The girl’s breathing hitched. My spine straightened before I realized I’d moved, fingertips hovering an inch above her collar bone. She had that storybook princess thing going on. If Sleeping Beauty had taken a detour through a woodchipper. Golden corkscrew curls were damp with sweat and blood. Dirt smudged her cute little nose. Her bottom lip had a healing split. A bruise darkened her temple. One ankle was pink and swollen. A red welt sliced along her jaw.
And that’s just what I could see.
I reached for her hand, careful not to wake her despite the anger coursing through me. The only thing I wanted more than to make her assailant pay was to see her eyes open again.
“You’re safe,” I whispered. My voice came out wrong, soft edges where there should’ve been gravel. “I’m here now, beloved. I’ll protect you forever.”
It was a promise I didn’t take lightly. I wasn’t the kind of man who made promises. But for her, I’d carve the words into stone with my fingernails.
Gently, I pressed my lips against her knuckles, feeling the warmth of her skin against my mouth. It was tender and soft, and a shiver of something new went through me, something raw and protective. My free hand drifted to the back of my neck, expecting tension. Found slack muscle instead.
Huh.
I noticed something else peculiar, too: My fists weren’t clenched. Even the low growl that seemed to live in my throat these days was quiet, replaced by something softer, something I didn’t have a name for yet. She did that to me. Calmed the storm without even trying.
And I’d only met her ten minutes ago.
So fast,I thought.It’s happening so fast. But it’s real. I know it is. I feel it in my bones. I feel it in my soul.
“Please, wake up soon,” I murmured. “We need to know your name, sweet girl.”
Even without it, every cell in my body already screamedours.
The silence was broken by the sound of the door swinging open. Zane strode in, a tray balanced in one hand, two bowls stacked haphazardly.
“I made puppy gruel!” He grinned like he’d just discovered the end of the rainbow.
“Puppy gruel?”
“The pup’s important to her,” he said with a shrug as he organized his bowls, “so he’s important to us. That’s how this works, right?”
“Yeah. That’s how it works.” I nodded, a small smile tugging at my lips. I sobered quickly, though, when my eyes caught flashes of red. “She’s bleeding through her shirt and jeans in places.”
“I’ll help you play doctor as soon as Cas gets back with the med kit.” A ceramic bowl clinked. “Come on, fluffster. Soup’s on.”
The pup’s whimper snapped my head around. Zane crouched next to the bed and dribbled broth into the pup’s mouth.
“You’re feeding him like he’s a newborn,” I muttered. “He has teeth. He can chew.”
“He’s weak, and I’m doing my best to keep our beloved’s baby alive.” Zane’s smirk didn’t reach his eyes. “Unless you want to explain to her why the fuzz ball kicked it?”
The pup licked broth off his thumb, and my shoulders dropped an inch. Seeing Zane with his guard down didn’t happen often. He kept himself hidden beneath jokes, teasing, and sarcasm.
“What’s in those bottles?” I grunted.
“That electrolyte drink. Found it in the pantry.” He glanced at the girl, brown eyes sharp with worry. “Figured that would be good for her. Kitchen’s locked and loaded, by the way. Got everything from borscht to beef Wellington. Pretty sure there’s gold leaf in the spice rack. When Goldilocks wakes up? She’s getting five-star room service.”
Her shoe chose that moment to flop off her foot. The sole peeled away like old bark, and Zane snorted.
“Damn, Cinderella! You’rerockingthe post-apocalyptic chic look!”
Picking it up, I studied it. Bloody. Muddy. Shot all to hell.
Had shewalkedto get here? The thought made my chest tighten, even though I knew it was unlikely. She couldn’t have walked half the driveway on that ankle, let alone with all her other injuries.
No, someone brought her to our doorstep, beat her unconscious, and left her there.
As I dropped the shoe to the floor, something hot and sharp flooded my veins. Something familiar. Something welcome.
