Tempest

16 : Past and Future

The world called to her gently. The light softly touching her eyelids begged her to open her eyes. Although there was silence surrounding her, the steady beat of a heart she instantly recognised urged her to wake up. She smelt him even before she could feel the warmth of his body next to her and her heartbeat responded by tip toeing into a trot within her chest. She opened her eyes and winced as the light pierced her pupils.

She saw relief fill his brown eyes as he smiled at her from where he was sitting next to the bed. His hand held hers gently and she did not pull away from the contact. She looked away from him, her eyes scanning the room she was sleeping in. It was a large room, decorated with blacks and cream white furniture. It was comfortable and the bed she slept in was warm. She looked down and realised she was dressed in a simple white nightgown. She frowned and raised her eyes to Galan in enquiry.

"The queen wanted you to be comfortable," he explained to her. She nodded in acknowledgment, appreciating the efforts made on her behalf. The pounding in her head had dulled down to a pulsing throb and she closed her eyes for a moment, trying to ease the slight pain.

"What happened?" she asked.

Galan frowned slightly, before he sighed. He shook his head and smiled apologetically at her. "I'm not sure. Your attacker ran off before we could get to you."

"My father," she said flatly. "It was my father."

"He almost killed you, Tempest," Galan said. His voice was hard and his brown eyes flashed to black, showing how close to surfacing his beast was. Tempest felt like she would burst into tears and her lips quivered before she bit it to keep it from shaking. Galan saw, however, and squeezed her hand lightly.

"There was something wrong with him, like he was being controlled. I could not explain it but he seemed to fight it. Someone told him to kill me but he didn't."

Galan suddenly stood up and started pacing in the room. Tempest couldn't help but notice how handsome he looked, with his muscled but lean body seemingly coiled with tightly leashed strength. His broad shoulders and chiselled body spoke of a strength that she had previously failed to acknowledge and she felt a deep regret within her very being. She knew that she had made bad decisions in her past and not giving Galan a chance was clearly one of them.

"Galan," she called softly to him as she sat up in the bed. He stopped pacing, took a deep breath and walked back to her side. He sat down then took her hand again, almost as if he couldn't help himself. She knew she had to tell him what had happened. There was an easy way of doing it however, if he would let her. "Can I show you what I saw?"

"What do you mean?" he asked. While fully mated weres could share with their mates and pack members, Tempest was neither at this point. She smiled a little, almost rolling her eyes at him. She chuckled though, not able to hold it on.

"Let's just say I have learnt a few things over the years. Do I have your permission to show you?" she asked again.

Galan nodded without hesitating and she smiled again. "I promise not to peek but I will share," she said to him.

"You can do that?" Galan asked in surprise.

Tempest nodded. She took his other hand in hers so she was holding both hands. She didn't need to have physical contact with him at all but she kinda liked having him touch her so she milked it. "Close your eyes and relax. You might feel a bit of pressure. Just let me in when you do. I promise to be gentle."

Galan chuckled and she smiled as he closed his eyes. "Tempest, you can handle me any way you want. I won't mind at all."

*