Free Guardian of Her Heart by Claire Adele

joined her. “How are you holding up with all this?”
    “I’m fine. Just a little tired.”
    “You sure you don’t need to see a doctor about bruises and pulled muscles? Just to be sure.”
    “No. I’ll probably feel it more tomorrow, but I only have a couple strained muscles in my arms and shoulders. I’ll be back to normal by tomorrow.”
    Mike glanced at her, looking for signs of fatigue and depression. “I hated for you to see that place. The condition of the rooms where the women were kept. It must have been jarring to you.”
    Hopefully, she wasn’t suffering from the shock of the brutal violence Tito dished out. That could take longer to get over and be as emotionally damaging as physical injury.
    “I’m used to hearing stories about fights, sometimes physical abuse, between parents at the crisis center. I’m so relieved there were no children kept there and that all the women held by the gang are now being cared for by the appropriate agencies. They said their families had been contacted as well. It won’t be an easy thing for them to come to terms with or for their families either. I hope their loved ones welcome them home with open arms and give them the support they’ll need to overcome the horrible experience. What about you? Are you handling all of this?”
    “Yeah, as long as you’re safe. I’m glad Tito can’t hurt anyone else. He told me before, things about my mom and dad that I never knew.” He shook his head. “He even told me that my mother bought drugs from him.”
    “Oh, Mike.” Melissa curved her hand over his arm. She’d always known something was different with Mike. A haunted look in his eyes and his quiet fierceness kept her wondering all these years what he suffered from. Even so, something about him had always drawn her to him. She was relieved to know what he’d already told her about his life, but evidently, there was much more.
    She couldn’t fix this for him. She’d have to let him come to terms with it himself. She wanted to know about the shape-shifting.
    His inner strength pulled her like a magnet. When she thought of the violence he had taken part in, she couldn’t overlook it.
    “I would never let myself be caught up in an abusive relationship,” she said softly.
    He turned the car into her driveway and shut off the ignition. Closing his hand over hers, he said, “I want to tell you something. First, you’ve always been the light in my life. I would never treat you, or anyone, the way my father treated my mother.
    “I need you, Melissa. I’m not whole without you. I hope you want to stay beside me as we work toward our mutual goals of helping and protecting others.”
    “I love you, Mike. That hasn’t changed. I’m here for you.”
    “I love you so much it hurts, Melissa. But I’ll understand if you don’t want to see me ever again now that you know about my father and my mom. There’s something else I need to explain to you.”
    “What is it?”
    “Do you remember the remark made by the cop about Tito after he was killed?”
    “He said Tito’s face resembled a wolf’s.” She gazed at Mike, her eyes wide.
    “Well,” Mike began and paused, groping for the right words. “Tito was also a shape-shifter.”
    “Both of you?”
    Her voice held doubt. He wasn’t surprised. “Yeah, wolf-like. Some would have called him and his gang a pack. Like a wolf pack.”
    “I’d never believed in shape-shifters until I saw you change. I’d always thought that was just a myth.”
    “It’s not. It’s true. I know that because my father was a werewolf, just like his father, and so am I.”
    “Oh.” Her voice sounded shaky. “You’re definitely not making all this up.”
    “No. Sad to say, I’m not.”
    “It’s hard to believe.”
    How could he convince her? “Do you remember the big black dog that charged me while I held Tito down on the sidewalk in front of Haven?”
    “Yes. I was scared he’d attack you.”
    “He’s a werewolf. One of