Page 62 of Fetch Me A Mate
"Like you'd burn the world down to keep her safe." Callum sank back in his chair. "Question is whether you're willing to admit that to yourself."
"I just did."
"You said it, doens’t mean you are letting yourself acknowledge it. It sounds like you're still trying to handle this alone. Still making decisions about what's best for her instead of trusting her to make her own choices."
Rowan set down his mug harder than necessary. "I'm trying to protect her."
"From what? The truth? Your past? The reality that loving a shifter comes with complications?"
"From pack politics that could get her killed."
"And how's that working out? Your pack leaving her alone because you're being noble about it?"
The sarcasm hit its mark. Rowan's wolf stirred restlessly, recognizing the challenge in Callum's tone.
"They're escalating."
"Course they are. You think showing weakness makes predators back down?"
"I'm not showing weakness."
"No? Then what do you call pushing your mate away to protect her from choices she's capable of making herself?" Callum's amber eyes held no mercy. "What do you call letting other wolves dictate the terms of your relationship?"
"I call it keeping her alive."
"You call it cowardice."
The gauntlet was thrown. Rowan's hands became fists, his wolf pushing close to the surface.
"Careful, Callum."
"Or what? You'll run away again?" Callum's voice stayed level, unimpressed by the threat. "That's your pattern, isn't it? When things get complicated, when choices get hard, you disappear rather than fight for what matters, to hell with what you promised."
"I fought for Sarah."
"You helped her run. That's not the same as fighting."
"She was nineteen and pregnant. What was I supposed to do?"
"What you should have done was challenge the pack's decision directly. Force them to defend their position, make them face the consequences of their choices. You were the alpha." Callum leaned forward, his presence filling the small office. "Instead, you undermined them in secret and then ran when they called you on it."
"I saved her life."
"You postponed a confrontation. Now it's caught up to you anyway, and you're making the same mistake again."
Rowan stood abruptly, pacing to the window that looked out over Moonmirror Lake. The water was dark under gathering clouds, reflecting the storm building on the horizon.
"What would you do?"
"I'd stop running. I'd claim what's mine and dare anyone to take it from me."
"Even if it put Cora at risk?"
"Especially then. You think my mate wants protection or partnership? You think she'd rather be safe or included in the decisions that affect her life?"
Rowan thought about Diana's determination to face problems head-on, her refusal to be managed or shielded from difficult truths.
"She wants partnership."
