Chapter 13 Carter
CARTER
It took Carter about an hour to decide which computer and monitor to purchase for Rey’s office.
He combed the websites looking for the best deals, too.
Rey’s keyboard and mouse were also atrociously gross.
Carter grimaced at the grease and grime on them while adding a new set to the cart with everything else.
His mate kept an almost immaculate house, but his office could use a deep cleaning.
Satisfied with the computer he’d ordered to be overnighted, wincing at the cost, Carter started browsing for a better inventory program.
He could get everything set up for his mate as soon as it came the next day and make sure the transition to the new program would be seamless.
His phone buzzed in his pocket while he was looking over the reviews for a piece of software.
He took it out to see a text from Nick asking him how things were going, if he was settling in all right.
Carter smiled and replied, telling him everything was fantastic.
Then he noticed an alert in his notifications for a new email received from an email address he didn’t recognize.
Tapping the email program, he opened it.
His stomach dropped out, acid roiling in his throat, causing his cereal to threaten a reappearance.
You’re so dead when I find you, slut. Changing your phone number won’t change what I’m going to do to you when I do.
There was no signature or name on the email, but Carter knew without a doubt who had sent it.
Sweat broke out on his forehead. His body jerked at a burst of laughter from the garage area, startling him out of the nightmare his mind had taken him to at the sight of the email.
Darryl had started out small when he’d begun bullying Carter.
Verbal digs, then grabbing him too hard before the first backhand Daryl had given him.
Everything led to the culmination of his almost killing Carter that night.
Carter’s entire being hurt just remembering the steel-toed boot kicking his stomach.
The sound of his name came from a distance. Carter stared at his phone, even though the screen had gone black by that time. He knew Darryl didn’t know where he was, but what if he found him? What if Darryl showed up in Senaka?
“Carter!”
Crying out, Carter dropped his phone and threw his arms over his head to protect himself.
“Sweetheart, what’s wrong?”
He screamed when firm hands gripped his shoulders. “Please! Please don’t hurt me!”
Soft cursing trickled into Carter’s consciousness. Then Carter found himself swept against a hard chest and into a broad lap. Low crooning registered first, followed by a slow rocking motion. A warm palm rubbed up and down Carter’s back. “R-Rey?” Carter stammered.
“There we are,” Rey hummed. “Just relax, little wolf. I’ve got you.”
Carter noticed that the noises from the shop had stopped completely. Not even the clang of a tool penetrated the silence of the office. His legs lay to one side of Rey’s lap, his head on Rey’s shoulder. “I’m sorry,” he said.
“For what, Carter? You have nothing to be sorry for.”
“You were busy. I-I disrupted your work.” Carter flinched when Rey lifted a hand to brush a strand of hair back from his cheek. Rey looked hurt by the reaction, but some whispers of the past still held on to Carter. “I’m not afraid of you,” he whispered.
“I know, sweetheart. Talk to me. What happened?” Rey asked.
Instead of trying to speak past the raw tightness in his throat, Carter picked up his phone from the desk, unlocked it, and without looking at the email, passed the phone to Rey.
Tension flooded Rey’s body, but he didn’t react beyond his muscles growing taut.
“He can’t get to you, Carter. Not here. Not with me. ”
“I can’t be with you twenty-four seven, Rey,” Carter said.
“Until this bastard is caught, you will be. I’m going to send this to Kasey, then we’re going to delete it. After that, we’re going to go home.” Rey hit the forward icon on the email, typed in something one-handed, hit send, then deleted the email.
“What about your shop?” Carter protested, raising his head to look at Rey. “And I didn’t find the inventory software yet.”
“None of that matters to me, Carter. You do. Besides, Nevada can take care of the shop the rest of the day, and the software can wait. I want to get you home.”
Carter bit his lip. Less than twenty-four hours here and he was already upsetting Rey’s life. Maybe everyone back home had been right. He was nothing but a bother. Rey’s chest vibrated with a low growl. “Whatever you’re thinking, little wolf, stop. You matter more to me than some bricks and metal.”
Rey hugged Carter tight for a few breaths, then released him, tapping him on his thigh. “Up. I’ll let Nevada know we’re leaving.”
Sliding off Rey’s lap, Carter pocketed his phone and followed Rey from the office. “Why don’t you go wait in the truck, sweetheart?” Rey said.
Nevada stood nearby, watching them, his eyes assessing but sympathetic.
Embarrassment flooded Carter at knowing Nevada knew about Darryl.
Carter walked over to Rey’s truck and got into the passenger seat, watching through the window as Rey spoke with Nevada.
He wasn’t stupid. He knew Rey was telling Nevada about the email and why they were leaving now.
Darryl had called him weak on multiple occasions, and Carter continued to prove him right.
Instead of just showing the email to Rey, he’d panicked, freezing up.
The same thing he’d always done in the face of Darryl’s anger, instead of fighting, pushing back.
He’d never been strong. Even when the other kids bullied him at school, he’d always just taken it, never defending himself.
Carter dug his nails into his palms, uncaring as they cut half-moon shapes in the flesh. Would he ever be strong enough for a mate like Rey? Would he ever be able to make Rey proud of him by standing up for himself?
A murderous expression flooded Nevada’s tanned face.
If Carter hadn’t met Rey, he’d have found himself attracted to the guy.
Only a couple of inches shorter than Rey, Nevada’s frame was almost as bulky as Rey’s.
The dark blue coveralls the shifter wore hid whether he had any tattoos or markings on his body, but they didn’t hide the muscles or the strength the guy had.
Dark hair, cut short in a stylish wave, framed tough, angular features.
One astonishing thing about Nevada was that, unlike most Native Americans, he had dark, golden-green eyes.
They were simply breathtaking. Right now, they were snapping fire at whatever Rey had said, and they flicked toward Rey’s truck more than once.
Nevada nodded, and Rey clapped him on the shoulder before turning to join Carter.
Rey didn’t speak until they were back at the house. “How are you feeling?”
Carter had spent most of the ride lost in thought about how useless he was to everyone around him.
Though he wouldn’t voice those thoughts to Rey, for Rey would only tell Carter to stop thinking them.
Shrugging, Carter opened his door and got out.
Rey met him at the end of the sidewalk, immediately sliding an arm around Carter’s shoulders.
The house seemed eerily quiet when they entered it.
Kind of a stupid thought considering no one else lived there, but Carter couldn’t help feeling spooked, wondering if Darryl would come leaping out of a nearby closet or something.
He rubbed his hands up and down his arms, trailing behind Rey up the stairs to the bedroom.
“Get undressed, little wolf,” Rey said as he headed into the bathroom.
The sound of the water turning on in the giant tub let him know what Rey intended.
Carter shed his clothing and entered the bathroom.
Rey sprinkled powder into the water while it filled the tub.
Sitting on the closed toilet lid, Carter folded his hands in his lap, staring at the tub and watching the water rise.
He’d yet to say anything. Mostly because he didn’t know what to say.
Did he apologize again for sending Rey’s life into upheaval?
What about the trouble he’d brought to the pack, and they hadn’t even accepted him into it yet?
Throat tightening, he wondered if Kasey would kick him out before officially making him a Senaka pack member. Would he have to leave Rey? Would Rey want him to leave? Or would circumstance force Rey to go with him? Carter covered his face with his hands, swallowing hard past the lump in his throat.
He barely heard the water being shut off, the jets turning on, or the sound of clothing hitting the floor.
But he jumped when Rey suddenly picked him up, carried him to the tub, and stepped into it.
Rey sat, settling Carter against him. His mate seemed to realize Carter didn’t want words.
Instead, he picked up a nearby washcloth and slowly trailed it over his skin.
The scent of lavender wafted from the water to Carter’s nose.
He breathed in deeply, closing his eyes and resting his head on Rey’s chest.
“That’s it, little wolf, just relax,” Rey said, his voice rumbling in Carter’s ear.
Steam rose from the water, enveloping them in its wispy tendrils.
Baths hadn’t been Carter’s preference for many years—not since he’d been a child—but if it meant Rey holding him like this, touching him so gently, Carter would take a bath every single day.
He sighed, a calmness entering him, drawing the stress and tension from his body.
As the stress left, lethargy settled in his limbs, exhaustion draining him.