Up in a Blaze Read online

  Cassandra went back to the day she’d been attacked. It was during the middle of the day, while almost the entire neighborhood had been at work. She’d been lucky anyone had been home and heard her cries for help. She’d come home for her lunch break, which she did most days. As soon as she opened her front door, he’d been there waiting for her.

  She closed her eyes and searched her memory for those first couple of minutes. In her mind’s eye, she could hear him yelling at her, demanding to know where Betty was while he threw her down on her living room floor and kicked her repeatedly. She tried to listen carefully to all the foul filth that flowed out of his mouth. He reached down with his meaty hand grabbing ahold of her hair, smacked her across the face with his other hand, his spittle landing on her already stinging cheek as he glared into her eyes. Those eyes, so full of hatred. She thought she heard a siren in the distance, then she spotted what she needed. Still holding her up by her hair, he glared deep into her eyes, mumbling a chant she couldn’t make out due to the ringing in her ears. She tried to read his lips, knowing he wasn’t yelling at her any more, but couldn’t make anything out.

  He dropped her as if she was garbage, and disappeared. By the time the police made it inside her house, he had disappeared out a back window, long gone.

  She popped open her eyes to see Donte staring at her. “Are you okay?” Her hand was wrapped tightly in his, and his other hand was rubbing her back, trying to soothe her, comfort her.

  “Yeah, I think you may be right. Right before the police showed up, he had me by my hair. I remember thinking he was deranged, because he got right up in my face and stared into my eyes. It was like I couldn’t look away. He started mumbling something, and I remember thinking the whole scene was really bizarre, but my ears were ringing, so I wasn’t able to make out what he said.”

  Donte nodded. She hadn’t even noticed when he slipped his hand over the top of hers and joined her in her memories. As he stood back and watched the beating she took, his heart broke in two. No woman should ever have to go through something like that, especially his mate. And yes, he’d been able to see Gregory mumbling also, but he did it so quietly even he couldn’t pick up on it.

  Donte reached over to the coffee table and turned off the movie, long forgotten about anyhow. He glanced down at his watch. It was ten p.m., and he knew Walter wanted them in the office bright and early the next morning.

  He turned to Cassie. “Do you trust me?”

  She nodded then whispered, “Yes, why?”

  He handed her his laptop and told her to hold it for a moment. Then, he quickly scooped her up off the couch and headed down the hallway to his bedroom.

  “Donte, what are you doing? Where are we going?” she gasped as he marched right past the room she had been staying in and on down the hall to his own bedroom.

  He pulled back the covers then gently laid her down, her head resting on a stack of pillows. He stayed leaning over her, making eye contact before he spoke. “I want you where I can reach you in case you have any other nightmares tonight.” He reached up and caught a few strands of hair between his fingers, loving the soft texture. “I promised to take it slow, and I will uphold that promise. The only thing we are doing in this bed tonight is sleeping, unless you can’t be trusted?” He gave her a playful grin and cocked an eyebrow up at this.

  “What? No… I mean, yes,” she stopped and shook her head as she frowned and closed her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath before starting again. “Sleep, yes. You can trust me, that’s all I want to do at this point.” Donte continued leaning over her for another minute while staring into her eyes.

  Finally, he nodded his head. “Right, sleep. I want to be near you, babe. Besides, Betty already laced into me once she got outside and out of earshot from you about putting you in the guest bedroom earlier. She said you could hardly sit up on your own because you were in pain. I really don’t want another ass chewing first thing tomorrow morning.”

  He stood and walked around to the other side of the bed. He grabbed some clothing off the nightstand as he glanced back over to her. “I’m just going to go change into something comfortable.” He turned on his heel to do just that, but a thought made him stop in his tracks. He looked back over to her.

  “Do you have anything comfortable to change into?”

  “Umm…I’m not sure. I only peeked into the bags Betty dropped off. I’m really not sure what all is in them.”

  Donte gave her a nod, before turning around and pulling something out of his dresser drawer. “Here, why don’t you change into one of my t-shirts for tonight, that way you’ll be comfortable, and we will worry about the rest tomorrow.”

  He walked back over and helped her sit up. “You can change in my bathroom. I’ll go change in the one down the hall.” He kept a supportive arm around her as he escorted her to the bathroom, stopping to open one of the bottom cabinets to grab a new toothbrush. “Feel free to use whatever you need to. I’m just going to be down the hall for a moment or two. Shout if you need me.”

  Cassandra braced herself up against the counter until after the door was closed and she was alone. Then, she slowly turned around and looked at herself in the mirror. She shook her head and grimaced. What in heaven’s name did Donte see in her? Although the nurses had helped her take a sponge bath and cleaned up her hair as best they could, it was still a mess. One side of her face had bruising on it, her eye all dark and still swollen and tender. Her bottom lip was swollen and cut up. Geez, what a mess, she thought as she very carefully peeled off her shirt and pants.

  She hadn’t even bothered with a bra that morning when they left the hospital. She had just taken hers and shoved it inside her purse. Donte had gone somewhere and come back with a plain dark blue t-shirt and cotton drawstring pants, which she was forever grateful for. Hell, she currently didn’t even have any underwear on! The only ones she had were what she had arrived in, and she refused to put those back on.

  She took a moment to admire the room she was in. Everything was nice and neat. The bathroom itself was blue and white with matching towels hanging on the towel bar. Both the shower and tub were on the other side of the room, and since she wasn’t going to move any more than she had to, she decided she would admire that side of the bathroom from where she was, thank you very much.

  She slipped the soft t-shirt over her head and sniffed the material as she pulled it down. Mmm, it carried the clean scent of laundry detergent, but also just a hint of Donte. She looked down and grinned. The shirt was so large it almost went to her knees.

  She made quick work of washing her face and brushing her teeth, feeling like she’d just run a mile after those few accomplishments. She opened the door a crack and peeked out to find Donte standing by the dresser watching her.

  “Finished?” he asked.

  “Yes, but could you possibly pick up my pants off the floor?” she asked. She didn’t want him thinking she was a slob, because truthfully, she wasn’t. But trying to bend down to pick up her pants with broken ribs wasn’t going to end well.

  “Sure, just leave your clothes. I’ll pick them up and get them to the laundry after we get you settled.” He flashed her a smile as he walked over and offered her his arm for support.

  “Thanks for the toothbrush. I feel almost human again.”

  He walked her over to the bed and once again settled her, bringing the sheet and comforter up to cover her. She noticed his side of the bed hadn’t been turned down yet.

  “You’re welcome. I figured you would like to get cleaned up a bit. We’ll tackle a bath or shower tomorrow morning.” He was still leaning over her, giving her a warm smile with his hands braced on either side of her. “Do you need anything else?”

  Not for the first time Cassandra wondered what was up with this state. She had never met anyone in California with half the manners these Texas cowboys seemed to have. Must be something in the water down here. “Thank you, but I think I’m good.” She tried giving him a small smile of
her own. “I think I just need sleep.”

  He turned off the lamp next to her side of the bed. “I’ll be right back, angel. I’m just going to make sure the house is locked up and turn off the lights, and then I’ll be in to join you.” He brushed a stray hair off her face. “You go ahead and sleep, cariño. You’re safe, I promise.” She watched as he lifted his hand to his lips, his very supple, kissable lips, and was mesmerized as she watched him kiss his index finger then move his hand back down and touch her forehead with that finger.

  “Sleep well, angel.”

  Chapter Four

  Donte sat propped up on the bed, legs stretched out, not daring to move an inch. He had spent the night right there, working on his laptop, while he watched Cassie sleep. About an hour after he climbed in the night before, Cassie had moved in her sleep to cuddle next to him. Her head was pressed up against his hip, and he couldn’t help but smile at the angelic sight. She was curled on her side, with her hands beneath her head. The only thing he didn’t care for was that the side of her face that was showing was the bruised and damaged one. His fingers itched to get ahold of the son-of-a-bitch who had done this to her every time he glanced over her way.

  So to try to keep his mind off things, he spent the night researching spells. There was a lot of information out on the web, but not a lot that looked to be accurate. He also put out a few subtle feelers for a vampire who knew anything about spells, going through their own ranger database to do so.

  Cassandra woke, momentarily disoriented, until she remembered where she was. She opened her eyes to discover that she had moved sometime while she slept, and was currently curled up tight against Donte. He was sitting on the bed, looking relaxed, with his arm draped around her.

  “Good morning, sunshine.” She glared at him with a frown. Freakin’ great, she was stuck with a morning person, something she absolutely was not! She closed her eyes, praying for a giant cup of coffee to appear in the place of Donte. Reopening her eyes, she sighed. No such luck. Then she remembered Betty stating the day before that Donte rarely cooked at home.

  “Any chance there’s a coffee pot and coffee in your kitchen?” she grumbled.

  A quick glance gave her the answer. At least it managed to knock that stupid smile off his face. No one should be smiling first thing in the morning, especially when one had to wake up to no coffee in the house! Who the hell didn’t drink coffee?

  “No, sorry. But I will rectify that situation and have some for tomorrow morning, okay?”

  She glanced at him over her shoulder as she scooted back to her side of the bed. “Sorry for the bitchiness, but this gal has to have her coffee in the morning or I’m a total witch.”

  His chuckle had her glaring at him again. “Babe, in my line of work, I’ve seen just about everything.” He stopped and winked at her before continuing, “Do your worst, angel, it’s not going to bother me.”

  Didn’t that just sound like a challenge? Then she tried sitting up and really got cranky as her ribs throbbed in protest. “Ow, shit that hurts!” Logically, she knew no matter what, just waking up, when her body hadn’t been active for several hours, and with no pain medication in her system, those first few moves were going to hurt like a bitch. Still didn’t make it any easier though.

  Donte had moved to her side of the bed and helped her get to a sitting position on the side of the bed. “Stay right here, angel, and catch your breath. I’ll be right back.”

  He walked out of the room, but returned just a quick minute later, the shopping bags Betty had dropped off the afternoon before in his hands. “Do you want me to put these in the bathroom for you?”

  “Yes please. I need to take a shower this morning before we go to your work.”

  He looked back at her and frowned. “Are you going to be able to handle it? Are you in too much pain?”

  His concern over her well-being touched her heart. She hadn’t had anyone care about her other than Betty and her son, little Timmy, for a long, long time.

  “I should be okay. Once I get a little food in me, I’ll take some more medicine which will help.”

  “Okay, how about I help you to the bathroom, then once you are finished we’ll grab some breakfast on the way into the office. Does that work for you?”

  She nodded and grasped hold of his arm to help pull her to a standing position. Once she started moving around, she knew it would get easier, and she hoped the hot water of a shower would help too.

  *****

  Donte used the time Cassie was in the shower to call his buddy, Nathaniel, for some much needed advice as to how to handle a coffee addicted human female. He knew Nathaniel’s wife, Susan, had been addicted to the stuff before she got pregnant.

  “Dude, your top priority today is to go out and buy the most expensive coffee machine you can find. Make certain you buy everything that is supposed to go with it, including the right kind of coffee. Your best bet would be to take one of the females with you, but if you can’t do that, ask the sales staff to help you. Trust me on this one, she will be absolutely delighted when she sees what you have bought. I don’t know what it is about that stuff and these women, but Susan swears it’s the nectar of the gods.”

  “Yeah, Cassie told me she gets downright cranky in the morning without her coffee,” Donte replied, remembering her snapping at him this morning.

  “Coffee pot. First thing. Believe me, it will save your balls. These women get completely unreasonable without their coffee first thing in the morning.”

  Donte heard his buddy’s sudden intake of air through the phone line, then, “No, sweets, I wasn’t talking about you, I promise. We’re talking about Donte’s mate.”

  “Hey, how did you know she is my mate?” Donte asked, clearly confused.

  “Buddy, because our mates are the only reason we keep expensive coffee pots in our kitchens, gourmet coffee in the pantry, and anything else they want.” Then, in a muffled voice as if he had put his hand over the phone speaker, Donte heard, “Dang it, woman, stop hitting me. No, you can’t drink coffee, you know as well as I do that it isn’t good for the baby.” There was silence for a few seconds, and Donte was just getting ready to ask if Nathaniel was still on the line when he heard, “Aww, baby, don’t cry. You’re breaking my heart. Tell you what, since I was a dickhead and upset you, I’ll run down to the coffee shop and get one of those pastries you like so much.”

  Donte chuckled as he eavesdropped on his friend trying to dig his way out of the doghouse. “Hey, Nathaniel, before you go play fetch, can you tell me where there’s a good place to get coffee and maybe some breakfast not too far out of my way?”

  After a quick reply by Nathaniel, he hung up, still trying to pacify his mate. Donte chuckled, grabbing his laptop to wait for Cassie to finish her shower.

  *****

  Thirty minutes later, she opened the door to the bathroom; showered, dressed, and had even been able to fix her hair. Because Betty had been kind enough to include a wide assortment of clothing, anything from casual to a nice skirt and blouse set when she went shopping the day before, Cassie was actually starting to feel close to normal.

  Betty had included a brush and comb for her hair, deodorant, shampoo and conditioner, and a portable hair dryer. The clothes she had picked out were all soft and loose, and Cassie was very appreciative of that too. Betty had included a new bra in one of the bags, but Cassie knew that until her ribs healed up, there was just no way a bra was going on.

  She walked out of the bathroom to find Donte, freshly showered, shaved, and sitting in a chair over by the door with his laptop perched on his lap. “Hey, I’m ready to go anytime you are.” She didn’t want to be the reason they were late.

  He glanced up to her with a grin on his face. “You look nice, hon. I like your hair.” He glanced back down to the laptop and closed the lid.

  “Yes, I suppose it does look a sight better without dried blood stuck to it,” she replied with a grin.

  They were walking out the door just m
inutes later. Donte followed her out the door and locked up behind them, then helped her down the steps and out to the garage. He pressed the remote in his hand, and the door lifted to reveal what looked to be a new big, cherry red Ford truck.

  As they walked over to the passenger side, she wondered how in the world she was going to be able to climb up into the truck with her damaged ribs.

  One second she was walking beside Donte, contemplating the height of the truck and her damaged ribs dilemma, the next she found herself swung up into Donte’s strong arms as he seemed to be able to jump up on the sideboard of the truck and gently placed her in the seat. He leaned in and very carefully brought the seatbelt around her, mindful of her injuries. Once he had her buckled in, he gave her a grin and jumped back down, closed her door, and sprinted over to the driver’s side of the truck.

  They had been on the road for about ten minutes when he pulled into a coffee shop. Hallelujah! Coffee, finally! Cassie’s mouth watered just imagining the hot, bitter liquid hitting her tongue and the jolt of energy she would get from it.

  “We’re running tight on time. Do you mind if we hit the drive-thru?” Donte inquired. They weren’t really running tight on time at all, but he had spotted Nathaniel’s truck in the parking lot when he pulled in. Not knowing if Susan was with him or not, Donte decided not to take any chances. If he allowed the two women to get together talking over coffee, they’d never make it into work.

  Cassie glanced at the board then quickly gave him her order, sitting back with a smile. When was the last time anyone had shown her such courtesy? Too long to remember, but heavens does it feel good!

  Donte paid for her order and handed over the Caramel Flan Latte and blueberry muffin. “Don’t you eat breakfast?” she asked as she just realized he hadn’t ordered anything for himself.