Page 54 of Fractured Mates
He carries me to the bed, pulls the comforter back, and gently lays me on the mattress before covering me up. “I tried to wake you in the car, but you weren’t even flinching, and I didn’t want to stay out there when you could be resting in bed.”
The sight of blood on my shirt makes me groan. “I need to change. Hell, I need to shower.”
I start to move, and Kyler’s hands shoot out like he’s going to help me sit up, but then he jerks his touch away from me.
Oh, yeah. He thinks I’m still furious with him.
I think I should be, but then, the more I do think, I can’t find a valid reason to refuse him.
Sure, the mate bond is messing with me, making the pull toward him stronger, but I’m a rational person. I knew before that there was a chance his boss, who had been around when I ran away, had told Kyler what I’d done and maybe even why.
I also can understand that until this connection appeared, he might have been battling some serious feelings between betraying his fated mate, who probably hadn’t been a psychopath like mine had been; his obligation to his job; and whatever he was feeling for me.
Maybe it’s the exhaustion I feel toward life right now, but there’s nothing in me that wants to run or resist any longer. I give in. To my feelings, to the bond I can’t exactly feel right at this moment but know is there, and to Kyler. I don’t want to fight anymore. I’ve been fighting for too damn long.
I just want to be done, for someone else to take control.
“Will you help me?” I ask, glancing up at him through my eyelashes.
The way he fights a grin makes me feel even worse for having snapped at him earlier. “Of course. Whatever you need,” he says, sliding his hands under my arms and lifting me from the mattress.
Pain shoots through my shoulder, and I pull away from his touch, but only to relieve the pressure there. “Maybe I could work with fresh clothes and a wet washcloth.”
There are faint aches of discomfort around my ribs, but nothing that will stop me from moving. My shoulder just needs more time. Muscles typically don’t take it well when they’ve been cut in half, even for a wolf shifter.
Kyler lightly squeezes my knee. “Stay right here.”
I watch, expecting him to go to the bathroom for a washcloth, but instead, he goes to the mini-fridge and starts grabbing food. Seriously. How does he know me so well already?
When his back is to me, I notice that bits of his own shirt are stuck to his skin. Either that shirt was sticky when he put it on, or he was hurting much worse than I thought earlier while I’d been focused on myself.
He brings me a premade turkey sandwich, a fresh peach, and a big bag of my favorite potato chips. “Eat this. I’ll get you a change of clothes and stuff to clean up in here with.”
I barely hear him after “eat this,” but I do at least manage to thank him before I begin stuffing my mouth with sourdough, meat, and cheese.
By the time Kyler returns, I’ve already demolished the sandwich and taken a bite of the juicy peach. He grins. “Better?”
I nod, realizing that even my shoulder doesn’t feel as stiff as I sit up cross-legged on the bed and eat. “Food fixes everything,” I say earnestly, taking another nibble out of the sweet fruit.
Kyler takes the spot next to me and looks at me with hopeful eyes. “Everything?”
Like the lady I am, I wipe my mouth with my ruined shirt and set my food down. “Yes, Kyler. I shouldn’t have gotten so angry with you earlier. You had no reason to tell me you knew. It’s not like it’s a huge secret. I’m sure your boss or possibly even someone from East Texas told you. I just…don’t like to talk about it.”
“I’m still sorry,” he replies sweetly. “I should have told you I knew the moment Maciah said something to me. Just so you know, I didn’t know until the phone call I took with him outside.”
That doesn’t really make a difference, but I appreciate him trying to be honest now. I want to say something else, except I’m at a loss for words.
This isn’t me. I don’t get close to people. I never thought I would have a mate again—not even a chosen one.
Though I don’t think that’s what Kyler is. This feels different, stronger. Like the universe has been pushing me toward this moment, and I wasn’t allowed to have it until I decided to finally find my closure to the past. To begin my second chance.
You weren’t ready before, my wolf agrees.
I chuckle. I don’t know that I’m ready now.
We wouldn’t be sitting on this bed if you weren’t, and you know it.
Like usual, she’s right, but that doesn’t mean I’m not terrified.