“Help me.”
Two words, two teeny-tiny words, and I shatter.
The tears fall again, but I don’t feel them soak my pillow as I am weightlessly lifted from the bed and feel the hard chest of a wolf wrap me in his arms.
“Whatever you need, Elodie. I’m right here,” hepromises as I continue to try to rip the burning mark from my skin.
“What’s that on her neck?” Kael asks, and Rion scoffs.
“Are you sure you’ve seen her naked? Because you sure as shit don’t act like it. It’s a fucking tattoo, you doofus.”
“A dove.”
The assessment comes from Thorne, his voice a little farther away than the others, but I whimper at the acknowledgment.
“I hate it. I hate it. I hate it,” I chant, pressing my fingertips into my flesh. “I can’t stand what it represents. I hate the memory of it. I hate the feel of it. Fuck, it burns so bad.”
The panic in my chest grows stronger, even as I press the side of my face into Rion’s chest, praying for some form of reprieve, but it doesn’t come.
“She’s inconsolable. Someone help her,” Ocean hisses as Rion sighs, his breath rushing against the side of my face.
“Why do you always need help in ways I can’t give?” he mutters before I feel a new set of hands wrap around me, carrying me away from his warm chest.
Daring to pry my eyes open again, I find myselfunder the spell of Thorne’s dark pools as he takes a seat on the edge of Ocean’s bed.
I can’t imagine what I look like, still wearing Kael’s stupid t-shirt and crying like a fool. No wonder he forever tries to keep me at arm’s length.
“I can remove the ink. Will it help?” he asks, brushing his thumb over my cheek as I continue to wrap my fingers around my throat, desperate to contain the burning.
Scared, I blink at him, but nod nonetheless as more tears continue to spill down my cheek.
Without a word, Thorne keeps one hand wrapped around my back, holding me in his lap while he brings his free hand to my neck, ghosting over my wrists as he goes. My fingers twitch, not wanting to move, but the need for it to be gone is greater than anything else. With a deep breath, I let my hold fall slack and he wastes no time, nudging my hand out of the way as he runs his fingertips over my heated flesh.
Another whimper. Another chink in my armor. Another flash of my vulnerabilities.
His lips move, nothing more than a breath over my face as he continues to look into my eyes.
I know the moment it’s gone, the very second it no longer exists on my skin anymore, because my muscles loosen, the tightness in my chest evaporates,and the tears stop like the well inside of me ran out. Looking down at my hands, I realize they’re clinging to his t-shirt, holding on for dear life, but I can’t bring myself to let go.
All too quickly, I’m in the air again, pinned against his chest as he carries me back to my bed, but when he tries to lower me, I can’t let go until the flash of black ink on his right arm makes me freeze.
My jaw falls slack as I gape in disbelief. He tries to tug his sleeve down, but it’s not long enough. I can see it as clear as I see him.
“Why do you have that?” I breathe, staring at the exact same tattoo on his skin that I swear wasn’t there before.
He shrugs, shaking his head dismissively. “It had to go somewhere.”
Bile burns the back of my throat. “No, I?—”
He runs his hand over the spot, the black ink fading to nothing, but my gut tells me it’s still there. “Sleep,” he commands, and I shake my head again.
“I can’t.”
“You need to rest,” he insists, unraveling my fingers from the fabric of his t-shirt as he stands, allowing the rest of the room to come into view. Kael, Rion, and Ocean all stand with wide eyes, assessing me as I try to hide the shame I feel.
How can I protect myself from further hurt when I reveal my pains so easily?
“Rest,” Thorne repeats, and I scoff, emotion thick in my throat.
