When he didn’t answer, her dark brows snapped together. “D-did Rosie tell you—”
“No!” he immediately denied. “She wouldn’t do that—not to you. I have my ways.”
Rosie had been furious with him for scaring her away. “Gabriel Russel, what have you done?” she had fumed when she marched into the kitchen and realized Temperance was gone. “You scared my best employee away.”
“I’m sorry,” he had said. “But she’s mine.”
“Yours?” J.D. had asked.
“What are you saying, Gabriel?” Damon chimed in. Gabriel didn’t even realize he and Anna Victoria had joined them in the kitchen.
“She’s my mate.”
Rosie had stood there, shocked. “I had no idea.”
“Please, Rosie,” he had begged. “Tell me where she lives. I need … I need to talk to her.”
The fox shifter had hesitated. “I can’t do that. You know that would be violating her privacy.” She blew out a breath and cocked her head slightly toward the row of employee punch cards next to the clock by the door. “But I’m going to turn around and leave the kitchen, so I won’t see you doing anything you’re not supposed to, like looking at the addresses printed on those cards.”
“Thanks, Rosie,” he had beamed.
It had been easy enough to find her card, since Rosie had mentioned her name, and the cafe didn’t have a lot of workers. Temperance Pettigrew. Sunshine Woods Mobile Home Park was listed on the address line but no house number, but that would be enough. Hell, he’d knock on every door in Blackstone if that’s what it took.
Thankfully, he only had to knock on five trailers before he found her.
“What do you want?” she said now in a quiet voice.
You, every cell in his body screamed.
His lion roared in approval.
Cool it. She was human, he reminded himself and his lion. She didn’t have an animal to tell her that he was her mate. “I just want to talk.”
“To me?” she asked incredulously.
“Yes.”
“But why?”
How was he going to explain it? “Er, can we start from the beginning? My name is Gabriel. Gabriel Russel.”
“I know who you are.”
“You do?” Now he was intrigued. He had known virtually nothing about her until this morning, except that she made the best goddammed pies he’d ever tasted. But she had known his name all this time? Why did she never come out to talk to him?
“Th-the girls at Rosie’s talk about you all the time,” she said in a wilting voice.
Great. He knew his reputation preceded him sometimes, and at this moment he wished it hadn’t. As far as he knew, he hadn’t slept with any of the waitresses there, but up until a few years ago, he’d been the wild child of Blackstone. Somehow, he had to convince her that he wasn’t that person anymore. And that from now on, no other woman would matter to him except her.
“Temperance … may I come in? So we can talk?”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why not?” he asked, irritated. She flinched at his tone, and he felt like shit. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude.” Unsure what to do, he raked his fingers through his hair. “Why did you run away?”
“W-why would I stay?” She swallowed audibly. “I knew you were … you were …” There was a pause as she took a deep breath. “I know what I look like, okay? It’s not a pretty sight. I’m used to people thinking I’m repulsive.”
“What?” He couldn’t hold back the rage in his tone. His lion, too, roared in anger. “You think I was repulsed?”
“Weren’t you?” she challenged.
He wasn’t the type of man who was at a loss for words, but right now, he couldn’t think of anything to say. How did I miss it? How did he not notice how she instinctively turned right side away from him the moment he burst in? Even now, her body was angled away, and a curtain of hair covered her scars. She thought he had been looking at her in disgust? Her, his mate? How could he ever think of her as not perfect in every way?
He opened his mouth to deny it, but she put a hand up. “Please, just leave me alone. Whatever it is you want to say to me, I’m sure it’s not that important.”
Not important? His lion shook its head in denial unable to process the idea that she was his mate as not important?
There had to be a way to fix this. But how? “If you give me one minute—”
“Please!” The distress in her voice made him sick to his stomach. “Please. Leave.”
His lion was fighting him, clawing at him. It didn’t want to leave their mate. What if something happened to her? Was this place even safe? What was the security like here? Were there any rival males around to claim her before they did? If anything happened to her while they were away, the lion would never forgive him.
However, he had to let his rational, human side win out this time. In time, she would come to understand. She was obviously too distressed right now. “All right.” Putting his hands up, he stepped away. She didn’t even give him a second glance as she shut the door in his face.
Fuck.
The lion inside him let out a sad yowl at her rejection. Sorry, buddy, he consoled. But we’re not giving up.
The animal’s ears perked up, as if saying, we’re not?
Nope. No way.
Squaring his shoulders, he put on a determined expression. He was Gabriel Russel. And you’re a lion, king of the jungle, he told his animal. They were not backing down.
But how am I supposed to claim her?
With a sigh, he stepped back, then his gaze dropped to Fred. His nose wrinkled at the ugly thing—the garden ornament had obviously seen better days. Its long, pointed cap had probably been bright indigo at some point, but it was now a faded color
