Chapter 30 #2
He took a long breath. “I burned his body in the cave. Hot enough to leave nothing but ash. No evidence. Nothing to trace back to you or me.”
My breath caught. He’d done that. For me. To protect me.
“The questions will start, eventually,” he continued, still not looking at me. “Blackthorn witch heir goes missing, they’ll investigate. But there’s nothing to find. As far as anyone knows, he was obsessed with you, followed you to Redding, and vanished.”
He plated the egg scramble, adding fresh berries and toast, then slid it across the island to me.
“Iris.” The name tasted bitter. “She drugged me. She helped him.”
“Called the sheriff right after I found you missing.” His eyes were hard when they met mine.
“She was still at The Roost when I got there. Wanted to rip her fucking throat out when I found out about her involvement. Sheriff took her in. From what he told me this morning, she’s confessed to everything.
Drugging you and ransacking your office. ”
I sucked in a breath. “She… My office?! That… That was her?!”
“Aye. Hard to believe. But, Blackthorn was a master manipulator. Got inside her head.”
“She’s in love with you,” I said quietly.
Axel’s expression darkened. “She was obsessed. There’s a difference.
And she put you in danger because of it.
” He turned back to clean the pan. “She’ll face charges.
The sheriff will want to talk to you, get your statement.
You’ll have to dance around the truth a bit.
But there’s no rush. When you’re ready.”
I stared down at the plate of food. Perfect, as always. He’d taken care of everything. The body. The police. Me.
“Eat,” he said gruffly.
I picked up the fork, taking a bite. The eggs were fluffy, seasoned perfectly. Delicious. But I could barely taste it over the tightness in my throat.
“What happens now?” I asked.
Axel turned away, busying himself with wiping down the counter. “Now you go back to your life. I can drive you and the little snacks back to your bungalow this afternoon, whenever you’re ready.”
My fork stopped halfway to my mouth. “What?”
“Blackthorn’s gone. Iris is in custody. You’re safe.” He still wouldn’t look at me. “You have your magic back. Your curse is broken. You can go back to living your life.”
The air left my lungs. “Axel, I am living my life.”
“Aye.” His voice was carefully neutral. “But you should do it at home—your home.”
I set down my fork slowly. “And if I don’t want to?” That made him pause. His shoulders went rigid, his hands gripping the edge of the counter. “If I want to stay? Here? With you?”
“Rebecca.” My name sounded like a warning. Like a prayer. I wasn’t quite sure which. “You don’t know what you’re saying.”
“Don’t I?” I stood, moving around the island. “I’m saying I want to stay. That I’m happy here. That I—“
“You’ve just gotten your magic back.” He whirled to face me, his eyes flashing yellow. “You haven’t even used it yet. Haven’t seen what you can do now. Once you do, once you realize your potential—“
“I’ll what? Suddenly not want this anymore?” I gestured around us. “Not want you?”
His jaw clenched. “You’ll want a real life.”
“This is my real life.” I stepped closer. “This cabin. Teaching at the college. You. The bunnies sleeping on your lap while you read. This is what I want.”
“You’re not thinking clearly.” But there was desperation creeping into his voice now. “You’ve been through trauma. Yesterday—“
“I’m thinking perfectly fucking clearly.” Anger crept into my voice. Because damn him. This stubborn male. “I want to pay out my lease on the bungalow. Move the rest of my things here. Stay.”
“No.” The word came out strangled.
“No?!” I was close enough to touch him now.
“Because eventually you’ll wake up and realize you settled. That you gave up your freedom, your potential, your whole future for a broken werewolf hiding in the woods. And you’ll resent me for it.”
The raw vulnerability in his voice made my chest ache.
“You’ll want more than this.” His hand swept out, encompassing the cabin. “More than I can give you. And I won’t—“ His voice cracked. “I won’t watch you grow to hate this. Hate me.”
I reached for him, but he stepped back.
“You should finish eating. Pack your things. I’ll drive you back to town this afternoon.”
“No.”
His eyes narrowed. “No?”
“No.” I crossed my arms. “I’m not leaving. Not unless you physically drag me out of here and force me to go.”
“Rebecca—“
“That was our agreement, remember? I’d stay until I got my magic back, and then I’d decide what I wanted.” I lifted my chin. “Well, I have my magic back. And I’ve decided. I’m staying.”
“You’re being rash—“
“I’m being honest. For the first time in years, I can finally make a decision that isn’t based on what I’m missing but on what I have.
And you know what?” I stepped forward again, and this time he didn’t retreat.
“If there had been a point last night where I had to choose—my magic or you—do you know what I would have chosen?”
“Don’t say it.”
“I would have chosen you, Axel. Because guess what? Having magic doesn’t matter if I don’t have you.”
“Stop it,” he hissed out, looking panicked.
“No. I’m not going to stop. I’ll never stop fighting for you. Even if you are completely feral. I’ll still fight for you. So either accept that, or literally throw me out. Those are your options.”
We stood there, barely a foot apart. His chest heaved with each breath. His hands clenched and unclenched at his sides.
“You don’t understand what you’re asking for.” His voice was low and rough. “What about my compulsion. The power I’ll have over you if we… If we…”
“If you fuck me and knot me? If you bite me and mark me?” My belly tightened with need.
“That.”
“I trust you. If you want to boss me around, then fine. But I know you. I know you would never force me into anything. I know you would rather hurt yourself than hurt me. I watched you fight your deepest trauma just stop help me. Watched you make yourself miserable just to help me. I know who you are, Axel.”
His control was fracturing. I could see it in the way his wolf flickered behind his eyes, honey bleeding into yellow.
“You think you want this now.” His words were desperate. “But you haven’t had time to process. To settle into your magic. To see what else is out there for you.”
“I don’t need time. I’m not leaving, Axel.” My voice was steady. Certain. “Not today. Not tomorrow. Not unless you make me. And even then, I’ll probably just come back.”
A sound escaped him—half growl, half groan. His hand came up to cover mine, pressing it harder against his chest.
“You’re going to break me, lass,” he whispered.
“No.” I smiled up at him. “I’m going to make you mine. There’s a difference.”
Then I reached for his head, hands grasping the back of his neck, and crushed our lips together. Claiming him with just a kiss.