Luke's Dream (8 page)

If it were true…if all those horrible things
had been done to her, she was holding me responsible for the
actions of the werewolf ghosts haunting her. It was easier to blame
the living than the dead. Where did that leave us? She was still
exhausted and didn’t trust me to hold her interests above my own as
a good Mate should.

Needing to escape her accusing stare, I
turned and yanked open the door. Wood splintered and the metal
warped under my hand. With too much force, I slammed the door
closed behind me and strode to the bike.

Her dreams were tormenting her, and she was
blaming me. It was an impossible scenario in which I couldn’t prove
myself. How could I possibly protect her from the past? The past
was done; there was no protection from it. A frustrated growl
escaped me. I just wanted her to feel safe with me.

Putting on my jacket, I zipped her shoes
inside then mounted the bike.

If she needed to sleep, I’d hold her for as
long as she needed so she slept well. That would take care of the
dreams. Right now, though, she needed to eat. So did I. I started
the engine and glanced at her door.

I’d been caring for her since the moment I
found her. Hopefully, she’d soon see that.

Twisting
the throttle, I tore out of the parking lot and sped to the fast
food restaurant where I ordered some breakfast food and coffee. I
didn’t care for the stuff, but given Bethi’s obsession with
caffeine, I figured she would like it.

Once I had a bag of food, I wolfed down my
sandwich then hurried back to the motel, scenting the road along
the way. I didn’t think she’d run. It was cold out, and I had her
shoes and the jacket. But, I wasn’t completely sure until I opened
the room’s door and found her inside…asleep.

She’d passed out sideways on the bed again,
apparently in the process of putting on layers of socks. I shook my
head and entered the bathroom. From experience, I knew waking her
wouldn’t be easy. I wet my hand in the sink then went to the
bed.

“Bethi,” I called first, just to be sure.
Then, I lightly flicked water at her face.

Her eyes immediately opened. The disoriented
way she glanced around before settling on me worried me.

“You already slept ten hours. How can you
still be this tired?”

“I’m not,” she said, sitting up quickly. “The
dreams take me over sometimes, no matter how rested I am.”

I held out the cup of coffee. She didn’t move
to take it but continued to gaze at me.

“I thought you left to get the rest of your
men.”

I sighed and sat beside her on the bed.

“What men?” I asked.

She looked down at her hands, and I heard her
pulse pick up. Studying her slumped shoulders and twisting fingers,
I waited.

“Never mind,” she said.

“Bethi, I really am here to help you. No
strings. I just don’t know how.”

She looked at me with a frown.

“You are helping me,” she said. “If not for
you, I’d be walking.”

That wasn’t what I’d meant, but I didn’t
clarify. Instead, I handed her the cup.

“I thought coffee might help.”

This time she accepted it and took a large
swallow. When she flinched, I knew it had been too hot. Next time
I’d add ice.

“I brought you something to eat, too,” I
said, opening the bag and pulling out a plastic carton.

She stared at it as if I’d poisoned the food,
but she couldn’t hide the subtle change in her scent. I knew she
was interested in eating it. I continued to hold out the container
and grinned when she reached for it.

She popped the lid open and sighed as she
stared at the stacked breakfast sandwich inside. Her stomach
growled, and mine echoed it. The one I’d eaten hadn’t been enough
to make up for all the lost meals. After she set her coffee between
her knees and the container in her lap, she grabbed her food with
two hands. The way she bit into it like a starved pup had me
smiling slightly. I let the satisfaction of feeding her roll over
me. I needed to make sure I kept her fed from now on.

When she threw the carton in the garbage, I
stood and picked up her bag as I reached inside my jacket and
pulled out her shoes.

“Gee, thanks,” she said, taking back her
footwear.

I grinned at her and handed her the jacket as
well. Inhaling subtly to gauge her mood, I realized something.
Despite her declaration of mistrust and often surly temperament,
she wasn’t afraid of me anymore. The scent no longer clung to her
like a wet blanket. Her cinnamon and vanilla flavor often shifted
with many other emotions, though. Frustration, annoyance, and anger
were still ever present.

While Bethi peeled off her extra socks, I
shouldered her bag and left the room to head to the office.

The clerk looked up as I entered and accepted
the key I handed over.

“The door stuck a little this morning,” I
said. “When I pulled harder, some of the trim gave way. Not sure if
you want to check the door for damages before we leave.”

He waved away the offer. “Nah. They do stick
sometimes. I’ll have the maintenance guy look at it when he comes
in later today.”

I nodded my thanks and turned to leave. I’d
found it was easier to avoid charges when admitting to breaking
something obvious than it was to try to pretend it didn’t
happen.

Outside, Bethi stood behind the bike. The
jacket hung low on her hips and made her look even more childlike.
She had her hands buried deep in the pockets and bounced a little
in place to stay warm. We needed to find her more clothes.

She moved aside as I got on the bike then
quickly mounted behind me. I motioned to the bag already draped
across my body. She sighed heavily but lifted the bag over her
head. She’d already proved ten hours of sleep wasn’t enough to keep
her awake. I wasn’t about to let her fall off the bike.

Once she had the strap around her, I
tightened it. She pressed to me and, just like yesterday, laid her
cheek on my back. The cool feel of her skin worried me. She grew
too cold too fast.

I pulled away from the motel, heading
northwest toward the Compound. Behind me, Bethi lifted her head and
moved around a bit. Nothing dangerous, but unusual. I glanced in
the side mirror and saw her eyes closed as the wind beat her face.
She was also biting her lip.

“What are you doing?” I asked, turning my
head so she would hear me.

“Trying to stay awake.”

Hurting herself to avoid sleep seemed a bit
drastic to me, but I kept that opinion to myself and focused on
driving. She continued to wiggle behind me as the miles flew past.
I tried not to notice. I tried to separate myself from the moment
by thinking of all the things I needed to do to prepare for a life
with a Mate. A job. Money. A home. She was young so I had plenty of
time. But I wanted to stay close to her. That thought just brought
me back to the closeness we shared at the present and how her chest
felt pressed against my back. I shifted in my seat, trying to ease
some of the pain that had started.

When she finally stopped wiggling and slumped
against me, I knew she’d given into sleep. Exhaling, I tried to
relax. If she was next to me, hopefully she would sleep easy.

Her hand fell loosely between my legs. I
flinched. The bike swerved, and I swore.

The chill of her fingers penetrated my pants.
How could it feel so good and so terrible at the same time?

I signaled and pulled over to the shoulder.
Standing slightly, I dislodged her hand and dug the phone out of my
pocket.

We would never make it to the Compound like
this.

My hand shook as I dialed a number I’d
memorized and waited for the call to ring through.

“Hello, Luke,” Joshua said. “How can I help
you today?”

“I’m in a bit of a bind and need a car.”

“A car?”

“Yeah. I’m in…” I looked around, trying to
remember the state. “I think I’m in Iowa. I found a girl like
Gabby, and she’s not doing well on the motorcycle I borrowed from
the Compound.”

“A girl like Gabby? Of course I’ll help,” he
said.

And that was what I liked about Joshua. He
didn’t ask pointless questions like how I’d managed to find Bethi
or why I didn’t immediately report her to the Elders. His
discretion meant that I didn’t need to snitch on Gabby or reveal my
way around some of the commands the Elders had given.

By the time I ended the call, he’d arranged
to have someone who also wouldn’t ask questions to meet us in the
next town.

I put my phone away and loosened the strap
holding Bethi to my back, then pulled her onto my lap. The wind had
tangled her hair and chapped her cheeks. I pressed my cheek to
hers, worried that she was cold. Warmth met my skin, and I pulled
back to place a kiss on her forehead.

“Hang in there, luv,” I said, leaning back
and tapping her face.

It took a few tries before her eyes fluttered
open.

“We need help. A car. This isn’t working,” I
said.

“No, this is fine,” she slurred. She looked
around and tugged at the strap that was still binding us together.
Her moves were absent and tired.

“Can you make it twenty minutes without
falling back to sleep?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” she said, meeting my gaze.
“It seems worse with you.”

“Worse? When I’m near you, you don’t cry out.
I thought your dreams calmed when I—”

She probably wouldn’t like to hear that I
held her while she slept. And I couldn’t afford to think of what
had happened the last two times she’d fallen asleep on the
bike.

She seemed to think things over for a minute.
I thought she was about to agree when her scent changed.
Determination clouded the air.

“I changed my mind,” she said. “I will Claim
you.”

Need slammed into me. Agreement bubbled up
inside.

“No,” I said, rather loudly, before I could
stop myself. Claiming me now would be a very bad idea. I doubted I
would recall her age at the feel of her teeth sinking into my skin.
I glanced at her full lips and wanted to groan. I could imagine how
it would feel to have her at my neck.

Her pulse picked up to match the rapid beat
of mine. I would have liked to think it was because the idea of
Claiming me excited her, but I knew better. In all the emotions I’d
scented from her, desire wasn’t one of them. She wasn’t ready for
that. She was too young.

Unable to help myself, I brushed a loose
strand of hair from her face, giving into my need to touch her. She
turned her head, nuzzling my hand. Her trusting exhale had my
fingers shaking as I gently smoothed her hair back from her cheek.
It would be so easy to cradle the back of her head and lift her
closer. To my mouth or my neck? I couldn’t decide.

The feel of her fingers on my arm interrupted
the direction of my thoughts, and I realized the dangerous lure of
our current position. Quickly boosting her off my lap, I set her on
her feet beside the bike.

The strap didn’t give us much room, and her
face was entirely too close to my neck. My breathing hitched when
her exhale tickled my skin. I was already bringing my hand up to
protect my sensitive skin when I heard her pulse jump. Her scent
sharpened as she darted forward. Using speed, I brought my hand to
her face, blocking her attempt to Claim me. I hated myself.

She pulled back angrily.

“What’s your problem? I know you feel the
pull. This
is
what’s supposed to happen.”

I slipped the strap over my head, freeing us
as she continued to glare at me.

“No, it is not. Why did you change your
mind?” Claiming wasn’t something to be taken lightly.

“I’m tired of dying. It hurts. What don’t you
understand? Every time I close my damn eyes, I feel every anguished
moment of one of our past lives. Claiming you will make the dreams
better.”

She shuffled closer, and for a moment I
thought she’d raise her hands to my face. But she saved us both
from where that would lead and kept her arms loosely at her
side.

“Please, Luke,” she said softly.

I would do anything for her. Anything but
take more advantage than I already had.

Glancing at the trees, I struggled to find a
way to put her off. Not forever. Just a little longer.

“I promised I only wanted to help you. And I
will. The dreams are better when I sleep near you. We will keep
doing that,” I said without meeting her gaze. “Climb on.”

She pouted at me for a few moments until an
almost-smile lifted her features.

“Okay,” she said. “Let’s keep going.”

She climbed onto the back of the bike, and
her pulse jumped as her scent intensified again. With speed, I
gently caught her face in the palm of my hand again.

“Stop that,” I said, gruffly.

My rejection didn’t seem to bother her. She
leaned back and slipped the strap over her head.

“Tighten it up,” she said, sounding
triumphant. Without the strap, she would fall. Yet, we both knew
where the tight strap would put her. Far too close.

My hand shook as I cinched the strap. She
didn’t make her move right away. She waited until my feet were off
the ground, and I was pulling away from the shoulder. But, thanks
to her pulse and scent, I knew a moment before she moved to try to
bite me and blocked her while still keeping the bike on the
road.

Undeterred by her failed attempt, she
repeatedly tried for success. The base of my neck tingled with
anticipation. I wanted her teeth there very badly. However, her
reasons for wanting to Claim me were all wrong. Had she been
several years older, I wouldn’t have cared if her reasons were
wrong or not. She wasn’t older, though, and I couldn’t bring myself
to use her fear to obtain what I wanted.

When she finally gave up, she leaned her
forehead against my back. She was cold again.

“I’m going under,” she said, relaxing.