Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
Aman is chasing me through a never-ending, dark corridor.
I sprint down the hallway, twisting doorknobs and trying to open doors as I pass them.
Locked.
Locked.
Locked again.
Footsteps pound after me.
A man calls out, “This will go easier for you if you just come with us.”
But it’s a lie.
The elevator at the end of the hallway is my only way out of here. I rush toward it, stabbing the call button frantically.
The door slowly opens, and I squeeze through the gap, pounding at the close button as the door is still opening.
Pop.
I jerk left, dodging a bullet that lodges in the elevator wall.
The door starts to close.
Panicking, my eyes lock on the man sprinting toward me with a gun pointed right at me.
He won’t make it. Please don’t let him make it.
The door is almost shut when a hand catches it, pushes it open, and the man points the gun at my head.
He smiles as he pulls the trigger.
“Shelby!”
I bolt upright, breathing hard and fast. The lamp on the nightstand is on, and Vaden is sitting on the edge of the bed, wearing black briefs.
Slowly, as my panic decreases, I realize he’s talking.
“… nightmare. You’re okay. It was just a nightmare.”
My throat is hoarse, and I clear it, my cheeks burning with the knowledge that I must have been screaming pretty loud. “Sorry I woke you up with my screaming.”
He looks at me as if I’m insane. “You think I give a fuck about that? I thought you were in trouble.” He drags me into his arms, and I’m so relieved he’s here to hold me after one of my worst nightmares that I don’t complain or call him Tarzan.
“Want to talk about it?” he asks softly, rubbing a hand up and down my back.
I shake my head. “Not really.”
“Okay. I can stay with you until you fall asleep.”
Lifting my head from his shoulder, I look at him, hesitating.
We barely know each other, and everything feels too fast. Too… overwhelming. I keep telling myself I can’t trust someone I literally just met, but I keep wanting to anyway.
As if sensing my inner turmoil, he tucks a strand of blonde hair behind my ear. “It’s okay to lean on me. That’s what mates do.”
“But I’m not a shifter.”
“But you have instincts. What are they telling you?”
I take a second to think. “That I can trust you. I mean, I have to, right? There is no way in hell I would have been stupid enough to go with a man who was running naked in the forest in the middle of the night otherwise.”
He flashes me a grin, and my heart squeezes.
“What is it?” He cocks his head.
“I just realized I’ve never seen you smile before.” I see brief flashes of his amusement, but it’s always in his eyes or the occasional lip twitch.
“Never had much of a reason to before.” He gets into bed, under the sheets, and lifts one arm. “Come over here.”
I arch my brow.
His lips twitch. “Please come sleep with me, Jane. Nothing feels as good as having you in my arms.”
I lay down against his chest. “When you’re not ordering me to do things, you’re actually not that bad at this romance business.”
His chest vibrates, a sign he’s laughing silently. “I have no fucking clue what I’m doing. It’s why Averie and Fisher haven’t left to visit our pack in Oklahoma yet.”
“They wanted to be around to help you?”
He snorts. “My sister wanted to be around to laugh when I inevitably make a fool of myself.”
As he runs his fingers through my hair, I listen to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat against my cheek. “What were you doing in the forest naked? You never did tell me.”
“Watching over you,” he says quietly. “I figure there had to be a reason you were carrying around pepper spray and seemed on high alert in the grocery store.”
Yeah, I forgot about that.
“How’d you know I was staying at Fisher’s house?”
When he doesn’t respond, I lift my head and look into his face. “Vaden?”
He briefly shuts his eyes and releases a slow breath before saying reluctantly, “I followed you.”
I stare at him.
He attempts a smile.
My eyes narrow.
He sits up, serious. “I know how to protect my pack. Protect my alpha. Except… that’s not what this is about.” He leans in closer. “Having a mate. Talking to her. That’s new ground, and I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing. I just wanted to be close if you had trouble, so I could help.”
“And you had to be naked to do that?”
“I was a wolf before,” he explains. “Then I heard you scream, a gunshot, and I knew I might not get whoever was shooting at you before they got you. So I had to be human to protect you. I was going to go after those two men when I knew you were safe.”
“They had guns,” I remind him.
“I would have had claws and teeth. They wouldn’t have known what hit them.”
“You’re right,” I say, rubbing a hand over my face and lying back down. “It was a long story.”
No sooner does my head touch my pillow than Vaden has me tucked against his chest again.
I look at him.
He wraps his arms around me. “I would apologize, but I would be lying,” he says.
Sighing, I relax against him. “I have to call Mart tomorrow and let him know someone broke into Fisher’s house. And I have to go back—”
“I can—”
“I’m going with you,” I cut in. “So if you were about to suggest I sit here in your cabin while you potentially walk into an ambush set for me, you are wasting your time. I’m not budging on this.”
He lets out a resigned sigh. “This,” he mutters
“This?” I echo, confused.
“This is exactly why my sister wanted to be here for this.” He kisses the top of my head. “She is going to die laughing.”
“I’m still confused.”
“Go to sleep, Jane.” He reaches over and switches off the lamp on the nightstand.
“And if I have another nightmare?”
He gives me a squeeze. “You won’t be alone.”
Breakfast with the Blackshaws is a loud and messy affair.
I’m in sweatpants and an oversized T-shirt I borrowed from Vaden, and he’s in black jeans and a white T-shirt.
There are more people than I expected. I’m struggling to remember all the names I’ve been told. The kitchen island is covered with dishes, and everyone is filling their plates with eggs, bacon, sausage, and pancakes before settling at the large wooden dining table.
I’m sitting beside Vaden at the table, though not everyone has a seat. Some of the Blackshaws have snagged plates and are either leaning against counters to eat or sitting on them.
I’m overwhelmed, and I’m trying hard to hide just how badly I want to get up and run out of this room. Something brushes my right hand under the table, and I jump.
Vaden leans close, and with his mouth against my ear, breathes, “I hate every single second of this. Eat fast. Maybe it will be over soon.”
I glance over at him as he leans away.
His face is expressionless as he picks up his fork and eats his eggs and bacon.
He doesn’t involve himself in any of the multiple conversations springing up everywhere.
He just focuses on eating his eggs, and I can’t help but bite the inside of my cheek to contain my smile because I hate every single second of this too.
Everyone seems nice and friendly, but for a girl who grew up in foster care, I've gotten used to being on my own.
Maybe this wouldn’t be so overwhelming if the room weren’t so full or if I weren’t dreading this meeting where I’ll have to open up about my past when I never had to before.
I’m secretly wishing I were back in the cabin, just me and Vaden, probably arguing about something, but missing it just the same.
I glance periodically at Dayne, the guy in charge.
He meets my gaze occasionally, his serious expression giving me the impression he’s not an easygoing guy. When I open my mouth to ask him about the meeting, he shakes his head.
“After we’ve eaten.” He takes a bit of egg to the face, thrown by his adorable daughter, without flinching. “Breakfast takes all my attention.”
I can see why. He has two blond toddlers, a boy and a girl, in high chairs, smushing food across their faces. The woman feeding them, Talis, introduced herself earlier, and it’s a miracle I even remember her name after meeting so many people in the past twenty-four hours.
Patrick, his son, picks up his plate and starts to tip it over. Talis catches it just in time and shoots me a wry smile. “Every single day.”
“How are you finding the cabin, Shelby?” a blond guy asks me.
“It’s great,” I say. “Sorry, I can’t remember your name.”
He grins. “Marshall. There are a lot of us, and we’ve been flinging names at you all morning. No worries. You’ll get to know us all in time.”
I doubt it.