Page 26 of Scarred Resolve

I stood in the trees, listening to the birds, absorbing the realness of the world, trying to focus on grounding myself in the present instead of worrying about what the coming days would force me and my brothers to deal with, far from our family and friends. The present was interesting as it was. I still had that family, and one was on his way.

“Landon said you were wandering around the woods on Monday. He’s worried about you,” Heath said softly as he approached. I looked over my shoulder to take in the man I had promised to marry. He was looking just as fit as I was feeling, his breath only slightly elevated, his cheeks mildly flushed. The run might have been long, but he could go farther with ease.

“Are you?” I tore my eyes off him before asking, staring at the seemingly endless forest.

“I am,” he answered, stopping beside me to stare in the same direction. “I didn’t think you would be running through the trees this much… not after what happened in Germany.”

“That place felt so different from this one. This one is familiar, and it’s mine. If anything wants to hurt me here, I know they’re coming. I know every supernatural. There are no fae monsters hiding in the shadows. I feel safe here.” I pushed my hands into my jacket pockets. “I needed to breathe. I didn’t like staying in the house. Too much on my mind.”

“I understand,” he murmured, his own hand comfortably tucked away as well.

I knew what my fiancé was doing. He was dancing delicately around asking me anything, waiting for me to open up instead of making him pry.

If there’s one man I should be honest with…

“I’m scared,” I whispered.

“I am, too.”

Hearing that, I leaned against him, my head on his shoulder as I sought silent comfort. I didn’t need him to hold me. He just had to be there, and he was.

“I’ll come back,” I promised.

“I know.” He sounded so confident. Confident enough to make me pull back and look at him and catch his profile, a mix of gentle acceptance and sadness, which was at odds with his tone.

“Oh?” I needed more from him. I needed to know his every thought.

He reached out, turning so we were face to face finally. His hand pulled one of mine from the safety of its pocket and held it tight. Not too tight. It was a strong grasp, comforting but not painful or smothering. His calloused hands reminded me of his hard-working nature. He would always see the job done and would do it the best he could, whether that was to find the best people for the work or just do it himself. It didn’t matter whatarea of his life it was in. He was a strong werewolf and Alpha of his pack. He was a devoted father. He was a calculating politician and businessman. He wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty when he needed to, literally or metaphorically.

“Jacky, you’ll come back bloodied and bruised. You’ll probably come back with a few new scars. I hate it… but I love that you always have the goal of coming back. It’s not just the problems you face. Those aren’t the end goal. To you, it goes one more step. It’s always surviving it to see another day and coming home. With me. With Landon. With Fenris. With Dirk, Niko, Zuri, and Jabari. It doesn’t matter who you’re with because you always have the goal of surviving it and coming back. I understand it. I respect it. I love it.” He took a deep breath. “And it scares me to death.”

“I wish you could come with me,” I whispered, biting my bottom lip as the fear rose again.

“I would be a liability,” he said, and I couldn’t smell a lie.

I wanted to argue, but I knew he was right.

“I’m going to be a liability,” I said as my head fell to his chest, my fear finally speaking its source. “I’m going to mess this up. Niko and Davor won’t be able to rely on me. I could barely handle a werewolf in his Last Change with Landon's help. He was beating the hell out of us, Heath. We were lucky because Fenris was still trying to…” We only won because the enemy was still a friend. We only won because Fenris had given us a chance. I wasn’t going to ever forget that truth.

His free hand began to rub my back.

“You will be with two werecats Subira trusts can handle this with you.” Heath chuckled softly. “While no one in this territory is Hasan’s biggest fan, Subira is different from him. Like night and day. I trust her judgment on this, even if I’m terrified.”

“That’s high praise,” I said, looking up with a small smile. It wasn’t just high praise. It did a lot to ease my anxiety and temperthe fear into something manageable. Heath didn’t offer that level of praise and trust unless he fully believed in it.

“Hearing about everything from Niko’s home in Germany, that’s the least I can say in praise of her,” Heath said, smiling in return. “She probably doesn’t even know that she’ll always have a supporter in me. It probably doesn’t even cross her mind, but I am hopelessly supportive of her now.”

I reached up to brush his cheek. Heath could be a multi-faceted man, with his political mind making him sometimes cold, his business genius making him seem ruthless, and his werewolf nature giving him a killing edge. He could lie in ambush or rush after his prey. He would coordinate a group to take the kill, or he could do it alone. He was adaptable in all ways except one.

Family. Always accepted. Always loved. No exceptions.

Subira hadn’t said anything to him. Not a single word. But what she had said to me, to Dirk, and to Landon had been enough to tell Heath that she was no threat to his family. It had been enough that he knew one day, they could happily be in the same one, not just through Landon and Dirk, but through me and him. She had stood up to the one great obstacle he and I faced—her own mate. He was never going to forget that. He would kill for her if she asked.

It was something I loved about him, the simplicity about this piece of him.

“When I get back, we’ll start planning the wedding,” I said decisively, making his eyes go wide, his scent filling up with love and more than a little arousal. “She promised to walk me down the aisle.”

His growl of satisfaction was predatory… and sexy as hell.

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