Chapter Thirty-Two
Carl
“W ill you help me through my heat?”
A kick in the nuts would have stunned me less than the sudden question Gwyn threw at me. I stood there blinking at her, my brain refusing to process the words despite the way my cock surged in answer.
Hell yes!
“Are you sure? I mean, I know we’ve… And I want to! But you’re…”
I was so flustered I couldn’t speak. Her fingers coming to rest on my forearm stopped the flow of words I couldn’t piece together into a coherent response. My cheeks had to be bright red by the way they were burning, and the little smile that quirked her lips didn’t help any, but I couldn’t fault her if she was silently laughing at me.
“I’m sure, Carl. I trust you. I’d rather spend my heat with you than alone.”
Some might have taken that the wrong way, but I knew what she meant. What had been done to her was the fear of many omegas, and with the new threat looming over her, it had to have taken a lot of courage to trust me enough to even ask.
I had her wrapped in my arms before I could think any further, a purr vibrating from my chest to hers as I dipped my nose to the top of her head to suck in her sweet, minty scent.
“I will absolutely help you. Thank you so much for trusting me. You’re so brave.”
I didn’t know if it was the purr or the praise that had her melting in my arms, but I felt the tension drain out of her as I murmured into her hair. Her fingers dug into my back, holding me closer as her own soft purr rose to join mine.
“It’s going to be soon. Within a week.”
She could have given me no notice at all, and I’d have found a way to make it work. Sebastian would forgive me for ditching the shop to tend an omega in heat, but at least I had enough time to let him know he’d have to work himself or find someone else for next week. Even if Gwyn’s heat came and was over before then, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to peel myself away from her for two whole days that soon after her cycle.
“That’s fine. Don’t worry about a thing. I’m pretty sure my current boss will give me the time off.”
She snorted, loosening her hold enough to let me know she wanted to pull away. As much as I wanted to keep her curvy body against mine, I gave her the space she wanted.
“And what if she doesn’t? Maybe she’s got a schedule to keep and needs you to help.”
I loved it when the sassy side of her came out, showing the personality that had been stifled for so long. I didn’t think she knew how strong she was, but I had a feeling it would embarrass her for me to point it out. I hoped she would come to see herself the way I did.
“Then I guess I’ll just have to beg her forgiveness afterward and work twice as hard to get everything done on time.”
“Hmm. I’m sure there are ways you could convince her.”
The suggestion in her tone had my cock aching, but knowing her heat was only a matter of days away meant it would be too much of a risk to take her up on it.
Even if I desperately wanted to.
I curled my nails into my palms and clamped down on my own need.
“I’d love to lay you out and show you how convincing I could be, but if you’re that close, it’s not the best idea. I know we could always reschedule the window being replaced and someone could cover me at the garage, but it would be better if we could make it through at least one more day.”
The disappointment on her face killed me, but she let out a sigh and nodded, knowing I was right. I’d never hated doing the responsible thing more than at that moment, because the young, stupid me, would have already been balls-deep in her, and to hell with if it triggered her heat early.
“You’re right. And no fun.”
Pressing my hand to my chest, I faked a wounded look as I let out a gasp.
“Me? No fun? Ouch! I’m pretty sure I’m the fun-est guy alive.”
Her scoff made me chuckle, and she couldn’t hold hers back anymore either. I pulled her back in for another hug, needing to feel her close, although some of the desire had cooled. I was still hard within my jeans, my shaft throbbing between us, but I managed to block off that part of my brain and simply enjoy holding her with no other expectations.
It was nice.
Gwyn rested her head against my chest and my heart soared, my bear making happy grumbles inside me. There was no way to know what would happen in the future, but the progress we’d made together so far was enough to give me hope. She’d thawed despite everything she had faced, and once again I was awed by the strength she had just to be able to keep functioning. My anxiety would have had me fleeing the city if I had been in her shoes, and holing up somewhere no one could find me, but she kept pushing toward her goal.
“Well, if we’re going to behave, I suppose I should let you get home before it gets too late. What time will the guy be there to replace the window?”
She might have been right about it getting late, at least for her, but I was still reluctant to release her when she pulled away again. I had to suck in a deep breath before I was able to pry my arms away from her and drop them to my sides. Every moment of closeness I got with her made me ache for a day when I wouldn’t have to let her go.
“Eight, and he’s usually punctual. It’ll take him a few hours to remove the old one and get everything cleaned up to place the new one, but I can send one of the guys back if you’ll be at the café longer than that.”
I’d tensed again thinking about not being there with her if anything happened, but the bands around my chest loosened slightly when she shook her head.
“I’ll stay as long as he’s there, but once he’s done I’ll go take care of my errands.”
The frown on my face couldn’t be helped, because having her roaming alone didn’t make me feel any better, but at least if she wasn’t at the café it would be harder for the Purists to find her.
“Are you sure he doesn’t know where you live?”
Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, she looked away, immediately raising my protective instincts again.
“They found me through the sale of the building, and if they found that address, they may have this one too.”
I was growling before I could stop it, my bear more determined than ever to drag Gwyn back to our den, but the way her face settled into stubborn lines at the sound told me I wouldn’t get what I wanted without damaging the fragile trust I’d built.
I choked off the growl and rolled my neck, trying to calm the beast inside me.
“You can always come stay with me?”
It was a struggle to frame it as a question instead of a demand, but she was shaking her head before I even finished.
“I am not going to abandon my home because of them. It wouldn’t matter if it was your place, a hotel, or the mountains like you offered before. I can’t keep running from them.”
Sucking in a deep breath, I held it and counted to ten, swallowing my protests. I loved that she was standing up for herself, but damn if I didn’t hate that it put her at risk.
“You’ll call me if you even think there might be a chance that you’re in danger?”
The hard slash of her brows softened, the edges of her lips ticking up the tiniest bit. My pounding heart slowed as she raised a hand to lay over it, but nothing would take away the worry.
“I promise. I’ll even offer to make you dinner tomorrow too, then maybe you could stay the night since we won’t have any other pressing demands that can’t wait a couple extra days.”
The surge of blood to my cock was painful, but as much as I wanted to take hold of her again, I knew if I did, I wasn’t going to let go another time.
Backing toward the door, I jerked my chin down in a nod, a low rumble coming from the bear inside me as he fought to keep me where I was.
“You’ve got it. I’ll be here by seven thirty.”
I fumbled behind me for the doorknob, barely holding onto my control as she smiled. I wasn’t going to go far, but I had to get out of the house and away from her scent before all our plans went up in smoke.
“I’ll be waiting.”
Her words followed me into the darkness outside as I shut the door between us and dragged in great gulps of air to clear my head. My bear was still fighting to go back to her, but a reminder that we had to watch for danger helped him settle and give me a chance to think. I wasn’t going to hold myself back again, so if I tipped her into heat tomorrow night, there were plans to be made.