A sound leaves my throat, images of glinting silver assaulting me. “It’s not a pretty story. It doesn’t belong in your beautiful head.”
“My story isn’t that pretty, either. I can take it.” She takes me by the hand and I let her lead me away. “But first I’m going to bandage you up.”
I don’t know where Lainey is taking me, and I don’t care. I’ll follow her to the ends of the earth, so I’m content to watch her cute backside swish back and forth in the moonlight and marvel over the fact that she’s mine. The solitude I’ve known for so long in the woods has come to an end as of tonight, but that’s a problem I will solve tomorrow. I’ll do whatever I have to do to keep Lainey, though. That is a fact set in stone.
After about ten minutes of walking around the camp perimeter, we reach a small cabin, with a sign on the door that reads INFIRMARY. Lainey pulls a key ring out of her pocket, unlocks the door and goes inside, turning on a dim lamp that fills the room with a glow. I duck through the tiny doorframe behind her, taking in the room full of beds, the shelves full of medicine and supplies. Without sitting on one of the beds, I know they will not hold my weight easily, so I pull my shirt off and lean back against the counter. Lainey has been collecting antiseptic and bandages from the shelf, but when she turns and sees me naked from the waist up, she gasps and freezes.
“I’ve never seen you in the light before.” She rolls her lips together. “You have so much hair.”
“There’s a lot of me to cover.”
Her laughter is halting. “You don’t say.” When she comes closer, I see that her nipples are in tight peaks, causing my cock to lengthen, preparing to fuck my mate. “Oh, wow. Okay,” she says, watching the front of my pants tent. “I guess your injury isn’t that bad?”
“I could hack off a limb and still get hard for you while I’m bleeding out.”
Her mouth forms an O. “How…romantic.”
I grunt, trying to decide if she’s being serious. Her nipples are still hard and her thighs won’t stay still in those tight, black shorts, so I don’t think she minded what I said. Still, the reminder about being romantic reminds me of something. “I brought you a gift.”
She sets down what she’s holding on the counter. “You did?”
Nodding, I pull the present out of my pocket, holding it up. “For you.”
“Is that hair?” Her nose wrinkles, but it’s not long before understanding dawns on her face. “Is that…Manny’s ponytail?”
“Yes.” Just thinking of the way he looked at her this afternoon tightens bolts in my temples until red bleeds into my vision. It took all my willpower not to crush his skull on the banks of the lake, but I knew murdering him in front of the campers would displease Lainey. “He will not bother you again.”
Finally, she accepts the ponytail, laying it down on the counter. “Is he…did you…?”
“He is alive, but in considerable pain.” After not touching Lainey for so long, I’m starting to grow restless, so I snag a finger in her tiny shorts and pull her close, sighing when she lays a cheek on my belly. “He lusted for what is mine. His consequences were well deserved.”
I’m alarmed when her body begins to shake, until I realize she’s laughing. “Some guys show up with roses. You bring me hair.”
“Roses are more traditional, are they?” My mouth feels unfamiliar. I’m…smiling. “These are things I will learn.”
“Don’t. Don’t learn anything. Don’t…change.” Ducking her head, she pulls away and prepares a bandage before coming back and pressing it to my wound. I can’t take my attention off her, she’s so beautiful in her concentration, a little line running down the middle of her eyebrows. My dick is still firm and pulsing with blood, but now I’m torn between wanting to fuck her and rock her like a baby. “Will you tell me about the scars now?”
Pressure eases down on my chest, my throat closing. “I was always bigger than everyone. Much bigger. It was…hard. Whenever someone new moved to my neighborhood in Detroit and wanted to prove themselves, they picked a fight with me. I never lost and people started to hate me. Fear me.” I swallow and focus on the sensation of her fingers on my side. “I thought things would be different when I joined the Marines. Thought they might have some value for my size. And they did.” I pause, recalling the title I haven’t used in a decade. “Lance Corporal Carver Shade at your service.”
“The name suits you,” she breathes.
My nod is jerky. “They sent me overseas. For the first time in my life, I was part of something. I had…friends.”