Three of them, making him think Sarah had died.
“Well, Ginger eventually took off with a guy that night,” Sarah said, resuming the story. “The other two guys…” She spoke so quietly, he could barely hear. “Well, I don’t know. Somehow, I…”
He clenched his fists to keep his bear claws from breaking out.
“Anyway, the whole thing was a mistake. Ginger went off with one guy, and there were these two other guys and I…I…”
Soren kicked at the ground, scattering gravel.
“God knows what I would have done if Todd hadn’t come along—”
His heart screeched to a stop. “Todd?” His cousin and best friend, Todd?
At first, he was elated. Todd had prevented a terrible crime. But then it hit him that Sarah wasn’t done with the story yet.
“It was my fault,” she said, walking slowly as if in a trance. “He said we shouldn’t. Couldn’t.”
Soren flexed his fingers and clawed at thin air.
“But I pushed him hard enough that he wanted it, too. God, Soren. I missed you so much, and I don’t know — with the full moon and the drinks and missing you so much… I wanted you that night more than ever.”
He’d wanted her that night, too. Bad enough that he’d jerked off, pretending it was her. And for a while there, he’d convinced himself it was. It felt that real, that good. Until it ended and he was left empty and alone.
“I had my eyes closed the whole time,” she said, barely above the breeze.
He squinted at her. She’d always kept her eyes on him, every time they’d been together. Every single time.
“Pretending it was you… For a while, I even believed it was you, touching me. Whispering to me.” A tear rolled down her cheek. “And afterward, all I could do was cry, because it felt so wrong.”
She walked a few more steps, but Soren stood rooted to the spot as his mind spun.
Not about Todd. Not about spiked drinks. About something completely different.
What was that old legend he’d heard told, long ago? What did they call it?
Moonlust, that was it.
“Moon what?” Sarah spun around.
He hadn’t realized he said it aloud, but now he was stuck.
“Moonlust. An old legend.” An old
bear
legend, but he left that part out. It happened to mates, they said. The closest, truest destined mates. But how could he tell her that?
“What legend?” she asked, irritated.
“When two people…when two people who are destined to be together think of each other at exactly the same time on exactly the same night, and they… Well, they…”
He let that part hang, because surely she got it by now. When destined mates dreamed themselves right into each other’s arms and made a connection that erased the space between them.
“Tell me,” he said in a raspy voice. “Tell me what I said to you that night.”
She tilted her head at him. “What you said?”
“Tell me what you heard, Sarah.” He was speaking too loudly now, and his voice carried across the lake. But it was important. God, everything hinged on what she said next. Had she really heard his thoughts despite all the distance between them that night?
Sarah faced the lake, closed her eyes, and stood silently for so long, he was sure she was never going to speak.
I’ll love you forever, my mate,
he’d told her that night. That night and that night only, because he’d never risked the word
mate
with her before.
She stooped, picked up a stone, and sent it skipping across the lake. The clouds reflected in the surface scattered and overlapped, suddenly more storm than peaceful afternoon. Fitting for his mood, and for Arizona — a place that could change in the blink of an eye.
Slowly, the blue of the water and the white of the clouds settled back to their respective places again, which meant he was the only one trembling now.
“I’ll love you forever, my mate,” Sarah whispered. So quietly, he nearly missed it.
Soren stared at her reflection. Stared at the truth, in a way.
Mate,
his bear hummed
“Well, Ginger eventually took off with a guy that night,” Sarah said, resuming the story. “The other two guys…” She spoke so quietly, he could barely hear. “Well, I don’t know. Somehow, I…”
He clenched his fists to keep his bear claws from breaking out.
“Anyway, the whole thing was a mistake. Ginger went off with one guy, and there were these two other guys and I…I…”
Soren kicked at the ground, scattering gravel.
“God knows what I would have done if Todd hadn’t come along—”
His heart screeched to a stop. “Todd?” His cousin and best friend, Todd?
At first, he was elated. Todd had prevented a terrible crime. But then it hit him that Sarah wasn’t done with the story yet.
“It was my fault,” she said, walking slowly as if in a trance. “He said we shouldn’t. Couldn’t.”
Soren flexed his fingers and clawed at thin air.
“But I pushed him hard enough that he wanted it, too. God, Soren. I missed you so much, and I don’t know — with the full moon and the drinks and missing you so much… I wanted you that night more than ever.”
He’d wanted her that night, too. Bad enough that he’d jerked off, pretending it was her. And for a while there, he’d convinced himself it was. It felt that real, that good. Until it ended and he was left empty and alone.
“I had my eyes closed the whole time,” she said, barely above the breeze.
He squinted at her. She’d always kept her eyes on him, every time they’d been together. Every single time.
“Pretending it was you… For a while, I even believed it was you, touching me. Whispering to me.” A tear rolled down her cheek. “And afterward, all I could do was cry, because it felt so wrong.”
She walked a few more steps, but Soren stood rooted to the spot as his mind spun.
Not about Todd. Not about spiked drinks. About something completely different.
What was that old legend he’d heard told, long ago? What did they call it?
Moonlust, that was it.
“Moon what?” Sarah spun around.
He hadn’t realized he said it aloud, but now he was stuck.
“Moonlust. An old legend.” An old
bear
legend, but he left that part out. It happened to mates, they said. The closest, truest destined mates. But how could he tell her that?
“What legend?” she asked, irritated.
“When two people…when two people who are destined to be together think of each other at exactly the same time on exactly the same night, and they… Well, they…”
He let that part hang, because surely she got it by now. When destined mates dreamed themselves right into each other’s arms and made a connection that erased the space between them.
“Tell me,” he said in a raspy voice. “Tell me what I said to you that night.”
She tilted her head at him. “What you said?”
“Tell me what you heard, Sarah.” He was speaking too loudly now, and his voice carried across the lake. But it was important. God, everything hinged on what she said next. Had she really heard his thoughts despite all the distance between them that night?
Sarah faced the lake, closed her eyes, and stood silently for so long, he was sure she was never going to speak.
I’ll love you forever, my mate,
he’d told her that night. That night and that night only, because he’d never risked the word
mate
with her before.
She stooped, picked up a stone, and sent it skipping across the lake. The clouds reflected in the surface scattered and overlapped, suddenly more storm than peaceful afternoon. Fitting for his mood, and for Arizona — a place that could change in the blink of an eye.
Slowly, the blue of the water and the white of the clouds settled back to their respective places again, which meant he was the only one trembling now.
“I’ll love you forever, my mate,” Sarah whispered. So quietly, he nearly missed it.
Soren stared at her reflection. Stared at the truth, in a way.
Mate,
his bear hummed
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