Page 56 of Saving Stella

Sooner than later, hopefully.

He wouldn’t leave her alone now, of course. Not when she was vulnerable. Did he forget that she was still in danger? That it might even be one of their own trying to harm her?

Moss and dirt. With a touch of hay.

That was the scent he had smelled in the hallway after he found Stella running toward him, fear in her eyes. She’d been scared—good, because it was likely her instinct that had saved her today.

His wolf let out a growl. It did not like that another’s scent was so close to her.

And neither did he.

That someone had stalked her, followed, and God only knew what else they would have done to her, made him rage. At the very least, he would make sure she was safe before he left.

Grabbing his phone from the dash, he dialed the number for the office and then pressed Uncle Quinn’s extension. He was assigned as head of this particular operation, so Cliff told him about what had happened.

“That is strange,” Quinn remarked. “And you don’t recognize the scent at all?”

“No.”

“All right, I’ll make a note of it. Everything okay over there?”

“Yeah. Except … do you think you guys can send anyone else to help out? I need to get back to New York.”

“Well, you’re in luck. Jacob should be done with a job down in New Orleans soon. I’ll have him head straight there.”

“Thanks, Uncle Quinn.”

While he still did not like the idea of leaving Stella alone with Jacob, his cousin was the best person for the job. Jacob would be able to protect Stella, not to mention, as a hybrid who could control fire, he could burn anyone who tried to get within six feet of Stella.

They chatted for a few minutes to iron out some more details before they hung up. Cliff stared at the blank screen for a moment, then glanced back at the house. There was no way he could spend the night in there with her. Not when all he wanted was to break down her door, pin her to her bed, and make her moan for him again.

God, I’m so screwed.

Truthfully, he hadn’t been with that many women since Madelyn. Casual encounters had met most of his needs, but not all of them. There were still parts of himself he hadn’t exposed to partners for fear of scaring them away. Only Madelyn had been able to gain his trust enough for that.

But with Stella, he was torn. She was sweet and kind, so he didn’t want her to see that side of him. Hell, she might have glimpsed it already—the way he was obsessed with her from the beginning and how he just hauled her out of her seat and onto his lap. He’d half expected her to scream and slap him, but she accepted his dominance. She did so beautifully, riding his fingers, coming at his command.

That only made him want her more.

Which was why he was even more determined to leave her alone.

Cliff spent the rest of the afternoon—and a very uncomfortable night—inside the truck, keeping an eye on the house. He went inside some time before dawn to change and shower, then trudged back to the truck to wait for her.

It was better that way as he wasn’t distracted, and he could catch any intruders if they tried to break in. The fact that someone out there got close enough to scare Stella did not sit right with him, and he swore no one would ever get that chance again.

At least while he was here. Because once Jacob arrived, she would no longer be his responsibility.

But for now, he had to do his job.

“Good morning,” she greeted as she entered the truck.

God, she looked gorgeous, just as she always did. But there was something about her today that made it impossible to keep his eyes off her. Maybe it was the way her blue sweater brought out the color of her eyes. Or maybe because said sweater clung tightly to the breasts he had felt press against his chest. They had been soft, and he guessed were just the right size for his hands and?—

“Cliff?” She cocked her head at him. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah,” he grumbled as he started the engine.

Somehow, he managed to get them through the drive, despite the urge to keep looking at her and her scent teasing him. He let out a sigh of relief once they arrived at the parking lot. “I’ll wait here for you.”