“You’re a good person, Holly. You know we wouldn’t ask this of you.”
She smiled. “I know, but that is why I have to do this.” She let go of his hands and wrapped her arms around him.
Damon watched as her father gripped the back of her neck in a hug. He didn’t like the love coming off them. Had never witnessed such public displays of affection.
“Leave,” Damon said. “And consider yourself lucky that I don’t see your invasion on my property as the insult it is.”
Holly stepped back. Damon put his hands on her shoulders, holding her against him. To anyone looking, it would appear he was holding her captive, but the truth was he merely held her up straight.
Her father looked at her one last time before turning on his heel and leaving.
Fucking coward.
“You’re in pain.”
“It’s nothing.”
Within seconds, he had her in his arms and carried her up to his bedroom. Henry had shown her to the guest bedroom. Kicking the door closed, he went straight to his en-suite and placed her on the counter near the sink.
“What are you doing?”
“Taking care of you.” He grabbed the medical supplies from the cabinet beneath the sink and went toward her.
He reached for her shirt and she slapped his hands away. “Don’t touch me.”
“You’re in pain. Untreated wounds can still cause infection and death in a damn wolf, Holly. Don’t be so fucking stubborn. You think you can escape this through dying? You die on me and your pack will be cast out.”
She lifted her shirt up so it rested beneath her tits. Her abdomen was bruised and several cuts lined her body. He also caught the hand-stitched right side that looked clean, but painful.
“Fuck, Holly.”
“I got … shot. It wasn’t anything more than a graze, but it … hurts.”
He gritted his teeth, angry with the humans for hunting them.
“Why didn’t you tell your family?” he asked.
“They were all running. I was helping a child. They didn’t need to know.”
“But they’d all blame themselves if you dropped dead from an infection. Stupid woman.”
“Just because you don’t understand what love and compassion is. I was doing what I could for my family.”
“And look where it got you,” he said.
“You don’t even know me. You have no right to speak about my decisions. Asshole.”
He laughed. “It’s nice to know you’ve still got a nice working tongue.”
“Be careful. I bite.”
“I can’t wait.”
Chapter Two
One week later
Holly didn’t know what she was expecting out of this … man, but it certainly wasn’t patience. He’d given her an ultimatum, and she’d expected to be his fuck toy from that night. Damon hadn’t touched her sexually.
He took his time restitching her side, being careful as he did. The man had a gentle touch even as he pierced her skin with the needle to stitch her up. He gave her a mild painkiller. The pain wasn’t so bad. Being shot was worse. Seeing the dead bodies of loved ones, that was even more horrible.
Damon regularly changed her bandages and took care of her.
His sweetness was not what she expected and it actually unnerved her. Where was the asshole demand-making monster?
Sitting for dinner on the seventh night, she watched him as he worked on his laptop. Each night, he took dinner while working. His attention completely devoted to the device in front of him.
“What do you do?” she asked.
He looked up and she pointed at his screen.
“Stocks and shares. I play the markets.”
“And it works?”
“Look around you.”
“You’re not worried about a bad investment?”
“I never fall victim to a bad investment.” He slammed the lid on his laptop closed. “What do you do?”
“I was … I took care of the children. I was like a nanny or a caretaker.”
“You found that fulfilling?”
“Yes.” She stared down at her food, her appetite waning under his scrutiny. “There’s nothing wrong with making a living out of caring for others.”
“I didn’t say there was, but there’s not a lot of money in it.”
“Maybe not, but not everything is about money.”
“Babe, everything is about money. The more you got, the easier life is. Let’s face it, if your pack had been dripping in gold, you wouldn’t have needed to bargain your life away.”
“Because a man who has everything would want more gold. You wouldn’t have changed your bargaining chip.”
“Oh, yeah, and what makes you so sure?”
“Simple. Look around you. You’re lonely. We never got another scent of a pack of wolves close by. With your sheer size and power, I’d say you wouldn’t be able to use human women, which means you have to seek out willing pack women who are unmated. I imagine they’re rare to find.”
“You’d be surprised.”
Jealousy rushed through her. “If women are so easy to come by, why me?”
“Why not you?”
“Come on, Damon, with your money, you could have any woman you want.”