Kyle frowned but didn’t reply.
“I wasn’t allowed to make friends outside the pack so I have no friends in town,” Hollie explained. “But...I’ll find a way,” she said resolutely. “I can fend for myself.”
“Hollie,” Kyle said quietly. “I’m going to ask you to trust me. I know I’m asking a lot from you. But...I promise that I will keep you safe. I saved your life, so in a way, I’m responsible for you. You have nowhere to go, so stay with me. The safest place for you right now is by my side, in my house.”
She opened her mouth but before she could get a word out, Kyle continued with a wry smile, “I’m not asking you to sleep with me. I have a spare bedroom. You’ll have your own room and you can lock the door. You’ll be safe with me.” After a pause, he made a face and added, “From me.”
“No, no, it’s not that,” she said quickly. “I’m not trying to run from you, Kyle. I really don’t mean...”
“I won’t do anything to you without your consent, Hollie,” Kyle hastened to explain. “I gave you my mate mark just to assert my mate claim over you against your pack. I will never touch you without your consent, Hollie. I’m not a monster.” He suppressed a growl. “Jasper is your Beta. Unless I’m your Alpha or your mate, I won’t be able to...”
“I understand,” Hollie answered. “I know why you did what you did. I...I’m very grateful. I really don’t know how I’d ever be able to repay you...”
“I don’t want any repayment. And I don’t want your gratitude,” he said gruffly.
“Everyone wants something,” she mumbled. “Everyone looks out for himself.”
“Hollie...” Kyle exhaled a long breath. “That may be the case with the members of the Black Blade pack. But I assure you, true friendship and loyalty do exist. There are good people around, people you would be proud to call your friends and brothers.”
He must have seen the skepticism and apprehension in her eyes when she looked up at him. His expression softened and he broke into an easy smile. “You’ll get to meet them real soon. These...brothers of mine...”
“You have brothers? Do they live with you?” she asked with an audible gulp.
“No they don’t,” Kyle said, his smile broadening. “Shane and Ian aren’t related to me by blood. They’re my best friends and business partners. The three of us own and run The Maverick Mechanics together. They can be a real pain in the ass sometimes,” he mock grumbled. “But...they’re my brothers.”
Hollie smiled. She saw how Kyle’s face lit up when he talked about his two best friends, and she felt a twinge of envy. She didn’t have a single friend in the pack, or outside the pack. She looked at Kyle and a sudden thought struck her.
“What?” Kyle asked, squinting at her.
“Huh?” Hollie blinked.
“You’re giving me a rather strange look,” Kyle said.
Embarrassed, she looked down. “I just realized...” With a shy laugh, she said, “I made a friend tonight. You’re my very first friend, Kyle.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Kyle led the way to his house, taking the shortest and quietest route.
As they walked towards a neat, modest little house at the end of the street, Kyle groaned and swore under his breath.
Hollie froze, her frantic gaze darting around and settling on a car idling right in front of the corner house. Who was in that car? Had the Black Blade wolves found her?
Kyle slapped his forehead. “Shit! I forgot.”
“What?” Hollie tensed in readiness to break into a run. “What is it?”
“It’s Shane and Ian.”
“Your brothers?” Hollie’s eyes rounded.
Kyle blew out a long breath. “Yeah. It’s them all right.”
As they neared the house, the car doors opened and two tall, brawny men spilled out of the car, holding pizza boxes aloft.
“About time. We’ve been waiting for forty minutes,” one of them grumbled.
“Did you forget that we’re planned to watch the game together?” the other guy huffed. “And why didn’t you bring your phone, Kyle? We’ve been calling and calling...”
The guy stopped talking when he saw Hollie standing behind Kyle.
His gaze landed on Hollie’s neck and his mouth fell open.
“Do you know anything about this, Shane?” He slapped his friend’s chest with the back of his hand, his eyes riveted on the mark on Hollie’s neck.
“About what?”
“About that!” He wagged a finger frantically in Hollie’s direction.
Hollie watched as the two men’s eyes and mouths grew rounder by the second.
It was a rather surreal, awkward and comical scene. Two big, burly men were just standing in the middle of the street, gaping at Hollie in stupefied silence. Awe and amazement were written all over their faces.
“That’s Kyle’s mark,” one of them managed at last.
“Who is she?” his friend sputtered.
“Duh! She has Kyle’s mark. She is his mate, dummy!”
They narrowed their eyes at Kyle. “You’re mated?”
“Yes...and no.” Kyle sighed.
“What the hell does that mean? Is that a yes or a no?”
“Listen, Ian...” Kyle began.
But Ian was staring at Kyle in disbelief and disgust. “You can’t even be straight with us. How long have we known each other, huh? We’ve been friends for almost all our lives, and you can’t trust us?”
“Of course I trust you...” Kyle began, throwing out his hands.
Ian folded his arms across his broad chest and sniffed. “It sure doesn’t feel or look like it. You won’t even introduce us to your mate.”
Kyle sighed and took Hollie’s hand gently. “I’m sorry to tell you that these two idiots are friends of mine,” he whispered. “They’re good guys, and usually not so idiotic.”
“Hollie, meet Shane and Ian,” Kyle announced. Grinning from ear to ear, he said, “Guys, this is Hollie. My mate.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Shane and Ian turned to Hollie and stopped sulking right away. Their handsome faces split into warm smiles and they chorused delightedly, “Hi Hollie! It’s great to finally meet you.”
“So...how long have you and Kyle been mated?” Ian asked as he fell into step beside her.
“Ian!” Kyle barked. “Stop it.”
“What? What did I do?” Ian asked, looking perfectly innocent.
“Stop interrogating Hollie,” Kyle said sternly.
“I was just making conversation,” Ian grumbled. “Since when have you become so touchy, Kyle?”
Kyle rolled his eyes as he unlocked his front door. He ushered Hollie into the house and called over his shoulder, “Are you guys coming in? Don’t forget the pizzas.”
“You mean the pizza boxes,” Shane shot back. “We finished the pizzas while we were waiting for you.”
“Nah, he’s kidding,” Ian said as he trooped into the house. “We only finished two pizzas. There are seven more.”
Shane and Ian placed the stack of pizza boxes on the dining table and shouted to Kyle to get them some beer from the fridge.
Kyle came out of the kitchen and tossed a can of beer each to his friends. “What would you like?” he asked Hollie. “Beer? Juice? Tea?”
“Orange juice, please,” she answered.
Shane and Ian were already helping themselves to the pizzas. “Eat,” Shane told Hollie. “Dig in. Just grab a slice.”
Kyle grinned at her. “Don’t mind their table manners. They eat like savages.”
“We do not,” Ian huffed as he chomped noisily on his third slice of pizza. “We just eat like bears.”
“They’re bear shifters,” Kyle said to Hollie.
“Like you,” she said, breaking into a grin.
Kyle sat down beside Hollie, and placed two slices of pizza on a plate for her. As she ate, she listened to the rowdy banter between Kyle and his buddies, and Kyle saw her chuckle and giggle at their jokes. She relaxed
visibly and even joined in with a few jokes and quips of her own.
Once Hollie started eating, Kyle noticed that she ate at an unnaturally fast pace. She gobbled down her food, and swallowed even before she finished chewing.
Shane and Ian were also watching Hollie in surprise and wonder. When Hollie finished her juice in one gulp and put down her glass, Ian let out a low whistle. “Wow. That’s...amazing.”
Hollie looked up at Ian and frowned. “What’s amazing?”
Kyle shot his friends a warning look but Ian was already babbling enthusiastically, “You! You eat really fast. I consider myself a fast eater, but you beat me hands down! You are an amazing eater!”
Hollie stared at Ian and the silence stretched. She opened her mouth and closed it, unable to get the words out.
Finally, she winced and said very softly, “I always finish my food as fast as I can. I don’t know when someone will walk by and yank my plate away, or order me to get up and do some chores before I’ve finished my meal. I can’t afford to go hungry. If I don’t have enough energy and I’m sluggish or slow, I’ll be punished. Eating fast is a necessity.” She tried to laugh. “But I guess it’s become a habit.”
Ian yelped suddenly and rubbed his leg. “Did you just kick me under the table?” He glared at Shane.
“You and your big mouth,” Shane growled at him.
“How was I to know?” Ian said. He looked up at Hollie and said, “I’m sorry, Hollie. I didn’t mean to embarrass you or anything. I meant it as a compliment. I didn’t realize...”
“It’s okay,” Hollie said. “I do eat really fast, and I didn’t even realize I was doing it.”
Ian brightened up. “Hey, there’s a hot dog eating contest coming up,” he said. “Maybe we can form a team!”
Before Hollie can answer, Ian jumped up and yelled, “If you kick me one more time, Shane...”
When Shane smirked at him, Ian pounced on him and tackled him to the floor.
As his two friends rolled and wrestled their way to the living room, Kyle simply turned back to the food and said nonchalantly, “Don’t mind them. They do this all the time. Let’s finish the rest of the pizza. No point letting all this food go to waste.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Hollie laughed at the witty wordplay and tomfoolery between Kyle and his friends.
Shane and Ian were both just as tall and muscular as Kyle, and they shared the same raucous humor, but they looked entirely different. Shane had dark hair and eyes, whereas Ian had sandy hair and bright amber eyes.
From their rowdy interactions and candid conversation, Hollie could tell that the three men were as close as brothers. There was genuine respect and affection between them, and they were open and frank with one another.
She envied Kyle. She felt a little sorry for Kyle when his friends interrogated him relentlessly, yet she envied him for having people who took such an active interest in his life. Shane and Ian cared for him, and wanted to know what was going on in his life.
Hollie sighed. She had no one she could call her friend or family. If something good happened to her, no one shared her joy and celebrated with her. But if something bad happened to her, there were many people who would gloat over her misfortune and humiliation and who took great pleasure in rubbing salt into her wound.
She was surrounded by liars and backstabbers in the pack. The pack wasn’t her family. But it was all she had and all she knew.
Sitting in Kyle’s warm, comfortable house and listening to the easy, good-humored banter and ribbing between Kyle and his friends made her realize just how cold, forced and artificial all the interactions and relationships in the Black Blade pack were.
She had no true ally in the pack. Everyone looked out for themselves, and looked for opportunities to do someone in. It was a pack held together by fear, ambition and lies.
Hollie wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly feeling very cold, tired and alone. She stood apart from Kyle and his friends, feeling like the outcast she was.
“Hollie...”
She jerked her head up when she heard Kyle call her name very softly. Kyle was standing in front of her, searching her face worriedly. “Hey, are you all right? Is something wrong? Is it something they said?” Kyle tilted his head towards Shane and Ian who were lounging on the couch in the living room.
His two friends pretended to be flipping through some magazines, but Hollie knew that they were listening in to the conversation.
Hollie forced a smile to her face. “I’m okay. I...I guess I’m just tired.”
“I’ll show you to your room,” Kyle said. “You should rest...”
“I’m okay, really,” Hollie said. “I’d like to get to know you and your friends better. And...” She touched her neck and gave a lopsided smile. “I think you would like to know more about me. I know you have questions, but you’re too polite to ask. I could be a psychopath for all you know.”
Kyle smirked. “The Black Blade pack is made up of psychos and perverts. But you’re not one of them.”
He led her to the living room, and Shane and Ian got to their feet. “Wait,” Hollie said when she saw that the two men were about to leave. They probably wanted to give her and Kyle some privacy. “Stay, Please. I...I think you have a right to know about me. You’re Kyle’s brothers. You’ve never met me before, and all of a sudden, here I am with Kyle’s mark on my neck. I know you’re concerned...”
“Yes. We are,” Ian answered frankly, plopping back down on the couch.
Shane gave Hollie a nod and grabbed Ian by the collar. “Come and help me make the coffee,” he ordered. “You want some ice cream, Hollie?”
She nodded and smiled gratefully at Shane. As Shane and Ian busied themselves in the kitchen, Kyle sat down with her and said, “You don’t have to share anything that you’re not comfortable sharing. I trust you, Hollie.”
“The truth must be told,” she said firmly. “The leaders of the Black Blade pack got away with everything because all the pack members stayed silent. They got away with theft and murder, and no one did anything. I want to tell you guys everything. It’s the right thing to do.”
When Shane and Ian returned with large, steaming mugs of coffee and a tub of ice cream for Hollie, they sat and just chatted amiably about movies and some happenings around town. They kept the topics light and casual, and just kept the conversation flowing until Hollie was ready to talk.
She glanced at Kyle and he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.
Clearing his throat, Kyle told his friends how he came upon Hollie in the forest earlier in the evening.
When he stopped mid-sentence, Hollie knew that it was up to her to tell her story. Kyle respected her privacy and he would never say anything to hurt or humiliate her.
She took a deep breath and said without flinching, “Jasper was going to rape and kill me.”
She went on stoically, telling Kyle and his friends about everything that went on in the Black Blade pack. She wasn’t going to protect the guilty with her silence.
When she finished, Shane and Ian cursed viciously and swore vengeance on the entire pack.
“Fucking animals!” Ian snarled.
“They’re worse than animals,” Shane said, cracking his knuckles. “Just say the word. We’ll tear Jasper and his minions from limb to limb!”
“We will help you avenge your mate, Kyle,” Ian said. “Hollie, thank you for telling us everything, for being so honest with us. You’re Kyle’s mate, so you’re like a sister to us. You can count on us. We’re here for you.” Ian pounded his huge fist into his chest.
“I’m not his mate...” Hollie began, but nobody seemed to be listening to her.
The three men were too busy snarling and swearing. They were outraged on her behalf, and strangely, the ferocity of their anger comforted and validated her. No one had ever felt angry for her. No one had ever felt anything for her.
For the first time in her life, she didn’t feel alone. She felt both sad and happy
at the same time. So much was missing from her life. And now, she had her first taste of true friendship. She wanted more.
She wanted so much more.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Kyle leaned forward and enfolded Hollie’s clammy hands in both of his. “The Black Blade pack will pay for what they did to you,” he said grimly. “They’re all guilty. They were all complicit in the bullying and the abuse.”
“I don’t want to get you in trouble,” Hollie said. “You and your friends...”
“You’re Kyle’s mate. You’re our sister. We protect our own,” Shane said simply.
“I’m not Kyle’s mate,” Hollie repeated.
Shane quirked a brow at her and shrugged.
The lady doth protest too much.
Hollie frowned at that snide voice in her head. But she couldn’t help thinking that the voice was right.
She kept saying that she wasn’t Kyle’s mate, yet a part of her was really happy and proud to be wearing Kyle’s mark. She wanted it to be a true mate mark, not just an excuse to get away from her pack. Kyle had told her that if they weren’t truly mated by the next full moon, the mate mark would just fade away.
She didn’t want it to fade. She wanted it to stay.
She wanted to stay. With Kyle.
Stealing glances at Kyle, she admired his handsome profile and strong, powerful physique. Kyle was kind, brave and caring, and she felt so safe and comfortable with him. In fact, she felt truly and completely at ease and at home here.
For the first time in her life, she felt a sense of home and belonging.
Is this what it feels like to be loved?
Love. The word was foreign and achingly familiar. She had given up on the idea of love, and she had resigned herself to never having a real family.
She was an orphan. A half-breed, an outcast.
The pack had made her feel unworthy and unwanted. Hollie didn’t mind being alone. She had planned to leave the pack when she had saved up enough and just live a quiet, peaceful life by herself.
Bear's Curvy Mate: BBW Shape Shifter Paranormal Romance (Nightbrook Book 2) Page 4