Page 54 of Corbin
The more she smelled him, the more she felt a wave of peacefulness associated with her memories of him.
“Hey, you okay?” Corbin asked in a soft voice.
She blinked and looked to her left where she found his concerned face. “What?”
“I was saying, how about we find a quiet place to sit down and drink water so the sisters can have a moment together?”
“Oh. Sorry, I didn’t hear you.”
A half grin curved his mouth. “I know. Everyone’s drained.” He wrapped his fingers lightly around her arm and tugged. “This way.”
Corbin carried two bottles of water as he led her to the bottom steps of the stairs. Using a rag that he pulled from his back pocket that she’d seen him wipe his brow with earlier, he cleaned a spot where she could sit.
Her clothes were filthy from running through the woods. Her face and hair couldn’t be much better. She could only imagine her tangled mess of hair that hadn’t seen a brush since she’d pulled off the wig.
In fact, only her hands were clean.
For him to treat her with such respect after she’d berated him earlier left her feeling lower than a slug. She had never been so twisted up emotionally around anyone else.
This man, whose eyes and voice brought up long-buried memories, had turned her inside out. She sat on the metal step, glad to only have inches between them when he settled his big body next to her before passing her a water bottle.
Silence wrapped them as they both guzzled water that cooled her throat and had a calming effect.
She’d promised to talk to him.
She’d never volunteered to answer questions from others but saving that baby and mother would have been worth any conversation. Truthfully, she wanted to know why he thought she’d screwed him over at some point. That accusation stabbed her chest every time she thought about it.
He’d been telling the truth again.
If she’d treated Corbin poorly in the past, she would make it right and convince him she was sincerely sorry. She kept waiting for him to start asking a barrage of questions, but he seemed content to take a few drinks and lean back with his elbows on the stairs behind him.
First, she had something important to say. “Thank you for saving Kesa and her baby.”
“You’re welcome. I’m happy everything went well.”
She waited for him to ask his questions. The more he dragged this out, the more anxious she became. She finally said, “I made a deal to address your belief that I screwed you over. Please tell me what I did.”
When he said nothing, she turned to him, ready to unload her frustration, and mentally stumbled.
He stared at her with the sweetest expression.
She hadn’t been this self-conscious since high school when every look held judgment.
“Why aren’t you asking questions?” she put to him in a more polite tone.
He sat up, the wistful expression on his face gone. Moving his elbows to his knees, he dangled the empty bottle from one hand. “I would not hold you to your offer in that frantic situation. I’ll let you ask questions first and then see if you’re still willing to hear mine.” He glanced her way. “Okay?”
For the first time since allowing him to step in and save the baby, she realized she had been right to trust him.
Offered the chance to clear up her confusion first brought on a bout of self-conscious nerves. “Have we seen each other since high school?”
He looked down at his boots and drew a long breath, then lifted sad eyes to hers. “Not until now.”
He’d stolen her heart with a tiny wolf he’d carved from wood and wrapped inside the sweetest note saying how much he wanted to spend time with her. He had said he’d be at the cemetery that night. His wolf had tracked her scent there and believed that’s where her wolf ran at times.
That young boy would never have walked away from her. She’d believed that for a long time. She’d gone by his home and asked his father where Corbin had gone and when he would be back.
The mean man had said, “No idea. I hope he never returns. He didn’t like living here, and I didn’t like him being around.”
