Chapter 48 - day 1

Rosie

My eyes fluttered open, and I felt my heart heavy in my chest like something was weighing it down, and I didn’t know why I was feeling this strange tug pulling at me from the inside, making my stomach flip. Maybe I’d talk to Jude about it later, and he could explain.

I blinked, trying to clear the sleep from my vision, and stretched my hand out to the nightstand, reaching for my phone, and saw it was 09:59 AM displayed across the screen.

God! I overslept! I jumped up immediately, ready to rush and prepare for class, when I suddenly remembered that school was on mid-semester break, and I sighed in relief, collapsing back against the pillows while running my hand through my tangled, messy hair.

I checked my phone again, scrolling through notifications, and saw no text from Jude, which was strange and made that tug in my chest pull harder because I always woke up to Jude’s good morning texts without fail every single day. My hand absentmindedly touched my neck where the claiming mark was, and I felt it tingle under my fingertips, and heat pooled low in my belly as memories from last night came flooding back.

Jude had claimed me. We’d completed the bond. And as if agreeing to the notion, my stomach flipped again.

I licked my lips, suddenly feeling restless, and ran to the bathroom to have a quick shower, hoping the hot water would settle whatever this feeling was. As I was walking out of the bathroom with a towel still wrapped around my chest and another wrapped around my wet hair.

I heard someone knocking on the front door, and my heart immediately skipped because it was only Jude who could visit me. Without thinking about my inappropriate state of dress, I ran to the door and yanked it open with a wide smile.

My heart deflated immediately when I saw Maya standing there instead of Jude, but I quickly put on a smile, not wanting her to see my disappointment.

Maya smiled back, but her smile wasn’t wide like usual, and I raised my brow in immediate concern. "What’s wrong?" I asked without a preamble.

Worry etched deep lines across her forehead as she rubbed her temple, and she hesitated, biting her lip, shaking her head as if she didn’t know how to say whatever she needed to say.

"Tell me, Maya," I pressed, holding her hands in mine and squeezing gently. "What happened?"

"It’s Jude," she finally said, and I sucked in breath.

My chest stuttered, and panic gripped my heart, squeezing tight. "What happened to him? Is he hurt? Is he okay?" The words tumbled out frantically.

"Nothing happened; he’s fine. It’s just that..." She trailed off, looking reluctant. "Jude is in a rut."

My eyes widened, and I felt my eyes narrow slightly, trying to process what she’d just said. "His rut..." I repeated slowly, feeling heat creep into my cheeks. "I thought he said it would take weeks before it triggered after the claiming..." I trailed off, feeling my entire face heat up because I understood exactly what "rut" meant and what it would entail.

If I said I wasn’t giddy and excited about it, I’d be lying through my teeth, but the truth was I wasn’t mentally prepared for this to happen so soon.

I quickly went to my room and threw on a red hoodie without bothering with any undergarments underneath and then pulled on a pair of loose trousers. I followed Maya to her truck as she drove us to the Winter mansion in tense silence.

As I climbed down from the truck, I was immediately met by Elena, who had concern etched across her beautiful face. "Don’t force yourself, Rosie," she said softly, and her voice was gentle. "Rut can be very hard, especially the first one."

I nodded wordlessly, not trusting my voice.

She continued looking at me seriously. "It might take a toll on you as a human; even female wolves find their mate’s first rut overwhelming and exhausting." Mason, who was standing beside her, scoffed like that was an understatement, and Elena nudged him sharply in the ribs with her elbow.

I was directed down the long hallway, and with each step I took, I was hit with the most intoxicating scent I’d ever smelled in my life. My legs immediately went wobbly and weak beneath me, and I felt heat pool rapidly in my stomach, spreading through my entire body. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

I blinked, trying to clear my suddenly hazy vision. What was that scent? And why was it affecting me so strongly?

But I kept moving forward, following the scent like it was a string pulling me along until I reached the room where the scent seemed to be emanating from in thick, heavy waves.

I breathed in deeply, letting it fill my lungs, and my heart stuttered, then I knocked on the door once, then twice.

The door was suddenly yanked open with such force I stumbled forward and my head collided directly with a warm, hard, bare chest.

"I’ve said don’t tell her—" The words trailed off abruptly from his lips, and he blinked down at me in shock.

His nose flared wide, taking in my scent, and his eyes flashed rapidly from amber to molten gold and back again as the two colors clashed and fought for dominance in his irises.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, and his voice was rough and strained with shock, which was barely restrained with need.

"I was called," I said simply, looking up at him and taking in his appearance. He was shirtless and covered in a thin sheen of sweat, his hair was disheveled, and his eyes were wild.

"Go," he said with so much difficulty. "You need to leave right now, Rosie."

"Why?" I tilted my head in question, and I couldn’t stop the hurt from creeping into my voice because it felt like rejection even though I knew logically it wasn’t.

"I don’t want to hurt you," he said, and his hand was trembling as it hovered near my face but didn’t quite touch.

"I know you won’t hurt me," I said with absolute certainty in my voice.

He finally touched my cheek so gingerly, and then he dropped his hand quickly and clenched both fists tightly at his sides as if he was physically restraining himself. "You don’t understand," he said, and his voice was pained. "I won’t be in control of myself. I would do many disrespectful things to you, things I can’t take back, and I don’t want that..." He rubbed my cheek warmly one more time with his thumb, then dropped his hand completely.

"What if I want it?" The words tumbled out of my mouth before I could stop them or think them through. But it was true. I wanted it. I wanted him. I wanted all of him, even the parts he thought were too rough or too primal.

"Fuck!" He cursed loudly, and his eyes flashed pure gold.

And before I knew what was happening, he lunged forward and yanked me inside the room with strength that should make me run but only excited me as he slammed the door shut behind us.

It was like a switch had flipped in his head completely.