Scarlett
When we arrived back at Cade's house, Blake was waiting in the kitchen with Gary. I was surprised to see him because I thought he'd gone to school. It was another couple of hours before school ended for the day. I walked in first and Cade followed behind.
"What are you doing here?" I asked Blake.
"I thought I'd skip as well to make sure everything ran smoothly while you guys had your talk."
I hadn't even thought about it. It was then that I realized the responsibility that Cade had on his shoulders.
Blake began to stand up and Cade walked over to him and before I even realized what he was going to do, he hit him in the face. Blake took the hit and didn't even attempt to defend himself or try and hit Cade back. It was like he'd expected it.
"What the hell?" I gasped, taken by surprise as I rushed over to Blake. His lip was cut and bloodied.
"That's for being a shitty friend," explained Cade calmly and then he turned and walked over to the kitchen sink.
"I deserved that," Blake said to me. He didn't deserve it. He'd kept my secret because I'd asked him to. I would never understand guys.
"No, you didn't," I weighed in as I threw a glare at my mate.
"Yes, he did," stated Cade as he rinsed blood from his hand.
"We good?" Blake said, wiping the blood from his lip.
"Yeah, we're good," confirmed Cade as he walked over to the fridge and got out a bottle of water.
The slate was wiped clean. Men were so confusing. If they were girls, they wouldn't talk to each other for a couple of weeks. Gary looked from Blake to Cade and shook his head.
"What are you doing out of school?" Gary asked when he realized I was home early.
"Cade and I had some stuff to sort through," I began to explain. I sat down in-between Gary and Blake.
"Remember what Blake and Cade told you about mates and stuff like that?" I asked.
"Sure, I remember," he answered as he nodded.
"Well, Cade is my mate," I stated. Gary's gaze flickered from me to Cade and then it settled back on me. Cade leaned against the kitchen counter, keeping his distance as Gary took in the information.
"Wow," he mumbled as he pushed away from the table and turned to face me.
"How are you feeling about it?" he asked. It was so like Gary to worry about me.
"It's going to take some getting used to," I replied with a shrug. It was inevitable and it had to happen sometime, I just wanted to wait for a time when I would be ready.
It wasn't like I wasn't physically attracted to him, because I was. There was no denying it, but I wasn't sure if I was prepared for the emotional side of what would happen.
"I've decided I'm going to join Cade's pack," I revealed to Gary and Blake. Blake smiled and shot a look at Cade, but my eyes were focused on Gary's reaction.
His eyes widened in surprise and then he reached for my hand and gave it a squeeze.
"You know what you're doing," he said. "You've always had a good head on your shoulders. You've never needed me to point you in the right direction or tell you what to do. There is a reason I never fought you when you wanted to take control of your inheritance. You were responsible enough then and you are responsible enough now to make your own decisions."
My throat thickened at his words.
"Thank you," I whispered as I leaned forward to give him a hug.
A soft growl emanated from behind me as Gary's arms wrapped around me and hugged me. I released Gary and turned to see Cade growling at him.
"Down, boy," I told him as I shot him a glare.
I knew Cade was the possessive type, but I wasn't going to let him make a big deal out of nothing. Although technically Gary wasn't blood related, he was my family and I wasn't going to stop giving him hugs or showing him affection just because Cade got jealous.
"I don't like it when any guy touches you," he said through gritted teeth as he glared at Gary. Gary shifted back slightly, feeling intimidated by the power emanating from Cade.
"Like I said before, this is going to be fun to watch," Blake murmured to me as he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. I shot him a glare and I was tempted to wipe that smug look off his face. But the fact that he'd taken a hit for keeping my secret for me softened me up a bit. I'd let that one comment slide.
"Enough," I said to Cade as I stood up and walked to him.
"I don't want any guy to touch you," he said softly to me. His anger began to ease now that I was standing in front of him.
"You're going to have to get used to it because I can't have you overreacting every time a guy comes near me. Gary is my family," I explained to him as he reached for me and pulled me into his arms.
With the first touch, I was distracted and I was lost when his lips brushed against mine.
"I'll try," he whispered.
It took me a minute to remember what we'd been talking about. I pulled away from him because I couldn't think properly with him so close.
"So are you ready to join my pack?" he asked, letting me have my space.
"Yes," I said with a nod, sounding calmer than I felt.
Blake got up and got a knife from one of the drawers.
"I'll do it," insisted Cade. Was it too much to see someone else hurt me? Blake didn't argue and he handed the knife to Cade.
"This will hurt a bit," Cade told me as he took my hand in his. The knife was sharp and he made a small cut. I grimaced with pain and I felt my knees wobble a bit at the sight of blood.
It made me queasy, but I bit down on my lip and ignored it. I didn't want them to see me as weak. Cade made a small cut in the palm of his hand then he took my hand and gently pressed it to his.
His eyes held mine as our blood mixed and Blake and Gary watched. At first there was nothing.
Then I heard it. I can't believe she is mine.
It was Cade and I smiled at him.
"I heard that," I revealed as he released my hand and pulled me into his arms.
"It worked," he murmured as his lips feathered a kiss to my forehead. I couldn't help but smile.
If I don't hurry, I'm going to be late.
I pulled away from Cade and looked up at him.
"Was that you?" I asked. He shook his head as he watched me carefully.
I wonder if this is going to be enough food for lunch.
The next time he swings, I'll duck and swing with my right fist.
I need to finish repairing this before lunch.
One thought after another hit me and my head began to pound. It was like I was standing in a room full of people, all talking to me at the same time. I raised my hand and touched my forehead as I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to shut out the flow of thoughts into my mind.
"What's wrong?" Cade asked with concern.
"I don't know," I muttered as more and more thoughts flooded into my mind. I couldn't think because of the jumble of thoughts. The pounding in my head began to get worse and I stumbled forward.
Arms reached out to steady me, then I felt someone lift me up and carry me.
"Say something, Scar?" Cade said as he laid me down. I opened one eye to see I was lying on the couch. Gary and Blake were standing behind a kneeling Cade, watching with concern.
"I don't know what's happening," I said as more thoughts flitted through my head. I closed my eyes again to try and push the unwanted thoughts from my head but it only got worse.
The pain started to become unbearable. It felt like my head was going to explode from the overflow of thoughts. I cried out.
"Scar!" I heard Cade say desperately from beside me.
The pain became so unbearable that when the darkness came, I gave in to it.