I walked past the closet that held the towels and through the living room to the kitchen. There was no sign of the man but it didn't mean that he wasn't close by. I was searching for a phone and I found one on the counter where he placed his after the call.

My hesitation only lasted a few seconds.

There was no lock on his phone which made me pause briefly before I dialled Spike's number.

He answered instantly.

"Tell me," I demanded.

There was a brief pause. "Two Alphas arrived in town shortly after the girl went missing. It appears that they're working with Alpha Grayson and that professor at the university."

The two Alphas must be Silas and one of the grandfathers. But why would they be working with Grayson, and how does Silas know Jason?

"Have they been asking around town—?"

"Oh no," Spike interrupted me. "Only the pack has been searching around for her. Also, they found a container with blood and shit that—"

"What about Oliver?" I asked.

"No sign of him."

I hung up without saying a word. After clearing the call history, I placed the phone back where I found it and retraced my steps to the closet where I grabbed two dry towels.

My knock on the bathroom door went unanswered but I pushed it open and entered without her permission..

Ariana was already in the bath, trying her best to cover as much of her body as she could.

"Is everything okay?" she asked softly.

"Yeah."

I closed the toilet lid and took a seat. After hesitating for a moment, I leaned over and placed the towels on the small cabinet next to the basin.

My eyes darted around the bathroom and then locked on her again. Ariana had placed the light in a way that put her in the shadows but I could see the outline of her body perfectly. Even the steam that was rising from the hot water did nothing to disrupt my view.

"Are you mad at me for wanting to stay here?"

"No." I gave her a small smile. "I would've felt better if we were surrounded by people instead."

"There's no guarantee that Oliver wouldn't try anything if we were surrounded by humans," she pointed out.

"I know, but it would've been easy to get lost in the crowds."

Silence filled the bathroom but it only lasted a few minutes.

"You're going to get sick," Ariana muttered. "You need to get out of your wet clothes."

My smile widened. "Is that an invitation to join you?"

"I-if you want too," she whispered.

I kicked off my shoes and leaned down to pull off my socks. Ariana's eyes burned into every inch of skin I revealed as I undressed. I should've turned the light away but it was too late now. My hands dropped to my jeans but I stopped and raised my head to look at her.

"Is the water still warm?" I asked.

Licking my lips, I unbuttoned the pants and slid the zip down. My fingers hooked into the band of my briefs and the jeans. After blowing out a shaky breath, I pushed them down my legs and kicked it aside before I walked over to the bathtub.

Her gasp echoed around the bathroom. It made colour flood my cheeks and my steps falter slightly.

"Scoot forward," I ordered a little more harshly than I intended.

Ariana gripped the edges of the tub and moved forward without hesitation.

I climbed in behind her and place my legs on the outside of hers. Shivers raced through my body as the warm water warmed my icy skin.

Wrapping an arm around Ariana's waist, I pulled her against my chest as I leaned back. She slowly relaxed against me. I lowered my head and pressed my nose to the crook of her neck. A deep breath had my eyes fluttering closed.

She smelt so fucking good.

My arm around her waist tightened a fraction more.

Nobody had seen or heard from Oliver but I knew that he was looking for us. I should've fucking waited for him to return but my main concern had been to get Ariana to safety.

Besides, if I had killed him then everything that had happened between us in the last couple of days wouldn't have happened.

Having sex with Ariana wasn't part of the plan.

Saving her wasn't part of the plan.

Doing everything possible to keep her save was not part of the plan.

Then why the hell was I doing it?

I sighed. "You said that you know why I feel the way I do about you."

Ariana swallowed loudly. "W-when we first met you didn't scare me as much as everybody else. I could sense you before I saw you. You make me feel...things I have never felt before." She paused. "In the car when I was kissing your neck, I was hit by...I don't know how to explain it to you but in simpler terms, I wanted to mark you."

"What does that mean?" I frowned.

She tilted her head back to look at me. "It means that you're my mate."

My frown deepened. All Mother ever told me about mates was that if one died the other one would soon follow. A mate was the only weakness Lycans had which was why most Hunters usually went after mates first if there was one.

"You still don't know what it means, do you?"

I shook my head.

Ariana sat up and turned around to face me. She hesitated slightly before she straddled my legs and gripped my shoulders.

"A mate is someone who's meant for you. It's someone who you'll spend the rest of your life with. Someone you can't live without. Someone you'll do anything for. Someone who's constantly on your mind and who you miss when you're not around each other."

The more she said, the more my heart dropped to my stomach. For a moment I wanted to call her out on it being a lie, but I couldn't because it was all true.

And it made things a whole lot more fucking complicated.

Ariana's hand slid up my neck and then down again, drawing my attention back to her. She rubbed my skin where my neck met my shoulder.

"This is where you'll wear my mark," she whispered. "Everybody will know that you belong to me."

My lips twitched despite the turmoil inside me. "I never expected you to be so possessive."

"Only when it comes to you."

I couldn't help but smile. Reaching up, I placed my hand on her hip but changed my mind and slipped it to her back where I used my fingertips to trace her spine.

"Are the sparks also a sign of us being mates?" I questioned.

Ariana nodded. "The sparks, the attraction, the need to protect me, the constant need to be around each other and..."

"And?" I pushed when she trailed off."

"And the s-sexual attraction."

My heartbeat increased as horror washed through me when a thought hit. I remembered the first time Eva and I met. The attraction was there and so were the sparks.

Including the need to protect her.

Well, fuck!

The air locked in my throat when the realization hit.

"Tell me," I breathed. "Is...can you have more than one mate?"

Ariana nodded. "It's possible but rare for true mates."

"Fuck," I cursed as I dropped my head back against the wall. "Fuck, fuck, fuck."

"Lucas?"

I squeezed my eyes closed. Could things get any worse than it already was? How was it possible? It couldn't fucking be possible.

"Lucas?"

I slowly opened my eyes and then lowered my head to look at Ariana. My eyes darted over her face even thought I couldn't see much.

"The water's getting cold," I told her. "We should get out."

Ariana stared at me for a few more seconds before she nodded and moved away.

Fate was playing a cruel game.

I wrapped the towel around my hips and walked over to the bag. Picking it up, I placed it on the cabinet and grabbed the light to search for clothes inside. Pulling out some pants and a t-shirt, I held it out for Ariana and then reached back inside to grab some clothes for myself.

"Lucas, why are there w-weapons in the bag?"

I froze. "You searched through it. Why?"

Ariana swallowed. "I thought t-that you might have bought a phone."

I didn't because I couldn't take the risk.

"Where did you get it?" she whispered. "Why do you have it?"

Turning to face her, I placed the light down and took the few steps to close the distance between us.

"I took it from Spike," I told her.

"Why?"

Reaching out, I stroked her cheek with my knuckles. I debated on lying to her but decided on telling her the truth instead.

"To protect you," I told her. "To kill if I have to because we both know that Oliver will stop at nothing to get you back."