Apollonia cackled. “Lo, the mighty hath fallen.”
“Yes, well, he’s ready to chew his own paw off if Heather so much as comes close to him, so it might be a while before he hits the ground.”
“The bigger they are,” Artemis snickered.
“Does that mean Barney’s staying in Halle?” Apollonia looked delighted.
Artemis rubbed his hands together. “I’m gonna like this town.”
“I think we should move here.”
The two shared a look. “House hunting!”
“And these are the two who are going to guard us?” Jim muttered.
Chloe smiled weakly. They were in deep doo-doo.
Jim stepped out of the master bathroom to find Chloe staring out the window into the street below. She was dressed in sleep shorts and one of those thin-strapped tank tops he found he loved slipping off of her.
“I’m scared.”
Her voice was so soft he barely heard her. “Because of the Senate?”
She nodded once. “Don’t want you or Spencer hurt.”
He wanted to dismiss her fears, but he couldn’t. “I won’t lie to you. I can’t promise we won’t be.” He moved cautiously toward her, afraid he would make things worse rather than better. “I can promise we’ll do our best to stay safe.”
“Not a Hunter.”
“No. I’m not.” He was just a lone Wolf who barely knew what he was doing. “But we have good friends who are. We’ve got a Pride full of people who want to help us, and we’ve got your weird family to protect us.”
She almost smiled as she turned toward him. “My family isn’t bat weird.”
Her words weren’t coming out slurred, but she was speaking slowly, as if measuring each one on her tongue before doling them out in bits and pieces. “What’s really going on?”
She bit her lip. “Is it worth it?”
“What?”
She gestured between the two of them. “This.”
“Don’t doubt that for a second.” He pulled her close, snuggling with her in the darkness. “This is worth everything.”
“You’re a snap.”
He waited, unsure for once if she really meant that or something else.
“But I like that about you.”
He kissed the top of her head. “I’m glad.” She was still speaking slowly, still obviously worried. “Promise me something?”
“Hmm?” She wiggled, lifting her nose to his neck. She sniffed his skin, relaxing against him bonelessly.
“If you get scared, you tell me. Even if you can’t speak, I’ll know.”
Her arms tightened around him and he took her weight, holding her easily as she sagged. “Don’t want to see you hurt.”
He thought about that for a few moments. What was the best way to ease her fears? “What would you like to do? Do you want Glory and Ryan to move in with us?”
She poked him in the side hard enough that he flinched. “Serious.”
“So am I.” He’d do anything to ensure Chloe never again spent a sleepless night. “If that’s what it takes to make sure you feel safe, I’ll invite them in a heartbeat.”
She stood silent, swaying slightly in his arms, a quiet midnight dance as she thought. “Air hole.” She shook her head. “Egg roll.” She made a fist, her frustration clear, but Jim couldn’t do this for her. He knew what she was about to say, but she had to do it herself. “Petrol.” She screamed in frustration. “Patrol!”
He nodded. “Your family is doing that already, but if it makes you feel better we can ask Francois and Barney to do it as well.”
“Skate this,” she sobbed.
“Shh.” He rocked her again, stroking her hair. He’d been wondering when it would all become too much, when the pressure of her disorder and the people trying to hurt them would cause her to break down. And even though all he could do for her was hold her, a part of him was glad that she felt comfortable enough around him to allow herself to cry.
It killed him, how hard she broke when she finally did. She sobbed until her breath hitched and her knees gave out. He lifted her up, settling them in the bed, Chloe awkwardly draped across him. Her arms were so tightly wound around his neck he was afraid he’d have bruises, and his T-shirt was thoroughly soaked with her tears.
He lay there, his arms going slowly numb while his mate cried out her pain. When the sobs finally slowed down to hiccupping breaths, he eased her down until they weren’t clinging to each other quite so tightly. “Things can only get better, Chloe.”
“Pfft.”
He chuckled. “It’s a figure of speech, sweetheart.”
She sat up, her eyes red-rimmed, her nose running and her cheeks blotchy. “One bray at a time?”
“Something like that.” He carefully turned them until they were both on their sides. “Chloe?”
“Hmm?” She settled back down against his chest, tucking her knee between his legs.
“I’m glad.”
“That I got snot on your T-shirt?”
“No.” He blinked. “Wait. What?”
She shuddered through another sob. It seemed she was one of those people who didn’t really stop crying when they were done. No wonder she hadn’t let herself truly go before. It was the kind of hard crying that left you with a sore throat and eyes even after you slept.
If she’d cried like this in front of her family they would have never let her live alone, no matter what she or her doctors said.
So Jim did the only thing he could think of. He sighed deeply. “It’s my favorite T-shirt too.”
She wiped ineffectively at his chest.
Jim took hold of her wandering hand. “Stop.” He kissed her knuckles. “You can smoosh around the goo on my chest later. Let me get this out, okay?”
She giggled and shuddered at the same time. Her breath caught on a whine and she almost began crying again.
“Hey. Do you need to let go some more?” She shook her head and put her fist to her mouth. “I don’t mind, and I’m not going anywhere. No matter how much snot you sniffle on me.”
She laughed again. “That’s h-horrible!”
“No, what you’re doing to my shirt is horrible.” He stroked her hair, hoping she understood what it was he was trying to do. It might be the wrong thing to do, but he believed with all his heart that she’d had the emotional storm. Now she needed the sunshine to heal. “It’s vintage.”