She could also feel his pain, the constant struggle he had been going through since she had been taken. She could feel the battle he had waged to keep himself under control enough to find her again. For if he had lost control, he would have destroyed everything in his path. He would have become much like the mindless monsters stalking this town. She could feel the agony that her loss had caused him, the torment that had plagued him endlessly. She could feel his fear about her relationship with Julian, a fear that was eased by the taking of her vein.
He withdrew from her, his head dropping into the hollow of her neck as she held him tight. His lips were warm against her neck; his body trembled as he held her close to him. He licked her wounds gently, closing them with the healing agent in his saliva. She shuddered at the feel of him against her skin, at the wonderful touch of his tongue against her.
“I’ve warned you repeatedly not to put yourself in my way,” he whispered, nuzzling her ear gently with his nose and lips.
Her fingers curled tighter into his back as her knees began to tremble. “I’ll always put myself in your way,” she whispered. “I’ll always be here for you.”
His lips moved to her cheek, brushing gentle kisses across her face, her nose, her lips and then back again. “My Cassie,” he breathed in her ear. “It’s not your fault what they did to you in there, you did not deserve it. And you aren’t in love with him. You were just confused, lost, wounded, and you were brutalized both physically and psychologically. You care for him and he kept you alive and sane, and you love him, but you are not in love with him.”
She burst into tears; her knees gave out as she fell against him. She hadn’t realized until then just how much she had needed his forgiveness, his love, his understanding. She hadn’t realized just how much she had feared her strange feelings for Julian, her sudden, binding connection to him. But Devon had seen it all, and he had understood it all. And because of his unconditional love, and understanding, she was now able to understand it better too.
She also hadn’t realized just how much she had blamed herself for what had happened in there. She had gone against her own kind by loving Devon, and she was abnormal, different from the rest of her kind. She was an abomination, lacking and dangerous in ways that none of the rest of them were. But his forgiveness, his words, helped to ease the torment and self hatred that had lingered in her soul, eating her alive from the inside out.
He bent down, sweeping her into his arms as she clung to him, tears streaming down her cheeks. She burrowed her face into the hollow of his neck, unable to face the others at the moment. “I’m sorry,” he said briskly to Liam. “We’re going out back. Will you be ok for a little while?”
She assumed this question was directed at Luther as he was the one that answered yes in a slightly strangled voice.
Devon’s strides were long and purposeful as he carried her past the racks of merchandise and toward the back area where the feed was kept. She watched him silently as he placed her down on a feed bag. He walked around, drawing the blinds and curtains tightly shut, though fragments of light still filtered through the edges. Lamps and flashlights had already been gathered and set out in the room. He turned on one of the lamps, its small beam of light cast shadows about the room. Grabbing two of the sleeping bags they had stashed back here, he unrolled one and placed it down. Finally, he placed the rolled one down as a pillow.
He turned back to her, holding his hand out for her. Cassie rose slowly, clasping hold of his hand as he pulled the zipper back to let her in. Cassie climbed inside, her entire body suddenly aching and tired. Her mind was numb as tears continued to roll silently down her cheeks. Devon crawled in beside her; he wrapped his arms around her as he pulled her against him.
He rested his cheek against hers as he wiped the tears gently from her face. “I missed this so much,” he whispered. “I missed you.”
She squeezed his hands tight, pressing them against her chest. “And I missed you,” she breathed, brushing a light kiss against his nose, his cheeks, and finally softly against his full mouth. “Devon, about Julian…”
“I don’t want to talk about it right now Cassie. I know what happened to you.” For a moment his voice trailed off, his eyes growing hard and distant. “I know what they did to you and they will pay for it, and we will talk about it soon. But for tonight, I just want to hold you. I just want to feel you against me. I just need to know that you are with me again, and safe.”
More tears streamed down her face as she smiled brightly at him. “Yes, I would like that very very much.”
His grin was the most beloved, cherished thing she had ever seen. She had missed his smile even more than her own freedom. His eyes sparkled when he smiled, the hard planes of his face softened making him younger and more approachable looking, even with the rough stubble along his jaw.
“You’re exhausted.”
“Yes,” she agreed softly, stifling a yawn as she nuzzled closer to him, savoring in the wonderfully masculine scent of him. It was familiar and comforting and welcoming. His love enveloped her, wrapping her within a secure cocoon that lulled her into a much needed, dreamless sleep.
CHAPTER 5
Cassie awoke sometime later, blinking against the sleep that still clung to her. Devon’s arm was wrapped loosely around her waist, his breathing even and slow as he slept peacefully. She stared at his slackened face, savoring in his perfect features. She was reaching for him, wanting to wake him when a small snort behind her caught her attention. She turned slightly, a smile quirking her mouth as she caught sight of Chris a few feet away, snoring softly. She had spent many many nights of her life listening to his snores.
She lay for a few moments, relishing in the warmth of Devon and the blessed noise of Chris. She watched Chris, wishing that he didn’t have to be entangled in all of this with them. She wished that she could have kept him safe from it all, but knew that she never could have. Birth had trapped them both here, and the cruelty of crazed men, not her.
The pressure in her bladder was what eventually got her moving. Wiggling the zipper on the sleeping bag down, she gently untangled Devon’s arm from her and slid from the bag. She wrapped him tightly back into it, rising slowly to her feet. She winced as pain lanced through her bruised and battered feet, but she hobbled over to the lit lantern, lifting it from the bags of feed.
She peered around the room, surprised to note that everyone except Liam and Julian was asleep in the room, and that the sun had set. Frowning, Cassie tried to figure out how long she had been asleep, but it was impossible to tell. Limping away, she made her way back into the main store, heading for the bathroom they had discovered behind the coolers.