Chapter Eight
Mitch
”That”s why I was driving in the middle of nowhere. I came home and saw…him…in bed with…” she says, her gaze distant, haunted. ”I just...I had to get away. I didn”t even think, I just packed a bag and got in my car and drove. And drove. And drove.”
The anguish etched into Sarah”s delicate features cuts me to the core, each shaking breath she draws mirroring a physical ache deep within my soul. Rage simmers beneath my skin, a visceral, all-consuming fury that has my wolf snarling and snapping at the edges of my consciousness. How dare that man do what he did to my mate? How could any man do that to any woman? How dare this pathetic excuse for a man shatter something so precious, so utterly perfect?
My muscles cord with the effort of restraint, every fiber of my being aching to unleash the full force of my wrath upon Sarah’s ex. My wolf pushes at the edge of my control. Fur breaks out along my arm, thankfully hidden by the sleeve of my uniform.
Easy. We can’t act rashly. Not when Sarah needs us.
The thought of Sarah, so fragile and yet so achingly strong, is enough to temper the inferno of both our fury. I force myself to focus on her words, to truly listen as she speaks.
“I paid for everything,” she whispers, her voice trembling with a mixture of heartbreak and bitter resentment. “His tuition, his books, his rent...I worked overtime, took on extra shifts, just so he could focus on his studies.”
A harsh, sardonic laugh tears from her lips, the sound devoid of any true mirth and her shoulders slump forward. “I can’t afford to pay Cindi for the room. And I certainly can’t afford to fill up my gas tank.”
Each admission is a physical blow, driving the air from my lungs and leaving me reeling. This woman, this extraordinary creature who has endured more pain and heartache than anyone should ever have to bear, is more concerned with settling her debts than with her own circumstances.
It’s a testament to her strength, her unwavering sense of integrity and honor, and it only serves to deepen the well of regard I have for her.
She is precious beyond measure.
Sarah draws herself up, her shoulders squaring as she lifts her chin in a silent show of defiance. “If there’s one thing I know how to do, it’s work,” she declares, her voice ringing with a newfound determination that sets my soul ablaze with admiration.
“I’ll do whatever it takes to earn my keep. I don’t expect people to pay for me. If Sally needs a dishwasher, or a waitress, or someone to scrub floors, I’ll do it. I’m not afraid of hard work.”
Pride swells within me, a fierce, possessive surge that has my wolf preening and puffing out his chest. This woman, this extraordinary creature, is everything I could have ever hoped for in a mate–strong, resilient, and unbreakable in the face of adversity.
And in that moment, I know without a shadow of a doubt that I will never let her go, not for as long as I draw breath. She is mine, now and forever, and I will move heaven and earth to shield her from a world that has already taken heavy tolls.
But first, she deserves to know the truth – the whole truth, about who and what I am, about the world that exists just beyond the veil of human perception.
“Tell me, Sarah. What is your profession?”
“I’m a reporter. But I don’t imagine there’s much call for that sort of thing around here.” She offers me a sad smile.
A faint grin tugs at my lips, and I shake my head, unable to contain the surge of amusement that washes over me. If only she knew. I’m the alpha of our packlands and in charge of every job. I leave everyone to choose their own occupation, but I can also make up jobs that need doing.
“On the contrary. I think this area is in dire need of a skilled reporter, someone with a keen eye and an unwavering commitment to uncovering the truth. Our community has needed someone to bring it together, and words are a great way to do that,” I say.
She regards me dubiously, her eyes narrowing as she tries to discern if I’m simply placating her or if there’s a deeper meaning lurking beneath my words. “You’re making that up,” she accuses, her tone laced with challenge.
I can’t help but chuckle, my amusement only deepening at her quick wit and fiery spirit. “Not at all. It’ll save Sally from having to tell everyone news events when they wander in to her diner. It can get a little long in the tooth for her repeating herself all of the time. In fact, we’re having a mid-winter festival in town tonight, a celebration of the changing seasons and the promise of new beginnings.”
It’s also an opportunity for the town to shift and go for a midnight run in the forest, but everyone will know to be careful with Sarah here.
That is until she wears my mating bite.
The thought of that sends a surge of heat to my cock. I shift, hoping she doesn’t notice my swelling crotch.
Her brow tenses further, but I can see the flicker of interest kindling in her eyes and I press my case. “You could document the festivities, capture the essence of our town and its traditions, and in doing so, earn a tidy sum from our central fund to tide you over until we can sort out this mess with your accounts.”
I let the offer hang in the air between us, watching as a myriad of emotions play out across her expressive features. Curiosity, intrigue, and just a hint of wariness all vie for dominance, but it’s the spark of determination that ultimately wins out.
“All right. I know you’re only asking to be kind, but I’ll do it. No payment necessary other than a place to sleep on credit, if that’s okay.” She holds up her palm when I start to object. “This is only until I can get a proper job and pay with real money. And if I could use your computer to look for real jobs since I have no reception on my phone.”
“This is a real job…” I say.
“That may be so, but it still relies on kindness and as far as my experience goes, kindness doesn’t pay bills. Of course I’ll do my best Mitch, but I’ll still need to get another job. Just until I can get back on my feet.”
I want her off her feet. I want her in my bed, revered and spoiled for the rest of her life as is her right as the fated mate of an alpha wolf. But I’m getting to know this exquisite woman with each passing moment and she would hate to be coddled like that.
No, Sarah needs to be heard. She needs to be given choices. She needs to make decisions on her own terms. She needs to know what true love and respect looks like.
And I’m determined to show her exactly what that is.
I’m not going to argue with her, especially since it gives me the perfect excuse to spend more time with her for our bond to strengthen. “The Lunar Frost festivities begin at five in the afternoon. Before then, I’ll show you around town so you can orient yourself.”
Her eyes flare. “I couldn’t possibly ask you to do that. I’m happy to take a wander on the way back to the Wolf’s Bite.”
She won’t get out of this. She doesn’t know exactly what a wolf shifter will do for his mate. “You haven’t had breakfast yet. I’ll take you to Sally’s and she can see for herself that you’ve survived the night, and then you can come on patrol with me so you can orient yourself with the town which you’ll need to do for your job.”
Her gulp of breathless air is music to my ears when I take her hand and bring her to her feet. “Sheriff…Mitch.”
The bond flares in my chest, bright with desire, awareness and arousal. They mix into an all-powerful urge that I give in to. I pull her toward me so that her breasts are crushed against my chest.
Sarah’s eyes blaze with barely restrained hunger, her full lips parted ever so slightly as she draws in a trembling breath. Her answering interest sparks to life in our bond as she begins to feel an echo of the red-hot desire thrumming through me.
My wolf roars in triumph at having our mate in our arms, so tantalizingly close that our air mingles.
Mate.
Mine.
Touch. Take. Taste. Kiss.
Need.
The last vestiges of my restraint slip away, as a wave of pure, unbridled want and longing crashes over me. With a low, rumbling growl, I cup her face in my palms, reveling in the silken warmth of her skin beneath my touch. Her pupils dilate, swallowing the vibrant emerald of her irises until only a thin ring of jade remains.
“Mate,” I rasp, before I claim her lips with mine.
The kiss is searing, scorching in its intensity. Sarah’s body is tense against mine, but I swipe my tongue along the seam of her lips and she melts against me. Even watered down, wolf shifter blood is too powerful to deny a fated mate bond. She is no less immune to it than I am.
A guttural groan tears itself from my throat as her fingers tangle in the fabric of my shirt. My wolf howls in triumph, a feral, possessive sound that echoes through the very core of my being.
She draws back, lips shining, eyes glazed. “Did…you hear that?”
The only thing I hear is my heart pounding and my wolf trying to tear his way from my skin.
“It…sounds like a wolf,” she whispers.
If I had any doubt she was mine, it’s incinerated in flames in an instant. Mine. She is mine, now and forever, the missing piece of my soul that I’ve been searching for my entire life.
Sarah is my mate, my destiny, the other half of my being blessed by the goddess herself. Sarah was never lost. She never stumbled into Willowbrook.
She was brought here to seal both our destinies.
I now understand what it truly means to be complete.
With a low, guttural growl, I tear my lips from hers, peppering searing kisses along the slender column of her throat as my hands roam the lush curves of her body. She arches into my touch, her head falling back to grant me better access, a breathless whimper escaping her parted lips.
“Mitch,” she gasps, my name a reverent sigh that sends a shudder of pure, unadulterated desire rippling through me.
I growl in response, nipping at the tender flesh where her pulse flutters erratically beneath the surface. Mine, the possessive rumble seems to say. All mine.
“Mitch,” she moans.
Sarah is my mate, my love, my everything. And as I lose myself in the searing heat of her embrace, I silently vow to spend the rest of my days worshiping her, cherishing her, giving her everything she never knew she needed.
She is the air I breathe, the beat of my heart, the very essence of my existence. And I will gladly burn the world to the ground to protect her. Without her, I am nothing. But with her by my side, I am everything–a man made whole, a soul reborn in the fires of a love that transcends space and time itself.
“Mitch!” She wrenches away from me, capturing my face in her hands. She’s panting. Breathing as frantically as I am, but the dazed look clears from her eyes, helping to ease some of the fog from my head. She licks her glossed lips, takes a deep breath and says, “What’s a mate?”