“You don’t get to tell me what to do. Not now. Not ever,” she said, glaring at him. Spinning on her heel, she headed out of the kitchen and down the hall. She didn’t get far before Phoenix grabbed her arm and tried to stop her from leaving.
“Let go of me!” She had no choice but to whisper the demand.
If her parents heard, they would be suspicious.
“You’re not leaving town.”
“Do you remember what happened a couple of years ago? Five to be exact. You don’t get to tell me what to do. Not then, not now, not ever.” She looked past his shoulder, hoping her parents were more focused on each other than what was going on between her and the alpha.
“Damn it, Ashley, you will do as you’re told.”
“Make me!” She pulled out of his arms. “But if you remember what you said to me that night, you have no right to even order me to do anything.” She looked at him, and then repeated exactly what he’d said to her.“You better have enjoyed that because that is all you’re getting. I don’t want a fucking mate, and especially not someone like you. You keep this to yourself. You tell anyone and I’ll fucking kill you and your whole family, do you hear me?”She glared at him. “Do you remember that?”
She certainly had. Not a day had gone by that those exact words hadn’t played in her mind.
****
Phoenix didn’t remember the exact words he’d said to her. All he’d been focused on was being cruel to be kind. He watched her run up the stairs. The nightshirt she wore was a little long and covered the curve of her ass.
Damn it. He should have stayed away. He knew this, and yet, here he was, once again butting his fucking nose where it didn’t belong. The wolf inside him was getting pissy. Five years without a mate. Without a good hard fuck. He’d been taking care of his own needs, and he wanted her. The truth was, he could blame his wolf, but he was the one who craved her. He’d never felt lonely, until he met her. The nights were long and the days even longer. Ashley Simpkin played in his mind and damn, he missed her all the freaking time.
He stepped into the kitchen to find Leah and Ben sitting at the counter. There was a plate of breakfast for him, but he didn’t see one for Ashley, so he asked.
“She won’t eat now,” Leah said, sighing. “She … I don’t know what’s going on with her.”
“She doesn’t like being the big girl,” Ben said. “That’s how some people see her. The big one.” Ben winced. “She will always be my little girl.”
“Ashley is a beautiful woman. There is nothing wrong with her body.”
Leah cut into a piece of bacon. “I know that. I loved cooking for her. Growing up, she always had an appetite, and she was a pleasure to feed. Until her transition.”
Phoenix stopped eating. “Her transition?”
Leah dropped the cutlery onto her plate and covered her face.
“We don’t know exactly what happened that night,” Ben said, reaching out to his woman. He rubbed her back, trying to offer her comfort. “From what we’ve heard from her friends and even Daniel, the night was a huge success. They were celebrating.”
“I heard her, Ben. I know you heard her too.”
“Heard her?” Phoenix asked. He was tired of hearing Daniel’s name already. The urge to crush him was so strong, but he gained control of himself. He could understand why the boy was besotted with her. Ashley was a fucking dream.
“She came home,” Leah said. “We were … in the back garden, but she came home, and we listened.”
“She sobbed herself to sleep,” Ben said. “The next morning, her face was red and swollen from all the tears.”
“And suddenly she doesn’t want my food anymore. I can’t even bake. It’s been so long since I baked anything.” Leah covered her face again. “She won’t even have her favorite, chocolate cake with chocolate fudge buttercream, for her birthday. I don’t get to make her anything. She doesn’t eat anything sweet or fattening. She’s on a strict diet at all times.” Leah shook her head. “Where did I fail as a parent? She is beautiful. She’s our daughter and I love her. What happened that night?”
No one knew. It was their little secret.
Phoenix looked toward the doorway. He heard Ashley moving around upstairs. Her steps were light. Her body hadn’t changed much, but he noticed the paleness of her skin, the sunkeness around her eyes. She was tired all the time. He saw that. And he knew why. She was starving her body, starving her wolf. All because of him. He’d been the cause of her sobbing.
Leah sniffled. “Anyway, I’m so sorry for that. Ashley is our only daughter. We have not been blessed with a second child yet, but we love her. We want what is best for her.”
“She has been talking about leaving town for some time,” Ben said. “Neither of us wants her to go, but she’s not happy here.”
“Does the pack have anything to do with that?” Phoenix asked.
“No, of course not. The pack adores her. She loves the pack as well,” Leah said. “But we know she’s not happy. In the beginning she changed jobs so often, neither of us knew what was going on, or what she was looking for.”