Page 18 of Fated Guardian

“Yeah. But. I am covered in blood. You just almost got killed. When I kiss you again, Coral, I want us both to be in a state of mind where the kiss means… more,” I breathe.

There’s a heartbeat. A thudding of my chest against her hand. Then she nods.

“More,” she echoes.

“Yes. So we’re going to go back to your cottage. I’m going to use your very famous, functional plumbing, and then we’re going to tell Thorne what happened.”

Coral looks at where her hand is splayed out on my chest. She looks up at me.

“At least, I think the shower works, anyway.”

By the timeI’m clean, I’ve calmed down a little. I don’t turn rock-hard every time I think of Coral, so that’s good. But I definitely can’t think of the kiss, because if I do, I’ll have the same problem all over again.

Luckily, I was out of my clothes by the time I shifted, so they’re not shredded, but they are covered in blood. Gross.

Reluctantly, I put my bloody clothes back on. I walk out of Coral’s tiny bathroom, toweling my hair off as I do. She’s sitting in the one little chair in her small living room. I’m not even sure it could be called a chair; it is a piece of wood that holds someone to sit in, definitely. But I’m pretty sure that it’s a tree’s interpretation of a chair.

“Ready?” I say, looking at her.

Coral’s eyes look sad when she looks over my clothes. “Are you sure you don’t want?—”

“I don’t think spider-silk is going to work for me. Usually, heavy-duty sweatpants are all that I can manage. And I wear through them a few times a month,” I grin at her.

I just shred them. Frequently, when I shift.

Coral gives me a small smile. “That’s fair.”

“Come on. I think we can try to make it to the alpha’s office in a couple of hours.”

Without thinking, once we exit the cottage, I put my hand out behind me. Coral’s fingers slip into mine, and I squeeze. Slightly.

We end up walking to the alpha’s office without seeing a single pack member. I can tell that Coral’s nervous about seeing others in the pack. I would be, too, if I spent as much time alone as she does.

Thorne is the only one in the office. I knock, and when he tells us to come in, I let Coral lead. Thorne’s eyebrows raise when he sees her.

“Coral. This is a huge surprise. What’s going on?”

“Oh. Um. I saw your note, and we’ve done some work with the wards, but I don’t think it’s working,” she says.

He looks over to me.

“A shifter attacked Coral.”

Thorne’s body language shifts immediately. His face drops into a serious expression, and he looks at me, his eyes grave. “Report.”

I go through everything. The ward, leaving out Coral’s incredible feat of moving the trees. I mention that I brought her back to her cabin after the ward’s completion, and that we were on the way to get to the other three when the jaguar attacked.

Thorne listens to everything. When I get to the end, I look at Coral. “Did I miss anything?”

“Only the blood,” she murmurs.

It seems like it’s half to herself, but Thorne catches the comment.

“Coral,” he says, shifting in his seat. “I appreciate the ward. But it seems like the shifter wasn’t coming for the pack. He was coming for you.”

I agree completely.

Coral stiffens. “How… we don’t know?—”

---