Bonded

Chapter 16

Greyson's alarm jolted him out of a peaceful sleep. He hit the snooze button on the clock radio with slightly more force than necessary. He turned in the bed to check on his mate. He wanted to wake her with a kiss and then spend a few minutes snuggled under the covers before they both had to get up and start their day. He wanted to feel her warm and soft from sleep. However, instead of finding a sleeping Rebecca, he only found an empty bed. Glancing around the room he noticed the shirt and sweatpants she had on the night before, carefully folded and set on his suitcase. He let out a string of curse words. He didn't know why he was surprised, but he was. He was surprised and hurt. She snuck out in the middle of the night like they were doing something wrong. Like he was something to be ashamed of. Feeling beyond frustrated, Greyson decided to head to the gym and take his anger out on a punching bag. He grabbed his gear and headed down.

Patrick met him in the gym. The two men worked out in silence for a while. The only sounds the clank of the weight machine and their grunts of exertion. Patrick waited patiently for his Alpha to come out with whatever was bothering him. After about the twentieth time he slammed a weight down like he wanted to open up a hole to the hotel basement, he decided it might be time to force Greyson to open up.

"So... rough night?" Patrick made sure to keep up his rhythm on the treadmill.

Greyson dropped the fifty-pound dumbbells and rounded on his Beta. "She did it again! I woke up this morning to find her gone. Again. Last night, I thought we were making progress. I could practically see the mate bond effecting her. I can feel it growing stronger between us, pulling us closer and closer. Last night, holding her in my arms as she slept. Knowing she was safe and protected. Trick, it was one of the most profound things I have ever experienced. I know she is mine and I am hers and that we belong to each other. I felt the rightness of it. I felt whole, complete for the first time in my entire life, and I never knew there was anything missing! It's like I had this big Rebecca shaped hole in my soul that I never noticed before. Now that I know it's there, it is all I can think about, it is all I can feel – the lack of her. I can only feel my missing half. I want her. I need her. And I keep waking up alone." Greyson stopped to sit on the weight bench, the outburst exhausting him more than the workout. "I can see her fighting it. The mate bond. I can see it on her face. Glimpses. Flashes of her fighting herself. It is like she is being torn in two." Greyson braced his elbows on his knees and placed his head in his hands.

"First off, your little mate? That little human is able to sneak out on her big bad Alpha Werewolf mate? I wouldn't let that get out or else the High Alpha will send you back to training." Patrick snickered to himself.

"I'm really, really not in the mood, Trick."

"Alright, alright. Since you asked so very nicely. The answer is very simple. You need to talk to her. Wolves are taught from birth that the mate bond is something special, something sacred that should be celebrated when it happens to you. You know from experience that it can turn your whole world upside down. But you know what it is, why you are feeling all these new things. She doesn't. She is human so she doesn't feel the bond the same way we do, but from what you say, it is definitely doing something to her. That has to be confusing and overwhelming. She needs to know. She needs to know what you are to each other. Right now, you're expecting her to play by the rules of a game she has never even heard of. Talk to your little mate. Explain things."

Greyson looked over at his best friend. "So how many times did you screw up with your mate before you figured out that it was easiest just to talk to her?"

Patrick smiled from ear to ear, "Rough estimate? About 1,512."

Greyson shook his head. "I know I need to talk to her. But she seems so stressed out. I don't want to pile on. I don't want her to feel I am expecting her to make decisions she isn't ready for."

"Sounds to me like you are trying to protect her. I get it. I do. Your little mate has some... quality that makes me want to protect her too. But letting her continue to feel like she is being torn in two is not protecting her. It is the opposite."

Greyson stood up. "Tonight. I'll explain everything to her tonight. But today, we need to get back to the mansion and get more info."

Patrick gestured to the door, "I'll follow your lead, Alpha."