Bay

I glared at Flynn, willing him to back down. Why was he acting like some jealous mate when we had agreed we didn't want anything to do with it? I turned to face Dean, hoping I would be able to get through to him, at least.

"You're making things worse. I need you to leave." I used my most confident voice, not showing an ounce of the unease I was experiencing.

I swear I could feel Flynn's presence, even though I knew it wasn't possible.

Dean frowned as he looked down at me. "Leaving you here with him goes against my better judgment."

The sound of a footstep behind me pulled my attention back to the angry Keeper who was watching us with growing anger.

"If you don't leave, it will make things worse." My eyes pleaded with his.

He continued to frown and then he gave me a nod. "Fine."

He surveyed Flynn. "I'm only doing it because you asked me to," he said, making eye contact with me again.

I felt relief. "Thank you."

Dean walked to the doorway and I watched as werewolf and Keeper glared at each other before Dean left the room.

"What the hell are you doing?" I directed at Flynn. If he carried on acting like that, it wouldn't take long for people to figure it out.

"What exactly were you doing with him?" he asked, his features guarded.

His question took me by surprise.

"Does it matter?" I threw back, putting my hands on my hips and raising my chin in defiance.

He didn't answer me. Instead his gaze held mine. The silence dragged on without any movement from him.

"You know it's the connection," I said to him. I swept my tongue across my lip to ease the dryness. "Between us."

His jaw tightened slightly, revealing his inner turmoil. He bowed his head briefly like he was fighting the pull to me.

"The only way to be able to ignore it is to keep apart." I couldn't pull my gaze away from the complex face of the man who had been chosen for me to spend my life with. His hypnotic eyes captivated mine.

"The sooner you leave the better," I added, hoping it could propel him to walk away.

It shouldn't hurt, because it wasn't something I wanted, but it did. Terribly. The sooner he left the better for both of us.

For a moment his features eased and we remained quiet.

We were prolonging the inevitable. We stood only a few feet apart but it might as well have been the Grand Canyon. With our attention fixed on each other, I had the urge to reach out and touch him. There were so many reasons not to but I still unconsciously tightened my hands into fists.

Flynn noticed the small action and I felt like he could read my mind when his eyes found mine. The intensity of his gaze made me hold my breath, unable to look away.

"I don't like seeing you with other guys," he admitted to me softly.

I shook my head. I didn't want to hear him say things like that. The tightening in my chest made me rebel against me softening toward him.

He was saying all the right words but it didn't change who he was or what stood between us. He was a Keeper for goodness sake and I couldn't forget that. It wasn't like we could ride off into the sunset and live happily ever after.

We weren't meant to be together. Destiny had been wrong when it had paired us together. Maybe there had been a time when Keeper and werewolves were free to be together but that time wasn't now.

"If you feel anything for me, you'll leave." I just wanted him gone so I could carry on like our paths had never crossed.

I expected him to agree but he said nothing.

Kyle suddenly filled the doorway, breaking our moment.

"What's going on here?" he asked with a frown, looking between the two of us. "Dean told me you were here."

It didn't surprise me that Dean had felt concerned enough to notify Kyle. Nervous under the watchful eye of my alpha and friend, I tried to hide how I was feeling.

"I wanted to say goodbye," Flynn said, any momentary lapse or softening gone in his fierce features.

Kyle's eyes narrowed as he studied Flynn. He looked distrustful of the Keeper.

"Yes, we were just saying our goodbyes." My voice was slightly breathless as I tried to hide the true reasons for our conversation.

Kyle gave a brief nod. "Don't take too long," he instructed Flynn. "The sooner you leave the sooner things can get back to normal."

It wasn't surprising that the pack wasn't entirely comfortable with the Keepers among them. It reinforced what I had already realized. He had no place in my life and I had none in his.

Kyle left us alone.

"Take care," I said, hoping to speed up his departure.

Our eyes met momentarily before he turned and I watched him leave. In the doorway, he stopped. He looked back over his shoulder.

My breath stilled in my lungs.

"Goodbye, Bay." And then he was gone and I was left staring into an empty space. It felt like the ground had shifted beneath my feet. I felt unsteady.

Bay. The sound of my name on his lips vibrated through me and I inhaled sharply, putting a hand to my chest as my lungs burned with new breath.

It doesn't matter, I told myself, trying to recover but still feeling the physical impact of him.

He was leaving. I found my feet leading me out of the gym and outside. I hurried to the front of the house to find that some of the pack were gathering as Harrison gave Crystal a hug with Kyle standing beside her.

He murmured something to her before he released her and got into the car. Flynn closed the door and stepped back.

The car started up and moments later it disappeared down the driveway and out of the compound.

Another car that I hadn't noticed before was parked in the front. It was a black SUV with tinted windows. Flynn and Kyle spoke briefly as I watched from the sidelines.

I wondered if Flynn had even noticed me standing among my pack members. He slid into the car and shut the door. The engine purred to life and I couldn't pull my eyes from the Keeper inside. Our gazes met. It was a split second before the window rolled up and the car reversed and left a trail of dust as my mate left without a backward glance.

For a while I stood while the rest of the crowd dispersed, still gazing down the driveway but knowing he would not come back here. Like I had asked, he would keep his distance. I had no idea if it was because I'd asked or if it was his own sense of self-preservation that would make him stay away.

It didn't matter. He was gone and I should be feeling relieved. But no matter how much I told myself that it was for the best, I felt a hollowness inside me. Like I was missing something. But how could I miss something I had never had?

"You okay?" The voice pulled me out of my deep thoughts. I plastered a smile to my face to cover my sadness and gave Kyle a nod.

"Yeah," I said, rubbing my arms.

"I need to talk to you," he said and I frowned slightly.

"Sure."

As I followed behind him into the house through the front door, I felt anxious that somehow Kyle had figured out what I had been trying to hide.

Could he really know who Flynn was to me?

I had been so sure I had kept any thoughts about my mate to myself. But had I momentarily allowed my alpha to read my thoughts?

It could be nothing. Just because he wants to talk to you doesn't mean it has anything to do with Flynn. But my gut told me differently.

With each footstep, I felt dread in the pit of my stomach grow. Kyle entered the study first and waited until I had walked in to close the door behind us. I couldn't help feeling like a naughty school girl who had been caught doing something wrong and now I was going to be punished.