CEO's Runaway Mate and Her Cubs

«Good. Now, go.»

Samantha opened the door for him and waited, her expression cold but her eyes burning in pain. Rider bowed his head and turned, but he couldn't move a step out.

«I will protect your sister. No harm will be done to her. When the situation gets more stable, come and get her back. Until then, I don't want to see nor hear from you.»

«Yes,» he sighed before stepping out.

As soon as he was out and the door was closed, the air in the room got lighter. Amanda could breathe again. The pressure over her was lifted, and she turned to Samantha with her eyes wide. What had just happened?

«I... I need to stay alone for a while. Just call for delivery for tonight. There's a card and some money on the fridge. We can talk later,» Samantha said. She walked to her room and closed the door.

Thankfully, she managed to reach the bed before collapsing. Her body was crossed by painful jolts, making her tremble. Her eyes cried, but she could barely notice her silent sobs. What hurt the most was her heart. She hadn't ever known how the word heartbroken could be this literal.

She lost control over her shape for a few moments, but she stopped shifting just in time. Her fangs, ears and claws appeared, but she couldn't turn them back.

She curled on the mattress, getting rid of the clothes annoying her and nestling under the blanket. Her tail slipped between her legs, just like a puppy's after being scolded.

«No,» she whined while her belly burned, a fire raging inside.

She felt horrible, but she didn't know how to stop it. Was there a way? She didn't know what the cause of everything was, and even less how to feel any better.

Just a bit would have been fine. Enough to survive and not die of pain.

Forgetting about the girl silently sitting on her sofa, she turned in bed and whined, keeping her voice as low as possible.

Why did it hurt so much? Realising her own stupidity was the lowest point in her life, even worse than being abandoned by her parents. But why did she feel like that? Not that it wasn't unexpected.

She clenched her fists until the hardened nails cut her pals. The scent of her blood was released from the cuts, but she couldn't stop it. She covered her head with the sheets, sinking into the darkness.

Meanwhile, Amanda didn't move from her place.

She sensed the blood; she heard the whining. She could even feel part of that pain herself.

Still, she couldn't just go there. Part of her wanted to comfort Samantha, maybe to tell her her brother was actually a good person, but she knew the other woman needed her space.

She sat on the sofa, hugging her knees and doing her damned best to erase her presence. She felt safe in that place, far from any danger. Oddly enough, even with the guilt of tricking Samantha partially on her shoulders, she felt better there than at the quarters.

No one was going to hurt her. Not even Samantha who was raging and hurting at the same time - sad and furious, but mostly desperate and in pain because of the betrayal of her mate.

Renato and Amanda had left the back before dawn, and he had driven for a long time in search of a place. Yet, after thinking about it hard enough, they couldn't come up with a good solution.

Amanda didn't want to be alone, and Renato had to be back to the pack soon to help them with the incoming war.

In the end, he had brought her to the only place he found safe. He had asked her before turning the car towards Norwich, and Amanda had stupidly agreed. If not for her, he wouldn't have made such a stupid mistake, and Samantha wouldn't know he knew who she was... If not to beg Samantha to keep Amanda's presence secret, Renato wouldn't have used her name.

They had reached Norwich early in the morning. Renato had calculated the best time to appear at the door: soon after breakfast but before Samantha left. As a result, she didn't even go to work.

Lunchtime had come already, but Samantha didn't get up. The whining had calmed, though, meaning she was most likely asleep.

Amanda got up and decided to cook something healthy. She could make a soup or something comforting for Samantha. She wouldn't be able to eat too much, so it was better to stay light.

She opened the fridge and found nothing. Shocked, she stared at that emptiness for a minute. The fridge was filled with useless stuff, not enough to prepare any dish she knew. Yet, it was full! But nothing useful!

How was that even possible?

«Oh, I get it,» she said.

Suddenly, that day when Renato had nonchalantly asked their mama to show him some recipes made a lot of sense.

Samantha might have been powerful, smart, and competent as a manager, but she sucked at taking care of herself. She badly needed someone to help her.

Since her brother was away and wouldn't be back anytime soon, Amanda could as well be the one to cook and hearten the she-wolf. She owed her as much.

«Organic eggs,» she read on the only edible food.

She couldn't fry some eggs and pretend it'd be enough. But the vegetables available were too exotic for her. She didn't even know the name of some, let alone how to employ them! Except for some tomato that had been there for too long... Did Samantha buy tomatoes? It felt odd, given the rest in the fridge.

«Oh, shit,» she cursed, counting the money on the fridge.

More than delivery food, she needed to buy groceries. Thankfully enough, Norwich was big enough as a city. There surely were markets delivering the goods... Buying food without checking it before wasn't any interesting, but the situation was complicated enough.

She couldn't get out, but she could make sure some real food was on the table by the time Samantha felt well enough to walk back to the living room.