Exile by E.L. Thorne

Author:E.L. Thorne [Thorne, E.L.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: ELTH

Chapter Eleven

Luke

I—and my wolf—had been driven by a need to see Rachel so deep neither of us could have avoided doing exactly that. I’d watched her the day after she caught me on Rocco. I’d seen her looking for the mustangs.

Rocco wasn’t in the area, though. He’d headed south, the way the mustang sometimes did. I had followed him, but I’d been torn, not wanting to leave the attractive scientist behind. So I’d run myself ragged, between checking on Rocco and coming back to find her fruitlessly scouring the flatlands for the horses.

Now, Rocco had brought the herd back, and she hadn’t come out this morning. Had she quit? If so, that would be the greatest thing that could happen to the herd. Or would it? What if her employers sent out someone else? Someone who actually managed to get samples? To turn them in? To wreak havoc on the herd by implementing policies?

But that wasn’t the worst part of her quitting the research. There would be the knowledge that she wouldn’t be out there, on the land, blue eyes bright with wonder at the sights. She loved it—it showed in the way her face lit up when she was on the flatlands. When she saw the horses. When she gazed at the mesa.

All those days, when she thought she was studying the horses and the landscape, hindered by a wolf, she hadn’t always been alone. I’d snuck up, careful to keep a low profile, and watched her from up close while she sketched.

Her hands twitched, and she shoved them in her pockets. What was making her nervous? Was she scared of me?

“Pardon?”

“I said, are you missing anything?” I reached into my back pocket and pulled out a bandana.

She laughed. “Oh. I didn’t— Wait. How did you know? That could be anyone’s.”

“No one else goes out there. Just you. Day in, day out.”

She exhaled a sigh that I would have sworn was relief, then dropped into a chair, a hand over her face. “I thought you were here to fire me.” Her voice was muffled. “I’m such a failure.”

“Fire you? Why would I fire you? I can’t. I’m not your boss. Why would anyone do that anyway?”

Her head rose, defiance in her eyes. “Like you don’t know.” She flew out of her seat, put a finger on my chest. “You know exactly why.”

I remained, willing to be the one who took the brunt of her anger. I knew why she was angry. I’d thwarted her efforts. Or rather, my wolf had. But she didn’t understand. There was no way she could fathom the feelings I had for Rocco. How the stallion was like family to me, especially now that I had no pack.

She glared at me, her expression relentless. “I saw you riding him.”

“I know you did.”

Her mouth dropped. “You knew I saw you?” Expressions crossed over her face, one after another. Confusion, bewilderment, anger, then back to confusion. Her finger dropped from my chest. Like she’d lost control of it.

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