Chapter 2
Aurora
I’d come to the hospital to drop off food to Ha-joon in thanks for letting me stay at his condo for so long before Ellie had set me up in a condo in a different building she owned.
Theresa had asked her for that because the security was good and she would feel better since they both wanted to go after my former family for holding me prisoner for so long.
I realized it wasn’t the right thing to do given the place and his position, especially since they were now a public couple.
People were whispering and giving me pointed stares as if I’d crossed some sort of line.
He even looked a bit uncomfortable, so I’d hurried to apologize, explaining that I thought he could share with his staff instead of stopping by his condo.
But then I hurried to leave, down on myself for not understanding that was how society was now… And upset that was how society was now. It was so ridiculously harmless that I dropped off food to thank him and people were wagging their tongues over that.
I wanted to take a moment in the atrium garden to catch my breath and recenter myself before I met up with my driver. He was really a bodyguard and he didn’t hide that, but Theresa and Ellie referred to him as my driver since everything in Atlanta needed to be driven to.
Even I knew that was a lie since the public transit system was fantastic. Ellie made sure of that, but it was overwhelming for someone who had never used it—used any sort of public transit. I wasn’t even used to vehicles and they were still scary to me.
So yes, I understood the guard and appreciated him. He was very nice and I felt safe with him, so they did a good job choosing Xavier. He was a Belgian Malinois shifter, so they were perfect for protecting people and always keeping an eye on their surroundings.
But that was also why I needed a minute because he noticed everything and I knew he reported back to Ellie and Theresa.
And that was how I met Creed.
I was upset and tired of feeling like no one ever understood me or gave me the chance to explain, but he did. I was tired of people picking on the wrong people and he appreciated it.
But his warning to stay away from ASH haunted me. Was there something more going on at Ellie’s hospital that she didn’t know about? She had worked so hard to make this amazing place, and again to clean it of corruption and toxicity… I couldn’t just ignore what he’d said.
Plus, I wanted to see him again.
I was hundreds of years old and free to live my life now. It was time to be honest even if it was just with myself.
He was rough around the edges, and I’d never met someone who used so much profanity when not upset, but he was… Real. He was calm and not uptight when I’d lived in a world full of anxiety and my entire life had been judged by an array of hypercritical people.
I found myself mostly forgetting about why I’d wanted to get to know him originally and simply wanting to spend time with him. But then I felt guilty, deciding to go see Mark who was one of Ellie’s executive admins and the person she said to talk with if I needed anything.
“Hi, I was hoping to get some information on an employee,” I told him, swallowing my nerves because he treated me like an annoying bug he didn’t want to deal with.
He slowly blinked at me as if I’d asked him for the time or something simple I could find out myself.
“Oh, you’re serious.” He let out a fake, mocking chuckle.
“Um, no, we can’t do that. It’s extremely, extremely against the law since you don’t work here or have any reason at all to ever see private hospital personnel information. ”
“Oh, yes, it is silly to ask when you put it like that,” I quickly replied. “I apologize for bothering you.”
He gave a noncommittal grunt and picked up his phone that didn’t ring giving me a look to leave him alone. He wasn’t wrong that I’d asked for something over the line and yes, I was an idiot for not having realized that, but… Did he have to make me feel so small for asking?
He knew about my circumstances, and instead of being understanding, seemed to enjoy making me feel stupid at every turn.
You are stupid, and he has every right to point out when you act a fool so you don’t keep embarrassing Ellie.
Xavier noticed a difference in me and asked if anything was wrong. I gave him the same answer as always and adjusting to the way society was now was difficult for me. I’d watched it pass me by and learned as much as I could once the internet came about, but… It wasn’t the same as living in it.
I felt as if I’d spent my life looking out the window for centuries after I left the Reed coven and never experienced anything. I’d basically been in a time capsule waiting to be opened and completely behind.
And as Mark pointed out, I needed to “wash the privilege off of me” since I wasn’t a coven leader’s wife anymore nor a coven leader’s daughter with power. True but… Again, he could explain it to me without acting as if I was being rude.
The next day people tried to bully Creed again before they saw me sitting there, but I overheard something he clearly didn’t want me to.
But it was also something I couldn’t let go.
“Are you really out on parole?” I asked quietly.
“Yes,” he bit out. “So? Now you won’t eat with me? You going to mock me too?”
“No,” I whispered. “No, not at all.” I swallowed my worry and fear when he went tense.
“But? There’s clearly a fucking ‘but’ there, Aurora.”
That was true and if he was honest enough to push for the truth then I could be honest enough to give it. I let out a slow breath and remembered he was the same man that I’d been enjoying getting to know.
And I wasn’t without sin either.
“But I would be uncomfortable eating alone with you knowing that,” I said quietly.
He didn’t say anything for a full minute. “I don’t fucking deserve that. I’ve been nothing but nice to you and not done one fucking thing for—”
“I’m a survivor of abuse, Creed,” I rasped, blinking back tears.
“I won’t ask what you were in prison for.
That’s your business, but I’m—I have a past too.
I spent hundreds of years never feeling safe.
I want to feel safe now. We’re eating in public, so it’s fine, but—you asked what it would change.
I would be uncomfortable being alone with you right now knowing that. ”
He was quiet again, but I felt his upset slowly recede. “Yeah, you should be selfish to feel safe.” He cleared his throat. “Sorry.”
“Thank you.”
Creed didn’t say anything until we moved on to dessert. “I never hurt a woman who didn’t attack me. I’ve never thrown the first punch unless I knew what was going to happen and I was outnumbered.”
I nodded, understanding what he was saying. “You never went looking nor instigated violence.”
“Never.”
I nodded. “I’m glad that’s seemed to have changed.” I frowned. “Or maybe that’s shifters. Vampire men seem to…” I shrugged. What did I really know about vampire men now any more than I did about shifters? I had only met a few shifters in my life before my family tossed me out.
But at least I now understood why he was treated so poorly by others at the hospital. They didn’t like having an ex-convict working among them.
I wasn’t excusing their behavior. No, they had no idea what kind of man he was or his crime. It wasn’t for them to judge and he’d done his penance. I was upset that it seemed common knowledge but obviously didn’t come from Creed.
There was no chance of that when he wasn’t chatty like that. I’d had eight lunches with him and didn’t know his last name.
I had so many questions though, a few comments he’d made that didn’t add up, but I also didn’t know enough about ASH or how life was anymore. He wasn’t open to talking about any of it and… I didn’t want to ruin this—whatever it was. It was the only nice thing in my life.
Everything else was upsetting or full of anxiety—terrifying or me doing things so I didn’t upset Theresa or Ellie. I’d wronged them both in so many ways that I did whatever they wanted, but that wasn’t easy for me.
Life wasn’t meant to be easy after my sins. I knew that. I knew I didn’t deserve that.
But it was during lunch with Creed. He was my peace. He complimented my cooking even when the cookies looked like a blind person made them and the salads were too salty. His firm statements about not being harsh on myself knocked the echoing critical ones out of my head.
It was the one good thing in my life until Mark showed up and poked at it all and then Ellie walked up into a situation. The disappointment in her eyes when she looked at me made me want to just curl up and die.
And tears burned in my eyes knowing Creed felt betrayed this was the end of our lunches.
Ellie stopped just before the door of her office and focused on Mark. “Was there something you wanted to add to the discussion or I need to know?”
He frowned. “I thought you wanted me to tell you what happened?”
I twisted my hands when Creed snorted.
Ellie ignored that. “You’re too busy for that and I’m sure the other two adults can fill me in.
I’ll follow up with you if I need to, thanks.
” She didn’t wait for his answer and opened the door, letting us both inside.
Once the door was closed and she flipped some switch on the wall, she focused on me. “Before we get into whatever is—”
“I’m so sorry, Ellie, but—”
“Aurora, I’m not mad,” she said quietly, giving me a moment with that. “Tell me first what is going on with Mark? Does he always treat you like…”
Creed snorted again, crossing his arms over his chest when Ellie looked at him. “Like shit on his shoes? I honestly didn’t know he had another way to behave but yeah, he treated Aurora like that.” He frowned deeper when he looked at me. “Tell her.”
I cleared my throat and looked down at my hands. “I deserve it after what I did to Ellie.”