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This was ridiculous, Raina thought, lamenting her pathetic state. She'd been with Harry less than five hours ago and she missed him like crazy. The thought of spending the night without him opened a yawning chasm in her belly.
It was only one night, she reminded herself. She'd be home by lunch tomorrow. The irony was not lost on her that she was standing in the only home she'd ever known. After only two weeks away, she considered the house she shared with Harry to be her true home.
So it was strange to see so many of her belongings still scattered about the house. Maisie had packed anything she'd left behind in the master bedroom. That had amounted to one box. Raina had already put that in her car. The bulk of her stuff was in the hobby room as she wasn't taking her television or any of the kitchen appliances such as her toaster and coffee maker. Harry already had a fully stocked kitchen and his televisions were larger and newer than hers.
As she sorted through her old hobbies, she realized much of it was junk and she didn't know why she didn't toss it much sooner. She had jigsaw puzzles, paint-by-number canvases, and old sketch books. As much as she loved art, she realized early on that she didn't have the talent to be an artist. That had been a painful epiphany. Raina dumped all of it in a large trash bag. She'd take it to the dump on her way home tomorrow. She was only staying one night.
Harry had gone back to work today after dropping her off. At the moment, she was alone. When she'd arrived, she'd crossed paths with Maisie as her cousin was on her way out to the office. Maisie would be home after work. She'd promised to stop by Millie's and pick up burgers for dinner. They'd have a girl's night in and catch up with each other.
Her hobby room, her old bedroom was small with double windows. She'd placed a desk under them where her twin bed used to be. A rocking chair sat in the corner with a half-finished quilt draped over the arm. She had a dozen finished ones neatly arranged on shelves on the wall. Her favorite was of pink and yellow moths. The bright colors reminded her of bubble gum and it never failed to cheer her up. But the reason she liked it best was because her mother had helped her with the pattern. It was one of the few interests they'd shared. Raina hugged the quilt to her chest before placing it in a box.
In the end, she decided to trash everything but the quilts and her quilting paraphernalia, fabric, thread, scissors, rulers, books, and more. She boxed it all up and began carrying it out to her car. In the morning, she was going to want to leave as quickly as possible and not have to spend an hour loading the car. Her back seat, trunk, and even the passenger seat was filled to capacity.
She grunted as she squished the bag of trash deeper into the floorboard of her backseat. She was half inside the car when she heard a car pull into her driveway. Raina had to wiggle her way out past all the boxes.
When she straightened, she was engulfed in a pair of male arms. The scent of him made her angry and nauseous. This wasn't her husband and she didn't appreciate the surprise. She had to suppress a growl. She fought her way out of the enthusiastic hug.
"Raina, I was so happy to hear you were home." Levi grinned down at her.
"Who told you I was here?"
"It's all over town. People saw that... animal drop you off this morning. I was so worried about you."
She made a sound of disgust. "Why? He's my husband. He'd never hurt me."
"You don't have to lie. I'll take you away—somewhere he'll never find you." He cupped her shoulders. "It was always meant to be me and you, Raina. I've never loved another woman the way I loved you."
She shrugged his hands off. "Then I really feel sorry for Amy." She closed her car door. "I'm not going anywhere with you, Levi. Harry hasn't hurt me and if you don't stop spreading that rumor—"
"A female werewolf from his clan came to me and told me all about him. About how he was using her for sex, about how he treated her like trash. But even if she hadn't told me, I've seen him abusing you with my own eyes." He shook his head. "I'm so sorry, Raina. I couldn't think of a way to help you then. That's why we need to get going now." He grabbed her arm and tugged her toward his car.
Huffing, she yanked out of his hold. Scowling at him, she asked, "What female? And what do you mean you saw him abusing me?"
"Mina told me that you were having a party. I thought I might get the chance to help you escape, but there were too many of those animals surrounding you. And then you ran off into the woods and I followed but you were running so fast. Damn, girl, you should have run track. Anyway, when I caught up to you..." He shook his head. "That... monster was raping you."
Raina blinked. Her face felt like it was on fire. "You..." She stopped and cleared her throat. She couldn't meet his gaze. "That—That wasn't rape."
"Raina, don't lie to me. He was so rough with you. I'm surprised you can walk if that's the way he treats you."
"I am not going to discuss our sex life with you. And I'm not leaving with you." She inhaled. "Levi, when we were together, we were young—too young to get married. And despite what you think, I'm over you. I love my husband."
He shook his head. "Mina warned me that he had you too scared to run, but she told me some ways to hide from him."
"And what about your children? You're willing to abandon them?"
He shrugged. "They've got their mother and a host of other relatives."
Raina looked him over from head to toe. She didn't bother to hide her disgust. "You're a horrible father. And you think I'd run off with you?"
"I'd be there for our babies." He grabbed her hand. "You never truly get over your first."
"It's more like that unfortunately you never forget your first."
"I'm doing this for your own good, Raina. I love you."
Suddenly, she was surrounded by that same fetid odor she'd smelled when she'd talked to Mina. She fell back a step and pressed the back of her hand to her nose. The door handle of her car poked into her side. The meaning of the scent was suddenly clear. She was smelling lies.
"No, you don't." She said with certainty. "You don't even know what that means. You just can't stand the thought that I've moved on with someone else. You like the idea of someone being in love with you." She shook her head. "You're wasting your time. I haven't loved you since high school. And even that was only a crush. It's nothing compared to what I have with Harry."
Levi sighed. "Are you going to make this easy?" He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a handful of zip ties. "Or are you going to fight me?"
She narrowed her eyes at him, a growl vibrating in her throat. "Fight." She declared, grinning when his eyes widened in terror.
"Y-Your eyes... t-they're glowing... What has he done to you?"
"He made me his in all ways." She approached him and he backed away. "It's time—once and for all—that you understood that my life didn't end when I dumped you. I should thank you for being stupid enough to be so brazen with your infidelity. Now, I'm with a man—not some boy who goes around irresponsibly making babies and has no respect for women." She snatched the zip ties out of his hands. "I've tried to be patient with you for the sake of your babies and Amy—God bless her. But attempted kidnapping? I'm not willing to overlook that. And if you care so little for your children that you were willing to abandon them, then perhaps they're better off without you." She wrinkled her nose as the stench of urine reached her nostrils. She looked down at Levi's crotch just as he did. They both watched as a shameful dark stain spread over his thigh.
"W-What are you going to do to me?"
She pinched her nose. "Whatever it is, it will involve as little physical contact as possible."
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Harry sighed and plopped down on the sofa. He ran his hand through his hair. The house was too quiet and empty without Raina. He rubbed his chest. The house wasn't the only thing that felt cavernous. He reminded himself that she would be home tomorrow morning to soothe the gaping emptiness.
He turned on the television to fill the quiet while he mulled over his dinner options. Without Raina, he didn't feel like going too much trouble. He wondered if there was any of the store-bought roasted chicken in the—
The front door opened and closed. Since mating Raina, he'd stopped locking the door. It was a safe neighborhood. They were surrounded by pack members. And... well, he wasn't afraid of intruders. They should fear him.
He stood. The click of heels on the hardwood floors momentarily had his heart leaping in anticipation of seeing Raina. But then he remembered that Raina didn't own any shoes with heels. She wore sneakers or sandals with soft bottoms.
Mina rounded the corner. He scowled at her outfit—or what there was of it; it was some sort of bathing suit thing he couldn't recall the proper name—made of pale pink lace.
Mina smiled. "Like what you see?"
"Honestly? No." He snarled. "What the fuck are you doing here?"
Her smile didn't falter as she sauntered over to him. "I've come to claim what's mine."
He backed up a step. He could not hit a woman. "Mina, I'm mated. And if you can't respect that, you need to find another pack."
"You won't be mated for long." She said confidently.
His eyes narrowed. "What are you talking about?"
She trailed her nails down his chest. "She's human. You can't count on humans."
He slapped her hand away. "You're the worst werewolf ever. You're so busy trying to be human that you've forgotten our ways. She's my mate. I've changed her."
"It doesn't matter. That takes too long to take effect. By then, she'll be long gone with her ex-boyfriend."
"Never." Harry growled. "I'll rip his head off."
"Word is, she's in love with him. Sorry, Harry." She tried to drape her arms around his neck. "Just accept we should be together. This is the way it's meant to be. I'll be loyal to you. Our pups will be so strong—"
The slamming front door interrupted her. Raina drew to a halt when she saw them; Mina with her arms linked around his neck.
He shoved Mina off. In his haste, he used too much force. Mina tottered to the side and then fell onto the couch. Harry ignored her and rushed to Raina. "Baby, this is definitely not what it looks like."
She smiled at him. "I know. Levi tried to kidnap me—"
"He what?!" He was heading for the door when she pulled him around.
"And after I cuffed him and called the cops, he spilled everything. About how Mina introduced herself to him and the two of them formulated a plan. He was supposed to seduce me and she would seduce you."
He shook his head. "That's the stupidest plan I've ever heard." He turned to glare at Mina as she struggled to stand. The soft cushions and her shoes worked against her. Harry estimated the heels on her pumps to be about five inches high. "How did you even think it would ever work? Raina and I are bonded mates. We will always want to be together."
"It's not stupid. Perhaps desperate. But you wouldn't listen to reason. I'm so much better for you than she could ever be." Mina shot a glare at Raina as she finally made it to her feet. "I deserve to be the mate of an Alpha. The only mistake I made was entrusting any part of my plan with a human."
"Is there no reasoning with you?" He asked, weary of dealing with her.
"Harry, I've moved around quite a bit since we left town. I've met a lot of other Alphas—all of them assholes. You're the only Alpha I've ever met who didn't just want to use me and toss me aside. The others promised me the world, but none of them ever wanted to commit." She turned sad blue eyes on him. "You're a special werewolf, Harry Styles."
"That's a nice sob story." Raina snapped. "Consider yourself exiled, banished, excommunicated." She waved around a hand. "Or whatever."
"You can't banish me." Mina exclaimed. "You're just some weak human—"
Eyes glowing with fury, Raina stepped around him to confront Mina. She stood so close that Mina was in danger of toppling backward onto the sofa again.
"I'm the Alpha female. And if I say you're out of the pack, you're out." At Raina's growl, Mina automatically lowered her gaze in submission. It was the growl of an Alpha female and she was compelled to obey.
Harry was so proud of his mate. His cheeks ached because his grin was so large.
Mina leaned around Raina. "Harry, you're not going to let her do this, are you? The unmated males in the pack will be furious—"
He shrugged. "They'll understand, or they'll get the fuck over it. You don't screw with a mating bond. Every werewolf knows that. You've got twenty-four hours to get out of our territory."
With a pout and a flip of her hair, Mina stormed toward him. "You're going to wish you had some of this."
"No. I won't." He said firmly. Growling, she flew at him, her claws extended. But before she could make contact, Raina caught her easily around the middle. She contained Mina quickly, grabbing the crazed werewolf's arms and pulling them behind her.
"Harry is too much of a gentleman to ever hurt a woman, but I will not hesitate to beat your ass if you ever come at my mate like that again." Raina released her breath in a huff. "Now, I'm going to do the kindness of escorting you to the door since you seem to be having difficulty finding it."
Harry followed them just in case Mina tried to make a break for it. Mina—for once, displaying that she did possess some common sense—didn't resist. Once on the porch, she flounced down the steps.
"Mina." He called. She whipped around. "Don't come back. You know what could happen if you do."
They watched her get in her car and drive off in silence. Harry relaxed and drew Raina to his side. "I'm glad to see you, but why did you come home?"
"After my conversation with Levi, I knew you would need me because you could never bring yourself to hit a woman." She grinned. "Plus, I thought you might want to check for yourself to make sure I was okay."
He ran his hands down her spine before cupping her ass. She was damn right. "Yeah. I do. But does this mean you have to go back to get your stuff?"
She shook her head. "Nope. I'd already packed. After I finished talking to the police, I sped out of there. I'd hoped to make it here before you."
He laughed. "My hero." He murmured, his masculinity secure enough that he didn't always have to be the savior.
"I will always come to your rescue." She said sincerely. "I love you."
He nodded in understanding. He felt the same way. He'd do anything for her. "I love you, too."
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