Theo
Ihave to stay away from her. She is not Savannah. She is not my mate. She is simply an obligation I have to take care of before I get on with dying.
He told himself very harshly that he was going to limit the contact he had with Gemma. Once he took her to the ceremony and introduced her to everyone as his mate, he would not have any contact with her again. She could stay at his place where she would be protected. No one would dare go after her there, even if they could find it. She would have the full protection of the clan.
Once her birthday came, he would give her enough money to live comfortably for the rest of her life. He would buy her a house, so she wouldn’t even have to worry about that. Then, she would be gone from his life forever, and he wouldn’t be under any obligation to help her.
Gemma was just too dangerous to his heart. He was bound to Savannah in this lifetime and the next. There was no place for Gemma.
He knocked on Germaine’s door and then entered without being invited. Germaine said, “Hello. It’s nice to see you. Why don’t you come in?”
“Thank you. I think I will,” Theo said.
Germaine raised his brows at the duffle bag Theo was carrying. “Staying for a while?”
Theo nodded. “Yes. Plus, my clothes for the ceremony tonight are in here,” he told Germaine.
His old friend studied Theo’s face for a few seconds and then asked, “What is bothering you, my friend?”
“It’s a long story,” Theo said.
“We’ve got time,” Germaine urged.
Theo flopped down on Germaine’s couch and told him about the promise he had made Gemma’s great-grandfather and the necklace he had given the man to symbolize his vow.
“A few days ago, this strange woman was waiting for me in my house when I got home. Her name is Gemma, and she is the great-granddaughter of the man I made the vow to. She is wearing the necklace,” Theo said.
Germaine listened, not saying anything.
“She was born a pure white wolf, the only one in her pack for many, many generations. Her pack plans to sacrifice her to the moon goddess on her twenty-fifth birthday, which is coming up in a couple months. Her father died soon after she was born, fighting his pack mates so Gemma and her mother could escape. Her mother died in battle when Gemma was ten. Gemma has been running and fighting on her own since then,” Theo explained.
“She sounds like an amazing woman,” Germaine said.
“She is,” Theo affirmed. “Gemma said her mother had given her the necklace and my address before she was killed. She came to me, asking for my help. Because of my vow, I must help her.”
Germaine said, “That and out of common decency, as well, I would think.”
Theo nodded. “The only way I could think of to help her was to pretend that she is my mate. I’m taking her to the ritual tonight, and I’m going to introduce her to everyone as my mate.”
Theo saw the fire in Germaine’s eyes before he even said anything. “Are you crazy or stupid? Telling people that a woman is your mate is the dumbest thing you could ever do. When the elders find out, they could exile you from the group,” he said.
Theo sighed tiredly. “I really don’t care if they exile me. Then, I can just hide up in my mansion and wait for the grim reaper. I want to be with Savannah.”
“Still, this has got to be the most idiotic thing you have done in all of your four hundred years,” Germaine said.
“I couldn’t think of any other way to uphold my vow. I can’t break my word. That would be dishonorable, and I’m not that bad off yet. The clan isn’t going to back me and risk a war with the wolf pack because of my vow. I can’t protect her by myself. That was proven when I took her shopping for necessities and a dress for the ceremony. We were followed by twelve wolf shifters who tried to kill us on the highway. One car of them wrecked. I managed to pull into an old warehouse I own, and they attacked,” Theo told him.
Germaine stared at him with narrowed eyes as Theo explained why the ruse was necessary.
“That time, they sent twelve in a heavily trafficked area. What if they all decide to attack the house when I’m either not there or if I am? I can’t protect her,” Theo said.
“That still doesn’t explain why this stupid plan of yours is necessary,” Germaine said.
“If she is my mate, then the entire dragon shifter clan is honor bound to protect her. That will make the wolf shifters think twice before they attack. They will not want a war with the dragon shifters because even though they outnumber us, we would destroy them,” Theo explained. “They would also be ostracized by the other shifters because attacking the mate of anyone to sacrifice to a deity is definitely not an accepted practice.”
Germaine sighed heavily. “What do you want from me?” he asked.
“Two things. The first is that I want your help in protecting Gemma. I can’t do it alone if the wolf shifters do a sneak attack,” Theo said.
Germaine nodded. “I can agree to that,” he said.
“I also need your help at the ceremony tonight. I need you to help convince everyone that she is my fated mate so they will accept her,” Theo said.
Germaine grimaced. “I have a really bad feeling this isn’t going to end well, but I’ll help you for the sake of our friendship. But you are going to owe me, big time.”
