Awakening Rejected Mate & Following Fate novel Chapter 6

I know others are watching; my senses are hitched up real high and my body goosebumping all over in response. I can feel them on me from all over and I want to sink into the ground and disappear. I yank but the blanket begins to tear from the pressure nearer my end and I have no choice but to stop or be left with a scrap that will cover nothing.

"For god’s sake, Damon. This isn't the time or place. My father is staring at you. Pack it in." Colton snarls his way, pushes him from behind and comes into view, shoving him off the blanket and swoops down to pick it up with speed. He walks forward in two confident strides and hands it straight to me, bending lightly as he does so to make sure I get it without any more interference. I know he's only doing it to save face, exert his dominance in front of his father and save Damon from punishment later. Either way I’m for the first time ever, thankful for him and relieved he is an Alpha in the making.

I reach out and take it gratefully, quickly pulling it around me and hiding what's on show, afraid to really look at him, but it's almost impulsive as his hand, still attached to the comer, briefly touches my shoulder in passing because of how speedy I am. Hot searing flash runs through my body alarmingly, igniting something tingly inside of me that I can’t identify. Like being zapped by a low strength taser and I gasp at the contact, glancing up at him as he attempts to rise to standing, seemingly also recoiling for what was maybe just an electric shock. For one brief millisecond of synchronized surprise, our eyes lock ....

It's all it takes.

One second of direct focus, a meeting of eyes I have never dared to look into before and the worst thing in the world happens to me. We connect; visions, images, projections start flowing through my mind at neck breaking speed that fries my brain and I cannot break his gaze or look away. Startled into silence, locked in, and unable to fight what happens. My body rigid and paralyzed, controlled by this higher force as we' re forcefully held, trapped in an intense stare down and his dark, almost black eyes eat into my soul.

His memories, my memories, his fears, my fears. They become a jumbling mass of zooming information, flooding, invading my mind, and overtaking me as I' m body slammed with an overwhelming amount of emotions, in literal seconds, that could potentially zap your brain to death.

My body, my heart, my soul, all pulled into this flash of breath, which completely spins my world on tilt and changes everything instantaneously. Rooted to the spot, aware only of the darkest chocolate eyes on mine, unable to break frees yet marooned like I suddenly found home and his gaze goes from sworn enemy to lifeline in my darkness. Neither of us can do anything in our paralysed state but let it happen, until the wild ride of transferring all we are, we know, we feel, is done and we are left shellshocked from the fall out.

Breathless, reeling from the invasion of his life, his memories, his history, pouring into my shocked memory banks, I finally snap out and fall backwards in a slump. Released from whatever the hell that was and momentarily dazed. Fully incapable of any kind of movement as I lay on the ground, startled into silence and lightheaded from what felt like a physical assault.

"Holy shit" Colton's voice waves my way, sounding equally shocked and as breathless as me, and I strain up to see him, also on the ground. On his knees though, looking like someone just sucker punched him in the stomach, and he falls forward to drop his palms on the ground to hold him steady. Eyes wide, skin pale, unusually for his normal tanned hue. He looks like someone just told him the worst news he ever wanted to hear in his life and he’s reeling in the aftermath. Around us is complete and utter silence, like a pin could drop and be heard right now and I have no idea what to think.

"They just imprinted" one solo voice squeaks out, and echoes around us like someone announcing a death sentence.

"No, that' s can't have happened..." another, moments later.... and then another, and another. The voices blending and blurring as my fingers find my skull and I start scrubbing my head to get my brain to start functioning. To figure out what just happened to me. The mutterings of one or two become many, deafening as they all begin to verbalise their questions at what they just saw.