Marked (Primal Obsessions #2) - Cara Wylde Page 0,43

could only hope that crazy bastard hadn’t hurt Rosalie already.

Sixteen

Colt

We reached the motel and figured out where Rosalie was. Luckily, she was on the ground floor. I didn’t think I could’ve gone up any stairs even if I wanted to. I’d gotten shot countless times, and most of the bullets were still in. If they hadn’t been, I would’ve started to heal by now. I could see Lincoln wasn’t in a great state, either. He could barely walk. Brooks seemed to be fine, but then again… even when he was badly hurt, he rarely showed it.

We burst into the motel room and found Rosalie tied up to a chair, gagged, and scared out of her mind. It was painful to shift, but I had to do it. First, I needed to untie her. And secondly, I needed to get the bullets out, and it was easier in my human form. I ran to her side and ungagged her.

“Oh my God, you came!” Tears were running down her face. “You came for me…”

As I collapsed onto my knees, I took her face between my dirty, sweaty palms. “Of course we came for you. You belong with us.”

She leaned into my touch. Brooks stepped behind her and proceeded to rip off the tape around her wrists and ankles. Once she was free, she sank to the floor. She took my hands into hers, and I almost couldn’t believe it. I’d betrayed her trust. I’d hurt her so deeply, and yet… here she was, looking at my wounds, worrying for me.

“You’re injured… I’m so sorry.” Brooks went to Lincoln’s side, and she followed him with her gaze. “My husband. He grabbed me, brought me here… He threatened me and the bear community. He said that he was going to kill you all and then bring me back home with him and make my life a living hell. As if he hadn’t done that already. Where is he?” She suddenly freaked out. “He’s armed!”

“We took care of him,” Brooks growled. “He is no more. He will never hurt you or us again.”

“Oh, thank God.”

“Rosalie, look at me.” I had to unburden my soul. All this was happening because of me. I was the idiot who’d triggered this disaster. If I hadn’t chased her away, her ex would’ve never gotten the chance to snatch her. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry for what I’ve done to you. I should’ve never brought that woman with me… She means nothing to me, I promise.”

She bit her lower lip. “It’s okay. You can be with whomever you want to be. As long as… you don’t make me watch you.”

“No! No, no, no. I don’t want to be with anyone but you.” I touched her face, trying to wipe her tears. “I want you. I was stupid. I… This is what I do. I run away. Every time there’s something good in my life, someone good… I freak out and ruin it. I’ve never had a long-term relationship. I’ve never had what you might call a serious, solid relationship where I knew where I stood, and I knew that I wanted to be with that person forever. This is the first time I feel I could have that. With you. And I… I got scared.”

“I’m not that scary,” she chuckled.

“No, of course you’re not.” I took a deep breath in and released it slowly. This was the moment. If I didn’t say it now, I would regret it for the rest of my life. “I love you, Rosalie. I don’t know when it happened or how. But I fell for you. Hard. I’m in love with you.”

Her blue eyes widened in surprise. Her lips curved into a bright smile, and hope flickered in her irises.

“I… I love you, too,” she said. “And you’re still an idiot. But you’re my idiot.”

I pressed my lips to hers. It was a soft, chaste kiss. No tongue. It was exactly what I needed to soothe my soul. She pulled away and looked at the three of us. Her brows furrowed and her attitude changed in the blink of an eye.

“We need to get the bullets out.”

Seventeen

Rosalie

I had first feared the shooting would never stop. It had sounded like a war zone out there, and I feared for my bears’ lives. I somehow knew they had come for me. No one else cared that I was gone. It made me both happy and sad. They were now in danger because of me. For me. They