Page 49 of An Unexpected Claim

“Are you sure you don’t want to talk about it? It might help.”

Hell, no.No, I did not want to talk about the fact that I’d been reliving the moment a monster had dug his clawsinto my back and ripped away the skin and bone so deep that it exposed my spine and ribs.“Could you get me a glass of water, please?”

“Sure, baby.” Nathan gently took his arms from around me and I immediately wanted to dive back into them again. But I needed a moment alone and I really wanted to change out of my sticky shirt. I was stunned when he brushed a kiss over my forehead before walking out of the room.

Um… I shook my head and blinked a few more times, then climbed out of the bed. As I took the few steps to my dresser, I stripped out of my shirt and dropped it over the edge of the hamper, wanting it to dry before adding it to the other clothes.

I’d just yanked a clean tank top over my head when—

“What the fuck are those?!”

Nathan’s roar made me jump so hard I lost my balance and since I was tangled up in my top, I began to tumble to the ground. He was there in a flash, grabbing my elbow and steadying me on my feet.

He slammed the glass on the dresser, spilling a great deal of water, which made me frown because I was really freaking thirsty.

I reached for what was left, only to have my hand swipe air when he spun me around so I was facing the bed, presumably so he had room to look at my back. The overhead light turned on and I squeezed my eyes shut against the brightness. “Are you trying to blind me?” I snapped as I tried to break his hold on me.

He released it, only to curl his arm around my waist and haul me closer. Then he firmly pushed on my shoulder so I bent forward. He gently brushed my hair away from the scars, moving it so it fell over one shoulder. I felt the tips of his fingers probe the puckered skin that was all that remained of the deadly slashes on my back.

“When did this happen?” Nathan asked in a voice that sounded almost clinical.

I raised my brows, even though he couldn’t see the gesture. Had I been wrong? Was he actually going to be calm and rational about this? “I’d rather not talk about it,” I murmured. I was still shaken from the nightmare.

“Too fucking bad,” he growled.

Ah, I spoke too soon.

“The night of the murder.” I sighed.

His arm tightened around me and he traced the scars this time.

I felt like a complete idiot for wondering if he thought they were ugly, if they changed the way he saw me, if…if they turned him off and he didn’t want me anymore. I’d been the one putting the brakes on sex anyway, which made me an even bigger idiot for caring about whether he was still attracted to me.

“Tell me exactly what happened, Peyton,” he commanded in a stern voice that made me irritated and hot at the same time.

I knew he wouldn’t let it go though, so I gave him the short version of the part I’d previously omitted from the story.

It wasn’t easy, going back to that night. The fear. The agony. It was all the more difficult considering I’d just re-lived it in a nightmare. The healed lacerations pulsed with phantom pain, but my panther brushed her fur under my skin, trying to give me comfort, and it helped ease my overwhelming emotions.

Nathan’s mounting fury didn’t help my anxiety level though. It saturated his scent and filled the air with a palpable tension.

So I hurried to finish my tale. When it was over he remained silent and still, with the exception of his fingers, which continued to run over the wounds with a surprisingly gentle touch.

Eventually, they stopped and tangled in my hair, then he curled the fingers into a fist before pulling my head back a few inches.

“Why didn’t you tell me about this, Peyton?” His tone had gone dark and even. The lack of inflection was his tell. His animalistic rage was barely leashed. I’d seen this side of him when we’d spent the night together, but it had been different. His raw, primal instincts had taken over, the desire to sexually dominate his partner and gain their submission.

This time, he was trying to control his feral instincts. The need to hunt down the threat and kill them would be his sole focus. His grip on it, as well as its existence, proved his true alpha nature. It emphasized his power and just how deadly he could be.

My panther and I both responded to his display with passion. Our primitive traits recognized him as a worthy mate. Luckily, I wasn’t ruled by the part of me that wanted to be dragged back to his cave and ravished.

I shoved an elbow back into his chest to get him to loosen his arm around me so I could slide out of his hold. He didn’t even exhale from the blow, much less move a damn inch.

Instead, his arm tightened, and he collared my neck with his hand, pulling me up so my back was against his. “Why?’ he asked again.

“What would have been the point? It won’t help us find him.”

His fingers flexed around my throat and his other hand left my hair to splay over my stomach. “Because he almost killed you. Almost killed my pup. Because when I find him, I’m going to make him bleed and make sure he suffers unimaginable pain before I end his pathetic life.”

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