Page 37 of Fetch Me A Mate (Shifter Mates of Hollow Oak #1)

DIANA

D iana was making tea in the kitchen when she heard the front door open. The footsteps were heavier than usual, uneven. She set down the kettle and moved toward the lobby.

Rowan stood in the doorway, and her breath caught. Bruises bloomed purple and black across his ribs. Dried blood streaked his arms and chest. His pale eyes held the wild look of a storm that had finally blown itself out.

"You look like hell," she said.

"Feel worse."

"What happened?"

"Ended it." He stepped into the lobby, favoring his left leg. "The pack won't be coming back."

Diana wanted to be furious. She'd told him to let her fight her own battles, to stay away from the Council meeting, to trust her to handle things alone. Instead, he'd gone off and gotten himself bloodied in whatever confrontation he'd been avoiding for weeks.

But looking at him now, seeing the exhaustion in every line of his body, she was mostly relieved.

"Sit down before you fall down."

"I'm fine."

"You're bleeding on my clean floors." Diana pointed to the lobby chairs. "Sit."

He obeyed without argument, which told her exactly how not-fine he actually was.

"I'll get the first aid kit."

"Diana."

She paused at the kitchen door. "What?"

"How did it go? The Council meeting."

"Better than expected. Someone tried to frame me with a purchased complaint, but the truth came out. They dismissed the charges."

"Good."

"They want to see you tomorrow night. Something about discussing security measures for the inn."

Rowan nodded. "I'll be there."

Diana retrieved the first aid supplies and settled on the floor beside his chair. Up close, the damage looked worse. Claw marks across his ribs, a deep bite on his forearm, scrapes and cuts from what must have been a brutal fight.

"This is going to sting."

"Everything already stings."

She began cleaning the worst of the cuts with careful efficiency. "Want to tell me what 'ended it' means?"

"Challenged the alpha. Won."

"Won how?"

"The old way. Claws and teeth and moonlight on water." Rowan hissed as antiseptic hit a particularly deep scratch. "He's alive. Broken, but alive."

"And the others?"

"Kael will lead now. Handle the Sarah situation without violence, keep the pack away from Hollow Oak." Rowan's eyes found hers. "It's over, Diana. Really over."

"Why didn't you kill him?"

The question surprised them both. Diana hadn't meant to ask it, but something in Rowan's tone suggested he'd considered it.

"Because that's not who I am anymore." He caught her hand as she reached for another antiseptic pad. "Because you taught me there were other ways to be strong."

"I didn't teach you anything."

"You taught me everything. How to belong somewhere. How to build instead of just surviving. How to choose love over fear."

Diana set down the first aid supplies and really looked at him. "Is that what this was about? Fear?"

"Three years' worth. Fear that my past would destroy anything good I tried to build. Fear that I didn't deserve a second chance. Fear that loving you would get you hurt."

"And now?"

"Now I'm done being afraid." Rowan's thumb stroked across her knuckles. "Done running from fights that matter. Done pretending I don't belong somewhere just because I made mistakes."

Diana studied his battered face. "Where do you belong, Rowan?"

"Here. With you. In this inn, in this town, with this life we're building together."

"Even knowing I'm stubborn and independent and sometimes tell you to stay away when I actually want you close?"

"Especially knowing that."

"I was terrified tonight," she admitted. "Standing in front of the Council, defending everything I've worked for, proving I deserved to stay."

"You did prove it."

"But part of me wanted you there anyway. Not to fight for me, just to... be there. To know you believed in me."

"I always believe in you. You fight for what matters, Diana."

"So do you, apparently." She gestured at his injuries. "Though next time, maybe try the talking approach first."

"Next time there won't be a pack threatening what's mine."

"What's yours?"

"You." Rowan leaned forward, his forehead nearly touching hers. "Everything worth protecting."

Diana reached up and touched his face, her thumb tracing the edge of a bruise. "Are you staying, Rowan? Really staying? Not just until the next crisis or the next time your past catches up?"

"I'm staying."

Diana kissed him then, soft and careful around his split lip.

"I love you," she said quietly.

"I love you too."

Diana had fought for her place in Hollow Oak and won it through competence and community support. Rowan had faced his past and conquered it through courage and conviction.

Now they could finally build their future without looking over their shoulders.

"Rowan?"

"Yeah?"

"Next time you decide to fight an entire pack of wolves, give me some warning. I would have made a bigger first aid kit."

His laugh rumbled through his chest, and Diana felt it settle into her bones like coming home.

“What do you say we go look over our new little sanctuary?” she suggested, holding out her hand to head to the attic.

He smirked and grabbed her fingers. “Lead the way.”