Knox’s POV

It has been several days since Sophia was released out of the hospital ward, and now both she and Ella were settled in on my floor of the pack house. Noah’s bedroom was next door to mine and the girls were sharing a room across the hall.

Having my mate so close to me and not being able to touch her was slowly driving Rafe crazy. The pull was getting harder and harder to resist.

To compensate my growing emotions, I was taking the frustration out on my men. Training had been doubled, offering me a chance to release some of my pent up stress. In the beginning my men were all too happy to help, now after several days of being tossed around, some weren’t so willing.

It was the middle of the night and I was still not able to sleep, suddenly when my door busted open and a frantic Sophia came running through. Instantly Rafe was alerted and on guard. Without thinking I jumped out of bed and grabbed Sophia pushing her behind her.

“Knox, what the hell are you doing?”

“Protecting you, what is the threat?”

“It’s not me you idiot, it is Ella she is missing.”

I briefly relaxed before Sophia’s words sunk in. “What do you mean she is missing?”

Before she could reply, I pulled her to the hallway. She is with Noah. Thank you Rafe.

Stopping immediately causing Sophia to slam into my back. Turning around I steadied her before she fell.

“Sorry about that. She seems to be in Noah’s room.”

Walking down the hall to his door I quietly opened it. There laid Ella and Noah cuddled up in his bed. His arm tightly holding her and her black wolf. With a sigh of relief and a quiet thank god, Sophia took a step back as I closed the door.

“She is perfectly safe with him.”

“I know. Even though I don’t understand the connection she has with him, I am thankful for it. Sleeping isn’t easy for her…or me.”

Seeing that the stress was being to wear her out as she started to sway, I leaned down and picked her up bridal style and walked to my room.

“Knox why are we here? Please just take me back to my room.”

As I set her down on the bed, I knelt in front of her and took hold of her hands. I am not sure if she realizes that for the past several minutes my hands have not left her body. The contact had Rafe panting like a love sick puppy.

“Listen Sophia…you need to get some sleep. Both you and Ella are exhausted. Just stay with me here tonight and let me hold you. I will keep the monsters at bay so you can get some rest. Please…I know you don’t understand our mating pull, but I need…you. I need to keep you safe and it is killing me to not comfort you. So please…just stay for one night.”

Looking up into her eyes I could see the emotions as she processed what I was asking. Fear being the most prevalent one. But as the seconds passed the fear dissipated and small tears began to fall. I moved my hands to cup her face and gently wiped the tears away with my thumbs as they fell. I promised her that she did not need to fear me. I could never hurt her without hurting myself. And that hopefully she would eventually understand that.

With a quick nod, she leaned back and climbed into bed. I ran around to the other sided and climbed in beside her. After maneuvering around a bit, I finally settled behind her and gently curled my arm around her waist. I was in heaven.

“Can you explain to me more about the mating pull and why you have a second mate?” She asked in a quiet voice.