Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

Lake

Moon Goddess?

Seriously?

She wanted me here?

Why?

My dad taught me about the Moon Goddess and told me stories about shifters, where they were her children. Her creation. He told me a story about how the Moon Goddess herself birthed a wolf shifter.

I didn't know if that was actually true. I didn't think it was possible, if it weren't for my dad being adamant when he claimed the Moon Goddess watches her children. I honestly don't know how I feel about that. My thought is, if she did, then why did she allow my daddy and uncles to be taken from me, leaving me alone to take care of myself?

"I'm Karsyn," the woman who'd spoken introduces herself but doesn't move from where she's in the arms of the shifter at her side. The patch on his cut shows he's the President of the club.

Wonderful.

I clear my throat and lower my eyes to the floor. "I'm Lake."

"I know who you are," Karsyn remarks.

"Come on, little Fae," Tucker whispers and urges me forward. He peels the light from my hand and gives it to another guy. "Quincy, do me a solid and put this in my room for me."

"Sure thing, brother," Quincy grunts, taking my night-light from Tucker.

I want to protest. To clutch the lamp to my chest. What would it make me look like though? A sissy? Someone who can't take care of themself?

Tucker ushers me over to the man and woman before speaking again. "Prez, Karsyn, think we can sit down and have this conversation?"

"Yeah," Tucker's President says, looks at me, and surprises me. "Name's Corbin. Welcome to the Spiked Raiders clubhouse."

"Ugh, thanks, I guess," I mutter, realizing something as I do. He doesn't reach out to shake my hand or anything. He just keeps his arms around Karsyn.

"Sit, Lake," Tucker murmurs as he pulls a chair out for me.

I do as he says, watching the other two closely, seeing the protective way Corbin is with Karsyn. How he keeps one hand securely on her rounded stomach.

"Would you like something to drink?" Karsyn asks.

"Water?" I don't drink anything else. If I do, it makes me jittery. Even decaf stuff. It's best to stick with water. I sometimes will splurge and get the flavors just to have something different, but I had to watch which ones I get since some of them had the same effect as drinking a soda. I found it best to simply just add actual fruits to my water.

"Hips, grab two bottles of water and two beers," Corbin shouts, not taking his eyes off me.

"Coming," a woman, I'm guessing is ‘Hips' he called to.

Why would anyone name a woman such a thing? Then again, I'm named after a body of water. At least mine's not Ocean or Sea. River wouldn't be so bad, but still.

"We've got a lot to talk about," Corbin announces, not beating around the bush.

Hips drops the drinks off, shooting a glare in my direction, but doesn't say anything.

"What's with her giving me the stink eye?" I blurt out.

Karsyn giggles. Corbin smirks. Tucker chuckles.

"I don't know what's so funny," I mutter, leaning back in my seat.

"She's glaring because she and the others have lost yet another brethren of the club," Karsyn explains, but I don't know what she means.

Tucker leans in, tucks my hair behind my ear, and whispers, "She's a clubwhore, and they don't like it when one of us finds our mate or decides it's time to choose one and it's not them."

I find it hard to keep my body in check just from him speaking into my ear. Ever so slowly, I twist in my chair to face him and narrow my eyes to tiny little slits. "I keep telling you I'm not your mate. That woman has no reason to look at me because of something as petty as her or anyone else not getting their way. Take this as a warning, keep calling me your mate, and I'm going to hurt you. If she looks at me like that again, I'll rip her hair out."

Okay, so maybe she is overexaggerating when it comes to him. I know he's not lying about me being his mate. I saw the tiger in his eyes. His tiger is always close. It is almost as if the two live together in one body and share life as one.

"I like her." Another man laughs, and two others chuckle as they all come to join the table.

Tucker cocks a brow, shakes his head, and grins.

"Let's get back on track here," Corbin states, shifting a bit in his seat, not in a nervous way or even a worried one. He takes on the cool and calm approach of his movement, taking Karsyn with him.

With the way he focuses solely on me, I get the inkling feeling that he wants to get back on track. He wants to know who is after me.

"I don't know who's after me," I blurt, getting right to it before he can ask.

"How is that possible?" Justice demands, his voice harsh and vibrating with . . . I don't even know what.

It's all so . . . so . . . confusing.

"I've always left when I felt like it was closing in on me. The one time I didn't . . ." I trail off, shaking my head. I don't even want to think about it.

That had been when I was thirteen, and I found myself alone. My family gone. No bodies . No blood . Nothing . It was like their very existence was wiped from the earth altogether.

"So, you're telling me that anytime you've felt a bad vibe, you've up and left?" Corbin asks, not hiding his suspension.

"Prez," Tucker speaks up. "You'd be able to smell the lie on her if she were."

"All I smell is sweetness. Like sugar," another of Tucker's brothers states.

"That's because she's Fae," Karsyn announces.

"I'm not," I protest. Everyone keeps calling me something I'm not, and I'm getting tired of it.

Getting to my feet, I look at Tucker. "I'm tired and need to be alone right now. Which way is your room?"Tucker starts to stand, but I sidestep the chair I'd been sitting in, shaking my head. "I want to be alone. Just tell me where to go."

Tucker stares closely. The way he does it, I don't know whether to like it because it affects me so or hate it due to the reasons for it. He's reading me like he knows me. He doesn't. None of these people do.

At this point, I don't even think I know myself.

Finally, Tucker stretches an arm out, pointing to a hall. "Fourth door on the right."