Jude doesn't hesitate or say anything after I ask to stay at his place. He changes course and heads in for his place. I'd never been to his house before, but after what happened tonight, I didn't want to be alone. Lord knows I couldn't risk Chris showing up at my house and finding Jude there.

I shudder at the memory of him attacking Jude. I would never forgive myself if he seriously hurt Jude.

In such a short time, he has become very dear to me, and I've caused him nothing but problems.

Realizing how much of a burden I've become to him makes me frown.

"That's enough of that," he cuts in, as if sensing my train of thought. Jude pulls up to a quaint lakeside cabin and parks the truck. "Listen to me. You know I will never lie to you."

He pauses as his eyes search mine, willing me to understand. "None of what happened was your fault. Chris had made up his mind long ago. It had nothing to do with you. You know, no matter what, I will always be there for you, right?" The sincerity and promise are clear in his voice.

Not trusting my voice, I wrap him in a lingering hug. He rubs my back, waiting for me to calm back down.

"Come on, it's late. Let's get you to bed," he says, leading me into the cabin. "It's not much, but it's home." He shrugs as he rubs the back of his neck.

I look around the cabin, noting that the living room and kitchen occupy most of the space, while the back holds a small bedroom and bathroom. It may be small but has a warm feeling to it and the living room is cozy, holding just a couch, chair and TV.

"It's great, Jude, really. I just don't want to be home alone tonight," I trail off. He leads me to the back where his bedroom is. He takes out some shorts and a T-shirt for me to change into and grabs sleep pants and a tank for himself.

"You're always welcome here, you know that." He flashes me a reassuring smile and turns to leave. "Sleep well. If you need anything, I'll be in the living room."

Poor guy was in a fight and I'm stealing his bed.

"Jude, wait. Why don't you take the bed? I'm happy on the couch."

"Nice try, but that's not gonna happen," he laughs. "I'm gonna watch a bit of tv, anyway." He steps to me and places a soft kiss on my forehead. "Stop fighting and go to bed. You need to rest."

I nod, and he leaves, closing the door behind him. I change and crawl into bed, but sleep won't take me. As I toss and turn, memories of him fill my mind, coming at me, or I see Chris and Jude fighting. After a while, I give up and head out to the living room.

"Sorry, I can turn it down?" He asks, looking at me, concerned. I shake my head. "What's wrong Jess?"

Sitting down next to him, I shake my head again. "The past is a bitch. I just can't seem to shake it." My frown deepens, and I sigh. "I'm just so tired."

Jude's torn between wanting answers and wanting me to rest; the latter wins. He grabs the throw from the back of the couch and wraps me up in it. "Come on, try to sleep some." He drapes an arm around my shoulders and pulls me to him, settling my head on his chest.

The rhythmic beat of his heart combined with his calming presence works their magic. Before long, I feel myself nodding off, so I curl up with my back to the TV and my ear on his chest, listening to his heart. He softly strokes my hair as I drift off.

I must have fallen asleep because I'm woken up by him tensing as someone opens the door. I stayed frozen in place, listening but not wanting to deal with anyone.

"Shhh, I finally got her to sleep. Don't wake her up." His tone is warning but not upset, as his body relaxes.

"I didn't come here to fight," Jace says as he sits across from us. "Listen man, I'm sorry that happened. You should have been golden."

My heart sinks realizing how much I've ruined his chances. Even Jace thought he was a shoe in before I messed things up.

"Don't worry about it. Was fun while it lasted though." The barely hidden sorrow is evident in his voice.

"I have to ask, man," Jace hesitates. "Is he right? I'm not one to judge, but you guys look a certain way, curled up like that."

"No," Jude replies. "After what happened, she didn't want to be alone tonight, so I brought her here. She went to lay down in my room, but she had nightmares. So she came out here to watch TV but nodded off."

"Are you sure that no part of you is in love with her?" Clearly, Jace is not convinced.

After a moment of reflection, Jude finally replies. "I'm not in love with her, but I do love her..." he trails off. "It's hard to explain. It's not a romantic love. I care about her happiness more than my own. I feel compelled to make sure she's safe and taken care of." He pauses and sighs. "It's like she's my little sister, and I just want to protect her from everything."

"Hmm," Jace muses, his chair creaks as he leans back. "Does she know?"

"Yeah, we had the same awkward conversation after the rogue attack." Jude chuckles. "Her look was priceless. She was practically running for the door saying she doesn't date. Kind of sad to see her relief when she realized my intentions weren't romantic."

"Do you know anything about her past? I know something bad happened to her, but she won't tell me about it at all." I can't help but hold my breath as Jace asks.

My panic starts to build at this line of questioning.

I've avoided all topics of my past whenever anyone asked. I've never told anyone what happened. There's no way they know anything.

"I wish I did," Jude replies sadly. "She flat out refuses to talk about it. Even Trish doesn't know. She thinks something bad happened with her ex, but she won't talk to her about it either."

At this exact moment, I hate how perceptive Trish is.

"What does she think happened?" Jace asks, digging deeper.

"Apparently, Jess dated some guy, who acted like the perfect gentleman, but slowly Trish saw less and less of Jess. She thinks he was keeping her isolated. I guess there was nearly a year gap where Trish couldn't get a hold of her before Jess resurfaced. She says Jess was a shell of her former self, so jumpy and withdrawn, but she wouldn't tell her what happened. Eventually Jess said the guy cheated on her, so she left, but Trish didn't buy it."

Remind me to have words with Trish about shutting her God damn mouth!

It's scary how accurate she is, though. She saw through his act before I did. By the time I caught on, the damage was done and I was trapped.

"That would certainly explain a lot," Jace reflects. "She had a panic attack earlier today. Man, she was terrified. When I looked in her eyes, she wasn't there with us anymore..."

"It's like she was trapped somewhere else. Her eyes were open, but she couldn't see me. Chris had her, but she just kept hitting and scratching him like she didn't recognize him."

Oh, my god Jace! Why did you tell him that!?

Jude already spends far too much energy worrying about me. I don't want him to treat me differently. I can't handle that, not from him.

"I know you guys don't see eye to eye, but you have to know how much she means to him. He's struggling to control himself around her. It doesn't help that I think she's fighting the bond." Jace pauses before his next question. "Does she know?"

How much I mean to who? What bond? Do I know what?

The urge to sit up and ask questions is tempered only by the need to know what else they know.

Jude shakes his head. "I don't think so. She's definitely fighting it, but her body recognizes it, even if her heart refuses to. I've seen how she reacts to his touch, leaning in subconsciously where she would recoil from others."

He pauses, choosing his words carefully. "I think that's what scares her. She's spent so long building her walls. He's smashing through them like butter, and that vulnerability is terrifying to her."

"Maybe if she knew, then she could make sense of her feelings?" Jace sounds hopeful. "I really wish she'd open up to someone, anyone. I hate seeing her suffering like this."

I hate that they feel like this, but there's nothing good to come from talking about my past. It will just change how they see me.

They think I'm a good person, strong even. They'll never look at me the same when they find out how weak, pathetic and dirty I really am.

"She just needs time," Jude says, running a hand over my hair. "Chris isn't going to win this with brute strength, you know. The more he flashes his commanding authority, the more she'll pull away."

"Even he knows that, but you know what mates are like. His wolf has been driving him crazy to mark and claim her. You, as an un-mated wolf, being so close, just pushes that urgency." Jace chuckles before adding, "You and I both know Alphas are wound a bit tight."

I'm sorry, what?! What about mates? And this mark and claim nonsense?

Sighing, Jace gets up to leave. "I just wanted to make sure you guys were okay. I'll talk to Chris, get him to give her some space. Nothing I can do will get him to leave her alone, though. I think she cares for him, too. She's struggling with that. Can you talk to her about the mate bond? Maybe help her sort through her feelings and understand why she feels like this."

Do I care for him? I'd be lying to myself if I said no.

As much as I've tried to keep my distance and boundaries, I have caught feelings for Chris.

Fuck. Wait, a mate bond is to blame?

"I'm not guaranteeing anything, but I'll talk with her. If she doesn't want anything to do with him, I won't force her and I sure as hell am not letting anyone else either." The threat is apparent in Jude's voice.

Jace lets out a cynical laugh. "Ever think you're meant for more, Jude?" There's a guarded edge to his tone, like he suspects something.

"I'm fine where I'm at. I don't need more," Jude mumbles, brushing my hair back.

"Need or not, there are bigger plans for you, I think," Jace trails off cryptically.

"I don't understand," Judes grumbles.

"You will," Jace says with a soft laugh. The chair creaks as he gets up before making his way to the front door. The soft click of the door as he closes it behind him lifts a weight off of me, releasing a tension I hadn't realised was there.

Sleep takes me shortly after he leaves, and fortunately, it's a deep, dreamless night.

-----

Sun streams through the open window, waking me from a deep slumber. At first I freeze not knowing where I am. As the fogginess leaves me, I remember and relax.

Jude's sleeping form is wrapped up beneath me. I blush at the contact, but it feels so different from when I'm with Chris, making me frown.

If Chris saw us right now, he'd try to kill Jude for sure.

Slowly, I push myself up, trying to untangle from him without waking Jude up.

"Morning," Jude says, his voice husky from sleep. "How'd you sleep?"

I can't help my blush as I jump up. He stretches and stands. "Better than I thought possible," I admit.

"Same," he sounds surprised as he heads to the kitchen, focused on coffee. Before long, he sets a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon in front of me before sitting to eat his own.

"Jace came by last night," he starts. Jude rubs the back of his neck, stalling as he searches for how to continue. "I think there are some things we need to go over."

I sit back and stare. I don't even know where to begin with this conversation, so I play dumb. "Is he mad?"

"No." Jude laughs. "He's just trying to make sense of everything like we are. Mostly, he just came by to make sure you were okay."

Hmm, is that how you're going to play it, Jude?

"That was nice of him, was that all?" I shift my attention from my plate to him, waiting to see if he will let the cat out of the bag.

"No," he sighs. "Jace brought up some other things we should talk about, but I don't even know how to start."

A sense of relief hits me as I realize he wasn't going to hide anything from me. "I heard," I trail off.

Jude furrows his brows at me, tilting his head.

"I heard you guys talking. I woke up, but I didn't want to deal with anyone, so I pretended to sleep." His look of embarrassment makes me feel guilty.

"How much did you hear?"

"All of it," I mumble.

He simply nods, his tight-lipped expression unreadable. "I'm gonna guess you have questions." His blue eyes lock on mine as he leans back and studies me for any reaction as to how I feel.

Ya think?!