Page 15 of Bound to the Guard

“No need to rush.” Damien moves to the second sink. “That’s why there are two, after all.”

I try to slow down, but my movements still come off as clumsy and rushed, my cheeks burning. Damien’s presence fills the room like a physical weight, his pheromones filling the small space until they’re all I can breathe.

When I look up, Damien grins at me in the mirror, his teeth coated with toothpaste. A startled giggle bursts out of me before I can stop it, and I cover my mouth, my shoulders hunching. I can’t remember the last time I laughed. It sounds rusty, but familiar.

Like something I could relearn if given the chance.

Damien leans forward, spits, and wipes his mouth on a damp washcloth. “That’s a nice sound. Don’t hide it.”

I duck my head as my face heats with embarrassment.

When we leave the bathroom, Damien’s expression turns serious. “If you’re up for it, I have some questions to ask you.”

My muscles stiffen, a shiver running down my spine. Questions never lead anywhere good, in my experience. But Damien’s been so kind, so despite the anxiety churning in my stomach, I let him guide me to the sofa and sit down.

He perches on the coffee table in front of me, our knees almost touching, and my skin prickles with awareness, my pulse quickening.

From his back pocket, Damien pulls out a folded piece of paper, smoothing it open, and the sight of it sends a jolt of pure, visceral fear through me.

It’s the map of the compound. He must have found it in the clothes I arrived in.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Damien soothes, scenting my distress. “You’re not in trouble. I just need to know what this is.”

My mouth turns dry as sand. “It’s…it’s where they kept us.”

Damien’s jaw clenches, a flash of anger sparking that he suppresses. He flips the map over, revealing a series of numbers scrawled on the back. “Jade was with you? In this place?”

The mention of Jade sends a pang through me. “Yes. He’s the one who helped me escape. Told me to come here, to find you.”

Damien’s brows furrow. “Why didn’t he come with you?”

Guilt at leaving him behind claws at my full stomach. Why do I deserve to be safe here when he’s going through hell?

“The window,” I rasp. “It was too small. Jade…he wouldn’t fit. That’s why he needed me to go instead.”

I brace myself for Damien’s anger, for the accusation that I abandoned Jade. Left him behind to suffer.

It never comes.

Instead, Damien reaches out, telegraphing his movements. His fingers brush mine, the barest whisper of a touch, but it jolts through me like lightning, straight to my core. “You did the right thing. Coming here. Trusting me. I know it wasn’t easy.”

Tears threaten, and I blink them away. I don’t deserve his kindness. His understanding.

“Do you think you can find this place again?” His handsome features harden. “If you saw a map of the area?”

That tingly sensation floods my body again. “Yes.”

If it makes Damien happy, I’ll lead him straight to hell.

5

Damien ever so slowly slips his fingers through mine, almost like holding hands, but slack so I can pull away if I want to. “Is it all right if my cousin, Sebastian, joins us? He’s our tech guy and can help.”

The thought of another unfamiliar Alpha in the room tenses my muscles with the urge to hide.

Damien’s thumb strokes my knuckle. “Sebastian won’t touch you or even look at you if it makes you uncomfortable.”

The reassurance helps ease some of my anxiety, and my gaze flicks to his before darting away. “You won’t leave?”

---