Page 95 of Big Bad Bully
And no wonder Madi pulled away from me after she got serious with him.
I think back to how she felt marginalized by him at first–sequestered in a separate wing of the house when she got snowed in with him in the Adirondacks. That must’ve been before–
“Madi…are you a wolf, too?” I croak. I have to know. Are they going to bite me and turn me into one of them now? How does this work?
She lets out a chuff of laughter, but her eyes are sorrowful, like she regrets that she couldn’t tell me. “No. Still me. They’re a different species. It’s not a contagion like movies would have us believe.”
“Okay.” I turn back to Billy. That’s all I can handle right now. I keep stroking his head and ears.
I don’t care if they’re a pack of donkeys. What matters is that Billy is so much more than I believed. I’d pigeon-holed him into the role of asshole billionaire. A big, bad bully. I thought he only cared about money and business when he actually had a depth and history I never saw.
Now I want to know the real Billy. The one who is fiercely loyal to his alpha. The one who protected me with his life. There’s so much more to him than I realized, and I want to see it all.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Billy
I wake with Aubrey’s nutmeg and honey scent curling into my nostrils. I draw it in, finding it deeply soothing, like I’m in the right place.
Wait–where am I? Aubrey and I don’t sleep together. We have sex, and I leave.
I force my eyelids–heavy with grit–open and look around. I’m in Aubrey’s cabana. She’s curled beside me, her myriad of braids sprawled across the pillow. The pink diamond nose ring looks delicate and beautiful in her nostril.
That, along with the sharp pain between my shoulderblades, brings it all back. Someone shooting at her. Getting her to the limo. Then it gets fuzzy. I vaguely remember Aubrey weeping. I licked her face.
Fuck.
I shifted. Of course I did–I was shot. My body repairs much faster in wolf form.
I remember Aubrey insisting on caring for me, so Nickel carried me here to her cabana.
I reach for Aubrey and tug her body up against mine. Her eyes fly open, startled.
“I didn’t mean to wake you,” I murmur.
“You’re awake!” She pushes up to sit, but I pull her back down. “How do you feel?” She twists and reaches for a bottle of water by the nightstand. “Here, drink some water. You lost a lot of blood.”
I find a smile tugging at the corners of my lips. I normally hate feeling out of control. I want to be the guy orchestrating everyone and everything around me. Definitely not someone who wasn’t even aware of where he was sleeping. But waking up next to Aubrey doesn’t disturb my inner control freak. And Aubrey taking care of me feels…sweet. Tender.
Which is strange because tenderness isn’t an emotion I normally allow. Not even for my mother or sister. I accept the water bottle from her and drink it down. She was right–I’m thirsty.
“Are you hungry?”
My hand slides to grip her ass. “Ravenous.”
Some of the worry in her expression melts away. “You’re really okay, aren’t you?”
I glance at the clock. “How long was I out?”
“Sixteen hours.” She blinks at me. Gold starbursts decorate her brown irises. “You saved my life.”
Remembering that there’s still someone after her makes me draw a sharp breath. I sit up, wincing a bit at the pain between my shoulder blades. “Did they find the shooter? What’s going on?”
This time it’s Aubrey pulling me back down to the bed. “I don’t know. Jake and Vance went after him, but I haven’t heard if they found him or not.”
I study her, bringing my hand to cradle her cheek. “So now you know our secret.”
She nods. “Wow.”
