Un.Requited (Claimed Series) Read online

  She stared at him in disbelief. There had to be a reasonable explanation as to why Fergus turned out so different from his twin, but she couldn’t come up with one if her life depended on it.

  Without waiting for a response, Fergus winked at her, tossing the pair of jeans into the cart.

  Originally, Devan was supposed to bring Hayden shopping this morning. Cole had given her the credit card and asked her to get clothes for Hayden. As soon as he had walked out of the room, Devan had flicked the card toward Hayden before leaving the house without another word. As a silent spectator, Fergus had gleefully volunteered in her place and Addie was quick to come along.

  “Pink?” Fergus inquired airily. “Or do you prefer black?” He held up two shirts, leveling them in front of his body again.

  “Black,” Hayden responded, amused.

  She checked the price tag on the jeans, making sure he was picking out reasonably priced clothes. She didn’t need to burn a hole through Cole’s pocket, no matter how enthusiastic Fergus was about grabbing a shirt from every rack.

  “No, no, get pink,” Addie argued. “You would look beautiful in that color, Hayden.”

  Fergus looked between Hayden and Addie before slyly putting both shirts into the cart when he thought no one was looking.

  Hayden leaned her head on her open palm, lazily looking through the hangers with her opposite hand. Shopping was her least favorite pastime, even more so when it reminded her of home when her mother used to drag her to the stores in New York.

  Back in New York, her mother had many stores at her disposal. Fortunately, Albertville only had a handful of stores with a decent clothing selection. If she were lucky, they would finish within the hour.

  “So what’s so special about her?” asked a hushed, but audible inquiry.

  Amber eyes slowly looked up, spying a small group of werewolves gathered only a short distance away. The majority of the group was male, but there were two females littered throughout. Most of them were surveying Hayden with curiosity, some with suspicion.

  Immediately on edge, Hayden straightened, never looking away from their inquisitive gazes. She remembered Cole’s words from the night before and stood her ground. They would hate her because of her Sire, even more so because of the mating mark on her neck, but they could never walk over her.

  “Only that she has Nicolas’ claim on her neck,” a boy responded, eyeing Hayden in intrigue. “The Alpha’s think she’s going to lure trouble into town.”

  Looking deeper, Hayden not only saw disgust in their expressions, but she could also see the fear. What Hayden didn’t understand was why everyone was so insistent that she would be the reason Nicolas and the rogues came to their town.

  Didn’t they know that Cole and Nicolas had a fierce rivalry? The only reason Nicolas had claimed Hayden was because he thought Cole was interested in her as well.

  She watched the group retreat, apparently having accomplished their mission of catching a glimpse of her. Her newness would wear off eventually. She just had to put on a front until then.

  “Excuse me?”

  Hayden turned at the stony and startled exclamation. Addie and Fergus stood behind her, appearing flabbergasted. Surprisingly, Addie had asked the question. Her blue eyes were hard as she stared at the mark on Hayden’s neck.

  “I had thought Cole…” she trailed off, lost for words.

  They hadn’t known. Cole hadn’t told them.

  Fergus and Addie were the only two who had accepted Hayden into the pack. They were the only ones who made her feel comfortable enough not to hide away in her bedroom all day. Seeing their horrified expressions made Hayden realize just how much she depended on them. While she could handle the strangers’ disgust and fear, she couldn’t handle her pack members’ rejection.

  Slowly removing her hands from the clothes rack, Hayden turned her back on them.

  “Hayden…” Fergus struggled for words.

  In a sense of panic, Hayden quickly bypassed their shell-shocked forms and hurried out of the store. The strong feeling of confinement was back again, and the only way to soothe it was by leaving. This time, it was the thought of having nowhere to turn that triggered the feeling. Cole and Blake briefly entered her mind, but she pushed it away. They had already done so much for her. She didn’t want burden them all the time.

  Lacking any real direction, Hayden walked down the sidewalk in a slight daze. She had left her scarf at Cole’s house, thinking that she hadn’t needed it. She had believed all the secrets were out, yet Addie and Fergus were clearly still in the dark. Cole hadn’t told them and she was the one to suffer because of it. Why hadn’t he told them?

  “Umm, are you coming in?” a voice questioned with a slight hitch.

  Blinking, Hayden found herself standing lifelessly in front of a bowling alley. A boy, around her age, stood at the door. His hand was just about to turn the sign from ‘closed’ to ‘open’ on the front window. Realizing he was human, Hayden’s hands jerked, only to fall at her sides when she remembered she didn’t have her scarf with her.

  “I didn’t realize we had such a crowd on Saturdays,” he joked, frowning when he saw her face. “That’s cool if you want to stay outside. It’s a good day for… walking.”

  Slowly flipping the sign over, the boy shut the door. He stood on the other side briefly, blinking at Hayden before turning and traveling deeper into the bowling alley.

  Hayden realized she must have startled the boy with her lack of response. Truthfully, she had been more shocked than anything to see him. She knew humans and werewolves inhabited this town, but she hadn’t expected to run into a human so suddenly. She shouldn’t follow the boy, especially without her scarf or Cole around to pacify her.

  Doubtless of the forewarnings, she found herself entering after the human. She had nowhere else to go and she didn’t have enough courage to confront Addie and Fergus yet.

  Inside, the empty and isolated alley was enough to calm her racing nerves. It was clean, quaint, and the lanes were polished and the bowling balls glossed. There were ten lanes and a small concession was placed on a raised platform.

  “Bowling for one?”

  His voice broke through her daze. Again.

  Hayden found herself grinning hesitantly when she noticed he was standing professionally behind a podium. “Actually, I was wondering if you had a cup of water.”

  His eyes widened before he nodded. “Follow me.”

  The boy was clothed in a dark uniform consisting of black slacks and a charcoal bowling shirt. As he led Hayden across the alley, he moved with a sense of awkwardness, almost as if he hadn’t grown into his body yet. His stature was tall and his shoulders were broad. If it wasn’t for the alluring scent of human, Hayden might have even thought he was a young werewolf.

  Sitting on the offered stool, Hayden watched as he filled a cup up with water and slid it across the serving table toward her. After thanking him, Hayden sipped the water, giving herself something to do as she devised what to do next.

  Eventually, she would have to go back to Addie and Fergus. As much as Hayden would like to find another pack to stay with, she knew that it would be similar to her current predicament. What she needed to do was calm herself, her insecurities, and go apologize about the secrecy.

  The human suddenly leaned his upper torso on the concession bar, giving a thin-lipped smile. “I’m Shane Donovan by the way.” He paused, considering her. A few strands of his light brown hair fell into his equally brown eyes. “I haven’t seen you in town, what pack are you settled with?”

  Hayden almost choked on her water. “Excuse me?”

  He looked uncertainly at her amber eyes. “Well, you’re a werewolf, aren’t you?”

  Glancing around the alley, Hayden was thankful to see it empty. “How did you know?” She turned back to him, studying him closer and sniffing. He still smelt human.

  “I…” he trailed off, looking uncomfortable. “I live with my grandfather, Red Donovan. Both he
and I know about werewolves. Actually, we live right next to Falco’s property. We’re the only humans living on the south side of town. All the other humans live north of town.”

  Setting her cup down, Hayden deliberated him closely. She had only met one human who knew about werewolves. Even for having a brother as a werewolf, Gregory Martin had still given off a nervous air when he was around Hayden. This boy seemed confident and intrigued.

  “Aren’t you afraid to be near me?” she asked wryly.

  Shane gave an uncertain smile, as if he wasn’t sure what she was asking. “No. Should I be?”

  Pausing, Hayden considered the question. “You smell appealing to me.”

  Shane tilted his head, cocking an eyebrow in interest. “You’re a newborn, aren’t you? Your craving for humans will eventually diminish. Once you and your wolf coincide, you’ll have better control over your wolf instincts.” He scratched his nose. “I find werewolves extremely fascinating creatures; it’s actually why I moved here to Albertville.”

  His knowledge certainly exceeded that of a simple human who was just aware of werewolves. He clearly knew more than Hayden did. His exuberance over werewolves was completely foreign to her.

  “I don’t know what’s so fascinating,” she hedged. “I’d give anything to be human again.”

  His chocolate-brown eyes squinted at her. “You’re a newborn,” he said again, as if she hadn’t already known that. “You haven’t had your first moon, have you?” At her negative response, he continued. “Most newborns change their perception after the first transformation. And once you bond with your pack, there is no bond stronger.” A wistful smile crossed his lips.

  He was so sure, so confident, that Hayden wondered if he could be right. She had never let herself think about the positives of being a werewolf. She was always thinking about the negatives. Hopefully, he was right and the full moon would change her perception.

  As if reading her mind, Shane offered an explanation. “I did a lot of thinking on the subject of newborns versus Purebred werewolves. Your negativity in regards to your wolf is probably why you and most newborns have trouble controlling themselves in their human form. You’re trying to resist your wolf and your wolf is trying to resist you back.”

  Hayden looked down at the cup of water. His reasoning made an awful lot of sense, but it was a bit unnerving to hear that there was something else inside her, as if she had two personalities.

  “You know a lot about werewolves for someone who just expresses simple curiosity,” Hayden accused lightly, offering him a light grin.

  Shane’s cheeks turned rosy and he leaned away from her, shrugging his shoulders innocently. “You know, I never did catch your name or your Alpha.”

  “Hayden Grey,” she greeted, holding out her hand. “And Cole is my Alpha.”

  There was no hesitation on his behalf as he shook her hand firmly, quickly, as if he’d had experience touching newborns before. And surprisingly enough, there was hardly any hunger on Hayden’s behalf. She blinked, watching him in interest.

  “Cole Slayter,” Shane said, surprised. “It’s good to hear he’s started taking pack members.” His eyes then looked over her head and toward the customer who had just entered. If possible, his face grew paler. “Hello, Mr. Slayter.”

  Before Shane had even greeted Cole, Hayden had stiffened. The Alpha’s presence was hard to overlook.

  “Mr. Donovan,” Cole greeted with strain. “Hayden.” The Alpha saved his growl for her. “Addie called me, completely distressed. She didn’t know where you had gone.”

  It took her quite some time to gather herself before she turned to look at his approaching figure. “She wouldn’t have been distressed if you had told her about Nicolas beforehand,” Hayden said coolly. “Why didn’t you tell them about it?” she demanded. Her anger was beginning to blossom, targeting Cole and his secrecy with the pack.

  He came to a stop next to her. “We talked about this last night—”

  His tone was patronizing, and it irked her. He was to blame for this happening, not her.

  “No, we didn’t,” she growled lowly. Before she could retort further, a large hand suddenly curled around her throat, a thumb pressing warningly against her pulse point.

  “Watch your temper. I don’t take kindly to pups challenging me.” His tone was all growl and all bite. He leaned forward, his green eyes dark with ire. “Do you understand?”

  It was his influence again, the kind of influence that Nicolas and Tracer carried around them like a second skin. It made Hayden freeze, her mind becoming hazy and her temper crumbling instantly. Cole might have thought Hayden had a temper, but he seemed like he was on a short leash today as well.

  A part of her wanted to struggle against his hold, but another, smarter part of her knew his act of dominance was solid. She could never win against Cole, especially in this condition.

  With instincts that Hayden knew belonged to the creature inside of her, she arched closer to Cole, tipping her neck back. The action broke her eye contact with him and exposed her throat in submission. She hated it, but she grudgingly understood Cole’s actions. He was her Alpha and she needed to learn not to lip off to him, especially in public.

  Cole squeezed her throat once more before letting go. His hand had been heavy with pressure, not painful, though she knew it could have been. His intention had been to warn her and assert his dominance over the situation. It wounded Hayden’s pride more than it frightened her.

  “Let’s bring this conversation elsewhere.” Cole took Hayden’s wrist and pulled her away from Shane and his surprised observation.

  His hold on her arm was gentle, an act of contrition as he led Hayden over to a table in the bowling alley. He held out a chair for her, motioning for her to sit.

  Across from her, a mirror-like panel stood tall, reflecting her image back at her. As she studied the reflection, she took special interest in watching Cole as he leaned over her chair. His eyes, no longer dark with ire, softened as he placed his cheek flush against hers. Unexpectedly, he nuzzled her cheek affectionately, apologetically.

  If she had been entirely human, the action would have been incredibly alien to her. Instead, if on instinct, she felt her body relax at the gesture.

  While she still held a grudge against Alphas and their control issues, Hayden found his caress strangely loving and erotic. Her lips quirked as his stubble tickled her skin. Slowly but surely, her wounded pride was beginning to vanish.

  Pleased green eyes traced her smile in the mirror, matching it with one of his own. “You have a temper, my pup,” he murmured affectionately. Pulling away from Hayden, he sat down in the chair opposite of her. “I take it you didn’t get any sleep last night?” he asked dryly.

  Confused at first, Hayden suddenly remembered warning him about her sour mood if she was ever sleep deprived. “I slept just fine,” she admitted, already knowing what he would say next.

  If on cue, his eyebrows rose mockingly. “Then you are right to assume I wouldn’t want to see you sleep deprived.”

  Her grin wavered as she remembered why she had been angry in the first place. “You didn’t tell the pack about Nicolas. Why?” Subconsciously, she touched the closed, but visible mark on her throat. Cole’s eyes watched the action, his jaw tight. “They must feel betrayed.”

  The Alpha rubbed the heel of his palm against his eyes. “You might as well know the history behind Nicolas and me. It’s not right that you should be clueless when you were forced in the rivalry between us.” His attention dropped to her neck once more. “Marie and Xavier Slayter were exceptionally respected werewolves in this town, in the werewolf community as a whole.”

  “Your parents?” she ventured, having an inkling to where this was going.

  He nodded in conformation. “Many packs looked up to my father for leadership and guidance. He was a force to be reckoned with.” Cole smiled grimly, his eyes lost in a memory. “But he had one weakness, my mother.” His voice turned bitter and his
lips twisted painfully in thought. “Marie and Xavier were life mates.”

  Hayden shook her head at the term, clueless. “Like vampires?”

  As if werewolves were ordinary creatures, Cole seemed almost insulted at her comparison. “Vampires aren’t real, Hayden,” he scolded. “Life mates are a rarity among the werewolf society. Essentially, they are two souls created for the other. The wolves sense their other half, their destined mate. Once they bond, there is nothing that can put a wedge between them, not even death.”

  Apparently, he was entirely serious about life mates. It was hard to imagine that something as mythical as werewolves had other branches of even more mythical legends. She shook herself, bringing her mind back to the topic at hand.

  “You mean they die when their life mate passes away?”

  Cole didn’t seem to look highly upon life mates if his expression had any say in the matter.

  “Yes. Nicolas knew of their status as life mates. Because he couldn’t defeat Xavier in a fair match, he chose the only way he could to destroy my father. He slaughtered my defenseless mother. As a result, Xavier killed himself after discovering his life mate’s dead body.” His voice was void, detached.

  The whole admission really affected Hayden. How could someone be cruel enough to destroy a man through a vulnerable woman? It made Hayden sick and she marveled at Cole’s decision to take her on as a pack mate. While Nicolas’ claim on her wasn’t personal, it was still a claim. If anything, she was surprised Cole hadn’t just killed her because of that claim.

  Reaching over, Hayden tentatively placed her hand on his closed fist. His body seemed to flinch at the contact, and just as she was about to pull away, his fist opened and he entwined his fingers through hers. She didn’t offer any unnecessary condolences about his parents’ death. She only squeezed his hand, letting him know that she was listening and he had her sympathy.

  “How long ago did it happen?” she asked softly.

  Cole turned his gaze to hers. “Two years ago.” His eyes were dark, aged by tragedy. “Because I was so young, and it was so sudden, many of my father’s earlier pack members left once I was named Alpha. They didn’t want to be led by someone so untested.”