Page 10 of Her Wolf Protector

And now they were together in the bed, cocooned beneath the blankets, with her in his arms, spilling her sorry tale, he couldn't think of anything else but her. He was ready to chase her stepmother off a cliff, burn down the whole damn hospital, and it still wouldn't be enough. Because fate had delivered his fated mate right into his arms...with a failing heart. And if he didn't do something, she might die just like her father had.

Without hospitals, his options were limited. He didn't know any witches with a healing gift, though he'd happily sell his soul or maybe even his firstborn for such a witch's services. There was the pack shaman, of course, but healing physical harm wasn't exactly her forte. Shifters just didn't need that sort of help. They just shifted and....boom. Everything was fine. Or they shifted again, until it was, like he had this afternoon. Those bloody otters had turned him into a fucking colander, and he'd even healed from that. If only his mate could do the same...

That was the answer, wasn't it? If she shifted, she could heal her own heart, no hospital required.

"This is going to sound crazy..." he began.

She gave him a watery smile. "Crazier than a stepmother who tried to kill me and me fleeing on an electric scooter, then getting lost in the woods and stumbling on your cottage?"

Probably. But it was the only way. "You aren't a shifter, by any chance, are you?"

"I'm only a half shifter, and that half couldn't shift. My mother was a wolf shifter who left her pack because she couldn't stand being around people who could shift when she couldn't."

"I didn't think so. Because if you were a shifter, you'd have already done it by now. Shifting form heals me. I mean, I came in here bleeding all over from otter bites. Now look at me." Tate held out his arms. "Not even a scar."

"But I can't do that."

Now came the crazy part. "But what if there was a way that you could? I mean, you've seen werewolf movies, right? One bite from a werewolf, and as soon as the next full moon rises, you turn into one?"

She gave a soft snort. "That's a myth. Da said my mother believed it for a bit when she was a teenager, and she let three different boys bite her, and maybe a girl or two, too, and she still couldn't shift. He told me just before I went off to Mirror Academy, so if any of the blokes at the balls tried that line of bullshit with me, I should boot them in the arse. You seem like a nice enough bloke and all, so I give you fair warning. If you're trying to bullshit me, as soon as I feel better, and put my boots on again, I'll bend your arse like Beckham, don't think I won't."

"I thought it was a myth, too, until I saw my sister shift. She spent her whole life human, knowing nothing about her heritage, and then she met my best friend, the pack leader, and boom. One night in bed together, and the next morning, she was a wolf. No full moon required."

She shook her head. "That is the worst pick up line in the history of pick up lines. And complete bullshit, because if all it took was being in bed together with a werewolf, I'd be one right now. I'm no furrier than I was the moment we met. You're right. This is crazy. I'm going to go get my boots, and I'm leaving. I just needed to rest for a bit, and I have, and now I'll be on my way. I had a plan. Not a great one, but it's the only one I had, and it didn't involve getting hoodwinked by a werewolf I met in the woods. I'm not Little Red Riding Hood, who can't tell the difference between her grandmother and some wolf who wanted to get into her knickers."

"The wolf wanted to eat her."

"Same sodding difference! You want to bite me."

More than anything in the world. Especially if it saved her life. He couldn't let his mate die.

"Look, it's one tiny nip. Just enough to draw blood. They probably took more blood for testing when you were in the hospital. And you'd do the same. It's a fair exchange. And it could save your life." Yes, it sounded crazy. But he'd seen Sienna as a wolf, and she was Shaw's fated mate. Damn it, if it worked for them, it would work for his mate, too.

"Putting your dick in my mouth will save my life? Pull the other one, it plays God Save the bloody Queen."

Just the image of her lips wrapped around his cock left Tate speechless. Yes, he'd love that, but there was no chance of them having anything together if she died tonight.

"Just a finger. I bite your finger, you bite mine. There'll be a link between us after that, but nothing you need to worry about. You can walk away and forget about me tomorrow, if you want. But you'll be healed, with the added bonus of being able to shift into a wolf whenever you want." It would break his heart, but he knew he'd survive it, and so would she. His father had abandoned his fated mate, after all, and he was still alive, though Sienna's mum had been dead for decades. "Please. I want to help you, and if you won't let me take you to hospital, this is the only way I can. I won't be able to live with myself if I don't at least try to help, and if you don't make it...then your evil stepmother wins."

"You want me to bite you to spite my stepmother?"

Put like that, it sounded even crazier. But if it worked...nothing else mattered but saving his mate's life. "Whatever you have to do to survive. Close your eyes and pretend it's her finger you're biting. As long as you don't bite it off, I'll heal. Whatever it takes to save you, it'll be worth it."

She bit her lip. So hard she drew blood. "Okay. Bite me, then, and I'll bite you. And if it doesn't work...well, at least you'll have a crazy story to tell, about the mad chick with a backstory like a bad fairytale, who you met at a cottage in the woods. One crazy night, and in the morning, she was gone, and you never saw her again. And maybe...maybe someone will believe you, and they'll know what happened to me. Because you're right. If I don't do everything I can to survive, then Ravenna wins, and my father would never forgive me for giving up like that." She held out a trembling hand.

"I don't need to bite you. You're already bleeding," Tate said, swiping a finger across her lip, before holding it up to show her the red streak. Holding her gaze, he touched his bloodstained finger to his tongue. One taste and his eyes rolled back in his head. Every legend had been true. She was his fated mate and he was hers forever. Even if she walked away tomorrow, he'd never look at another woman again.

Slowly, his vision came back, and she was staring at him. "Are you sure you're not a vampire? Because for a moment there, it looked like you were absolutely off your face on drugs or something. And if one drop of my blood does that to you, I'm not sure I want to..."

Tate held out his hand. "Bite me. As long as it's hard enough to draw blood, and you swallow it, that's enough."

A slight sting, then her tongue swiped across his fingertip.

"Goddess, that's...do all werewolves taste like that? I mean, it's blood but...kinda tingly. Like it's mixed with champagne or something. If you've given me rabies, I won't just boot you in the arse. I'll boot your arse all the way across the Atlantic into a flock of Canada geese. I've heard those things are mean."

If that was what she wanted, he'd let geese peck him into a pincushion, and he'd die happy. He'd claimed his fated mate, and she'd claimed him. Sure, it was just to save her life, but he'd do it again in a heartbeat.

"First, let's heal your heart." He picked her up, blankets and all, and headed outside.