Page 42 of Crystal Luna
“Why?”
“Just do it.”
Hesitantly she set the bottle aside and laid her hands into his, elbows resting on her knees.
“I want you to close your eyes and open your mind to me.”
He hadn’t pushed her on using the mind link since she revealed she never had before. Now that she thought of it, no one in the pack had.
“I think you don’t know how to shift because you can’t picture your half-shift.” He must have seen how terrified she was about using the link for the first time. “Focus on my mind and the pictures you see. Just follow my thoughts and it will make sure yours stay hidden. I’ll be far too focused to see your mind.”
Her heart pounded against her ribcage, her lungs seeming to have forgotten how to breathe.
“Nothing will happen to you. I will not invade your privacy,” he assured her. “You can end the link at any time.”
She slid her hands to his wrists and gripped them like her life depended on it, but she nodded anyway. His idea that she just needed to see herself made sense, and there was no other way for her to do it. With her nails digging into his skin and her heart racing, she closed her eyes.
“You’re doing good,” he praised, his words calm and reassuring. “Now just focus. Feel how your skin touches mine, how your fingers wrap around my wrist. Focus on it.”
Taking a slow, deep breath in, she did as she was told.
“Now open your mind. Follow your nerves and muscles through your body to me and where you’re touching me.”
She took her time, mapping out every nerve and muscle in her neck, over her shoulders, and down her arms. She took her time, fearing what would happen when she reached her fingertips.
Rayan’s mind waited for her. As soon as she mentally reached her fingertips, his thoughts brushed with hers.
‘Look at you, mastering another skill like it’s nothing.’
She barely had time to process the odd feeling of hearing his thoughts echoing in her mind. He painted a picture of her, as if she were watching through someone else’s eyes. A hand was curled around her throat and her eyes were wide in terror. With a knot in her stomach, she watched as Rayan replayed his viewpoint of her half-shift. She listened as he cursed her out and threatened to take her back to her abusers.
Then felt his pain as she broke his nose.
His memory slowed, pausing to show her what she really looked like in half-shift. She seemed taller. Her eyes went dark, her teeth sharp. She looked… like an animal. Looking closer, she noticed the way her skin stretched over bulging muscles. The veins beneath her skin were popping out and her nails had turned into deadly claws. She looked fierce and brutal—wild.
Frightened, she pulled away, dropping Rayan’s hands. She opened her eyes to meet his, shocked yet amazed by what she saw.
“Pretty cool, huh?”
“Terrifying would fit better.”
“Oh, sweet Velora, you have so much more in you then you know.”
“I might kill someone.”
“You might, but isn’t that what warriors do? Kill to protect the weak and you are definitely one of our strongest.”
“I…” she started but he shook his head.
“Why don’t we cut today short? Take some time to work through your thoughts and process my compliment. We can come back to this tomorrow. Don’t you have a date with Alpha Heath anyway.”
Her skin now felt like it was on fire. Mia and Curtis had insisted on having dinner with her again and she’d reluctantly agreed to spend the evening cooking with them and Alpha Heath.
“Fuck, you’re adorable when you blush,” Rayan laughed as he helped her to her feet. “You don’t have to tell me, but I see the way you look at him.”
Her throat constricted and her mind blanked. She had no idea of how to reply.
“I think it’s cute. If you two do hit it off I want to be the first one to hear everything. Would be a shame if I heard it through the pack’s gossip. You know since we’re friends now.” There was a teasing lilt to his voice, but she knew that he meant it—he’d have her back no matter what.