Chapter 10 Katarina
Oh. My. Goodness. What had just happened?
I’d been staring at my bedroom doors hoping and worrying that Dorian would walk back through and finish what he had started.
Hoping because…well…because I wanted to experience all of him.
The man was certainly skilled with the female body, and I wasn’t even embarrassed that I came on top of his jeans—no penetration necessary.
I wasn’t embarrassed because, for the first time in seven years, I could let myself fully enjoy the moment and not worry that I was going to somehow kill the man.
That also worried me. What had changed? Why now? Why Dorian? Maybe it was because he wasn’t human. Or maybe it had something to do with this house and the vibes and…oh, I don’t know.
Maybe I should stop stressing over it and just enjoy the moment. I mean, I felt great. Wonderful. Full of energy and ready to take on the world. And all from one orgasm?
I laughed at myself as Grim emerged from the closet in the bathroom. “Sorry about that, buddy.”
He sighed and walked straight toward the bedroom doors, ignoring me and my embarrassment that he’d witnessed way too much. He deserved better.
“How about a run?”
His ears perked up and I quickly jogged to the closet to see if I could find some workout clothes and sneakers. Miraculously, I did, and my suspicions began to flare up again as I wondered how this closet was so well stocked.
A question for another time.
Grim and I walked out the front door without passing a single person. No staff. No men. No one. For a place that was going to be hosting a grand ball tonight, I found that a little odd but also decided to let my brain relax once the fresh, outside air filled my lungs.
Grim took off and dashed across the driveway into the large, green open space that buffered the abbey from the road. I laughed and started after him, knowing there was no way to catch the giant dog, but also knowing that he liked to play this game.
Several times I looked over my shoulder at the large, stone abbey.
It was so beautiful, and somehow, after being here for just two nights, I felt like it fit the men of the House of Shadows.
Their friendship was the reason why Roman purchased the house and gave each of them a special place to call home.
What was once turning into a ruin, was now a safe place for these men to be themselves.
A sanctuary. Just like the abbey had been for so many others throughout its lifetime.
Grim and I followed a dirt path that circled the grounds' perimeter and wove its way through a labyrinth of shrubbery and fruit trees. Stopping in the middle where a dry, stone fountain sat, I took a minute to catch my breath. The sculpture was a horse emerging from a wave of water. Its long mane flowed down across its back until it became one with the water again. Only the front legs of the horse were visible, the rest still being devoured by the wave. I’d never seen anything quite like it and wondered why it wasn’t working right now.
Grim suddenly let out a yip and dashed out of the center of the labyrinth until he disappeared into the shrubs.
I looked after him, wondering what had grabbed his attention and worried that maybe I should have been a little more aware of my surroundings.
I mean, I wasn’t sure if the coven would try to come and take me back.
I hadn’t returned with the necklace for a couple of days.
Did they even care? Did they even know where I was?
My brain was trying to put a series of possibilities together when I was interrupted by a laugh. A man’s laugh that seemed to light up the whole world. While I didn’t see him yet, I heard him mumbling something to Grim, and when the two of them emerged from the bushes, I grinned and waved.
“Hi, Pasha.”
He was smiling down at Grim who trotted happily beside him.
Grim was an excellent judge of character and by the way he kept looking up at the lanky, friendly man with those puppy eyes, I knew this was someone we could trust. Wiping the sweat from my forehead, I stepped forward to greet them.
He was wearing a pair of workout pants and a tee shirt, and I was surprised at how toned his arms were.
Then I immediately slapped myself for thinking such things.
Just because Pasha was a computer geek, didn’t mean he couldn’t have an athletic body.
Shaking my head clear of the rude thoughts, I asked, “Out for a walk too?”
Pasha pushed his glasses further up his nose and then glanced down at the laptop in his left hand.
“Kind of. Doing work but really needed a change of scenery.” Rubbing the top of Grim’s head, who now obediently sat beside him, Pasha suddenly sucked in a breath and smiled at me.
“Actually, it’s kind of perfect I ran into you two out here. ”
“Yeah?” Both of us looked at him in question.
“I’ve been doing some research.”
“Okay?”
“On Grim.”
I glanced at my dog and we instantly shared a common thought. “Grim?”
Pasha chuckled. “Yes. On Grim. About what he might be.”
“He’s a big, black mutt. A street dog. A super hound,” I added, just for Grim’s ego.
Pasha looked around the labyrinth until his eyes settled on a concrete bench on the far side. Pointing to it, he asked, “Shall we?”
“Sure.”
Grim and I followed him to the bench, which happened to be tucked in the shade under a large apple tree. The cooler air felt nice as we settled next to Pasha—me by his side and Grim lying across his feet. He really did like the man.
“You said you two had some kind of psychic connection, right?” he asked as he unlocked his laptop and started typing.
“Yes…I mean, I guess that’s what you could call it.”
“And when did you first notice it?”
I looked down at Grim and tried to remember. “Honestly, I think it wasn’t long after I took him into my home.”
“So, as soon as you accepted him into your life.”
I giggled. “That sounds so formal.”
Pasha turned and smiled at me. His grin was so bright and welcoming and such a contrast to the rest of the men in the house.
He was a real ray of sunshine in a world full of darkness.
Grim sent a feeling of love my way. Not love in the romantic sense, but in a need to protect Pasha because he thought he was worth protecting.
“Well,” Pasha continued. “If my suspicions are correct, then there is some formality to your relationship with Grim.”
Typing on his keyboard, he finally opened a file and turned the laptop my way. I leaned forward and studied the picture and caption underneath. “The Black Dog?”
“There are several variations within different folklore, but yes, I think Grim may not exactly be…,” Pasha bent toward me and whispered, “a regular dog.”
Grim groaned as he let out a sigh and rolled over on his side like he could care less what he was. His large body smooshed against both of us, and I bent forward to rub my hand through the wiry fur that covered his side. “Grim is definitely not a regular dog,” I mused.
Pasha bit his bottom lip and pushed his glasses up again. “I don’t think he’s really a dog at all.”
“What?”
“The legend of the Black Dog bears a lot of similarity to what people call Hellhounds.”
“You mean like Hell? As in fire and demons and the devil?” I was smiling at first, but when I saw the serious look on his face, I quickly realized this wasn’t a joke.
“Who gave him to you?” Pasha asked.
“No one. He just showed up.”
“On your eighteenth birthday, right?”
“Yes.” I studied the man. “I already told you this, didn’t I?”
He nodded and typed a few more things. “You did. Just checking.”
I nudged Pasha’s shoulder. “Are you trying to trick me?”
“Not at all.” He was still focused on the screen when he finally asked, “Have you ever seen his eyes turn red?”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “Yes.”
“And you still thought he was a street mutt?”
I opened my mouth to defend my dog, but Pasha smiled. Teasing me. “I guess I didn’t want to think about what it meant if he wasn’t just a dog.”
“I get that,” he said with a nod. “There’re a lot of unknowns in this city.” Suddenly, Pasha looked up and toward the abbey like he could see it through the bushes, and then he let out a long sigh. “Roman needs me, but I’d like to ask your permission to keep researching.”
“Researching Grim?”
“Yes. And your connection.”
I hesitated a moment, not sure why I feared learning the truth. “Do you think he found me on purpose?”
Pasha gently closed his laptop and shook his feet, trying to get my giant beast to move. “Oh, I don’t think he found you. I think he was created for you.”
“What?”
Pasha finally pushed Grim to the side far enough that he could stand. “I suspect you have a very powerful guardian looking out for you.”
I huffed a laugh and raised my brows. “Like a guardian angel?”
Pasha wrinkled his face when he replied, “No, not that kind of angel.”
I wanted to ask him more, but he tilted his head like he was receiving some kind of invisible message again. As he started to jog away, he said, “I’ll keep digging, okay? In the meantime, Roman said that he left you a gift in your room and you should wear it tonight.”
“You’re talking to Roman?”
He winked. “I guess I have my own psychic connection. See you a little later, Katarina.”
I waved as he disappeared and Grim slowly stood. “Well, buddy,” I said to him. “What did you think about all that?”
Grim pushed back into his downward dog and forward stretch, closing off our connection for a moment.
Then he shook his fur and nudged my knee.
“Don’t want to think about it right now?
” I asked, clearly feeling his indifference about the conversation with Pasha.
“Okay, then. How about we continue our run before I have to put on heels and makeup and look like a trophy all night?”
Grim groaned, but quickly took off at a sprint when I stood. Hoping he knew where he was going, I followed behind, only seeing his black backside for little snippets of time until we cleared the labyrinth.
Was Grim really made for me? Made to protect me or made to watch me?
As we ran through the grounds and my body slowly went into automatic breathing, I pushed those questions aside and let myself enjoy running with Grim. Oh, I still had a ton of questions, but stewing over them right now would not put me into the right headspace for tonight.
Tonight, at the ball where Roman planned to show the coven that he’d captured me and that he was the one with all the power in this city.