Casey stood watch as Ford set Daphne onto her bed. The hair on the back of Ford’s neck prickled as he kissed her forehead. He didn’t want to move away from her, his feet becoming leaden, but he knew Casey wouldn’t let him stay. The man’s distrust was obvious, especially when he hounded Ford’s heels all the way back to the living area.
The others looked up from their conversation again. The warmth in the room tickled Ford’s closed off heart. They offered him warm smiles that he hadn’t expected. Bree waved happily as if they were friends. He gave her a quick wave before turning toward the exit.
“Leaving already?” a gruff voice asked.
Ford looked up to find Gavin offering him a beer. The russet-haired clan leader’s eyes were unreadable. Ford glanced around the room and did his best to ignore the ache blooming in his chest.
This wasn’t his world. He hadn’t been allowed in this world for years, and he would never be invited in again.
Ford shook his head. “Just wanted to make sure Daphne was in good hands.”
“You trust us?” Gavin asked.
“She’s never given me reason not to. I would hate to think that her brother would call her all this way only to ignore her needs.” Ford couldn’t help the slight jab in his words.
Casey didn’t flinch, but his mate served him with a sharp glare. Ford watched her flex her hand, as if the small movement might slake the endless energy her beast was probably pouring into her. Though she seemed okay, Evangeline still had a long way to go, and for that, she would need Daphne.
Ford couldn’t ruin that. He couldn’t risk letting her fall for him, because when the clan found out what he’d done, they would stop trusting her, too. Ford had to keep his distance, no matter how badly it hurt.
“Tell her…tell her to stop visiting me at work,” Ford told Casey.
Ford tried not to look at the others, at what he couldn’t have. They were a family, tight knit and protective of one another. He couldn’t handle the pain of losing Daphne and the torment of this happiness being dangled before his face.
Casey caught up to him and put a hand on Ford’s shoulder to keep him from leaving. Ford tensed, waiting for a fight.
“My sister likes you,” Casey said.
“No shit,” Ford grunted.
Hell, he loved her. He adored her daring and plucky nature. He admired her stamina after carrying the future of new shifters on her back. Daphne was the kind of woman he wished he could worship forever, but he’d already ruined every possible chance at happiness he would come across.
“Are you seriously going to walk away?” Casey growled. “Is it because you work for him?”
Ford sighed. He whirled on Casey, which startled the man. “Fuck, no. I am alone because that’s the way I want it to be. Now, all of you need to stay away from me. And if you can’t do that simple task, then I’ll pack my shit and leave your fucking town.”
Casey seemed taken aback. Behind him, Gavin sipped his beer pensively. His gaze never left Ford, making his skin crawl. It was as if Gavin could see through him to all the dirty secrets Ford kept hidden.
Gavin couldn’t possibly know about Ford’s clan. They had fallen apart years ago. Few remembered that the clan had ever existed at all after they’d moved on. There was a slim chance that some of Ford’s old clanmates had entered Zander’s protection and met Gavin, but the two groups had been so far apart that it was unlikely.
“I’m not one of you, and I never will be.” Ford spun and left.
He hated the way their stares followed him. His beast had been silent after what he and Daphne had done in the valley, but now it thrashed with rage. Fire burned Ford’s throat, searing away any words he might have had left.
Why was this harder than losing his wife? The world seemed to be crumbling around him. Everything he’d taught himself in the past years, all the ways he’d learned to keep moving forward, vanished at the thought of losing Daphne. He couldn’t stay, though.
Blood tainted his hands, an unforgivable offense that would make every clan leader question his loyalty for the rest of his days.
Perhaps he had no choice but to go feral now. If he was lucky, the earth would welcome him and let him settle down into a long sleep where he wouldn’t feel this pain anymore.
***
Daphne couldn’t hide her disappointment. Everyone in the cabin gave her a wide berth, even though she hadn’t snapped or snarled at anyone, unlike Evangeline. It seemed the others were waiting for something to fall. Daphne kept glancing around, trying to figure out what it was they thought was coming, but she could find no sign.
That didn’t matter because her morning had already been ruined when she woke cold and alone in Gavin’s cabin. She’d reached for Ford only to find empty air and a pit in her stomach. Zander could exile her and launch an attack on the clan for all she cared today.
Her world had already fallen apart.
She’d never meant to fall this hard for a man who’d already been claimed. Theoretically, she could move on in time and find the one she was destined to be with, but that felt impossible. Doubt and loneliness loomed over her like a wall of water about to crash and carry her under.
It would have to wait. Daphne pushed aside her breakfast and went to throw on a pair of leggings and an oversized t-shirt. She had another day of training the new shifters ahead of her. That should consume her time and keep her from thinking about how Ford had abandoned her.
On her way out, she ran into her brother. He wore a dour expression that made worry trickle like ice-water through her chest. When she approached, he raised a brow at her outfit. She snarled, her upper lip curling.
“You’re not going to like what I have to say,” he warned.
Daphne put her hands on her hips. “You can’t tell me that you’re ending my sessions with Evangeline. You and I both know she’s not ready.”
“That’s not what I was going to say. Ford left a message for you last night.” Casey backed up. That’s how she knew what Casey would say next would hurt. “He doesn’t want you to visit him at work anymore.”
“So, he wants me to go to his house?”
Casey sighed. “No. I don’t think that’s it.”
Oh.
Daphne tried to gather herself and shove her feelings into an iron lockbox in her heart, but she couldn’t grab any of them fast enough. Tears burned her eyes. She blinked them away and tore her gaze from Casey’s.
“Look,” Casey began. “I’m sure he wasn’t good enough for you anyway. You had fun while you could, right?”
Her jaw dropped. The knife in her heart twisted. “That’s not…I wasn’t…”
Daphne had sought Ford out for fun and to distract herself from all the work that still waited for her, but she’d gone and caught feelings. Around him, it no longer felt like the world waited to fall on her head. She wanted to hold onto that, to the way he made her feel, but it was ripped out of her hands.
She’d tried to use him and ended up being used.
Daphne ran her hands through her hair. She tugged, trying to alleviate the pain in her heart. When that didn’t work, she walked. She didn’t wait for Evangeline or Bree. The sessions didn’t matter when Daphne herself felt like a single gust of wind would send her crumbling. She couldn’t help anyone in this state.