Page 74 of Claim Me
“You’ll need to dream a little longer.”
“Don’t make me wait forever please.”
“Will you both continue to live in this house?” I chose to change the subject even though I didn’t want to ask it. I had gone the last few years without them as they traveled but knowing they had a house here and my father going back to work had to mean something. At least, I was hopeful. If all of this had taught me anything, it was that I wanted them in my life more. Now that we could share this life and all its secrets, it just made sense.
“We will sell the house but I hear Rafe has a massive house big enough for guests. Whenever we come around to visit.” Mom waggled her eyebrows at me and it proved she was still goofy as ever and not a highly sophisticated super-spy like she looked now.
“Where will you both live?” I frowned.
“We could go live at the beach house for a little while. But not until you have your mating ceremony.” Mom clapped her hands. “I get to plan a wedding.”
“I’m so relieved that you both know.” It took a massive weight from my shoulders. “I don’t feel so alone anymore.”
“We will visit you often. Now that you know it isn’t all vacations and I went back to work, we will be able to see a lot more of each other. You will also be able to travel with us.”
There was still one question on my mind. “How did you even get into this lifestyle?”
Father patted my mother’s hand over his. “I was working at a big firm about twenty years ago. There was an incident. A supernatural had broken into the office and was rogue, we assume. Even though this was a creature I had never seen before, I was able to diffuse the situation. When the Supernatural Council arrived, I was the calmest out of all of the other humans in the firm. It wasn’t because I wasn’t scared or not in shock… It was because I already knew. There was a part of me that had always known that these creatures existed. They were wiping minds and I had this deja vu that it had happened to me before. Maybe that was why I wasn’t as scared or worried. These things were in my subconscious. Either way, the vampire that day looked at me and how reserved I was and asked what I did for work. Apparently, the other human council member had died a few years before of old age and they were looking for someone new. Someone not afraid of supernaturals. She hired me on the spot.”
“Is because I wasn’t allowed friends?”
Mom laughed. “You were allowed friends, but it was a dangerous lifestyle. We were constantly worried about having you in it.”
“Then why accept the job? I had been born already.” That was the logical answer. Don’t accept something dangerous if you’re worried about your family, right?
“I didn’t like the thought of my mind being tampered with again. What if I forgot about you?”
I nodded as I looked down at my clasped hands. “I suppose that’s true.”
“We’ve gotten to live an incredible life because of it,” they both reassured me. “We wouldn’t change a thing.”
* * *
Rafe hadn’t been kidding when he said he would have all of my belongings moved into his house by the time I got back. I wasn’t exactly surprised either. He was lounging on the couch when I got there. There wasn’t a hair out of place on his head and he wasn’t even breaking a sweat. I dropped my purse by the front door and looked around. He had even managed to hang a few of my pictures. My tea kettle sat on the stove and a massive trunk full of clothes was at the bottom of the stairs.
“You said all moved in?” I asked with a chuckle.
“More like moved over. I know how picky women are about their clothes so I figured it would be best if you moved those.” Three pairs of my shoes were lined up by the front door.
“Where are the Guardians?”
“They helped me move everything but I shooed them off before you got back.” He jumped over the back of the couch and picked up the trunk effortlessly. “Follow me please.”
He didn’t struggle with the trunk as he went up and set it down carefully at the end of his bed- our bed. All the lights were out except a few candles randomly placed around the room. It was beautiful and magical. He closed the door behind us and grabbed my hands in his. “I don’t want to live without you. I know you are still uncertain about me claiming you but please, claim me.” He bared his neck for me and a grin split my face.
“There isn’t a slow-moving bone in your body, is there?” I asked.
“Last I heard, there wasn’t one in yours either.”
“What does this mean for us?”
He shrugged. “I will share my strength and Alpha powers with you and if you’re more powerful than I am, you will share with me once I claim you. We will be able to share thoughts with each other if we want to. We will always know where each other are if we concentrate hard enough.”
I nodded my head as he took a step closer. He tore his shirt over his head and my entire mind went blank. My body felt like it was on fire as he crossed the space between us and grabbed the bottom of my shirt. I stopped his hands in their pursuit. I didn’t know if I was ready for him to see what laid beneath my clothing.
“When my injuries healed, I thought I could get over the scars.” I swallowed. “I thought it would be easy but then I saw his face every single time I looked down at myself. I see the wicked gleam in his eyes as he cut me open. I have to relive it over and over again. He’s still alive and I don’t know how to process any of this. I don’t know what happens next.”
My legs hit the edge of the bed and I fell back onto it. Rafe climbed on top of me and all conscious thought left my body again. The insecurities I had been feeling seemed to disappear. Rafe looked down at me with sad but hungry eyes. “How about I replace those memories with good ones?” I didn’t know what he meant until his tongue darted out and ran along the scar on my arm. I blinked in surprise and a shudder raced through my body. My body turned to molten heat as his eyes stared into mine and he continued to kiss up my arm. “I don’t ever want you to see his eyes in your mind again when you think of your body. I want to replace every man that has ever touched you in good and bad ways. I plan to erase every bad thing with good things. If you’ll let me?”
