Chapter 25

Cursing, Jake started running Towards lelandi's cousin.

Lelandi tried to exit the wheelchair as her chest hurt, her heart thumping. She yelled, "Let him alone!"

Darien told her to calm down before further injuring herself as he took her writhing body from the wheelchair and placed it in the backseat of his SUV. Silva, enter and force her to remain in place.

But, I was planning to stay behind and—

He shouted at Lelandi, trying to hold him motionless, "Go in!" "Hell, get behind the wheel. I'll make sure the hellion stays seated. When someone unlocked the backseat's second passenger door and grabbed Lelandi by the arm, she scrambled to extricate herself.

She screamed. She squeaked, "Tom."

She smiled toothily at the unfortunate guy, whose head was still bandaged, but it was obvious that he was hurting as he tried to calm her down. Eventually, she stopped resisting him. What did it really matter? She wasn't moving, and since her cousin had longer legs and greater strength in his movement than the shorter red, Jake was certain to catch him.

She had Darien reach over her and fasten her seatbelt.

She gasped as the strap crushed on her wounds. I apologize, Lelandi. Darien pointed to Silva as his eyes drifted to midnight. “Drive.”

Lelandi tried to avoid making contact with the shoulder strap by squeezing back into the seat and slipping her hand between the seat belt and her chest. When Jake cornered Ural near to a fast-food pizza joint, Darien started to move it aside for her. She commanded her body to slow down while trying to calm her rushing heart.

Drive into the pizzeria's parking lot, Darien yelled. Lelandi yelled, "No," while attempting to rip the seatbelt off. Let's stop, Lelandi. We won't execute the man.

His iciness, though, revealed a different tale. Darien tried to hold her against the seat by pulling her shoulders back with his strong hands. He was shielded by his leather jacket, which she chewed into.

Tom laughed, pinning her left arm on the floor.

In the garage, Silva jammed on the brakes. "He escaped,"

Looking like the devil was pursuing him—which, for the time being, he was—

Jake gave chase once more as Ural sprinted down a side street. Impressive was Lelandi. In a footrace, she didn't believe Ural could outrun the gray in their human form. Yet, he was a frail little man. He'd perform even better if he could transform into the wolf.

Darien pulled out his phone and shouted to Silva, "Take us home." He entered a number and shifted a lock of hair out of Lelandi's face. She glared and averted her gaze. Get your guys to the pizzeria, which is south on Silver Maple Street, where there is a suspect wearing a hooded copper coat, uncle Sheridan. Jake is pursuing him on foot. Yes, the same person who approached Lelandi in front of Hastings B&B. Larissa was actually my mate. The small man wearing the copper suit is probably a red. Gotcha.” He turned to face Lelandi, displaying a smile of intense satisfaction.

She didn't want the grays to harm her cousin, jerk though he might be. She gave Darien her most scathing grin and threatened to punish him further as soon as she was able.

As he took Lelandi home, Darien had every intention of putting her to bed. He didn't trust her to remain there without a guard, though, given what had happened with the man in the copper jacket. And he didn't have faith that the man wouldn't pursue her once more.

Although he had intended to keep her in the guest bedroom, he was strongly tempted to move her into his master suite in order to reduce the number of guards stationed there. She would never be able to sneak away, even though he was a light sleeper. He didn't care how his people perceived him either; they would change their opinions. However, he did care how Lelandi felt about it. He was unsure in regards to that.

Despite the fact that when he kissed her, she damn well kissed him back. What was that? She had been hurt so brutally that she was probably half insane. Or was that the reason she begged for his kisses in the first place? and fell asleep. Yes, the blood loss that affected her brain had to be the cause. But another idea began to dominate. Lelandi was the woman from his dreams. He fixed her with his gaze. She turned her back on him. Instantly, a horrible sensation raced through him. Hell, he had chosen the wrong partner.

Darien had every intention of doing just that when they entered the circular driveway of his woodland house two miles from the town.

He would kill the idiot who attempted to kill her in order to prove to Lelandi that she was his soul mate despite her injuries.

You have guard duty from noon until two, Tom. Before that, get some rest.

"Darien, I've been sleeping the majority of the day. I'm good. Lelandi was no longer fighting as Darien helped her out of the SUV. She appeared to be damned kissable once again because she was supple and soft, but when she moaned, he dispelled that idea. Keep an eye on her in the living room until Trevor arrives to protect her.

"Sure, Darien, yeah."

The strongest desire Darien ever had was to drag her right into his bedroom, put her in his bed, and maul her. Once she was cured and he had persuaded her that she was the one meant for him, he would. Did she share his dream content? If so, why hadn't she noticed him earlier? Or perhaps she had, but she no longer desired him because he had chosen her sister as his partner. Hell.

He carried her to the living room with that terrible idea, his need for her building with each step. He was already as hard as stone, and his trousers' friction only served to exacerbate the problem. He was confident she could smell how sexy he was by touching her since her eyes enlarged.

He placed her on the largest velour sofa, which was about six feet long, while gritting his teeth. "Silva, could you get a spare pillow and blanket from my bathroom's linen closet?"

"Got it." Silva left quickly.

You may go get her some ice water, Tom. She still needs to drink a lot of water, according to the doctor, even though the temperature has subsided.

Yes, I will obtain it. Tom made his way to the kitchen.

Lelandi held her chest softly but refused to look at Darien.

Are you in pain? She bowed.

Although she was still cool to the touch when he caressed her cheek, the sensation of her delicate flesh beneath his fingertip burnt him. He backed away, hating how the siren had captured him and how helpless he was in the face of it. I apologize for being too harsh previously.

"My mistake." Her eyes were filled with tears.

He thought he had lost half of his body weight. “Lelandi.”

She looked aside hastily. For what my sister done, I apologize. To find that she'd..." A feeling of sympathy washed through him as her voice broke. Her bottom lip trembled. "I apologize. I wished my sister, whom I loved, had never been matched to him. She had discovered you first, and she had loved you both as you both deserved. She wouldn't have been harmed, and she would have been happy.

Lelandi's skin was silky soft, and her hand was little like her sister's. He took her hand and ran his thumb over her fingers. "I assume she had a legitimate reason for acting in the way she did; it wasn't your fault. In addition, I played a role in it. His hands were on her knees as he knelt down in front of her. Silva was accurate. Larissa and I couldn't be apart. She continuously refused my advances while providing no explanation. I assumed she was trying to be difficult, possibly out of concern that the grays wouldn't accept her as I did. She seemed like the perfect match to me. I found she wasn't a virgin when we mated. I had no idea that she had a living partner. I suppose I was too arrogant to think about such a thing. Why didn't you tell me we had a dream together?