Carefully, I cleaned the blood from her face then moved to clean the gash on the back of her head. She didn’t move much and kept her hands in her lap as I worked.
Rinsing and re-soaping the cloth often, I gradually worked most of the blood from her hair so I could see what I was dealing with. The cut was a little more than an inch long. It was spread wide and could use stitches. Bringing her to a hospital would be dangerous, though. That meant letting it heal on its own and leaving a large scar.
My temper flayed me from the inside. How could I let this happen to Michelle? She had come to me scared and afraid. I had vowed to keep her safe.
She surprised me by leaning forward and pressing her lips to mine. I didn’t know how she could still want to kiss me, but I wasn’t foolish enough to deny it. I lightly touched her face and returned the kiss. She sighed, melting into it. Her scent sweetened, and I pulled back to look at her.
Her upturned face was clean and had regained some of her usual color. Her closed eyes opened slowly, and she smiled. Her gaze was sweet and full of promise.
“That’s more like it,” she said. “If you tell me we don’t have to sleep here, we can kiss all night long.”
“How can you even want to look at me?” I said, unable to keep the self-loathing from my tone.
“What do you mean?”
“I promised you that you’d be safe.” I moved away from her to put the towel in the sink, and she grabbed my arm.
“You’re beating yourself up because I was dumb enough to open the door for Frank?”
I faced her, frustrated. Her intelligence wasn’t in question. Mine was. I shouldn’t have left her alone. She shook her head at me, and her expression softened.
“To me, safe doesn’t mean I’ll never get hurt. It means you’ll be there to help pick me back up when I do. Now, do we really have to stay here?”
Her forgiveness humbled me.
“This was just to get you cleaned up. I couldn’t take you anywhere nicer, looking like you did, without someone calling the police.”
I rinsed out the towel one last time. She watched me closely.
“Frank got a call while I was with him. Were you followed?” she asked.
“Not for very long. I met up with Carlos and Grey on my way back with our food. As soon as we entered the lobby, I smelled your blood.” I rang out the towel and folded it neatly beside the sink. “We tracked you. A few of Frank’s friends were waiting. Grey and Carlos stayed back to deal with them.”
“So, now what? Are they meeting up with us somewhere? Do you think the guy downstairs is going to call the cops?”
“Now, we go to another hotel. You’ll be harder to follow by scent without the fresh blood. When we find a pay phone, I’ll call my father to make new arrangements. He’ll coordinate with Grey.”
A buzz emitted from her pocket. I’d forgotten about the phone she’d taken from the man I’d knocked out.
Michelle pulled it out and looked at me as she answered it.
“Michelle,” a man’s voice boomed through the receiver, “good to hear you sounding so well. I was afraid Frank might have been a bit rough.” His voice conveyed no concern.
“He was as gentle as a lamb,” Michelle said. “Why are you calling, Blake?”
“Isn’t this why you took Frank’s phone? To talk to me?”
“I guess it is. I have a lot of questions and, according to Frank, you’re the only one who will answer them. What’s an Urbat? What decision was I supposed to make, and who are my sisters?”
There was a long pause before he answered.
“Ah. I see. I’ll explain everything if you meet with me.”
“I’m already meeting with you. Tomorrow morning. Didn’t the lawyer call you?”
“Yes, of course.” A hard edge crept into his voice. “I was hoping for something a bit more private.”
“I don’t think that’d be in my best interest. At least, not until I Claim my Mate.”
The words conflicted me. It was everything I’d hoped for, yet, nothing I deserved.
Blake growled through the phone and Michelle smiled.
“Come on, Blake. You don’t think I’m going to sit around and wait for you to try this again, do you?”
“Then, we part ways for now. You’ll hear from me again, though.”
Before he could hang up, she said, “Oh, and I spoke with the