So, why was he getting jealous all the time when he thought of Elizabeth with other men? He had never gotten jealous in the past when he had thought of his mates with other men.
And, why did he have an overwhelming urge to take her home with him and keep her there forever?
Cole looked at her again after breaking through the tree line that bordered his property and coming into the clearing where he could see his home in front of him. She was very beautiful, and something told him, she'd be compatible for carrying his kit. Maybe that was why he wanted her so badly.
“Germany sucks, I wish I wouldn’t have taken this job,” she huffed under her breath, obviously thinking he wouldn’t hear her.
“Then why did you take it?” he asked, and her head whipped around as she glared at him again. “I would think your life was the lap of luxury in your rich little mansion at home, why would you travel here?”
She scowled, but then a look of hurt crossed her face, and she sighed, “If you must know, shifter, I took the job to get out of going to my brother’s wedding.”
Cole laughed harshly, “What a stupid reason to take a job!”
“It was not a stupid reason,” she yelled, hurting his ears in the confined space.
“Yes it was, little brat,” he snapped back. “And if you yell at me again you will regret it.”
“No it wasn’t, and I could care less what you do to me, my life is already ruined as it is.” She pouted.
Cole looked at the little vampire and saw the absolute distress and sadness in her eyes, and he felt guilty for putting some of that there.
“Then tell me, Elizabeth, why is it not a stupid reason?” he asked to placate her.
“Because,” she huffed. “My brother is marrying my foster sister and I don’t want to be there to watch everyone dote on the perfect little princess.”
Cole was floored. Her brother was marrying her sister. No wonder she didn’t want to be a part of that. Even his kind didn’t mix with their blood relatives.
“Your brother is marrying your sister?” Cole asked after several seconds of stunned silence.
“She’s not my real sister,” she answered. “She’s my foster sister. My parents took her in when she was nine, after her mother died of an overdose and her father ended up in prison. They couldn’t adopt her, so they became her foster parents. Ever since she came along, everyone in my family has just doted over her as if she were this perfect fragile princess. My brother was the worst. She is his destined mate, so even when she was a child he fawned over her, giving her expensive gifts and paying for everything for her. It was sickening to watch them.”
“Aww, poor little rich girl, they didn’t pay attention to you,” Cole taunted.
“I didn’t say no one paid attention to me,” she snapped. “I just got so tired of hearing how perfect she was. Oh, Abby’s so perfect because she gets the highest marks in school. Oh, Abby’s so great because she works in soup kitchens and gives her clothing to charity. Oh, Abby’s so pretty and sweet looking with her mousy brown hair, big blue eyes, and wide hips.”
“Hmm, she does sound perfect,” Cole smiled as he saw the anger heat up her eyes. He wondered how her eyes would look when they were heated with lust and not anger.
“Ha ha.” She sneered at him before she turned back to the window.
“Listen, little brat,” Cole barked, making her jump and turn back to glare at him. “You are lucky to have the family that you have. I have no family. My father and mother are dead and any siblings I have are long gone and have nothing to do with me. At least, you have a family who cares for you. You have no idea what your foster sister probably went through before your parents took her in. She deserved to be doted on. She is a strong person. Instead of letting her situation get to her, she pushed ahead, worked hard in her studies, and gave to those less fortunate than herself. What have you done for someone less fortunate than you?”
Shame flushed her cheeks and she cast her eyes down to the floorboard. However, it was short lived.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” she snapped. “You weren’t there. You weren’t there to see how everyone was her friend because they liked her and not because they liked her parent’s money. I have never had someone truly care for me with no ulterior motive. Sure my parents love me, but I still can’t stop wondering if they would even notice if I weren’t around.”
Cole saw the hurt on her face at her admission and finally understood why she hated her foster sister so much, she envied her. He didn’t answer because he had no idea what he would say.
Cole felt bad because even now she had no one who wanted her for her.
He wanted her, but for sex alone and not for a companion. At least, that was what he kept telling himself.
*****
Liz looked out the window and watched the trees pass by in a blur as she thought over what Cole had said.
What he had said about Abby being strong and doing for others despite what she had gone through before living with her parents made Liz realize how little she really paid attention to her foster sister. She was so consumed with her own selfish wants that she didn’t pay attention when she saw her sister alone, just staring out the window with a sad look on her face. She never stopped to ask what was bothering her when she passed her sister’s bedroom door and heard her crying inside.
She realized now that if she had, she would have probably found her sister still hurt from her previous life before moving in with her parents. She would know there was still a part of her that would never heal from the scars that her biological parents imprinted on her.
Perhaps, if she had taken the time to really pay attention she could have had a real relationship with her sister. Instead of being enemies, they could have been friends.
It didn’t matter now, anyway. Liz was on her way into the deep dark forest with a vicious predator hired to kill her, and even if he was her destined mate, she had no doubt in her mind that he probably would fulfill his mission, at some point.
Chapter Three
After ages of riding in the bumpy Hummer, the trees broke away to show a small cottage with a large garage sitting in the middle of a clearing. Liz almost breathed a sigh of relief as the vehicle stopped, but she didn’t, knowing there was nothing really to be relieved about.
A giant shifter, who was hired to kill her, had kidnapped her and she had no idea why. She had thought back on everything she had done in her twenty-six years of life and other than being a spoiled pain in the ass; she couldn’t come to any conclusions as to why someone would want her dead.
“If you run, you will not get very far,” mystery giant growled at her.
She really needed to find out what his name was because mystery giant was not cutting it, she thought.
“Get out of the vehicle and walk to the front door, where you will wait for me,” he growled again at Liz.
She glared at him, contemplating actually running like he warned her not to when she got out, but then she figured he’d just catch her and torture her as he promised he would.
She got out of the Hummer without saying a word to him and went to stand on the porch to wait for him as he commanded. She really hated being ordered around as she was, but she saw no way of escape so far, so she figured she should play it safe, for now.
He came out of the garage after parking his Hummer inside, carrying her suitcase and his duffel bag. She wondered for a spilt second what was in the duffel bag, considering he was wearing the same clothes she’d seen him wear in the club, but quickly decided she didn’t want to know.
Liz continued to watch the mystery giant walk toward her, while she thought back on how she’d gotten to this point.
After he had dragged her out of her apartment, he’d thrown her in a taxi, and had it take them back to the club, where he paid the cab driver to wait for them as he dragged her into the alley beside the club. She saw his naked ass again when he immediately took off her brother’s sweatpants, throwing t
hem in the dumpster, and started to pull on his clothes he had hidden behind said dumpster. She’d been pissed that he’d thrown away her brother’s sweats because they were comfortable to wear and reminded her of home when she got homesick. Instead, she’d kept her mouth shut after seeing the angry sneer he’d given them as he threw them away.
After he was dressed, he’d dragged her back to the cab, thrown her inside, and directed the driver to take them to some parking garage on the other side of town. When they got there, he dragged her to his Hummer and locked her inside before climbing in and setting off on their little joy ride.
His stride was sure and spoke of his predatory nature as he got to the stairs of the porch and climbed each step, frowning at her as he climbed. His boots clomped on the wooden beams of the porch as he neared the front door, never breaking eye contact with her. Then, he finally got to the front door, and dropped her suitcase before unlocking the door and going in ahead of her. She pouted to herself, angry that her destined mate turned out to be some jerk that wasn’t even gentleman enough to let the lady go first. He didn’t even bother to pick up her suitcase when he went in, so she had to pick it up and lug it inside the tiny little house.
When she entered the cottage, she immediately dropped her suitcase and looked around in stunned horror at the sparse furnishings and missing amenities. The cottage appeared to be open planned, with the living room, dining room, and kitchen all together. There was no television or electronics of any kind in the living room, the dining room was just made up of a simple wooden table with two chairs, the kitchen had a butler sink, an old retro style refrigerator that made clunking noises. The kitchen also contained a large iron stove that looked like you would need to fill it with something and light it before you cooked on it.
Liz was used to cooking, and her mother always liked to cook, even though they had a cook at home to do it, her mother would still drag her in to help when it came to the big meals. However, she’d never in her life seen a stove like that, and was terrified to think she might have to use it. She would just have to leave the cooking up to giant-guy and hope he knew how.
“Come in and shut the door, you are making the house cold,” he commanded, and Liz had the urge to just stand there and let the cold air in.
She stuck her tongue out at his back instead and slammed the door, gaining a growl and a glare from him.
“What did I say about respect?” he asked.
“I shut the damn door, so back off,” Liz snapped.
Before she knew what was happening he practically flew across the room and pinned her to the door, his arms on either side of her head.
“You will not talk to me like that again,” he growled.
Nevertheless, Liz was tired of being scared and just growled back, “I will talk to you however I feel. I am tired of your domineering attitude and don’t appreciate you ordering me around like some whipping boy.”
Something flashed across his eyes at the last part of her statement, and he gave her a wicked grin that made her pussy pulse and flood with cream.
“Hmmm, I think you would like for me to make you my whipping girl, little vampire.” He leaned into her, sniffing her hair and making her shiver in delight.
She really hated the fact that her body was reacting to him like this. She didn’t care that he was her destined mate, he was an ass hole, and she hated him.
“So you’re not only a murderer and kidnapper, but a rapist as well?” She bit back, wanting to stab at him.
It worked because he pulled back and growled, glaring down at her, “I do not force women to be with me.” He snapped.
“Well it’s the only way you’re going to get in my pants,” she taunted, even though right now her body was just begging him to get in her pants.
“Why would I want to?” he smiled. “You think because you can tease men like that little French poodle back at the club, that a real man would want anything to do with you? You’re nothing but a bag of bones and even if your lips were definitely made for sucking cock, I wouldn’t want to risk your fangs.”
Liz had a sudden urge to cry, and she could feel the tears burning the back of her eyes, but she bit her lip to push the feeling back, she wasn’t about to give him the benefit of seeing how much his words hurt her.
“Well, then I guess there is a god,” she replied, forcing her voice not to crack and give away her emotions.
He chuckled and pulled away from her completely, walking to the corner of the room, and kneeling in front of the large fireplace.
“Take your suitcase to that room over there and put it in the closet,” he commanded again, as he pointed to a door on the other side of the room. “I am going to go and get some wood for the fireplace and the oven, so I can get this place warmed up, again, after you left the door open for so long, and make us something to eat.”
She glared at him as she crossed the room and entered the door he’d pointed to.
“Oh, and Elizabeth,” he called before she’d fully entered the bedroom, making her stop. “When and if I decide to fuck you, you will be begging me for it.”
She stepped into the room and slammed the door shut, but she could still hear his laughter on the other side of the door.
Why was she being punished like this? What had she done to get a destined mate who was so hateful and mean?
*****
Cole swung the ax over his head and reveled in the vibrations of it going through the piece of wood on his chopping block.
He kept replaying the conversation he had just had with Elizabeth and couldn’t get over the guilt that was riding him hard because of what he had said to her. He’d seen the look of hurt go across her face when he told her he would never even consider fucking her. He just couldn’t help his reaction to her accusation that he would have to rape her to get her to be with him.
He didn’t know why he cared so much about what she thought. Sure, she was compatible to carry his kit, but that didn’t mean he should care for her otherwise. It wasn’t as if she was the only other woman out there.
However, as he thought about it, he realized whether he wanted her to be or not, she had become the only woman he wanted. Everything, from the scent of her hair to the feel of her slender, but supple body pressed against his, made him ache to be inside her. Then, there was the way she fought him at every turn, showing she actually did have a backbone, despite her delicate features, and he couldn’t get over how cute she looked when she glared at him.
She was intelligent, too. He could tell it by the way she was actually quite knowledgeable about his kind and their customs. Now, if she would only use those brains of hers to stop fighting him and listen to him, they could probably be quite happy together.
Cole growled at the piece of wood he now held in his hand and then threw it on top of the pile he’d made. Why was he thinking about them being happy together? This wasn’t a long-term arrangement. She was only there until he could figure out what was going on and make sure he wouldn’t get his ass killed for not killing her.
However, the thought of her leaving ate at him, and made him want to tie her down to his bed to keep her from walking away.
As soon as he thought about tying her down his cock became hard again, and his balls began to hurt. He couldn’t carry on like this. He needed to either convince her to fuck him and let him get it out of his system, or go and find some willing lynx-shifter female to take his sexual frustrations out on.
He picked up a load of the wood he’d been chopping and headed back into the house. When he got inside the cottage was quiet and the bedroom door was still shut, so he figured she was still sulking inside, and went to build a fire in the fireplace.
After about ten minutes, he finally had a roaring fire going and went to the stove to repeat the process.
As he passed the bedroom door to go into the kitchen he had the desire to go and knock on it to see what she was doing. He pictured her tearing apart his bedroom and trying to dismantle his bed.
&
nbsp; He knocked, but got no answer, so he just decided to go right in, it was his room after all. However, when he entered, he automatically wished he had kept right on walking because there in the middle of his bed laid a sleeping Elizabeth. She was so innocent looking when she slept that he almost forgot what a spitfire she was when she was awake.
He couldn’t help but go and stand over her just to make sure she was really sleeping. He went to the edge of the bed and saw that her breathing had definitely slowed and she did appear to be asleep. Then he noticed that every once in a while her breath would hiccup and her eyes looked puffy and red, as if she’s been crying.
Cole fought the urge to pick her up in his arms and hold her while he comforted her and told her everything would be okay. He didn’t know if things would be okay and he didn’t know if she would allow him to hold her.
His heart ached for her, knowing she must be in turmoil trying to figure out why she was going through all of this. He instantly felt guilty for having put her through so much more by being brutish and demanding.
He suddenly had a sense of déjà vu, as stories about when his father and mother met passed through his head. His father had felt an instant need to keep his mother with him always and protect her from the world as well. He’d been very possessive of her and doted over her on everything. Cole remembered his father describing the same feelings he was having for Elizabeth and it suddenly frightened him.
He turned away from the bed and stalked out of the room to go and light the stove. He refused to have the same feelings for her that his father had for his mother. He would not live that way. He would not give his heart to just one woman to have her rip it out when she left him and him to live for the rest of his life in misery. Sure, his mother had been mortal and Elizabeth was immortal, so death wouldn’t be what separated them, but Elizabeth was not a part of his world. She would grow to hate it there, she already hated it, and then she’d resent him for keeping her there and leave him.
Lizzy's Lessons (The Hunt Family Series) Page 5