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“Most people believe whatever will make them feel safe,” he said with a shrug. “We hear about animals escaping from zoos all the time. They’re always caught. Always contained. If people think the town is doing its job to keep them safe, they won’t question it. They can just go on with their lives in blissful ignorance.”
She pursed her lips for a moment, then sighed. “A luxury I lost myself a long time ago.”
That pained him. He stroked the backs of his knuckles down her arm, pleased that she didn’t flinch away—not that it alleviated his guilt. “Tanith, I’m so sorry that I never told you—”
“Don’t be,” she said briskly, rolling her shoulders back—something she always did when she was trying to steel herself. “I love you. This is obviously a huge part of your being. I should know this. It’s just a lot to process after all that’s happened today. I’m…going to need some time to get used to it.”
“But you still love me?” The question slipped out before he could stop it. That, of course, had been another fear of his should his fated mate be human. What if he shared this deeply personal piece of his soul’s puzzle and her love died?
Tanith remained expressionless for a moment, a sight that made his chest tighten, before her lips slipped into an affectionate grin; not quite a smile yet, but Blake would take it. “Of course I love you,” she whispered, standing up on the tips of her toes and kissing his cheek. “You’re still the same man to me. I just need to come to terms with some…things. Some pretty hairy things.”
“Furry,” he corrected, which earned him a half-hearted chuckle as she nodded.
“Furry. Right.” Her smile edged on genuine now, and Blake drew her into his arms, pressing a soft kiss to her temple. She exhaled, her breath hot against his neck, and fisted her hands in his hair. “Can you give me the time I need to digest this?”
“Of course, sweetheart,” he rumbled back, kissing her again. “Take as much time as you need.”
“Thank you.”
“It’s not something you need to thank me for.” He swallowed hard. “Although, I might have a way for you to, I don’t know, better come to terms with this.” When she looked up with a crooked brow, he cleared his throat. “Immersion therapy?”
Tanith pulled away from him, and Blake let her, not wanting her to feel as though she had no escape from this. “What?”
“It’s a joke,” he insisted, wanting nothing more than to brush his fingers through her hair and kiss away her worries. Instead, he kept his arms firmly at his sides. “Well. Sort of. Miguel Ruiz issued a spur-of-the-moment clan meeting for all those who could get out of work, to which I have also been invited.”
“Why tell me? They’ve never let me be involved in any meetings before.”
“I’m…sort of part of the clan, I guess. I’m in Angel Fire under their protection, at the very least. So, that ought to mean I could bring my fated mate there with me.”
He noticed her swallow hard, her head bobbing up and down. “Oh. Okay.”
“Anyway, the gallery burning is the main reason the clan has been called for a meeting tonight.” Blake pointed in the general direction of the clan cave within the mountains. “It’ll be happening soon. If you’d like to go, it might help you come to terms with everything a little faster than if you were to process things by yourself.”
“Actually meet the shifters in their cave?” She backed away. “No, Blake, I c-can’t, not after the day I just had…”
His inner bear stirred, sensing his mate’s impending breakdown, and he trailed after her. “Tanith, I know it’s scary, but you know everyone there. They’re the same people they’ve always been, and the sooner you realize that, the easier this will be. Maybe we could all come up for plans to rebuild—”
Another strangled laugh slipped out, and finally her knees gave way. Blake caught her before she could hit the ground, but he lowered her trembling body to the sandy earth, his heart breaking at the sight of her tears.
“I can’t rebuild the gallery,” she cried, her words punctuated by a blend of a hiccup and a sob. “I don’t have the money to rebuild anything. It’s all over! My dream is…dead.”
Knowing there was nothing he could say that would calm her, Blake merely settled down on the ground beside her and pulled his mate into his arms. She went willingly, her body limp and sagging against him, and he calmly, softly stroked her hair, her back, anything that might soothe her.
All the while plotting his revenge on those who had harmed her. No one deserved to go through such heartache because of him, and if it took him until his twilight years, Blake would find a way to make it up to her.
He had no other choice. Blake couldn’t live with himself to see her so devastated. But for now, he held her, rocked her, whispered sweet words in her ear, and hoped that tomorrow would be a better day.
