“Nash’s father,” I whispered.
Glancing at my hands, I saw the blood. Nash’s blood. “He’s dead.” The tears came then, along with an adrenaline drop.
“I don’t think he’s dead. Let’s go see about him, honey,” he said, his voice calm and almost soothing. “Stay here while I get some clothes from the back of the truck. Everything’s going to be okay.”
I felt safe with him, and had to wonder if that meant if the story Nash knew about the man was wrong.
I put my hands over my face and cried.
It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered. Nash was dead. I hadn’t meant to marry him, but now, I was so glad I was his wife. If all I had were a few days with him, then I’d treasure that time. Family wasn’t just blood, it was who you let into your life. My parents’ love was overbearing, and I had to wonder if it was conditional on being the person they wanted. With Nash and Cord, they wanted me no matter what. A horrible waitress. A virgin. A lost woman trying to find herself.
I was a horrible waitress. I wasn’t a virgin any longer. And I wasn’t a lost woman anymore. I’d found myself. In Cord and Nash.
Harlan, now dressed, climbed in the cab of the truck and started it up.
“I… you’re...” I took a breath, still trying to process what I’d seen. “You’re a wolf.”
He shot me a sidelong glance, then dragged a hand through his hair. “Hell. You didn’t know.” He turned the truck around and started toward Cord’s place.
“What happened to Chester?” I almost didn’t want to know.
“He won’t bother you or anyone else, honey. I took care of it.”
“It?”
“Him. He tried to kill my son, and he kidnapped his mate. Tried to kill you.”
That’s when it hit me. He said mate. Not wife. “Nash is a wolf.”
“He is.”
O.M.G.
A… wolf?
Then I sat up straighter. “You said Chester tried to kill your son.”
“That’s right. Tried. I’m sure Nash is feeling like shit right now, but he’ll be on the mend by the time we get back to him. Unless he took one to the head.” He sent a worried glance my way. “Did he?”
“No.” I blinked. My mouth fell open like I was a fish. “But he was shot,” I finally said.
“Bullets don’t usually kill wolf shifters.”
My heart took wing and flew. Nash wasn’t dead?
“Your mates are probably going out of their minds right now.” He turned down Cord’s driveway. Cord’s truck was there and he was kneeling by Nash’s side, right where I’d left Nash. Cord stood as Harlan approached, then jogged toward the truck. And me.
My gaze went to Nash’s figure on the ground. He pushed up to his forearms to see our approach. Harlan was right. Nash wasn’t dead.
Thank God!
I tumbled out of the truck into Cord’s arms, then ran for Nash.
21
NASH
“Rachel.” I tried to get to my feet, but the bullet holes in my torso slowed me down. There were just so damn many of them, and they went through vital organs. I was gonna feel weak for a day or two. I dropped back to one knee and Rachel threw herself on her knees in front of me.
Her scent surrounded me. Her hands carefully ran over my face and shoulders.
I raked my gaze over her, afraid she wasn’t real.
“Thank fuck,” I murmured, reaching for her face. “How—” I lifted my gaze and took in Harlan, approaching with Cord. I blinked in confusion. I really had lost a lot of blood. It was affecting my brain function. “What happened? Where’s the fucker who took you?”
I couldn’t relax until I knew he couldn’t harm Rachel again.
“I took care of him,” Harlan said, matter-of-factly. I didn’t like the guy, but if he’d saved my mate and finished that Chester asshole, then I owed him my thanks.
“You’re a wolf,” Rachel crooned, holding my face between her two hands and weeping. I focused back on her, which was easy to do, knowing she was safe.
“Shit. Yeah. We both are.” I lifted my chin in Cord’s direction and tried not to wince. “And you’re our mate.”
“Your mate,” she repeated softly, some form of understanding blooming in her face. “I’m your mate. Oh, Nash, I thought you were dead, but Harlan said you’re going to heal?”
“That’s right, beautiful. It’ll take more than a few bullets to finish me.”
Rachel laugh-wept harder. “You being wolves makes so much sense. I kept thinking there was something I didn’t understand around here.”
“We hoped to tell you soon,” Cord explained. “Come on, let’s get Nash inside.” He and Harlan came and hoisted me up by my arms so I could find my feet. With shifter strength, I was sure one of them could have carried me inside alone, but they knew better than to hurt my dignity in front of Rachel. I would heal faster in wolf form, but Rachel was here, and we had to talk.