“What! What are you doing? Why did you stop?”she chided her tiger.
Trust me. He won’t hurt us!
“He who?”Allie asked.“We need to keep running! We need to get as far away from all of this as possible.”Allie pleaded with her tiger to see sense, but it refused to budge from their spot.
Within seconds, a male tiger raced toward her. He skidded to a stop in front of her. It was the sexy stranger from her parent’s house. His cinnamon and wild-man scent rushed over her, leaving her staggering. God, he smelled so fucking good. She wanted nothing more than to forget everything that had happened tonight and rub against him.
There was something familiar about those striking green eyes of his. It was almost as if she knew him from somewhere, though she couldn’t quite put her finger on where. He shifted to his human form, causing her to suck in a sharp breath. Damn, he was stunning as an animal and as a human.
“It would be easier to talk to you if you would shift,” he said.
His voice was music to her ears. She thought about his request for a few seconds before complying and shifting into her human form. Allie had questions. Hopefully, he had the answers she needed.
EIGHTEEN
MARC
Marc had never been so happy to see his mate. After her bold move of taking down the shifter she called Clinton, he flew out the front door, anticipating her move. He yelled for his mom and Gerri to head home while he chased down Allie.
At first, he’d been worried about leaving them alone at the house of torture, but they had assured him they would be just fine. His mom told him that she’d kick his ass if he didn’t go after his mate. Marc didn’t need any further encouragement. He took off after her faster than a jackrabbit on the run from a pack of hungry wolves.
He needed to talk to her. To figure out how to fix things. To fix what had been taken from them and to convince her that she was his mate. He would never forgive her parents for their interference in their relationship. And if he ever got his paws on that fucking witch, Helena, she’d lose her damn head. He swore to the gods.
“Fine. I’m in human form. Who are you, and what do you have to do with all of this?”
He breathed a sigh of relief that she had stopped running and decided to talk to him.
“I’m Marc Romero.”
“What do you want? How do you know my parents?” she asked.
Her guard was up. He understood that. After all she’d been through, he would have been surprised if she was relaxed and calm.
“I don’t know your parents. I’ve never met them before. I came to the house because you’re my mate. You were supposed to tell your parents tonight about our mating. You’ve been nervous about it all week but wouldn’t tell me why. I thought it was odd, but I wanted to give you space when it came to your relationship with your parents,” he said, hoping that something in her memory sparked.
“How do you know Gerri Wilder?” Allie asked, ignoring his other questions.
“I went to her to find my mate. She told me about your camping trip last week. I met you up there, and one thing led to another.” God, his memories of their first encounter would be forever engrained into his brain.
“Oh, God! We slept together!” Allie sucked in a deep breath. A blush covered her cheeks and heated her neck.
Fuck, she was beautiful when she was all flustered.
“We did much more than that,” he said, closing the distance between them. “You have to feel this connection we have. Allie, whatever you think right now, listen to your instincts. We are mates. You can feel the truth in your veins. You know I’m not lying to you.”
He willed her to remember and begged the gods to break whatever spell the witch had placed on her to block her memories of him.
“I’m sorry. I … I just don’t remember you or any of it. I remember going camping. I spent the weekend alone,” she said.
“You didn’t. I was there with you. I watched you set up your tent. You knew that I was watching you and called me out. The connection we had was immediate and undeniable. What happened between us that weekend was magical. We completed the mating ritual.”
“Oh!” Allie said. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Tell me you believe me,” he begged.
“I … I honestly don’t know what to believe. You said that I called you to my parent’s house. What did I say? I don’t even remember going there. I just remember Helena standing in front of me and being chained to a chair.”
“Son of a bitch. I will kill all of them,” he growled.