I kissed her cheek, then her forehead, trying to calm her.

With a shaky exhale, she wrapped her arms around my waist and rested her head on my chest. I held her close, waiting for whatever she might do or say next.

Unfortunately, Sam walked into the apartment before she did anything. She sighed and pulled back. Reluctantly, I let her go.

She looked up at me.

“Can you come with me for this, or will that cause more problems?”

“It would be best if he stayed away, Gabby,” Sam answered from behind me.

She leaned to the side to look around me.

“I didn’t ask what was best. Best went out the window years ago, Sam, when ‘making do’ moved in. Is he allowed?”

Sam sighed. I didn’t turn to look at him. I kept my focus on Gabby and the emotions playing across her face.

“It’s allowed. He’s unMated, but he’s considered rejected. He’ll be challenged by everyone for his place in the Introduction order.”

She glanced at me. “Do you want to be there?”

I nodded.

“All right then. Sam, please head over and get things ready. Clay will walk me there. Clay, I just need to change, then I’m ready.”

Sam didn’t move, and she arched a brow at him until he left grumbling about Mating fights and sick women who didn’t know when to stay in bed.

Gabby turned her arched brow on me. I wisely retreated so she could change.

From the living room, I listened to her move. At one point, she sat still on the bed for several minutes. Sam was right. She should still be in bed. I wasn’t about to tell her that, though. Instead, I poured her a glass of orange juice and waited for the door to open.

When she walked out, she didn’t look much better. Beautiful, as always, but tired and pale.

I offered her the glass of juice. She smiled and gulped it down.

“I need just a minute in the bathroom. Can you find my shoes for me?”

Shoes? I watched her use the wall for support as she shuffled her way to the bathroom. She didn’t need shoes because she wasn’t going to walk anywhere.

She closed herself into the bathroom, and I went to her bedroom for her slippers. I listened to the water run and the soft sounds of her brushing her teeth. Slippers in hand, I returned to the hall. She wouldn’t like it, but tough. I set the slippers on the floor so she could step right into them.

By the time the door opened again, she looked paler. She glanced down at the slippers.

“Where are my shoes?”

I shrugged and pointed to the slippers. I wasn’t going to negotiate.

She stepped into them without another word, and before she lifted her head, I picked her up and settled her against my chest.

“I can walk, Clay.”

I shook my head and moved toward the door. What she’d done to get to the bathroom hadn’t been walking.

Shifting her slight weight to one arm, I opened the door and stepped into the hall. She sighed, wrapped her arms around my neck, and leaned her head against my shoulder. I loved it. When her fingers started playing with the back of my hair, I decided I needed to start carrying her everywhere.

The few males we passed in the hall stopped and stared, their irritation plain. I wouldn’t be welcome at the Introduction. Carrying her would be an insult to every unMated who had shown up. I didn’t care. She was mine. They needed to know that.

At the intersection of halls which led to the Introduction room, she stopped me.

“No, go outside and around back. I won’t go in that room ever again.”

Her voice wavered a little at the end, and my hold tightened. If she didn’t want to go in there, then she wouldn’t. No Elder would force my Mate.

I turned around and went to the main entrance. I carefully set her on her feet, grabbed a spare jacket from one of the hooks, and helped her put it on. She studied me as I took the time to button it up. Hopefully, she was thinking of kissing me like I was her. I didn’t try, though. She needed rest, not a racing pulse.

When I finished, I picked her back up and carried her outside. She shivered lightly in my arms as I walked across the dark yard toward the back of the building. Just before we reached the corner, she patted me lightly on the chest.

“Put me down, Clay. I’ll walk now.”

I stopped but didn’t let go. Why was she doing this? She was still trembling and weak. She should just tell Sam to piss off. My fingers twitched as I suppressed the urge to growl. I could smell the men around the corner. Too many for her to walk among them.

“It’ll be okay, Clay. There are a lot of fast people here. I won’t fall on my face.”

I studied her in the moonlight. She gazed up at me, her expression open. She didn’t want to do this. She was doing it for me. To keep me safe. I wanted to hug her and hold her to me. Instead, I did as she asked and set her on her feet.

She walked steadily around the corner with her shoulders back and head high. I kept close, a secondary shadow.

Three Elders stood by the back door. They ignored me and watched Gabby. Gabby ignored them and looked at the gathered men.

“I’m Gabby. There will be no Introduction order. I won’t have anyone left out, or leaving without a fair chance. So, instead of the stuffy cabin, let’s just do this out here.”

As she continued forward, the males lined up. She shivered again. It was small, but I noticed. Some of the men did, too.

“I believe the Elders mentioned I was ill; so if I start to stammer, bear with me.”

She moved forward, and I stayed close to her. Most of the men ignored me. A few bared their teeth at me after she passed. I paid little attention to them or the Elders trailing behind us. My focus remained on Gabby and the shivers that occurred with increasing frequency.

Her proud stance melted away with each step, bowing her back and curving her shoulders. About halfway down the line, Gabby slowed. I thought she might be ready to call for a rest, but she didn’t.

The men beyond her watched her with worry as she stopped completely. Then she gasped, the sound ringing in the silence, flinched, and touched her head as if in pain.

With a burst of speed, I stood behind her, ready to catch her. The werewolf she faced looked at me in confusion, then at her, and finally the Elders who’d quietly followed us until now.

“Gabby,” Sam said, his voice heavy with worry and warning. It was too late for that.

She held up her hand.

“A moment, please,” she said, sounding strained.

I kept my hands out, ready to grab her as she slowly straightened. She breathed deeply, as if orienting herself, then glanced at me. Worry filled her eyes. She held my gaze as if trying to tell me something. What, though? She was weak from sharing her ability with those women. She wouldn’t have her pull on men here. Besides, it only seemed to affect human men. No, it couldn’t be that. Why else would she worry? The answer hit me, and I looked at the men around us. She’d tried to use her sight. But why? The males watched us. Nothing seemed out of place.

While I studied the woods, she turned to the men in front of her.

“I’m sorry. Like I said, I’m not feeling well. The pain in my head just took me by surprise.”

We all heard the lie in her words, but no one commented. She took another steadying breath and started moving again. Only, this time, her progress was slower and her steps more labored. Tremors shook her, confirming that she’d used her gift and exhausted herself.

I wasn’t the only one watching her with concern. Each man she passed glanced at the Elders trailing us, as if wondering why they hadn’t put a stop to this. I wondered the same thing.

After a few more steps, Gabby halted.

“A f-face I know. I’m here as p-promised.”

I eyed the man she stared at. Who the hell was he and how did she know him?

“I see that, Little One,” he said. “Although, it looks like you should be in bed, instead.”