Unwanted

Brooke’s P.O.V.

I don’t even know his name, but we’re both crying as we hold each other. I hear Sally tell the others to follow her. I’m glad she’s giving us a minute alone.

“What’s your name?” I ask against him. He’s holding me so tight that I feel like I’m being enveloped by a bear.

“Scott. What’s yours?” He asks against my neck. His voice is so deep I swear I can feel it in my soul. I had heard the sparks from touching your mate are intense, but I feel like my entire body is touching a live wire.

“Brooke. Do you want to sit down so we can talk?” Despite how happy he seems about finding me, I still need to tell him everything. I don’t want him to reject me later after we’ve already started to feel a connection.” He pulls away from me and smiles.

“I’m sorry for how I acted. I had just spent the night wishing I had my mate, and here you are.” His smile suddenly falls as he studies my face. “Are you going to reject me?”

“No, I just want to talk. I want to be honest with you, so you can reject me now if you want to.” I look into his beautiful blue eyes and melt. I want to look into those eyes for the rest of my life.

“What makes you think I’ll reject you?” He asks while lightly rubbing my cheek with his thumb. I want to close my eyes and just enjoy the feel of him touching me.

“Let’s sit down.” I take his hand and lead him over to the couch. When I try to sit next to him, Scott pulls me to sit across his lap. If he rejects me, this is going to be even harder than I thought. I’m already getting addicted to his touch.

“Are you okay sitting like this?” Am I okay? Uh, no, I’m not okay because if you reject me, then this memory is all I’m going to have.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I answer, despite the lump in my throat. I lay my head on his shoulder when he wraps his arms around me. Can I stay in this position forever?

“Go ahead and tell me what you need to say, but I promise, no matter how bad you think it is, I’m not planning to reject you. I have things to tell you, too.” Scott kisses my forehead, and I’m sure I’m dreaming. Is this incredible man really my mate? I decide to stop beating around the bush and just come out with it.

“My dad was the alpha of this pack. He started raping me when I was twelve, and he let other men in the pack rape me too. When I was sixteen, I couldn’t take it anymore, so I shifted into my wolf and killed my father and the other men who had raped me. So you see, I’m not a virgin, and you probably want someone who’s pure.” I can’t hold back my tears while I wait for him to tell me how disgusted he is with me. Why would someone as sweet as him want me? No one should be burdened with my shame. Scott tightens his hold on me. When I hear him take in an unsteady breath, I look up into his eyes and see he’s crying, too.

“I’m so sorry about what they did to you. I’m not going to reject you because of that. It’s not your fault, and I will spend the rest of my life proving to you how worthy you are to a life of love and happiness.” I throw my arms around his neck and cry with happiness. Scotts rubs his hand up and down my back.

“Okay, my turn.” He says before taking a deep breath. I don’t respond; I just wait for him to continue.

“I was kidnapped as a pup from the Silver Moon pack. The pack that took me was a pack of rogues, and they abused me until they sold me to another pack. The pack they sold me to was even worse. They tortured me. Some of them sodomized me with any objects they could get their hands on. I was close to death when I was finally rescued. It took me a long time to begin to heal from what they did. The group I’m with is trying to reconnect people with the families they were taken from. Yesterday, the pack we went to was the rogue pack that I was with in the beginning. We killed them all, and I took out my frustrations doing to them some of the horrific things that were done to me. I’m not proud of it, and it’s been eating away at me that I could lower myself to their level, but at the same time, they were horrible people who had tortured and killed pups for years. That’s what I meant when I said I found you when I needed you the most. I was feeling lost.”

When he stops, I’m too stunned to speak at first. How could anyone hurt this beautiful man? Despite everything he’s been through, his heart is so good he’s trying to help others.

“It looks like we need each other. I’m sorry about what you’ve been through, and I’m glad you stopped them from hurting anyone else. So what’s next?” I ask, looking into his eyes.

“That’s up to you. Do you want to stay here? If so, I’ll stay with you. Do you want to go to the Silver Moon pack? That’s where my birth parents are, or do you want to travel with the others to continue this work we’re doing. I’ll do whatever you want as long as I’m with you.” Scott says softly. I don’t have to think hard about this because I already know what I want.

“I don’t want to stay here. There are too many bad memories, and if I stay, they’ll keep haunting me. I wouldn’t mind going to Silver Moon, but I think I’d like to continue with what you and the rest are doing for now. Do you think they’ll mind another person joining them?” I ask. Scott smiles and kisses my lips gently. Wow. That light touch makes my whole body come alive.

“No, they’re really amazing. Most of them are princes and princesses. Logan is the crown prince, and his mate is Emily. Then we have Joel and Teegan and Kiana and Damon. Anton is the next in line to be the alpha of Silver Moon, and his mate is Petra. She’s got some powers that scare me. Last, there’s Ryker and Martina. Consider yourself warned that Martina says whatever’s on her mind. The rest are royal guards.” I stare at him and feel like my eyes are going to pop out of my head. These people are royals, and they’re helping so many; it’s incredible.

“I never would have thought they were more than just a group of people wanting to help others. Are they nice?” I ask, but I already know the answer just by their actions.

“They’re amazing. Petra and Martina were both taken as pups. Teegan was raised by humans because her parents didn’t want her to be kidnapped. Anton and Damon are her brothers. Are you ready to meet them? They came here because they think a few people in this pack may be from Silver Moon.” I nod eagerly. Now that I know Scott wants me and I can finally leave the pack, I can’t wait.

We walk into the dining hall, and I see the group talking to a male and a female. One of the couples walks over to us, smiling.

“Scott, I take it you’ve found your mate. Hi, I’m Teegan, and this is Joel. Are you going to be joining us?” They’re a beautiful couple. I begin to relax from their warm smiles.

“I’m Brooke. I would like to go with you if it’s not too much trouble,” I reply. Teegan hugs me, and I swear I want to cry again.

“It’s no trouble at all. We were all hoping he would meet his mate on this trip. I think we should go into business as mate finders when we’re done. We’ve brought three couples together in the last few days.” Teegan takes my hand and pulls me over to the others.

“Everyone, this is Scott’s mate Brooke.” She announces. The others come over to introduce themselves, and I feel accepted into their little family. Scott keeps his arm around me the entire time. I see Sally looking at me with tears in her eyes as the last couple walks over to us.

“Hi, I’m Martina, and this is my mate Ryker. It’s nice to meet you, and I only have one thing to say. I hope you like mighty swords.” I’m confused. Are they using swords for something? However, when Ryker and Scott’s faces turn red while the women laugh, I think she’s talking about something else. Interesting. I’ll have to ask Scott to explain or show me later.