Chapter Forty
Carl
T hey had gone too far, and it was time to end their harassment of Gwyn once and for all.
I replied to David’s message, thanking him for letting me know, then responded to Sebastian’s more detailed one.
“What happened?”
I hated the brokenness in her voice when only moments before our bond had been flooded with joy, and I tossed my phone aside to crawl across the bed. Taking her face in both hands, I smoothed her hair back and pressed my lips to hers, giving her a gentle kiss as I struggled to rein in the raging bear inside.
I could have tried to block my emotions from her, tried to pretend like everything was fine, but I wasn’t going to do that to her. She was mine and I was hers, and that meant sharing everything, the good and the bad. She deserved to know.
“There was another incident with the Purists. Two groups of them this time. You’re going to have to stay here for a while. If you wanted me to move into your place, I’ll have to start on the repairs once the café is up and running, but you’re welcome to make whatever changes you need to here to be comfortable. Or I can buy us a new house.”
She placed her fingers over my mouth, stopping the flow of words. I still felt her worry inside, but she was calmer than I.
“Is everyone okay?”
My heart melted, my shoulders relaxing. I focused on slowing my breathing to match hers, my heartrate slowing with it.
“Yeah, no one mentioned casualties.”
There was a spike of shock through the bond, as if the possibility of deaths hadn’t occurred to her, but nothing less would have been shared in the brief texts I’d received.
“It sounds like there was damage to the duplex, but is the café okay?”
I sucked in more air, our mingled scents calming my bear.
“Yes, the guys caught the group at the café before they did anything. But the duplex—”
She cut me off with a shake of her head.
“I don’t care about the duplex as long as I can stay with you.”
The growl that rolled out as I reached for her and tugged her into my lap was unavoidable. Just the thought that we might be separated had my bear pacing inside me again, claws threatening to burst from my fingertips.
“What’s mine is yours. If you hate this house, we’ll buy another.”
She gave me a sweet smile, only the bond letting me know there was still a mess of emotions rolling around inside her. The way she was handling the news helped me be more rational about it, and I gave her another kiss of appreciation.
“We’ll worry about houses some other time. As long as everyone is okay and I don’t need to change my plans for opening the café, we can figure out the rest after a shower and some food.”
My growl had faded away, so I didn’t miss the sound of her stomach grumbling, my alpha side instantly kicking into gear with the need to take care of my omega. I kept her in my lap as I scooted to the edge of the bed, Gwyn’s arms tightening around my neck as I stood.
“Yes, my mate.”
I couldn’t help that I was hard, my body still craving to be deep inside her, but I pulled on her calm to keep myself focused as I got us both inside the shower. I released her and let her handle the controls, waiting until the water had kicked on and she was leaning her head beneath the spray before touching her again.
I ran my hands down her sides, watching her lips lift even though her eyes were closed as she wet her hair. My bites glared red on each side of her neck, multiple clean crescents covering the older scars, already half healed from the power of my saliva. Instinct drove me to tug her closer and lick over them again.
Gwyn shivered but didn’t try to pull away, letting me tend to the wounds. A trickle of lust leaked through the bond, tangling with mine, but there was also the feeling that this wasn’t the time.
Reluctantly, I pulled away and reached for the soap to help her wash, restraining myself to a gentle pinch of her nipples and squeezing of her backside. I had to give up the washcloth and let her handle between her legs, because nothing would have stopped me from giving her an orgasm or two if I felt the heat of her or smelled a hint of slick.
Checking my phone again once I’d dried and dressed brought back reality and renewed anger, but Gwyn’s gentle touch on my chest slowed me.
“Food first.”
Anxiety twisted beneath the calm I clung to, tangling with fear and rage. Someone was targeting my omega, damaging her property and threatening her safety. My bear was infuriated that anyone would dare, my alpha side urging to protect her at all costs, while the rational part of me knew there was danger to more than just her no matter what path I chose.
I was in the middle of frying eggs as Gwyn looked out the window, sipping a cup of coffee, when my phone rang and startled me out of the circling thoughts I’d been trapped in. I didn’t recognize the number but decided to answer anyway, the feminine voice on the other end unfamiliar.
“Carl Priler?”
“Yes?”
Gwyn turned to stare at the phone I’d placed on speaker, her brow arched in question. I shrugged, my attention torn between the eggs and who it might be.
“I’m Leigh Blackburn. Gabriel reached out on your behalf and asked me to help you with a law issue.”
Gwyn perked up and came closer as I moved the skillet off the burner, all interest in food forgotten for the moment.
“Yes. I think my mate can give the details.”
Pride bloomed in my chest at being able to call Gwyn my mate, and even her startled stare couldn’t dampen it. I nodded toward the phone, urging her to speak.
“Umm, hi. My name’s Gwyn Cogann. I have a, umm, question about, uh, inheritance I think?”
There was silence over the line for a second before Leigh responded.
“Give me the details.”
Gwyn explained the situation with her prior mate dying and her receiving his life insurance, which she used to purchase the café and duplex, and then her son claiming it belonged to him.
“And just to verify, you were the beneficiary on the insurance? Alone? There was no separate will?”
Gwyn nodded before remembering the other woman couldn’t see her.
“Correct. My—Anthony forgot to change it after the boys were born I guess. I was the only one on it, and he didn’t have a will.”
“I figured as much since the insurance released the money to you. They tend to be quite thorough with making sure things go where they should. Your son has no claim at all, and even if he tried to sue for some reason, you already gave him possession of the home you’d shared. That would be seen as more than enough to satisfy any obligations you had to him. I can send over paperwork stating as much if you’d like something official.”
Gwyn raised her gaze from the screen, staring at me as if she wasn’t sure.
“We would appreciate it,” I said. “Thank you. Do you need an email or address?”
“I already have your information Mr. Priler. I’ll get it to you this afternoon.”
The call ended abruptly, and for a moment a new tide of anxiety rose over her saying she already had my information, but I pushed it away as I watched Gwyn, focusing on the current problem. She should have been happy to know her son couldn’t legally take the café from her, but her expression and the feelings leaking through our bond showed it was more complicated than that.
“You okay?”
She seemed torn, cocking her head before letting out a sigh.
“Yeah. It’s a relief to know I didn’t do anything wrong. I just wish this whole mess wasn’t happening.”
I pulled her against me, resting my chin on top of her head when she laid it against my chest. I hated that she was so torn up over something her son caused, but I was glad to be able to offer her comfort without wondering about her feelings anymore.
“I’m sorry, Beautiful. It’ll be over soon.”
When she pulled back to look up at me her gaze was wary, and she pulled her lower lip between her teeth. There was unease threading between us edged by fear, but I waited until she was ready to speak.
“You’re not going to hurt Adam, are you?”
My gut clenched, and for a moment I didn’t know how to respond. I knew she cared for her son, but he was doing things that put her in jeopardy, hurt her, and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to restrain my bear if we caught the boy doing something else to make Gwyn’s life misery.
“I don’t have any plans to hurt him, and I’ll do my best to make sure no one else does, but this has to stop. You don’t deserve to live in fear, and I won’t have my mate or community threatened by the Purists. I can’t ask the others not to defend themselves if he makes the first move.”
Tears swam in her eyes and her chin trembled, but she nodded.
“I understand. I hope it won’t come to that, but I barely know him anymore.”
Her pain flooded my chest, and it broke my heart that she had to go through it, but I wasn’t sure how to help. Any other threat and I’d have had a clear course of action, including making the person responsible disappear, but his connection to my mate complicated things.
“I’m sorry, Gwyn.”
Pulling her into another hug, I looked for anything to bring her out of the depression she’d fallen into. Even if I couldn’t get back the joy from when we awoke, I needed her okay.
“Why don’t we eat? Once you’re fed we can go work on the café until it’s time for church.”
Eyebrows scrunched, she cocked her head as she looked up at me.
“Church?”