I eventually slip into a restless sleep, and dream of Radcliffe. I dream of his hands around my neck, crushing the life from me; of being trapped in my mind like Trinity was, my scribe raised against another omega, just as Trinity raised a gun against Grace Cassidy.
Unable to stay in the room a moment longer, I grab my blankets and tiptoe downstairs, arranging a makeshift nest on the couch. I’m just crawling under the covers when Marcus shuffles into the room. He’s groggy, his gray-green eyes narrow and bleary, dressed only in a tee shirt and a pair of loose sleep shorts.
“Juniper? Are you all right?”
“I’m fine,” I lie, feeling awful for having woken him. “Go back to bed. I’m sorry I woke you.”
He shakes his head and waves off my protest, coming to take the other end of the couch. He picks up my blanket-wrapped legs, sits down, and settles my legs back down on his lap. I go to curl them up around my chest, but he holds them still.
“What’s wrong, sweet-tart?” he asks, his voice rough with sleep.
“I want to stay at the pack house full time. My nest doesn’t feel safe anymore. Not after what Radcliffe did to it. I can’t… I can’t be in there alone anymore.”
Marcus nods his understanding. “Then we’ll pack in the morning and head over. You deserve to feel safe.” He crooks his fingers and beckons me to him. I go, sitting up so I can curl against him. He wraps an arm around me and pulls me close. “Is there anything I can do?”
I shake my head. Marcus Haley is already doing more than he knows. Just being close to him like this, breathing in his towering-pine-and-winter-wind scent, is soothing the worst of my fears. “I know I’m safe here with you, with the new blood ward. Saints, Rad is hundreds of miles away. It’s just…”
“Your safe space was infiltrated and doesn’t feel safe anymore.”
I nod against him.
We’re quiet for a moment, and then Marcus tenses against me. I look up into his eyes. “What is it?”
He looks down, his lashes a spiky fan against his strong cheekbones. “If you move into the pack house,” he says in a low voice, “you’ll have your alphas around you all the time. I’m afraid you won’t need me anymore.”
I cuddle closer to him, wishing my heart wasn’t betraying me, wishing it wasn’t beating a mile a minute, my pulse pounding in my ears at his quiet admission. I only ever thought about how I needed Marcus, never that he might need me to need him. I rely so much on him and for him to need that from me... Surely, that means something?
But it can’t. Saints, though I wish it could, it can’t mean anymore more than friendship. No matter the closeness between the two of us, it can never be anything more than this. Not with an alpha who was chosen for this job specifically because of his immunity toward me.
“I’ll always need you, Marcus,” I admit.
He hugs me tightly and for a moment we share breath. Our eyes meet and if he were any other alpha, I’d be certain he was going to kiss me, instead he drops a sweet peck on my forehead and tells me, “Get some sleep, sweet-tart. I’ve got you.”
And even though I shouldn’t be falling asleep tangled up with Marcus Haley, I do exactly as he says.
CHAPTER7
Ipack as soon as I wake, and just like that, with no ceremony or heaviness of heart, Marcus and I head toward the SUV with a few of our bags. Looking back at my cottage, I know I can come back any time. I’m not stuck at the pack house just because I’m moving a few of my things over there. Still, when I cross the bridge toward the parking lot, a bag in each hand, a deep sense of finality settles inside me.
I don’t even think I’ll miss the little cottage I turned into a cozy home for me and Marcus before Rad destroyed it. It’s one more thing Rad has ruined, and that’s what breaks my heart.
Cassian meets us in the garage and immediately takes my bags from me. Marcus beckons and I follow him to the basement where a brand-new punching bag hangs from the ceiling, two pairs of boxing gloves and hand tape resting on a small shelf nearby.
I beam at the new addition to the pack house’s in-home gym. Marcus smiles and gives my shoulder a squeeze, then leads me upstairs.
Cassian pulls me into a warm hug. “I’m happy to have you here, but you’re okay, right? You didn’t go into much detail on the phone.”
I frown and work my lower lip between my teeth. “I just don’t feel safe in my cottage anymore.”
Cassian nods tightly. “I understand. I took your bags up to the nest. I’m sure you’ll want to unpack, but I got a call from Detective Miller this morning. I advised him not to contact you over the summer since we weren’t sure if your messages were being intercepted, so he’s been using me as a go-between. He’s curious about Radcliffe Industries. Are you up for answering a few questions for him?”
“I don’t know what answers I’ll be able to give him, but if you think it’d be helpful, I don’t mind.”
“Just tell him what you told us. Every little bit helps.”
“After that, and after my trip up to Marmora’s Point with Luca, we’re talking about the resistance.”
Cassian lets out a frustrated but resigned huff and finally nods. “We can talk at dinner. I know you’ve made your mind up about this. I just… Junes, I worry.”
