Page 69 of Hayden's Haven
Chapter Fourteen
HAYDEN
Hayden awoke to his Mila’s lush body pressing against his chest. Before having her in his bed, he had never been one to spoon. This here, having his arm stretched over her midsection, her hair tickling his nose and neck, was pure heaven. He spread his hand over her stomach and started caressing her skin. His cock was already hard for her, but after the night they’d had, they both deserved a few more hours of sleep. There was no rush. They had their whole lives together.
“Keep wiggling your ass against me like that and I’ll have to remind you of what happens to shifters who flirt.”
“I wasn’t flirting last night when you decided to fuck my ass.”
“Dragging your nails down my back was shifter foreplay, sunshine, and you know it.”
She turned over to face him. He opened his eyes to find her beautiful green eyes staring at him. The sadness there gutted him, and he realized what he had said. He cupped her face, running the pad of his thumb over her cheek. “Maybe you don’t know. He didn’t treat you well at all, did he?”
“My parents pushed me into dating him. They said I would never do better.”
“And you believed them.”
She nodded. “Until I left for school. I met a nice guy there, but he was human. When he found out I was shifter, well. . .”
“So, you went back to Vance when you returned home. Thought you had no choice.”
“Actually, I returned home more confident than when I’d left. I told him I wasn’t interested in him. It shouldn’t have been a big deal. I mean he’d dated other women while I was in school. There’d be no promises or commitment between us. No talk of blood-bond. I told him about Thomas. When he realized I’d slept with someone else. . .” Mila shivered and burrowed herself into his arms.
Hayden held in the string of curses going through his head. She needed to feel safe and venting his wrath for the asshole and her parents even in the form of cursing wouldn’t help her.
“Promise me something, Mila.”
“Anything.”
He scooted his head back far enough to see her face. “You should at least hear what you’re promising, don’t you think?”
“No need. I trust you.”
I trust you.Those had to be the best three words a shifter could say to another. “If there’s ever anything you don’t like, or that scares you, you need to tell me. It’s not good for me unless it’s good for you. Got that?”
Her hair slid aside as she nodded, revealing the cut from yesterday. He brushed the rest of her hair behind her and touched the scar. It hadn’t healed yet. “Mila?”
She took his hand in hers, brought it to her lips and kissed his fingertips. “It’s fine, Hayden. Doctor here, remember?”
“It should have healed. Maybe the process didn’t work fully. Your bridge could still be—”
“Anna’s serum is new, and I’m only the second to receive it so anything is possible. There are a lot of unknowns. Did you know that when companies conduct clinical trials on a new drug they use hundreds or thousands of participants? Two isn’t enough to draw any real conclusions.”
“But she said—”
“She said healing the bridge would take place over the course of days, maybe weeks.” Mila’s hand started drifted over his chest. “Clearly it worked to some extent or I wouldn’t have been able to shift yesterday.”
He relaxed. He would have to be patient, but it was hard not to worry about her. Then again, she didn’t seem the least bit concerned, so he would take his cues from her on the matter.
“If you’ll excuse me, I need to shower.”
“Want company?” He wiggled his brows. Showering would never be the same again after last night.
Her mouth came down on his in a very passionate kiss. “Not this time. I have work to do today, and I have a feeling if you join me in the shower, I’ll never get out of here.”
For as much as her eyes sparkled, he still sensed a hesitation in her. She slid from the bed, her movements slow and stiff. When she turned to head to the bathroom, he saw the bruises on her back and hips.
“Mila!” he shouted as he sprang from the bed. She stopped and let him turn her to look over her nude body. Black patches mottled her back from her shoulders down to her hips, where the distinct impression of fingers remained. He had been too rough, especially for a shifter whose bridge had not yet fully healed.
