Page 38 of Hers to Call
He kissed her hair, “I want to know who he is, and then you put it out of your mind. He will never lay another hand on you.”
She put a hand up against his chest. “I just talked to Nate, and it turns out he’s been in jail. I…I’ve been scared for my life for three years, and he’s been locked up in another city.” She shuddered. “For long moments this morning, I thought he was here.”
“Because of what happened to you?”
She shook her head. “Not just that. I overheard a call from the receptionist. It was a David, clearly in light of this, a coincidence, but then someone ran me off the road.” Her breath quickened, the acrid scent of panic flooding the truck. “Oh God, I thought he was back,” she whispered.
He lost control, hissing as his bear clawed at his insides demanding to be let out. The hair exploded on his arms, claws piercing his skin as his bear nearly forced his change. She scrambled out of his lap and pushed herself back into the passenger door. Her fear calmed down his bear, the animal understanding he was the cause.
“Don’t cower from me, Calita, please. I would never hurt you.” His voice was a deep timbre.
“I’m not afraid of you…per se. I don’t want to be in your lap if you turn into a bear.”
He nodded, understanding how sensitive she had to be with everything that had happened. He closed his eyes and breathed deep. It took him a few minutes to calm both he and his bear. He gripped the steering wheel of his truck and leaned his head against it. Shuddering, he suppressed another growl and reigned in control. It had been years since his bear had been so wildly unmanageable. She mewled, and he closed his eyes. Of course, she would be able to feel his rage, despite his efforts to reign it in. He felt like an ass, she was scared and he was making her fear about him. He breathed out and sat straight. He unbuckled his seat belt and held his arms out to her. She came into his arms easily, assuaging some of his anxiety.
“I’m sorry you went through that today, Calita.”
He held her for a few minutes, rubbing his cheek along the top of her hair, calming them both. He kissed the top of her head after a while and she moved back into her seat. Once she was buckled in, he checked his mirrors and pulled out onto the empty road.
The silence was tense as they rode the rest of the way to his land. He pulled into his garage and sighed. She unbuckled her seat belt and went to reach for her bag in the back seat, but he lifted her over the console and into his lap. Her surprised gasp brushed his neck and his whole body tightened.
He held her in his lap, fighting the images in his mind of her being attacked. She squirmed after a minute.
“Wait, Cali. I just need a minute.”
“It was over four years ago, Simon. I’ve been getting better since I moved here.”
He put his hand over her mouth. “That doesn’t help me.”
She raised her eyebrows. He was waging a battle with himself and what she thought was reassuring was anything but. That after four years, she was still battling with the trauma was shredding his insides. He fought the need to demand she move in with him. On his land, his entire clan would be able to keep an eye on her, but somehow, he didn’t think she was ready for that. He breathed in her scent and after a few minutes calmed himself. He put his head against her forehead.
“Is that why you talked to Nate?”
She backed up. “He already knew about David being in jail…when I came down, I told Selena. You know how she is.”
He nodded. Selena was loyal to a fault, and though meddlesome, her intentions were always good. He knew the woman wouldn’t have left her friend to go through the trauma alone. Nate knowing, explained his cousin’s reluctance to give him information on Calita. He didn’t want to break his mate’s confidence; Simon could understand that.
“So, you told Nate you thought David was back?”
She looked away.
“Calita.”
“There has been a couple accidents. I attributed them to David, but he’s in jail now, so…” She shrugged.
He tensed. “Something happened outside of the car accident and the thing on the roof?”
She sighed and lay her head on his shoulder. “I didn’t want to burden you with this.”
“I’m your mate, Calita. I know you don’t understand fully what that means, but you are essentially my wife. Would you really tell your husband that something this scary to you is not his concern?”
She shook her head after a moment.
“Well thank God, I really thought you were going to say yes. That would’ve been a problem for me, love. Bears are very protective of their mates, I need you to understand that, and know that everything you are concerned with, concerns me. Am I clear?”
She nodded, a docile bob of her head that appeased both him and his bear. He let it go. He took another deep breath and opened his side of the door and let her crawl out first. He grabbed her bag from the back and left the truck. Intertwining their hands, he was anxious now that they were in his home. He wanted her to like it, hell, to love it. He opened the door in the garage and walked into the mud room, kicking off his shoes. He walked into the kitchen, satisfied at her awe filled gasp.
“Oh my God this kitchen, Simon.” She turned a circle, her bare feet soundless on the wooden floors.
