Cinderella's Guardian (6 page)

"What are you wearing around your neck, Tina? Where did it come from?"

"It's just a necklace, Robyn. Nothing special."

Robyn frowned, the clench of Tina's jaw said otherwise.

"I don't believe you. Who gave you the necklace?"

Tina turned to her, anger written clearly over her features. This was not good. Tina never showed any emotion, other than crying all the damn time.

"It is none of your business who gave it to me."

"Like hell it is!"

She flew to her feet as Tina raced to her room. Before Tina could slam the door, Robyn was there, pushing her way in. There was only one person who could have this effect on Tina. How had he gotten past her? She'd been so careful to never let Tina out of her sight since Conner had shown his interest.

"It's from that boy, Conner, isn't it? How did he get to you?"

Tina backed toward her window with fear in her gaze. She should fear her. Robyn was in one hell of a mood. A phone chime caught her attention.

"Give me your phone."

Why hadn't she taken it off her earlier? Tina didn't need a damn phone. She mentally shook her head, such a dumb mistake for her to make.

"No. You can't do this to me! I'm an adult. I have rights."

She laughed with zero humor. "No, honey, you don't. You're nothing but a cripple, no one will believe your stories and your father made me your primary caregiver. He was even so kind as to sign legal documentation to that effect. So, I can do whatever I want with you. Give. Me. Your. Phone."

Tina tried to keep hold of her phone but her hands were trembling and Robyn swiftly snatched it free from her grasp. Robyn quickly activated the screen and went into the messages. Her fury grew at each one she read. Tina had been sneaking out at night to meet Conner for the past two weeks! Body vibrating with rage, she turned the phone off and pocketed it. She prowled over to Tina, who was as close to the window as she could get.

"You will
never
see Conner again. Are we clear?"

As Tina nodded jerkily, Robyn reached forward and ripped the necklace from around her neck. Opening the window with a jerk, she tossed it though, before slamming it closed and turning the lock in place. She turned back to see Tina rubbing at the red line around her neck. Served herself right, she should have known better than to attempt to take up with a boy.

"Now let's get you tucked into bed for the night, shall we?"

She helped Tina into bed then left the room—with her chair. After parking it in the walk-in-closet in her bedroom, she made certain both the back and front doors were dead-bolted. No way was that boy entering her house. She turned toward her room and shook her head at the sound of Tina's sobbing.
Stupid girl.

She made her way back to the closet and brushed her hand over Dale's clothes to stir up his scent. Dale didn't wear cologne. His smell was pure masculinity. She was supposed to be staying in the spare room down the hall, but she loved being surrounded by Dale's things, his scent. She slept in his bed, on his sheets. Every night she dreamt of him joining her in that bed. One day. One day he would notice her and fall at her feet. Then she wouldn't have to put up with Tina at all, but send her away to some rehab facility until she could fend for herself.

~ * ~

Conner parked around the corner in his usual spot before heading to Tina's house. As he got close he could feel something was wrong. Instead of going straight around the back, he crept over the lawn to crouch below her window. He could hear her sobbing, the sound ripping into his heart. He lowered himself on to all fours on the ground, sinking his fingers into the grass, trying desperately not to shift. His leopard wanted to protect and comfort his mate. So did his human side, but he couldn't, as he had no way of entering her room without alerting Robyn.

Something cold against his palm caused him to start. Raising his hand he saw Tina's necklace lying against the damp grass, the one she hadn't taken off since he gave it to her two weeks ago. His instincts went on high alert. There was no way Tina would throw it away. He held it closer and inspected the chain. Sure enough, it was broken. A growl formed low in his throat, had Robyn discovered their secret nighttime rendezvous?

He sprinted back to his car, using every bit of will power he had to not shift and go back to take her away. Once inside the confines of his vehicle, he rang Tina's number. Straight to voicemail, meaning it was turned off. Shit, Robyn must have found out. Barely aware of his actions, he started his car and headed home. Dream bonding was the only way he could see her now. But that would never be enough for either of them. He had to figure out how to get her away from Robyn. Quickly.

As he plowed through the front door he nearly took out his dad, who was walking through to the lounge room.

"Sorry, Dad."

"No worries, son. You're not looking so hot there. What happened? Is Tina okay?"

"I don't know if she's okay! We've been meeting up at night in her backyard. I think Robyn's found out. I found her necklace outside her window. I could hear her sobbing and her phone is turned off."

His dad's face grew serious as he gripped Conner's shoulder. "Robyn is not a nice person, son. I've been asking around trying to get information about Tina for you. No one who knows Robyn wants to be on her bad side. She's got a real mean streak. Dale must not know about what's going on. No way would he allow this kind of treatment to happen to his little girl. I'll see if I can find out what rig he's on. See if I can ring or email him. Let him know he needs to come home. You going to dream bond with her tonight?"

"That's what I was planning to do. It's the only way I've got to communicate with her now. I'm thinking I might try to tell her the dreams are real. Not sure, the last dream we shared she lost the plot. broke down in tears before getting angry with herself for dreaming up something she'll never have. Dad, she desperately wanted the dream to be real but she wouldn't believe me when I told her that one day it would be. She sounded depressed and close to doing something really dangerous. Scared the hell out of me, Dad."

"Well, you better get to bed then, son. I'll do what I can to get a hold of her father. We will fix this and get her out safely."

"I know, Dad. I just wish I could think of how! Maybe if I was an alpha, I could figure it out..." He finished off quietly, more to himself, but his dad still heard him.

His dad gave him a small shake before he gripped his face between his hands, forcing Conner to look into his gaze. "Don't ever think for one moment that you are less of a man, because you are not the alpha, or future alpha. We are all simply men, and we make mistakes. Do you think Dominic doesn't kick himself daily for leaving Adele and Kelly alone when he went to organize a guard for them? In hindsight, he can see he should have rung around to get the job done. He never should have left them unprotected like he did. As a result Cole got his filthy hands on both of them. He hurt Adele and Kelly, because of Dominic's one moment of poor judgment. He'll always feel guilty about it, but in the end, as a leap, a family, we got the girls out and safe. The same applies here. We will all pull together and help you get Tina out safely."

Pulling free of his father's grip, Conner looked to the floor. He could feel heat rising in his cheeks as embarrassment from his childish words set in. He'd always felt inferior to Dominic, he wasn't sure why. His parents and his brother never did anything to make him feel less, but he did. As the second son of the current alpha he was overlooked publicly. With no real role in the leap, he often felt like a spare wheel. He kept it hidden most of the time, not allowing the feelings to surface. But every so often they would break through his control.

He could sense his mother coming closer and he just couldn't handle what she would say to him. He was already on edge with worry about Tina. Without further thought, he turned and bolted up the hallway to the other end of the house where his bedroom was located. In his room, Conner quickly worked his way through his nightly routines. Once under the covers he forced his body to relax and his mind to clear of all thoughts except those of Tina, hoping she was already asleep.

He found himself in a dense rainforest, dark and damp. The depressed tone of the place weighed down on him heavily. He began searching for Tina. She had to be here. Hearing a faint sob, he headed towards the sound. He found a waterfall and looked up.

His breath caught in his throat. There she was, standing at the top of the waterfall, on a large smooth rock protruding out of the flow. Her back was turned toward the drop, and her body shook as she cried. He watched her stretch her arms out wide and step back closer to the edge. Panic overtook him as realization dawned; she was trying to kill herself! Even in a dream, the thought tore at him. He roared as he shifted and bounded up the side of the fall to get to her.

She'd stopped and turned at his roar. She now stood frozen in place as he came closer. He strode through the water easily. Wound his body around her legs, forcing her further from the drop. He continued to herd her toward the safety of the bank as he tried to calm his racing heart. Once she was safely out of the water, he moved away and shifted to human. Thankfully, being a dream, he could also materialize some clothes. He didn't want his nudity to distract either of them.

"What the hell, Tina? You can't do that! Not even in a dream. I need you. I can't live in a world where you don't exist! I'm trying to find a way to get you away from Robyn. Dad's helping me. It shouldn't take us long."

"You- You were a cat. A really big cat."

He dropped down to his knees in front of her. "There are things I need to tell you, baby doll. The fact I'm a snow leopard shifter is one of them. The other is about these dreams of ours. We're both here. I'm not a figment of your imagination. I am me."

She shook her head slightly then began talking as if he hadn't spoken, hadn't shifted from animal to man, "I can't do this. I hurt, I hurt so much. I just want it to stop." Her gaze went to the waterfall, filled with longing.

He tilted her face away from the drop and toward his. "It will stop, I'll get you free of Robyn. Then me and you can start the rest of our lives. Can you trust me to fix this?"

She cupped his face in her soft palms. "How can I know you are really here? That my subconscious isn't trying to throw you at me as a last ditch effort to prevent what I want to do."

"Ask me something. Something you don't know about me."

"What year were you born?"

"1988, tenth of September."

Taking her hands from his face, she began to rub her temple, like she was getting a headache. "This really is too much, Conner. Okay, so you're really here with me. What about the snow leopard thing? Is that real or just here in our dream?"

Conner couldn't bear not having her in his arms another moment. He scooped her up and sat down with her nestled in his lap. Just like a kitten, she curled into him, seeking comfort.

"It's real. There are quite a few shifters in Rosebery. Pretty much the entire fire crew and their families for a start."

She was shaking her head, no doubt having trouble assimilating this new information.

To give her a break, he changed the subject. "Want to tell me what happened tonight? I found your necklace outside your window. The chain is broken."

Tina's hand went to her throat and Conner growled low as his anger grew. She had a thin red line around the back and side of her neck.

"Robyn tore it from my neck. She went crazy. Well, more crazy than usual. Took my phone, told me I couldn't see you ever again. She helped me into bed then took my chair with her when she left. I can't get anywhere without it. I have so little movement in my pelvis, and my bones are still healing. There's no way my leg would hold my weight. Even if it did, I'm not strong enough to fight her. She has one hundred percent control over me and I hate it. I hate it so much, Conner."

With a sob she clung to him, burying her face in his neck. He stroked her back in soothing circles. His chest tight with emotion, he lowered his head to her. Kissing his way down her neck—paying special attention to the red line—before moving over her shoulder. Her tears slowed and he felt her nuzzle against his skin, unknowingly marking herself with his scent. His leopard purred with satisfaction, even as his heart continued to break for her pain. She tilted away from him, opening the long line of her throat to him. He accepted the invitation and left feather light kisses in his wake as he made his way up to her lips.

Cradling her face in his palms he devoured her mouth, slipping his tongue in to dance with hers. She moaned and shuddered beneath him. He felt her soft caress, as she slipped the buttons free on his shirt. He laid her down on the soft mossy grass and sat up, stripping his shirt before covering her body with his and diving back between her lips. He pulled back with a hiss as she tilted her pelvis against his rock hard erection. Moving to her side he slid his hand up her body, caressing her hip. Slipping under her shirt, he traced her ribs up to her breasts. He stopped in shock as he came in contact with flesh, not material.

"No bra, baby?"

"I'm small enough that I don't need to always wear one."

He watched, frozen, as she peeled her shirt up and off revealing her perfect breasts. He couldn't look away. She was stunning. Purring, he lowered his head to her, nuzzling his face in her cleavage before rising up to suckle a beaded nipple into his mouth. She arched into him, gripping his hair in her fists as he lavished attention on her flesh. Never had he tasted anything so delicious. How much better would it be in real life? He couldn't wait to find out.