Rafe couldn’t allow her to continue her tirade against herself, tugging on her hand and pulling her up and into his arms. His embrace was tight as he held her to his naked chest. “I don’t ever want you feeling bad about yourself. You’re amazing. Shoot, you managed to escape and alert us about this threat to Wolves. You got away and stayed ahead of those fucking rogues. You’re strong, brave and the most beautiful person I’ve ever met.”
Tasha buried her head into his shoulder, her arms circling him and holding onto him as if she were drowning. “I feel so sad inside but then you make me feel anything but sad. It’s strange and scary.”
“We’re soul-mates, Tasha.” Rafe ran a hand through her long tresses, marveling at how silky it felt. “Nobody can fight against that. Trust me, I’ve been trying for days.”
“Days?” Tasha looked up into his face, her eyes wide.
“Yeah,” Rafe confirmed, a half smile tugging at his mouth. “I’ve been a little crazy for a while. Always in Wolf form and hunting like crazy. I was eating enough in a day that would normally do me for weeks. I wasn’t in control and finally my mom told me about . . .”
“Oh my gosh!” Tasha sprang back from him, her hand flying to her chest. “The Hunger. You had the hunger?”
Rafe was surprised at the shock on her face as her eyes twinkled with something other than surprise. He wasn’t sure but it looked like she was happy. Weird.
“Yes, I had this hunger thing, apparently.” He shrugged. “Because as soon as I actually communicated with my beast and mentioned our mate, it was on board and actually seemed relieved. It was then I came looking for you.”
Rafe stopped as the full implication of his pissing around for days hit him. Shit. If he’d started looking earlier then maybe he could’ve helped Tasha’s Pack. His heart almost stopped beating, his eyes dropping guiltily from hers.
“Rafe?” Tasha scooted closer, a finger tipping his chin up so she could see him. “You couldn’t have done anything. I promise.”
He couldn’t prevent the remorse inside him, eating away at his guts. “Maybe I could have. I’ll never know because I was so . . .”
Rafe stopped, unable to continue as the weight of his indecision came crashing down upon him.
Tasha moved closer, her hands either side of his face as she gazed into his eyes. “How long ago did the hunger take over you?”
“Days ago,” he admitted sadly.
“I’ve been on the run for days,” she whispered. “By the time your hunger struck, my Pack was already doomed. It’s not your fault, Rafe.”
“Then why do I feel so guilty?” Rafe asked quietly.
“Because you’re a good man,” she muttered before her lips touched his in a brief kiss. “One that I look forward to getting to know better.”
“I promise I’ll get to the bottom of this,” Rafe told her firmly. “I’ll find out who did this to your Pack and . . .”
Tasha’s finger on his lips shut him up. “I know you will.”
Rafe nodded. “I’m sorry I didn’t come for you sooner.”
“That’s behind us now. I’m just amazed that you went through the hunger.” She raised an eyebrow. “I’ve heard tales about it and some Wolves go nuts. And by nuts I mean completely losing their human side and turning feral. It’s quite scary you went through it. I might’ve lost you too.”
“I did think I was losing my mind at times,” Rafe admitted, both to Tasha and himself.
He dropped his head back, looking at the ceiling as he exhaled loudly. That little snippet causing him to realize he’d almost lost everything: his mate and his Pack.
His stomach lurched at the thought. Pack was everything to him and he’d worked damn hard since taking over from his father to ensure they flourished under him. He would do anything for his Wolves but he’d almost allowed it to slip away. That wasn’t something he’d forget anytime soon.
“Hey,” Tasha’s soft voice brought him back to the present, his eyes dropping to lock with hers. “You made it through. That’s a feat all in itself, many don’t.”
“I nearly lost everything.” Rafe couldn’t still his rapid heartbeats as he continued to think of what could have happened.
“But you didn’t.” Tasha reached up, her soft hand caressing his face. “You didn’t lose your Pack, or me, or, more importantly, yourself.”
“Tasha.” Rafe’s voice came out low, husky, full of emotion as he leaned into her touch. “I’ve seen this before, other Wolves when they’ve met their mate, but damn it, I never understood. Not until I saw you in that fucker’s arms in the forest. At that moment I would’ve taken on Satan himself to free you. I couldn’t bear it that he was touching you, threatening you. It almost was my undoing.”
“I know.” She gave him a shy smile, her eyes coming to life and twinkling up at him. “I felt our pull earlier. I’d jumped over a little stream that cut through the forest and as soon as my feet landed I saw your Wolf in my head. It was bizarre but I had to push it away. I knew they weren’t far behind me so I pushed on until I ended up falling down a dang rabbit hole. Just like me to do something stupid like that.”
He could feel her, sense how her emotions were warring inside her. She wanted him. There was no doubt about that but he could also feel her holding back. No matter. He’d wait for his Tasha to be ready to take the next step.
Rafe huffed out a breath as images of what that next step
