Chapter Three Hundred Ninety-Six
“It's not safe, and the answer is no. You can have a tantrum if you want, won't make a damn difference to me, Princess. I've dealt with much scarier people than you. They didn't win, either.”
She scowled, eyes narrowing. They'd been having this argument the last two days. He'd decided it was time to go back to the house. He needed to see if there had been any shifter activity that was fresher. Retrieve the paperwork if possible, and gather whatever Adele needed. When he'd broached the subject and asked her for a list, however, all hell had broken loose.
“I refuse to sit here alone like a scared cat, Thian. I'm going. If you leave me here? I'll call a Ryde. Your choice.”
Fucking... God damn she was stubborn as hell. She knew damn well he wouldn't let her get into a car with a damn stranger to show up at the house alone and unprotected. Which meant either he wasn't going, or they were both going. Since he obviously couldn't leave her ass here alone and expect her to stay put and behave. Worse, if she called someone, she'd be using her own cell phone and likely her credit cards as well. That'd lead them to his cabin, outing himself as well. She had him, and she knew it, judging by the satisfied expression on her face.
“You may have won this round, Princess, but if shit goes south, remember I warned your ass. Fine. We'll go. But there will be rules. You will follow them, or we're both staying here. First, you stay at my side. Period. You don't go running the fuck off to do something, grab something. We move as a team. Second, if I give an order, you fucking do it. Don't matter what it is. I say duck, you duck. I say jump, you goddamn jump, don't fucking worry about asking how high. If I, at any time, decide it's too dangerous, mission is over. Understood?”
She looked like she wanted to argue, but at the determined set of his jaw, she wisely chose to close her mouth and simple nod instead. Good girl.
He wasn't overreacting to this. He had a bad feeling that they were likely walking into a trap. It's why he wanted to go alone. Better he be taken than her if anything happened. He'd underestimated the stubborn determination and pain in the ass qualities his mate possessed. He still wasn't sure what he intended to do with the knowledge that he now had a mate. It'd been a moment of supreme weakness, the cat pushing at his mind until he'd lost the will to fight anymore.
If he walked away, Adele would be fine. She'd go on to find a normal human, settle down into a normal life. White picket fence, 2.5 kids, dog... all that bullshit. He'd likely never find another mate again. He wasn't sure how he felt about it. Right now, he had so much on his mind, so much more to worry about, that the thought of being alone the rest of his life with only occasional fucks to pass the time hadn't really settled on him yet. Did he want a mate, truly? Or were the club whores enough for him?
He was a cat. That was a conversation every shifter had to figure out how to have. They had to decide if it was worth it, if their potential mate was trustworthy enough. If they wanted to spend their lives with that person, to risk everything. He hadn't spent enough time with Adele to gauge whether she was a long-term type of person for him.
He liked being with her so far, enjoyed her feisty personality when it wasn't directed at him. The sex was great, they'd taken to sharing the same bed the last two nights. No point in him sleeping on the cramped couch any longer, really. But that did not make a lifetime connection. That didn't tell him how she'd react to finding out he was a shifter, whether she'd keep their secret. Whether she'd want to join him.
Just a whole fucking bunch of potential pit fires, the entire lot of it. He didn't know what to do. He supposed after this was over, he could talk to Knox. He was the only real father figure Thian knew. If anyone could help set him on the right path for him, it'd be the Prez. First? They had to get this shit over and done with, so he could ensure Adele would be safe, whether she was with him in the end or not.
Riding back into town, the unsettled feeling only grew. He had the urge to just keep going, taking them both out of the city. Hell, out of the fucking state. Wherever they could go where this shit couldn't touch them, where the rogues wouldn't travel just to enact revenge. In his heart, he knew he couldn't do it, though. He wouldn't leave the club. They'd saved his ass when he didn't think he'd been worth enough to be saved. They'd practically raised him, he'd been as good as a new cub when they'd found him, bleeding and fucking confused.
One way or another, whatever happened would go down in Kalamazoo. He knew that with a certainty. All the threads were there, they just had to connect them. On the winding forest road to the house, he kept his attention half on the drive and half on the air, attempting to scent any predators before they got too far in. Unfortunately,
