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“Being out of control and hurting the people I love…that was my biggest fear, and because I didn’t trust the berserker, I feared him. I was essentially afraid of what made me who I am.”
“You’re not afraid anymore, are you?” she asked as she fixed a plate for herself with eggs Benedict and a bowl of fresh fruit.
“Not of the beast. I’m notafraidof your brother, but I am a little worried about what will happen when we go to Wilde Creek later.”
“Yeah, well, if I’m being honest I’m a little worried too. I don’t know what Mal has told my parents about what happened. It’s bad enough to have to face him and my parents, but I’ll also be accountable to Acksel.” She took a bite of watermelon and then said, “But it doesn’t really matter what they think. I mean, in a way it matters what Acksel thinks, but Brynn won’t let him be too much of an ass. But as far as Mal and my parents go – you’re my mate, and I don’t need anyone’s approval for that to be a reality.”
He kissed her and then shook his head. “I don’t deserve you.”
“I think we deserve each other. Even though my wolf has been driving me crazy for years, I’m so happy that you’re really mine.”
“I always knew that whoever mated you would be a damn lucky male. I’m just glad it’s me.”
She grinned. “Me too.”
He set his fork on the plate and leaned back against the couch, scrubbing a hand through his hair. “I want to ask you about the future.”
“I’m not sure what you’ve heard, but I’m not psychic.”
He grinned. Flat-out grinned, and it just about made her heart stop.
“That’s probably not a bad thing, sweetheart, but seriously. After we talk to your parents and soothe Mal’s big-brother nerves,andtalk to your alpha, what do you want?”
She finished her last slice of strawberry and turned around on the couch, tucking one leg under and resting her cheek on his outstretched forearm. “Where do you live?”
“I had an apartment, but it was provided by the hunters, so that’s gone.”
“You can’t even go get your stuff?”
“There wasn’t anything personal there anyway. I have a storage unit, though, with a motorcycle. We can go pick up my things.”
“I don’t understand how you could live without any personal stuff. What about photos of your family?”
“My grandparents left Wilde Creek when I went into the military. I have an uncle and some cousins, but once I started working for the hunters, keeping close to family wasn’t encouraged.”
How freaking lonely.
“So none of the hunters are married or have kids?”
“There are some, but they don’t go out hunting the shifters; they stay in the office, relatively out of danger.”
“Relatively?”
He shrugged. “The hunters are in the business of keeping dangerous shifters off the street. It’s a great way to make enemies, and because of that there really isn’t any place that’s safe.”
She wouldn’t tell him she was glad he wasn’t a hunter anymore, but she definitely was. She’d known his job was dangerous, but she hadn’t known what it was or justhowbad it could get.
“We could live at my house. I rent it from some friends of my folks. They retired a few years ago and didn’t want to deal with selling after they moved away.”
“That would be good. If you want to get someplace together, we could do that, too. I have savings.”
“We don’t have to decide that right now.”
“Good point.”
“What about work?”
His brows rose. “I have the security company. Once I patch things up with Mal, it’ll be good for me to get to work. He’s been handling it on his own for a long while.”
