The door swung open, answered by Valerie’s mother. Her father stood behind her. Both looked relieved. Not that it made a difference; he would’ve found a way to his mate.
“Oh, thank God. She’s upstairs second bedroom to the right. Please…”
He dematerialized and rematerialized at the top of the stairs. Taking three large strides, he found himself just outside the bedroom. Parting the door, her scent engulfed him. His gaze landed on the bed. A blanket covered
her
from head to toe. Closing the distance between them, he swallowed past the lump in his throat, reached for the blanket, and pulled it down.
His heart dropped to the pit of his stomach. Her beautiful face white as the sheet, dark circles under her eyes. Her hair, usually shining, was dull and flat. She was weak, withering away. That wasn’t all. She’d been hurt, stabbed. The wound covered under her shirt, but some of the blood pooled and leaked, staining the tee.
She’d been injured, hunting! Had he done this to her? Had everything he thought been wrong? Did she love him, but stay away thinking he didn’t want her?
No! No! No! She’s ours! No!
his demon cried, making it hard to concentrate. He wanted to cry too, but couldn’t. He had to do everything in his power to heal her. Whatever it took.
He checked her pulse. Slow and steady. Her skin cool to the touch. Just then, he sensed Valerie’s parents at the entrance of the room.
“Food. Whatever you have. Please.”
Looking around, he spotted the bathroom, beside a large armoire, the door open so he could see inside.
Carrying her, he materialized in the bathroom, set her in the tub gently, then removed the large shirt she wore. Revealing all of her, he realized she lost more weight than he imagined, evident in her protruding ribcage, her slimmed legs and thighs.
Help her!
his demon demanded.
Tears welled in his eyes. Guilt souring his stomach, he ran warm water, plugged the tub, and watched as it slowly filled. When he removed the bloody gauze, he got a good look at the wound. Deep, and not healing fast enough.
She moaned, softly.
“Sweetheart,” he whispered. His heart in his throat.
Her eyes fluttered open, then briefly widened. Even her eyes looked different, the color dull.
“Tell me what’s wrong. Tell me how to fix it. Please.”
“I’m fine,” she mumbled. “Just tired.”
“You aren’t fine.”
“You can go, Jake. I’m fine.”
He ran his hand down the side of her face. “I’ll never go again.”
She smiled softly. “I’m dreaming, aren’t I?” Her eyes fluttered closed.
He grabbed the soap and lathered her face and body, being extra careful with the wound, then rinsed. He washed her hair next, shampooing, and conditioning it.
“I love you, Jake,” she whispered when he lifted her out of the tub.
His heart jolted. Why had he ever believed otherwise? If he had faith in her, in them, neither of them would’ve suffered.
“Why didn’t you…mark me? Because I’m not good enough for you?”
She had to be delirious, couldn’t really believe what she’d just said.
He wrapped a towel around her, then sat her on the long bathroom vanity. Grabbed another and began rubbing her dry. “I didn’t know about the curse. I was waiting for you.”
“You didn’t tell me I was yours.”
Cupping her cheeks, he stared deep into her eyes. “I sensed your fear of me, and I feared if I told you, you’d run.”
He finished drying her, then carried her into the room and laid her on the bed, a towel still wrapped around her. Her mother entered with a tray of food and placed it on the nightstand.
“Thanks.”
“Of course.” She turned and left.
He force fed Valerie an entire bowl of soup and a sandwich, paying no mind to her complaints. Satisfied she’d eaten enough, he let her drift to sleep.
Only then did he leave her. Walking out of the room, he found her parents just outside the bedroom door. Their concern evident in their expressions.
“I’m taking her home.”
Her mother nodded, looking relieved, again. “You don’t have much time. The curse—”
He nodded. “I didn’t know…Not until…” He let his voice trail off. “I won’t let her die.”
Her father exhaled and ran a hand through his hair. His arm wrapped around her mother’s shoulders.
“Thank you for looking after her.”
“Of course,” her father said.
“We don’t know what happened between you two, but we hope you can both move forward together as mates, as a family with Annie, and I hope when you do, you’ll find room for us in your lives,” her mother said.
He nodded. “I’d love that. And I’m sure Val and Annie will, too.”
Heading back into the room, he picked up his mate, materialized in his apartment, and laid her in bed. After he covered her with blankets, protecting her from the chill, he went to Jenna and Lucas’s apartment, grabbed Annie, and got her ready for bed. He waited until Annie fell asleep before he returned to his room.
Taking a quick shower, rinsing the sweat from his body, he toweled off and materialized beside Val. She had more color in her cheeks than the last time he checked mere moments before, but her skin felt too cool. He checked her wound next. It stopped bleeding and closed. Tomorrow, it would be gone completely.
Lying beside her, he pressed his body against hers hoping it would warm her. “You are mine, sweetheart,” he whispered. “You are mine. My mate and I love you.”
Then he too, fell asleep, a deep soundless sleep for the first time in seven days.
Chapter 32
The scent of Jake awoke her, jerking her out of sleep. His arm wrapped around her waist, enfolding and caressing her. Simultaneously, his hard body pushed against her back, sparking desire.
Jake.
Oh God, he was there. But she couldn’t remember how she’d come to lie in bed beside him. Not that it was a high priority; she couldn’t care less how she ended up in his arms, only that she had.
Feeling better than she had in days, full of energy, she shifted, facing the ceiling, slightly pulling away from his heat.
He stirred. His hand clasped her hip and shifted her until she faced him, then his eyes snapped open, hazy with sleep. “Sweetheart.”
Hearing the endearment, her heart swelled. Surprised and too busy taking in the moment, she didn’t answer.
“Val?”
His hands grasped the sides of her face, and his lips claimed hers in a searing kiss. She delved into his mouth, sweeping inside twice before he pulled away. His red glowing eyes held hers for a long moment.
“Never scare me like that again. Never again.”
“W-what?”
His features hardened. “You stopped eating? Then you went hunting and almost got yourself killed.”
She shook her head. “I thought…I thought you didn’t care.”
His eyes narrowed. “You thought
I
didn’t care?” Sitting up in bed, he snapped immediately, “Why? I told
you
how much I cared. I
showed
you.”
She sat up, facing him. “But you…You were upset. I didn’t know why…and then you came and Glen was there and you were angry and…You didn’t come to me, didn’t hold me, and then you
left
…me.”
She paused for a split second. “You never came for me, and you never marked me, so I thought you didn’t want me.”
“I didn’t mark you because you’re young, and I wanted to give you time. I didn’t know about the curse. That day, I didn’t comfort you because I thought you wanted him instead of me.”
Her eyes widened. “How could you think that? I gave you
all
of me. I—”
“I thought you wanted to join the Guardians to push me away, thought you were using it as an excuse to break things off. I’d just won custody of Annie. There was no reason for you to pity me anymore, no reason for you to be with me.”
Her eyes welled with tears. “You thought I gave myself to you because I pitied you? That’s…”
“Absurd?” He sighed. “And after you left, I thought so, too. I thought maybe I’d jumped to conclusions, but then I found you with him and learned you had the gift of vision. He knew. I didn’t. You never told me.”
“I…” Shaking her head, she pointed out, “You knew how I felt for you. You
felt
it.”
He swallowed visibly. “I thought you used magic to fake your feelings.”
“I never…faked anything with us. I can’t believe you’d think—”
“I didn’t know what to think, Val. I thought you knew how I felt about you.”
“And I didn’t tell you about my visions because I didn’t think it mattered to you. I have all three gifts, psyche-sight, foresight, and hindsight.”
He fought a prideful smile, then he shook his head. “It doesn’t matter to me, but at the time, seeing you grow pale and not knowing why…” He shrugged. “He knew why.”
Wrapping his arms around her waist, he hauled her to him until she sat on his lap. He cupped her face and kissed her lips firmly. “I could let you go if I had to, if it was what you really wanted, I could live with you just beyond my reach, but I could never live in a world where you didn’t exist. I know I should want to because I have Annie, and I love her with everything in me, but without you, Val, I’m lost and empty and nothing.”
One hand on his chest, the other around his neck, fingers in his hair, her eyes misted.
“I was captivated by your scent before I laid eyes on you, and that first day we met, when you created an illusion to disguise yourself, I caught your scent again. It wasn’t a hint of it. It was you, full-blown you. I should’ve known then. I didn’t, and I’m sorry.”
Hesitantly, her hand on his chest trailed up his face, then she ran her fingers over the dark stubble.
He grasped her hand and kissed it firmly. “I loved you from the beginning, the first time I saw you sleeping on my couch, and I’ve loved you every day a little more. I did my best to tell you, show you, love you. Maybe I fucked that up, too, but I do, Valerie. I do love you with every being in my body. I’d love you even if you weren’t mine, and I’ll love you forever.”
A single tear drifted down her cheek.
He wiped it away, quickly.
She swallowed. “But you…why didn’t you tell…me?”
“I sensed your fear, and I feared in telling you, I’d lose you.”
She smiled. “What I feared was losing you and Annie.”
He kissed her lips firmly. “Forgive me, sweetheart.”
In those dark mysterious eyes, she read love—his love for her. “No, Jake, it’s my fault. I’m sorry. I love you.”
He smiled and claimed her lips in a soft kiss. His hands skimmed over her back reaching under her shirt until he met her bare skin.
“You’re mine, my fated mate, Valerie. I’ll tell you every day. I promise.”
His lips trailed down her chin and toward her neck. He pressed against her until she lay on her back, with him on top of her.
She sighed. His hands grew more persistent, grasping her hips and pulling her toward the length of him. He groaned when the bare flesh on her stomach met his erection.
She shuddered, chills erupting through her body. “Will you mark me, Jake?”
He drew away from her neck to meet her eyes. “I’ve been waiting to hear those words for weeks, dreaming night and day of this very moment.”
His tongue delved into her mouth exploring her. Her tongue met his as passionately. He grew more insistent, nipping her bottom lip firmly with his fang, then he trailed down her neck toward her breasts. Removing her shirt in one swift movement, he stopped to press a kiss where the blade struck her. He flicked his tongue over her nipple. Pleasure rippled through her, heat pooling in her core.
He positioned himself over her body, placing the length of him near her core. She fisted him and rubbed her hand up and down his length. The muscles in his shoulders bunching, he caught her hand in his and drew it toward his chest.
“Not yet, baby…”
“Yes, now.”
He chuckled, then shifted his attention to her other breast. His tongue lapped against her nipple. His mouth tightened around her and sucked, then he ran his fang against her sensitive flesh. Pleasure building inside her, she moaned loudly.
He dragged his hand down her stomach toward her center and caressed in a circular motion. He sank his fangs into her chest. Simultaneously, the pressure of his fingers against her grew more insistent.
Then it hit.
Pleasure exploded, rippling through her, clouding every thought, every sound. Her body shaking uncontrollably, she screamed.
Her eyes snapped open and met his. Wrapping her legs around him, her hands tightened around his head. Seconds later, he drew away from her flesh, lapping his tongue against the mark he’d made. His fangs stained in blood protruding from his mouth, the greatest aphrodisiac.
“You taste too sweet.” He lowered himself toward her core.
“No, please…”
He shook his head. His eyes glimmered. The next instant his tongue licked the length of her core. She shuddered and instinctively attempted to close her legs. His hands grasped her thighs, pulled them apart, and held her still while his tongue tormented her.
She couldn’t do anything but dig her fingers in his hair.
“Jake!” Another orgasm flooded, her body quivering from the strength of it.
He covered her body with his, wrapped his arm around her waist, then rolled her body on top of his and sat up. She straddled her legs around his waist and groaned, anticipating him inside. His red stare held her still.
“Please…” Her voice thick, heated.
“Tell me what you want,” he whispered, his lips millimeters from hers.
“You…inside.”
Each hand on her hips, he lifted her and buried the head of his shaft inside. She clenched around him and pushed down. He held her up, not allowing himself deeper.
“Please…”
Then, suddenly, he pushed her hips down. The length of him impaling her, filling her. He slammed his lips against hers, stifling her scream.
He lifted her again, then thrust her into him forcefully and repeatedly. Her nipples slid against his chiseled chest, hardening painfully. It began building again. She arched her back and lost sight of his eyes.
Grasping the back of her neck, he forced her to meet his stare again. Sweat beaded on his brow, his face contorted in passion. “I. Love. You,” he said with each of his thrusts.