“Yes. They worked as midwives. My cousin, she still lives in Puerto Rico, carries on their work. Though I don’t believe any of them are anywhere near as powerful as you are. They’ve certainly never saved anyone from a fatal injury.”
The admiration in his gaze was so unexpected, she didn’t quite know what to say. Nobody had ever accepted her. In high school she’d been the freak, in college and after she’d kept her abilities tightly under wraps, and when she’d moved back…well, that had effectively turned the people who’d considered her a freak into people who used her to scare their kiddies into behaving.
He must have mistaken her contemplation, for he lay back against the pillows and sighed. “Do it.”
“What?”
“Do it again. Whatever you did before. Make me weak.”
“What?”
“I want you to understand that I do not fear you or find you disgusting. I will never hurt you. I owe you everything, and I’m ready to swear on my father’s grave I won’t harm you. However, if you feel threatened or nervous around me—and don’t tell me you’re not wary of me—I give you full permission to make me weak again. Now or whenever.”
She stared at him, stunned. The fact he was willing to voluntarily give up his strength, submit to her mercy, for no other reason than to make up for her hurt feelings and make her feel safe—her, a woman he barely knew—it was just unbelievable. She’d never heard of such a thing.
She didn’t bother trying to see his aura. For the first time in her life, she wondered if she could trust someone from their words alone. “You mean that?”
“I would have died without you.”
All right, that solemn, devoted look was a bit too much for her. “You’re exaggerating. You weren’t really that bad off. If you were, I wouldn’t have been able to do a thing.”
“So youareadmitting you did something?”
What the hell. His little-boy eagerness was so damn endearing she could barely resist eating him up with a spoon. “Yeah. I’ll admit it.”
“That’s…amazing. Have you ever done anything like this before?”
“Not of this magnitude. Plus, my abilities have been on the blink for a few years.”
“Think of what you could do for those who are suffering—”
“Stop right there.” She held up her hand. “You said you owe me, right?”
A guarded look crossed his face. “Yes.”
“I want to collect. I need your vow that you won’t tell anyone else about me. You can tell them I’m fearsome, that I can kill men with a single look, but not about the rest of it.”
“Why?”
She hesitated, but decided she could give him a little bit of the truth. “My safety depends on it. Right now, most people in your town fear me. They call me a witch and stay away. I’ve encouraged that for reasons of my own. If you blab that I’m pulling in strays and mending them, then I don’t know who would come out here and try to hurt me.”
His face darkened. “Nobody will hurt you.”
“The best way to ensure that is for you to keep quiet about me. You can say you came across an abandoned cabin or whatever you want. Just don’t mention me.”
“Deal. Though I will not consider my debt paid, since this is such a small thing.”
She rolled her eyes. “It’s not a small thing to me.”
“One thing though—I’d rather you not go outside. Especially if you make me weak like I was before. Whoever shot me could still be out there.”
She stiffened. “You said it was a hunter.”
“What’s to stop an unscrupulous hunter from coming and poaching out here?”
Nothing. And if it was someone who wasn’t familiar with her reputation…aww, fuck. “I’ll do my best to stay inside,” she allowed. She couldn’t let the animals go hungry.
“Okay, then. Do it if you want.”
