One of her brows rose. “Really? What have you let me do on my own?”
Blake scowled. “You’re playing with me, mate, and I don’t like it.”
“Think about it. I can’t even go in the backyard by myself unless you’re there. Hell, you won’t even let me carry wood in for a fire.”
“I never heard my parents fight like this or saw my mom fight the restrictions my dad put on her.”
She drew in a painful breath. Fuck, that hurt. “I’m sorry I’m not as good as your mother was. I hate this mating because there’s no way you can find a woman that would make you happy.”
He walked to her and grabbed onto her shoulders. “Don’t ever say that again, mate. I’m beyond ecstatic and fucking lucky that the universe gave me you as a mate. I couldn’t ask for a better woman.”
She hated the pain she saw in his eyes, but she wanted to desperately change some of his thinking before resentment built.
“But wouldn’t you like a woman you could trust and had enough strength to carry a few logs without hurting herself?” she asked.
He growled in frustration and stepped back. “I’m going for a run. We’ll discuss this when I get back.”
She watched him go and then turned back to the window. She saw Blake in his wolf form racing into the forest within two minutes. God, she thought he was the most beautiful man and wolf she’d ever seen, and she loved him with everything she was, but something inside of her would shrivel up if he kept her tied down. Simone had always been a rebellious woman, and when her emotions were volatile, she took chances she knew weren’t smart.
She raced into the living room to grab her purse and then out the front door to her car. As she made her way down the mountain, the mating need she’d felt before the fight had grown into a massive ball of pain. She thought about turning back, but she was determined to prove a point.
Chapter Thirteen
Blake knew within a mile of the house that Simone wasn’t there. He couldn’t decipher the strong emotions rolling through him. He thought some might be hurt and anger, but he also knew a large part of it was the terror that he would lose her.
He knew he could make it to town faster than his wolf, but he couldn’t tear through the place as a wolf or a naked man. After dressing, he jumped into his truck and drove as fast as possible down the mountain. As he made his way through town to the store that the girls wanted to turn into a bakery, he forced himself to calm down. He didn’t want her to see his anger, but it was next to impossible to hide.
He slid out of the truck and then stopped when a hand landed on his shoulder. He spun and then relaxed when he saw it was the Alpha. The only reason he didn’t walk around his Alpha to his mate was that he saw her car and could feel her pain—both from the mating heat and her emotions over their fight.
“Man, you have to cool down,” Roman said. “You’ll terrify the girls.”
Blake wiped a hand down his face and nodded.
“What happened?”
“I forbid her to go to town without me, and it spiraled out of control. I went for a run to calm down, and when I came back, she was gone.”
“I know how you’re feeling, man. You want to carry them around in your pocket to make sure nothing happens to them, but I think the tighter your hold, the further she’ll get from you.”
He knew the Alpha was right. “How in the hell do I stop being so protective over her? It’s in the male wolf’s DNA.”
“I know. We all should learn how to back off a bit,” Damon said. “I think maybe we need a plan that at least one of us is in the vicinity when they’re here.”
“How am I going to explain that?” Blake asked.
Damon nodded to the small storefront on the other side of where the bakery was. “I’ve been thinking about an idea I have. I thought you might like to start your own business.”
“Like what?”
“You like to work with wood. Maybe open a store that has different art or unique furniture our people have made and sell them on consignment.”
Hell, he didn’t have to think about it. He missed sculpting, and he knew of several locals that made things, and there was no place around for them to sell anything. “I love the idea. Who owns the building?”
“Me and my brothers.” Damon grinned.
Blake snorted. “Well, hell. Hey, Mr. Real Estate Man, can I rent your store?”
Damon laughed. “Sure, Mr. New Business Owner. Just think, this way, you’ll be close by and can watch over them if I’m not around.”