Randall nodded his head, and she looked back at him like it wasn’t going to end well if he did. Page knew that, and she was okay with that. She wanted him to give her pleasure. Page didn’t know if she was ever going to get over the amazing way that Randall made her feel. She certainly never wanted to forget it.
***
The shower took longer than Page thought it would. She was hoping that it would make it easier to pull him away, but Randall only had one thing and one thing only on his mind. Even though they both knew that they needed to get away as quickly as possible, it was like Randall had too much desire for that. He couldn't think straight, and it was supposed to be Page's job to call him back to reality, but she couldn't do it either. It just felt too good. How could she tell him no, when all she wanted to do was say yes?
So, the only thing that made it possible was the very fact that the water went cold, and they had to get out. If that hadn’t been the case, Page didn't know how it would have turned out. She was actually thankful for it when she thought about it, and she was finally able to catch her breath. Her husband seemed to be full of far more need than seemed normal or possible.
When they got out, they still had just as many problems as when they went in, but at least they were more relaxed about the possibility of people chasing them. Page tried her best to focus on other things. It was impossible though. Even as they got ready, she got dressed and they put the few belongings she had brought with her into a bag. Page couldn’t pull her emotions together. She would likely never be back, and it didn't change anything. How long had she been trying to get out of there desperately?
Now that she was leaving, it felt a lot different than she thought it would. Page thought that she had a horrible husband to look forward to that would be more like her father. That's not what she got at all. Instead, she got an old love she didn't think she would ever see again. It really didn't get much better than that. Page was happy with how it all turned out. Her future looked bright. She wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. If they could leave, the best thing they could do right then was to get out of there. Page felt that in every part of her.
“Are you okay? You keep looking up.”
Page stopped and shrugged. There was no way that she was going to say it out loud what she was thinking. Randall would probably get it in his head, and his ego would grow exponentially. She didn’t want to deal with that, even if she thought it was pretty unlikely.
“I just want to get out of here. I never thought that I would be able to leave and actually go somewhere I wanted to go, with someone I wanted to go with. It feels like this can be taken from us, so let’s just get out of here before something happens and we can’t.”
Randall smiled and told her that it was going to be fine. “You know, things are going to be a little rocky for a while. My brother is not going to be so happy about this and I can tell you now your dad isn't either. I'm not too worried about it. Whatever happens, happens, but let's not pretend that we get to go immediately to our new home. It's going to take a little finessing for this to work, but at least we will be together.”
Page told him that as long as the two of them were together, she didn't care where they were or what they were doing. It wasn't a place; it was a person that she considered her home. Now that they were mated and she would soon be havinghis children, Page didn't want them to get separated again. She wouldn't stand for it. Page was never going to leave Randall’s side.
Chapter 11
Randall
Randall couldn't help feeling waves of guilt. It wasn't because he had gotten what he deemed he deserved; it was because of how he had done it. Randall hated what he had been made to do. It felt beneath him and the more he thought about it, the worse off he felt about it. What was he thinking?
He kept trying to get a hold of his sister, but she wasn't picking up and that, of course, sent his mind into a full tailspin. Randall wanted to believe that it was no big deal and that his sister just didn't answer but after a few times calling and her not picking up, he actually waited for his brother to answer instead. Ben would do about anything if he suspected that there was a betrayal underneath it. Their sister had already thrown everything to the wind once before and he likely was looking for information from her. Randall hoped that she would be able to keep it to herself for just a little bit longer. Ethan would be freed, it really had very little to do with him. It had to do with Page and Randall losing her. Now that she was in his arms, their mating consummated, there was nothing that could be done, so Randall didn't care. He had what he wanted. Page was the prize.
***
Page and Randall took off before too much could be thought about it. Page was nervous. She wouldn’t say it, but there was definitely something on her mind, something that she didn’t want to say. Randall could see that she wasn’t anxious, like she knew she wanted to go. It was the sort of relief that came when she was happy to be going somewhere. Page hoped that there was nothing else that could be done but to get far away from there. That was what she told Randall anyway, with a smile on her face.
“Why do you want to leave your home so bad? Aren’t you going to miss it?” He was confused by how she was acting.
Page shook her head. “Not likely. My mother died when I was ten, and I moved back here with my father. He changed, harder than ever before and since I was the only girl and I reminded him of mom, he always hated me I think. Then, when he wanted to get close to your family, he offered me up to Ethan. I think he is happy to be rid of me, but I am happy to be rid of him too, so I think that we are even.”
Randall thought that it was the saddest thing that he had heard, and he wanted to wrap her up in his arms, but she wouldn’t take it well. He just had to let her process it, while he tried hard to get to know her.
“I am sorry that you had to deal with that. I am glad that you are finally out of there now. It sounds like your father didn’t know how to take care of you. I do. I will do a good job of it, Page.”
She grinned and said that he was already doing just that. It was what Randall wanted to hear. He smiled in her direction, but there was really nothing that she could do. Page held her mouth shut, but her smile said it all.
They decided on going to a few places to visit, before they tried to check the temperature of her dad and his brother. Randall thought that they would be able to go to his home eventually, but he knew that Ben was going to need some time to pull himself together. He was going to be mad at what he saw as a betrayal, even though that was not how he took it. He only did what he had to do.
“We should just look at it like an extended honeymoon. Most people get a weekend or even a week, but we can have as long as we want. I am just going to look at the bright side.”
Page agreed, but then again, she was worried that she was pushing it to feel better. Was there something else she could do to calm herself? It was hard to focus when Page was thinking about too many other things. She was thinking about the amazing night with Randall and also how her father was going to react when he found out that she had married someone else. It was not going to end well. He was going to be offended and the guy, Ethan, had his own way of dealing with it.
The car was silent as they drove to a B&B that Page had picked out. It was on the way and neither one of them wanted to stick around to find out how Ben and her father were going to handle their deception. Page knew that it was actually great to be gone. She finally asked Randall how he was feeling or if he felt any different. He said that he felt different, but better than he ever had before. “I am still trying to get over the fact that we are mated. That’s wild to me.”
Page agreed, “What do you think is going to happen when Ethan finds out?” Page wanted to know. She really needed to get some answers, so her mind wouldn’t take all of it as something bad. She was anxious that something was going to ruin her newfound happiness.
Randall shrugged like it didn’t matter to him one way or another. He didn’t want to think about all of the things that could happen. He wasn’t worried about Ethan. Of all the many people that he had pissed off in the last few weeks, his half-brother was not the worst one and certainly not the one that he was worried about. He had bigger fish to fry. His brother Ben was ruthless on occasion when he had to be, and Page’s dad was willing to torture his own daughter. Neither one of them was someone to push aside; Ethan was.
Ethan was too human to be a shifter, he didn’t understand the downsides of it, all of the rules. If he wanted his wife, he would have to kill Ben and take her. Page would never agree to it, and he wouldn’t be able to force her. Randall hated the idea of him not being dead. He worried about what would happen to Page and what her father would do to her. At least Ben had finally in the end let their sister have the love and freedom that she desired. She’d fallen for a soldier and Ben had let it stand. There were consequences and a way to redeem themselves, but he had forgiven them in the end.
Randall didn’t know what his brother would want in return for him to keep Page, but he knew that there wasn’t anything that he wouldn’t do to make it happen. As much as he liked to be mad at him because of the decisions he made, Randall knew that his brother was a good man down deep. He just had to focus on what it all meant. He worried that he was going to piss Ben off, and it would never be the same with them. He didn’t want to ruin their relationship. Maybe if Ethan wasn’t around…
