Page 53 of Fated to the Wolf Cowboy

The look of shock and self-hatred that hit him when he realized he hurt me, broke my heart.

What had this man been through to lash out the way he had this morning and even now?

Maybe it should have scared me.

Perhaps I should have turned tail and run away.

But something within me wanted to understand his pain and fix it.

That wasn’t like me either. I looked out for myself and that was it. I’d learned at a young age that I couldn’t trust anyone to protect me, especially not my father. While I’d cared for him through the years, as I grew into maturity I knew he would be the death of me and I’d cut him off. He was no longer my problem.

Would I do the same to Brady?

Maybe I just wasn’t cut out for this mating stuff. And so far from what I’d witnessed, I suspected he wasn’t either.

Had I made a mistake staying here?

Yes. I most certainly had.

The harder he stared at me the more I knew I was in over my head with this man. The best thing I could do is get the hell out of here.

Despite my desire to know more about it, it would be best for the both of us if we just steered clear of each other.

I just had to keep reminding myself why I left New York.

“Look. We don’t need to make this any harder than it already is. I’m already feeling better and regaining my strength. A day or two tops and I’ll be on my way. Forget about me.”

“Tricia,” he said, sending sparks into my heart at the sound of my name rolling off his tongue. “Forgetting you is not an option.”

I shook my head. “I’m not staying.”

“Oh yeah? So where are we going? Because you’re mine. I already thought I lost you once. I’m not making that mistake again.”

I shook my head harder this time. He couldn’t possibly mean that.

“You don’t mean that. You don’t even know me.”

“Doesn’t matter. You’re mine.”

He was so aggressive and possessive that I didn’t know what to do or say about it.

“You should get your things and go.”

He nodded. “Okay. Clearly, we were both caught off guard and I’m not exactly on my best behavior. It’s been a week. But if you try to run, know that I’ll be right behind you every step of the way.”

My body reacted as if that was a promise we liked a whole lot more than we should.

But my mind went straight to the dark side. Was he a tracker? Would he kill me when he discovered the truth of what I was?

In the midst of my freak out, he seemed oblivious to it all.

He turned and grabbed a duffle bag from his closet before stuffing it fully of clothes.

Then before he left, he stopped at the door and turned back to me.

“No good will come from you being anywhere near Kenneth. He’s my kid brother. Please don’t make me do something I’ll regret again. You’re welcome to stay here in my room though.” He sniffed the air and smirked like a man who was used to getting his way. “My scent smells good on you.”

Then he turned and left as I melted into a pile of goo right onto his bed. I sat there staring at the door until I could no longer hear the sound of his motorcycle pulling away.