Page 147 of Dominion
Cody’s eyes flicked to hers, and she remembered their quarrel from the day before. She’d been wrong. Cody was nothing like this woman’s husband, or mate—whatever she called him. Only a monster would beat a child like that.
“We’ve been on the run for a month. I haven’t been able to get much work, other than cleaning houses. I didn’t want to use my I.D. anywhere, in case he could trace it.” She shrugged her slender shoulders. “I don’t know how these things work.”
“I’m not sure, either. I think if he’s filed a missing person report on the three of you, then there is a chance you showing up at that hospital will alert the police in his area. We have a friend in law enforcement who might be able to fill us in.”
“I appreciate your help. Both of you.” She looked at Colleen. “You were really nice to my pups, and it’s been a long time since we’ve seen a friendly face.” Her eyes swam with tears.
Melissa moved to sit closer to her, hesitating, then putting a tentative hand on her back and rubbing. “We won’t let anyone take you or your kids,” she promised, meeting Cody’s eye to demand his agreement.
“No, we won’t.” His sober gaze rested on her face and she saw such honor and kindness there it nearly undid her.
After everyone atethe pizza Cody had ordered for dinner, he dragged Melissa into the garage for a word in private. Her comment the day before about violence had put him on the defensive, but now, being up close and personal with domestic abuse, he needed to try to explain things to her.
She looked at him expectantly, her big eyes watchful.
“Listen, Melissa.” He stabbed his fingers through his hair. “What you said yesterday?—”
“I’m sorry,” she cut in. “I know it’s not the same.”
A rush of warmth went through him. She’d been amazing with the family—working to put Colleen at ease and make the children comfortable. She may not be a shifter, but she had the sort of hostess/pack mother skills that made her the perfect mate for an alpha.
“We are… physical. That’s true. We heal quickly, so showing physical dominance never causes anyone lasting harm.”
A shadow crossed her face.
“A dominant male is the most aggressive, but he also has a built-in need to protect—especially those much weaker than him, like pups.” He gestured toward the house. It made him sick to think of an alpha wolf abusing those poor children. “And the mechanism to ensure a female’s safety is simple. Her tears trigger an instant response in her mate. They calm all aggression and produce a powerful need to solve whatever problem is making her cry. In a situation like Colleen’s, something’s gone terribly wrong. A wolf would have to be sick in the head to hurt his own pups and mate like that.”
“That makes sense. Like I said, I shouldn’t have judged. It’s just new to me.”
“I hope I haven’t scared you or made you feel unsafe. That was never my intention.”
She shook her head. “You haven’t. You’re just...cocky and overbearing. Honestly, I think I’m more disturbed by how much it turns me on than by anything you’ve done.”
His lips curved as he stepped closer to her. “Baby, I don’t know what this thing is between us, but?—”
“It’s just sex,” she said too quickly.
He winced. “I don’t think so,” he said in a low voice. “My inner wolf has been screaming for me to mark you since the first time we touched.”
She let out a soft chuff. “Mate me? A human? Wouldn’t that screw up your ability to lead the pack?” He heard the bitterness in her voice, and was surprised she knew enough about pack dynamics to understand.
“Yeah. I know. I’ve been fighting it, but?—”
Her brows knit and he realized too late that he’d said the wrong thing. She stiffened and worked to swallow. “It’s just sex,” she said firmly.
“Hang on.” He reached for her but she slipped out of his grasp.
“No, you’re right. You should definitely fight it. A mating bite could be dangerous to a human. I can’t risk my life to be permanently mated to some construction worker I just met. That would be nuts.”
Her words hit him like a cement block to the chest. He may have been thinking the same thing about it just being sex, but now… he felt so much more for her. To hear that she still thought he was so far beneath her was a huge blow to his ego. No, it was more than that, but he couldn’t even consider the implications of a true mate who didn’t return his affections at the moment.
“Right, princess. Well, don’t worry. Tomorrow you can stop slumming it with me and go back to your picture-perfect life.” He stalked past her and into the house.
Melissa’s eyes burned.She hadn’t meant to wound Cody—not at all. She’d been protecting herself, defending against her growing desire to be… loved by Cody. Claimed by Cody. She wanted him to mark her, more and more every time they were together, every interaction they had, every moment she witnessed his gentle leadership and power.
If she was totally honest with herself, she’d recognize that she’d already fallen in love with him, somewhere between the way he held her that first night when she’d been crying and watching movies together the night before.
But he looked down on humans. He didn’t want to be mated to her, despite their mutual attraction. She wasn’t going to cut his legs off him when he was so new at leading a pack and letting go of his father’s worst opinion of him.