In Her Heat - Ainsley's Story

In Her Heat - Chapter Thirty Three

As I spoke, my voice was barely a whisper above disbelief. “Damon?”

Our pack leader stood, looking worse for wear. Despite his obvious exhaustion and questionable hygiene, the glint in his eyes said that he had not given up despite what he’d been through.

Damon stood favouring one leg. His slacks were ripped, barely hanging together. He wore no shirt, which made visible long pink-tinted scars across his chest. I wondered at how long ago he’d gotten those. With his Were blood his wounds should have healed fairly quickly. I wondered if he’d gotten them on his way down here or if the wounds were older and very deep. His arms were covered in new scars and his face wasn’t much better. His knuckles were raw and red and I knew he must have gotten those recently. His hair was a complete mess and if lice had nested in there I would not be surprised. He wore no shoes and his toenails had mud crusted underneath them. In fact his entire body was covered in dirt and mud. He even had a speck of dirt on his nose.

Everyone in the room swarmed around him, Cade leading the way. As they hugged and greeted our weary alpha, the siren continued to wail. I made my way to Cade’s side.

The team made way for me as I passed through them until I stood facing Damon. I smiled hesitantly, not quite sure of what to do. Me and Damon had never had a very close relationship and I’m sure I’d given him grief my first few days here. Nevertheless, I was relieved to see him. A part of me had blamed myself for what had happened in his office that day. More than once I’d told myself that I should have done something to stop Ashton.

When Damon opened his arms to me, relief rushed through me. I don't know whether I’d expected him to hold a grudge. On instinct, I ran into his arms, uncaring about the dirt that clung to every part of his body. I squeezed him tightly, so glad he was safe. I forget all about his family history and my anger towards him. When Cade cleared his throat purposefully I blushed lightly and stepped away from Damon.

“Is there any way we could get that siren turned off?” Damon’s voice was rusty, as though he hadn’t spoken in a while. His following laugh was even rougher. Though I suppose that was expected – he’d been gone weeks and what had happened to him probably hadn’t given him cause for laughter.

Cade signalled to one of the men in the room to shut off the siren. He leaned into a man who hovered by his elbow and told him to call off the attack teams and let everyone know what was happening, but that no one was to attempt to see him yet. The man nodded his agreement and began to leave.

I stepped into Cade’s arms as the team filed out the door and into the elevator. Damon’s eyes tracked the movement and a knowing smile flitted across his lips. “Mated?” He asked, though it was more a statement than a question. Cade smiled that devastating smile and curled his arm around my waist possessively. The message in his eyes was clear: Mine. Damon laughed, the sound still a bit harsh and unrefined. “I knew it was going to happen.”

“Damon, what happened to you?”

His eyes grew serious at my question. “A lot. We’re going to need our team down here, Cade.” Cade answered with a sharp nod before whipping out his phone. He began dialling numbers. I pulled away from Cade and stepped closer to Damon.

“Do you want anything? Water, food?”

For a moment, it seemed as though Damon hadn’t heard my question. His brown eyes were distant, as though he were thinking deeply about something, or remembering a past event. “Damon?” I asked softly.

“Oh. No thanks.” He ducked his head to avoid my questioning eyes.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” My raised eyebrow of disbelief got a smile out of him. “Really Ainsley, I’m just a bit tired.”