Marked (Primal Obsessions #2) - Cara Wylde Page 0,33

given me orgasms, despite everything else… Jack was still dictating my actions. I couldn’t disappoint Brooks too. I couldn’t let him see what a mess of a housewife I was. I kept my eyes focused on my lap, where I was playing with the hem of my dress.

“Look, you’re not a prisoner here,” he started. “I will be gone most of the day. Take Milo, walk around, talk to people. You’ll be here a while. Just don’t tell anyone the truth.”

“What do I tell them?” I asked on autopilot.

“That you’re his nanny.”

I nodded, despite having zero intentions of going anywhere. He must’ve sensed that because he added: “Bears don’t mind humans. Those who might have an issue with your presence have been told you’re safe. There are a few of you humans around here; they’re all happily married. You can go out.”

I nodded, still sure I wouldn’t be going anywhere. And yet… I watched him eat. It just took this beast of a man three whole minutes to down the entire breakfast. He would be coming home ravenous.

“Brooks?” I chanced.

“Yeah, what?” he asked, chewing the last bit of bread.

“Could I have some money, please?”

He frowned, and I was sure he was going to yell at me. Jack never liked it when I asked him for money. “What for?”

“The cupboards and the fridge are empty. I won’t have any dinner ready,” I whispered. I didn’t know how he was going to take being asked for things.

“Oh,” he choked. “I hadn’t realized.”

He stood up, reached into his back pocket, and then let a few crumpled bills fall on the table we shared.

“I’ll have more tomorrow,” he said, swallowing and pushing his empty plate toward me to pick up and wash. “Go out. Shop. Get Milo something if he wants.”

I nodded.

He wiped his mouth with the napkin, went to say goodbye to his son, and with one last look around, he left, closing the door behind him. The space instantly felt bigger and wider, and it was like there was more oxygen, too. I rushed after the man and locked the door. The bolt would probably not hold against a bear’s strength, but I felt better knowing there was some sort of a barrier between me and the world outside.

“Jesus, Rosalie, when have you turned into a mouse?” I whispered to myself.

I peeked from behind the curtain to see if Milo was awake. He was, and he was playing with his tiny feet. I turned the scene into a sweet game of peek-a-boo, then fed him his first meal of the day.

I spent the better part of the morning cleaning up the place with Milo watching me from his crib, nibbling on toys, of which he didn’t have many. In fact, the items that were inside the trailer either belonged to incomplete sets, were mismatched, old or refurbished. It wasn’t a rundown place, far from it. But it did not scream of money and wealth either.

While Brooks’s trailer wasn’t all that big, men weren’t known for their cleaning or cooking skills. The unit consisted of two parts: the common area, with a few drawers, cupboards and storing spaces, a small TV, the kitchen-slash-dining area-slash-sleeping couch, and behind a curtain, the bed Brooks and Milo slept in when Milo wasn’t in his little crib by the window. I washed and dusted off every surface, gathering what couldn’t be used anymore in a trash bag. I changed the bedding, and I was going to open the door and the windows to let some fresh air in, when I remembered where I was.

Among bears.

I was standing defeated in front of the metal door of the trailer when Milo called out to me.

“Rose-ly!”

I dropped the trash bag and approached the crib.

“Say that again?”

“Rose-ly!” he repeated, more eager this time.

He was jumping up and down, wanting me to pick him up. I reached two shaky hands and lifted him gingerly. He knew my name. Something in my chest ached at that. His innocence and good nature were doing something to me. I always felt better when I held him in my arms. Such a sweet little boy… he never gave me any grief.

“Aren’t you?” I cooed at him, “Aren’t you my sweet little boy?”

I pressed a kiss to the top of his head as he suckled on my nipple, and he looked at me with those bright blue eyes.

“How can I not fall for you? How will I ever leave you?” I asked, expecting another giggle of incomprehension.