Cinderella's Guardian

by Khloe Wren

  "Well, when you put it like that...I'll stay with being your knight."

  Suddenly his face lost all humor, his serious gaze held hers captive.

  "I love you, Tina. I'll come running to your rescue no matter how many times I have to. I'd do anything to keep you safe."

  Tina's breath froze in her chest as her heart began to beat wildly. Over the course of the past day, she'd come to the conclusion she loved him too, but could she tell him? Could she open herself up to him like that? He made to move his hand toward her, obviously forgetting about his burns. As she watched him wince and lower his hand again, she knew her answer. After all, he'd run through a burning house for her.

  "I love you too, Conner. Any time you're near, I feel safe. When you came into my room earlier, I've never seen a more beautiful sight. I was sure I was going to die in that house."

  Tears blurred her vision and Conner groaned. "Damn, I wish I could hold you right now."

  "Well, petit frère. Let me check that shoulder and I'll help get Tina up to you."

  Adele's sweet voice floated through the room and Tina quickly dashed the tears from her eyes. She watched as Adele approached the bed and leaned in to kiss Conner's cheek.

  "Gave us all quite a scare earlier. No more running into burning houses alone before back up comes, you hear me?"

  "Sorry about scaring everyone, but I can't promise you I won't do it again. I'd run into a thousand burning houses alone if that's what was needed to keep my Tina safe."

  Tina's heart swelled, how had she managed to score such an awesome man?

  With a small shake of her head, Adele began peeling the tape from the bandage on his shoulder.

  "Isn't it too soon? Surely the burn would still be raw?"

  "She knows what you are, doesn't she Conner?"

  "Yeah, she knows about us."

  "Tina, shifters heal at a very rapid rate. Conner's skin should be scar tissue at this point. The pain will last a while longer. If he was human, he would have broken more than one bone, I'm sure. Even though nothing broke, he got banged around pretty good. His shoulder and arm are going to ache for probably two or three days."

  Tina watched transfixed as Adele peeled the bandage from Conner's skin. As the edge of the wound was revealed Tina jerked in her chair.

  "What the hell?"

  "I have no idea. I'm pretty new to this shifter thing myself. Conner, care to explain your funky scar?"

  Conner looked down at his arm with a small grin. "Cheaper than getting a tattoo."

  She watched as Adele's finger slid over the scar tissue and several leopard spots.

  "When a shifters' skin is burned, our spots show though the scar. For some reason, it only happens with burns. Any other wound heals as a human's would."

  "Wow. Well, they say you should learn a new thing every day. How does it feel, Conner? Any tightness? Pain?"

  "Nah, it's good. Just a little achy in the bones and joints like you said before."

  "Okay, well, we'll leave the bandages off then. I'll help Tina up on the bed then go fill out your paperwork. You can leave as soon as I'm done."

  "Can you please call Dad or Dom to come pick us up too?"

  "Sure thing, Conner."

  "Thanks, sis."

  Tina let Adele help her up onto the bed. For such a small woman, she was surprisingly strong.

  "Adele, are you a shifter too?"

  "Sure am. I've only been one for a little while though. That story can wait for another time. I'll leave you two alone for a bit while I get everything sorted for your discharge."

  Conner wrapped his arms around her and pulled her over his chest. She snuggled into the indent of his shoulder and inhaled against his skin, allowing his scent to fill her senses. Then reality came crashing down.

  "I have no home."

  A sob wrenched from her body as the realization hit her of what the fire had taken.

  "Shh, baby doll, you can stay with me. Mum will love having another woman around the place. And we can go check the house. I'm not sure how long it burned but hopefully some of your things survived."

  He stroked her hair and back as he laid a reverent kiss on her forehead. Soon her tears eased and she turned her face to look over at his burned arm. She raised her fingertip and traced his new spots in awe.

  "Does it hurt?"

  "Not at all. It's deep down that still aches a little. I'll be right as rain in no time, you just wait and see." He paused to give her another light kiss. "Close your eyes for a bit, Tina. Rest. I'll have you home and cleaned up soon. Then we can both curl up in a bigger bed and get some serious sleep."

  With a smile, she snuggled into his warmth. She really liked the sound of that plan.

  ~ * ~

  Scrubbing his face with his hand, Dale watched the carousel begin to bring the luggage around from his flight. With a heavy heart, he waited for his bag. How had he failed his daughter so badly? Robyn hadn't provided her with any care. All she'd done was add to Tina's torment. At least the hospital psychiatrist, Dr. Reid, had sounded nice. She'd told him she was more than happy to work with him and Tina to help her recover her inner strength. He'd spoken to Dr. Reid yesterday and she was going to see him and Tina later today.

  "Dale, long time no see."

  He turned to face a man he hadn't seen in a very long time. "Jake?"

  "That's me. How was the flight?"

  "Fine, just a day later than I wanted it to be. What's going on?"

  "More than you know, buddy."

  Dale frowned at Jake, "What do you mean? What's happened since we spoke last?"

  "Let's grab your bags and I'll explain in the car. You're not going to want to be in public place when I tell you."

  With his heart in his throat, he licked his dry lips. "Is Tina okay?"

  "She's safe now."

  Now. That implied earlier she wasn't. Could this situation get any worse? He turned back to the carousel and spotted his large bag coming toward him. He quickly snagged it from the belt.

  "Let's get moving then."

  Dale followed Jake out toward the car park. Launceston Airport was a small operation and it didn't take more than ten minutes to get to the car. As he heard Jake turn the key in the ignition, he felt Jake's gaze bore into him.

  "When did you last speak with Robyn?"

  "I rang her early last night, just before I rang you and told you how she'd gone crazy. Her phone hasn't been switched on since then. I've tried it a couple times. You told me Tina was still in hospital and wasn't going to be released until this morning. What happened?"

  "Okay, well, obviously your call set her off worse than you suspected. She took that damn Medical Power of Attorney of hers around to the hospital and got Dr. Maynard to release Tina into her care. Trust me, Clint didn't want to, but he had no choice."

  "What the hell have I done?" He scrubbed at his face as he spoke, his beard scratching his palms.

  "You did what you had to, Dale. Don't beat yourself up over this. Robyn has made her own choices. You couldn't have known how close to the edge she was."

  Dale dreaded finding out what had happened, but he couldn't put it off. He needed to know.

  "Please, Jake, just tell me what happened last night."

  "After our call, I rang my boys and Conner went to the hospital. But Robyn had already taken Tina. He went straight to your place and arrived in the nick of time to get Tina out of the place before it was engulfed in flames."

  Bile rose in his throat as his lungs froze up. "She set the house on fire? With my baby girl inside!" He could hear the growl in his voice but didn't care. How could anyone do such a thing?

  "We don't know what happened. So far, all we know is that the fire started in the master bedroom where Robyn was staying. Tina heard her run out the back door as she smelled the smoke. Robyn had taken her chair so Tina made her way to the window to try and escape. That's how Conner found her. He got her out. Just. A burning roof beam slammed into him injuring his shoulder and causi
ng him to drop her. She hasn't got more than a few bruises, and my boy heals real quick. He'll be a little slower than usual for a bit, but thankfully that's all."

  Again, he scrubbed his face with both his palms, feeling moisture on them from his eyes.

  "On the phone, Robyn said she belonged in the house, with me. She was meant to be staying in the spare room, not my bloody bedroom. I think she has some delusion I'm in love with her. She always followed Gloria around back in school. Drove me nuts when I was trying to get alone time with Gloria, Robyn was always there. How could I have been so stupid? Not seen what she was up to..."

  "You couldn't have known. No one knew what she was playing at. Well, maybe Barbara at the salon might have had a clue."

  "Where's Robyn now?"

  He wasn't sure if he wanted to know the answer, but he'd spoken the words now.

  "No one knows. The police are looking for her. Her house looks quiet and locked up tight. There's a patrol car sitting out front waiting for her if she does go there."

  "And Tina?"

  "She refused to leave Conner while he was in the hospital. He was released late last night and they headed back to my place after that."

  "Just…Take me to my daughter. Please, Jake, I need to see her."

  "That's the plan. We still have a little over an hour of driving to go. Why don't you try to get some shut-eye while you can? You've got a busy couple of days coming up."

  "Yeah, sure do."

  "You and Tina can stay with us, by the way. We've got plenty of room."

  "Thanks, mate."

  Dale let his lids shut as horrific images of his sweet pea being trapped in a fire played through his mind. If he ever got his hands on Robyn, he'd be sorely tempted to strangle the life out of the damn woman.

  ~ * ~

  Tina woke to find herself in a strange bed. Attempting to roll over, she pressed against a warm wall of muscle. Conner. The previous night came back to her, after Conner had been released from hospital, Dominic had driven them back to where Conner lived with his parents. After she protested that Conner shouldn't be lifting her with his shoulder, Dominic carried her inside while Conner grumbled and muttered the whole way about it being his job. After a quick introduction to Jake and Sophie, she'd been carried down to the far end of the house and laid on a large soft bed. Dominic had kissed her cheek, bid her good night and left. Conner growled at his brother the entire time, which just made Dominic chuckle.

  As soon as the way was clear, he'd firmly closed the door. Her body heated instantly as he turned to prowl over to the bed. In a very feline manner, he'd climbed onto the end of the bed and crawled up over her body.

  "I have never been so scared as I was today, baby doll. When I got word that Robyn had you, that she'd had you for an hour..."

  He'd shuddered above her. His eyes squeezed shut and she saw a look of agony pass over his face. She'd reached up, took his face between her hands and pulled him down to her lips. With a groan, he'd taken over control and devoured her mouth with his.

  An arm tightening around her waist, pulled her mind back to the now. She wriggled her hips a little and enjoyed the low growl he made as his hard shaft rubbed against her ass.

  "Morning, baby doll."

  His hand slid up her naked abdomen toward her breasts, he cupped one and ran his thumb back and forth over the peak. Her breath caught as her nipple hardened beneath his tender caress.

  "I could definitely get used to this."

  "What's that?" Her voice hitched as he continued to tease her nipple.

  "Waking up to you in my arms, going to sleep with you here in my bed with me."

  A smile crept over her face and she snuggled back into his chest. "Me too. I feel safe and protected when you're near, but especially when I'm wrapped in your arms."

  "That's because you are. I'll always do everything I can to keep you from harm."

  "I know you will. I just hope it's enough. She's really crazy."

  A low growl filled the air before she felt Conner nip her earlobe. "No talk of that bitch in our bed."

  He rolled her on to her back and covered her body with his, instinctively her hands raised to his solid chest. One hand trailing up to his shoulder where she traced his spots with her fingers, they really did look like tattoos. A soft purr filled the air moments before Conner lowered to her neck to nuzzle against her skin.

  "Oh, Conner... But what about your parents?"

  "Their room is up the other end of the house, but they've both left already. They had things to do early this morning. We've got the whole place to ourselves, baby."

  He licked up her neck and nibbled along her jaw. After kissing her senseless, he moved down to her breasts. His muscular abdomen nestled into the cradle of her body as he settled in to lavish her flesh with attention. He licked, nipped and sucked until she was pulling at his hair as she writhed beneath him.

  With a small chuckle, he moved down, kissing his way over her tummy and further down. Just like last time, he gently lifted her right leg as she moved her left.

  "You are so beautiful, Tina."

  His softly spoken words made her shiver until he pressed his tongue against her damp heat. With one stroke, her mind went blank. Pure pleasure flowed through and over her as Conner lavished attention on her sensitive flesh. She could feel the heat coiling in her lower belly, tighter and tighter until she was arching off the bed. With her fingers fisted in the bed sheet, she cried out as she came apart for him.

  Still floating back to herself, she felt Conner slide his latex covered length into her as his mouth took hers with a gentle passion. His strokes were slow and deliberate. Each glide he made touched her inner bundle of nerves. Before Conner, she'd been convinced the concept of a G-spot had been made up. Not anymore, Conner aimed for it as if he'd had a map to its location from the beginning.

  Conner kept her body on a simmer as he gently made love to her, his tenderness was cracking her heart wide open. He feathered kisses over her cheek up to her ear where he started whispering sweet nothings to her. His words of adoration and protection caused Tina's eyes to tear up. Unsure she was deserving of this amazing man's affection and love, she suddenly felt awkward beneath him. Could she love him back at the level he deserved?

  He must have registered her change in mood, as he pulled back before kissing away her tears.

  "Don't cry, love. I've got you."

  She was thankful when his strokes increased in speed, tightening the coil of arousal yet again. Her mind cleared of everything but the pleasure he was giving her.

  "Faster, Conner. I need you."

  With a groan, he did as she asked. She dug her nails into his shoulders as she tilted her hips toward him. He gripped her right leg and moved it up onto his shoulder, opening her up without moving her injured left leg. Holding his weight on his outstretched arms, he began pounding into her, reaching even deeper inside her. She moved with him, encouraging him into her warmth. With her desire fogged gaze, she watched beads of sweat run down his face. He was so damn sexy. Moments before her body climaxed, his passion soaked gaze caught hers and he held himself still within her as she felt him pulse within her tightening muscles.

  "I will never get enough of making love to you."

  With her heart already cracked open, Conner's declaration brought all her emotions to the surface. Conner lowered her leg back down and she clung to his sweaty body as she sobbed for all she'd endured in the past months.

  "Shh, I'm sorry, baby doll. I didn't mean to upset you. Did I hurt you?"

  "You didn't. You're perfect. Too perfect, I'm not sure I deserve you."

  "Oh, baby. I'm nowhere near perfect, but you do deserve perfection. You are just right for me. No one else could ever complete me the way you do. No. One."

  "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ruin our moment."

  "You didn't ruin it, Tina. Making love to you was incredible. Already, I can't wait until I can get you alone next so we can do it all over again."

  A
watery sounding giggle escaped Tina. "You're shocking."

  He nibbled at her jaw. "Only for you. Join me for a shower?"

  Sadness swamped her. She didn't want to face the day. The cold reality of her life. She wanted to stay here, warm and safe in Conner's embrace.

  "Do we have to get up?"

  He playfully nipped at the tip of her nose. "Yes, we do. I don't want to meet your Dad for the first time naked and sweaty lying on top of his daughter."

  Her breath hitched, "Dad? He's coming here? Dr. Reid told me he was going to try to leave his job and come back but with Robyn taking my phone, I couldn't ring him myself."

  "My dad went to collect him from the Launceston airport. They should be here before too long."

  Panic washed through her excitement. "I don't have any clothes, or my wheelchair. Or my shower chair." Tears filled her eyes again as she realized the extent of all she'd lost in the fire.

  "It's all sorted, baby doll. Adele dropped off a chair from the hospital for you to use until we can get you a new one. I am more than happy to help you wash this totally delectable body each day. And you can wear one of my shirts and I'll grab a pair of pants from Mum. I'll take you shopping later for new clothes."

  "You have a solution for everything, don't you?"

  "Not quite, sweetheart."

  He gave her the most reverent kiss she'd ever received before he rose from the bed. She watched him dispose of the condom in a tissue that he tossed into the bin before he returned to scoop her up and head toward the en-suite bathroom.

  ~ * ~

  With a newfound sense of contentment, Conner carried Tina into the kitchen. He knew she was frustrated at not being able to walk herself, but he rather liked carrying her in his arms. He gently settled her onto a chair at the table with a kiss on her temple.

  "What would you like for breakfast, baby doll?"

  He watched as she nervously pushed her thick blond hair behind her ear. He itched to do it for her. To slide his fingers through the silky strands but the slight blush on her cheeks stopped him.

  "What's this for?"

  He brushed his thumb over her smooth, reddened skin.