“I’ll be staying with you guys to fix what I’ve broken. John’s in agreement with me.”
She was shaking her head. “It’s a mistake.”
“No, Dana, it’s not,” Felix said.
“You’re standing up for him now?”
“No, I’m hoping you can see this from Heather’s standpoint. He’ll be able to show her how he feels. There wasn’t enough time for him to connect with her. Now, he can.”
Dana huffed and stormed off, leaving him alone with her brother.
“Thank you for sticking up for me.”
“I’m not. Heather deserves some time. The only way you’re going to get that is by being with her. This is not going to be easy between you two. The least I can do is try to be supportive because Heather’s going to crush your balls.”
Felix left him alone, chuckling.
Staring up at Heather’s window, Ben wondered if the woman he’d scarred would ever find it in her heart to forgive him.
Chapter Five
Heather sat on the edge of her bed. She’d dressed in a pair of jeans and a buttoned shirt. The longer she sat staring at her feet the more she wanted to curl back up in bed. It had been three days since she’d stared at her face in the mirror. She needed to go back and look, but she couldn’t bring herself to move.
They were all expecting her down for breakfast. Dana had warned her Ben was now staying in their home. He wasn’t going to be there for breakfast. She’d begged John not to let him near her.
Letting go of the bed, she stood up and slowly walked to the bathroom. She’d been stuck in the same bedroom for over a month. Dana was going to be with her as they made their way around the surrounding cabin. She didn’t want to leave the house alone, and the only way she’d leave was if her friend was with her.
Opening the bathroom door, she stepped through and stared at her reflection in the mirror.
Three days had passed since she’d last seen herself, and already the marks across her face and down her neck didn’t look as harsh as they had. Grabbing her toothbrush, she quickly brushed her teeth and brushed her hair before walking toward the door leading out to the rest of the house.
She’d never once been tempted to leave her room. Heather heard everyone talking, and she paused near the door, listening to them.
Could she go down and face them? They knew she wasn’t like them. She was pure human, and they were not. They would have been able to survive the attack whereas Dana had told her she’d been in and out of it for most of the time.
The door next to her opened, and Heather froze as Ben stepped out of the door. His room was right next to hers. No, it couldn’t be possible. It wasn’t fair for her attacker to be near her.
He tensed and turned to her. She wasn’t covering her face, and Heather knew it was the marks on her face that he saw. Ben didn’t see the person underneath.
She saw the guilt cross his face, and she looked down at her feet.
“You’re not supposed to be here this morning,” she said. Her voice was croaky from lack of use.
“I’m heading out.”
Glancing up, she saw his hands were fisted at his side.
“Okay.”
Heather paused and then stared up into his face. He was the one who’d caused this to her face, and he should look at what he’d done.
They stared at each other for several moments, and neither spoke or looked away.
He reached out to touch her, and she couldn’t stop herself from flinching away from his touch. Ben cursed and dropped his hand.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
“I know.” Her stomach growled, making her face heat with embarrassment.
“I’m keeping you from your breakfast. I’ll, erm, I’ll go.”
Before she could stop him, Ben walked away.
Staring at his back, Heather wished there was more for her to say, but her mind drew a blank.
She didn’t know how long she stood there waiting. Finally, she made her way down to the breakfast table. All four Ashtons were sat waiting for her. This reminded her so much of the many times she’d eaten breakfast with them. Cereal and toast were laid out on the table waiting for her to eat.
“Ben just left,” Felix said.
“I know. I saw him.”
Both men tensed. “Did anything happen?” John asked.
She shook her head. Nothing happened. There was no passionate kiss or anything. Heather didn’t know why she was thinking about kisses, but she was. She remembered the way he’d held her close on the same night he’d attacked her. The way his lips melded with hers and the heat pulsing between her thighs.
Cutting off the thought, she grabbed some toast, nibbling on the ends and sipping some juice.
Ben made her nervous.
When she’d eaten a couple more slices of toast, she left the cabin with Dana. Felix offered to come with them. Dana turned him down. They’d not had some girly time away from the cabin in some time.
Dana placed an arm through hers, and together they made their way outside. It was still warm, and Heather was thankful she hadn’t worn a jacket.
“I’ve missed this,” Dana said.
“Me, too. It has been hard being trapped inside that bedroom.” Heather tucked some hair behind her ear and stared ahead of her.
“Ben won’t leave, and I can’t force him to leave.”
Shrugging, Heather didn’t say a word.
“You’re his mate, Heather.”
“I can’t, Dana. You wanted him, and I can’t do this with him. He hurt me.”
Her friend stopped, taking a deep breath. “I can’t believe I’m doing this. Ben’s not a bad person. His tiger reacted violently to you pushing him away. It’s extreme, but you need to give him a chance.”
Tears filled Heather’s eyes. “I can’t talk about this. Please, leave it alone.”
“If you’d only listen—”
“No. I don’t want to listen. It’s fine with you and with everyone else. You’re perfect, Dana. I’m not. I’m human, and now I’m a human with scars. Nothing is ever going to be all right, and I’m not just going to listen to reason.”
Pulling herself away from Dana, she took a seat on one of the benches near the array of trees.
“Heather?”
“No, please, leave me alone. I love you like a sister, but right now I need you to leave me alone. You don’t know what I’m going through. Otherwise you wouldn’t have brought him up.”
“I’m sorry.”
Heather nodded. Everyone was always so sorry.
After several minutes Dana left her alone. The moment she was alone, Heather felt bad for arguing with her friend. Dana didn’t deserve that. Her friend hadn’t been the one to scar her.
Would she ever get over this pain? Rubbing her chest, Heather stared at the house before her. They were her family, and she wasn’t being nice to them. Maybe she should just leave so none of them would feel responsible for her.
Her parents wouldn’t want her. Neither her mother nor father had phoned to see how she was getting on.
She dropped her head in her hands trying her best to keep the tears inside. When she’d heard of couples mating, she’d never heard of this. Being attacked and now she truly believed her mate was repulsed by her.
“What the hell am I supposed to do?”
There were no immediate answers, and she wished life was a hell of a lot easier.
****
Ben shouldn’t have stayed and listened to their conversation. It was wrong on so many levels. When it came to Heather he’d made so many mistakes. What was wrong with him listening to them argue?
They were arguing about him anyway.
Dana wasn’t annoyed when she walked away. There was the guilt and the pain, but there was also depression. Dana was missing her friend, and Heather felt the same. They were missing the woman Heather had been before his vicious attack.
Moving out of the clearing, Ben stood in front of her. The scars on her face didn’t repulse him. They made him angry at himself for his lack of control. The scars also made him proud of his mate, and that was what sickened him. Heather, a human, had survived his attack, and he hated himself for thinking it. His mate was strong.
She looked up at him. Tears glistened in her eyes.
“If you’re going to say you’re sorry or feel pity or anything else, then just go. I don’t want people to feel pity for me.”
Heather dropped her hands. Taking a seat beside her, Ben tamped down the euphoria blistering inside him at being so close to her. He wanted to reach out and take her in his arms. Instead, he sat beside her with enough room so she didn’t feel crowded. His body hardened with need. The woman he’d met over a month ago was still there in the way she sat. Her shoulders were drooped, but the fire was inside her.
In time his woman would be back, and during that time he was going to get to know her.
“You’re not going to say sorry or tell me stuff I don’t want to know?” she asked. Her voice made him shiver, and his cock tightened.
“No. You don’t want to hear anything, and there’s nothing I can say. I can handle silence.” He leaned forward, covering his aching erection from her view.
She nodded, and for several minutes they sat on the bench together. He saw John, Felix, Dana, and Kathleen each stare at them from a window. His tiger was well hidden. When he sensed his animal close to the surface, Ben knew it was sad. He found it easier to think of his tiger as another being inside him. They were both different, and Ben had learned over the years to try to understand his tiger. There were times like the attack on Heather, when he’d been unable to control it.