Chapter 10 - Grayson #2
He took a moment to choose his words carefully. “I found Theodore. He’s planning another auction. Bellefleur is one of their targets for acquiring…assets.”
Her fork clattered against her plate as her hand fell to the table. “What? Why Bellefleur?”
He’d thought—naively, maybe—that the network would have steered clear of Bellefleur now that they knew Black Ops had a foothold in the area.
They knew the risk. Surely, they wouldn’t continue targeting the town.
Sure, he knew they would still want to come after Cora, but to keep coming for their females…
Clearly, he’d underestimated just how bold—and desperate—they’d become.
“It’s full of witches and shifters. Easy pickings for a network like his,” Grayson explained. “They’ve already started rounding people up in nearby towns. It’s only a matter of time before they make a move here.”
Grayson could see the flicker of fear behind her eyes, though she quickly masked it with anger. “And what are we supposed to do? Just wait for them to come knocking?”
“No. The pack’s on alert. We’re setting up patrols, keeping an eye on anything suspicious. I won’t let them get near you.”
“You mean you won’t let them get near us.”
Grayson clenched his fists under the table. “This isn’t the time to argue semantics, Cora. My job is to keep you safe.”
“I’m not helpless, Grayson,” she shot back. “You don’t have to shield me from everything. Especially if it involves my home.”
He knew he should tell her the rest—that the auction network wasn’t just targeting Bellefleur but her specifically. But the fear in her eyes, thinly veiled behind her defiance, kept the words locked in his throat. What good would it do to burden her with that? She was already carrying enough.
Grayson chose silence instead, letting the moment stretch between them until she finally broke eye contact with a frustrated shake of her head.
“You’re impossible, you know that?”
“So I’ve been told,” he replied.
Cora sighed, and her posture slumped. “What happens if we can’t stop them?”
“We will,” Grayson stated without hesitation.
“And if we don’t?”
“Then I’ll burn their whole operation to the ground.”
The conviction in his voice silenced any further argument. Grayson pushed his plate away, no longer able to stomach the meal.
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“For dragging you into this. For making you a target.”
Cora’s expression softened, and she reached across the table to place her hand over his. The gesture was small, but the warmth of her touch sent a jolt through him.
“You didn’t make me a target, Grayson. The people running the auction did. All you did was get me out.”
Her words should have eased his guilt, but they didn’t.
If anything, they only reminded him of the stakes.
He turned his hand over, intertwining his fingers, brushing with hers.
“You know about Emily. She was my mate. You know that. And losing her… It wasn’t just about losing someone I loved.
It shattered everything I thought I knew about myself.
About what I was capable of. I thought I was strong, but after she was gone…
” He paused, exhaling slowly as he tried to find the words.
“I wasn’t strong enough to survive it. Not in the way I should have. ”
Cora tilted her head. “You did survive it.”
“Barely,” he admitted. “I shut everything out—my pack, my work, myself. I became this…hollow version of who I was. Nothing mattered except the mission. It was the only thing I could control, the only way I could keep going. If I could stop someone else from feeling what I did, maybe it wouldn’t be for nothing. ”
Her thumb brushed gently against the back of his hand. “That’s not hollow, Grayson. That’s you trying to heal.”
“It didn’t feel like healing. It felt like punishment. I threw myself into work because it was easier than facing the guilt. Easier than admitting I’d failed her. And even after all this time, that guilt hasn’t gone away.”
“You didn’t fail her. You did everything you could with the information you had at the time.”
“Did I?” he challenged. “Because every decision I made back then feels like the wrong one now. And every time I see you—every time I think about what could happen to you—I feel it all over again.”
“Grayson…”
“You don’t understand. I can’t lose you, Cora. I can’t go through that again. It’s not just the bond. It’s not just the mission. It’s you. You matter.”
“You won’t lose me,” she declared. “I’m not going anywhere.”
The sincerity in her eyes undid him. Before he could think better of it, he leaned across the table, capturing her lips in a kiss that wasn’t driven by desperation or adrenaline this time—it was an acknowledgment of the connection between them, of the bond that neither of them could deny.
Her hand slid to the back of his neck, pulling him closer as the kiss deepened. For a moment, the world outside ceased to exist. There was no auction, no danger, no looming threat. There was only her. Her soft lips. Her breath against his skin. Her scent surrounded him.
It was a momentary reprieve, a moment of peace. One he would willingly surrender himself to.
Grayson didn’t realize how much he needed her—how much he needed the way she grounded him, the way she anchored him. He was drowning, and she was his lifeline. He didn’t deserve it. But damn if he wasn’t grateful for it.
When they finally broke apart, both were breathing harder. Grayson rested his forehead against hers and whispered, “I’ll keep you safe, Cora. No matter what it takes.”
“I know,” she replied. “And I’ll fight, too. For you.”
The words settled between them, and Grayson reluctantly pulled back. His fingers lingered on her cheek before he stood.
“We should get some rest,” he suggested, though it killed him. They were both too high on emotion to think clearly, and he didn’t want her to regret anything that might happen.
“Good night, Grayson.”
“Good night,” he replied before retreating to the couch.
As he settled in for the night, the weight of the day pressed down on him. But for the first time in a long time, he felt something akin to hope. Whatever came next, he knew one thing for certain: he wouldn’t face it alone.