My mind has been on overdrive all morning. Everything is jumbling together to the point I feel like I'll go insane. What I'm not expecting to feel when I pull into my father's driveway is Cedric's presence. The dark blue truck must be his. After the lake incident, I thought he'd come by the house and talk to me last night, but he didn't. It's probably a good thing after everything Colin told me. Was it all true? I don't know, but eventually, I'll find out. There's so much Cedric and I don't know about each other.
Heart pounding out of control, I park beside Cedric's truck and get out. My father opens the front door, and right there in the living room is Cedric. It's as if the earth stops on its axis the second our eyes meet. It's the first time I've seen him in human form. He's tall with dark blond hair, but it's his eyes that I would recognize from anywhere. They pierce through me down to my soul.
"Cedric," I whisper.
Eyes never wavering from mine, he smiles. "It's good to see you."
My father disappears down the hallway and then reemerges with a folder in his hands. "I'm assuming your drawings are what you're here for?" he asks. That, and to keep my promise to Amelie by telling him everything about Beck. I can't do that with Cedric around.
He hands me the folder, and I laugh. "And to see you. You doing okay?" I'm curious to know why Cedric is there with him.
His attention turns to Cedric and then back to me. "I'm fine. Been busy working on the Tanner account. We're meeting with Richard next week to finalize everything. He called me today, asking if you had the last two rooms completed."
I shake my head. "Not yet. I'll have them done by this weekend."
"That's all I needed to know." He clears his throat and goes to stand by Cedric. Now I'm curious as to what's going on. "Now that you're here, there's something we need to discuss." The way Cedric stares at me makes me tremble, and not in a bad way. How does he do that? I can feel the heat rise to my cheeks. My father clears his throat again. "I'm stepping down as your protector, Laila. Cedric will be taking my place. I'll still be watching over you, but we," he says, glancing over at Cedric, "think this change is for the best."
I hold the folder of drawings to my chest. "I see."
"Are you okay with that?" Cedric asks, concern in his voice. "I don't want you to think I'm trying to take over your life."
I can sense his nervousness; it matches my own. Maybe we're feeding off each other's feelings. "I don't think that," I reply honestly. "This is all just a little new for me."
He nods. "Me too."
"Why don't you two go for a walk?" my father suggests. "I'm going to get back to work." He kisses me on the top of the head and disappears down the hall to his drawing room.
Cedric moves closer. "So, how about it? Want to walk with me?"
The closer he gets, the more I feel the pull. "Sure." I set my folder down on the coffee table. "We can go through the meadow. I like walking through the snow."
Cedric waits to make a move, so I start toward the door, and he follows. He reaches for the handle, and when his arm brushes against mine, the electric jolt that buzzes through my body takes my breath away. It's the first time we've ever touched.
I lean against the door frame, and his eyes flash, clearly experiencing what I just did. "I didn't know it'd feel like that," he admits.
I rub a hand over my chest. "Neither did I."
He opens the door and holds it for me. I walk out, and he stays close by but maintains his distance. When we get to the meadow, I can see him out of the corner of my eye, sneaking glances at me. "Were you disappointed when you found out it was me?" he asks, his voice unsure.
Gasping, I jerk my attention to him. "No, of course not. Why would you say that?"
Fists clenched, he looks away. "After last night, I figured you would be. I want us to get to know each other, but I don't want to let you down."
It all starts to make sense. "Faith called you, didn't she?"
He huffs and keeps his gaze straight. "Yep. Took all I had not to rip the balls off a certain wolf not long before you arrived." If I'm honest with myself, when Colin told me about Cedric, I did feel something … jealousy. Maybe I was a little disappointed as well, but there's nothing we can do about it. Everyone has a past, including me; only mine is the opposite. I've never been intimate with a man before. Jaret made sure of it. He was afraid it'd interfere with my powers.
Cedric stops in front of me and takes my hands in his. They're warm, and they make me feel at ease. I can feel his nervousness dissipate with my touch. "I'm sorry for my past, Laila. If I could go back and change my ways, I would. The last thing I want to do is disappoint you."
I look up into his steely gray eyes. In them, I can see the truth and feel his sincerity. "We all have a past, Cedric. Yours just happens to be different from mine. I'm not going to hold it against you."
He breathes a sigh of relief and smiles. "That's all I needed to hear." His eyes search mine. "There's so much I want to know about you. Do you mind if I take you out tomorrow? There's a place I think you'll like. Plus, it'll give us time to get to know each other."
Excitement bubbles in my veins. "I'd love to." Satisfied with my answer, he steps out of my way, and we continue our walk. I look up at him, and he looks at me. "I need to ask you a question."
His eyes narrow curiously. "Anything."
"Does it bother you that I can't shift? I'm not like all the other girls in the pack. Things might not work the same for us."
Cedric shakes his head. "I don't care. All I know is that I'm right where I want to be, and I'll do anything to make this work."
I've never had this happen before, but his response makes everything inside of me tighten. I want to move closer to him, to feel his touch again, but I keep my distance. "I guess we'll see what happens then."