Clentine:
I wasn’t sure what ca over or what made call him that na, but the mont I did, it felt like a small shock ran through him.
As if my voice had triggered sothing inside him.
That’s when I knew it was him. My mate.
"Ian, watch out!" I scread as the ogre charged from behind him.
Ian broke away from and swung his massive claw, grabbing the ogre by the neck.
He slamd it to the ground, tearing the earth open beneath it.
I panicked even more watching him. He didn’t look like a wolf anymore, more like a mix of a wolf and a jaguar.
The way he moved, the way he tore the ogres apart, limb by limb, was terrifying.
He was too strong, so strong that the entire building started to shake and crumble around us.
I closed my eyes and let him finish.
He was more violent than all of us combined when we fought the monsters.
Then silence hit.
Before I could open my eyes, I felt arms, thick, furry arms, wrapping around .
I gasped and opened my eyes to see Ian holding close.
The debris from the collapsing roof was falling on him instead of .
He kept safe, shielding completely as he carried through the ruins and out of the school.
Once we were outside, he kept running until we were far away.
I could feel his heartbeat slowing, his body shifting back.
When he finally stopped, he set down and dropped to his knees.
His wolf form began to fade, his human side breaking through.
He coughed hard as his body changed, until the crawling beast turned into a crawling man, wearing nothing but black shorts.
"Ian," I breathed, not even giving him a mont to rest before throwing myself at him.
He turned to , bracing himself with one hand on the ground.
With the other, he pulled close.
I held him so tightly he fell onto his back, laughing under his breath.
"I guess you missed ," Ian said. His voice was calm and gentle.
I pulled away from the hug and looked at him.
I was still lying on top of him while he rested on his elbows, keeping his upper body lifted from the ground.
He was looking at with those beautiful eyes of his.
"So similar, yet so different," I murmured, gently running my finger along his cheek, touching his face as if to make sure he was really there.
"From the beginning, I knew you’d be the one to notice when I am replaced," he replied, his tone serious but full of emotion.
I cupped his face in my hands and leaned in to kiss him softly.
I felt his body freeze for a second. When I pulled back, I saw the shock in his eyes.
I had never touched soone and seen that kind of look before, a mix of happiness and disbelief, like he’d finally gotten sothing he’d wanted for a long ti.
Seeing that look made feel special again, after being treated like nothing for days.
"Wow. If I knew you’d kiss , I would’ve given myself up to my brother a long ti ago," he joked.
As soon as he said that, I frowned.
"No. You’re never handing yourself over to anyone again. I won’t allow it," I said firmly.
He smiled and placed his hand over my elbow, sliding it down to hold my wrist.
I opened my hand, and he took the pendant from it.
"This is my mother’s pendant," I said, still lying on top of him.
He didn’t seem to want to move, either.
He lifted the pendant into the air, then lay back with his arms spread out.
I sat on his stomach, my legs apart, hands resting on him, just watching.
I hadn’t realized having him back would feel this good.
He lay there like a giant beast for a few seconds before sitting up.
His sharp features made blush and climb off him.
He turned around and crawled on all fours toward a nearby tree where his uniform was lying.
He sat beside it, searching through the pockets until he pulled sothing out.
I tilted my head, confused.
The world seed to stop when he turned around and crawled back to , stopping right in front of .
His abs looked incredible, but it was the thing in his hand that caught my attention.
"What’s this?" I asked as he held out an album.
I snatched it from his hands and opened it quickly, flipping through the pages as tears filled my eyes.
"How did you get these?" I whispered, crying as I looked at photo after photo of my mother and little brother.
"I got them for you," he explained softly. "They’re from different tis, one from the hospital when your mother gave birth, and others from events throughout her life. It turns out everyone lied to you. Every pack mber who had ever crossed paths with your mother, or attended an event where she was present, had her in the background of their photos. I just had them enhanced, and here you go. I’m sorry for tearing up the pictures of your family."
My body froze. My hands started to tremble, and he reached out to steady them.
"That’s why you didn’t give a chance," he said quietly. "I tore and ruined a few of your family’s photos, and now I’ve brought you a whole album. Will you forgive ?"
I looked up at him, then set the pendant and the album aside.
"All is forgiven, Ian. I forgave you the day I found out your brother had taken you from ," I said.
My lips trembled as I saw the shock on his face.
I hadn’t believed him when he said he wouldn’t chase after .
What he had done was sothing even the others hadn’t done.
They thought a simple apology would be enough for to accept them back into my life and give them another chance.
But Ian had actually redeed himself and proved he was the only one who deserved a chance.
I threw my arms around him again, hugging him tightly.
I held him so hard I thought one of us might break.
He hugged back just as tightly, then rolled us over and pressed his lips against mine.
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