Dimitri’s POV
I leaned on her bedroom door and took a deep breath.
This was going to be so fucking hard. I just wanted to hold her and comfort her. I wanted to tell her that she was mine. I wanted to make her mine.
My mate was suffering and I couldn’t tell her that she was mine. I fucking couldn’t.
Her tears were like knives to my heart. Her pain was burning my soul like fire.
I wanted to take it all away. I wanted to make it stop. If I could, I would take her sadness and pain and endure it for her.
It had only been about half an hour since I found out that she was mine and I already felt excruciating pain because I couldn’t make her mine. Every moment felt like an eternity, as I counted the seconds and minutes until I would be able to tell her. My mind was racing with a million thoughts and scenarios, each one more hopeful and more painful than the last. I was hoping that she would somehow know sooner. I was afraid that she would leave before she found out who I was to her.
The pain of waiting was palpable, a physical ache that seemed to grip my entire body and soul. My heart was beating faster, my palms were sweaty, and my stomach was churning with anxiety and fear. All because I would have to wait nine fucking months to have her.
I took another deep breath and forced myself to walk away. I would fucking go back inside and grab her if I didn’t.
I rushed downstairs, needing to get out of the house. Her scent here was overwhelming. It reminded me that I would be able to enjoy it fully for nine more months.
Nine fucking months.
“Dimitri?” I heard my mother’s voice as I opened the front door. “Where are you going?”
“I have to go back to work!” I shouted as I slammed the door and walked away.
My whole body was tense. I couldn’t stop clenching my muscles. I could stop gritting my teeth.
How the fuck would I survive without her for so long?
The most annoying sound in the world made my mood even worse than it already was.
“Dimitri, baby,” I heard Savannah’s voice as soon as I entered the packhouse.
Savannah was one of my pack members. She was the daughter of my father’s Omega and she was the biggest mistake I ever made.
I promised myself that I would wait for my mate. I promised myself that I would save myself for her.
But about a year ago, I got drunk on wolfsbane and beer and I had sex with Savannah. She’s been acting like I was going to make her my Luna ever since that night.
“What?” I sighed as I turned around to look at her.
She smiled and approached me. She was just about to place her hands on my chest when I grabbed them and pinned them down to her body. No one was going to touch me. I belonged to Maddie. Every part of my body and soul belonged to her, even though she didn’t know it yet.
“What’s wrong, Dimitri?” Savannah asked, pouting. “You don’t want me to touch you?”
I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair.
“What do you want, Savannah?” I asked, annoyed.
She frowned at me and crossed her arms over her chest. “I was going to ask you to dinner tonight, but your attitude is throwing me off.”
“Good,” I said as I turned back around and started walking upstairs.
“Dimitri!” Savannah shouted. “Don’t turn your back to me!”
I heard the annoying sound of her heels as she followed me. I gritted my teeth.
“I am not in the mood, Savannah,” I said, clenching my fists. “Leave.”
“Don’t talk to me like that, Dimitri,” she said angrily. “I am your future…”
“Don’t finish that sentence,” I growled as I turned around abruptly. “I already told you that you would never be my mate and my Luna.”
That title belonged to Maddie. No one was going to take it from her.
Savannah’s eyes widened. She studied my face for a moment.
“What is wrong with you today?” she asked, making me roll my eyes.
“Leave him alone, Savannah,” I heard my Beta’s voice, and relief washed over me.
I turned around and saw my best friend and Beta standing at the entrance of his office door.
“We have work to do, Dimitri, come on,” William said, glaring at Savannah.
Thank you. I mind-linked him.
You are welcome. Will sighed. I wouldn’t have to do this if you knew how to drink.
I rolled my eyes as I approached him.
“I will come by later, Dimitri,” Savannah said.
Will closed his office door before I could respond.
“Can we exile her?” Will mumbled quietly, making me chuckle.
“Oh, how I wish we could,” I said as I sat down on the couch in his office.
I watched as he walked to his desk and sat down.
“I found my mate,” I said, making Will snap his head in my direction.
“What?!” he exclaimed as he stood up abruptly.
I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. The pain flared inside me.
“It’s Mike’s daughter, Madeline,” I said, making Will’s eyes widen even more.
“Your step-sister is your mate?!” he exclaimed.
“She is not my step-sister,” I sighed and rolled my eyes. “She is my mate.”
Step-sister sounded so fucking wrong. She was my mate. She was the love of my life. She was my Luna.
Will gasped quietly. “Isn’t she only 17 years old?”
I tightened my jaw and nodded.
“Oh, fuck,” Will mumbled as he approached me and sat down beside me. “How are you handling it?”
“Not well, man,” I mumbled. “I want to grab her and tell her that she is mine, but I can’t do that.”
Will sighed and shook his head. “This is so fucked up.”
“I have no idea how the fuck will I survive the next nine months,” I mumbled.
I really had no idea. I would go insane. I had to find a way to be close to her. I had to become her friend. I would fucking lose it if I tried to keep my distance.
I needed to have her at least as a friend for now. I needed it to calm my heart and soul. I needed it to survive.
