19

B E A U

✿

The door behind me slammed and the cold night air hit me.

Crap. I was kinda in the shit.

How she looked at me. Grayish violet eyes, with a transfigured gaze. The bite on her full, rosy lower lip. Her hands running over her body. I was jealous of those hands. It should have been my hands damn it. My hands, stroking her bare waist, traveled up to her stomach and then further up to her round-

My teeth clicked together. Fuck, pull yourself together, Beau!

It had been a thin thread of my self-control. I'd come this close to grabbing her chin, biting those plump lips, only to part them and lick her mouth with my tongue. My fingers would dig into her soft skin, pulling her against me, feeling her all over me. Her soft curves under my hard muscles. Her soft moan in my ear.

Aahhh damn I was so hard. I was rock hard. And my sex hurt. I rubbed my face, undressed and transformed.

I had to distract myself. My wolf was content enough that our mate was in our territory. Now it was up to us to make sure the bloody hell stayed that way and she didn't get the idea of running off and heading to the coast on one of her excursions.

The only news I had was that two of the seniors were being shipped to the medical center. But I didn't know who it was or what had happened. The only reason I went to see Xenos was because I needed to tell him about the unconscious islander.

And then I saw her. On this fucking sickbed. With that fucking cut on your face. I'd been angry, but what made the final straw was the look on her face. She would do it again, whether she was a soldier or not. No matter how dangerous it was.

I wanted to shake her. Bullshit, nitwit, moron.

Guided by wild instinct and the concentration of a predator on the hunt, I charged silently through the forest. I paid attention to every sound, every change in smell. Everything was safe. Until I smelled a scent that shouldn't be here. I growled when I heard her howl of greeting.

Aunt Rose.

The red-brown wolf stepped out from between the trees and looked at me expectantly. She tilted her head to one side. May I?

She was worried - her big eyes spoke volumes.

But I growled. Not today. Not this night. Not if she sleeps at my house. I wasn't ready to share this girl yet. She was at my house from now on. Nobody else will see them in my territory. Nobody will come near her.

Rose took the hint and, for once, moved on without hesitation. She couldn't have smelled Georgie, my smell was too dominant for that. But I didn't worry too much about why my stubborn aunt decided to do as I asked and ran back to Georgie instead.

Soft tapping on damp forest floor. Chocolate brown fur peeping through the undergrowth and the abrupt silence of the forest as soon as my scent was carried by the wind. Every animal was wary of me. Knew to beware of this dangerous predator. And I was a predator.

I'd always preferred to let my wilder side take the lead, feeling comfortable in my wolf body since I was a child. But now the pulling urge to leave my human side behind me and forget it crept in.

I had been alone in the dark for too long, dependent on my wolf for too long. And the bloodthirsty past, pressing me harder with each passing sun orbit, was squeezing me, pushing me closer and closer to the deadly edge of insanity.

The desire to give my other half full control increased with each passing day. And I knew what would happen that day when I gave in to that desire. And if there was a God who was in my good mood, then I would not survive this day.

My wolf stopped, crouched among the conifers and faded with the night, eyes fixed on the cabin. I kept an eye on her. Watched over her sleep. At the slightest sign of an intruder, I'd be there. No one would step through that door. Not alive.

Then something changed in the air. It was not new weather, nor was anything moving through the undergrowth. I couldn't describe it, there was no proof of this feeling. But it made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and caught my attention.

The feeling went away. As if nothing unusual had happened. Again I controlled the situation with all my senses. Nothing. Everything was in order.

And then she screamed. She screamed like crazy. As if a blade were about to be rammed into her chest, ripping her lengthwise.

I was fearless. Had already seen a lot in my 502 sun orbits, endured hell without batting an eyelid. Faced the ruthless death without shying away from it. And yet my stomach clenched when I heard her scream. I could take anything, no matter what. But that scream broke through my walls and bored right into me.

Not a second later I found myself in front of the door, transformed and dressed in pants. I ripped it open and let out my caught breath when I found her unharmed.

To my surprise, she wasn't in bed anymore, but pulled back her covers and swung her legs, which were tucked into my sweatpants, over the edge of the bed. Her bare, sweet feet - sweet? - touched the stone floor. Her hair was plastered to her face and neck, and her breathing was rapid.

I leaned against the door frame and watched her. She hadn't noticed me. She was too busy with herself for that. Anyone could have walked in here and she wouldn't have even noticed. And if it does, then it's much too late to be able to react adequately. She would have been defenseless.

My wolf growled and I agreed with him. She was in my house. In my precinct. Under my guard. A shit would happen to her. Before that, I would bury the forest floor with corpses.

Georgie covered her face with her hands and reassured herself, “It's okay. You are okay. It was just a dream. Just a nightmare.” A tremor ran through her body and she wrapped her arms around herself, snuggling into the shirt. The shitty shirt that wasn't fucking warm enough for her. The shirt she now sniffed and hugged even more.

After that she got up, groped across the stone floor, which was too cold for her bare feet. Arriving in the kitchen, she bent over the sink. Then she splashed cold water on her face while mumbling over and over like a mantra, 'It was just a nightmare. It was just a nightmare. You are okay. You are okay."

Then she turned off the faucet and started rummaging through my kitchen. She opened cupboards. Pulled out drawers.

Just as she was about to stand on tiptoe and peer into the closet, I asked, "You looking for something?"

"Ah!" she cried out, spinning on me in surprise. "Beau! You scared me!” Her hand was outstretched over her heart and her hair was tangled on her head. "How long have you been standing there?"

"A while," I replied calmly.

She swallowed and didn't quite know where to look. Slightly embarrassed, she fiddled with my shirt and crossed her long legs.

"So?"

She looked up at me. "What?"

"Are you looking for something in particular, or are you turning my kitchen upside down for no reason?"

Her cheeks turned pink. She was so damn cute. 'Oh I... I wanted to make myself a hot chocolate. Do you have cocoa?'

An image flashed in my mind's eye. My little sister, crouched in front of me at the kitchen bar, barely tall enough to see over the rim of her cup, sipping on her hot chocolate with extra cream. "I didn't," I said hoarsely.

Uncomprehendingly, as if I'd said I was from another planet, she said, "Who doesn't have cocoa at home? what kind of monster are you?”

"And who makes a fucking hot chocolate at three o'clock in the morning?" I asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Any sane werewolf who knows what life means," she said, putting her hands on her hips, confidence back in full swing.

So she needed little taunts to calm herself down. I relaxedly crossed my arms in front of my chest. "Either way, you will not succeed in your determined search."

"Okay." She wrung her hands. Hesitantly, and with a slight tremor in her voice, she said, "I can't sleep now..."

Maybe I could have withdrawn before that, left her to her demons alone. But it was too late for that. I couldn't anymore. Not after seeing how they messed up those dreams. Not after seeing her cling to my shirt. smelled like me.

The fact that she was my protégé was based on my decision. I had insisted that she be assigned to me. But she had just made up her mind. And she had chosen my protection. Voluntarily.

In doing so, she gave me rights over herself.

I stretched out my hand. "Come, I'll show you something."