Chapter 62: Starting to Believe

**Mallory **

My hands were clenched in nervous fists as I knocked on Daniel’s door.

“Come in, Mallory,” I could hear the deep exhale accompanying his words. I sighed, he didn’t want to see me, but it would be over soon.

Entering the room, I started talking with my gaze fixed on my feet. “Daniel, I know you are avoiding me, that you probably changed your mind and it is all too much for you to deal with, I understand that…”

“Mallory, I am avoiding you, but not for the reason you are imagining.” His words attracted my gaze towards him and I gasped as I saw his state and the mess around him.

His room that was always perfectly tidy and neat was now a huge mess. There were clothes and wound dressing and bandages everywhere, even a pile of maps on the floor. But much more shocking than that, was his appearance; he had a nasty burn on his shoulder and chin and his arm was immobilized by a cast.

“Daniel, what happened?” I asked softly, taking a few steps towards his bed.

“I was avoiding you because I didn’t want you to see me like this,” he stood up slowly and closed the distance between us, taking my hands in his.

“I won’t change my mind, my Love. Understand that.” His words were filled with a deep and wholehearted determination.

Alessia whimpered within my soul. I knew that she meant ‘I told you.’ She was right, she had always been right about Daniel. I should stop letting my insecurities and the way I feel about myself reflect in the manner I perceive my mate’s emotions.

He caressed my face and I sank into his embrace, being careful to not hurt his arm and his shoulder. My mate placed a sweet kiss on the top of my head and pressed my slightly trembling body against his chest.

“I didn’t want you to see these, but I am glad you are here. Avoiding you is hard, I missed you, Mallory,” he murmured.

“I missed you too. But what happened to you?” I asked, not able to conceal the worry in my voice as my eye met his grey ones.

He cleared his throat and took a deep breath, “I want to track down everyone that hurt you, and I’ve started it already. I killed one of the Red Generals,” he explained.

“Oh, Gods! Daniel!” I gasped, covering my mouth with my hand, “You put yourself through all of this,” I said as my eyes trailed to his wounds, “risked your life for me?”

“I would do anything for you,” he replied without hesitation, taking my hand and sitting on his bed with me by his side.

A soft wince left his lips as his back met the surface of the bed and I clenched my lips tight in aggravation.

“Why?” I asked, looking into space.

“Why did I kill him? I had to avenge, it’s what you need, to be safe and feel better. It’s what we need,” he said, taking my hand in his once again and attracting my sad eyes towards him.

“Do you feel better now? Did it help you at all?” I asked, my voice wasn’t louder than a whisper, yet it was deep, coming from a place within me. That wasn’t what I wanted or needed.

“I… I don’t,” Daniel exhaled deeply, “but as soon as the other two men who hurt you are dead,” his words were laced with determination and a heated rage.

“It won’t make either you or I feel better. That’s not the way to heal, Daniel. What I need and want is my mate to not put himself in danger. I don’t need revenge, I need you, I need us and I need to feel good about myself. Knowing that you are on a killing spree to avenge me won’t bring me that. I won’t bring me the peace I need.” I breathed deeply, thick tears sliding down my face and my teary eyes looking intently at his.

He looked away for a moment and exhaled, “I need you too, Mallory. I love you, you are all I want and need. I just thought that this way, I could bring you some justice and help you, help myself to move on. Having them dead would make you safer.”

“I don’t think they want anything to do with me anymore and if they come we will be prepared. I am not being kidnaped again, Daniel, ever. But now, what I need is us.”

He wrapped his arm around my body and I snuggled into his chest. His warmth, his scent, the feeling of his skin was all I longed for.

“You won’t, Love.”

“Promise that you won’t ever do something this reckless and dangerous again?” I asked, a small frown on my face as I tilted his face to the side gently, just enough to look at the wound in his chin.

“I won’t. I promise,” he replied, nuzzling his nose against my cheek, just like Aelred did to Alessia. I felt her rumbling within my soul and even I felt like a purring kitten at his sweet touch.

“Do they hurt?” I inspected his wounds carefully, running my fingers through his chin with a featherlight touch. I hoped the sweet tingles that rose as soon as our skin touched could soothe his pain.

“Not so much anymore, but everything is better now that you are here,” he added, his lips twisting up in a small smile. The same way his presence, his smell, and everything about him brought me comfort and helped soothe my pain.

I stood up slowly, wanting to go to my room to pick some clothes up. Sleeping in my jeans didn’t seem like a good idea.

“Where are you going?”

“To get some comfortable clothes to sleep,” I replied, looking at his now much more relaxed face. He didn’t even seem to be in pain anymore.

“You can have one of my shirts again. I want you surrounded by my scent, smelling like mine,” he added, possessiveness vibrating in his voice.

My tongue licked my lips on its own accord and I nodded, quickly changing to one of his long grey shirts, and coming back to his embrace.

He showered my forehead and temples with soft kisses as his fingers danced around my back. We stayed there in comfortable silence for a few minutes.

“What are you thinking about?” I broke the silence between us, my eyes trying to read his contemplative face.

“That I don’t want to sleep without you again. But at the same time, I don’t want to rush you, Mallory.”

“You are not rushing me. I don’t want to spend a single night without you either.” I smiled, cupping the non-hurt side of his face and kissing his lips.

He cupped the nape of my neck, deepening our kiss and sending a jolt of electricity through my body. Electric butterflies buzzed in my stomach, and even my lower back, at our sweet and passionate kiss. We only pulled away when we were both running out of air, I only wish we could also breathe each other. Maybe there is some magic or some rune for that.

**A smile formed on my lips as I looked at my handsome mate. We were much better together. I was starting to believe it, starting to believe in love as I couldn’t stop feeling it.**

*

Pls join my F*B group T. R. Durant's Realms for news on new releases and paperbacks.