Chapter 10 - Kaleem
Two Days Later
It was a beautiful and sunny day, yet the forest was silent. It was known, maybe not by everyone but most, that whenever the forest was quiet, night or day, it was cause for concern.
Whenever animals became quiet and skittish, danger or trouble was afoot.
I was meeting Colin today, and perhaps the forest knew that. Perhaps Colin’s arrival in town had triggered a state of unrest.
Well, I knew that wasn’t the case. As horrible of a person as he was, Colin didn’t hold such dark energy to affect nature. Still, I felt uneasy, and it wasn’t helping that I couldn’t stop thinking about Diana.
Closing my eyes, I stepped away from Killian.
My head was throbbing, and the pain was only getting worse. Instead of waking up beside Diana two days ago, I woke up alone and found a note left by her. With my hand in my pocket, I felt the smooth paper, and while I couldn’t feel the words scribbled on it, I’d read the note multiple times over to see it clearly in my mind.
Goodbye, Kaleem.
I wanted to crumble the paper but didn’t. It was the only thing I had from her.
Over and over, I’d replayed the night Diana, and I had spent together, and each time my wolf howled in agony. I’d never felt such passion or a starving need to please someone else. I couldn’t stop thinking about her lips on my skin, her claws digging into my flesh, and her moans in my ear.
“Kaleem?” my brother laid a hand on my shoulder while stepping around to face me. “I know you don’t want to talk about it, but I believe we have to.”
Of course, he was talking about Diana, and no, I didn’t want to talk about it. If I did, if I showed someone else the note, it would solidify what Diana said.
Of course, we were already meant to be over, we have been for years now, but a part of me, now that Diana was back and everything was on the table, hoped perhaps we could find our way back to each other.
Of course, the truth about her being Colin’s niece was yet another obstacle in our way.
Killian had no idea what happened between Diana and me days ago or that she was Colin’s niece, but he knew her effect on me. She’d vanished after that night, and I couldn’t exactly have wolves search for her. It would cause too many questions.
So I’d spent these past two days on edge and restless, with only Killian having some idea of what was wrong.
“If you are allowing Colin and his pack to return, Diana will be hereevery day, so you need to deal with this from now.” Killian’s hand fell from my shoulder. “I know you love her brother, but you’re torturing yourself.”
I didn’t respond, and Killian sighed.
“When last did you see her?”
“Two days ago,” I replied. “We talked things through.” I gave him the note, and Killian sighed while pressing a finger to his temple. “You don’t need to worry, Killian. Everything is over between us.”
“Is it?” he asked while giving the note back. “It’s clearly not over for you, Kaleem. She affects you greatly, and as the alpha of our pack, you can’t allow that to happen. You can’t be distracted.”
“I know that Killian, okay,” I growled. “I know,” I said more softly because he was right and was only concerned for me. “Seeing her after all this time just—it’s uprooted so many things. Things are so different from when she left—or rather when I banished her.”
“You chased her pack out of town,” Killian replied. “Not her specifically, and you did what you thought was best for our pack and hers. You could have killed Colin.”
“If I had, it would have been better,” I grumbled, and Killian frowned. “I’ll explain later.”
Killian shook his head. “You can’t do that. I can’t wait until later. What aren’t you telling me?” he stepped closer, his eyes glistening with intrigue. “What did you do?”
I found myself rolling my eyes the way Diana would. “I did nothing.” I looked around the forest, listening to make sure Colin or anyone else hadn’t joined us yet. “Diana is Colin’s niece.”
Killian’s face went blank, and he leaned back. “What?”
“That was my exact reaction,” I replied. “Her dad, Mathieu, is Colin’s half-brother.”
“Shit,” Killian hissed, and I nodded. Pinching his chin contemplatively, he then frowned. “You know, it makes sense Colin sent her to deliver his message about a meeting, even without her being his niece. You know that, right?”