His Redemption (Complete His Series)

He continued to pull me until we were outside the front door. “Where are we going?” I asked him. He knew my apartment was in the back of the property.

“We have plans,” he said with an angry tone to his voice. He led me to his car, opening the passenger side door. He looked at me expectantly.

“Liam, I don’t understand what’s going on. I thought we were going somewhere quiet to talk,” I said.

“Talking can wait; we’re going somewhere,” he said as he picked me up and placed me in the passenger side seat of his car, buckling me in before he closed my door. He got in on the driver’s side of the car and pulled out of the parking lot.

After a few minutes of driving, I realized he was headed toward the edge of town, in the direction of the wolf side of the territory. My stomach immediately dropped, and I could feel the b***d draining from my face.

“I’m not taking you back to the pack. Don’t worry,” he said, almost reading my mind.

“Can’t you just tell me where we’re going?”

He sighed. “I know a place. And there won’t be other wolves there, I promise. I just can’t take the way that guy looks at you.”

The way John looks at me? I couldn’t understand what he was thinking. John probably still thinks of me as some hopeless little girl who cannot get a lawnmower started.

–

About 1 year ago…

Oh Goddess, this is the worst idea I’ve had so far. I convinced the old man that we could save money every month if I just cut the grass and took care of the flower beds instead of having a landscaper do it. I convinced him that we could bring the landscapers in every few months instead of every two weeks. But now, I sat here trying to get the mower started with very little luck.

I have read the directions five times, and they still seemed like a foreign language to me. I sat down in the grass, frustrated with myself. Maybe I could get Amy to call her husband to come over and help me. Surely, he knew how to start a lawnmower.

“You look like you might need some help, miss,” said a voice behind me.

I turned to see a man no more than 30 standing behind me. He had a friendly face and a muscular build but definitely not the size of a werewolf.

“I was just contemplating that myself, actually,” I said, getting up from the ground. I stuck out my hand, “Hi, I’m Azalea. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen you around here.”

“Well, probably not, seeing as I just moved to town. Someone over at the store mentioned lunch at the Inn is to die for.”

“Well, I don’t know about dying for it, but it is worth a try!” I said with a smile.

“Well, in that case, I have a proposition for you,” he said. “How about you join me for some delicious lunch at this Inn. and then I’ll help you do whatever it is you’re trying to do with this lawnmower. What do you say?”

“Sounds like a plan. Follow me; I’ll get us the best table,” I told him. I took him inside and sat him by one of our windows with a view of the back patio. I told him I’d be right back and went into the kitchen.

I washed up at the kitchen sink and told Amy to make sure to bring me out two specials to my table. I went back out and joined John at the table.

“So, Miss Azalea, what is a pretty young lady like you doing trying to push her lawnmower around?” He asked me.

“Well, I work here. And I may have convinced the owner that we could save a little bit of money if I were to take care of the lawn sometimes.”

“Well, that’s awful nice of you. But it didn’t look like you were getting very far.”

“Yeah, that’s the problem I ran into. I can’t seem to get the mower started.”

“Lucky for you, I’m pretty sure that’s a problem I can fix for you. I also happen to have some time on my hands, so I wouldn’t mind helping you mow that lawn.”

“Oh no! I couldn’t ask you to help me that much. If you could just show me how to start the mower, I would be very grateful.”

“Absolutely, it would be my pleasure,” he said.

Right after our food was brought out, Mr. Greyback walked by the table. “Aren’t you supposed to be working?” he asked me roughly.

“I’m taking a break for lunch. Don’t you worry your pretty little head; the lawn will look great before the end of the day!” I told him.

“And who’s this?” he asked.

“This is- oh, I guess I never got your name!”

“My name is John Henry. I just moved into town.”

“No one moves here,” said Mr. Greyback.

John chuckled. “Well, to be honest, my work brought me out this way, and I thought this little town was pretty charming.”

“Hhhmmpfff,” the old man replied and began walking away.

“I’m sorry, don’t mind him. His wife died a few years ago, and ever since then, he’s been pretty grumpy.”

“So, I take it, that’s your boss?”

“Yep, that’s him. He really is a sweet old man. He just has a bumpy exterior,” I said with a giggle.

We finished our lunch and went back outside. John very patiently showed me how to turn on the lawnmower and work it. He also showed me how to care for it properly. Without all his help, I don’t think I would have ever finished.

–

We drove along a little farther towards the wolf side of the territory. The longer we drove, the sicker I was feeling. I tried to look out the window, but it didn’t help much. Liam soon turned off onto a dirt road.

“Um, h-how much longer will we be driving?” I asked quietly.

Liam turned to look at me for the first time since we left the Inn. I felt extremely nauseous. His eyes got wide as he slammed on his breaks. In less than 10 seconds, he was out of the driver’s seat and opening my car door. The car was still running. As he grabbed me, I felt vomit working its way up my throat.

Liam immediately had me out of the car and lying face down over his arm. I started throwing up the small amount of dinner I had eaten tonight. As I vomited, Liam held my hair and rubbed my back. It felt nice. Soon, I had nothing left to throw up. My eyes were watering a little bit. Liam continued to rub my back for a few more minutes before he helped me stand upright.

As I stood up, I looked at Liam’s face. He had a worried look on his face. He reached his hand up and wiped the tears out of my eyes. “Are you okay?” he asked.

“I feel better now,” I said.

“I am really sorry. I forgot that you get motion sick. I shouldn’t have made you come with me like that.” he said.

“Oh, it’s okay. How should you remember something like that? You probably haven’t thought about that night since it happened,” I laughed halfheartedly. The truth was I thought about that night more than I wanted to admit.

He gave me a pained look. With a sigh, he asked, “Do you wanna just walk from here? We aren’t far now.”

“Um, sure,” I said, not excited about the possibility of getting back in his car.

“Okay, one sec,” he said, running back over to the car. He turned it off and grabbed his keys. He came back around, shutting both doors. “Okay, it’s this way,” he said, pointing towards the dirt path we had been driving on. I nodded my head and motioned for him to take the lead.

He reached out his hand like he was offering to hold mine; I paused. I didn’t want to get lost in the woods, especially as we weren’t too far from where wolves would typically be. I also didn’t want to give him the idea that I needed him. Once we could fix this weird mate bond situation, he would go back to his life and be with whoever he wanted while I went back to my life alone. I guess there was no harm in holding his hand this time.

I hesitantly placed my hand in his, gaining a huge smile in return. We set off down the dirt road. Liam was so tall and walked so fast that I was practically running to keep up with him. After a few minutes, he realized this and slowed down. “Sorry,” he said. “I am kind of used to people going at my pace.”

Soon enough, we came to a large clearing with a small pond on the far side. There was a waterfall that fed the pond. Large trees and beautiful flowers surrounded the entire clearing. It was like a scene out of a movie.

“Wow,” I said as I dropped Liam’s hand and walked towards the pond.

“Do you like it?” He asked nervously. I turned to look at him, shaking my head yes. He gave me a wide grin back. I walked over to the edge of the pond and sat down, listening to the water flow down the waterfall. Liam sat down next to me.

“Sometimes, I just need a break; I come here. It’s quiet and calming,” he told me.

“It’s amazing. I wish I had a place like this,” I said, still watching the waterfall.

“We can come here whenever you like, Azalea,” he said, looking at me. I turned my head, meeting his gaze.

“Liam, what did you want to talk about?” I asked, trying to change the subject. His being nice to me was too dangerous.

“Oh right, that,” he said with a sigh. “Where do I start? I guess the first thing is that our mate bond was never severed.” He paused to gauge my reaction. My heart stopped for a second. How could that be? He rejected me! He broke the bond. He didn’t want me.

“I know; I rejected you. But the thing is, you never accepted the rejection. You never said, ‘I accept your rejection,’ so the bond wasn’t fully broken,” he said before I could respond.

“But I did what you asked. I didn’t hate you, and I stayed in the human town!” I said, panicking slightly. If the bond wasn’t broken, then I am still his mate. What if he forced me to go to the pack with him? I couldn’t survive it again.

“Please, Azalea, calm down,” he said, grabbing my hand. I pulled it away quickly and stood up.

“I can’t be your mate. I don’t even have a wolf anymore. I have traitor b***d, and everyone hates me. I would make an awful Luna. You have to do it again. I’ll do it right this time,” I said, full-on panicking now.

“Azalea, please. I need you to be calm for a second and listen to me. Yes, I rejected you. I thought it was the right thing to do at the time. I’m not so sure anymore. My uncle isn’t sure, but he thinks you may still have a wolf and that the mate bond may be able to bring her out,” he said. He paused, looking at me. He took a step towards me while I stood rooted to the spot.

“Azalea, rejecting you was probably the worst thing I could have done. I truly thought the Moon Goddess made a mistake making you my mate. I see now that I should have protected you. I was young and stupid. Azalea, you aren’t a traitor because of your parents. You didn’t do anything. You were a child, an innocent child. I don’t want to reject you again,” he finished taking another step towards me. He was now inches from me.

I looked down, not knowing what to say. He didn’t want to reject me? I felt his finger under my chin, pushing my face up, so I was looking him in the eyes.

“Say something, anything,” he pleaded.

“You don’t want to reject me?” I asked.

“No, I don’t.”

“Then what happens now?”

“That I don’t know,” he said with sadness in his voice. He reached out, cupping my face in his hand. He wiped away tears with his thumb that I didn’t know we’re falling. “Right now, seeing you cry is killing me. I’ll do anything to stop it,” he said.

I laid my head on his chest. I didn’t know what to do. He didn’t want to reject me, but I could never be his mate. I would never be good enough for an Alpha. We stood like that for a moment before he wrapped his arms around my body.

Being in his arms felt so good. It almost felt like it was where I was supposed to be. He was so warm, and the sun was setting now, making the temperature drop.

“Are you cold?” he asked after a few minutes. I just nodded my head, not pulling it from his chest. He picked me up in his arms, holding me close to his chest.

“Let’s head back. I’ll just carry you,” he said, moving back towards the path we took to get here.

“No, I can walk,” I told him, trying to get out of his grip.

“If I put you down, you’ll be cold again. Plus, I am going to guess you don’t have wolf senses, and there aren’t exactly lights out here,” he said. I guess I couldn’t exactly argue with him.

I must have dozed off as we walked because the next thing, I knew he was buckling me into the passenger side of his car.

“It’s okay; you can sleep,” he said. He closed my door and went around the car to get the driver’s seat. I let myself doze back off to sleep as he drove.

I woke up again as he picked me up out of the car. “Where are we?” I asked.

“Back at the Inn. I’ll take you to your apartment.” I nodded my head and let him scoop me up. He carried me around the building and down through the backyard to my apartment.

“Where is your key, Azalea?” he asked, coaxing me to answer him.

“Flowerpot,” I mumbled.

He adjusted his grip so that he held me in one arm and started feeling inside my flowerpot to find my key. When he found it, he unlocked my door, and we stepped inside. He walked over to the bed, still holding me in his arms. He laid me down on the bed, covering me with my blankets.

“Look, there are some things I have been ignoring for a couple of days now; Some things I must take care of. But I want to see you again. How about you call me tomorrow night, and we can talk?” he asked. I nodded my head, looking up at him.

He grinned wide. “Great. I’ll talk to you then.” And he turned to leave.

Something inside of me wanted to ask him to stay, wanted him to keep holding me. But I knew that was selfish. He had things to do, like he said. Just because we still had a mate bond didn’t mean I was anything to him. After he left, I crawled out of bed and went to my closet. I pulled out his hoodie and put it on. Tonight, I would need a little extra warmth.

Liam

I left her in her tiny cottage apartment and went back to my SUV. I knew I couldn’t stay with her. I was a mess right now, and that’s not what she needed.

Everything she did and every thought of her turned me on. But then she would turn around and give me a look, and I would get lost in her eyes. Every time she cried, I wanted to rip the bastard responsible to pieces, but then I would realize I was that bastard.

At least she let me carry her and take her home. I was able to hold her in my arms for that little bit. I got back in my car and was flooded with her scent again. I had turned the heat on for her on our way back to the Inn, and now the car was warm with the smell of the most beautiful, delicate flowers.

As I drove back to the packhouse, her scent was driving me crazy. Once I got back to my room, I knew I would need to take a long cold shower to deal with everything tomorrow.