Chapter 7: Sworn Protector

*MIRA’S POV*

When I awoke, I sat up, surprised to find myself lying on a cot and no longer seated on the chair beside it.

“I must have fallen asleep,” I observed to myself with a tired yawn.

“I don't blame you, It was a long night for everyone,” Ada noted, her voice somewhat startling me. I forgot others were in the room with me for a moment

I rubbed my eyes and looked around. “But how did I end up in Trae’s bed?” I asked, feeling my cheeks flush. Then my mind turned frantic. “Where is he? He should be lying down! And where is Duke?” I questioned, instantly standing.

Ada pointed her cane toward the front window. I stood and pulled the curtain aside to see what she was pointing at. To my astonishment, there stood Trae, standing upright and pacing back and forth while holding my cell phone to his ear.

Duke was pacing right beside him. It was bizarre how much he’d taken to the mysterious man. He had always been so leery of men.

“How in the actual h*ll is he even walking right now?” I wondered aloud.

“He’s a fast healer,” shrugged Ada, without an ounce of irony.

“Fast healer? He was practically dead a few hours ago!”

Despite his noticeably heated telephone conversation, Trae seemed to sense me watching him.

He turned swiftly to face me. His silver eyes were blazing with anger, their gaze sending shivers through me. I jumped and pushed the curtain closed, embarrassed that he’d caught me watching him.

“It's a good thing that he’s a fast healer. He needs to be hightailing it out of here and soon,” Ada exclaimed.

“Why do you keep saying that? He was legitimately on death's doorstep just hours ago!” I insisted, completely perplexed.

“Not anymore, thanks to you,” said a deep and low voice.

I turned to see Trae standing in the open door, his hulking figure filling its frame. The almost growl of his tone had momentarily filled me with butterflies.

“How are you even standing right now?” I pressed.

“I’m a fast healer… “ he repeated. “And Ada is pro.”

I rolled my eyes. “Well fast healer or not, you had a bullet lodged in your chest. You should be resting and thanking your lucky stars that it barely missed your heart!” I declared.

How were they both being so cavalier about what had just happened hours before?

“I’m definitely lucky… lucky that you found me…” he agreed.

My eyes met his briefly then shyly went straight to the floor. I had just nursed this man back to health hours before and now, I couldn’t even look him in the eyes. Even with clothes on…

“Nice duds,” I joked, referring to the ill-fitted vintage trousers and shirt that were clinging tightly to his muscles.

“Ada was kind enough to lend me some things to cover up. But I gotta admit, I felt more at one with nature without clothes on,” he joked unabashedly.

My face flushed remembering him naked. It was something I’d ever be able to unsee, not that it was a bad thing. I had never seen a body like his in real life, just in those silly superhero movies I'd watched as a kid. I’d always just assumed that was mostly visual enhancement.

But the hulking figure before me was very real and was in no need of any kind of enhancement. His muscles had muscles. And with that dark brown hair and olive skin, his pale blue eyes had an almost haunting glow to them. Oh god, was I staring again?

“Don’t we all?” Ada agreed with Trae and let out a chuckle.

“Um, no… I’ll stick to being fully clothed, thanks,” I lied, feeling my cheeks flush all the more. Because who didn’t love to run around naked every now and then?

“Well you felt very differently as a youngster… your Gran couldn’t keep clothes on you to save her life. Called you her little wild one…” Ada divulged with a wicked laugh.

“Little wild one,” Trae repeated aloud. “I like it.”

He grinned for the first time and my heart seemed to implode in my chest. His smile was pure gold, a thing of legend. ‘Mira, get your sh*t together!’ I thought to myself. I was positively gushing over him and probably making a total *ss of myself.

“That's enough chit-chat, Trae. Now that you’ve said your thank you, it's time for you to go,” Ada proclaimed, her expression now grim.

“You’re right,” he agreed.

“What? You are in no shape to travel. Gunshot wound, remember?” I insisted, not wanting him to leave. Why did I sound like a desperate ex-girlfriend? Mira, stop groveling!

“I feel surprisingly good actually. It seems Ada has truly magical hands,” Trae reassured me with a wink.

“Okay then, let me just get cleaned up and I’ll drive you,” I sighed.

“No, it’s not safe for you to come with me. I have a ride coming, it should be waiting out near the highway any minute now,” he explained.

“Not safe? But I thought that you were one of the good guys?” I asked.

“That is yet to be determined. If he was a good guy, he’d be out the door already,” Ada interjected.

“Good guys have enemies too,” Trae whispered to me as he walked toward me, extending my phone.

“Sorry I helped myself to it, didn't want to wake you,” he explained, apologetically.

“No problem,” I said, reaching to take the phone from his hand. He hesitated to release it. Confused, I forced myself to look up into his eyes.

“Mira, thank you for saving my life. I will never forget it. I am forever indebted to you,” he avowed. The sound of his voice uttering my name sent delicious shivers through me all over again.

“You're welcome,” I stated, losing the courage to hold his gaze any longer.

“Time is ticking!” Ada interrupted, tapping her cane to her wrist watch.

“Got it, I’m going,” said Trae. “Again, thank you both for everything,” he stated one last time. And then, just as quickly as he had entered my world, he had left it.

***

*TRAE’S POV*

I could hear Grayson’s car idling as I made my way down Ada’s gravel driveway towards the highway. When he saw me, he threw his door open to greet me.

“Man, am I happy to see you. I thought you were dead!” he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around me in a bear hug.

“I called your name after I was shot. Where were you?” I questioned, trying to piece the chaos from that fateful evening together.

“I was running Damon and his rogue cowards off. When I saw you get shot, I saw red. I wanted to murder every last one of those mother f*ckers. I injured Noah pretty badly in doing so. Woulda finished the b*stard off, but I decided that finding you and getting you some help was more important.

“But it was like you just vanished. I couldn’t find you anywhere near the old gathering hall. I tracked your blood for almost a mile, then the trail went cold. I was afraid the rogues had taken you,” Grayson uttered grimly. “I should never have left you there alone.”

“You were protecting my territory, you did the right thing by running them off,” I reassured him, with my hand on his shoulder. “I must have come to and wandered off… I woke up in a grove of trees near the highway when the girl found me.”

“What girl?” asked Grayson.

“Just a girl. It’s not important. But fortunately for me, she was able to bring me here to the healer,” I said dismissively.

After what Ada had told me, the less that anyone knew about Mira, the better. Even my trusted Beta. I’d take her secret to the grave with me and protect her at all costs. I wasn’t sure how I’d do that from afar, but I’d have to figure that out later.

For now, I needed to get Damon and his pack of rogues off of her trail.

Grayson’s head turned to the side in confusion. He gave me a bewildered look as he watched me.

“What? Why are you looking at me like that?” I asked.

“You tell me what. You’re smiling… you never smile,” Grayson noted with curiosity.

“No I’m not,” I huffed, wiping the abhorrent grin from my face.

“Oh, yes, you were most definitely smiling. Come on man, spill it. Is the healer a total babe or something? If so, I wanna go have a look,” Grayson chuckled.

“Is it so hard to believe that I’m happy to have found my Beta alive? Even if he is a total dumb *ss…? Now, stop looking at me like that, We have work to do.” I snarled.

As we got into the car, I couldn’t help but ask myself, why was I smiling? Back in the house with Mira, I’d even caught myself cracking jokes. What had gotten into me? And why did I feel so anxious about leaving her behind? She wasn’t safe in my company, leaving was the right thing to do. Right?

We hadn’t even made it a mile up the road when my senses picked up on a pack of wolves moving past us through the trees toward Ada’s cabin…

“Turn around!” I belted as the rogue wolves’ shadows passed by me.

“Ah! So I was right, the healer is a total smokehouse? Don’t mind if I do,” laughed Grayson as he hit the breaks to turn the car around.

“No. We have company! Damon and his rogues are here. They’re headed towards the healers cabin,” I growled.

“Then why are we turning around? We should let them keep looking for us while we find our remaining allies, what little of them are still alive, and regroup,” Grayson noted.

“The girl is there. She saved my life, you know what will happen to her if we don’t stop them. Now drive!” I barked.

Grayson pressed on the gas pedal and we sped back towards Ada’s cabin.

As we turned up the long gravel drive, we spotted a small gray wolf sprinting towards us with three rogue wolves nipping at its heels.

“Stop the car! That’s Ada, she’s trying to draw them away from the girl!” I shouted and threw the door open, shifting into wolf form before my paws even hit the gravel…