Chapter 35

Chapter 35

“There,” Ashley said with a firm nod as she finished securing the towel around her, and once that was done, she climbed onto her bed and dropped face down on it with a pathetic groan.

She followed the move by grabbing her pillow and pulling it closer so that she could settle more comfortably for the day of pouting that she had planned and-

“I see that we’ve moved on to the pouting phase, mo ghrá,” Kale said with a teasing smile as he leaned down and kissed her cheek.

“It’s the most important phase,” Ashley said, nodding in agreement even as she couldn’t help but wonder why she wasn’t freaking out over the fact that Kale was in here while she was only wearing a towel.

Then again, Ashley mused as she watched him grab the chair from the corner of the room and drag it closer to the bed, it might have something to do with the fact that he’d seen her sprawled naked on top of a grizzly bear a few days ago. If it had been Jacob, she definitely would have-

“So, I hear you’re a shifter,” came the heavily sighed announcement as she felt something drop down on the bed behind her as she tried to remember how to breathe.

That was quickly followed by Ashley struggling to pull the blankets free from beneath her with one hand without ripping them while she tried to keep her towel where it was with the other as she demanded, “What the hell are you doing in my room?”

“Why wouldn’t I be in your room?” Jacob asked, sounding amused as she gave up trying to pull the blankets free and settled for shifting closer to the edge so that she could curl up into the fetal position as she squeezed her eyes shut, hoping beyond hope that Jacob took pity on her and left before she died of mortification.

“Because I’m naked!” she snapped, tempted to throw something at his head.

“But…we’re shifters,” Jacob said, sounding truly confused, probably because nudity wasn’t exactly a big deal among shifters since they normally shifted with their Packs, but she already knew that Pack life wasn’t for her.

“Get out,” Kale said as he dropped down on the chair and grabbed his backpack off the floor and began searching through it while she contemplated rolling off the bed and resuming the fetal position on the floor.

There was a slight pause, and then, Jacob was sighing heavily as she felt him climb off the bed. “Fine. If it will make you feel better, I’ll go. I have to do a perimeter check anyway,” Jacob said as she lay there, really hoping that he moved faster. That swiftly changed to really wishing that she’d thrown something at him when he muttered, “It’s not like I haven’t already seen you naked,” reminding her that he’d taken care of her during her transition and had probably seen more than she was mentally prepared to deal with at the moment.

“I really hate him,” Ashley mumbled with a pathetic groan as she rolled back over onto her stomach and promptly buried her face against the pillow.

“Do you want me to leave, too?” Kale asked after a slight hesitation.

“No,” Ashley said, sighing as she turned her head so that she could watch him.

Nodding absently, Kale continued searching through his bag for a moment while she lay there, watching him, unable to help but notice just how handsome he was even as she found herself wondering for probably the hundredth time why he had this calming effect on her. Even when he was being a jerk, there was just something about him that made her feel like everything was going to be okay and that she was right where she was supposed to be.

“How’s your arm?” Kale asked as he pulled out a Ziploc bag of empty vials and placed it on the nightstand along with a black thermos.

“I’m trying not to think about it,” Ashley said even as she moved her fingers beneath the pillow, needing the reassurance that her hand was still there. That quickly shifted to her slowly exhaling and trying to think about something else when the image of her hand burning off left her feeling like she was going to be sick.

One of her stepfather’s favorite ways to punish his Pack for disobeying him had been to drag them downstairs to the basement and tape a row of silver coins down their spine, leaving them unable to do anything but scream and beg for mercy. The silver made them sick and left them in agony, but they’d never reacted to it the way that she had.

“Why did I react like that?” Ashley asked, watching as Kale pulled another Ziploc bag out of his backpack, this one held blood-drawing supplies that she was, unfortunately, very familiar with. After she went into foster care and it became obvious that she wasn’t growing, her life had consisted of doctor appointments, physical therapy, and an array of weekly tests to find out what was wrong with her. The only thing that the doctors had been able to agree on was that they had no idea why she wasn’t growing.

“I don’t know, but I’m going to find out, mo ghrá,” Kale said as he began taking vials out of the bag and lining them up on the nightstand.

“I think I’m going to need my blood,” Ashley said, swallowing hard when he kept pulling vials out of the bag.

Chuckling, Kale leaned over and brushed his lips against hers, making it difficult to focus at the moment. “I’ll replace it,” he promised before returning to what he was doing.

“I would rather keep my blood,” Ashley mumbled weakly as she watched him pull out a needle that had her biting back a whimper.

“I’ll make a deal with you,” Kale said as he placed the backpack on the floor.

“What kind of deal?” Ashley asked, reluctantly sitting up when he reached for her arm.

“While I draw your blood, I’ll answer your questions,” Kale murmured as he searched her arm for the perfect vein.

“And I have to answer questions in return?” Ashley asked, not really in the mood to talk today. She’d already decided to tell him everything, but after last night she just didn’t feel like talking about it right now.

“No, you’re doing enough. You don’t have to tell me anything that you don’t want to,” Kale promised her as he picked up the needle and-

“Ow!”

“Sorry,” he murmured, pausing in what he was doing to lean down and give her a quick kiss that somehow made it better.

“Why are you doing this?” Ashley asked, wondering if he had any idea what his touch did to her. Then again, maybe he did, Ashley thought, feeling her stomach drop as she couldn’t help but wonder if he was doing this to keep her in line, and god, how pathetic would that make her?

“I want to keep you safe, mo ghrá,” Kale said, filling the first vial with blood before quickly switching it out.

“Because you’re being paid?” she asked, unable to hide the bitterness in her voice even as she told herself that she’d watched too many movies, but how else could she explain why an incredibly sexy shifter who’d gone out of his way to let her know that she was just a job suddenly couldn’t keep his hands off her? She-

“I’m not being paid,” Kale said quietly as he finished filling the vial and grabbed another one, leaving her…confused.

“Then why are you doing this?”

“You know why,” Kale murmured as he grabbed another vial.

“No, I don’t,” she admitted, watching him as he finished filling up the last few vials.

When Kale was done, he carefully removed the needle and taped a small gauze pad to her arm to stop the bleeding. She watched as he started placing everything back in his backpack while Ashley sat there, trying to tell herself that it didn’t matter why he was doing this, but she needed to know so that when he left her like everyone else did, it wouldn’t hurt as much. If this was just a job, it would make this easier when he moved on to the next job and if it wasn’t…

She would be fine, Ashley told herself, repeating the last thing that her mother said to her before-

“Drink this,” Kale said, grabbing the thermos that she’d forgotten about off the nightstand and handed it to her.

“What’s this?” she asked, her fangs sliding down when the intoxicating aroma of his blood hit her, only to frown when she caught Jacob’s scent.

“It should help,” Kale said absently as he made quick work of cleaning up his mess.

“I thought I wasn’t supposed to drink Jacob’s blood,” Ashley pointed out, mostly so that she didn’t say something to give away just how pathetic she really was.

She liked Kale, probably more than she should. Definitely more than she should, Ashley amended a moment later when she spotted the mating mark on her wrist, reminding her just how incredibly stupid this was. She was mated whether she liked it or not. Her mate might not want her, but she remembered enough from her time growing up in her mother’s Pack to know that this wasn’t going to end well.

“You need it,” Kale said absently as he focused his attention on his phone while she sipped the blood, noting that the blood was still warm as she found herself wondering about her mate.

It was stupid, but…

“Who’s my mate, Kale?” Ashley found herself asking.

She watched as Kale went still and before she could wonder about that, he was swiping through messages on his phone, looking bored as he asked, “Did you change your mind?”

“About wanting a mate?” Ashley asked, shaking her head. “No, but I think it would be a good idea if I knew at least something about him. I want to know if I have to worry about him showing up one day claiming rights that I have no plans on giving him.”

Nodding absently, Kale said, “He doesn’t want a mate.”

“And if he changes his mind?” Ashley asked, taking another sip of blood as she watched him.

“He won’t,” Kale assured her, shaking his head as he placed his phone on the nightstand.

Absently nodding, Ashley stared down at the thermos in her hands as she said, “I don’t remember much from my time in my mother’s Pack, but I remember enough to know just how badly this could end if my mate suddenly decided that he wants me.”

“Do you really think that I would ever let anyone hurt you?” Kale asked quietly, drawing her attention to find him watching her through silver eyes.

“It’s not your job to protect me, Kale,” Ashley found herself saying as she went to take another sip only to find the thermos plucked from her hand and Kale reaching for her.

In a matter of seconds, Kale had her pulled onto his lap and biting back a moan when he leaned in and kissed her. “Let’s get something straight right now,” he said as he shifted her on his lap while she was forced to grab hold of her towel when it threatened to fall off, “it will always be my job to protect you.”

“Why?” she asked, wondering why he even cared.

“Because you drive me out of my fucking mind,” Kale said as he placed his hands on her knees and slid them over her bare thighs until they reached the edge of the towel and then, slowly, pulled his hands back while she sat there, watching his hands move over her.

“Do you have any idea how much I want you?” Kale asked as she was forced to grab hold of his shoulders with trembling hands, unable to help but notice just how good his hands felt on her.

“No,” Ashley mumbled, swallowing hard as she sat there, wondering what he would do next, only to moan when he leaned in and kissed her throat.

“Do you want me to tell you?” Kale asked in a seductive whisper as the light brogue that always teased his words became thicker, causing a shiver to tear through her body as her breath caught in her throat.

She was nodding before she realized what she was doing. Kale released an incredibly sexy chuckle as he rewarded her with a kiss against the side of her neck while she sat there, holding on to him as he continued running his hands over her thighs.

“I think about you, probably more than I should, but I can’t stop,” Kale admitted with another brush of his lips against her neck as his fingertips trailed across her skin. “Do you think about me, Ashley?” he asked as his hands reached the edge of the towel and this time, he grabbed hold of it and slowly pulled the towel away, leaving her completely naked. Definitely a first for her, Ashley thought numbly.

As soon as her towel was gone, he was back to running his hands over her thighs, leaving her struggling to catch her breath. His fingertips continued to slowly tease a path down her thighs as she felt his lips press against her neck and-

“Yes,” was torn from her lips on a moan when she felt his fangs press against her neck.