I followed them to the door. “If I see you in this town ever again, I won’t bother arresting you,” I said as they reached it. “I will tear you both limb from limb. Now get out of here before I change my mind.”
The dark one, still gripping his hand and muttering under his breath, shot me a glower but didn’t argue. Just as they were about to leave, the other one paused, turning to look at me. Instead of anger or even fear, though, there was something in his eyes. Something close to unease, as if something he had seen had unsettled him.
“There’s something not right with that chick,” the sandy-haired one said. “Her hands—”
“One wrong word about my mate, and I’ll expedite that threat,” I snapped.
His jaws clamped shut, and he marched out.
The bell chimed as the door swung shut behind them, and silence loomed. I didn’t leave it up to chance. I marched toward the windows and watched them, not bothering to conceal myself as they jumped into their car and peeled away. I waited, eyes locked on the windows as I bristled with rage, and my wolf howled, wanting to go after the assholes and tear them to shreds.
The instant my wolf and I were satisfied that they wouldn’t be returning, I turned back and ran to where I had left Rachel.
She was crouching, picking up cans and other items that had fallen. I bent, grabbing the can she had thrown at the shifter. There was a large dent in the side from where it had hit him. Despite everything, despite my anxiety and fear for her, the faintest smirk spread across my lips. At least she didn’t go down without a fight.
She saw me approaching and stilled, a bundle of grocery items tucked against one arm. Her jaw was tight, her shoulders rigid as she waited to see what I was going to do. Frustration radiated off her, but something about her eyes made me feel like the frustration wasn’t just to do with the attack.
I squatted next to her, helping her gather the rest of the items. “Are you okay?” I asked.
She gave a shaky smile that masked the adrenaline and anxiety that I could sense through the bond. “I’m fine,” she said. “I had them right where I wanted.”
My hand reached out and touched the cut along her cheek, which was already turning bright red and a little puffy around the edges. I let out a low, furious growl.
“I should have done a lot worse to those assholes,” I said.
“I’m fine,” she said. “Really.” She gnawed the inside of her cheek as she glanced down at the floor, embarrassment radiating off her, as if ashamed she hadn’t been able to handle it herself. My hand lingered on her cheek for a long moment. “I thought you were supposed to close with someone,” I said. “They shouldn’t have been able to ambush you like this.”
She flushed. “Normally, I do,” she admitted. “But Liv needed to leave early, so I told her I would close on my own.”
I stared, mouth opening slightly in frustration and disbelief. She had decided to close on her own?
“How could you do something like that?” I demanded. “Don’t you know how dangerous that is?”
Her eyes flashed with frustration. “It isn’t like I expected those guys to try and rob the place.”
“They were trying to do a lot more than that,” I barked.
“And they didn’t.” She jutted out her chin as she glared up at me. “I managed to hold them off.”
“Only because I showed up when I did,” I fired back.
Her jaw dropped as her eyes flashed with anger. “I held my own,” she said. “I would have been able to manage on my own.”
Sighing, I pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to get through to her. “You can’t do this sort of thing,” I said. “I got Amelia to teach you that so you could protect yourself when I can’t be there, not so you could put yourself in danger like this, or go up against two shifters nearly three times your size.”
“I wasn’t trying to fight them. I was protecting myself.”
“Apparently not enough. I could feel your fear.”
She gave an exasperated laugh as she flung her hands in the air. “Of course, I was afraid. That doesn’t mean I wasn’t able to handle myself.”
“You aren’t strong enough,” I said. “You should have told me you were closing on your own. I would have come over.”
“I’m more than capable of closing a store on my own without you looming over me,” she snapped.
I gestured all around us, at the handful of items still on the floor.
“For fuck’s sake, it isn’t as though this is an everyday occurrence,” she snarled.
