Daniel frowned. “So he what? Rejected you?”
She nodded.
“Holy shit, you’re kidding, right?”
“I’m not kidding. For five years, he and I, we knew what we meant to each other, but nothing ever happened. He’s still a little uncomfortable with my age.”
“Okay, that makes no sense. Mates are like the most important thing.”
She shrugged. “We didn’t grow up the way he did. He doesn’t know how packs work. It’s still new to him.”
Daniel rubbed at his temple. “Okay, fine. I can sort of not understand that, but aside from that, you two are now mates. I mean, you stink of him.”
“Stop it.”
“You do. So I’m guessing the whole rejecting thing is on the back burner, so why haven’t you told anyone?”
Ashley sighed. “Because, what if he doesn’t want to stay? What if he wants to leave again? What if he can’t be part of a pack? I don’t want to get hurt.” She shrugged.
“And what if hewantsto stay? What if he never wants to leave? What if he wants to start a family, be part of a pack for the first time in his life?” Daniel asked.
“I don’t know.”
“I do. You hold on for fucking dear life. Ashley, I don’t know what to say to you. I’ve not found my mate, I’ve not. She’s not out there right now for me, and I can tell you, it is fucking lonely. I’m not going to lie, I’ve fucked a couple of women, and it is … it’s great, but it’s missing that special something. That connection. You have that. You have a guy who’s your mate,your mate. I can’t even tell you how precious that is.”
“He rejected me, Daniel. He was cruel.”
“Trust me, I wouldn’t give a shit. People make mistakes, Ashley. But they do shit that makes you forgive them. Hasn’t he earned your forgiveness?”
“It’s not that simple.”
“Yeah, it is. He’s your mate and you have feelings for him. The reason I know that, his rejection wouldn’t have hurt so much. You have this chance with him, and you’re not taking it.” Daniel laughed.
“Where are you going?” she asked, watching him walk away.
“To work, because I can’t do this with you.”
“Please don’t say anything to anyone.”
“I won’t say anything, but you already know what I’m thinking.” Daniel shook his head, and she watched him leave.
Was she being too hard on Phoenix? She wrapped her arms around her body and glanced over at the house. Several of the windows were open, to try to rid the place of the paint fumes. Ashley closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She understood what Daniel meant. Keeping this a secret was hard.
Every morning her mother would smile and they’d talk, and all she wanted to do was tell her that she’d found her mate. But she didn’t. She’d hear Phoenix’s words in the back of her mind, and it would make her stop, because, what if? What if this was just a brief moment for him? Ashley didn’t know what it was like to live the way he had. She had always been part of a pack and always would be. She looked up at the house and saw Phoenix watching her. What was he thinking?
She held her hand up in a wave and before waiting for him to respond, she got back to work on fixing up the garden, using it as a distraction. She didn’t even stop for lunch, just worked, until hours later, she knew it was late and the sun had long since gone down. Daniel had already left, but didn’t say goodbye. It was the first day they had spent together where he’d not spoken to her. She didn’t like that.
Looking up, she saw Phoenix standing right in front of her.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
“Nothing.” She dropped the trowel she’d been working with and stood up, brushing the mud from her hands. “It’s been a long day.”
He folded his arms. “What did Daniel say to you?”
“How do you know Daniel said anything?” she asked.
“I saw you two in the garden.”