Page 9 of Sweet Giant

“Liv.” Warmth filled me when I repeated her name. As I gazed upon her, it pleased me that she was shaking less than when I’d first brought her inside.

Tenderness for the tiny human woman echoed in my heart, and I sent up a prayer of thanks to the Great Spirit for guiding me to her, for sending me to her in her time of need. I didn’t want to think about what the evil man might’ve done to her if I hadn’t shown up. I wished I’d managed to kill him. But… perhaps I still could.

“Liv, do you know where the man went? The man who was attacking you? I would like to hunt him down and make him pay for what he did to you. Killing him will also ensure he never tries to bother you again.”

Her eyes widened. “Um, I don’t know for certain where he went, but I would guesshome. He lives in Seattle. But that’s over one hundred miles from here.”

“Seattle? Hm.” I knew the names of the nearest human towns, but I’d never heard of Seattle. Traveling over one hundred miles away would prove difficult, since it would require me to be gone for several days, and I had no wish to leave Liv’s side for that long.

“Yes, Seattle. It’s a large city located southwest of here. I wouldn’t recommend going there. It’s a dangerous place, a war zone, and even if you knew exactly where to find him, getting through the fortified border that surrounds the city would be next to impossible.”

My spirits sank. I couldn’t travel to a large human settlement. Not without attracting attention, the sort of attention that could put my people in danger.

Some humans were aware of the existence of Montikaans, but most humans thought we were naught but a legend. Sasquatch. Bigfoot. Yeti. Those were the names they called us when we encountered them in the mountains. The first human I’d personally come upon in the forest had called me Bigfoot—right before he shot me in the leg.

I sighed and started to reach for Liv’s cheek, wanting to caress her and help her calm further, only for her to flinch yet again. Her reaction left me deeply troubled. Did she think I would strike her? I would rather cut off my own hand.

“I am sorry the man attacked you, Liv, and I am sorry for the fear and pain you must’ve felt during the ordeal.” I swallowed hard and peered at her split lip and the small amount of blood that remained on her face, wishing I could make her injury disappear. There were healers in the Starblessed settlement, but our cavern was a half day’s walk from this cabin. Perhaps when the snow let up, I could bring her home with me and take her to a healer.

Noticing my stare, Liv touched her split lip and used a corner of the blanket to wipe at the blood. “I suppose I ought to thank you for chasing him away.” Her gaze collided with mine. “Thank you, Mastorr. You very well might have saved my life. I’m really sorry you got shot. Are-are you okay?” She frowned at the scorch marks on my chest, stomach, and arm.

“You’re welcome. I only wish I would’ve reached you sooner. I will be fine,” I said, with a gesture at my injuries. “Tell me, who is he—the evil man—and do you think he will return?” I didn’t detect his scent on her. I prayed he wasn’t her mate, her husband, but if they were married, they hadn’t joined their bodies in a long time. The scent of a male’s seed usually lingered on a female for several moon cycles.

A pained look entered her eyes. “His name is Mountain. Well, his real name is Bradley, but everyone, even me, calls him Mountain. He gets mad if you call him by any other name.” She sighed and the quick release of breath stirred the errant strands of hair that obscured her face. “He was my… husband. But I left him several months ago. Technically, we’re still married since I didn’t divorce him. I came here to hide from him, but he somehow found me. No idea if he’ll come back or not. I pray he doesn’t.”

Herhusband. Not only did I want to kill him, but I wanted to take my slow time doing so. Males were supposed to protect their females. His treatment of her was barbaric and cruel. Unconscionable.

“Did you leave Mountain because he was hurting you? Or was today the first time he hurt you?” I thought I already knew the answer, but I wanted to know for certain, and I also wished to understand her past experiences so I could better help her. If she’d suffered through many acts of violence, it might take longer for her to trust me.

I vowed that no matter her answer, I would be patient. I wouldn’t try to rush her into mating with me.

“Liv?” I prompted gently when she hesitated to reply.

Tears filled her eyes, but she quickly blinked the moisture away. “Today was not the first time he hurt me. He’s hurt me many times, and yes, that is why I left him.” She glanced around the cabin, looking so lost and forlorn, that it took all my self-control not to grab her and hug her to my chest. “This isn’t even my cabin. You see, an acquaintance of mine, Frankie, knew about my situation with Mountain and she asked her husband to help me, so he set me up in this old cabin that he doesn’t use anymore. I never thought Mountain could track me here. This place was supposed to be my safe haven.”

“You are safe now, sweet one. I will keep you safe. If the evil man returns, I will kill him. As long as we are together, you will have nothing to fear.”

“As long as we are together?” Her eyes glimmered with confusion. “You, um, really should leave. I appreciate your help, but I want to be alone.”

Only a few moments ago, I’d promised to protect her and take care of her. Had she forgotten already? “I won’t leave you, Liv.”

Alarm flickered in her pretty green eyes. “Why not?”

“Because we are fated mates.”

Chapter7

LIV

Fated mates?

I stared at Mastorr in utter disbelief.

He couldn’t be serious.

He was so large. Too large. Bigger than Mountain.

Even though he hadn’t harmed a hair on my head (yet), his enormous size frightened me. I also knew very little about him. Did he have a temper? Did he know his own strength? I was much smaller than him. He could hurt me without meaning to.

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