Chase growls again, but this time, he lifts his glowing eyes to mine.
“A few months ago, I was no better than Nolan, and I was spared. I’ve killed way too many people, and karma came for me. It’s my turn to do things differently.”
Chase keeps his teeth bared, but then he moves away from Nolan, still staying in wolf form. Nolan shifts back to human, breathing heavily and covered in gashes. He looks up at me with relief on his face.
“I take it he’s your mate?” he asks, scrambling to get to his feet. Groaning from the pain, he holds onto his side.
The second he looks at me, I punch him so hard that the bones in my hand crack. Again, he falls back to the ground, this time cupping his broken jaw. My hand hurts like hell, but I clench my teeth, biting back the agony.
“If you so much as attempt to stop us from leaving, I won’t just rip off your balls, I’ll filet your dick and make you eat it. Do you understand me? Don’t make me regret saving your life.”
Nolan holds up his hands in defeat, and he gets up. “Go. I’m sorry. It was all a big mistake. I’m done.”
Chase shifts back to human, and I run to him, jumping into his arms. “Let’s get out of here.”
I know we need to leave, but I can’t let him go. I have never felt so comfortable in someone’s embrace in all my life. But now, I feel regret and guilt; it consumes me. All of this just proves that I don’t deserve him.
Evangeline picks up Chase’s clothes, and he dresses quickly. Evangeline and I both glance at Nolan’s house, where Xavier watches us from the front porch. Nolan is already inside, nursing his wounds.
“What are you going to do?” I ask her.
Evangeline looks at him with such longing it makes my heart ache. “I don’t know. Either Xavier and I work it out, or we become enemies. It’s up to him.” She tears her gaze away from him and focuses on me. “Right now, we need to go.”
Chase takes my hand, and I’ve never felt safer. “We have a lot to talk about, princess.”
Nodding, I squeeze his hand. “That we do.”
27
CHASE
It’s late, and I know Kara’s exhausted after everything that happened, so we decide to stay at her house for the night instead of flying back to California. The car ride is spent in silence, and my mind races the entire time. I don’t know what Kara wants or where we go from here. Now that she’s back in Virginia, I don’t know if I can make her leave. Channon Vineyards is her home.
Evangeline walks inside, and the tingling of magic cascades down my body. I can see the shimmering wall of the spell she left around the house. She shuts the front door and sits across from me at the kitchen table. “The house is protected. Other wolves will be able to pick up Kara’s scent, but they won’t be able to get within fifty feet of the house. If they do, all I have to do is put them to sleep.”
“Yeah, I’m very familiar with that one,” I tease her.
She laughs and glances down at my arms. “Your wounds are almost healed.”
When we arrived at Kara’s house, I took a quick shower to wash the blood off me. If I hadn’t, I’d look a lot worse than I am. The gashes that were previously on my arms are now just red scars that’ll be gone in a few hours.
Lifting my arms, I survey the marks and shrug. “Nolan was a good fighter, but I knew I’d win.”
Evangeline smiles. “Of course. You were fighting for your mate.”
“Speaking of mates,” I say, staring curiously at her. “Xavier called you while you were outside.”
She purses her lips. “Nosy, huh?”
I tap my right ear. “Wolf hearing, remember? Just so you know, I didn’t listen in on your conversation. I respect your privacy.”
Evangeline waves me off. “I don’t care if you did. Xavier’s not going to hurt me. He did say the Rich Valley pack won’t be bothering us. Nolan doesn’t plan on telling them what happened.” She winks. “His pride got a little bruised tonight. I guess he doesn’t want his pack knowing a female saved him.”
Jaw clenched, I can feel the anger well up in my chest again. Nolan had touched Kara and was about to go further than that if we hadn’t shown up. I never would’ve been able to forgive myself if we showed up too late.
“I wanted to kill him,” I growl.
Evangeline places a hand over mine. “I know. I’m glad we were there.”
“Me too,” Kara whispers, appearing in the doorway, her hair wet from the shower and dressed in a pair of plaid, flannel pajamas.
Evangeline jumps out of her chair and hugs her hard. “I’m heading out, but you’re safe here. I put a spell around the house.”
Kara’s expression softens, and for the first time, I can see how vulnerable she is; she’s not hiding behind the cold-hearted bitch exterior she often portrays.
“Where are you going?” Kara asks her, releasing her from their embrace.
Evangeline stares at me and then back to her. “Xavier wants to talk. It’s long overdue.”
Kara crosses her arms over her chest. “Are you sure that’s wise?”
“I’ll be fine,” she utters to us both. “Seeing him tonight made me realize I still love him. If anything, he needs to hear it. Will it do any good? I don’t know, but it’s something I have to get off my chest.” She winks at Kara. “I told you light magic always wins. Especially when you believe in it as I do. Love can accomplish anything.” Trying her best not to smile, she peers back and forth between Kara and me. She’s not very subtle.
A car pulls into the driveway and stops at the barrier of the protection spell. Evangeline grabs her chest, and I can hear her nervous heartbeat. “He’s here.” She hugs Kara one more time and then comes over to me. “Be safe going back to California. I know you two have a long road ahead of you.”
I glance over the top of her head to Kara, who looks away. “I’m sure we’ll figure it out.”
Evangeline lowers her voice so only I can hear. “You will.”
She smiles reassuringly at both Kara and me and walks out the door. Kara and I watch Evangeline get in the car with Xavier and disappear down the driveway. I wait for Kara to move away from the window, but she stands frozen in place, her heart rapidly racing. I want to pull her into my arms, but after what she just went through, I don’t want to overstep. The fear of what could’ve happened to her if I showed up just a few minutes late weighs heavy on my chest. I almost failed her as a mate.
Gradually, I step away from the window to stand by the fireplace, the fire crackling and warming the room. On the mantle are various photos, all of Kara at Mount Rushmore, the White House, the Space Needle, and the Eiffel Tower.
Kara comes up behind me. “My mantle of memories. I’ve been many more places, but there was only so much room.”
Grabbing the one with her in Paris, I face her. “Who took all of your pictures?”
She shrugs. “Random people.”
“Did you always travel alone?”
Kara stares at the picture, her expression forlorn. “Always.”
I set the picture back on the mantle and take her hands. “Why did you leave?”