Twenty minutes before, Layla had been waiting for the other shoe to drop. She knew the world Korbin laid out for her was too good to be true and her sister’s anger proved it. Layla was the older sister but, in that moment, she felt like a stupid little sibling who could never do anything right. Mella was all she had left and right then, a part of her wished she’d been an only child. Then, at least, she wouldn’t have to defend her actions to anyone.

She was quickly growing tired of it. She’d put up with a lot from Donald but normally, that had come in the form of fists hitting her body. He’d never cared about what she had to say. With Mella, it was different. Her sister wanted her to say something, but she was fresh out of words. Or rather, she couldn’t get a word in edgewise.

“What the hell are you thinking?” Mella paced behind the sofa. Every few steps, she tossed Layla a look before shaking her head again. “I can’t believe you’re throwing away everything Daddy arranged for you. If he’d have cared enough about me to make arrangements to ensure I’d be looked after when he died, then maybe I wouldn’t be killing myself going to school and working two jobs. But no, he only cared about you and even though you’re set, will you share Daddy’s life insurance? No. It’s yours. Now you have some baboons show up at the restaurant and demand I come with them. This is kidnapping. Wait until Donald learns you’re hanging out with criminals. There’s going to be hell to pay.”

“You have no idea.” She dropped down onto the sofa and wished she hadn’t asked Korbin to leave them alone. The strength and encouragement he could offer her at that moment might have helped her get through this conversation with Mella.

“Donald deserves a better woman than you. He deserves someone like me. Someone who wouldn’t slip off behind his back and…” Mella stopped mid-pace and looked at her. “Are you fucking someone here?”

“Please, Mella, if you’d just listen to me for a minute.”

“You are, aren’t you? If you had me brought here and cost me my job so you could tell me that you’re leaving Donald I swear…”

“Damn it, Mella!” She rose from the sofa and stared her sister down. How had she never realized how selfish Mella was? Nineteen and in her second year of college, Layla would have expected her to have grown up some.

“I could never figure out why Daddy loved you more, but you were always the apple of his eye. Now look at you. How the mighty have fallen without Daddy’s guidance.”

“Is that what you think?” Anger filling her, she tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Daddy’s guidance. You wish he’d taken you under his wing more, don’t you? Well, little sister, I can’t tell you how lucky you are.”

“Lucky? How is working two jobs lucky? While you get to sit on your pretty little ass all day and spend every night being taken care of.”

“You have no idea what went on with Donald or the hell he put me through. Every bad day he had, or every time a criminal slipped through his fingers, who did he take it out on? Me. I was the one who felt his fists nightly. It didn’t matter what happened, it was my fault. Nothing I could do was good enough. Every day I lived in fear that I wouldn’t survive the next beating. Do you know why I was scared? Not because he’d finally murder me like he did Dad, but because you’d be left at his mercy.”

“Murder? Dad?” Mella shook her head. “No.”

It took Layla a moment to put the pieces together and when she did, she dropped back onto the sofa. She hadn’t meant to say those words aloud for Mella was never to know what had happened to their father. It was better that she believed the story everyone else did: that it had been a mugging gone wrong. If she knew the truth, she’d be in danger. All this time, she had been protecting Mella from Donald and now she’d let the truth slip. Shit.

“He wouldn’t.” Mella grabbed hold of the sofa, her face pale.

“Come sit down.” She touched her sister’s hand. “Please.”

“Tell me he wouldn’t. Tell me you’re just saying these hurtful things to get back at him for whatever he’s done to upset you.”

“I’m not going to lie to you. I’ve done enough of that over the years. I’ve been hiding the truth from you for so long that it’s freeing that you finally know. Dad found out what was happening and what kind of man Donald truly is. You know Dad—he had to confront him. Confronted us. I watched the whole thing unfold and I was too terrified to do anything. I’m sorry, Mella.” She squeezed her sister’s hand. “If I knew Dad had found out, I would have spoken to him before anything could happen. There was nothing he could do. Nothing anyone could do.”

“Until now.”

Korbin’s deep voice had her turning to the main door. Relief flood through every cell of her body to see him standing there. She wanted to go to him but Mella was starting to listen. Layla hadn’t gotten to any of the important stuff, or to Korbin and his clan. Going to him at this moment would no doubt bring Mella’s rage back to the surface.

“Who the hell are you?” Mella eyed him quizzically. “Are you the one my sister is fucking? What were you thinking putting these insane ideas into her head?”

“You okay, Layla?” Korbin asked, coming closer to the siblings.

“Answer me.”

“Mella, enough.” She nodded to Korbin, letting him know she was okay. “He’s opened his home to us. The least you could do is show some respect.”

“Seems to me he’s getting more than your respect.” Mella pulled her hand back from underneath Layla’s and stepped away from her. “I want to go home.”

“It’s not safe,” Korbin stated as he came around to stand next to the sofa. “This man that you seem to think so highly of shot your sister today. She showed up here near death’s door from the loss of blood and you can’t even give her a few minutes to explain why you were brought here. If that’s what siblings are like, I’m glad I’m an only child.”

“Prove it. If you were shot, prove it. Let me see the wound. Then I’ll listen to you about Donald. Otherwise I’m leaving and I’m going to tell him where you are. Let him deal with this fucked up situation.” Mella crossed her arms and plopped down into the other living room chair.

“I figured you’d say something like that, so here.” Stepping passed Layla, Korbin handed Mella a small stack of print outs. “Those are images from the surveillance cameras. You can see the blood soaking through her shirt, her pale skin, and the fear in her eyes. She ran through the woods from Donald’s house. I checked; taking a direct route from Donald’s house, it’s a little over seven miles. Though I suspect her journey was longer. She could have died before she arrived here and you act as if this was all arranged to spoil your day.”

“Lala?”

Hearing her nickname broke the dam that had been holding back her tears. Mella hadn’t called her Lala in years. Looking back, she realized now that had been the first sign they were drifting apart but back then, she’d thought Mella was growing up. No need for a childhood nickname. Back then it had pained her a little to lose the special nickname that only her sister had called her. Now to hear it was like a knife in her heart. They had been torn apart. Some of the distance between them had been maintained to keep her safe from Donald. How much had she lost in the process? She missed her sister, her best friend.

“That asshole shot you.” Mella dropped the picture on the coffee table and leaned forward. “What are we going to do?”

“I’m going to handle it,” Korbin announced. “While I do I need you to stay here with Layla. I’ll have someone call the Dean’s office on Monday and explain you have a family emergency. We’ll take care of what we can for your college classes so you don’t fall behind. Whatever it takes, my people will handle it. Right now, your safety is more important than college or your job.”

“My apartment. If I’m staying, I need some of my things.”

“I’ll send Sparks to get whatever you need. He’s one of the baboons that kidnapped you.” Korbin chuckled. “Though I’m not sure he’s going to like the reference.”

“I highly doubt it.” Layla tried to suppress a giggle but it bubbled out of her. “Mella, there’s more you need to know. The second part is almost harder to handle than the first. Since that went swimmingly, I’m sure this is going to go just great.” Sarcasm dropped from her words.

“There’s no easy way to say it.” Korbin took a seat next to Layla on the sofa.

“You mean that you’re fucking?”

“Mella! Enough with that word.” Layla snapped. Her sister always had a way with words, especially when it came to working curse words into a conversation. She was young and swore like a sailor, thinking it made her look cool with her friends, but Layla hoped she’d outgrow it. Her sister was too good for the way she talked. Too sweet and naive. Maybe that was why she took to the nasty words.

“Come on, sis. It’s obvious there’s something happening. How long has it been going on?”

“First, that’s not the issue we’re talking about and second, Layla and I have not been intimate.” Korbin reached out and placed his hand over Layla’s.

“Intimate? Heaven help me, I feel like I’m getting a sex lesson from Dad. All you have to do is shift uncomfortably in your seat.”

“Stop it, Mella,” Layla snapped. Nineteen and she was acting as if she was just hearing about sex for the first time. The situation was serious and she’d thought for a moment her sister understood that. Now, with the snarky comments, she wasn’t so sure.

“There’s something special between us, which she can explain later. I can tell you I care for your sister, so it’s not some quick fuck as you seem to think.” His gaze stayed on Mella but her sister wasn’t looking at him. Rather, she seemed focused on Layla.

“If that’s true, then what’s this big revelation you’re about to drop on me now?” Mella leaned back into the chair, her attitude disappearing again as she seemed bored with the situation. “Come on, sis, I can handle it. Afterwards, I’m going to kick some sheriff ass. That fucker deserves some Cole family justice and I’m just the person to give it to him.”

“There will be none of that.” Korbin squeezed Layla’s hand, reassuring her he’d protect Mella, too. “I’m handling the situation with Donald. You going after him for vengeance is only going to entice him more. He’ll see your actions for what they are.”

“You seem to know so much. Please tell me why you think that.”

“Avenging your father’s murder and the only way you’d know what truly happened is from Layla. That will make him more determined to get his hands on her. I won’t allow—”

“Mella,” Layla said, cutting Korbin off. “Korbin and I have spoken about this. His plan will work, and it will get Donald to leave us alone. In exchange for that, you need to realize he’s going to be out there as a free man. He’s the sheriff; even if I wanted to press charges against him, it would be suicide. He’ll tear our lives apart.”

“What about him murdering Dad?”

“The only witness is me. There’s no evidence, not now. He’s cleaned it up, made it look like a mugging gone wrong. He wrote my official statement and forced me to sign it. One where I clearly state we were too far away to do anything to help Dad.”

“Layla could face charges for her giving a false statement to the police, possibly accessory to a crime. More than that, it would enrage Donald further. He’s killed before, so he’ll do it again. He proved that today when he shot Layla.”

Korbin’s words filtered through her brain but she wasn’t focused enough to truly understand them. All she could picture was her father lying on the ground near the parking lot.

“Old man, I warned you to stay away from us.” The anger in Donald’s voice froze Layla in place. This conversation would mean hell to pay for her when they got back to the house. It wouldn’t matter to Donald she hadn’t known her father would be there, or what he’d say. It would still be her father—her fault.

“Dad, please…” Her voice cracked.

“It’s okay, La. Go wait in my car. I’ll handle this.”

“Don’t move.” Donald grabbed hold of her arm before she could even think about doing as her father asked. “We made a deal. Layla’s mine.”

“You went back on that deal the moment you laid a hand on my daughter.” Her father’s gaze shifted from Donald to her. “Go, Layla. Now.”

Before she could say or do anything Donald pulled out his gun. “Turn around and go back to your car. Otherwise—”

Donald didn’t get a chance to finish his threat. Her father lunged at him. “Stay the fuck away from my daughter!”

The sound of the gun discharging echoed through the alley. “Dad!” Her brain was still trying to wrap her mind around what had happened but the sound of a gunshot only meant one thing. Donald had shot him. Tears welled in her eyes as his limp body fell to the ground.

She pulled away from Donald’s grasp and dropped to her knees next to her father. Hovering over his body, she pressed her hands to his chest, trying to stop the blood from pouring out the gunshot wound, but it didn’t help. He was dying and Donald stood behind her doing nothing.

“Get away from him La—I love you.” Her father’s gaze stayed locked on her as he took his final breath. Tears kept falling and her world shattered.

“Layla.”

Korbin’s voice called to her but it wasn’t enough to bring her back to reality. The warm blood under her fingers felt too real. “You killed him!” she shouted at Donald, hatred dripping off every word, as if the man stood right there, in front of her.

“It’s over, baby.” Korbin’s arms tightened around her and she could feel his heartbeat under her fingers.

No, it can’t be. He’s dead. The memory and reality crashed against each other, confusing her. Part of her wanted to pull away while the rest of her wanted to sink into the embrace. If she could focus, she’d know it was Korbin holding her, but the memory held tight, not wanting to let her go.

“Easy, Layla. I’ve got you.”

As the flashback faded, the pressure in her chest eased and the tears ceased. When she opened her eyes, she found herself in Korbin’s lap, his arms around her and keeping her close. Worry creased his brows as he stared down at her.

“You okay?”

“I’m sorry. I—” He pressed his lips to her forehead, silencing her.

“Don’t, baby.” He slid his hand up her back. “There’s no reason to apologize. You’ve gone through hell but I’m going to take care of it now.”

Not wanting to talk about it in front of her sister, she glanced over her shoulder, but the chair was empty. “Where’s Mella?”

“Sparks is showing her to her room and getting a list of the things she needs from her apartment,” he explained as she turned back to him. “I thought you’d need a few minutes before we continued things with her.”

“She’s not going to understand.” She leaned back into Korbin’s embrace. “I’m not even sure I understand. It’s all so…”

“So what, beautiful?” he pressed.

“Unbelievable.” With her head on his chest, she glanced up at him. “Shifters, mates, I never thought any of this existed. If I wasn’t feeling this…I don’t even know how to describe it. This pull between us. The connection. The peace I find in your embrace. It’s all so hard to explain. How am I supposed to make Mella see? She seems to hate me and I don’t know why. She loved Donald, always talking about how she wanted a man like him to look at her the way he looked at me. What she didn’t understand is there was never any love in his eyes when it came to me. Every time she thought he was looking at me with desire, it was a look of warning that I was in trouble. I couldn’t tell her that, but anytime I mentioned I wanted someone better for her, my words pushed her away. She thought I was being selfish, but it wasn’t that.”

“You wanted better for her.” He cupped the side of her face. “There’s nothing wrong with that. She didn’t understand then but I think she’s starting to understand now. I don’t know if you’ll ever have the relationship with her that you want but you can try to rebuild things now.”

“I don’t even know where to start.”

“We’ll start by telling her about shifters. It’s best to get it out of the way before she finds out like you did and freaks out. Then we’ll go from there.” His thumb brushed along the curve of her cheekbone. “You’re not alone in this. I’ll be there every step of the way. You have to trust me. I’ll make this right for you, no matter what you choose.”

“I trust you.” Something about the way he looked at her made her think he understood how hard it was for her to give someone her trust. Yet, in a matter of a few hours, she already trusted him. Maybe it was the connection or desperation, but she trusted him completely.

No matter what you choose. His words echoed through her thoughts again. Hadn’t he already made her choose? She was curled in his embrace, seeking protection in his arms and his compound. She had already chosen him. In the short time she had known him, he had showed her something she had never experienced before.

True love.