Mine!
Niall’sgutburnedatthe pleading in her voice, the yearning in her tone when she spoke of her university course.When he’d talked to Saber Mitchell, he’d told the man the truth.Saber had revealed that Suzie had worked hard to gain her scholarship despite her parents’ disapproval.She hadn’t attended the gathering to search for a mate, but she’d gone because Saber and his fellow council member had asked her to represent their town.
Niall had been blunt and confessed to Saber Mitchell what his bear had been chanting in his brain since they’d encountered Suzie wandering through his home.
“Mine.Mine.Mine!”
“Yes,” Niall said with a tired sigh.“Message received.”
The instant attraction to the young woman had thrown him and led to his lack of usual caution.However, he’d asked her to sign the non-disclosure—a point in his favor.When he’d discovered her nimble brain and efficient work ethos that had knocked him over to his bear’s way of thinking.
He’d never imagined encountering a mate and hadn’t actively searched.The single shifters who inhabited his castle hadn’t enticed him to start an elusive mate hunt.Suzie had crept into his world, and everything had changed.
What he hadn’t told her was that he was keeping her not only because of his honey project but also because he feared the problems he’d face with his shifter half if he let her return to New Zealand.
Yeah, he’d told Saber Mitchell the truth and gained the man’s grudging approval on the condition he agreed to let Suzie continue her music studies.Niall made a promise, unsure of how to fulfill it.
Now, he rubbed his temples to alleviate the nagging pain that had settled there to plague him.His headaches were many and varied.His honey.Suzie.His promise to Saber Mitchell made in good faith.
“Mine.Mine.Mine!”
“Yes,” Nial muttered.“I hear you.”
He’d locked Suzie in that room again, feeling bad even though he’d gone ahead.Now guilt trailed him like a bee on a mission.
What the hell was his next move?
He pressed his fingers into the aching spot at his temples.
Saber Mitchell had confided about Suzie’s family and their pressure on her to conform.Their expectations for her didn’t gel with her dreams and ambitions.Suzie’s family was fiercely traditional, and their idea of a dutiful daughter followed their vision for her future.According to Saber, the family’s expectations had led to teenager Suzie fighting them every step of the way.
The ache in his head intensified, and his bear restarted his stubborn chanting.“Mine.Mine.Mine.”
Niall understood family trouble since he’d struggled with his large, boisterous family from childhood.Because he was the runt, his three older brothers had given him hell.The rest of the family took their cue from his brothers.They bossed him around and tormented him physically and mentally until he’d taken to hiding.His parents had done nothing to stop the bullying.No, they’d expected every cub to fend for themselves.It made their offspring strong.
Once Niall was old enough, he’d relocated from Canada to Scotland.He hadn’t heard from his family since and wouldn’t trust anyone who did try to contact him.
And this led him back to Suzie.
Could he trust her?Yes, she’d signed papers, but that had never stopped a determined person from making a quick buck.An employee had sold confidential information before, so he was adamant about keeping his new honey under wraps.
“Mine.Mine.Mine!”
Niall cursed and pushed the wild, insistent part of his psyche to the back of his mind.He could hardly romance her to their way of thinking when he didn’t trust her.
No.This was it.He was out of options.He needed to keep Suzie at the castle and glued to his side where he could supervise her interactions with others.At this late stage, he couldn’t risk anything going wrong.It was everything he’d worked for, the goal he’d striven toward his entire life, and nothing—no one—would mess with him or his honey.
When Niall released Suzie from her room the next morning, he wasn’t sure what to expect.His head thumped with the ferocity of a hundred bee stings, and the lack of sleep because of his guilty conscience left him short in the temper department.
“When are you releasing me?”
He noted her packed suitcase sitting by the bed.“Once my honey goes on the market.”Niall managed not to snarl, but it was a close-run thing.“Right now, we’re heading to the office.I need to work, and you can type my notes for me.”
“No.”
“Saber mentioned you’re a reasonable woman who’d recognize this as the best way to proceed.”
The color blanched from her face, leaving her pale, the scarlet slash of lipstick the only color on her face.Even her vibrant green eyes seemed to lose their spark.
