I nearly stride across the sidewalk to her, to make up for being a jackass, when I remember exactly why I pushed her away in the first place. A flash of pain crosses her face when she sees me hesitate and I push my way inside the store before I give in to that look. She should stay far, far away from a dangerous man like me. She’s too sweet and innocent.
I would ruin her. Even worse, Iwantto ruin her.
Red frowns at me when I enter and I hold up a hand on my way back to the office. “Don’t start.”
“Don’t tell me what to do, boy. I’ll damn well start whatever I like.”
“Well, don’t let it bother you if I don’t listen while you do.”
“Suzanna Thomas’ granddaughter? What the hell were you thinking?”
“I wasn’t thinking anything.”
“You mean your dick was doing all the decision making.”
“Fuck off. I’ve got work to do.”
He makes a sound in his throat. “Won’t be anything left to do when that woman wipes your skinny little ass out of Hillsborough.”
“Don’t worry, I handled it.”
“I’m just looking out for you, son.”
I duck my head into my hands. “I know you are. I don’t mean to be such a dick. Just been a long morning.”
Thunder rattles and our heads both swivel to the windows. “Gonna be a bitch of a storm. All the tours canceled for today. You’re gonna want to get closed up soon before it gets too bad. Not going to get any of that work done today. You’ll have to find something else to keep you busy.”
“You get on home, Red. I’ll handle things here.”
Red nods and heads out before stopping at my office door. “And by something else to keep you busy, I don’t mean going to find that girl.”
I curl my lips at him, but don’t respond. The little amount of paperwork I have to do can wait. Urgency lights my blood, probably caused by the coming storm, and I decide to go ahead and pack up. As I’m leaving, I note the Chronicle employees are filing out, too. I pause by the shop door under the guise of locking up as I look over to try and catch another glimpse of Sullivan.
When the last person leaves and takes out a set of keys to lock the door tension tightens the muscles in my gut. Has she already left?
Recognizing the girl as another one of the Hastings kids, probably in Sully’s class, I jog over and offer a friendly, “Hey! Some weather, huh?”
She looks up and smiles. “Looks like it’s going to head this way, yeah.”
I try to act casual and fail miserably. “Sully make it out okay?”
“I think so. Leroy had her run over to the last crime scene a few minutes ago, but she should have made it home. I don’t think she’d risk it in this weather.”
She was probably right. Then again, Sully didn’t seem like the type of person to give up that easily.
Both the girl and I look at each other in alarm when the sirens start going off. She doesn’t have time to react before I’m racing back to my truck.
Thank fuck the crime scene is near my cabin. I break about twenty laws as I speed across town. The sky is angry and dark and my skin is prickling with the need to shift. My teeth lengthen and my mouth waters, but I manage to keep the change back by sheer will. I need to get to the park first. Then I can let go.
I’ll never be able to forgive myself if something happens to her because of all this shit. A growl rips through my throat and vibrates throughout the cab of the truck.
I make it to the park in record time and explode from the truck, ripping off my shirt as I go. The only other times I managed to shift were in times of high stress or emotion. Normally, I can’t control the change, but as I dive into the forest on all fours I manage to keep my senses about me through the change. It surprises me enough that I skid to a stop for a moment and look down at my fur covered body.
A scream rips through the air and I plunge into the trees after the sound, sniffing the air for a trace of her scent. I find signs of her walk on the trail and my heart stills when I hear the sounds of the tornado pulling up trees and brush behind me.
I see the yellow tape in the distance and push myself to go faster. Her scent gets stronger the closer I get. I leap over the taped off area and land on the other side. A few feet away, I spot her white shirt huddled in a ditch.
Even though I know revealing myself to her will put both of us in danger, I would rather her know my secret than risk losing her.
