Curves & Courage

by Christin Lovell

  My heart beat faster as her scent wafted towards me. The morning had seemed to drag by, teasing me without her presence. A smile tugged at my lips as I looked towards the classroom door; my wolf had sat up, his tail wagging with excitement. We immediately froze, rage assaulting us as concern consumed us when we saw her.

  Her hair fell around her face, but it didn’t hide the swelling around her cheeks and eyes nor did it cover the faint bruising at her neck. She didn’t carry any books today. Rather, she clutched her arm to her chest, attempting to pass it off as merely crossed arms.

  “Oh shit,” Kris bit out. His hand closed harshly around my shoulder.

  Before now, I’d learned to drown out the noise of the other students. I’d practiced ignoring their banter, their laughter, their drama, and their annoying tendencies. But everything was roaring into my ears today, deafening my thoughts, magnifying my fury.

  Someone hurt her. Badly. They hurt my mate! They hurt her! Bad!

  I didn’t know how I made it to her, but I was there before I could stop myself. “Come with me. No arguing. Don’t you dare even try to push me away. Come. Now.” I carefully removed her book bag from her shoulders, certain I didn’t jostle her and cause any unnecessary pain.

  She must have heard the edge in my voice; she must have sensed how close I was to losing it in public because she promptly followed. Her eyes traveled around, studying those around us, those lost in their stupid, immature bullshit.

  I snagged my backpack off the back of my chair, never missing a step. I heard Kris fall into place behind her. I shoved the door open, creating a safe path through the swarm of students still cluttering the halls. I didn’t turn around and look at her; I knew I’d lose it.

  The moment we got outside, I text my dad. She’s hurt. Get to the school ASAP.

  Her breathing was steady; her heart beat rhythmically. It was the slight elevation in her pulse that gave away that she was scared.

  I took a deep breath, not wanting to further frighten her, before I turned towards her. My heart broke at the sight of her. Her teeth dug into her bottom lip as she tried to control the quiver of her chin; the action caused the apples of her cheeks to puff up, enhancing the discolored inflammation. Unshed tears sat ready to fall at a moments notice in her eyes.

  Careful not to spook her, I lifted my hands and slipped her hair back over her shoulders.

  She closed her eyes and looked away.

  “I can help you. I will help you.”

  She immediately denied me. “You can’t. He…he’s too strong.”

  I trailed my fingertips over the markings of an extra-large hand around her neck. Whoever he was, was large and strong, but he’d hurt her again over my dead body. He would have to get through me to ever get close to her again.

  My wolf echoed my stance, thunderous inside. He shredded my insides, ready to seek revenge. His fury scorched my veins; torched my soul in fierce flames of fortification.

  My dad’s car peeled into park along the street in front of the school.

  “Come with me. Please-” Dammit. I still didn’t even know her name.

  She stared warily at the car as my dad bound from it towards us. Her gaze met mine. “Sophie.” She clung tighter to her arm, working her lip for a few seconds. Taking a soft breath, she exhaled, “My name is Sophie.”

  Chapter 17

  Sophie

  He was the spitting image of Dominick. I knew he would look just like him in twenty years.

  Keen eyes assessed me. He laid a hand on Dom’s shoulder. “Let’s go, son.”

  The alpha. His dad was the alpha. It was the simplest formula to put together since Dominick was a future alpha, but it hadn’t clicked until now.

  If I went with them, I would be dragging an entire pack into this. You didn’t involve the alpha without involving the entire pack.

  I knew I was gawking at them, but I didn’t know what to do. I wanted so bad to go, but I couldn’t handle the guilt of knowing I’d brought hell down upon all of them.

  I studied my mate. He didn’t deserve to face what I had. None of them did. Deep down, I knew I didn’t either, but I couldn’t change what was. I could prevent what was to come though.

  “What are you shaking your head ‘no’ to, Sophie? There will be no arguing. You need to come with us.” Dom spoke like an alpha ready to take control of a situation; it was unnerving and comforting simultaneously.

  I glanced back at Kris, lingering behind me. He gave me a small, encouraging smile. His brows furrowed as he watched me, assessed me with an investigator’s eye. I knew he saw more than the others.

  I took a step backwards; ready to make a run for it.

  “Please.” Dom huffed; frustration and desperation in his swift exhale. He pinched the bridge of his nose, collecting himself before he met my gaze. “Please, Sophie. I’m you’re mate. You have to know you can trust me. I would never do anything to hurt you.” He spoke with conviction, with a heavy heart.

  I returned his stare, delivering the same line he had before. “I know.” I knew I could trust him. I knew he would never hurt me the way my dad did. It would be my dad who did the damage if I stayed with them.

  As if sensing my thoughts, Dominick’s dad intervened. “He won’t be able to get to us. We live in a secure building with twenty-four, seven security and cameras everywhere, monitored at all times by someone in the pack. You’ll be safe, and we’ll be safe.” He held my focus, locking me in place. “I promise.”

  Dominick took a few cautious steps towards me. He placed his hand over mine, helping me hold my aching forearm. His other arm encircled my waist. “Let’s go, Sophie.” His tone was firm, but his voice was delicate, soft.

  A single tear slid down my cheek. Looking into his eyes, I saw his promise. He was assuring me everything would be okay. He swore to take care of me, to protect me always. He reminded me I could trust him, that he would never betray me. He reiterated his dad’s words, confirming all of our safety. He shared everything I needed to see and know definitively before I would allow him to lead me away. He just knew. Without speaking, he knew what I needed. Without asking, he helped me. Without asking, he saved me.

  Chapter 18

  Dominick

  I didn’t want to think about what I would have done if Sophie hadn’t agreed to come with us. I didn’t want to know the darkness that would have swallowed me if she hadn’t climbed into the back seat of the car beside me. I didn’t want to ponder the murderous actions I would have taken immediately if she hadn’t distracted me. Being near her, I could focus on nothing else, especially how badly I wanted to kill whoever he was.

  I cooled my features, ensuring I didn’t let her in on my internal dialogue or the direction my wolf was warring to go.

  “We’ll take care of you, Soph, I promise.” I lifted her good hand to my lips. I pressed a soft kiss to the back of it.

  She gave me a small, wistful smile. I instantly wanted to broaden that smile. I wanted to make her laugh. I wanted her to be happy. But, studying the purplish swells on her cheeks, I knew it was too soon. She could smile wider, but...

  Damn. Just looking at it, I knew it had to hurt. She had to be in so much pain right now, yet she bore it as if it was nothing. It made me wonder if this was nothing compared to before. Was this an every day thing? Was this normal in her world?

  I trailed a fingertip along her cheek, barely grazing her flesh. The only indication she gave that it hurt was deeper inhalations, longer than before. I immediately dropped my hand.

  My gaze slipped to the arm she rested against the swell of her breasts. She hadn’t moved her fingers. A battle raged within me. I wanted to see the extent of his damage, but I didn’t want to face myself in the light of the truth. I was barely containing my wolf as it was. I didn’t know who he was yet and I was ready to rip him to shreds, tearing into his flesh little by little to prolong the pain.

  Her face fell as she watched me. I recognized the guilt eating away at her. I knew it every d
ay for a year after my mom died. I’d been the last to see her before she left for her nightly run.

  “Who did this to you, sweetie?” I kept my voice trained, calm.

  Her chocolate and grey eyes gazed at me, wide, knowing. She lightly shook her head negatively. “You don’t want to know, Dom.”

  I pursed my lips, my nostrils flaring as my wolf snarled his disagreement. My brows creased as I took her in. “You’re wrong, Sophie. I want to know bad. I need to know.”

  Her focus slid to my dad, driving like a maniac through inner city mid-day traffic. I knew he heard everything, but he hadn’t interrupted. He’d kept quiet, observing through tiny glances into the rear-view mirror. I met his gaze there, silently communicating with him on occasion.

  She looked at Kris. He’d remained mute as well, listening intently. The only clue to his true reaction was his tight fists in his lap and the tension in his jaw. He was aware that she was now one of us. He was aware that someone had badly hurt one of our own. He was aware that someone had launched a personal attack on his best friend’s mate. And I knew he was ready to fight the moment I said ‘go.’

  When she turned her attention to me, embarrassment swept over her expression. It was clear as day, yet I couldn’t have been more confused.

  “We’re not here to judge you, sweetie. We want to help you.”

  She met my gaze, earnest visible. “Knowing won’t help you.” She said it with a straight face; she really believed protecting his identity was the right thing to do.

  I took a deep breath, seeking patience I didn’t have in the moment. My wolf beat up my insides, raging with bitter aggression. His reaction amplified my own, which made it twice as difficult to conceal. “It’ll help when we have a new visitor in or near our building. If we don’t know who we’re looking for, we can’t keep him away. We won’t be able to stop him when he gets too close.”

  I watched an array of emotions cross her face; flickering through her eyes. They were the windows to her soul. They revealed so much, yet protected so much more. I wanted to rip the shades off; I wanted to know everything about her, not just the little she allowed me to see and know. I knew my eagerness could ruin everything if I gave into it though. So I fought it. I held back, for her.

  She mumbled something so softly, so quietly, my supernatural hearing wasn’t strong enough.

  The car came lurching to a stop. My dad’s right arm landed on her knee gently despite the swift angle at which he threw his upper body around the seat.

  My alpha was seething. I hadn’t seen him this angry since… since she was murdered.

  “You are my child now. Do you hear me, Sophie? I will provide for you. I will take care of you. If you need anything, you tell me or Dom, and we’ll get it for you. But you are never going back to him. Promise me you will never go back to him.” I heard the timber, the light quiver in my dad’s voice. His anger was palpable. As the alpha, he had impeccable control, which made his abrupt declaration all the more frightening.

  “Who are you never going back to, Sophie?” Dread knotted my gut. My wolf paced inside, his rage as easily measured as my dad’s.

  She gaped at my dad’s hand on her knee. “My dad.”

  Her dad? Her fucking father? Who the hell abuses their child like that? He was a bastard. Worse, he was a coward. No wolf beat on someone weaker than him. They fought who they perceived to be their equal. Fucking asshole!

  I’ll give him his equal. I’ll fucking fight him to death. I have no problem challenging him.

  All the fight left me the second I heard her tiny sniffle. I looked up to find a path of tears making her bruises wet and shiny as they slipped down over them. Her face was turned down and away, but I saw. She was quiet, but I felt her agony; I heard her hushed cries. Damn. I didn’t want to imagine how much more she’d faced. She was so brave, but she didn’t have to be anymore. I would be brave for her. I would protect her when she couldn’t protect herself.

  I smoothed a hand over her back. For the first time, a cry ripped from her chest as she shot away from my touch. Her good hand covered her mouth, clambering to muffle the sobs that followed.

  I fumbled with my hands. I wanted to touch her, to reassure her, but I didn’t know what parts of her were safe. “I’m-” I shook my head in dismay. “Damn, sweetie. I’m so sorry.”

  She fell silent again, tears still streaking her face. She nodded her head in understanding, and that was enough to spear my heart. Who the fuck would hurt an innocent young woman? The day I met her father was the day he would die.

  Chapter 19

  Sophie

  My body cried out. Dominick had meant well, but unknowingly, he’d awakened my body to the pain flaring through it. I’d numbed myself. I’d learned to ignore the thrashing, pulsation beneath my skin. Now I couldn’t though. His single touch had set off a chain reaction, shaking my body into hyperawareness of every throbbing bruise, every stinging cut, every soul-splitting wound.

  I didn’t want to look at myself. My dad didn’t want to look at me either. When I’d regained consciousness, he was gone. I awoke to an empty apartment, glass spilled across the floor, several broken artifacts and my blood swiped in various places on the wall and pooling on the floor beneath me.

  It’d taken me a while to get up off the floor. Giving myself a shower had been hell. I’d wanted to scream. The water felt like pure alcohol being poured over my open sores. Washing my hair with one hand had been difficult. I wouldn’t have done it at all, but I couldn’t be certain whether it was matted with blood and debris or not. I was certain my legs were going to give out; my knees shook as I stepped out of the shower. I’d never been so happy to find the mirror fogged. I didn’t want to face what he’d done yet. I didn’t want to admit he would never be the man I wanted him to be, the father I needed him to be. Feeling it was enough for now.

  It took me an hour to sweep up the glass and another to scrub the floor.

  I didn’t sleep. I couldn’t sleep. I was too afraid he might come back. I was scared he’d find me vulnerable and initiate round two. It wouldn’t have been the first time. Typically, he’d be illegally inebriated by that time. My dad didn’t leave to walk it off. He left to seek his vices.

  As a wolf, our metabolism was faster. I was an anomaly. I was the one-off. Of course, that could be because I was nutritionally deprived. Regardless, we metabolized alcohol and drugs much quicker as a result. It took a lot to get my dad drunk or high. He still somehow managed it though. I didn’t know where he got the money when he was constantly losing his jobs, and I didn’t ask because I was afraid to know.

  Dom’s dad pulled the car in front of a gorgeous, sleek high-rise building. It put my apartment to shame. The outside alone made all the homes I’d ever lived in look like dilapidated shacks.

  A doorman opened the door as Dom’s dad got out of the car. Another man ran outside and slid into the driver’s seat in a flash.

  I looked up and found Dom standing beside my open door. I looked down to find I was already unbuckled. Was I that spaced out?

  He extended a hand towards me. “Take my hand, Soph.”

  Movement in the front seat caught my attention. I glanced over the seat to find the male, a wolf by his scent, in the driver’s seat frowning as he studied me out the corner of his eye. I wasn’t even inside and I was already drawing unwanted attention, creating a spectacle of myself.

  “I, um…” I slid my gaze back to Dom; his dad and Kris lingered behind him. Discomfort snaked through me. I didn’t want to embarrass him. No pack member would respect a future alpha with a weak mate. “I don’t think this is a good idea.”

  “Bullshit!”

  I knew my eyes were wide as I gaped at him. He was scowling down at me, ferocity rolling his muscles, lighting his eyes as his wolf glared down at me.

  I swallowed hard. “I told you, Dom. I can’t be the wolf you need.” Damn my tears for returning now.

  He leaned into me, hovering inches from my face; his body cro
wded the car’s exit. Fire blazed in his eyes, burning into me. “You don’t know what I need because you don’t know me, because you won’t get to know me.” I heard the accusation in his tone. “Know this though, Soph. I need you. I will always need my mate.” He stood back. “Another little tidbit about me… I’m selfish. I don’t share. And I especially won’t share you with an abusive asshole.”

  I bit the inside of my mouth hard, stifling my tears before they could fall; calming my heart before it could sprint into overreaction.

  God, why was I fighting him? He was trying to help me. He was my mate for crying out loud. I knew he had the best of intentions. What that left was my own insecurities. I was the one holding us back; I was holding myself back.

  “You aren’t ashamed of me?” I asked. I had to know the answer.

  He softened. He squatted down, putting himself beneath me. No wolf ever lowered themselves in front of other wolves. It was a position of surrender, of submission; it was a vulnerable pose. He turned his gaze on me, waiting until I looked him in the eye. “We wouldn’t be here if I was.”

  “I don’t want to make things harder for you later,” I admitted.

  His lips curled up into a small smile; his dimples made themselves known. “The only way you could do that is by refusing to be my mate.”

  How did I get so lucky? Slowly, Nature’s wisdom was being unveiled before me. She knew I needed my mate now. She knew I needed to be rescued, because I never would have saved myself. She knew; the same way Dom just knew…

  I gave him my good hand and allowed him to help me out of the car. He went to place his arm behind me, but stopped himself. Kris flanked me on the other side as Dom’s dad walked in front of us. They were shielding me; they were already protecting me, just as they’d promised.

  Chapter 20

  Dominick

  Her gaze drifted everywhere as we escorted her up to our condo. She took in every detail. I sensed her unease grow as she walked into our home. She didn’t touch anything. She stood, huddled near the door. Somehow, her wounds looked worse in the light of the apartment. Bruises appeared darker in the dimmer light. Her swelling looked more gruesome. She seemed smaller, weaker in the oversized apartment.