Snow Angel

by C. D. Gorri

  “Do you have boxers or underwear you could put on?” She blushed as she asked the question and he nodded, glad to change the subject.

  “Top drawer.”

  She held the pair of cotton boxers open and helped him guide the soft fabric over his bandaged leg. He tugged them up over his slim hips and was surprised at how the simple movements exhausted him.

  “You need food, then rest.”

  “I didn’t get much in town. I, uh, kind of lost my head after running into you,” the admission appeared to shock her as much as it did him. he had no intention of revealing such things about himself, but he was so tired. He’d forgotten how easy she was to talk to.

  Rayne stood like a deer in headlights after his admission. Cael could’ve cursed out loud. Idiot, don’t you realize what you’re saying? His Wolf was so close to the surface. He was frustrated with his human not following his lead. Mine, the beast snarled in his mind’s eye.

  Cael closed his eyes to keep his Wolf from showing. He was injured. Not thinking straight. He left when he did because he no longer had anything to offer. He’d been shamed and brought to his knees financially.

  She didn’t know it, but he’d done her a favor by walking away. Only, the way she turned and looked at him now made him want to howl his pain to the world. There was so much hurt and regret in her eyes, he didn’t think he could stand it.

  “Don’t fall asleep just yet. I’ll be right back,” she said and walked out of the small bedroom.

  CHAPTER 5

  Rayne leaned against the wall for a split second and exhaled the breath she’d been holding. Ever since he opened the door in all his glory, her heart had been beating double time. Of all the people to stumble across, it just had to be him!

  She’d spent the better part of a year trying to forget about him. They’d only gone out a dozen times or so, but in that brief time, she’d given him her heart. Once he’d been accused of mishandling the hospital’s money, he left without ever looking back. She’d been forced to recognize that her feelings had been unrequited, and, like any sensible modern woman, Rayne had moved on with her life. Well, she certainly tried to.

  Oh Cael, she thought sadly. Her heart squeezed in her chest, and she exhaled a slow breath. She’d built castles in her mind about the handsome Wolf in the short time they’d spent together. She had thought he was her soulmate. They hadn’t been together long enough to form the kind of matebond that she’d only ever heard about from older Wolves in the Pack.

  It was the stuff of fairy tales and bedtime stories. A force between two lovers that held them together through any obstacle, any foe. A matebond like the legendary Ailis and Eoghan, the founders of the Macconwood Pack, had shared. Their relationship had been far too short for that kind of power, but still, she always believed that she and Cael had the potential for such greatness. After all, there had been no one since he went away.

  She pushed off the wall and headed towards the small kitchen. The entire cabin was maybe a thousand square feet. Enough for one person or two, if they didn’t mind stepping over each other. She’d have to remember to ask her boss, Cael’s brother, just why he’d sent her out there knowing his brother was living in the small cabin. Hmm, playing cupid, Dr. Evangelos?

  CHAPTER 6

  Rayne shook her head as she looked through the small refrigerator. There wasn’t much inside. In fact, the contents were pretty damn dismal. She recalled that he’d gone shopping earlier and she looked around and found a couple of grocery bags. They were sitting on the Formica counter-top.

  She emptied both bags and shook her head at the number of sodium-nitrate filled cans of preserved chicken, tuna, and meat-like food that he’d bought. No way. Then she remembered her own overnight bag.

  She unzipped it and found her own grocery bag with the fresh steak she’d bought earlier and some organic vegetables. That’s more like it!

  She was going to make him a meal that would go a long way to healing both the Wolf and the man. She moved about the small kitchen with quick and efficient movements. Rayne hadn’t cooked for anyone else for a long time.

  She was no master chef, but she was a passable cook. It wasn’t all that difficult to make a decent steak and veggies. A little olive oil, salt and pepper and she was in business. Canola was all he had, but she supposed that was fine too.

  She’d taught herself to cook in self-defense at medical school. Cafeteria food and take-out were hell on her stomach. Considering Werewolves had large appetites and their supernatural senses often led them to organic, non-GMO food choices, learning to cook made sense.

  Cael should take a few courses, she mused. At the very least, he needed to seriously rethink his diet. No wonder he was wasting away. Canned food and isolation were the absolute worst things for a Wolf.

  Didn’t he know any better? And what about his brother? Surely the doctor had counseled his own brother on the danger of such a lifestyle? She shook her head. Ten minutes later she was carrying a tray into his bedroom.

  He’d been resting. She could tell by the slow, steady breaths, that he was still tired. However, the second the tantalizing aroma of cooked meat reached Cael’s nostrils, his eyes flew open. They were that same piercing emerald green that she remembered. Beautiful.

  She felt a ridiculous sense of pride at the way he almost drooled at the delicious smell of the food she’d prepared for him. His stomach growled loudly. Cael sat up straighter in his bed, but he leaned his lower back against the wall for support.

  “Well, it looks like you do have an appetite after all,” she said, feeling quite pleased.

  “No, um I can’t eat that.”

  “Why not?”

  “Rayne, that’s your steak,” he said.

  “Look, I’m the doctor, and you’re the patient. You need protein or that wound will fester and rot.”

  “No, I can’t take food from you,” he looked as if he’d try to sprint out of the bed if she forced it on him, so she tried another tactic.

  “Cael, you are seriously malnourished. If you don’t get well, anything could happen to you and to me out here. You know me, I’m a city girl, and the snow is coming down harder now. There’s no cell service, and my car is totaled. I need you to get better,” she knew by the end of her speech that she’d said the right things.

  His male pride would have him starve before taking what he thought of as her food, but that same pride would want him to be in perfect health to protect her. A little sexist, but she’d overlook it for now. Werewolf men tended to want to protect their women. Not that she was his woman!

  She blushed and ignored his curious expression. She sat down on the edge of the mattress and began slicing through the perfectly cooked thirty-ounce rib eye. It certainly did smell good!

  “I can’t believe your brother let you get in this state.”

  “Oh, well, he has been on my case.”

  “Well, not enough. Now, open your mouth. I’m going to feed you this entire plate. Then I’m going to watch you drink down this whole glass of fresh squeezed orange juice. When’s the last time you ate something that didn’t come out of a can anyway?”

  “Um, actually, I don’t know.”

  “You don’t know? The Cael I knew might have been a little reckless, but he sure as hell wasn’t stupid,” her anger startled the two of them, but she couldn’t help it.

  Seeing him in such a state was almost too much. She was a doctor, she had a job and a duty to see to the health and care of the people around her. More than that, she specialized in catering to the supernatural world.

  Educating supes in their health care was a regular thing for her, but Cael was no boy after his first Change. He knew damn well that good nutrition was vital to his well-being. Didn’t he care about himself at all?

  Rayne was always a calm and level-headed person, but right then she felt positively murderous. His reaction to the food was the only thing that diminished her rage. He seemed to savor every single morsel.

  Rayne was used
to taking care of people. It was a big part of her job, and she enjoyed it. Feeding Cael shouldn’t be any different, but it was.

  If she were being truthful, she’d acknowledge the deep-seated need to take care of him. It was so strong, it scared her. She could almost see her Wolf’s pleasure as she ministered to him. Mine.

  Rayne’s hand trembled as she lifted the fork to his full lips. She watched him take the meat with wide, curious eyes. She couldn’t speak. She was afraid she’d reveal her true feelings. Don’t be a fool, he left you once. She gave him a curt nod and put on her best professional face as she continued to feed him bite for bite.

  “Your Wolf must be starving! What have you been living on anyway? Rats?”

  “It hasn’t gotten that bad yet. Rabbits and squirrels were good for a while, but it’s too cold for many of them to be outside now.”

  “Are you serious? That’s not nearly enough protein, and you know it!”

  “I’ve done my best,” he mumbled as he gratefully accepted another bite of the premium beef.

  “No, you haven’t. You just left. You never fought back, damn it, and now, look at you! You could have died!”

  Her reaction was over the top. She knew it, but she couldn’t help it. She bit her lower lip to keep from saying anything else. She’d lived without him for a year.

  The fact that her feelings were still this strong surprised and shocked her. She’d worked so hard to put him behind her. The feel of his hand on her arm brought her eyes up to meet his.

  “Rayne, I’m, I’m sorry,” the pain she saw in his emerald green eyes made her stomach twist with regret.

  “No, that was unprofessional, I apologize, Cael, I mean it.”

  “You have nothing to be sorry for. Thank you for your help, I, I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.”

  “I’d do this for anyone,” she said and looked down at the plate to keep him from sensing the lie in her words.

  She remained quiet the rest of the meal. Cael didn’t speak either. He just sat there, looking gorgeous despite his injuries. He ate what she fed him without comment or complaint.

  She tried not to stare at him, but it was difficult. His chest was bare except for the smattering of dark hair that thinned out as it reached his navel. His behavior was oddly docile, like a small child. Being near him was playing havoc on her brain. Cael was never much on obedience. The idea that she could make him sit and stay was pretty damn tempting and so unlike him.

  He’d been cocky to the point of being brash when she’d first met him. Rayne was used to men with big personalities. Werewolves were up there with some of the most chauvinistic creatures on earth. Females were sometimes valued, sometimes ignored, and sometimes put down among the various supernatural species.

  Though, if she were being fair, ever since she came to Maccon City and met Pack Alpha, Rafe Maccon, she had to admit that the Macconwood Pack was different. Female Wolves were respected and treated equally by the Alpha himself. However, that said, even modern Werewolf males sometimes acted like puffed up caricatures of oozing machismo when they were around females.

  Cael had been no different. He’d been incredibly confident and oh-so-sure of himself when they’d first met. He ignored Rayne the first few times they met. She just assumed she wasn’t his type.

  She had no delusions about herself. She was short for a Werewolf and not as strong and fast as the others. Her body type was more like a normal than not. She was not exactly curvy, but she had rounded hips and a generous bust. Nothing exceptional, mind you.

  Of course, he was the best-looking man she’d ever seen. Drop. Dead. Gorgeous. Cael had eyes the color of emeralds. They practically glowed against his naturally olive-toned skin and wavy black hair.

  She practically drooled the first time he spoke to her. By some miracle, she’d made him laugh, and after that, he literally swept her off her feet with his direct approach. He had a larger than life personality. He was funny and kind, romantic and sweet, and then poof, just when she accepted he was genuinely interested in her, he was gone. Out of her life without even a goodbye.

  She’d always been surprised that he’d shown any interest in her. It hurt her when he left. She’d felt anger for him that he’d been treated in such a way by the hospital where he’d worked. But the betrayal she felt at his desertion soon trumped that and she’d stopped asking questions.

  And now she went and made things awkward. She had to remember she was nothing to him. Rayne had no right to yell or express her concern. It was unprofessional and unwarranted.

  “Drink this,” she thrust the tall glass of orange juice at him, and he accepted it.

  “Why are you so angry?”

  “Are you kidding? Do you not remember where we were thirteen months ago?”

  “Come on, Rayne, I’m sure you’ve gotten over a couple of lousy dates by now!”

  “That’s all it ever was to you, right? A couple of lousy dates? Well, excuse me for making it something it wasn’t. I’ll be out of your hair as soon as possible.”

  “What the hell are you doing here anyway? I don’t remember bringing you here before?” He lashed out with such venom, she stumbled. She’d never heard him angry like that.

  “Your brother told me to come stay out in his cabin for the weekend. I’ve been working for some time now without a vacation.” She shrugged uncomfortably.

  “My brother? Why would he tell you to come out here if I was here?”

  “I have no idea! But when I see him I sure as hell am going to ask him!”

  CHAPTER 7

  Rayne stormed out of the bedroom with Cael watching her go helplessly. He wanted to throw off the covers and chase after her, but he was so weak. Idiot. He knew better than to allow himself to get into such a condition.

  His stomach was full, but his injured head and leg were throbbing steadily. The dull ache was good though, it reminded him that he still was alive. He should go find Rayne. He needed to talk to her.

  She had it all wrong. He had tried! He’d spent his whole life trying! He’d given everything to his job, and they betrayed him!

  He had to make her see that leaving had been the only sensible thing he could do. If he’d stayed and fought any number of things could have gone wrong. Hadn’t Fred told him just that?

  Cael could remember the acrid stench of the older man’s fear in his nostrils. Werewolves were good at sniffing out emotions, but what he’d missed was the intent behind Fred MacAvoy’s fear. That bastard had threatened to out Cael and David both if he hadn’t accepted his guilt.

  There was proof, he’d said, evidence that Cael was not entirely normal. Did he really want to risk revealing himself and others like him by insisting on an investigation that would only prove he was guilty of so much more than just embezzlement? It wasn’t just the evidence that Fred MacAvoy claimed the forensic accountants had found that sent Cael running to the woods.

  If Rayne knew him at all, she would never think that of him! He was trying to protect them all. He had every intention of telling her just that, but he was too damn weak to shout or do much in the way of arguing.

  She was right about one thing though, no matter how you looked at it. He had shut her out. Shame and hurt gnawed at him. He’d fucked up with her. Again.

  Cael regretted what he said about their relationship the second the words left his mouth. Idiot. It seemed all he did was hurt her. Even when he tried to protect her by staying out of her life.

  CHAPTER 8

  He cursed under his breath and grimaced as he tried to stand up. He felt raw and ruined after his bout with that mama bear. His body was nowhere near its prime, and he was solely to blame.

  But that wasn’t the only thing that was giving him trouble right then. Having Rayne right there in front of him and not being able to touch her or hold her to him was almost more than he could manage.

  He’d made a hell of his own life. He couldn’t be responsible for hers too! Damn it! He crashed back down on the bed. He f
elt dizzy and much too hot. He was burning up. Beads of sweat dotted his brow and upper lip. His eyelids felt so heavy…

  Rayne brought the dishes to the sink and started cleaning up the mess she’d made. She noticed the blood on the floor and grabbed the mop and some floor cleaner with bleach. She couldn’t leave it like that. No, she couldn’t leave his blood on the floor.

  She spent the next half hour cleaning. The cabin was much neater than she would have expected from him, but the mess from the attack and the groceries needed seeing to. She managed both with little effort and took a fortifying breath before going to check on her patient. It was dangerous for her to think of Cael as anything but that.

  “How are you feeling now?” She walked into the room and frowned.

  Cael’s eyes were closed, and his near black eyebrows were furrowed as if he were in pain.

  She moved closer to him, and her medical training took over. First, she noted the beads of sweat covering his face and chest. Second, he was shivering uncontrollably despite the sweat. Next, she held her breath as she listened. He was muttering under his breath.

  “Have to tell you…Fred knows about me…He was gonna tell everyone…Never stopped loving you…so sorry…”

  All her bravado about leaving left the second she deciphered his words. Cael cared about her, and he’d been threatened. She’d get to the bottom of that soon, first things first. She needed to see to his health

  There was no way in hell she was leaving that cabin with him in that shape. Not after he’d just let it slip that he loved her. Rayne gritted her teeth. Cael was the only man, the only Wolf she’d ever cared about. She was not going to lose him like this.

  She took out a thermometer and took his temperature. It was much too high. Even for a Werewolf. He’d gone on too long in isolation with nothing but a bad diet for company. It was greatly affecting his ability to heal.

  Werewolves rarely needed meds and since she was primarily on call for Pack emergencies she hardly ever carried more than some mild painkillers and a few antibiotics. She frowned harder. Cael was beyond both. Think, Rayne!