Tiger Bound by Tressie Lockwood

take you home.”
    “You can stay at my place. Brenda has an extra set of keys for emergencies. I want to know you’re sleeping in a warm bed and you’re comfortable and safe.”
    “I’m fine.” He dared a glance at her and fought a strange instinct within that seemed to instruct him to claim her, whatever that meant. “I’ll see you in the morning. Good night.” He left the hospital room and walked out into the night, more alone than he ever thought he could be, because now he had to give up the person who was his entire world.
     

Chapter Seven
     
    Deja sat across from Heath while he drove her home. She’d tried a couple times to touch him, but each time he found a reason to be out of reach. While she could only imagine what he must be going though, it hurt to be rejected when she loved him so much. Not for one minute did her feelings change or did she rethink being with him after she found out all that Tate said was true. Sure, seeing him that night had scared the crap out of her. Who wouldn’t be afraid?
    When she’d come out of her fog and sucked in air, her throat burned as if someone had lit a match to it, and then she heard the growl like that of an animal. She’d struggled to her elbow, and all she could do was watch in horror. The man drove a knife into Heath’s side, and if her throat weren’t raw, she would have cried out. They struggled, and when Heath rolled and landed on top of the man, in the glow from the fire she saw the hawkish nose and bulbous eyes and knew it was the same guy from the boutique in town. Then she’d focused on Heath.
    His skin had grown pale, almost white, with a shimmer of dark streaks on his cheeks. His eyes glowed in the firelight, and his teeth sharpened to points, the canines on the top and the bottom longer than the rest. When Heath spoke, she scarcely recognized his voice, as deep and harsh as it sounded. Nervousness raced over her at his obvious anger, but then when he snapped the man’s neck with little more than a tug, she thought she would faint again. Still, this was Heath, and she remembered the devastation in his eyes when he lost his dad. She would not turn away when he needed her the most. She’d called his name and thrown herself into his arms, but just like now she had felt him slipping away.
    They pulled into the short drive in front of her house. She rented the first floor while another woman rented the second. Deja liked the place even though it was a bit on the old side and small. At least she could walk to work since she lived in town and save gas. Of course, she’d loved Heath’s house and imagined he would hate staying in her tiny place while he had his rebuilt. Insurance would cover it, so he didn’t have to worry.
    When they were inside, she took the few short steps to the kitchen. “You want something to eat? I know you’ve been running around and not even thinking about it. How is your side? Do you want me to clean it and change the bandages?” She resisted making the suggestion for him to see a doctor. How could he?
    “Deja.”
    “Yes?” Her fingers spasmed, and she hid them in a dishtowel.
    “Come and sit down. I think we need to talk.”
    Her heart raced, but she did as he asked. “My throat is still raw. I think I have some ice cream in the freezer. You might want some too.”
    “Shh,” he said, and she gritted her teeth, not from anger but from anguish.
    “Heath.”
    “Deja, listen to me.”
    He strode over and led her to the couch in her joke of a living room. Her place might as well be one big room, sectioned off with paper-thin walls to look like an actual apartment. Never before had it felt like it was closing in on her, making it hard to catch her breath.
    “Buck has been missing for about a week and a half.”
    She started, not expecting him to say that. She had no love for Buck, but neither did she wish him ill. “What do you mean?”
    “I mean one day he didn’t come to work.” He tugged at his nose and then