What drew Liam to her in college was the same as now, her cheerful, bubbly, and outgoing personality. What flustered him the most, was he’d never had a girlfriend before; now he had a woman and didn’t know what to do with her. What was the proper waiting period before he tried something further than kissing or touching? He didn’t know the answer to this hard question.
Liam swore to keep her safe always and he wasn’t going to jeopardize that. Something inside him knew she belonged to him. Was this the mate the shifters talked about? Mailaki had told him the animal deep inside him would know their mate before the human side of them ever could. He wondered if this was the feeling he knew now. Without a doubt, he felt Valorie belonged with him. Only now, he would prove to her he could be her perfect partner.
He scooted over to join her as she was tearing open all the boxes. Kneeling on his knees, he sat back onto his feet. “What can I do here?”
She handed him some of the boxes, “Open these.”
Stringing the lights up took a few minutes, Valorie asked, “I’m kind of hungry, can we maybe take a break then come back to this?”
“Sure, it’s been out there cooling off. It will be about perfect.” He pointed to the kitchen.
They both finally sat down at the table to eat after he dished up the egg-bake.
“Oh, my God. Liam, this is wonderful,” she mumbled between bites.
“Thank you, I’m glad you like it.”
“Did you actually make it all or is this part of your friends’ doing?”
He laughed. “It was all me.”
“So tell me, how did you learn to cook?” Valorie waved her fork around in a circle.
“Well, let’s see, I’ve lived on my own for about five years or so. I had to learn to cook or starve.” He’d proven adept at handling his own needs.
“So have you ever been in a serious relationship?” she asked.
“Not really.”
Valorie stiffened, looking abashed. “Oh gosh, Liam, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.”
For a moment, he studied her intently. “Valorie, I’m the one who should apologize.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know, it just seems like the right thing to do? Right?”
“No, I don’t.” She reached out and touched his face. “Let’s just agree to start over and forget about all that crap from the past?” He nodded and took another bite of his food.
“It’s weird you know. Even though we haven’t seen each other for seven years, it seems like yesterday. We use to tell each other everything. When you would come into the library I remember we would complain, whine, and laugh about how good or bad our lives were,” Valorie exclaimed then took a drink of her orange juice. “Can I tell you something without you laughing at me?”
He nodded.
“I had never had a friend as special to me as you were. But, now, it feels different. Maybe because I'm in love with you totally?” Her cheeks turned bright red and he thought she was adorable.
“You really love me?”
She nodded, “Yeah, I pretty sure.”
He reached for her neck and pulled her to him and kissed her. When he finished thoroughly enjoying the moment he leaned back and asked, “Why were you so bad in college. I remember a hellion not this sweet loving lady sitting here with me at my dinner table?”
“I was a renegade. I wanted to show my dad, the cop, I could be naughty and he couldn’t stop me. As well as learning the hard way, partying, boys, drinking, and failing school just to be a bad girl wasn’t what I wanted to do in the long run.” Tears slowly found their way down her cheeks.
“Don’t cry, baby. It’s all good. I made many mistakes as well. We both were young and dumb.” He reached over and touched her hand, squeezing it.
“Thank you. You have no idea how much I needed your words. We were silly and young. I can’t believe I wanted to date Matt. He was a big football player heading to the pros. Do you think that was wrong of me at the time?” She drew an invisible pattern on the tablecloth.
“Let me ask you a personal question. Then, I’ll answer yours,” he lowered his voice, being purposefully mysterious.
Her expression showed her sweetness and vulnerability. “Ask away, my friend.”
“I know you said you had never been in a serious relationship, but I want to know if you’ve ever been head over heels with someone. Even if they didn’t know you existed. The kind, where you know you want to be with that person for the rest of your life?”
Licking her lips nervously, she had to think about the question. “Maybe?”
“What do you mean maybe?” He laughed. His eyes twinkled with merriment.
“To be totally honest with you, like I said earlier, I fell in love with you in college. It was the first time and last.”
“Really?” He tilted his head and smiled gently.
“I guess I’m too picky. I have a lot of requirements, so I usually eliminate them before I get through the first date.”
“Thank you for being absolutely honest with me. I guess I should answer yours. No, I don’t think it was wrong of you to want popularity in college. It is normal for young people to have fun when they first venture out into the world on their own. I remember you told me about your father being strict, just like mine was. That is tough to live by their ethical code and honor. To rebel and be naughty is perfectly normal. I was the same way, only my illness prevented me from showing it too much. I know, I for one was selfish. I left my best friend when I shouldn’t have or at least, said goodbye to her.” He grabbed their empty plates and took them to the sink.
Following him to the kitchen, Valorie opened the dishwasher. “Here gimme.”
They loaded the dishes in a few minutes.
“Liam, I’m glad we talked. I feel a little better knowing you were a lot like me. Your dad was really strict too?”
He nodded. “Oh yeah, Dad was.”
Liam put soap in and started the dish washer. “Do you want to decorate the tree?” he asked.
“Sure, let’s do it.” Valorie walked into the living room.
No words were necessary between them. Liam had turned on music. “Silent Night” came out over the surround sound throughout the upstairs. It was relaxing enough he slowly settled his animal down. He could sit next to her without his dick becoming hard. He enjoyed her company immensely.
They worked for a while before Liam got a phone call. “Hello.”
“Hey, Liam, Detective Koski, can you and Valorie meet us at her apartment in about an hour?”
“Sure, what’s up?”
“We have a few leads.” The background noise was loud, Koski must have been somewhere with a lot of people.
“Is that good?” Liam reached for Valorie’s hand, she had a look of fear and panic in her eyes.
“No. Liam, more happened over there, it’s bad. I’m not going into it here. I’m at the mall with the wife and kids. I’m heading out now, so I’ll see you over there.”
“Thank you.” Liam ended the call and put the phone back in his pocket. “Come on, little one, we’re meeting Rick over at your place. They have a few leads. If you get your boots and coat on, I’ll get my stuff ready? Is that okay?” Liam reached for his gun and holster, putting them on.
“Yeah I’m fine to get myself ready.” Her voice was tense and he hadn’t meant it to be an insult. Before he could apologize she pointed to the gun, “Is that really necessary?”
“Yep, I wear it whenever and wherever I go.” The question didn’t need analyzing, it was a no-brainer for him.
During the drive, Liam worried over Valorie. She was too quiet. She stared out the window and said nothing. Her hands clenched in her lap and her left foot was tapping fast and hard. This woman was stressed out. He too was worried, but for an entirely different reason. How could he tell her what happened? It wouldn’t be right to have her find out as they walk in on the situation. By what Rick’s voice sounded like, the stalker had struck again but this time destroying something or everything.
He dialed Rick’s number. The detective answered, “What’s up?” His voice sounded hard and unforgiving. The tone he knew well with cops and other law enforcement when they were in the middle of a crisis. Liam asked, “How bad?”
“Someone put a note on her car. The hood has an ax through it with the note hanging from it.” Rick’s words just ruined their Christmas spirit as life careened back to reality.
Liam’s only answer, “Ten four.”
He hit end on the cell and threw it up on the dashboard. No more was needed. The only thing left was to tell Valorie before they arrived at her apartment.
She spoke up first, “Alright, I know something is wrong, just spit it out. I’m stronger than this.”
Liam reached over and tried to take her hand. She pulled away, “Spit it out, Liam.”
“An ax has destroyed your car and there’s a note attached. They’re sure it’s the stalker. Same signature mark.” He grabbed her hand and tried to comfort her. Instead, she yanked it away from him. Her smoldering eyes throwing daggers at him.
“Why is this happening to me? And, you, stop trying to protect me, I’m not some half-wit,” she spat out the words.
“Don’t freak on me. I can’t even try to comfort you while driving.” He turned the music down.
“Okay, I promise. I’ll stay calm and keep my temper down. What have I done to deserve all this?” she sobbed out the question before burying her face into her hands.
Liam hated seeing her frustrated and pain. He touched her chin and pulled her lip out of her teeth. She tried to smile, but it came out as more a frown. “Why is this shit happening to me?”
“I don’t know, darling. But, I intend to find out and we will catch this creep. I know you’re trying to be brave and hold in those precious tears. Let them go and have a good cry.”
She nodded, then let it all out. He reached for her and pulled her into his arms. She buried her face into his chest and they stayed that way until her sobs turned to whimpers then she completely calmed down with a deep breath in and she slowly let out her breath.
He rubbed her back, “Feel better.”
She nodded, but stayed in his arms and he held her tight.
“Dad said, apparently, someone is angry with me. He left another message, this time he put a note on my car with an ax, and the damage is extensive.” Valorie’s brain stopped thinking rationally as anger took over. She couldn’t keep doing this—panic was rioting inside her. Apparently, she wanted to keep running scenarios in her mind to forget about the moment and relive the event trying to figure out the whys? This wasn’t what she wanted to keep doing but it was just that. How do you slow down your brain to make sense of all this crap all at once? “You know, I just wanted to stay at your house and pretend nothing was wrong and we were going to decorate your house.” She hoped he didn’t mind that she wanted to just vent. The more she did, the less she would do once they around the cops and others. Especially her father. He always made her a little nervous and this was about his daughter not a stranger. He’d be in full combat duty the hardest part to manage with him.
She turned to him and yelled out, “Who is this sick person!?” Fidgeting in her seat she moved from side to side. Then reached over and turned up the music for a few moments then she turned it back down too low to even hear.
She turned to him again, “Liam, for real. This is too much for me to handle. This individual is gaining momentum. Each time it seems to get worse. I’m just repeating myself. I’m sorry.”
“Valorie, we’re all working toward catching this person. I’m sure they have footage. I put a hidden camera above your car. The perp wouldn’t have disabled it. Let’s just get there and look, maybe there’s something you recognize.”
She nodded.
He let out a long sigh. “I want to hurt this person. I’ve never had such anger like this before. Ugh.”
Valorie knew Liam was frustrated and ranting, she wanted to help him as he was her. But she didn’t know what to say. He was right. This person was pissing her off, at the same time, scaring her. “I’m sorry, all this is really pissing me off too.” She looked out at all the traffic. People seemed so happy out on a Saturday afternoon. Probably shopping and doing the Christmas cheer everyone seemed to want to do.
For her, she was dealing with a very disturbed person. She just wanted to crawl up in Liam’s lap and stay there forever. These mixed emotions racing through her mind and body wasn’t something she was used to. Her heart beating too fast and pounding against her ribs. Her heart felt as if it kept dropping in and out of her stomach. Her mixed emotions, anger, sadness, anxiety, hurt, and too stressful to make anything of all the racing thoughts were tearing her apart little by little. How could she feel safe in an environment this person knew everything about her?
Her life had been simple. Work, home, and work again. Easy stuff.
“It’s difficult for me because my need to protect you is greater than my need to hurt this person. I promise you, Valorie, I’m not going to stop until this person is caught.”
“Thank you. I can’t have my dad constantly driving back to Minneapolis. He needs to go home to my mom. She’s been ill lately.”
Taken back by her confession he paused. “I’m sorry?”
“We don’t know what’s wrong with her. She gets confused sometimes.”
Sympathy filled his face. “I want to call in my entire team. I trust them, plus it would make me feel better, alone I can’t keep you safe. If I have to leave you alone for a second, this person could strike and next time might not be so good.”
Valorie knew she was listening to a man with authority.
She held up her hands, “Hold on. It’s my turn to say something, please?”
He paused for a second, then nodded. “Sorry, go ahead.”
“I’m scared, but at the same time, I don’t want anyone to go to this much trouble for me. Plus, having all those people around me…”
“Let me worry about that. I’m taking this seriously, as well I know you are too. But I’m not willing to risk your life with this individual. Be it a man or a woman. Stalkers are sometimes harmless, but most of the time very dangerous because of their mental instability. I know this one seems pretty aggressive and angry. Building up to the violent actions, I believe it’s a male and he’s dangerous.”
“How do you know all this?” Valorie trusted him, he seemed to know his stuff.
“Our company has dealt with a lot of stalker cases. Most of the time, if the police get involved they can only do so much. They take a report then send it to the right departments and it takes months to figure out what’s going on. I’ve seen it a million times. I want my team to come in, take over, and find this asshole.”
It made sense now. Liam was in the right business to help her. “Let me talk to my dad first.” She’d always gone to her father first. With both Liam and her dad, she knew they would settle it amongst themselves. She, herself, was done worrying so much about all this. Christmas was around the corner and she wanted it over so she could enjoy the holidays.
As Liam drove to Minneapolis, he’d been trying to come up with a solid plan. “Where do you want me to park?”
“Go into the parking garage, there.” She pointed to the entrance. “Pull into that visitor’s spot.” He parked, got out first, walked around and opened her door.
Afterwards he followed her at the same time casing the garage. Something was off but he had no idea what. They reached the elevator and he warned her, “Hold on, Valorie.” Liam stayed behind her as the doors opened. He was shielding her from all sides. He looked inside the car and it was empty. Then looked behind him, he sensed it again. The hairs on the back of his neck stood straight up. Liam always trusted his gut. “Valorie, I’m not feeling this.” He waved around the parking garage. His senses picked up fear, anger, and something dreadfully evil. Trust your animal, Mailaki had told him. He never questioned the dragon shifter.
When Liam closed his eyes, his senses opened suddenly catching him off-guard. The beast rose to the surface. When he opened his eyes, his vision had changed, clarity, strength, he could see further, colors were brighter. His sense of smell became strong and he picked up on garbage, evil, different.
Liam touched Valorie’s back and immediately became overwhelmed with her fear. She was petrified; her heart beating too fast, her lung sounds seemed to be off. Something inside Liam screamed to be released. It needed to take care of her, protect and kill for her. “Valorie, it’s too powerful, I need you to listen to me?” She nodded. “Something isn’t right here.” He backed away from her. Liam had to trust this was something altogether more menacing than he’d ever experienced. It was like a reaction to a drug. Highly addictive, he craved more.
“What’s wrong, Liam?”
His hearing picked up her whisper as he moved faster than ever, getting to her side.
“Oh, my God…” She held her hand over her mouth, staring at him, fear, stark and naked showing in her eyes.
Something else, her scent was intoxicating, Valorie was his drug of choice. “It’s okay. I’m okay,” he purred deep in his throat.
“Um, Liam, you’re purring again and your eyes are different. There’s an amber color with green in your irises.” Valorie’s voice sounded shaky.
“I’m okay,” he whispered. His senses going out further than the parking garage. The city smells overwhelmed him. How could an animal even live around here? It’s as if garbage had been sitting around rotting for weeks.
“You are not okay. Your eyes are yellow; you remind me of a cat. You’re purring like one, it’s coming from your throat.” Her voice was high pitched.
“Valorie, I’m sorry. Let me get through this, I’m okay. I don’t know how to explain it yet. I need to figure this out on my own before I can tell you.” He swallowed trying to adjust, or maybe calm the beast. He was near the surface. With both hands he made a fist, his fingertips ached, as if claws were trying to come out. Liam became afraid he would shift, his conversion complete, as they had suspected three years ago. He wondered why now, in front of Valorie. It had to be to protect the beast’s mate. The animal must have known before he did. Valorie was theirs and nothing could happen to her. This was dangerous all the way around. He needed help dealing with it. He rushed to bury the animal back down. He closed his eyes begging the creature to settle down.
As his heart slowed down, his senses started to dissipate, not so overpowering but still useful. Liam was gaining control over his body and that of the animal inside. What the hell would he do if the animal overpowered him? What kind of cat would he change to? Danny Boy’s blood ran through his veins and he was a large Siberian Tiger.
“What do you mean?” She was biting her lips. “Liam, your nose is bleeding. What’s wrong with you?”
He reached up and touched his nose. Pulling away, he stared at his hand—blood. “Oh, shit. Let’s go.” He gently pushed her into the elevator.
“Where to?”
He could see the worry lines creasing her forehead, her frown deepened.
“Let’s go to your apartment, I think I just concentrated too much. Valorie, there’s something I need to explain to you. Now is not that time though. Can you try to trust me on this? I should call in my unit now, as well as my dad. I have to see the doctors at our medical facility at the Livingston Agency building.” He didn’t know how he was going to explain this to her.
An idea struck him, she was watching him as they rode up to her floor.
“Really? Now you expect me to just lie down like a dog and wait for you to decide to tell me what the hell happened to you down there, and now you’re bleeding from your nose, and you want me to trust you?”
She was angry as she had every right to be, he knew it sounded crazy, but she needed to believe in him. “Trust me, when I know you’ll know.” His tone was harsh and apparently enough to get Valorie to rethink questioning him further.
They were silent the rest of the way. Liam felt bad for putting doubt into Valorie’s mind, but he was confused as hell, and it wouldn’t help to even try to explain it. What was he going to say anyways? They transfused the blood of a tiger shifter into me. He tried not to smile while perhaps deceiving himself about how serious this could be.