Page 44 of Saving Meri

Bear stood on the rooftop of his loft, looking out over the city skyline as the first hints of morning stretched across the lake. Chicago woke up, oblivious to the war that had taken place right under its nose. The city remained oblivious to the bloodshed, the lost lives, and the underworld power shift that had occurred that night.

DeLuca was dead. His operation burned to the ground. The men who had taken Meri, who had profited off the suffering of women, were nothing but rotting corpses and whispers in dark alleys now. Fitz and Archer had wrapped up the last of the cleanup, and Cerberus had done what they always did—erased any trace of their involvement. No cops. No press. No loose ends.

Bear turned from the skyline, his gaze settling on the door leading back into the loft. Meri was inside, had been since they returned, but she wasn’t with him. Not really. He could feel her slipping through his fingers, and he sure as hell wasn’t about to let that happen.

Stepping inside, he moved through the loft with slow, deliberate steps. It was too quiet—the kind of silence that felt like distance. Like walls being built where there should benone. His jaw ticked as he found her standing near the massive windows, arms wrapped around herself, gaze locked on the city below.

She was shutting him out. He wasn’t having it.

“Meri,” he said, his voice a low rumble that usually had her snapping to attention.

This time, she didn’t turn.

Bear closed the space between them, his presence looming as he came to stand behind her, close but not touching. He knew better than to force his touch on her when she was like this, when she was in her head, spiraling into thoughts she wasn’t sharing.

“I can hear you thinking, little one,” he murmured.

She let out a sharp breath, arms tightening around herself. “I don’t know what to do now.”

Bear frowned, reaching out to brush his fingers down her arm, watching the way her muscles tensed. That was wrong. That wasn’t how she reacted to him. “Talk to me.”

Meri’s throat worked as she swallowed, shaking her head. “You don’t understand.”

“Then help me understand.”

Silence stretched between them, thick and unspoken, until finally, she turned to face him, her expression unreadable. “You don’t need me anymore.”

Bear’s brow furrowed. “What the hell are you talking about?”

Her fingers twisted in the hem of the hoodie she’d stolen from him earlier, her voice hesitant. “I needed you before. I felt broken and lost. I wouldn’t have made it without you. But now… I’m not that girl anymore. And I don’t know if I fit into your world now that I’m…”

Bear didn’t let her finish. He closed the last inch between them and gripped her chin, forcing her to look at him, his dominance wrapping around her like a vice. “Now that you’rewhat? Stronger? Whole? That’s what you think this was? Me wanting something shattered so I could piece it back together?”

Her lips parted, but she didn’t answer.

Bear’s grip tightened, his voice dropping to something dark and unyielding. “Let me make one thing fucking clear. You were always mine. Before this. After this. Nothing changes that.”

Meri blinked up at him, uncertainty flickering in her gaze. “But…”

“No buts, little one.” His other hand wrapped around her throat, not squeezing, just reminding. Grounding. “You think I wanted you weak? Wanted you dependent on me to have a place in my life? That’s not how this works.”

Her pulse fluttered beneath his fingers, her body swaying closer, instinctively seeking his control even as she fought the words.

Bear leaned in, his breath hot against her ear. “I wanted you the second I saw you, before I ever laid hands on you. And I’ll want you until I take my last goddamn breath.” His teeth scraped her jawline, a punishment, a warning. “Never doubt that again.”

Meri let out a shuddering breath, her body softening, the fight draining from her limbs. “I don’t know how to do this.”

Bear’s lips curved against her skin. “Do what?”

She swallowed. “Be normal. Live without looking over my shoulder.”

Bear exhaled through his nose. “Who the fuck said you had to be normal? You think I’m normal, little one?”

She huffed out something that might have been a laugh, her body relaxing in his grip.

“There she is,” Bear murmured, his fingers stroking over her throat before sliding into her hair, fisting it tight. “My girl. My warrior. The woman who just helped take down a goddamn human trafficking ring and thinks she doesn’t fit into my world.”

Meri bit her lip, looking up at him. “So what now?”

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