Page 54 of Piece You Saved

But he nods, flashes me a grin, and slings his arm over my shoulder before he leads the way inside. “Come on then. You hungry?”

“Sure,” I lie. “I could eat.”

I feel him glance down at the top of my head, and I wonder if lies, like fear, carry their own distinctive scent.

CHAPTER 15

KADE

It’s the next day, and Saige still hasn’t recovered from whatever the fuck Dariel said to her that nearly drove her into a panic attack.

From her reaction, I’d thought someone was watching her in the garden. I even wandered over to the gate to make sure, but… nothing. If there was something that spooked her before, it wasn’t there anymore. Or it wasn’t there at all, which is not fucking good.

At all.

I can kill whatever hurts her, and I can fuck her and make her feel good that way. That’s all I know how to do.

I don’t know how to help her in any other way.

She wanted to sleep in her bed. Alone.

I said nothing, even though it was clear she wasn’t okay, but I didn’t sleep. And from her tossing and turning all night, neither did she.

As we sit at the dining table, I’m pretending to work. She’s not even pretending to be interested in eating breakfast. Other than asking about Aden, she’s quiet. Too quiet.

If Saige hadn’t reacted the way she had in the garden, I’d have told Dariel I’d be the one going to the Cerberus to let Greg, our manager, know to take an extended holiday until we deal with Rylan. Since Aden is fighting less with his wolf, it made sense the person to go should be him.

And leaving Dariel in the house alone with Saige after her reaction in the garden the other day? Nah. That wasn’t happening. I don’t know what Dariel said or did to Saige to have her damn near scratching at the walls to get outside for fresh air.

Something spooked her. Since the only thing in the garden was me and her, that thing had to be the memories—the fucking torture—Rylan used to carve deeper scars into her mind.

“Can I see Aden?” Saige lifts her gaze from her untouched peanut butter and jelly toast.

I eye her for a beat.

She’s wearing one of my shirts, a baggy oversized one that hits her at her knees. It isn’t like I couldn’t order her something in her size. We have enough cash in our accounts to do that, even with all the repairs the Cerberus needs after I tore into a shifter prowling after Saige.

I like her in my shirt. Wearing my scent. I like her looking like she just crawled out of my bed, smelling of me, sleep-rumpled, and lazy-eyed. Sexy.

Every time I look at her, I’m ready to drag it over her head, toss her on the nearest bed and fall on top of her.

But I remember the dark bruises covering her belly, and I remember her flinching. I want her, but she’s not ready for the things I want to do to her. Aden could be gentle, but now?

I’d be a lot more confident he could regain control over his wolf if we hadn’t spent years watching Dariel lose control over his. I’ve had no trouble with mine. That probably has more to do with the fact I do whatever the fuck I want and so does my wolf. We both want something dead, so we kill it. What would we get into an argument about?

I’ve seen enough to know that road is neither straight nor is it easy. And for Aden, who didn’t even want this in the first place? I can’t see it being straight or easy.

But I don’t regret biting him, though I should. It had to be done. Aden is family. He’d have died and I wasn’t letting that happen. The knowledge he’s alive and stronger now than he was before kills a little of my guilt that we forced something on him that he didn’t want. Because Dariel was right. He’s alive, and living is better than dead. Even if he’s not the same as he was.

Now I couldn’t and wouldn’t leave him in the same room as Saige. And he knows it. If I know it, so does he, since Aden has always been the smartest one out of us.

“Maybe later,” I say distractedly.

I’m not distracted as I move the mouse around the mat. My eyes are on her.

“You mean when Dariel comes back from hunting Rylan?” Her voice is quiet, but her stare is probing.

“He’s just stopping at the Cerberus to do some paperwork, angel. No hunting to be done.”

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