Page 36 of August
He considered her fears for a moment. Because he wanted to immediately tell her that of course she was safe, of course he would do everything in his power to make sure that they were going to have a good, long, and happy life together. But he didn’t want to dismiss her fears since they were valid. He couldn’t be everywhere at once, and it wasn’t fair to keep her sequestered in the private living area like a criminal.
“I don’t want you to worry about our people or any other shifters having an issue with what’s going on. I could tell you some stories about the things we’ve all had to deal with when it comes to soulmates or assholes trying to get to someone in the park. You’re my soulmate. Not only would I do anything to keep you safe, but it’s important to the others too. I’ve always had everyone’s back, whether they’re gorillas or not, and they’ve got mine and yours too.” He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and smiled gently. “It’s okay to be afraid because there are some things we can’t control, but trust in me and our people. Because I’m damn sure going to do my best to keep you safe, and I do think that we’ll get to the point in time when your grandfather isn’t an issue anymore and you can feel truly safe.”
Her eyes were shining when he finished speaking. “I’ve got a lot of baggage. Are you sure you want to get tangled up with me?”
He ran his thumb lightly over the mark his gorilla had made on her neck and she shivered. “One thousand percent.” He paused, because this was not the most romantic of situations, but things needed to be said. “Ginny, I’m falling in love with you. Hell, my gorilla is already head over heels for you. There isn’t anything on this earth that I wouldn’t do to be with you, trust in that.”
She smiled and blinked rapidly. Then she whispered, “I’m falling for you too.”
Sweet female.
He pulled her in for a kiss, slow and tender, and when he felt her melt in his arms and heard the barely audible sigh from her jackal, he broke the kiss. The hug that followed made him feel like she was finally relaxing a little, that he’d been able to say something that resonated with her and made her feel better, and that made him feel like he was ten feet tall.
His phone beeped, alerting them to the front gates opening to let in patrons. There were a few people waiting to get in already.
“It’s going to be a long day, I think,” she said as she swiveled the chair to face the monitors.
“Yeah, but we’ll keep each other company.”
“No funny business in there,” Justus called from the other room. “I can hear everything.”
Ginny’s cheeks pinked.
August grinned. “Spoilsport,” he called.
“Damn straight.”
Ginny winked at August and then turned her gaze to the monitors.
It was going to be a long day, but that was okay with him. However long it took for them to stop her grandfather, that’s how long he’d be by her side.
His gorilla let out a low hoot in his mind, ready for whatever might come.
Ginny was powerfully bored. They’d been watching the security monitors for days and she’d seen neither hide nor hair of anyone from her former pack. She’d told August what the males who were closest to her grandfather, highest ranked and most powerful, looked like, but he couldn’t really look for someone based on her recollection of what their appearance was. She did remember that one of his high-ranked males had a scar on his cheek from a rank fight, and another had burn scars on one hand from being injured before he was old enough to shift.
She hadn’t had any friends in the pack except her brother. She’d been homeschooled by her mom and had finished high school when she was sixteen, then got her GED so she could get a job. Her grandfather had allowed her to work for the coffee shop because it was run by pack members, and she’d enjoyed talking to people and learning how to make different coffee drinks.
It hadn’t been what she’d wanted to do with her life, but she hadn’t experienced enough of the world outside her pack to even begin to know what she’d like to do. But spending time with August over the last week had made her want to learn how to fix things.
“Do you think,” she said, rubbing her eyes with the heels of her hands and then turning to face him, “that we could spend time in the storage building again?”
He faced her, the chair squeaking as it turned. “It is a secure building,” he said. “If we had an escort, I suppose that would be okay. Hell, it’s been three days and we haven’t seen anyone come into the park or had any other things happen like the food tampering.”
“I don’t want us to let our guard down,” she said. “I was just wondering if I could learn how to fix things, like refinishing the carousel horses and figuring out how to put it together. If you’d teach me.”
“I’d love to do that. We need to check with Jupiter about security. The alphas aren’t ready to declare your grandfather not a threat anymore, but we could maybe spend a little time there.”
“You do know how to put it together?”
He chuckled. “There’s a huge manual, I mean like six inches thick, with details on how to care for the horses and maintain the carousel. I was part of the group that took it apart and put it away. I’d love to teach you how to put things together.” He paused and then said, “What made you ask? Are you bored?”
“I’m definitely bored staring at screens all day, but also I like that you can fix things. I’d like to fix things too. How did you learn, anyway?”
“My uncle taught me a lot before he died, but I guess I’ve always been handy. I like seeing a problem and being able to fix it. I’m not as handy with vehicle repair as Zane is, so while I can do routine maintenance on the park vehicles, I mostly like to fix other stuff.”
“I think I’d like that too. I’d like to be an expert at something.”
“What do you mean?”