Chapter 320

Chapter 0320
I come awake slowly. I’m completely disoriented, not recognizing any of the smells around me. When I open my eyes, I see that I am alone in a hotel room.
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Everything comes flooding back to me and I gasp, my hand flying to my neck. I can feel where my neck has puncture wounds from being forcibly marked.
‘Maia? Do you know where we are?‘
‘No. I was knocked out, the same as you.‘
I sit up and look around. From where I’m sitting, I see my bag and what looks like Eli’s bag. I get up and run over to his bag, opening it and seeing that it is his and his things are still inside. I open my bag and see that it’s pretty much untouched, my money still inside.
The blinds on the window are closed and I go over and peek outside. I can see the bus station not far away. I turn and look at Eli’s bag again. It’s then that I realize that I’m only in a t–shirt. A huge t–shirt that smells like Eli.
‘Maia, do you think Eli got us out of there? Do you think it’s hismark?‘
Just as I’m thinking it, the phone rings beside the bed. I stare at it for a moment before walking over and picking up the receiver. I don’t say anything, I just listen.
“Grace? It’s me, Eli. I can feel your fear and confusion through the bond. I
brought you to the hotel, I’m almost back, I was getting food for us, I know you must be famished.”
“Eli! It’s your mark?”
“Yes. I’ll explain everything when I’m back, but Grace? I’m sorry, I didn’t have a choice.”
“I know. Thank you for rescuing me.”
“I’ll always be here for your Grace. I’m about 5 minutes out. I have a key, don’t open the door for anyone. I’m not completely sure it’s safe yet.”
“Okay, I’ll be here.”
I hang up and use the time to go to the bathroom and wash my face and the mark on my neck. It’s sore, but the punctures are already closed over.
Just as I’m finishing up, I hear the door open. “Grace, it’s me.”
I walk out and as soon as I see him, he opens his arms and I fly into them. Every
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bit of fear, anxiety, and stress of the past few days comes pouring out of me. Eli holds me while I cry, rubbing my back and soothing me.
When he realizes that this won’t be quick, he picks me up and carries me to the edge of the bed. Sitting down,he cuddles me inhislap and begins rocking me gently.
“Shhh, it’s okay. You’re safe now.”
He holds me until I’m done, then sits back, taking his thumbs and wiping the tears from my cheeks before kissing first one then the other eye. He grabs a tissue off of the nightstand and I wipe my nose.
sme.
“Better?” He asks me.
I nod. Looking up at him. If I thought the mate bond was strong before, it’s definitely stronger now that I have his mark.
He leans forward, kissing my forehead. “You know I can hear your thoughts now, right?” He says smirking. “And while I love that you are feeling the effects of the mate bond, I also know you haven’t eaten in far too long.”
The moment he says it, it’s like my stomach was waiting for permission and growls loudly, making both of us laugh.
He sets me on my feet and stands, guiding me to the small table where he putthefood. He pulls out a chair for me then starts pulling food out of bags, handing me a bottle of water.
I guzzle the water down, watching him unload Italian, Mexican, and BBQ dinners. He looks over at me sheepishly. “I wasn’t sure what you’d want and honestly, I’m starving too, so I figured I get a little of everything and we could eat what we
want.
“Sounds perfect.”
He sits opposite of me and waits for me to begin, before grabbing some food for himself. I haven’t really eaten since the morning we left the last hotel. I’ve lost track of time and don’t even know how many days ago that was.
“So, what happened?” I ask him.
He tells me how he marked me, then challenged the others, before carrying me to the next town and getting us on a bus. When he became concerned that I wasn’t waking up, he decided to stop until I was coherent again.
“I called Rik and told him that you are marked and that now there’s a target on my back. He offered to send some of his men to meet us, but I wanted to talk to
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you first and see how you are feeling. You’ve had a rough couple of weeks, and I didn’t know if going straight to his pack would be overwhelming for you.”