Page 60 of Wolf's Redemption

I got out of bed, stretched my limbs, and heard my joints creaking. I struggled to keep my eyes open, and despite having slept undisturbed, my body felt exhausted, as if I had been running all night nonstop. I forced myself to get up and, still sleepy, went to the bathroom to shower, and I rinsed my face with cold water to help me wake up once and for all.

I gently patted my cheeks to awaken my senses and looked at my reflection in the mirror, fogged up by the steam from the water. I focused my gaze and wiped away the excess moisture with my hand, and I could have sworn my reflection blinked.

Am I going crazy?

I stared at my reflection, but nothing happened, so I walked straight to my room to pack my few belongings.

The mansion was silent today, and the whole way, I didn't run into any pack members or employees. Maybe it was part of the weight I felt in my heart because I didn't want to leave. I wanted to stay forever with Eric, but I knew it wasn't the right time. Besides, after the revelation that we were destined mates, I needed time to process it and come to terms with the idea that my life would be tied to his permanently.

My room was arranged, my bag on the bed with the clothes I had brought, folded and clean. Likewise, there were several of the dresses Eric bought me neatly folded and placed at the bottom of the bag under all my clothes.

"I had one of the maids pick up your clothes. I hope you don't mind," Eric entered the room with a fresh and energetic expression. I could sense that he had awakened long before me.

I smiled faintly at him, walked over to him with a calming breath, and gave him a peck. "Thank you, sweetheart," I replied, almost on tiptoe to reach him. "Why didn't you wake me up?"

"Because you were sound asleep," he replied.

Eric, since he came in, hasn't stopped playing with his shirt sleeve as if he were buttoning it over and over again. He might just be just as anxious as I was about my departure, but it was something I could no longer put off.

"Are you ready?" he asked me, now settling the collar of his shirt.

He was dressed formally in a long-sleeved salmon-colored shirt, white pants of a thin fabric, and brown shoes, the same shade as his belt. He looked handsome, and that shirt was a size smaller than the ones he usually wore and made his chest and biceps look larger.

"Almost," I replied, putting my cell phone back in my pocket.

"Leave that there," he asked just as I was about to load my bag. "I'll have Lucas put it in the car. I want you to do something first."

I raised an eyebrow and stood in front of him. "What do you want me to do?" I asked in a neutral tone.

He grabbed my hand and laced his fingers with mine, and gently tightened his grip. "I want you to see the doctor," he said.

"I won't stay another day. I can't do that," I replied, drawing a thin line with my lips.

Eric brought his face close to mine, and his lips brushed mine but without actually kissing. I felt his warmth and gaze, the scent of the perfume he was wearing since it was exactly the one he had made with me in the lab. My pulse quickened, and the defenses I had put up just a moment ago collapsed.

"It won't be long, I promise," he said, brushing our lips with each word and using his deep, seductive tone of voice that drives me crazy. "The doctor is already here at the mansion."

"We had an agreement," I replied, holding back my urge to melt my lips with his. "I promised you that I will see the doctor. You didn't have to do this today."

Eric fixed his eyes on mine and changed his expression to a more serious one, with his eyebrows slightly frowned.

"You promised to see the doctor later because you didn't want to stay any longer. That's why I had him come today, so you can leave after he checks you," his tone was a mixture of stern but concerned. "I won't take a ‘no’ for an answer."

From the seriousness with which he said it, I knew I could not persuade him. He wanted to help me understand what had filled me with doubts all my life. And in a way, that was my greatest insecurity. I questioned whether I was really a shape-shifter or not. Or if I was so weak that my wolf had rejected me. Now that I had the chance to learn the truth behind it, I was terrified that the answer would be so hard that I couldn't bear it.

"Okay… I'll go," I replied. "Only because I promised."

I didn't want to come off as an easy woman to bend, at least not in front of him and not at that moment.

Eric kissed my cheek and smiled in my ear. "It's going to be okay, I promise."

He guided me through the mansion to a white-walled room large enough to hold four stretchers and sophisticated medical equipment. It was sort of like a nurses' station but on a very high budget, even better than some hospitals.

"You must be Cathy." A middle-aged man with gray hair and disparate eyes, one green and the other blue, with a few wrinkles, a pointy nose like a pin, and extremely white teeth greeted me. "I'm Doctor Dawn."

The doctor shook my hand and helped me sit on one of the stretchers as Eric stayed by my side, holding my hand and supporting me. I felt like I could throw up at any moment and had to make a huge effort to stop my hands from shaking.

"Tell me, Cathy. Have you ever heard a voice in your head? Or a feeling that something bad is going to happen, and it ends up happening?" he asked, unhooking the stethoscope from his neck and placing it on my chest. "Take a deep breath... very good. Now exhale."