You know, I used to look at mated couples and I’d think how amazing it must be, that once you mated you’d never feel alone ever again because that person would become a part of you. I mean, I know that my mating with Trey doesn’t count in an emotional sense, but I still didn’t expect this feeling of being…trapped. I’m bound to someone who won’t even touch me socially, who deliberately avoids me – unless I want to be left alone, apparently I’m interesting to him then – and who has my wolf enthralled. And how is it that he’s able to get my wolf so enthralled with him anyway? That shouldn’t be possible. She’s such a traitor sometimes.

It’s freaking shit, the lot of it. I should be able to turn around to the person I’m mated to, even if it’s only temporary, and say ‘you know what, it’s my mom’s birthday today and I miss her’, but I don’t even feel like I can talk to him like that. See, you really are all I have.

A noise in the distance pulled her from her conversation with Joey. So she hadn’t been left alone after all, and they apparently thought she wouldn’t realize this. Oh the bastards.

So this was what Taryn had been feeling like, mused Trey as he sat at the kitchen table tapping his fingers on the surface. It hadn’t occurred to him that by establishing a distance between them it could actually be a bad thing, that it could actually hurt her. But the way Taryn had froze him out, walked away from him, pulled away from his touch…it hurt.

She was his mate. No, not of the soul or heart, but she was still his mate and she had ordered him away from her. She had rejected his comfort. Generally he wasn’t a guy who offered comfort, but this was his mate. And she didn’t want him. A part of him knew that it shouldn’t hurt this much, but he didn’t want to think on that or he would have to address the question of why it hurt like this.

What bothered him more than any of that was that she was clearly nursing some sort of emotional ache. One strong enough to make her withdraw from everyone and everything around her. His strong Taryn was close to breaking and he couldn’t do a damn thing about it. That sense of helplessness was eating at both him and his wolf, increasing his need to find her and soothe her.

Suddenly Tao appeared, panting. “Trey, we got a problem.”

Instantly he was on his feet. “What?”

“Taryn. I can’t find her.”

“What do you mean you can’t find her?”

“I did what you said – I stayed a good distance away but was close enough to hear if there was a problem. Maybe she heard me and got pissed off that someone had followed her, I don’t know, but I can’t find her.”

“Shit.” So a large party of them searched. Searched every single inch of the forest, checked every tree, even the river. But there was no sign of her. It was obvious she had stopped at the river for a while, but then she seemed to have done a runner while covering her tracks. And damn if she wasn’t good at covering her tracks.

With each minute Trey became more concerned and his wolf grew more restless, understanding that his mate was hurting and missing. For a split second, Trey had wondered if she’d done something stupid while so emotional, but the thought left his head instantly. Taryn would never take the coward’s way out of anything.

“Okay,” said Dante as they came to a halt outside the forest. “Let’s put ourselves in Taryn’s shoes. She wanted to be alone. Nothing more than that, right?”

“Yes, so she came out here,” said Trick.

“But we wouldn’t let her be. And I doubt that while she was in that foul mood she was too pleased about her simple wish being ignored like that.”

“Definitely not,” agreed Marcus, “but she didn’t come and verbally kick our asses and that doesn’t sound like her.”

“It’s worth pointing out that she wasn’t at all herself,” said Dominic with a shrug.

“But she will have been utterly pissed and insulted by the idea that we thought we could still follow her and think she wouldn’t know,” said Tao.

“Do you think maybe she’s been teaching us a little lesson about how not stupid she is?” asked Ryan.

It fell into place suddenly. Trey smiled. “Something like that. She’s been leading us on a merry chase. I know where she is.”

Everyone’s expressions begged ‘Where?’

“She’s back inside the caves. I’ll put money on it. She’ll have known that if she made it look as though she was missing, we’d come out searching for her.”

“Leaving the caves empty apart from a few,” said Ryan.

“And giving her what she wanted,” finished Trey, “the simple chance to be alone.” It was a brilliant plan, he had to admit it. She had totally played them, and played them well.

“Shit,” cursed Trick. “I can’t believe we’ve been out here for hours and she’s been in the house all along. You’re sure?”

“It sounds like something she’d do,” said Marcus.

It turned out that it was exactly what she’d done, although at first Trey had wondered if he’d been wrong as she hadn’t been in the kitchen or living area or in their bedroom. If he hadn’t picked up her scent in the second floor tunnels, he might have ended up back on that merry chase.

Following her scent, he soon found himself outside one of the guest bedrooms – not that they ever had guests. There were no sounds coming from inside, but he was certain that she was in there. Slowly and quietly he turned the doorknob and opened the door. His chest tightened at the sight before him. Taryn was curled up on the bed, asleep, with dried tears on her red cheeks. She was cuddling something, he noticed a few seconds later.

As he carefully closed the door and crept closer he realized that it was a shoebox. One that she had had for a while if the bad state of the cardboard was anything to go by. Curious, he sat beside her and gently took the faded-white box from between her now limp arms. As he removed the lid, his chest tightened again. Inside were nothing more than inconsequential little things like a net-bag of marbles, a large shiny stone, a plastic engagement-type ring, a miniature plush bear, and some homemade Christmas cards and birthday cards and other bits and pieces. But these little things meant everything to Taryn because they had obviously either belonged to her true mate or been given to her by him.

Spotting a little velvet book he flipped it open and realized it was actually a photo album. Even as a little girl Taryn’s hair had had all those different shades running through it. She looked just as fiery and energetic. The kid who Trey guessed was Joey had clearly been besotted with her. On every picture he was standing protectively close to her, hugging her or holding her hand. Trey wasn’t proud of the twinge of jealousy he felt at how the little kid had been more or less born with rights to her.