Amelia blinked bleary eyes as she looked around in the darkness. She must have cried herself to sleep on the couch. She sat up, wincing at the crick in her neck, and massaged it with her hand as she looked around. Her eyes were adjusted to the darkness, but most everything was still shadowy in the absence of light. There was just enough light to find her way to the stairs, though.
Standing, she stretched, feeling her body aching from her crying jag. It was nothing compared to the hurt in her heart and soul, and still nothing less than she deserved.
Turning toward the stairs, she stilled as a noise from outside hit her ears. Straining to hear more, the hairs on her arms raised and her breath froze in her chest as she realized there was someone outside. Heart racing, she listened to what sounded like boots shuffling on her porch. Terror flooded her veins. Bloody hell, this wasn’t good. She didn’t know where her cell phone was, and she wasn’t exactly skilled at fighting off burglars.
Breath hitching as the word fighting triggered a fresh wave of pain for Seth, she felt the first stirrings of fury flooding her veins. First her heart gets broken on an almost incomprehensible level, and now someone was outside her house, sneaking around. Well, fighter or not, she wasn’t going to be a sitting duck, and she wasn’t going to make this easier on the intruder. She was going down fighting.
Glancing around, she spotted the heavy lamp on the corner table, and yanked the plug out of the wall before hefting it up. She crept to the front door where the shuffling noises were coming from. She’d just get in position by the door, and when it opened, she’d be prepared to knock the intruder in the head with the lamp.
At least that was the plan. And it would have been a good one, if she had a chance to carry it out. Instead, before she was close enough to the door, it opened and a shadowy figure started to step inside at the same time her foot got caught in the rug. With a cry, she began to pitch forward, still holding the lamp in front of her like a sword. She fell to her knees at the same time a curse hit her ears and the intruder jerked sideways, the lamp glancing off his thighs.
“What in the hell, Amelia?”
Breath freezing in her lungs at his voice, she stayed on the floor as she gazed up, squinting to make out his face in the dim light. “Seth?”
“Of course it’s Seth,” he said, bending over to pick up the lamp and put it on the table. “You almost crushed my dick with this fucking thing. Is this some kind of fetish of yours? You get off on trying to take away men’s ability to reproduce? Because there are a lot of things I can overlook in my woman, but I don’t think that’s one of them. And also, I should tell you, that’s the only hit you get tonight. Especially to my dick.”
“I didn’t know it was you. I thought you were an intruder.”
“And that was your plan? Incapacitate them by way of crushing the family jewels? I’m certain it would have worked, but surely, there were better ways to go about it.”
Heat filled her cheeks and she was glad for the cover of darkness. “My plan was to hit them in the head, but I tripped over the rug.”
Pushing up on her knees, she prepared to get up. Seth bent down and grasped her elbow to help her, and her breath caught at the rush of tingles from his touch, a crush of emotions making her throat close up tight.
“I guess that was a better plan,” he conceded. “Why are the lights off? I knocked, but you didn’t answer. You obviously weren’t upstairs asleep if you were able to be at the door when I opened it.”
“The electricity is out again, and I didn’t know which box I needed to break to get it back on. I fell asleep on the couch, and I didn’t hear you knock. Or maybe it was the knock that woke me up. Either way, I didn’t know you were here. I’d never try to hit you in the head.”
“No, you only try to break my dick,” he replied, faint amusement in his voice. “And Amelia, you don’t try to break the box. The box where the switches are is called a breaker box. Stay right here while I go get the electricity back on. I don’t want you tripping over anything else.”
He started to walk away, and she turned to watch his shadowy form. “Seth! I’m not sure why you came back. But we need to talk. Please. I have to tell you my side of the story, and I’ll never be able to live with myself if I don’t fight for the chance to do that. If I don’t fight for you.”
His body was frozen for a moment before he finally nodded, back still facing her. “That’s why I came back. You’re right. We do need to talk.”
Releasing the breath she hadn’t been aware she was holding, she wrapped her arms around her waist and watched him disappear into the kitchen. Nerves were eating her alive now that she had what she wanted, and she had to make him understand. Had to make him realize that their relationship hadn’t been a lie. Maybe it started that way in the very beginning, but everything changed as she got to know him.
She wasn’t a fighter, but she was about to become one. This time it was her turn to fight, and it would be the fight of her lifetime.
Blowing out a nervous breath, Amelia poured hot water from the kettle into her cup, hoping tea would settle her nerves. Probably not, but she was making a cup anyway. The electricity was back on, and Seth was waiting for her in the living room. This, the opportunity to talk to him, was what she wanted more than anything, but her nerves were stretched tight.
Seth agreeing to let her talk was a big step, but it in no way meant he would listen, and believe. There was still a huge chance he would walk out again after he learned the truth. In fact, odds were, he’d do exactly that. She was still going to try, and give it everything she had. Taking a deep breath, she grabbed her mug and made her way to the living room, where Seth was sitting on the couch.
“So you knew what I was from the beginning.”
Freezing as she was sitting down, she hung suspended halfway down for a moment before easing herself onto the couch. Looked like they were just going to jump right into it.
“I didn’t know for sure at first. Uncle Jerry told me when he was in the hospital, but I thought it was just drug-induced ramblings. And then I got bored and went to a fight, just so I could see if anything he said had merit. I didn’t think it would, but then I saw you and Jax fight. You moved too fast, and you both were healing almost as soon as you got hurt. I still wasn’t sure if you could shift into an animal, but I knew you were something more than human.”
“And that’s when you decided to try to seduce the information out of me.”
Cheeks heating and shame welling up inside her, she gave a tiny nod. “I didn’t think I’d be successful, but I was dying of curiosity. I watched you jump off the barn one day, and that’s when I went out and got the cookies. Bought new clothes, makeup, and contacts. I wasn’t very successful with some of those,” she said with a shaky laugh. “The thing is, after being around you for less than five minutes, it became something different. As early as when you had breakfast with me. The attraction I felt for you, the way you made me feel… it was very real. I kept trying to convince myself it was all in the name of research, but it wasn’t. It truly wasn’t, Seth. No matter what happens, I need you to know that,” she said, breath hitching.
He nodded slowly, a small frown on his face. The longer he was quiet, the more nervous she got. This probably wasn’t going to go well. He could think she was lying to try to save face. Actually, that’s probably exactly what he was thinking.
“How did you figure out I’m a leopard shifter?”
“I overheard you guys after the fight with Zane. You said something about your animal, so I knew my uncle had been right, and you were a shifter. Then when we were in bed, I thought I heard you purr, so I figured you were some kind of cat. And when you gave me the leopard you carved, I thought that was what you are.”
More nodding, more silence. Her nerves were strung tight, and she just wished he would get on with it, whether he accepted what she said or not. She needed an end to this uncertainty.
“I understand if you don’t believe me. I’m not sure I’d
believe me, if I were you—”
“I believe you, Amelia. Shifters can hear lies. I know everything you said is the truth. I’m just processing.”
“You can hear lies?” she asked, surprised. “You guys have a lot of advantages. Strength, healing, better hearing.”
“You really do notice a lot, don’t you?” he asked with a smile. “We also have better vision, and we don’t get sick.”
“Well, that’s a handy superpower to have. I’d love to not get sick,” she said with a laugh.
“We do have a lot of advantages, but there are disadvantages, too. Being a shifter isn’t all great.”
Turning on the couch to face him, she took a sip of tea before placing it on the table. There was sadness in his voice, and it was stamped on his face, his golden eyes haunted. All her concerns about whether he could get past what she’d done fled in the face of his pain.
Placing a tentative hand on his leg, she asked softly, “Do you want to talk about it?”
Exhaling, he took the hand she had on his leg, picking it up and intertwining their fingers together. “Might as well, as long as we’re sharing everything. I don’t want any lies between us going forward.”
She nodded, her heart leaping. She tried to squash it down, but he spoke like they had a future, and she wanted it so badly, she hurt with longing. “Go ahead.”
Scrubbing his free hand down his face, he said, “I was born into a clan of leopard shifters. Very old school, lots of strict rules. Most of it was archaic, really. My family was at the top of the hierarchy. My bloodline is pure, and I come from a long line of alphas. I was in line to become alpha one day. But when I was seven, I was kidnapped. Taken by a rival clan for ransom.”
“Oh my God. Seth…”
Shaking his head, he squeezed her hand before continuing. “They didn’t hurt me. Didn’t scar me in any way. I was actually treated well while they had me. My family paid the ransom, because their honor demanded they do so. But I was forever changed in their eyes, in the eyes of the clan. I was considered tainted. Anyone who leaves clan lands is considered an outcast. I was shunned, ostracized. I couldn’t live with my family anymore, and no one else would take me in, so I lived on the streets, begging for food.”
“But it wasn’t your fault. You were taken against your will, you didn’t ask to leave.”
“It didn’t matter to them,” he replied, his fingers tightening reflexively on hers. He glanced at her, and she could see the pain in his blazing golden gaze. “Those were the rules, and they don’t bend them because of circumstances. They must be followed to a T. So I waited a few years, until I felt I could take care of myself, and I left. Roamed around for about nine years, and then found Ian and the others when I was twenty-one. And the rest is history.”
“So you left your clan when you were twelve, and spent the next nine years alone?” she asked, quickly doing the math in her head.
“Yeah,” he said with a shrug. “I did all right for myself. Started using humor to avoid serious discussions, or even feeling. Most of the time I’m a total ass, because I say stupid shit, trying to be funny. My leopard didn’t want to leave. He thought I was a pussy for bailing on the clan, even though they wanted nothing to do with us. He thinks I’m a quitter, and he’s been an unmanageable dick since I ran. Insults, taunts, fighting me over everything. When I fight, he gets very vocal with it. That’s why I have a hard time winning when I fight. He didn’t speak to me in a normal way until I met you. You’re the only thing we truly agree on, although we’re working some things out now. It’s not as bad now, because of you.”
“Until you met me?” she asked in surprise.
Seth took a deep breath and blew it out before answering. “Let me start by explaining something. Shifters have someone called a mate. It’s like a human marriage, but more intense. More absolute. There are no divorces with shifters and their mates. It’s forever. When you find your mate, your whole world changes. Everything revolves around her. You’d do anything for her, anything to make her happy. It’s… hell, I don’t know how else to explain it other than to say a shifter’s mate is everything to him,” He paused for a moment and stole a look at her. “And that’s what my animal told me right after we met. That you’re my mate.”
Seth told himself to breathe, but he could barely manage it, his nerves eating him alive while he waited on Amelia’s reaction. Her eyes were wide, and she didn’t look like she was breathing either. He still didn’t care for the way their relationship started, but at the same time, it had been real for her too, right from the beginning. That eased a lot of his anger and hurt. They could get past that.
And because they could, he wanted to let her know what she meant to him, what she meant to his animal. And the way she said she wanted to fight for him. Her words had hit him with the force of a wrecking ball, and he still felt dazed. She wanted him enough to fight for him. That was fucking everything to him.
“I’m your mate? All that you just described… I’m that to you?” she asked, voice shaky.
Turning to her, he took both of her hands in his and waited until she met his eyes before he spoke. “Yes. You’re all that, and more. My leopard says you’re my mate, and he’s right. And the man in me loves you. I love you, Amelia, more than words can possibly say. And I don’t want you to go back to England. That’s so selfish of me, I know, because you have a life there, an amazing career, but—”
“I don’t want to go back to England,” she rushed out. “I didn’t have a life there, not really. All I had was my lab, and I can find that here. Besides, I was born an American. I have nothing holding me there.” Pausing, she searched his eyes and took a deep breath. “I love you too, Seth. So much. More than I thought was possible to love someone. But I need you to be sure you can get past what I did. I’m a horrible person for even thinking for a moment that it was okay to do what I did. And I don’t want you to say it’s okay right now, or try to force it, only to realize down the line that it was too much for you. But if you really mean it, if you’re really willing to forgive me—”
Seth crushed his mouth to hers, unable to hold back any longer. Relief swept through him at the feel of her lips against his, her body against his, and it felt like she was reaching inside him and touching his soul. This, her—it was everything. When he finally pulled back, they were both breathing heavily, and her cheeks were flushed, her gorgeous hazel eyes dazed.
“I guess that means you forgive me,” she said with a breathless laugh.
“I guess it does,” he said with a wink before he got serious. “You’re not a horrible person, Amelia. You were curious, and you wanted answers. I’m not a big fan of how you went about it, but I also know we wouldn’t be sitting where we are now if you hadn’t. I was resisting my leopard’s claim. You pushed me into realizing that I couldn’t. We’re together because of you. Because of that, I know we can get past how we started. I’ll never resent you for it, or hold it against you. I promise you that.
“I want to claim you,” he said with a deep breath, trying to calm his pounding heart. “It would solidify the bond we have between us, make this permanent. I would do it with a claw mark to your skin. But I need you to know that it would turn you. You’d have a leopard inside you after that. You’d be a shifter, like me. So think long and hard on this before you decide. You don’t have to do it, Amelia. I want you to know that, too. You’re my mate either way, and I will always love you, no matter what you decide.”
Eyes huge, she stared at him, mouth making an adorable O of surprise. “Become one of you? Have a leopard inside me? I… I don’t… whoa.”
“Take your time, honey. It’s a big decision, and I don’t want you to rush it. But now you can see how very serious I am about putting the past behind us. A shifter doesn’t claim a mate unless he’s positive he wants her, because it can’t be reversed.” His eyes dropped to her lips, watching as her tongue made a pass over her lower lip, and desire heated his blood as his dick perked up, taking notice. �
��I love you. I needed to say it again. You’ll probably be hearing that a lot.”
“I have no objection to that,” she said, her own eyes dipping to his lips before meeting his gaze again. “I’ve never had love, or loved someone else before. I don’t know how good I’ll be at it, or if I’ll be able to show you enough, or show you right. But I love you too, and the words are so easy to say to you. That’s one thing I know I can do right, so you’ll be hearing a lot of it, as well.”
Heart swelling impossibly big in his chest, he pressed his lips to hers in a heated kiss before he swept her up, carrying her upstairs to the bedroom. He was holding the most precious thing to him in his arms right now. His world, his life, his everything. He never could have imagined having what he did now, but he knew he’d die before he ever let her go.
The early years of his life were rough, painful, and just plain shitty. But he’d live them again and again if Amelia was waiting for him at the end.
Fight Song
Book Three in the Rocky River Fighters series
And don’t miss Heart of a Fighter, Book One in the series!
Cammie Samuels has been in hiding her whole life, not allowing herself to get close to anyone other than her fighter brothers. Her inner animal is rare, and the threat of discovery is all too real. It’s a hard way to live, but she’s made peace with her life, channeling her frustration into fight training, until a mysterious human shows up, shattering her illusion of peace.
Fighting for Keeps Page 17