Reluctant Enemies

Chapter 12

Taehyung's brushed Beth's hair out of her face with one fur-covered hand, resting his palm against her cheek as he looked into her eyes.

And then his eyes gleamed, and he bent his head down closer, eyes closing as though he were going to press his forehead to hers. Beth's eyes closed as well, though a voice in her mind screamed that there wasn't time, they had to plan, they needed to-

Her thoughts were cut off as a cool nose lifted her shirt.

Beth squeaked and her eyes flew open as his teeth met her skin, and everything she'd ever read about werewolves flashed through her mind...

The first things in her mind were infection, venom, turning into a werewolf...

The next were mates and marking...

She didn't know which was happening...

But her heart seemed to know.

There was no pain, although she couldn't help glimpsing her own blood before screwing her eyes shut and telling herself she'd been an idiot...

Then it was over, and Taehyung was human again, crying next to her.

"I'm  sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..."

Despite the logic telling her to get away, Beth ran a hand through his hair and checked her side as Taehyung cried against the couch.

There was a mark about six inches long running up her side, a strangely beautiful scar.

"Taehyung, what is this?"

Done with running and secrets, she asked him bluntly.

Taehyung sat up, head hanging.

"I'm sorry, I should've asked... I couldn't hold my wolf back anymore, it was hard enough when we met, and then the night you were sleepwalking, it was my fault but I was still jealous of Bernard, it's stupid, he's three times your age but he was there protecting you and I had put you at risk I just..."

Beth sighed, then tilted his head up with two fingers under his chin, forcing him to meet her eyes.

"Just get to the point please, we're running out of time."

Taehyung swallowed, visibly banishing the spark from his eyes when she said "we".

"I- I know you can't tell, because you're not... You don't have a wolf but... We're soulmates. Werewolves, we... We've always been able to tell by how our wolf reacts to that certain person. When I met you I had no idea you were the one who moved into this place, I didn't know you were the new heir. I thought you were a tourist and I had to move fast to make sure..." His voice broke and he looked away for a second as he sucked in a breath before meeting her gaze strongly, eyes pleading for understanding. "To make sure I wouldn't lose you."

Beth sighed. Well that just added another thing for later. It certainly explained the strange connection she had felt with Taehyung, and many of the dreams she'd had.

"You're not going to lose me,  but we need to save this for later. My aunt and uncle are less than..." She glanced at the clock on the wall. "Forty-five minutes."

Taehyung looked at the clock then back to Beth.

"They're not your parents?"

Beth explained what she had seen about her past, how her parents were dead, and she had been taken in and raised as a daughter by her aunt and uncle.

She was going to take him to the kitchen were she had left her phone when they heard a yell from the front door area.

"Ya'll done in there or just leaving the door open to tease me?"