Reclaiming Herself—Completed

Chapter Twenty-Four

Patrick.

Her lips were soft and warm and hungry. Before his brain could even react, he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her back, gently. Her tongue slipped into his and he melted into her mouth as she explored his. Her hands wound themselves in his hair and started to grab at his shirt and pull it up. Her warm hands were under his shirt, wandering around and feeling his toned chest and muscles. He then felt her hands go lower and begin fiddling with his belt.

It was then that his logical mind took back over from his longing to have her. She was in heat, and he was the only male allowed to appease her pain. Patrick broke the kiss, pulling away abruptly. She frowned, almost looking hurt.

He cleared his throat and sat across from her, awkwardly adjusting his shirt back into place. The others onboard had all busied themselves, giving the couple as much privacy as possible.

“Dani,” Patrick coughed, not meeting her eyes. “I don’t think–”

“Yeah, whatever,” she interrupted. “It was a mistake because of my heat. I don’t want to hear it.”

Folding his arms, he tilted his head to the side, fully taking in the beauty before him. He noticed how her curls fell into her face and how her heart was still racing. He saw her long eyelashes that fluttered when she blinked and her red eyes looking downcast at his sudden hesitation. He noticed her high cheek bones and soft, pink tinted lips against her light brown skin. Everything about this woman drove him absolutely crazy, and as soon as her eyes met his, she shuddered under his lustful gaze.

“I am not rejecting your advances, Danielle,” he said huskily, trying to control himself and Aero. “I only want to protect you from myself, and make sure that this is a choice you want and won’t come to regret later.”

Her brows furrowed, and he couldn’t read the expression on her face. However, she nodded and brought her knees to her chest. He forced himself to close his eyes before he could stare at her further. His body wanted her, and he could feel the excitement within him, which only grew the more he pictured her in his mind.

Standing suddenly, he made his way to the back of the plane to get them cups of water. He needed to cool off, and as he passed her, he caught her eyes widening as she looked at his aroused state. If anything, maybe it would convince her of how much he did, in fact, want her.

Once at the back of the plane, he drank two cups of water quickly. He ignored Aero, who was pressuring him to resume the activities he had escaped from. He knew it had been a moment since he was last intimate, but he didn’t realize just how horny his wolf was until his mate was presented in front of him.

Pouring two more cups of water, he made his way back to his seat in front of Danielle after calming down. He sat across from her and handed her a cup, which she gratefully took from him and began drinking. Patrick zeroed in on the drop of water that spilled from the rim of the glass and began sliding down her chin. Pulling his eyes away, he stared at the ceiling. He heard her chuckle softly.

“Alright. I believe you,” she said, drawing his attention.

He gave her a confused look.

She gave him a half smile. “I see you restraining yourself, and I appreciate the effort. I’m not…ready for anything like that, no matter how painful this heat is.”

Patrick nodded, wishing he could take her pain away. “It’ll last a couple more days, since you’ll remain in an unmated state.”

“Oh joy,” she muttered, wincing.

A stewardess came by and changed the now warm towels for cooler ones. He had instructed that they put a bunch of them in the freezer for her. She thanked the lady and then sat with her eyes closed.

Patrick could see that she was still filled with tension and was going through a painful experience. He certainly didn’t want their first few days together to be full of painful memories; however, it had allowed him to save her from that prick of an alpha.

“Only one more hour,” he said, to which she nodded.

“What are your expectations for me?” she asked suddenly, her eyes searching his.

Without any hesitation, he replied, “There are none.”

She frowned. “I don’t believe you. Men always have expectations or a certain way they want their women to be.

Taking a moment to ponder, Patrick finally said, “Alright fine.”

Danielle flashed him a triumphant glare.

“Based on your words, I want you to be happy. Whatever you decide, whether it be staying with me as my luna or choosing to leave your mate for freedom, I just want you to be happy. I cannot begin to understand what you have been forced to go through, but I believe that you deserve to find joy and fulfillment wherever you go and with people who will help you achieve that.”

Danielle’s eyes widened in surprise. She evidently hadn’t expected him to say those words, but everything he’d said had been the honest truth. He wanted to be by her side and help her heal from her trauma, but he also knew that he may not be the one equipped to do so. If that were the case, then he wanted to provide the means for her, no matter what it looked like.

“You’re my mate,” he continued after a moment of silence between them. “Since we were born until we die. I will only want what’s best for you, whatever the cost and whatever that may be.

“You’d really let me leave…” she breathed in amazement.

It was less of a question and more of a statement for herself to believe. Patrick saw the wheels turning in her mind, and how she had attempted to fit him into a box. Though he understood her desire to do so, since she had been a prisoner to horrible men doing unspeakable things to her, he wanted to defy her idea of how men should treat women. He wanted her to see and feel how women should be treated, and he wanted to give her the world.

The two spent the next hour in silence. Once he realized that she wasn’t going to speak to him any longer, he pulled out paperwork to work on. Things had been piling up after he’d dedicated his time to infiltrating Richard’s auction. He groaned when he thought about the other alpha. He expected a full report from Matthew once they landed on just how he’d let Richard slip through their fingers.

As soon as they landed, Patrick felt Danielle’s anxiety skyrocket. Actually, everyone on the plane felt her nerves.

“It’s going to be alright,” Patrick attempted to soothe, but she only flashed him a worried glance.

They pulled into the private hanger, readying to deboard. There were already several cars parked and waiting for them to make it back to the pack grounds. Patrick sent everyone off of the plane as he sat with Danielle. Her face was staring intently out the window and her fingers were white from grasping onto the armrests so tightly.

“What do you think is going to happen?” he then asked.

“I don’t know. That’s part of the problem. I don’t know what to expect. I don’t know who’s going to hurt me next.”

Her words broke his heart and only fueled his desire to tear Richard limb from limb as slowly as possible.

“I’ll be next to you. I’ll be by your side. I won’t let anyone touch you, let alone hurt you, if you so wish. We can proceed as slowly as you’d like.”

“And once we get to the pack house, I have to stay a week, and then I can leave?”

Patrick swallowed his sorrow and replied, “Yes, you can leave as soon as the doctor signs off that you’re going to be fine.”

“Do you promise?”

“Yes, I promise,” he said, his mouth feeling ashen and leaving a bitter taste behind.

Aero howled in his head, unable to control the pain that he felt at the thought of losing his mate.

She hasn’t rejected us. Patrick tried to console.

If she does leave, then she might as well have.

Patrick understood the bite in his wolf’s tone, but he also saw the agony that Danielle was in. She had to live the rest of her days with the memories of what he did to her. And although Patrick wasn’t aware of the extent those painful memories went to, he could surmise that it wasn’t a pleasant time. Caleb had alluded to quite a bit, but even he had spent many weeks away, leaving her defenseless to Richard’s whims.

“Okay,” she said, startling Patrick from his thoughts. “I’m ready to go.”

He nodded and walked behind her as they departed the plane and towards their future.