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herself. “I want to, but I can’t.”
    “Kenzie,” Vic said but shook her head. She had no idea what to say.
    “Someday, he’ll realize what he lost when he left. He may be my mate, and I won’t be able to turn away if he comes to me. Our biology will make sure of that. But I’ll never trust him, and I’ll always be waiting for him to walk away again.”
    “I’ll hate him for you,” Vic swore. “And I’ll do my best to make his life hell when he does come crawling back.”
    Kenzie smiled but it was a sad imitation of her former grins. “This is why I need to stay away from everyone for a bit. My emotions are all over the place.”
    “Kenzie, you’re not going after Gabriel, are you?” Vic asked.
    “No,” Kenzie answered, her voice taking on a hard tone. “The next time I see him, he’ll be coming to me, begging me for forgiveness. Next time, he’ll have to choose me instead of everyone else.”
    “You better make him fucking grovel on his hands and knees and worship the ground you walk on before you even consider forgiving that bastard. Hell, I’m not sure you should ever forgive him. But I get the whole mate thing will play a part in everything.”
    “The mark means I’ll want to fuck him. My body will always be his and only his. It could have meant more, had he stayed. Honestly, I’ve never known of a mated couple where one of them walked away. I have no idea what this will do. Maybe given enough time, the mark will fade and the brief exchange we had will become so diluted in my system that I can take another as my mate. All I can do is wait and see.”
    “This mating shit is fucked up,” Vic stated. The bond could be great, she’d seen that with the other mated couples. Now she was seeing a different side, a darker side, with Kenzie and her mate, or lack thereof.
    “It is what it is,” Kenzie said dismissively and walked over to the window. “Are you going to Oklahoma with everyone?”
    Vic didn’t press Kenzie about the change in conversation. There were elements to this whole mating thing Vic couldn’t possibly understand. One thing was clear, though. Kenzie was still struggling to understand why her mate had left her, and she was incredibly hurt by his choice. Vic thought again about how much she hoped Kenzie made the bastard suffer just as she obviously was.
    “I don’t know for sure. Maybe. Probably,” Vic said.
    “It’s not like you to be so indecisive,” Kenzie said, turning back to face Vic. Her arms hugged her waist once more.
    “Are you going to Oklahoma?” Vic asked, taking a page from Kenzie and avoiding answering.
    “Eventually,” Kenzie said. “There’s something I need to take care of first. Holt’s appointed himself my guardian, so he’s going with me.”
    “What is it you need to take care of?” Vic asked. “Do you need me with you?”
    “No,” Kenzie said. “I think Holt planned to ask you to come along, but I need something else from you.”
    “Okay,” Vic said, eyeing her warily.
    “I need you to make sure no one comes after me.”
    “I’m sorry, what? Have you been hiding away up here so long you’ve forgotten who you’re talking about? Tah. Reno. Logan. Zane. The crazy fucking Irishmen. And you want me to keep them from coming after you if that’s what they decide to do?”
    “Like any of them intimidate you,” Kenzie countered. “You’re even immune to Tah.”
    “I think the fully human thing helps me out there,” Vic admitted and finally got a real smile from Kenzie. “Are you sure this is something you need to do on your own? You know you could ask any one of them for help, and they’d give it.”
    “I need to do this by myself,” Kenzie said.
    “Look me in the eye and tell me it’s not dangerous,” Vic demanded. “Tell me you won’t do anything to put yourself at risk, or I’ll lock you up myself.”
    “I’ll be fine,” Kenzie said. “I promise. Holt will be with me. I have too much to lose to do something stupid