Chapter 80

GRAYSON

My jaw clenched as I watched Belle rush around the diner, working her butt off.

It was physically painful to stay in my seat while my mate, the absolute love of my life, was pushing her body past its breaking point right in front of me.

And there wasn’t a da mn thing I could do about it.

I had been sitting there for hours. The only reason I hadn’t already pounced on her and dragged her as s back home was that I understood where she was coming from.

I had been there; I had witnessed everything that Azazel had done to her. And she thought it was me. She had every right to be upset. She should be upset.

This was a shock to her. She needed time to process that I was back in her life and that I still wanted

her.

She needed to see that I wasn’t going to push her-that I was willing to work to earn back her trust and let her come to me. This entire situation was in her hands.

But that didn’t mean her constant rejection of me didn’t frustrate the hell out of me.

I was extremely tempted to use the power of the Mortars to persuade her to listen to me, but I knew that wasn’t the right thing to do. It wouldn’t fix anything. She needed to be in control.

I needed her to decide to come to me and hear me out. I couldn’t expect to earn her trust back by using my powers to force her to listen to me.

But staying away from her was killing me. Not holding her in my arms, relieving her pain, taking care of her mark, telling her how much I loved her-I wasn’t sure how much more I could take.

I couldn’t get the way she had looked at me when I had found her out of my head. There was so

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I had been sitting there for hours. The only reason I hadn’t already pounced on her and dragged her

as s back home was that I understood where she

was co

I had been there; I had witnessed everything that Azazel had done to her.

me. She had every right to be upset. She should

upset.

And sho

thought it was

This was a shock to her. She needed time to process that I was back in her life and that I still wanted

her.

She needed to see that I wasn’t going to push her-that I was willing to work to earn back her trust and let her come to me. This entire situation was in her hands.

But that didn’t mean her constant rejection of me didn’t frustrate the hell out of me.

I was extremely tempted to use the power of the Mortars to persuade her to listen to me, but I knew that wasn’t the right thing to do. It wouldn’t fix anything. She needed to be in control.

I needed her to decide to come to me and hear me out. I couldn’t expect to earn her trust back by using my powers to force her to listen to me.

But staying away from her was killing me. Not holding her in my arms, relieving her pain, taking care of her mark, telling her how much I loved her-I wasn’t sure how much more I could take.

I couldn’t get the way she had looked at me when I had found her out of my head. There was so much fear, so much pain in those gorgeous blue eyes. I never wanted her to look at me like that.

And then the panic attack started…

I knew she saw my red eyes that I was unable to hide when I first came crashing into the diner. I couldn’t keep my vampire back, no matter how hard I’d tried.

He wanted to see our mate and fought to the front of my consciousness to do so.

Thankfully though, Belle didn’t ask about my change in appearance or red eyes, and I was able to hide them before she saw them again.

Maybe she thought she imagined them, although that was probably just wishful thinking on my

part.

The moment Belle started panicking, I ordered everybody out of the diner, using the power of the Mortars, telling them not to return until I had left the diner.

It didn’t cause them any harm; in fact, they wouldn’t remember a thing.

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The moment Belle started panicking, I ordered everybody out of the diner, using the power of the Mortars, telling them not to return until I had left the diner.

It didn’t cause them any harm; in fact, they wouldn’t remember a thing.

The only person I hadn’t ordered out of my way immediately was the vampire boy. Liam Blackwood.

I knew who he was right away. The son of Jeffery Blackwood and a powerful vampire in his own right.

He knew who I was too. I saw the recognition in his eyes when he stepped in front of my panicking mate, trying to protect her from me.

To his credit, though, he didn’t seem nearly as afraid as I would have expected him to be.

It still took everything in me not to rip his heart out and shove it down his throat when he attempted to keep me from my Belle.

The only reason I didn’t do exactly that was because I could smell Belle’s scent all over him and his all over her. They were obviously friends.

Or used to be. I wasn’t allowing him anywhere near my girl ever again.

That’s why I told him to walk to Canada. Perhaps it was a strange order, but I needed him away from her, and it was the only thing I could think of.

He was a vampire, so he should have been less than a quarter of the way there by now.

Yes, I lied to her when she asked me if I had done something to him. But she would have liked the

alternative far less.

He wouldn’t be back for days, giving me just enough time to earn Belle’s trust back and get her as far

away from here as possible-without causing a scene by killing her friend in the meantime.

Murder probably wasn’t the best way to get her to talk to me again, although it was becoming increasingly difficult to convince my wolf and vampire sides of that fact.

I looked for Belle for months. I thought of nothing else. How could I? She was my mate, and she was missing.

I had no idea where she was or if she was safe because she kept her d amn mental barriers up the

whole time.

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It only took my former beta attempting to kill her for her to drop her walls and finally let me in for me to figure out where she was. And now…

Now she was standing right in front of me, and I had to force myself to stay away from her.

She was in pain. She was moving slower, and she looked exhausted, with huge bags under her eyes. I could tell she wasn’t sleeping. Was she not eating either?

I watched as she took an order from two women at a booth across the diner, my fists clenching beneath the table when I noticed for the hundredth time that she had lost a considerable amount of

weight.

She was still as gorgeous as ever, without a doubt, but was no longer healthy. My wolf was buzzing in my chest, fuming over the fact that our mate wasn’t well taken care of.

Male werewolves took great pride in providing for their females, and I was completely failing mine. It was killing me..

The little outfit she was wearing didn’t help hide all the weight she had lost either. It also didn’t help stoke the fire building within me.

The short skirt stopped right beneath her a ss, and the top she was wearing wrapped around her breasts like a second skin.

The white apron she had on helped to accentuate her already generous-looking curves, matching the white heals on her feet which elongated her legs. Go d, she was beautiful.

But, unfortunately, I wasn’t the only person who noticed her beauty. Every time I caught another man’s eyes lingering on her a little too long, uncontrollable fury consumed me.

I couldn’t even stop myself from growling at them, flashing my fangs and red eyes, barely satisfied when they scampered away in fear. They were lucky I didn’t kill them on the spot.

But, yet again, I didn’t think killing people would be a good way of earning back Belle’s trust. It was tempting, though. Extremely tempting.

I watched with an unyielding gaze as Belle rushed behind the front counter to submit an order she had just taken. After handing it off to the kitchen, she made a move to turn but then abruptly stopped.

I stiffened, watching as her shoulders rose and fell with a deep breath, and her entire body slumped forward, leaning slightly against the counter in front of her.

She was exhausted. She had been working nonstop since I had gotten here this morning, and it was

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forward, leaning slightly against the counter in front of her.

She was exhausted. She had been working nonstop since I had gotten here this morning, and it was well into the afternoon now-almost 5 p.m.

It was clear to me that my mate wasn’t sleeping, wasn’t cating, was in more pain than I could even comprehend because I was here, and, to top it all off, she was working herself to the bone.

I didn’t know how much longer I could just sit back and watch this.

I grew extremely close to breaking my promise to myself not to use my alpha tone or power of the Mortars on her and force her to hear me out so we could be done with this whole mess and I could

have her in my arms again.

But I forced myself to be patient.

Belle tried to turn but fell forward, stumbling over her feet. Thankfully, she was able to grip the counter next to her, so she didn’t fall. She looked disoriented and tired.

I was up and across the room in seconds. I stood behind her, pressing myself up against her in case she needed to lean on me for support. I carefully placed my hands on her waist.

Her body tensed, and her breathing picked up.

“You need a break,” I growled in her ear.

She squeezed her eyes shut. “You can’t be back here,” she whispered back to me, making sure her voice was quiet enough so no one else would hear her.

She pushed at me with her elbow, but her attempts were weak and futile.

“You need a break,” I repeated.

“I’m fine,” she fumed, as stubborn as ever. “Leave me alone.”

Her annoyed little huffs were adorable.

“You’ve been working for nine hours straight without stopping for food or water. And don’t even get me started on the da mn shoes you’re wearing if you can even call them that.”

I glared down at the white heels encasing her feet. “You need to sit down, eat some food, and rest. I’m not asking.”

She tried to squirm out of my grip, but I wouldn’t let her. She looked around at all of the customers.

“Dlanca Croucon Vou’ra

n

crane ”

ACO

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*0080% 16:12 She tried to squirm out of my grip, but I wouldn’t let her. She looked around at all of the customers. Their heads were turned, watching our interaction. “Please, Grayson. You’re making a scene.”

I didn’t give a sh it. “You won’t like the scene I’ll make if you don’t do as I say.

“I would be more than happy to put you to sleep right now and throw you over my shoulder the same way I did on that plane to Paris if that’s what it takes to get you to take care of yourself.”

Her eyes snapped to mine, widening. “Y-You put me to sleep? How?”

“You became a member of my pack the moment I laid eyes on you. I used my alpha tone on you to calm you down when you were panicking.

“I haven’t used it since, but I would have no problem using it now as this is a matter of your health.” I didn’t bother mentioning that I now had the power of the Mortars too. All in due time.

Her eyes blazed with anger. “How dare you? You have no right to control or take advantage of me that way.”

She shoved at my chest but stumbled backward when another dizzy spell hit her from lack of food.

I growled and grabbed her before she could fall, tugging her against my chest. I took pride in how her body relaxed against mine, forced to give in to the mate bond even when her mind still struggled.

“I would never use it to take advantage of you, only for your own safety.” I pressed her as close as I could to my body before bending down and gently kissing her infected mark.

I needed her to calm down, and kissing that spot did exactly that. She melted against me even more, letting me take all of her weight with a breathy sigh.

And then the sweet scent of her arousal filled the air around us.

I held in a groan as I breathed her in, loving the effect I had on her and the way she squirmed against me, trying to get closer.

She was always so responsive when it came to my touch, and I couldn’t get enough of it. Obviously wanting more, Belle tilted her head to the side, her small hands gripping my shirt.

It was extremely unusual that we, as a mated couple, hadn’t completed the mating process yet. Her arousal was the mate bond pushing us together.

And now that I had her, it would only get worse until I took care of her in the way she needed.

But now wasn’t the time for this. She needed to rest, not get turned on.

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With great difficulty, I was able to pry my lips from her mark and look at her. She was obviously still a bit disoriented from the kiss. Her eyes were glossy, and her pretty lips turned down in a frown.

My own body was buzzing from her touch. My wolf howled in my mind, urging me to continue with what we had been doing. I was tempted to follow his orders.

It felt so good to finally hold her again, even under the circumstances.

But the exhausted look in Belle’s eyes and the way her body swayed, barely able to support itself, was enough to hold me back.

We could-would-do all of that later and only when she was ready, not when the bond was pushing her. Right now, though, she needed me to take care of her.

“You’re exhausted, Belle,” I whispered to her, running my nose against her temple.

She was slowly starting to come out of her trance. Realizing what I had just done to her, her expression turned into a scowl, accompanied by a sweet blush. “Let

go

of me. I’m fine.”

I shook my head and then ran my thumb over the dark bags under her eyes. “You’re not. You need rest and food. And I’m not leaving you alone until you get it.”

She studied me for a moment, deciding what to do. Finally, she said, “Why do

you care?”

I veered back. “What?”

“Why do you care?” she repeated, her voice tired and quiet as she glanced again around us. People had started to lose interest in what we were doing, but she still looked wary.

“You didn’t care when I was starving at your pack house. Or when you sent me to sleep in a freezing cold room in the basement.

“Or when you left me to fend for myself while all of your pack members ignored and shunned me. Oh, and do I even have to mention the time you hit me so hard you broke my cheekbone?”

She laughed bitterly. “You don’t care about me, Grayson. You’re just trying to get on my good side so you can take me back to your pack and use me for power.

“I’m not falling for it. I don’t believe for a second that you don’t have some ulterior motive in all of

this.”

Hearing about everything Azazel had put her through made my blood boil and my wolf surge forward, turning my eyes a deep black.

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I was grateful the vampire side of me seemed to have better control of his emotions and chose to stay deep within me, worried about scaring our mate while she was in such a fragile state.

A loud growl reverberated from my chest before I could stop it. If the customers weren’t looking at us before, they definitely were now. All conversation ceased, leaving the diner in complete silence.

None of that mattered to me. They could look all they wanted. The only thing I cared about at that moment was how Belle’s expression turned from enraged to terrified in a matter of seconds.

I hadn’t meant to scare her. I just needed her to know that what I was about to say next was serious.

“I care because you’re mine,” I growled in a low tone. “And if you would let me explain what really happened back at my pack house, then you would know that.”

I gripped her waist, pulling her backside against my front. “You’re lucky I haven’t thrown you over my shoulder like a caveman and dragged you back home.

“Especially since I’ve had to watch you prance around in this little outfit all day, showing off skin in places only I’m allowed to see and wearing heels that make your legs look far too se xy for your own good.”

My hand drifted over the bottom of her skirt, lifting it up the tiniest bit. Her breath hitched when my fingers brushed the crease of her cute little a ss, leaving delicious sparks behind.

She slapped my hand away, but it was a weak hit with no drive behind it. The corners of my lips turned up.

My mate was so stubborn, so strong-willed. It was one of the things I loved most about her. Even now, when I could so clearly smell her arousal clouding the air, she struggled against me.

Because she knew she deserved better. And she did. If I had really done all those things to her, I would hope she would run away from me and never look back.

But I hadn’t done any of those things, and her refusal to listen to what I had to say was doing more harm than good at this point.

“Grayson, please,” she begged, pushing on my chest. “People are looking. If my boss comes out and sees this, I could lose my job.”

“You think I care about whether or not you lose your job, baby?” I laughed.

“You getting fired would just be more of a reason for me to take you back to my pack with me, where I can provide for you and make sure you’re well taken care of. You get that?

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where I can provide for you and make sure you’re well taken care of. You get that?

“It’s my job to take care of you. It’s what I’m doing right now. So you will sit down and take a break right now or so help me Go d-”

“Is there a problem here?” someone said behind us.

We both turned around, looking at Belle’s boss, who I knew was named Jerry based on the chatter I had overheard throughout the day.

I had also happened to overhear that he was secretly using the diner to launder drug money for some drug dealers.

It was fair to say I hated the man. And didn’t want him anywhere near my mate. Even right now, he was too close to her for my liking.

Belle’s face brightened when she realized Jerry had been watching our interaction, and my automatic response was to pull her closer to me, wanting to comfort her.

It pleased me when she unconsciously leaned into me.

I stepped in front of her before she could say anything. I heard her huff with annoyance behind me but ignored it.

“Belle has been working for eleven hours straight,” I said. “She needs a break and will be taking it

now.”