she works her way over to my desk as I listen to Seema ramble through the phone. When she stops directly in front of me she holds out her hand and drops something onto the wooden desk.

My lips part as I stare down at the white lighter, fingers begin twitching around my phone. Reign still can't look at me and suddenly I'm finding it hard to breathe.

"I've got to go, Seema."

"This is important, Everett." His thick voice booms through the receiver. "I'm not finished."

"I'll have to call you back tomorrow," I dismiss him and stand from my chair. "I've got something more important I need to deal with. Sorry."

My fingers press the end button as quickly as possible. Reign's fingers are twisted in front of her, anxiety evidently bubbling through her veins. "Sit down," I say gently and gesture to the dark leather chair behind her.

She doesn't protest, she sits down and I take two steps towards her. I kneel down in front of her and gently pull her legs apart, my eyes wander across her skin instantly noticing the fresh burn on the upper part of her thigh.

I can feel my brows begin to twist into sadness and frustration because I wasn't there for her when she felt the need to hurt herself. What happened between earlier and now? She was laughing and smiling. Maybe she wasn't as happy as I thought she was.

My head begins to pound because I feel useless. I've failed her.

When I notice Reign looking away from the direction of my eyesight, I lean up and take her hand between mine. I give her a soft squeeze, pulling the back of her hand up to my lips. When I give her skin a kiss she glances at me, finally.

"Thank you for coming to me and giving me this lighter."

"I felt guilty."

My expression falls, I lean up and cup the side of her cheek. She gently smothers her face into my hand like she's trying to hide herself from me. "I'm not mad at you, but I'm not happy with you doing this." I begin to shake my head.

"I know," her voice is barely audible. "I'm sorry."

I didn't think my heart could hurt any more than it does right now. "Come," I stand from the floor and tug her hand softly. "We can put some antiseptic cream on it before it gets infected."

Reign nods and follows me out of my office, not once dropping my hand. As we reach the empty kitchen, I grip her waist gently and hoist her up onto the counter. The nightdress she's wearing droops over her thighs.

I head straight to the medicine cabinet to retrieve the cream and then I wash my hands. When I return I grab a stool and position myself between her legs. My fingers grip on her ankle and I place the sole of her foot on my shoulder, allowing me to see the mark she had made.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I ask carefully, squeezing the cool liquid onto my fingers.

Reign grips onto the counter as I smear it across her burn, I try to be as gentle as possible but soon she takes a breath and relaxes. "Guess I'm just feeling a little lost."

I massage in the cream for a few moments before placing the lid back on the tube. My feet press into the ground and I raise from the stool, my height advancing on Reign's as she sits on the counter.

"Hey, angel," I whisper, cupping her cheek with my warm hand. "I am always here to talk, I will always drop everything for you."

She blinks back at my words, perfect plump lips now parting gracefully. "I've just been struggling with the changes. Adjusting to everything new."

My head nods at her words. "I know you have," I admit with a supportive smile. "But you've been doing so well. Every little step is progress and you should be proud of everything you've done so far, Reign."

When her head begins to hang lower I continue to frown. I never want her to feel out of place, unable to settle down in comfort. I want her to be comfortable with me, in my home, our home.

"Come on, let's go to bed. It's late."

Reign doesn't move instantly so I sweep her up into my arms, letting her head fall against my chest. I grip onto her bare skin on her legs, being careful of her burn mark. She inhales deeply and snuggles her head further into my chest, closer to my neck that I can feel her breath.

As we reach my bedroom, I kick open the door with my foot and drop her down onto the bed. I tuck her beneath the sheets and she grips onto them for dear life, smothering her face into the material of my pillow.

I quickly shed my clothes and climb in beside her, wrapping my long arms around her small frame. Tucking her underneath my chin, my wolf howls at the top of its lungs to protect her and never, ever let her go.

For a few moments I remain silent because now I realise there is so much more beneath the surface that I don't realise is going on. Being patient and understanding comes first, no matter how much I want her to open up to me.

So much has changed within the last few weeks, I don't blame her for feeling a little lost when it comes to moving into a new house with complete strangers.

"Did something happen?" I whisper into her hair. "Is that why you feel lost?"

Her hand covers my bare chest and I close my eyes as a wave of satisfaction washes over my body unexpectedly. "I'm struggling to find where I belong."

"You belong here, angel. With me. You can always find home in me."

She props her head up slowly, I can't see through the darkness but I can see the silhouette of her face. Hair now falling in front of her eyes, I brush it away and keep my hand on the back of her head.

"You're all domesticated wolves and I'm like some wild rogue who everyone looks at funny."

"Who has been looking at you funny?" My voice comes out a lot harsher than intended.

Reign doesn't flinch or move but I pull her impossibly closer. "Everyone. More or less."

My jaw tightens painfully. "Well I'll give everyone a good talk. They dare make you feel like this again then there will be severe consequences."

"No," she panics. "Don't make things worse. I don't want to make a scene. I just want to go under the radar."

I sigh and press my forehead against hers. "There is no going under the radar when you're my Luna, but I want to make you as comfortable as possible."

Reign gulps at the word Luna and I curse to myself for scaring her like this. "I'm not sure if I'm ready for that yet."

"I know," I agree and drag my hand down the centre of her back, soothing her muscles beneath the pads of my fingers. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said it like that. I just mean that soon people are going to know that you're my mate and there won't be much hiding from it."

She huffs out a sigh, her head nodding. The strands of her blonde hair fall between my arm, tickling the skin on the edge of my ribs. "Guess I need to grow some thicker skin."

"No," my voice grows over hers. "People are going to realise the strong, brave and amazing wolf that you are. They're going to end up feeling stupid for judging you before even knowing you. Just because you might smell different to them, doesn't mean you are different."

"It's hard to believe those words when I've been told differently my whole life."

I suppress a growl. "God, I wanna know who said this bullshit to you. And made you think that you are not worthy when you are. You are so damn worthy and I am lucky to have you."

Reign doesn't say anything for a few moments, then she shuffles and rests her chin on her hand. The one that is covering my nipple. "How so?"

"How so?" I repeat.

"How could you possibly be lucky to have me?"

A short exhale of breath escapes my nose, I hook my finger under her chin and tilt her gaze up to mine. It's dark but I can see her eyes, they're flicking between mine and her heart thumps into my ribs.

"You are not the shit that these people have drummed into your head," I say with passive aggression. "You are so much more than these pesky words. You have so much potential here, for happiness and for belonging. Without you, I will be nothing. Alpha's are nothing without their mates."

Reign's long lashes brush her cheek as she blinks slowly. "I could be better though, couldn't I?"

"Stop talking like that," I grip her chin tighter, causing her eyes to open and watch me. "You have no idea what that kind of talk does to me, to my wolf. I promise you, one day you'll finally realise what I see. How amazing you are, inside and out."

"It's hard to believe right now."

I press my lips to her forehead unexpectedly. "The time will come when you realise that this is all real, so real."

"I'm sorry for dragging you away from your call," she chews on her lips and then rests her head back down onto my chest.

My head shakes before she even finishes her sentence. "Do not apologise for that, I'm pleased that you came to me. Thank you for giving me the lighter, do you have any more?"

She clears her throat. "No, it was my only one."

"How does your leg feel?"

Reign shrugs. "Normal, I guess."

I burrow my brows instantly, a deep frown covering my lips. "I don't want that to be the norm, angel. I want the norm to be you coming to me, telling me when you feel down."

"I know."

"Hurting yourself isn't the answer."

"I told you before, to me it's not like I'm hurting myself," she rolls onto her back and I instantly miss the feeling of her skin on mine. "It's just a distraction."

Inside I tell myself to keep it together because the idea of her hurting herself without the consciousness to accept what she's doing makes me angry beyond belief. She shouldn't be hurting herself, she shouldn't be needing such an extreme distraction.

She needs help and I wish that she could admit that.

Because I'd never want things to escalate when I knew there was a problem in the first place. Maybe I need to actively be doing more without pushing her away, I don't want her to feel bombarded by my sudden obsession over this situation.

"Distraction or not. You're still hurting yourself and knowing that I cannot do anything destroys me," my voice cracks painfully and Reign turns her head to look at me. "Knowing that you're suffering and I did nothing, it fucking hurts."

She copies my frown and props herself up on her arm. "I'm sorry."

I grip her cheek and pull her face close to mine, foreheads grazing again. Her little breaths increase and I feel shockwaves shooting down my forearm at the touch of her beautiful, soft skin.

"Stop apologising," I tell her again. "You have nothing to be sorry for."

"I won't do it again," her tone is barely a whisper. "I didn't realise it would affect you like this."

My eyes flutter closed at her words. "I want to protect you from everything, Reign. I want to keep you safe so that no harm ever comes your way."

Her hand clasps my hand that is still resting on her cheek, she holds my fingers tightly. "I already feel protected being here."

"At the pack house?"

"No," she shakes her head gently. "In your arms."

Without another word I drop the hand from her cheek and pull her into my body, chests flush against one another and buried into the pillows. She wraps her hands around my neck and grips onto me tightly, our bare skin brushing.

I have to open my mouth to force oxygen inside before I lose myself completely in her.

"My arms will always be your home and your safe place, angel. Always."

♦ ♦ ♦

Read the rest of the story, epilogue and bonus chapters over on my Patreon early!

www.patreon.com/dreammcatcher
Link is also in my bio!

Author's Note

Hello my loves. What did we think of this chapter?👉🏼👉🏼👉🏼

BRB JUST SWOONING OVER MY OWN FICTIONAL CHARACTERS🥹

UGHHH Everett is the fucking best, he's so sweet and supportive and I adore that Reign came to him because she's building her trust slowly.

Please don't forget to leave a vote! It makes my day and this chapter is so special to me❤️❤️❤️

Thank you for reading. Love Savanna x

Insta: SavRose.x
Patreon: dreammcatcher
Tik Tok: SavannaWritess