The Forgotten Claim (The Claim: Book 1)

Chapter 24 - Olivia [STEAMY]

Olivia was jolted awake by Cameron. He woke with a start and sprang out of bed before toppling to the floor with a grunt.

"What are you doing?" she demanded, throwing the blanket off and rushing to his side.

Groaning, he held his head and looked around before looking up and meeting her worried gaze. "Nightmare. It was like yesterday only..." He groaned again and eased himself up to a sitting position. He leaned against the bed and closed his eyes.

"Only, what?" she asked tentatively.

He shook his head and looked away. "Sam's mate kept beating me down and tried to kill you."

Swallowing, she touched his arm but he jerked away.

"I gotta piss."

He rose up carefully, took a drink of water from his glass on his bedside table that she had placed hours before and ambled to the bathroom.

The sun was peeking through the heavy curtains she had pulled across the large windows last night. The digital alarm clock on Cameron's bedside table said it was shortly after eight in the morning.

Olivia stretched and rubbed the sleep from her eyes and crawled back into the cozy, warm bed. They didn't need to check out until noon, but she had to be on the road by eleven. She could squeeze in another hour of sleep.

Cameron came out of the bathroom a few minutes later, his bandages torn from his body and the shallow cuts replaced with fresh pink skin and the three or four deeper ones covered in thick scabs.

She gaped at him. Not only at his godly physique but also at how quickly his body had healed. Even the injury on his cheek had healed and was a series of pink lines. Half of his ear was torn clean off and scabbed along the edges.

Grinning, he climbed back into bed and pulled her into his arms, burying his nose in her hair. "Like what you see?"

She scoffed, her face planted against his broad chest. "You're almost completely healed!"

"Yeah. The perks of my DNA. Chloe heals pretty fast too, doesn't she?"

"I guess so," she mumbled, trying to recall any instances of Chloe healing quickly. "She's only had a few small scratches, scrapes, and bruises. Nothing like what you had last night."

She couldn't help trailing her fingers over the new pink flesh that crisscrossed over his shoulder and arm draped around her. He, in turn, brushed his fingers over her back. Heat flourished in the wake of his invisible trails. She was thankful for the thin layer of cotton separating his fingertips from her skin. And yet, a part of her hungered for the sensation of his skin against hers.

He hummed. She wasn't sure if he was contemplating her words or something else running around his head.

"What?" she prompted when he said nothing and continued to caress her back.

"Were you scared?"

She swallowed. "About what?" What exactly was he referring to? The turning into a wolf thing? The fight?

"Any of it. All of it. About what happened. About my wolf. About what my father told you last night." He sighed, holding her closer. "You said you wanted us to be open and honest about everything and I need to hear your thoughts and feelings about what happened yesterday."

She closed her eyes and bit her bottom lip. The memories flashed in her mind before she pushed them away. Him changing into a wolf on the bank of the pond. Him fighting with the silver-gray wolf. The look of remorse when he realized she saw everything that happened. The look of rage when he fought with her. The wildness that gripped him moments before he left her in the hotel. The kiss that left her reeling and wondering if it would be her last.