Next Steps

Wren placed the last of the supper on the table without a word and sat down. Everyone was quiet as they ate, but Wren did not notice.

Her thoughts were so jumbled that she was oblivious to her surroundings at the moment. Talon had turned her world on its axis, and she did not know if it would ever be righted.

Talon eyed her as she sat there, barely touching her food. ~She will be fine. She just needs time.~ He kept telling himself this over and over, trying to believe what he was saying.

Emerald and Wren started to clean up when suddenly Emerald grabbed Wren’s hand and pulled it close.

“Oh my God!” she exclaimed.

“Watch your language,” Talon commented dryly, quite aware of what was coming next.

“Is this what I think it is?” She looked up at Wren’s flushed face.

“It is.”

She turned to Talon.

“You’re getting married? Really?”

Evan looked up in surprise. “What? You actually asked her?”

Talon picked up his plate and walked over to the sink to rinse it off. “And if I did, so what? Is that not what everyone wants?” Talon spoke gruffly to mask his happiness, immediately realizing his mistake when he saw Wren’s face.

Wren heard the words and wanted to cry. Of course, that was how it was.

She pulled her hand from Emerald as Emerald and Evan pounced on Talon and slipped from the room. Talon watched her go with sadness.

He realized she would think he had done it for the wrong reason now. He could kick himself for slipping up there by trying to shrug it off in front of the others.

He should have shown his happiness, not hidden it, but years of conditioning could not be broken easily, it seemed. He needed to go explain it to her.

“What happened to Wren?” Evan asked, finally noticing her absence.

“Let her go,” Talon commented, also heading for the door, leaving the other two in confusion behind him.

“Damn.” Evan sprinted out of the room to catch Talon, but he was already gone.

“What?” Emerald followed after him.

“I forgot. Wren received a letter yesterday. I meant to give it to her,” Evan said.

“Give it to her the next time she comes down,” Emerald replied.

Emerald dismissed Evan and the letter and went back to the dishes. She missed Lily and Carrie right now.

***

Wren looked out the window of her bedroom and then down at the ring. She did not want obligation; she wanted love.

She reached to pull it off but stopped when Talon spoke behind her.

“I would ask you not to do that until I explain my actions downstairs.”

She turned to look at him.

Talon continued, “What I said downstairs was said in reflex. It is how I handle things in my life, not how I feel about this. I did not ask out of obligation or because of the bonding.”

Wren’s eyes widened at his words. How had he known what she had been thinking?

Talon stepped forward. “That is what you thought, right? You think I would ask someone to marry me, bind themselves to me for life, just because of obligation or some stupid bond?”

“Uh, you already have,” Wren commented dryly.

Talon pulled her close. How could he explain this to her?

“I could not do that to someone else’s feelings. No matter what anyone thinks of me. I do not know what I can do to gain your trust, except to tell you I love you and want to marry you, not out of obligation, but because of my own feelings.”

He held up a finger to stop the words Wren was about to speak. “And…I will wait patiently until you are ready to trust me with your own feelings. Do not worry. I will not push you.”

He turned and left the room, calling over his shoulder, “Whenever you are ready to sleep, my room will be open. Go on in.”

Wren stood there staring out the window long after he had left, pondering his words.

***

The following morning, she woke to Talon beside her, not touching her. He had not been there when she had crept in last night.

“Good morning,” he said.

“Good morning,” she replied.

She started to rise out of bed. Talon grabbed her wrist.

“Why not move in with me?” he asked.

He had thought about it for a long time last night as he watched her sleeping in his bed. It felt like the next step for them.

“What?” She sat back down on the bed and turned toward him. This man was moving fast. Too fast.

“Move in here with me,” he said.

“No.”

“Why?”

“Because…”

“Exactly. If you are sleeping here, it just makes more sense for you to move in here…or would you rather I move in with you?”

“What?”

Talon sighed and sat up. “You are not very sharp first thing in the morning, are you?”

“Shut up,” Wren grumbled.

Talon laughed. “Come on, move in and be done with it.”

“If it does not work out?”

“You move back. No big deal. But I do not think that is what you are really worried about.”

Wren stood and pulled on her robe. “And what would it be that I am worried about then?”

“That you might like it too much.”

Talon stood and came around the bed, stopping before her. She could only stare at his bare chest.

Damn, he looked good first thing in the morning, and she had to ball up her hands to keep from touching him. She could not stop herself from looking, though, and realized he was hard in other places as well.

She quickly looked away, embarrassed at her action. Talon laughed.

“Sorry. I told you he had a mind of his own, and he is very fond of you,” he said. He headed for his bathroom.

“Think about it. We can take the day and move you in and get you settled before we start work tomorrow,” he called as he went.

Wren headed back to her room in a bit of a daze. ~Move in with Talon?~

Sounded like heaven and hell all combined into one. He had a point. If she were sleeping there, the next step would be for her to live there, right?

“Fine.”

Talon looked up from where he was buttoning his shirt to see Wren leaning against the doorframe.

“Really?” he asked. He knew what she was talking about instantly.

“Sure. Whatever. But if I leave, there is to be no arguing about it.”

Talon grinned. “Fair enough. Shall we get started?”

“Can we at least wait until I eat something?” Wren asked with a sigh.

There would be no living with him now. Damn, she could not say that anymore—she was living with him.

***

“There you are.” Evan met Wren at the base of the steps with a letter in his hands.

“Here. This came for you on Friday, but I forgot to give it to you.”

“Thanks, Evan,” Wren said, taking the letter and following him into the kitchen.

She placed the letter on the table and got some food. They gathered around the table, talking about the plans for the day.

Emerald and Evan even offered to help move her stuff into Talon’s room. Wren straight up refused their help.

They did not need to see more of her personal space than they already had.

She picked up the letter, pulled out a card, and froze.

“What day was Friday?” she asked quietly.

Evan was the one to reply. “The…fourteenth.”

Without a word, Wren stood and left the room.

~How did I forget? I swore I would never forget.~ She felt the tears, hot, begin to fall as she stood in the hallway and opened the happy anniversary card in her hands.

~More importantly, how has he found me here?~ Wren carefully opened the envelope with shaking fingers.

She knew what would be in there, and the fear rose, as strong as ever, as she read the words scribbled inside the card.

~Thought I would not find you there, baby.~

~I told you. You belong to me and only me.~

~Happy third anniversary of Lisa’s death.~

~Do not think you are safe. I will be taking care of you soon.~

~Wait for me.~

~Don~

Wren covered her mouth, trying not to let the scream rip from her throat. He knew where she was.

~How?~ The only people who knew where she was were the ones who lived here and her family.

~Mother! Damn.~ Wren had always suspected her mother knew where Don was. This confirmed her suspicion.

Her mother must have helped him. Now what did she do?

“Wren?”

Wren quickly put the card away before turning to Talon. “Yes?” she replied.

“You okay?” Talon could feel something was off. Wren was fighting back tears.

“I am fine,” Wren said, giving Talon a smile that did not reach her eyes.

~Yup. Something is wrong.~

“Shall we get started?” Talon asked.

“Started?”

“With moving your stuff,” Talon reminded her.

“Oh. That. Sure.”

Wren could not tell Talon about the letter. She could not tell anyone about the letter.

How was she going to keep everyone safe if she could not even keep herself safe from the monster coming for her?

She tucked the letter into her back pocket and followed Talon up the stairs, her heart suddenly unsure if she was doing the right thing.

Would she ever be free of that man?