by T. S. Ryder
"Rose."
She jumped, whirling around. Percy stood just inside the grocery store doors, a bouquet of roses in his hands and an exaggeratedly sad look on his face. There was a time when that look would have made her melt. Not anymore.
"Leave me alone."
"Rose, come on. That big shifter isn't around, you don't have to be afraid to talk to me. Let's talk. You never let me explain my side of things before you broke up with me."
Rose shook her head. She pulled Jamie's car seat from the cart, determined to just go back to the minivan. It was a sunny day and there were plenty of people around. Percy wouldn’t try anything… would he? He followed her across the parking lot, still holding the flowers.
"Don't be like this. I love you, but this temper of yours—"
"No." Rose turned on him, her eyes narrowed and jaw clenched. "There is no but. Either you love me, all of me, or you don't. No, you love me but I need to lose weight. You love me but my friends drive you crazy and you don’t want me seeing them anymore. You love me but a man has needs and since I wasn't putting out, you needed to find it somewhere else."
Percy pursed his lips. "Look, I made a mistake. But we all make mistakes, why am I getting nailed to the cross for it? You broke up with me—"
"Again no." Rose opened the van door and put Jamie in, making sure she was secure. "I am not going to let you gaslight me anymore. No more convincing me that what I saw and what I heard wasn't real. No more telling me that my feels are wrong. I'm not the weak, vulnerable girl you got your claws into, Percy. You broke up with me, and I'm going to be honest here. It was the best thing you could have done for me. And I am not returning to your cage."
She opened the driver's door and Percy jumped forward. He whirled her around and slammed her into the side of the van, crushing the roses between them. The thorny stems pricked through her shirt into her breast. Her heart jumped to her throat.
"You're a real bitch, you know that?" Percy hissed under his breath. "If you'd just give me a chance… but no. You think you're cool, dating a shifter? I never figured you'd be into bestiality. Does he take his beast's form when he mounts you?"
"Let go of me," Rose hissed. "Right now!"
Percy laughed and moved even closer. "If you had any thorns of your own, you wouldn't be here. You wanted me, Rose. You wanted everything I gave you. You know it's true, or you would have called the police by now. But this sick game of yours has to end. Who knows when the players will snap?"
Rose didn't reply. She brought her knee up hard between his legs and shoved him away when he grunted in pain. As he fell to the ground, groaning, she scrambled into the van and locked the doors. But then she hesitated. What if she had really hurt Percy? Or worse–what if she ran over him as she was leaving?
The last thing she wanted was to give him ammunition against her in the courts. The police didn't take her and Devon seriously when they provided the evidence of Percy's stalking. The restraining order they'd looked into getting was denied without even a hearing.
Because apparently Percy was just a lovesick gentleman that needed to be treated gently, and she was the heartless bitch that broke his heart.
As Percy got to his feet, cursing, Rose threw the van into gear and pulled away. Her heart pounded so hard she thought she might vomit or have a heart attack. As she got onto the street, she glanced into her rearview mirror to find Percy scrambling into his car. He followed after her.
"No," she whispered, tension closing up her throat.
She hit the Bluetooth, connecting quickly. As she headed for the vet clinic, Percy followed. But she was already calling Devon, and he answered on the third ring. As soon as she heard his voice, a rush of relief washed over Rose. Her hands stopped trembling, and she was focusing more fully on the road. Percy could follow her all he wanted, but he wasn't going to hurt her or Jamie.
"Rose?" Devon said. "Are you okay?"
"Percy ambushed me at the grocery store. He's following me now. I'm coming to the clinic."
A low growl answered her. "Are you okay?"
She shivered, remembering the fury in Percy's eyes as he slammed her against the van. She would tell Devon about it, just not right away. If he knew about it, he might attack as soon as they got there. Especially since Jamie was also there.
"I'm fine, and so is Jamie. I just know he'll leave me alone if you're with me."
"I'm not hanging up until you're here."
Rose smiled gratefully. He was always there for her when she needed him. The first person who ever was. "I'll be there soon."
When she got to the clinic, Devon was waiting outside. He ran to her as soon as she pulled into the parking lot, and glared at the little blue car that slowed down to coast past them. Rose deliberately did not look at the expression on his face, or turn to look at Percy as she pulled Jamie out of her car seat. The baby snuggled against her and smiled. She felt herself relaxing further.
"What happened?" Devon asked.
"I don't want to tell you until after Percy's gone," Rose said, watching as the blue car disappeared around a corner.
"He's gone now."
Rose chewed on the inside of her cheek, glancing up at Devon's face for the first time. She expected anger, lots of it, and was surprised when she saw worry more than anything else. He stroked her cheek, moving a little closer. Rose's heart kicked up another notch as the smell of soap washed over her. He always smelled like this… Clean. It was comforting.
"He's getting more aggressive," she admitted. "He grabbed me and pressed me against the van door. I don't want you doing anything about it, but—"
Devon's arm suddenly went around her waist. She squeaked in surprise as he bent his mouth to her. Her eyes shot wide in surprise. Devon snaked an arm under Jamie, helping her support the baby while she giggled. Rose found herself pushing to her toes, her eyes fluttering shut as she was drawn deeper into the kiss. When his tongue flicked across her lower lip, she opened her mouth with a moan, eager to give him access.
There was the sound of screeching tires, and Devon pulled away from her. She swayed, a little unbalanced, but his arm remained around her waist and kept her upright. Heat flooded her cheeks and she shook her head, flustered and confused.
"Wh-what was that about?" she asked, adjusting Jamie as her heart continued to race.
"I saw Percy coming around the corner again and I wanted to give him something to make him leave." Devon glared past her shoulder. Towards Percy's taillights, no doubt.
Rose stared at him blankly. "You kissed me to get rid of him."
"It was either that, or rip him out of his car and punch his stupid face in half," Devon growled. He finally looked down at her, and his frown deepened. "What are you looking at me like that for? You're the one that kissed me when he first showed up."
She stepped away from him, her own eyes narrowing at his tone. "Yeah, I guess I did. But that was to make Percy think we were dating. I thought it would make him leave me alone and it didn't work. But here, kissing me when he's driving around… he was just waiting for me to leave. I don't understand how you thought it would help."
"I thought it would help me not go after him." Devon started to say something else and Rose's heart jumped, but he shook his head and turned away. her heart fell again. "I have to get back to work. You can bring Jamie in and stay in my office until I'm off."
If she was honest with herself, the only thing she wanted to do less than that was to go home and potentially face Percy there. So she silently picked up the diaper bag, following him inside. She silently stewed as she followed the familiar path to his office.
It was only when she was alone, sitting at his desk while she absently bounced Jamie that she realized what it was that she was really angry at. And it wasn't because Devon had kissed her.
She was angry because of her reaction. Because she accepted it without question. Because when he revealed the truth of why he'd done it, her heart had plummeted. Because she was falling in love with him… and
if she did that, she didn't know what would happen next.
Chapter Six – Devon
Devon waited outside, eyes narrowed as Percy's little blue car pulled into the grocery store parking lot. Shortly after Rose had arrived at the clinic, the stalker had phoned him and asked to meet and talk. It was an opportunity to get him off their backs, and so Devon agreed, though he only told Rose that he was going to get the groceries they needed before they both headed home.
"I'm glad you decided to meet with me," Percy said when he got nearer, though his clenched hands and look of disgust plainly spoke to his feelings on being so close to a shifter.
"You said you wanted to talk. I'll hear what you have to say about the matter, and then you will listen to me," Devon said.
Percy scowled but nodded. "Rose isn't well."
Devon rolled his eyes. "And how do you figure that?"
"She has a history of mental illness. She hides it very well, but she has these… episodes. She would never harm your daughter on purpose, but sometimes she just doesn't know what she's doing. Did she ever tell you why she… left?"
"You're emotionally manipulative, abusive and you cheated on her." Devon heard the growl in his own voice. Maybe this wasn't such a great idea. Or maybe he should have lead off by grabbing the man by the collar and shaking him until his teeth rattled.
Percy shook his head. "We had a little boy, but she had such bad postpartum depression… I wasn't home when he choked on a piece of Lego he got his hands on. But when I came home, she was holding him sobbing, and he was gone… she convinced herself that the therapist I wanted her to see was my lover. None of what she's told you is true."
"Do you really expect me to believe that?"
"Look, I know Rose can be very persuasive. I fell for the lies she told me when we first—"
"I'd have an easier time believing you if you weren't stalking her." Devon loomed over him, eyes narrowing. The human backed up a step, his already-pale tones whitening. "I don't care what you say. Your actions speak far louder, and they say you are an obsessed, crazy man who doesn't care one whit about Rose. If you cared, then you would respect that fact that she wants nothing to do with you. I suggest you leave town before things escalate."
Percy backed up another step. The earnest expression on his face disappeared into one of fury. It really didn't surprise Devon, considering everything he knew about this manipulative man. If he was in his Panther form right now, his teeth would be bared and his tail would flick from side to side, ears flattening against his head. He could feel the claws pressing against his fingertips, wanting to spring loose.
"Are you threatening me, shifter?"
Devon crowded into the smaller man's personal space again. "Threatening you? No. This is just a friendly warning to cut your losses and run. Because I won't threaten you, Percy. Shifters are highly instinctual, and we will do everything to protect our mates. When I act, there will be no warning."
"My god," Percy whispered. "Here I thought that you had done something to her, taken advantage of her illness… but it's the other way around, isn't it? She's convinced you that she's your mate. She's got her claws dug deep into you, hasn't she?"
"I won't tell you to leave again," Devon said. His Panther was becoming more and more agitated, and it was all he could do not to attack the man on the spot. "I won't allow you to hurt her again."
Percy clamped his mouth shut and backed away from the huge shifter once again. Satisfied that he had made his point, Devon turned his back on the human and started walking towards the store. He still needed to pick up groceries, after all. He hadn't gone very far when Percy spoke again.
"Fine, see if I care! The bitch gets what she deserves. She's just a fat cow anyway… she ought to go well with a filthy beast like you."
He's trying to provoke me. Knowing what the human was doing didn't make it any easier to ignore him. The growl in his chest escaped, despite fighting to keep it in. He stopped in his tracks, hands curling into fists.
"By the way, you have a very cute daughter," Percy said, drawing nearer once more. "It'd be a shame if something happened… you know toys these days. They are always malfunctioning. Last week I heard of a toy starting a fire in a baby's bed. House was completely unharmed but the baby was roasted—"
With a roar, Devon whirled on his heel. Blood already on the brink of boiling from his derogatory comments, this thinly veiled threat towards Jamie was too much. A fist flew before Devon knew what he was doing; Percy tried to duck but was too slow. Devon's knuckles collided firmly with his temple.
The human dropped.
Devon stood over him, panting. His nostrils flared and fists trembled as he stared down at the human. His victim didn't so much as twitch. Regret seeped in with the anger that still burned through the shifter, and he dropped to one knee, checking for a pulse. Percy's heart still beat, and Devon pulled out his phone and dialed 911.
After telling the 911 operator where to find the human, Devon returned to his car and left. As he pulled out of the parking lot, he saw Percy stumbling to his feet. A feeling of dread sunk into the Panther's stomach. Somehow he knew this was going to come back to bite him.
***
By the time he got back to the clinic to drive with Rose back home, the bruises on his knuckles had healed. There was no evidence of the altercation, nothing for Rose to question what he had been doing–except the lack of groceries. As they drove home, him in the car, her driving the minivan behind him, he thought of what he could tell her.
Lying was very tempting. Knowing what had happened would only worry her. And Devon somehow doubted that she would be happy knowing that he had confronted Percy without her knowledge. Not to mention the fact he'd knocked out her ex-boyfriend…
He kept silent about it while he cooked supper, but after Rose put Jamie down for a nap and cheerfully asked about the groceries, he knew he couldn't lie. "I didn't get them because I met Percy at the store."
Rose froze. "You what?"
"He called and said he wanted to talk, so I agreed. I thought I could convince him to leave us alone. Well… it didn't work. I lost my temper and I hit him."
"You hit him?" Rose's amber-brown eyes narrowed.
Relief washed over Devon. It wasn't until that moment that he realized he had been afraid that she would be afraid of him after what he did. Anger, he could take. Fear? It would have been devastating. He held out his hands to her. "Rose, I'm sorry."
Rose turned away. She hid her face in her hands for a moment, then whirled on him. "I didn't leave an emotionally abusive monster just to end up with someone who uses violence to solve everything!"
"I know. And I'm sorry, but—"
"But. But what could possibly justify hitting him? So he got a little aggressive, that doesn't mean you can just go around punching him. How bad was it? Is he going to press assault charges against you?"
"I don't know," Devon replied honestly. "But Rose, please listen. He threatened Jamie. That's the only reason I hit him."
Rose stilled. Her eyes riveted on him, her mouth forming a small 'o'.
Devon stepped forward again. "Look, I am sorry. And you have every right to be angry with me, but—"
"Don't say but. Don't ever say that. He'd say that all the time. I had every right to be mad, and that he was so sorry. And then he'd say he sucked, or that he was a terrible boyfriend, and all these things about himself until I felt guilty for being angry or sad or scared. I wasn't allowed to feel emotion when I was with him. It took him cheating on me for me to leave because… because whenever I thought about it, he would start being all sweet again. He'd buy me presents, take me on vacations, make me dinner. All these things that made me think, okay, so I was overreacting. So yes, I'm mad. And I'm going to stay mad! I don’t want you to calm me down because I have earned this anger!"
Her eyes were bright with tears by the time she was done. Devon tried to stay still, feeling overwhelmed by the sheer amount of emotion that was flowing through him. Anger at
Percy for the way he treated Rose, anger at her for not seeing that he was different from Percy, anger at himself for not knowing what to do.
He sucked in a deep breath and nodded. "You're right. I shouldn't have hit him, and I shouldn't try to justify my actions by downplaying your right to be angry with me. So I'm sorry. Not buts. Just sorry."
Rose's lip trembled. She bit down on it and nodded. "Thank you."
"Do you want to sit and talk? I think there is more to what's happening here than what we might be saying."
Like how the threat to Jamie was just the last straw. That if Percy had said another word about Rose, he might have attacked the human anyway. That he was getting deeper and deeper, in over his head, and he wasn't sure that there was any way for him to get out of it.
He never thought that love would be like this.
Rose swallowed hard. "Yeah. Let's talk."
Chapter Seven – Rose
Rose numbly let Devon put a hand around her waist and lead her to the living room. Her mind was half in denial about what had just happened. She was always the one to keep her feelings locked inside. And they had just exploded at the one person she never wanted to be angry with.
She hadn't expected to have such an outburst in the first place, and once she was done talking, she expected Devon to get as angry at her as she was at him. The fact that he didn’t throw her for a loop. She didn't know how to handle his calm reply, or even him agreeing with her.
Jamie started to cry from upstairs as soon as they were settled on the couch. Rose closed her eyes, not wanting to soothe the baby when she was in such an emotional state herself. But as she stood, Devon gently took her hand in his and squeezed.
"I'll get her back to sleep. Just relax. I'll be back soon."
He left and Rose curled her feet under her. Tears were leaking from her eyes, and she let them water the front of her shirt as she sat there.
What am I going to do now?
