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Megan just held her drink and stared up at the night sky for a long while. He was worried she wouldn’t answer, but then she said, “He used to beat me. When he didn’t quite meet the standard his father set for him, he took it out on me. I thought… I thought it would get better as he… anyway, it didn’t. I even left once. I installed new locks and tried to break contact, but he… He convinced me he wouldn’t do it again. And to be fair to him, not that he deserves it, he didn’t do it again. No, he didn’t put his hands on me again.” She chuckled, but there was no humor in the sound. “He started to become distant. When he spoke to me, he didn’t even look me in the eye. I started to get worried, so I decided to find out what was distracting him… what was bothering him so much that he was closed off to me. Well, something was distracting him all right, but it wasn’t what I thought it would be.” She took a sip of her coffee and sighed. Then her eyes shifted to meet his gaze. “I found him at a house I’d never been to before. Something told me to look in the window instead of knocking on the door. They were having sex in her living room. Something in me snapped, and I set his car on fire.”
Arbor’s brows shot up as he stared at his mate. His lion was hissing and snarling inside of him at the thought that anyone would harm her, physically or emotionally.
“Then I took off, only stopping at home to grab what I absolutely needed. I left the city and never looked back. Well… that’s not true. I keep looking over my fucking shoulder for him to show up. It’s also why I asked to be paid cash and took the cabin immediately when it was offered, because Mr. Trenfell was okay with the situation.”
“When was this?”
“Six months ago.”
“And you think he’s looking for you?”
She nodded. “His ego being bruised makes him do just about anything to get revenge.” She sighed again and reached for her snacks. After picking up and stacking together an orange slice, a bit of dark chocolate, and a sliced almond, she slid them in her mouth.
Arbor told his cock to ignore the movement. They could not be distracted during such a heavy conversation. “I’ll need his name and any information you have on him.”
“Why?” she asked around her mouthful of snacks.
“So we can keep an eye out for him and prepare to take care of the issue if he becomes a problem. We’ll also get to work on getting you another identity, so you don’t have to worry so much if someone asks for photo identification or anything like that.”
“It’s my problem,” she mumbled.
“It’sourproblem.” He reached over and ran a fingertip over the mating mark on her neck, liking the way her eyes drifted closed and her mouth opened a bit at the caress.
“I’m not going to win this argument, am I?”
“We’re not arguing, but no.”
When her eyes opened again, she asked, “A new identity?”
He nodded. “Pick a name. You can use my last name, if you want… or not. Whatever you want.”
“If we’re not married, wouldn’t it be weird for me to have your last name? I mean, we’re sleeping together.”
Arbor smiled. “That would be weird… unless we’re married. We’re mated, so it’s not like either of us are going anywhere.”
He watched as her eyes shifted and her gaze dropped to her lap.
“Hey.” He waited for her to look at him again. “What’s going through that pretty head of yours?”
“If he shows up…”
“Then we’ll handle it together,” he promised her, and held her gaze. “You’re no longer alone, Kitten.”
He could read the hope in her eyes, but it was surrounded by anxiety. He knew she wanted to believe what he was saying, but it was going to take time. It might even take Arbor and the Howlers proving it to her by taking her ex out of the equation, which he wasn’t opposed to.
“So… I pick a name.” She let out a sigh. “Do I pick a different last name and then we get hitched? Or what?”
Arbor shrugged. “If you want to. I’m good with you using my last name. Keys and IQ can doctor some filings and shit. I don’t know how they do it, but we could be married with some keystrokes. If you want a wedding still, we’ll give you one.”
Kitten stared at him for a long time, then she smiled and chuckled. “Whatever I want, huh?”
“Pretty much.”
He watched as she set their snacks and drinks aside, then she opened the blanket and shifted up on her knees. Maneuvering herself until she was straddling his lap, she wrapped that blanket around both of them.
Arbor gripped her hips in his hands and kissed her lips as she held the blanket around them with one hand and slid the other down his chest to the waistband of his shorts. He broke the kiss and whispered against her mouth, “Whatever you want.”
“I don’t need a wedding,” she whispered back. “The only woman who was ever nice to me was named Molly. What do you think about Molly Dawson?” As she spoke, she slid her hand into his shorts and fisted his erection, stroking it as she freed it from his shorts.
