Her Blood, Their Bond

Chapter Seven- Going Home

Caleb POV

I didn’t wait for her to walk out alone. The second Darius’s command left his mouth, I was at her side, guiding her down the hall with my hand warm against her back. She was trembling, clutching the blanket like armor, eyes fixed on the floor so no one could see how shattered she looked.

My wolf ached, furious. She was our mate, and she’d just been cornered like prey.

In my room, I moved fast—grabbing the softest things I owned from the drawer. A plain T-shirt, worn-in sweats. My scent clung to them, and I knew it. I didn’t care. Some stubborn part of me wanted her wrapped in it. Wanted her claimed, even in this small way.

“Here,” I said, my voice rougher than I meant. “These should fit well enough.”

She blinked up at me, hesitant, then accepted the bundle with shaking hands. She disappeared into the bathroom, and when she came back, my chest tightened.

My shirt swallowed her, hanging loose over her shoulders. The sweats were tied high, baggy on her slim frame. She looked smaller, softer… but mine all the same. My wolf growled low in satisfaction, content just seeing her like that.

I cleared my throat and grabbed the keys. “Come on. I’ll take you home.”

The drive was quiet. Too quiet. Her fingers twisted in the hem of the shirt, her gaze fixed out the passenger window as the pack house faded behind us.

I gripped the wheel tighter, hating the silence, hating that I didn’t know how to pull her back from the fear Darius had slammed into her.

“You okay?” I asked finally, my voice careful.

She gave a humorless laugh. “That’s a stupid question.”

I glanced over. Her profile was pale in the early light, but her jaw was set stubborn, her eyes hard even through the shine of tears she wouldn’t let fall.

“Fair enough,” I said softly. “But you don’t have to be okay right now.”

She didn’t answer. Just shifted closer to the window, hugging herself tighter.

I tried again, quieter. “You did good last night. First shifts are hell. But you came through it.”

Her head tilted slightly, not enough to look at me, but enough that I knew she was listening.

“And for what it’s worth,” I added, my chest tight, “Darius doesn’t decide who you are. Or what you mean.”

That got her. She turned her head just enough for me to catch the edge of her gaze—blue eyes rimmed faintly with that impossible green, guarded but searching. My chest clenched. Gods, she was strong. Stronger than she knew.

The rest of the drive passed in silence, but not the same brittle kind as before. This was different. Heavier. A silence filled with questions she wasn’t ready to ask and answers I wasn’t ready to give.

When we pulled up to her apartment, I cut the engine and turned to her. “I’ll walk you up.”

“You don’t have to,” she said quickly, too quickly.

“I want to,” I replied, and I didn’t move until she opened the door.

I followed her up the narrow stairs, my wolf on edge even here, scanning for threats. When we reached her door, she fumbled with the keys, her hands still shaking. I wanted to take them from her, unlock it myself, carry her inside. But I didn’t.

When the lock clicked and the door swung open, she stepped inside and turned back to me, the oversized collar of my shirt slipping off one shoulder.

“Thanks,” she whispered. Simple. Bare.

I nodded once, forcing myself not to reach for her. “Rest. I’ll check in later.”

Her eyes flicked to mine, full of something I couldn’t name—fear, confusion, maybe even trust—and then she shut the door softly between us.

I stood there for a long moment, fists clenching at my sides, fighting every instinct that screamed at me not to leave.

But I did. For now.

Rhea POV

The door clicked shut behind him, and for the first time since last night, silence pressed in.

I leaned back against it, my knees giving out until I slid to the floor, wrapped in his jacket and his scent. Grass. Rain. Warmth.

It should’ve comforted me. Instead it made my chest ache.

I buried my face in my hands. Everything crashed in at once—the fire in my veins, the breaking of my bones, the feel of fur and claws that weren’t supposed to be mine. Caleb coaxing me through it. The run. The howl. And then—

Darius.

The memory of his voice made me shudder. Harsh, cold, like steel scraping against stone. His smell, like cedar wood and clean laundry. The way it had slammed into me, stirred my wolf, whispered mate in the same place Caleb’s had.

But it couldn’t be both. That wasn’t possible. That wasn’t fair.

Anger snapped through me, sudden and sharp. He hadn’t even looked at me like I was a person. Just a problem. A threat. Something to fear.

And yet… my wolf had answered him.

I curled tighter into the blanket, wishing I hadn’t told Caleb to leave me here alone. His calm, steady presence had been the only thing keeping me from falling apart. Now the apartment felt too small, too empty, and every shadow pressed close like it knew what I’d become.

I wanted to scream, to demand answers, but the words stuck in my throat. Too heavy. Too raw.

When I’d turned to shut the door earlier, Caleb had stopped me. He’d pulled a scrap of paper from his pocket, scribbled numbers in quick, firm strokes, and pressed it into my hand.

“In case anything happens,” he’d said simply. No pressure, no questions. Just steady. Just there.

I clutched it now, the ink smudged from my sweat-damp fingers. His number. My lifeline.

I had a thousand questions clawing inside me—what I was, what Darius meant, why my eyes glowed green when they shouldn’t. But I didn’t have the strength to ask. Not yet.

So instead I pulled myself off the floor, dropped onto the bed still wearing his clothes, and curled around the scrap of paper like it might keep the nightmares away.

For the first time in eighteen years, I wasn’t sure who I was. But I knew one thing.

I wasn’t a human anymore. I was...Something else.

The sound of my phone dragged me out of sleep, shrill and relentless. I blinked blearily at the screen, my stomach twisting when I saw the name.

Mark.

Shit.

I swiped to answer, wincing at the sharp edge of his voice. “Rhea? You planning to show up at all? You missed your shift. If you don’t want the hours—”

“I’ll be there tonight,” I croaked, my throat still raw. “Promise.”

There was a long pause, then a gruff sigh. “Fine. Don’t make me cover for you again. Midnight sharp.”

The line went dead, leaving me staring at the ceiling. Every muscle in my body still ached, my skin buzzing like static under my clothes. The wolf was still there, crouched beneath my skin, restless and awake now that it had broken free.

But I couldn’t just hide here forever.

By midnight, I was behind the counter, apron tied over my clothes, trying to look alive. My reflection in the metal of the espresso machine told the truth—I looked wrecked. Pale, shadows under my eyes, hair yanked into a messy bun I hadn’t bothered to fix.

I prayed no one would notice. That maybe Caleb wouldn’t notice.

If he even came.

The café was steady as usual—students, night owls, the hum of laptops. My hands shook as I poured a refill, my mind drifting back to fur and claws and a voice in my head that hadn’t shut up since.

Mate.

The bell above the door jingled.

I turned—and my chest tightened.

Caleb.

He froze for a second when he saw me, surprise flickering across his face, then relief. He slid into his usual booth, eyes never leaving mine.

My hands went clammy. I hadn’t realized until this moment how much I’d wanted him to come. How much I’d needed him to.

I grabbed the pot, forcing myself forward. My voice was thin when I said, “Coffee?”

His lips quirked faintly, but his eyes stayed serious, warm and steady. “Yeah. Please.”

The scent of rain and grass curled toward me, wrapping around my chest, easing some of the tightness there.

I poured, careful not to spill, and finally forced myself to ask, quiet enough only he could hear:

“What… am I?”