You Rejected Me. Remember?

Monica was furious that she was restrained. However, when the athletic man cupped her face, strange sparks erupted making her wonder. She narrowed her eyes on him. His piercing blue eyes seemed interesting. His eyes were alluring and she felt like she was being sucked into those bright pools of blue.

Who was he?

She wondered. He seemed familiar to her. She felt as though she knew him.

“Mate. It’s me, Cade,” he told her and her eyebrows knitted together. There was something about him. Something soothing. Something enchanting. She slowly relaxed as she gazed deeply into his eyes.

This man seemed to be someone she knew….maybe. She felt the grips of those holding her loosen up a bit.

She smirked. This handsome male maybe someone she knew, however, she was too thirsty at the moment and she wasn’t stupid. Monica silently studied the movements of the others. She was going to use whatever technique she had to, in order to have what she wanted.

“Babe,” he whispered once again and she responded with a smile.

“Monica?” A blond female cautiously approached her.

“Do you need to talk?” Cade asked, gazing deeply into her eyes which were now a mixture of red and brown. It was an indication that she was still under the influence of the vampire, however, Cade hoped that Monica was slowly regaining control.

Still smiling, she nodded. She just needed to be alone with someone…anyone. She knew they would once again restrain her if she made a move in front of them.

“Ok…. Can you please remove the force field around us?” Glancing at Ava, Cade requested.

“Are you sure?” She asked, furrowing her eyebrows.

Nodding his head, “yes. She is my mate. I’m sure I can handle her.”

His confidence was great, however, Calli felt scared for her brother. Ava glanced at Calli’s worried face. Forcing a smile she bobbed her head.

“I believe in him,” she said.

“Okay, but be careful Cade,” Ava warned before removing the force field around them. Celeste didn’t lower her guard down. She kept studying Monica’s movements. However, she couldn’t stop Monica from using her super speed to take Cade away from them.

The doors of the dining room opened wide all of a sudden. Undoubtedly, Monica had inherited Draven’s power of telekinesis. Grabbing onto Cade, Monica bolted through the doors and out into the wilderness. They felt her whizz past them. Within a blink of an eye, Cade and Monica were gone.

***

Monica dashed through the trees. She had no trouble seeing where she was going. Cade kept his eyes squeezed shut until he felt his back being pinned against a hard surface.

Aspen was on full alert and so was Cade. Monica was already baring her fangs, ready to feed on her prey.

“Mate,” Cade spoke, distracting Monica. She froze for a split second. His voice had a strange effect on her.

“Mate?” She tilted her head.

Cade’s lips twitched. He realised that he should use the mate bond to his advantage. He lifted his hand and traced her cheek with his forefinger.

“My beautiful mate,” he whispered.

The sparks that erupted made Monica shudder. However, she scowled and tried to focus on what she wanted to do.

“Shut up! I don’t want to listen to your nonsense! Stop trying to distract me with that ….that magical sparks…” she hissed, pressing him against the tree trunk.

Cade chuckled. He maintained eye contact with his mate and placed his hand behind her ear. His lips crooked upwards as he continued to trace the skin on her face with his thumb and it was distracting Monica. Although Monica wanted to focus, she couldn’t. Something kept nudging in her mind.

Something so familiar….

“Aspen, keep trying to contact Asena. We have to do this together,” Cade linked his wolf, without breaking eye contact with Monica.

“Try to make her break free of whatever is holding her back,” he instructed.

Cade ran his fingers down her neck and traced her mark. She hissed as jolts of excitement ran through her body.

“Wh….what is that?” She stammered.

“This?” Cade smirked as he traced her mark again and this time, she felt her knees go weak. Sucking in a deep breath, Monica closed her eyes as the hair on the back of her neck rose.

Memories started to flood back to her. Memories of her and the handsome man in front of her. Sweet memories. How he showered her with love. How he took care of her and assured her that she too was worthy of love. All that when she thought she wasn’t worthy of anything and when she was at her weakest point, he loved her.

Cade didn’t give in. He kept his thumb on her mark. It was the mark of their love and the proof of their bond. It was much more than a mark that was put on their skin. It was what connected their souls.

“My love,” he whispered.

Monica’s forehead creased. His whisper seemed to shake her soul. Her breathing hitched and she suddenly let go of him. However, his hold was firm on her body

“Let… me go….” She managed to breathe out.

“Never,” Cade replied, secretly hoping that his efforts were paying off.

“Aspen…. How is it going?” He desperately called for his wolf.

“I’m trying, dude. Keep doing what you were doing. The mark is our key,” he responded. He knew that Aspen was right. Gulping, Cade lowered his head towards the crook of her neck and kissed her mark. Squeezing his eyes shut, he prayed to the heavens that it was working.

When his lips touched her skin, she felt as though she was being transported into another dimension. It was as though she and the young man were the only ones who existed. She breathed in deeply, yet she felt as though her erratic heart might jump out of the ribcage.

Gasping for breath, she leaned against Cade for support. Her legs were wobbly and now, she was soaked in sweat.

“Monica….”

A familiar voice started to call her.

“Huh?”

Monica’s eyes widened. She knew she was still in the young man’s arms. She had no desire to distance herself from him, as being close to him gave her a sense of protection.

“Monica….”

Once again the voice called her. She gulped. The voice was distant, yet, she knew it didn’t belong to anyone who was in the woods. She had taken the handsome young man into the woods, to make sure that she would be alone with him.

But then…who was that?

“Monica …it’s me…Asena,” the voice called.

She frowned.

“Asena….?” She whispered, loud enough for Cade to hear her.

“She is your wolf,” he told her, pressing her frame against his.

Frowning, “wolf?”

“Don’t tell me you forgot already!” The voice was louder and clearer, and this time, Monica realised that it was inside her head. Her lips parted as she wondered if she had a wolf and a mate?

“Oh yes, we do! And we are in his arms already,” Asena answered her unasked question.

“How did you know I was wondering about that?” Monica asked the voice.

“I’m inside you. I can hear your thoughts, duh…”

Monica found herself suppressing a chuckle at the wolf’s response.

“How can you forget? Come on Monica. We have been together for three years. We were best friends and we shared every joy and pain. Don’t you remember how we woke up in vampire territory? Don’t you remember the crazy prince, Draven? How about alpha douchebag, Baron?” Asena tried to remind her of her past. Aspen’s constant nudging had helped her break the block and emerge. It was Aspen who pulled Asena out of the state of confusion and now, it was her turn to help her human.

“Vampire…. Draven…” Monica whispered. Her heart skipped a beat when the horrible memories flooded back to her. The room that was filled with half-naked women, tortured and mistreated. The time when she attempted so desperately to hide from the maniac and when he finally lost control and bit her.

The ground shook underneath her. Realisation hit her like a ton of bricks. His bite had turned her into a vampire.

“Not completely, honey. It is part of you now, but I am also here, so we are more like a hybrid,” Asena told her. “I’ll help you control. And as time passes you’ll be a pro at this,” she added.

Monica blinked. Her fangs had retracted back and when Cade saw that her eyes had returned back to the normal brown colour, he mentally rejoiced.

“Mate?” He hopefully called.

Monica smiled. She had now remembered everything, and she now knows who she was.

“Mate,” she whispered back, tracing his lips with her thumb.

Cade wanted to make sure as he didn’t want to fall into a trap. “Aspen? Is she back?” He asked his wolf.

“Yes. She is back now. It was hard to pull Asena out of her state of confusion. It’s a good thing we had completed the mating. The marks strengthened our bond and it made my work easier,” he explained.

Cade’s heart jumped in joy. She was back! His mate was back. He pulled her closer and let her rest her head on his shoulder.

Smiling, Monica laid her head at the crook of her neck and closed her eyes. She no longer felt the need to drink b***d. She now had it under control for the moment.

“Do you still want to drink my b***d?” Cade asked her. Chuckling, she shook her head.

“No, I’m good,” she replied, wrapping her arms around him and beaming in contentment.