B+Bs: To Stand In A Beast's World

45. Earful

That night, I received an earful from my mates for the first time ever, but I dished it right back to them.

"It was dangerous, Grace. What if the cubs were hurt? What if you were hurt?" Winston ran his hand through his hair as he felt the very first feelings of dissatisfaction towards his mate.

I chewed on my lip, trying to swallow my words. I failed. "This whole world is dangerous, Winston. Leaving Curtis running around like that was only going to make things worse."

I tried as hard as I could to keep from raising my voice at him. "And it wasn't that dangerous. You were there. Shuu was there. So was Harvey. Harvey would've taken me away, and you two would've stopped Curtis."

Shuu liked that Grace thought him strong, but Winston wasn't so easily cowed.

"We aren't stronger than him. You know this." It hurt Winston terribly to admit that, but it was the cold, hard truth.

"It's a lot harder to stop someone than it is to kill them. And if he thought he had the tiniest chance with me, he wouldn't kill you." My hands balled into fists as I glared Winston down.

"You trust him with our lives?" Winston regretted those words the moment they left his mouth. Grace's flinch told him he took it too far. He was overcome with worry and that made him more vulnerable than he'd ever felt before.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and blinked the tears away. I couldn't speak, so I got up and went to the bedroom. None of the males immediately followed.

Shuu nervously glanced from Winston to the bedroom door. Winston covered his eyes and forehead with his hand as if trying to suppress his negative emotions physically.

Harvey finished treating Shuu and went after Grace. Leaving her like that didn't seem like a good idea. He found her curled up into a ball in the furthest corner of the room. The sight hurt his heart.

Without a word, he picked up a blanket and covered her with it. She shrugged it off. Harvey did not take that personally. Grace might be feeling too warm for the blanket. He left it where it was and quietly sat by Grace's side.

After what seemed like a long time, Grace finally spoke to him. "Do you think I was stupid?"

Harvey opened his mouth and closed it, thinking hard about what to say. "No. You are the smartest person I know." A self-depreciating snort came from Grace, but he meant those words with all his being. "But even the smartest beasts can make mistakes."

"...And that was a mistake?" I knew it without having to ask, but I did anyway. I achieved what I wanted, but it was risky. Stupidly so. But was it wrong to want to put an end to something like that? No...it wasn't.

But that was also just an excuse.

"Do you think it was a mistake?" Harvey felt the same as Winston on this matter, but he didn't think saying so would help. So he directed the question back to Grace.

...Yeah. I did. Risking myself would be one thing, but risking the unborn cubs and my mates was another. "Harvey, if I was stronger, would you all worry less?" I couldn't apologize yet, but I knew I should.

Harvey did not change the subject back. "No. I think we would all worry regardless of how many stripes you bear."

I took a deep breath. I held it for several extra seconds before slowly pushing it out. "And if I said I want to be stronger anyway?"

Harvey's surprised expression was mirrored by Shuu, who had just popped his head into the bedroom. Shuu stealthily backed away, holding the water cup he had prepared in his hands. It seemed like a bad time to interrupt.