A Wolf's Oath (7 page)

Sebastian’s smile faltered as he became increasingly
uncomfortable, rubbing a large hand against the back of his neck in
a nervous habit.
I don’t think she wants
them to know that we’re mates; otherwise she wouldn’t have
introduced me as a friend yesterday. Now that I know why she
doesn’t want to accept me I have to do everything I can to earn her
trust. What should I do?
he
groaned.

Lie,
the wolf suggested
calmly.

You seem determined to turn me into a professional
liar,
Sebastian noted before turning his
attention back to the young boy in front of him, his mind searching
frantically for a plausible story. “Well yes, about
that…”

“
Wyatt, who’s at the door?” Another voice called before a young
girl appeared in the doorway saving Sebastian from a poor attempt
to explain what had happened between him and their sister. “I
remember you from yesterday, you’re Erica's new friend. Wyatt, you
should invite people inside it’s rude to just leave them outside,”
the newcomer scolded. “What would Erica say if she saw you? This is
her friend remember?”

The little girl grabbed his free hand with slightly sticky
fingers before pulling him inside the house. “I’m Dylan.” She
grinned leading him inside the living room and guiding him towards
the sofa. “What’s your name?”

Depositing a small basket near the door he allowed himself to
be led by the small girl, sitting on the sofa and breathing deeply
as Erica's scent filled his senses. “I’m Sebastian.”

“
That’s a nice name. This is my brother Wyatt.” She pulled the
reluctant boy over to stand still for Sebastian's
inspection.

“
Where’s your sister?” he inquired while the children climbed
on to the sofa and sat either side of him.

“
Erica's in the bathroom,” Wyatt answered. “She’s been in there
for ages, she never normally takes this long. What’s she doing in
there?”

“
I think she might have got paint on herself,” Dylan responded
easily. “I saw her yesterday as well, she was scrubbing her neck in
the kitchen sink. She was washing it really hard, it’s got to be
paint or something like that if she’s scrubbing her skin that hard.
It looked all red and sore. It doesn’t normally take her this long
to wash off paint though, she must have accidentally tipped a lot
on herself.”

Trying to get rid of me Erica?
A
small smile appeared on his lips at the thought.
It’s not going to work sweetheart.
Though he was pleased that she was constantly
aware of his presence, the news that she was causing herself pain
didn’t sit well with him.

Wyatt prodded him in the ribs quickly gaining his attention.
“You’re new.”

“
Excuse me?”

“
Erica doesn’t get new friends. All the ones she has now have
always been around. So like I said, you’re new.”

“
Oh, well I’m not from this clan,” Sebastian explained, craning
his head around Wyatt as he began to search for where the bathroom
was. “I met Erica at a party I was at the other day.”

“
Did you see her dress?” Dylan cooed. “It was so pretty wasn’t
it?”

“
It was beautiful,” Sebastian agreed remembering the first time
he had seen her standing in the moonlight in the dark blue
dress.

“
Her hair was pretty too wasn’t it?”

“
Yes, she should leave it down more often.”

“
Do you think she’s pretty?” Wyatt asked his eyes lowered as he
avoided Sebastian's gaze.

“
Of course I think she’s pretty. Why do you ask?”

Ignoring Sebastian's question Wyatt continued with his own
line of inquiry. “Do you want to be her boyfriend? Is that why
you’re here?”

“
That’s a very odd question to ask Wyatt. Is there something
wrong?”

“
If Erica gets a boyfriend or a mate, she’s going to leave us
and we’re going to be all alone. If you want to be her boyfriend
then I don’t want you here,” he mumbled under his breath, still
avoiding looking at Sebastian.

“
Wyatt,” he sighed, sympathetic towards the young child’s
insecurities. Cupping Wyatt’s chin he forced him to look at him.
“Your sister loves you, she wouldn’t leave you. One day you’ll
reach maturity and want a mate of your own and when you do you’ll
understand that all a male wants for his mate is for her to be
happy. Erica's mate wouldn’t want to break up your family because
he would know that that would make her upset.”

“
Really?” he pressed.

“
Of course,” Sebastian reassured.

“
Wyatt you can be so silly some times,” Dylan scolded. “Erica
told you that already. You should listen more.”

His worries now apparently reassured, Wyatt leaned back
against the sofa, his hands behind his head. “You know I’m
beginning to think that it might be sort of nice for Erica to have
a mate then. Everyone else in the clan who has a mate seems really
happy, it would be good if Erica could be that happy.”

At least I’m not going to have to win them over as well. They
might even be willing to help me. Inside help would be very
useful,
he grinned.

Erica touched the sore skin of her neck resigned to defeat,
Sebastian's scent refused to fade leaving her surrounded by
him.
I suppose I could become a
hermit,
she reasoned walking down the
corridor towards the living room.
That way
no one would need to know about my pesky mate.
The sound of giggling reached her ears and was immediately
dismissed as nothing of importance until the deep timbre of a man’s
laugh floated along the short corridor. She moved stiffly towards
the living room. As Sebastian's scent grew stronger with every step
she took, nervous energy began to fill her. Standing in the doorway
that opened in to the living room her body froze at the sight that
greeted her eyes. Dylan and Wyatt were rolling happily on the floor
with Sebastian, using his body as though it was their latest toy
and he was accepting their touches with a warm smile.

“
Dylan! Wyatt! What are you doing?” she snapped. Her harsh tone
stopped all laughter and she momentarily felt guilty for yelling,
she rarely did so and never without a good reason. She glared at
Sebastian, struggling to ignore how his playful smile made him if
possible even more attractive.
Just what
has he told them?

“
Erica, I was beginning to wonder where you were. Are you going
to join us? We were just playing a little.” He smiled, readjusting
his arm behind him so that Dylan wouldn’t fall from her position on
his back

“
No, I’d rather you left.”

His smile didn’t falter in the face of her open hostility. “I
was hoping you’d say that.”

“
Really?”

“
Yes, I think we should all go out. What do you guys think?” he
asked. The pair nodded enthusiastically and Sebastian turned back
to face Erica, a wide smile now on his face.

Not only has he turned my body and wolf against me, now he’s
turned by brother and sister against me too.
Her eyes narrowed as she continued to glare at him
intensely.

“
I brought food,” he noted pointing to a small basket near the
door.

“
Can we go Erica?” Dylan pleaded, turning large brown eyes
guaranteed to make her concede on her sister.

Erica didn’t hold out long, but she hadn’t expected to. “Fine,
we can go.”
It doesn’t mean I’m happy
about it though,
she mused, wishing that
Sebastian could hear her thoughts and understand how much she
disliked the idea of a mate. “Let’s just get this over with,” she
snapped moving to the door and grabbing the small basket before
tapping her foot impatiently as she waited for the others to join
her.

Noting the deep scowl on her sister’s face, Dylan climbed
down from Sebastian's back and began to walk slowly towards her
sister. “Are you ok Erica? You seem angry.”

At Dylan's perceptive question, Erica forced her body to
relax, smiling widely at her younger sister. “I’m fine Dylan, don’t
worry about me. I’m just getting a little behind with all the work
I need to do.”
It’s not really a
lie,
she said, reassuring herself.
I’m getting behind with my housework, but that’s
to be expected when I’m constantly thinking about the mate who
refused to leave.

“
We don’t have to go,” Wyatt suggested moving to stand beside
his twin.

Erica knew enough about her siblings to tell that though he
had suggested calling off the trip, Wyatt was hoping that she would
ignore his recommendation. His voice was muted and his eyes
downcast as he tried not to look in the direction of the door.
Dylan's mannerisms were slightly different, her body unconsciously
leaning towards the door with a false smile plastered on her face,
but the message was clear. They wanted to go.

“
No, it’s fine. We can go. I’ll do the chores later, it’s not
as though they’re going any where.”

“
I’m willing to help you Erica,” Sebastian inserted,
volunteering his services for whatever she required.

A chorus of agreement flooded the room as both Dylan and
Wyatt concurred loudly with Sebastian's suggestion.

Just what I need,
she sighed.
He’s involving himself not just in my life but in
theirs as well. If he keeps doing things like this then I’ll never
be able to get rid of him.

Good,
her wolf beamed, immeasurably
pleased with the idea that their mate would be nearby.
I don’t want to be rid of him. He’s yummy and
even you know it.

Yummy?
she repeated, baffled by her
wolf’s choice of words.

Yes yummy. You know, delicious? Scrumptious? Edible? You
can’t tell me that you don’t want to take a bite out of him. I
would in a heartbeat.

The wolf’s words drew her gaze to Sebastian's exposed skin,
his arms and neck were deliciously bare and she licked her lips
imagining her mouth coming into contact with his skin. She could
almost feel the warmth his skin emitted as his scent filled the
room. Shaking her head to dispel her wayward thoughts, she smiled
at her siblings. “Come on guys lets get going then.”

Almost identical smiles appeared on her sibling’s faces as
they ran to embrace her, hugging her legs tightly before bounding
out of the door. Standing now that his body was free of Dylan and
Wyatt’s added weight, Sebastian moved to the door. Upon his
approach Erica immediately moved to stand outside. Grasping her
wrist lightly before she could move too far out of reach, he pulled
her close to him once more. “We’re going to talk mate, and this
time you will neither run from me nor dismiss me as insignificant
so I suggest you prepare yourself.” His warm breaths feathered
across her cheek and her body shivered at the sensation.

Just what does he want from me now?
she mused before pulling her treacherous body away from his
and following Dylan and Wyatt’s trail into the woods.

Chapter
Eight

Trailing a few feet behind Erica, Sebastian found himself
enjoying the gentle sway of her hips as she marched onward,
determined to increase the distance between them. Allowing her the
small act of rebellion, the distance between them continued to
increase until she was almost out of sight. He smiled as he watched
Dylan and Wyatt transform into their wolf forms, the cubs running
quickly, moving further and further away from them.

Out of earshot.
He grinned,
quickening his pace to reach his mate. “Erica?” She groaned upon
hearing him call for her, stopping her fast pace. “I told you that
I was going to talk to you so there’s no need for you to act as
though you weren’t expecting this.”

“
I was hoping that you would just let it go. No, wait, what I
was really hoping for was that you’d get a clue and realize that I
want nothing to do with you.” She sped off again.

He sighed, but remained still confident that she would return
to him. “I know about your parents Erica, I know what happened to
them.” She halted abruptly, turning to face him.

“
What did you just say?”

“
I know what happened to your mother and father
Erica.”

“
Who told you?”

“
That isn’t important. I know now and there’s nothing anyone
can do to change that fact now. What we need to focus on is us and
our relationship.”

“
There is no us,” she hissed moving closer to him. “There is
you and there is me, but there is no us.”

“
Erica, you need to accept that there is most definitely an us.
You’re here so am I. We’re mates. There is no changing that fact.
We’re meant to be together. The instinct is never
wrong.”

“
I don’t care about the instinct Sebastian, it hasn’t done
anything to benefit me in my entire life. All it’s done is take,
take, take and I’m sick and tired of letting it do whatever it
wants. I want nothing to do with it! So let me give you some
advice, save your breath because my opinion isn’t going to
change.”