Chapter 20

I nstead of ordering me to stay in his room, Archer kept me at his side as we hurried downstairs. When we reached the first floor, Lucian and Tak were speaking on the front porch while some of the other packmates poked their heads in to see what was happening.

"What's going on?" Archer asked. "Who the hell's tripping our alarms at this hour?"

Krys stroked his short goatee. "You get one fucking guess."

When Archer stepped forward, Krys blocked him and said, "Don't."

Headlights flashed against the front windows, and a wolf's ferocious barks were drowned out by a car engine—one I'd heard many times.

"Cici, wait," Archer said, but I was already across the room.

Once I made it onto the porch, Tak blocked me from going any farther. "He crossed onto my land without permission. I'll handle this."

Alpha energy rippled off him, and I drew back. Tak was ready for a confrontation, and by the sheer size of him, he could take on anyone in human form. But could he take on a tiger ?

A black Camaro rolled up their driveway in the darkness, Catcher chasing after it.

Tak descended the steps and veered right toward the paved driveway.

"I fucking warned him," I heard Archer growl.

"That shows how much you know about tigers," Krys remarked as he walked up to the railing. "Someone got a boo-boo. What's up with the cast?"

I stepped onto the lawn to see what he was talking about.

Floodlights at the side of the house revealed Noah standing on the hood of his car, a cast on his left arm.

A cast?

"Cecilia, I'm leaving town," he said, loud enough for me to hear. "I need to talk to you."

Archer jumped down the steps and sprinted across the lawn. "Get the fuck out of here! Who the hell gave you permission?—?"

"Cecilia!" Noah called out. "This is the last time we'll talk! I need to tell you something. At least let me apologize."

Tak propped his foot on the front end of the Camaro. "Long ago, a saber-toothed tiger threatened my people. A Shifter! Can you believe it? I haven't seen one before or since, but that skull looks impressive on my father's wall."

"I'm not here to start anything," Noah told him.

Tak put his foot down. "That's up for debate."

Lakota walked into view from the side yard and gracefully shifted into a silver wolf—a beautiful color I'd never seen. His posture made me step back as he approached the vehicle, a threatening growl rumbling in his throat.

The pack had formed a semicircle behind me. I had wolves ahead of me and behind. I'd never felt more vulnerable and yet protected.

"Get off my land, interloper," Tak ordered him, "or else I'll release my pack on you."

Noah looked more defeated than I'd ever seen him. His stubble had grown out to a short beard, his hair wild.

"I just want to talk," he said, ignoring the threats.

When I moved forward, Archer headed me off. "Don't let him have that control over you."

"I need to do this, Archer." Glancing at the others, I could see they didn't understand. "I can't let him have the last memory of us. Not the way it happened. I need to do this—for me."

Krys grabbed Archer's arm, and with that touch, he capitulated.

As I approached the car, Catcher's barking ceased.

Noah dropped to his knees and looked down at me. "I'm sorry, Cecilia. You're everything to me, and you know that. But when I found out you had sex with that tripod, I lost it. You don't understand—I can't think about you being with another man."

Tak turned and looked at his pack, and I gathered they were putting the pieces together.

Noah wiped crocodile tears from his eyes. "I'm quitting the bottle. I let the alcohol control me. I'm not that guy. You know how good it was before all the money and stress got in the way. Remember?"

A tear rolled down my cheek. "I remember."

"We were happy—before the drinking. It was a lot of pressure to drive back and forth, work long hours, all to give you a good life. I'll never touch another drop again. I swear it," he said in that soothing cadence he always used after a fight. "We'll get away from here—anywhere you want to go. You pick. Colorado, California, Washington—we can even go to Canada like you talked about once. It'll be like it was before. You can work if you want to. And I'm not mad about the TV."

A ruckus sounded behind me, but I didn't look back.

"I hope you get clean, Noah. And I don't just mean the alcohol but the women and your whole life. Not because you deserve it, but because when you find someone else, I hope she has the better version of you. But it won't be me. You hurt me."

"I'm sorry?—"

"You hurt me in ways that you can't apologize for—in ways that you don't even acknowledge. And there's no undoing what you did. I was your insignificant other because that's how you made me feel. No apology will ever make it right. It won't erase the memories of how you degraded and berated me."

"I'll never hit you again. I swear it."

"It's not just about the hitting!" When Catcher barked at him again, I drew in a calming breath. "It's all the times you made me starve at home to punish me for eating extra at dinner or insulting you with my tone. It's every time you made me have sex with you when I didn't want to. It's every time you trashed my father's memory. It's every time you mocked my tears or shut me down. You gave me a directive on how to live my life. I was afraid of making you upset, and I was scared of being alone. My life became a series of decisions based on avoiding your punishments. Our relationship was an emotional land mine."

"Goddammit, Cecilia, do you think you're better off with a wolf?" He pointed angrily at Archer. "Look at what he did to me!" Noah showed me his cast. "He snapped my arm in two."

I drew in a light gasp and looked back at Archer, who showed no remorse.

"Do you think you're any safer with them?" He scoffed. "Look around. You don't belong here."

A growl ripped from Lakota's throat when he put his front paws on the car.

"It's not your decision to figure out where I belong anymore. I just want you to know how much you hurt me. I'll never forgive you for what you did, and I only pray you fix yourself for the sake of anyone unlucky enough to wind up with you. And by the way, I've never talked about going to Canada. You obviously have me mixed up with some other girl."

"What does it matter? You're mad over a few arguments and some petty shit that doesn't mean anything. You're blowing it out of proportion and painting me as the bad guy. Who took care of you? Who loves you? Because here I am, standing on wolf territory and apologizing. Be a good girl and get in the car."

I narrowed my eyes. "Did you wear the cast so I'd feel sorry for you?"

"They had me chained up in there!"

"That's bullshit," Archer fired back.

Noah got on all fours and winced when he put pressure on his arm. "Please, Cecilia. This is your last chance. You'll regret it for the rest of your life if you let me walk away. I'm not coming back. That man the other night wasn't me. I promise I'm cleaning up my act. No more drinking. It'll be like it was before. Hell, it'll be better. That much I swear. The commute was getting to me, and the job was shitty. I'll find something else. No one will ever love you as good as I will. Come with me, baby."

I drew near until we were an arm's reach away. "I'm not your baby. You were an awful boyfriend, but I'm glad that's all you were. I'm free. You're just a memory to me now."

"I took you in when no one else would! I paid your father's debt. I leased a fucking building for your fantasy. You owe me. I've spent years slaving to keep the little princess happy, but I can't give you the life you're accustomed to."

"What life was I accustomed to? Living in a rental house with a historian? I led a quiet life, Noah. A reclusive life. I've never wanted more. The only thing that ever made me happy was having someone who cared about me—having a family. I had to stay home and look after my aging father. I didn't make friends or go out to events. We lived in the human district, and I was afraid if I invited anyone over, my father might accidentally shift when he was having one of his episodes."

"You've never had to work a day in your fucking life, so what the hell do you know about sacrifice?"

Tak stood beside me. "Give me a reason to shift, tiger. You think I can't feel your animal's energy pushing at the seams? And quit blaming the alcohol. I know a monster when I see one."

I backed up a step. "You have abysmal taste in music. I hate your hair. You're lazy around the house and can't be bothered to clean one glass. Have you ever done your own laundry? Have you ever done anything nice for a woman that wasn't an apology? I especially hate that egocentric tattoo on your back." After a few more steps away, courage filled me up. "And you were a terrible lover."

Cheers from the women erupted behind me.

"Do you know how I know this?" I dared to look in the tiger's eyes. "Because I've had a good lover, and he made me feel things you never could."

Noah's eyes blazed with fury. The wolves snapped at his heels, and he crossed to the other side of the car. "You'll regret this, Cecilia. Someday you'll wish you'd never opened that big fucking mouth of yours." He jumped to the ground and climbed into the car. "My tiger's gonna miss chasing your horse around!"

As soon as he started backing out, Archer shot out of nowhere and chased after him. Through the open window, he punched Noah. The wolves hurled their bodies against the vehicle, savagely barking and threatening to attack.

I drew back, anticipating his tiger's emergence. Instead, Noah revved the engine to a deafening degree, turned around, and tore out of my life.

Tak walked to meet Archer, and the two of them spoke privately. Tak looked at me twice during their chat.

I'd finally said all the things I'd wanted to, and it was a weight off my shoulders. Having the last word empowered me, and yet at the same time, I wanted to crawl under the covers and mourn the past two years.

All eyes were on me, and my hands trembled.

Robyn closed in and offered me a gentle hug. "That was brave of you."

Still shaken, my heart racing, I answered the group's burning question. "Archer and I slept together. It happened months ago. Not that it's anyone's business, but it happened once."

Lucian held a crooked grin.

Yeah, he knew.

"I'm sorry," I breathed as I marched to the side of the house, eager to escape their judgmental eyes.

I jumped when Catcher and Lakota flanked me, the wolves keeping pace while I made my way to the heat house. Thunder rumbled, and the wet grass cooled my bare feet.

It wasn't until I shut the door and stood in the heat house that I processed what Noah had said.

My tiger's gonna miss chasing your horse around.

His words repeated in my head like a broken record, and I tried to piece together the last time my mare had come out. I couldn't remember my shifts, but I remembered the dread and panic whenever I shifted back. Then she had started coming out less frequently. Had his animal been terrorizing her? For what reason?

To keep her from saving you, that's what, my inner voice replied. He knew you had the ability to escape, so he had to subdue her. He had to break her.

I grabbed a glass from the drying rack and pitched it at the wall. The glass shattered. I slid down to the floor, drawing my knees up and angry tears wetting my cheeks.

A light knock sounded at the door. Instead of getting up, I watched it open .

Mercy walked in with two paper bags. She glanced at the floor and noticed the glass before veering toward the cabinets. "Joy wanted to check on you, but she has a severe case of heartburn. Probably from all that spicy food we ate. Bear goes a little overboard sometimes with the jalape?o."

She set the bags down, opened a lower cabinet, and retrieved a dustpan with a small brush. "I hope you're proud of yourself, and I don't mean that condescendingly." She squatted and swept up the glass before waddling over to another spot to sweep up more. "It takes guts to say that to someone. People think it's easy. I've always spoken my mind, but it's harder to open up to those we care about." After dumping the glass into the trash, she put away the dustpan and crouched next to me. "I know you loved him. You wouldn't have tried to make it work if you hadn't seen some redeeming quality in him. So I can't imagine how much pain you're in, but I hope that moment back there gave you some peace. Now you can move on."

"I never knew he was tormenting my animal," I said, wiping my nose.

"That a-hole deserves what he has coming. The fates have plans for men like him. And don't you feel beholden to him for helping you out of a situation. I'm sure he knew good and well he was taking advantage of you after your daddy died." Mercy patted my hand. "Do you want to sit on the floor all night, or do you wanna eat pie?"

A smile touched my lips.

"I thought so!" She sprang to her feet and reached into the large bag. "Bear made this special for you and nobody else. He makes the best pie in all the South. I should know—my Shifter craving is pecan pie, so he's had a lot of practice. I brought you a container of ice cream, but if you don't wanna eat it, just stick it in that top freezer part of the cooler. And I also brought you these . "

I gripped the cabinet behind me and climbed to my feet to look at the bag she set on the kitchen table. Glancing inside, I recognized the romance titles I'd recommended to them, many of which were my favorites.

"I've never been a big reader," Mercy admitted, "but I started one of these last night, and holy mackerel! I never knew I'd like a historical romance, but they're fun. And a little steamy." She playfully fanned herself. "Bear had me read one scene to him, and I didn't get to finish the book after that." She blushed a little, but Mercy didn't strike me as the type who got easily embarrassed. "I can't wait to read the rest of them when it's my turn to stay here, but I might just swipe one before then."

"You and Bear aren't going to try for kids?"

She patted her silver hair and then touched her earring. "Bear and I made life goals we want to accomplish before we think about starting a family. The great part is we won't miss out on anything with Hope's new baby coming along. It takes a pack to raise a child, and I'm looking forward to being an aunt." She flicked her gaze to the bag. "I lost a lot of my life, and I guess I'm trying to build it back up—stand on my own two feet and see what I can do."

I drew in a deep breath and sighed. "I'm just relieved it's over. I'm glad he's gone."

Mercy removed the books from the sack. "Now you can focus on what you want in life. You never know where it might lead, but at least now it's your choice. The road's always scary when you don't know where it's going. I think you should go back to work. You're good at book recommendations. Why not sell some of these?" Mercy gave a wink as she walked to the door. "This town could use a little more romance."