Chapter 68

Rachel POV

Bella & Rachel's Apartment

The hard rap of knuckles against the front door dragged my attention from the notebook I was trying to compose in. Caution came to me strangely as I looked out the window to see who the guest might be before moving to open the door. I didn't want to be surprised again the way I had been by Art earlier.

I sighed in relief when I realized it was only Nathan.

Unlocking the door, I quickly opened it and waved him in with a smile of gratitude as I saw he'd wheeled a suitcase along with him.

Trust Nathan to be wonderful enough to come packed to leave within hours of being asked to go with me on a fool's errand.

We weren't going into friendly territory either, yet here he was! Ready to go!

I would have hugged him if I didn't worry he'd misinterpret my relief for something deeper. I hated myself for using Nathan as a personal shield when I knew he wanted to have me back as his lover again. I couldn't push him away though. The selfish part of me left over from the girl I'd once been wanted his adoration as much as the protection of his company.

"You know we're not leaving for two days?"

"I know I'm sleeping on your couch until Windsor shows up with a car. I don't trust him enough to think he would go out of his way to avoid leaving me behind."

We shared a grin at the idea of the Alpha Inspector racing away with me before Nathan could arrive as escort. I had to admit I could see Nathan's point. Art Windsor probably would have preferred to leave him behind if he could find any excuse to manage it.

"How about we compromise? I have to get some work done tonight. Tomorrow I'm squaring things away with Tyler. We can have a sleepover tomorrow night so when Art arrives to leave? We'll both be here waiting on him."

"What about tonight?"

I could tell from the stubborn set of Nathan's jaw he wasn't going to leave without a fight. He had always been stubborn over me. I'd thought him ridiculously overprotective until my father sold me to pay his bookie off.

When I'd realized what was happening, I'd felt a flash of regret I hadn't let Nathan fuss over me. I wondered sometimes how my life would have turned out if I had let him follow me around as constant as my shadow. Would I have ever met Tyler? Would our paths have crossed outside the day I'd raced into his room at LUST for help?

"Tonight we can get dinner together and you can go home to your parents. I'm sure they're already worrying. I remember they hated when you traveled even for an away game with the football team."

Nathan had parents exactly the opposite of my own. My mother had wanted me to be strong and independent while Patrick, my father for better or worse, preferred it when I took care of myself. The Lewis family wanted their son to stay with them until he mated. I wouldn't have been surprised to find out they'd let him move his mate in with them after his mating, come to that.

"I'm not staying with them. If I leave, I just go back to my empty hotel room."

His grin was the same boyish tilt of lips I'd loved kissing as a teenager, but I could sense a darkness in Nathan which hadn't been there before. Had I caused him to become a darker, rougher wolf? Had I spoiled his golden nature with my darkness? I couldn't help thinking I had as I watched him grip the handle of his suitcase hard enough to turn his knuckles white.

"What hotel are you staying in?"

"The Four Seasons. If you want, you could come back with me. I'm in a suite so there is another bed available. You could tell Windsor to meet us there."

I wondered why Nathan had chosen to stay at the luxury hotel. He'd never been a man who needed to throw his money around or who had to have the absolute best because nothing else would do.

Tyler was his opposite in that sense as he loved the finest of the fine when it came to life's luxuries.

"Don't think I'm interrogating you, but why aren't you staying at home with your parents?"

I knew his mother and father could be intense in their devotion to him. They practically defined the phrase "helicopter parents." I also knew Nathan had been a man who'd rather cut his own throat than hurt either his mother or his father.

Nathan wheeled his suitcase out of the way of the door, settling it in against the small table in the entryway Bella used for her car keys and purse. I could tell he didn't want to talk about his parents with me. I could also tell he'd answer any question I asked him whether he liked it or not.

"Honestly? I'm afraid if I stay with them too much, they'll just put a lock on my door so I can't leave again. My mother would love nothing more than me to move home to stay for the rest of my life."

I tried to imagine how it felt being loved too much by my parents. I couldn't wrap my head around the idea even in fantasy with all my memories of Patrick's antics -drunken binges, angry rants, furious fights over the smallest of things- and my mother's illness swimming around in my mind.

"You say that like it's a bad thing. There are worse prisons."

Nathan stepped closer to me and opened his arms for a hug I hadn't known I needed until it was offered to me. I walked into his embrace gladly. His scent comforted me as I buried my face in his chest. I felt warm and wanted without worrying how Nathan would interpret the moment.

All I wanted was a little affection. I needed some stability in my world where nothing seemed to be going according to plan.

"I can only think of one prison I'd want to serve time in and you can't count your favorite dream as a punishment so I guess I'm not the prisoner type."

Alpha wolves were predictable in some ways. None of them surrendered ground without a fight. They were territorial and possessive to a fault. Their beasts drove them to take down the weaker wolves around them. Nature had designed them with the role of protectors and princes in mind.

Nathan was as close to a Prince Charming as I would ever meet.

Moving away from him, I offered, "Are you hungry? I wasn't joking when I suggested dinner together. I feel as if I'm starving almost all the time."

We shared a laugh and he gave me a short nod of agreement.

"I'm game! I would hate you to think I was starving you before we even get out the door on our trip into the wilderness."

A chill raced up my spine at the idea of Moonglow Pack territory.

Everything I had been told about the place suggested it was a wilderness. No one had shied away from telling me how backwards the Moonglow wolves were and the Alpha Inspector had made it clear I would be endangered on their lands. Was finding out the truth about my mother worth the risk?

I didn't have a chance to worry myself further as Nathan ushered me out the door. He walked along at my side with a languid pace I could match without being winded or even worrying about my often swollen feet.

"Any idea on where we're heading?"

I had been staying with Bella long enough to know the area fairly well. There was a cafe a few blocks away I liked to get coffee and pastries at and a decent Chinese take-out place. I knew of another bakery as well as some small family-owned places I hadn't tried.

Nathan had been gone for years; we'd lived on the other side of the city. I couldn't imagine he knew much about the local restaurant scene.

"Not a clue. I thought we'd walk until we decided to stop or someplace smells too good to pass up."

Nathan sounded inordinately cheerful and I laughed in spite of myself.

"Good plan. How about we try Ye Olde Internet for suggestions though? I don't like walking too much these days."

"Smart woman. This is why you're such a catch. Try going to maps and switching to restaurant or business view."

We huddled on the walkway as we scanned the screen of my phone together. I was amused to note the traffic on the path didn't even slow down; everyone merely trickled around us like water continuing to flow around a stone in a stream.

Nathan pointed at a diner with a four-star rating, "American food, casual atmosphere, amazing milkshakes. I think it sounds like a win to me."

The idea of burgers and shakes made me want to hug a stranger on the sidewalk. Trust Nathan to pick exactly the right option on the first try. He was a treasure and I wasn't losing him again no matter what anyone said about him. A hint of worry over how Tyler would react to my attachment to my first love passed over me, but I shrugged it away.

"Perfect! I'll call a ride!"

Tyler Wright wasn't going to dictate every decision I made in my life.