Who: Carr, Kris, and Arabella What: The word ‘hypocrite’ comes to mind... When: Friday morning Where: Carr & Kris’ motel Warning: TBD
Carr had slept like a log, exhausted by a long day at work after a long night with Gio. He couldn’t stop thinking about her, and that alone was a worry. No attachments, that was the point. It was just him and Kris, what was left of their pack. They got each other’s backs, and didn’t give a shit about anyone else.
He kept telling himself that, but he knew deep down it wasn’t true. Not anymore. They didn’t have enemies to watch out for, and drifting from town to town was wearing on them both. Maybe it was time to think about putting down some roots. Building a new life. Still musing on that, he pushed open the door that connected their rooms.
“Hey, Kris, d’you fancy somethin’ to-hunh.” Carr tilted his head, looking at his brother-in-law, curled tight around a wee slip of a girl. Bloody hypocrite, he thought, but the air didn’t smell of sex. Blood, yes. Sex, no. Frowning, he let his eyes shift to a pale icy blue, looking more closely at the girl as they stirred.
Kris hadn't slept so well in a very long time. He had stayed as he was all night, back against the headboard, his strong arms protectively around Arabella. He slept well, the sound of her even breathing and steady heartbeat like a lullaby to him. He heard the door open and his eyes opened, his arms tightening around Arabella for a moment and a warning growl slipping from him before he realized it was Carr. He made a shush noise and checked on Arabella, trying not to move too much as to wake her.
Arabella didn't wake at the sound of Carr's voice, but she heard the sound of the growl and that was what brought her out of her slumber. She remained with her eyes closed, curled into Kris for the moment. She wasn't sure what was going on, but she wasn't quite sure it was a good thing so she chose to pretend she was still asleep. Maybe whoever it was would go away and she could stay right where she was, curled up with Kris' warm, solid form.
Carr arched an eyebrow, padding on bare feet around the side of bed so he could take a better look. He suppressed a growl as he looked her over, the bruises, split lip...
“What the fuck happened to her?” He whispered, barely loud enough for Kris to hear, let alone the girl, if she was still asleep. He didn’t care who she was, no one should go through that kind of beating. Least of all a girl.
Kris stroked her hair gently, trying to keep her asleep. "Her now former boyfriend." he whispered softly. "He was beating on her in an alley and I....stepped in." It was a nice way of saying he beat the living crap out of the bastard and took it upon himself to care for Arabella. "She didn't have anywhere to go and I'm going to protect her."
It took every bit of willpower Arabella had in her small form to keep from smiling at Kris's words. She still wasn't sure who this other guy was, but apparently he was friend not foe. And Scottish, which was strange considering she'd never met a Scottish man in the town, but D.C. was a melting pot so she couldn't really think much about it.
Carr had known Kris long enough to know exactly what he meant by ‘stepping in’. He was proud of the younger man, much as it meant trouble for the two - no, three - of them.
“Aye, and how are you going to manage that?” He asked softly, arching an eyebrow at Kris. “We’ve got enough money the now, but I’m the only one working. How’re you going to pay for food for her and yourself?” Carr was trying to be practical, much as his wolf might have agreed with Kris about protecting the young woman.
"She's not a pet, Carr." he said with a roll of his eyes. "I'll get a job and maybe we should think about getting a real house." They had the money to do it, but they hadn't found somewhere to settle down. With Arabella and his wolf's undying desire to keep her protected, not to mention Kris' own want to protect her. Kris hadn't wanted to ever touch the money they had gotten for the death of their pack and the sale of their former home, but if it meant staying put and having a proper den where Arabella would be safe, he would. Which likely told Carr a lot of things.
Carr’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. He’d been thinking along similar lines, but he’d expected that he’d have to persuade Kris. He wasn’t expecting the suggestion to be coming from him.
“Aye, you might be right,” he whispered. “I was thinking that myself.” He looked at the girl, frowning worriedly. “Are you sure she’s not concussed? Just bruised?” He didn’t know what they’d do if she was...neither him nor Kris had much medical knowledge, after all.
Arabella decided that perhaps she should 'wake up' at that point. Shifting sleepily, she opened her eyes and let out a soft yawn as she glanced up at Kris and then at this other man. It was then that she really got a good look at the guy. He didn't seem to pose a danger to her so she just sort of blinked at him for a moment. "Um... morning?" she breathed out, her voice not quite as awake as she was.
The minute she began to stir Kris shifted a bit, keeping his arm around her but giving her enough room to move. "Morning, sweetheart." he said softly, brushing her hair back. "This is Carr, my brother-in-law. Sorry we woke you." he said and smiled softly. There was a look in his eyes Carr would of never seen before when Kris looked at her. A look that said mine. "Carr, this is Arabella."
Carr nodded a greeting to the girl, smiling gently. He knew he could look fairly imposing, but at least he was crouched on the floor, and not looming over her. He looked between them, surprised at the way Kris looked at Arabella. He’d seen that look before, but not on him. It had been the look Carr had had himself, when he held Mel.
“Morning, love,” he said to the girl softly, still smiling. “How are you feeling?”
Arabella gave a soft smile in Kris' direction. Then she turned her attentions once more to this guy, Carr. At his question, she shrugged a little bit, even that movement making her ache a little. "Sore?" she offered up as the only answer that could really come to mind. Reluctantly she shifted a bit, enough that she could sit up instead of being sprawled out on Kris. "I hope I'm not intruding on you two... do you have plans today?" she said, eyes flicking between the two men.
"You're not intruding at all." Kris said firmly. He slid from the bed, getting her a cup of water and some more aspirin, knowing full well she would be aching. The bruising on her face was stark now and he suppressed another growl. He wished he had killed that sonofabitch last night. "Here, sweet." he said, handing her the medicine, trying not to fret. "If you don't want to go out, I can go get you some breakfast, anything you want, and bring it back for you." His wolf wasn't keen on leaving her alone even for the short time it would take to get her food, but she was safe in the den so he would deal with it.
“I’ll go,” Carr said, getting to his feet. “I’ll bring back breakfast for all of us, how does that sound?” He could do with the fresh air, and the time to think about what they were going to do, the three of them. He could tell Kris didn’t want to leave her, and he thought that giving them some time alone, awake, was probably a good thing.
“D’you want anything in particular?” She’d be sore, so he’d most likely bring back something soft, like pancakes or scrambled eggs.
Arabella smiled at the offer on both of their parts. It was sweet of them to be so caring, especially considering they'd both just met her. It was also something she wasn't quite used to. "Anything you get should be fine." she assured the man. "I have some money in my purse I can get for you." she offered as she took the medicine from Kris and the cup of water he'd offered as well. "Thank you." she commented, then swallowed the pills down with a sip from the glass.
"Don't worry about money." Kris said firmly. If he had his way Arabella wouldn't be paying for anything. Not while she was anywhere within his vicinity which would be a long time if his wolf had anything to say about it. Kris handed over his credit card. "Um, just get like, everything." he said, wanting to make sure whatever Arabella's favorite was would be available to her.
Carr waved away both offers, the money from Arabella, and the card from Kris. He could afford to buy the three of them breakfast, for god’s sake.
“Do you need anything else?” He asked both of them. “More painkillers? Clean clothes?” He had no idea what had happened, not really; no idea if she had more than the clothes she was lying down in.
Arabella was left so dumbfounded by Kris's reaction to her offering money that she honestly didn't even hear Carr's words for a moment. Blinking a little, she shook her head. "Um, no. No, thank you." she assured the man. "I got a few of my things from home after... everything. And the aspirins are doing okay so I think I'll be alright." Both of these men were willing to pay for her to have a meal? And she didn't have to do anything first? She thought back briefly and realized that in the last six months - or more if she was really honest with herself - Dan hadn't bought her so much as a postage stamp.
"Alright. Carr will handle breakfast then." He gave his brother a grateful smile. He hadn't liked the idea of being apart for Arabella so with Carr getting the food he could stay with her. "You want to shower and change?" he asked as he went and got fresh towels for her from the bathroom and every little shampoo and soap thing he could find.
Carr snorted. Kris was behaving like a demented mother hen. Ach well, he’d leave them to it. He’d rather not get in the way.
“I’ll be back soon,” he said, to both of them. He didn’t care who was listening, just as long as one of them did.
“I’ve got my mob-sorry, my cellphone,” he corrected himself - he still wasn’t used to that, even now - patting his pocket to make sure he did, in fact, have it on him.
“If you need anything, just gimme a bell.”
Arabella smiled at Kris as he rummaged about collecting things for her so she'd be able to take a shower. That was sweet. It made her feel all tingly and kind of like a moron because if men were like this, why the hell had she been with Dan? Had he really gone so far from what he used to be that she just hadn't noticed? "Thank you." she said to Carr as he left. Once the door closed behind the man again, she turned her attentions to Kris. "And thank you. Again. For everything." She got up from the bed then and moved towards him, halting his movements with a hug. She needed that closeness for another second or two.
The moment Arabella slipped her arms around him, Kris held her close, fingers curling in her hair. "You're welcome." he murmured softly, never wanting to let her go. This poor woman had been through so much and Kris wanted to wipe away every ounce of pain and bad feeling she had ever had. He had thought his heart could never feel anything again, but this woman out of nowhere was making him feel things he hadn't felt since he was 17 years old. "You're safe now...I promise." he murmured against her hair.
She let out a contented little noise as he held her in return. "I don't think I've felt safe in a long time." she admitted softly. She felt a bit weak to even let that bit of truth come out, but she doubted that Kris would judge her for it. "But you make me feel safe." she added, amending her first statement. "Thank you for staying with me all night." she went on, tilting her head to look up at the man. "You're pretty comfortable, you know."
Kris chuckled and laid a gentle kiss to her forehead. "I'm glad you slept well." he said, running a finger down her cheek gently. "However long you need to feel safe, I'll be here." he vowed and he realized he was being a little too forceful perhaps, though his wolf was smug about it. Kris straightened up a bit. "You should shower." he said. The scent of her mixed with his own was a bit maddening and the last thing he wanted to do was something stupid.
"Are you subtly telling me I stink?" she challenged, despite the grin on her lips. "I guess you're right though." she said, nodding a little as she reluctantly let him loose and collected a change of clothes from the dresser. "I won't be long." she promised. "Five or ten minutes tops. And no laughing if I start badly singing." she added before heading off into the bathroom.
He couldn't help one last kiss to the top of her head as they pulled away from one another. "You could never stink." he said firmly with a crooked grin. "I'll wait out here." he said and went to his chair, picking up his novel and slipping on a thin pair of reading glasses. For all his eyesight was wonderful, all the tiny letters of paperbacks could give him headaches. He was convinced he was getting old.
Arabella didn't take long to finish her shower. A quick rinse, ghosting over her wounds and then washing her hair and what not with the little bottles of shampoo that Kris had collected for her. She emerged about ten minutes later in a pair of pajama bottoms and a tank top. It was cool outside, but the warmth of the hotel room was well up to par. Towel in one hand and her brush in the other, she emerged from the bathroom with a refreshed sigh. "You were right, I did need a shower." she smiled. Though she ached, she was feeling much better, almost as if the water managed to wash away some of her stress as well. "How squeamish are you?" she questioned.
Kris inhaled deeply as Arabella came out of the shower. She smelled lovely freshly clean and calm. He took off his glasses and set aside his book with a smile. "I can't say I'm particularly squeamish. What do you need, sweetheart?" he asked.
"Just wanted to check before I give myself my shot." she explained to him. "If you were squeamish I figured I'd just go back in the bathroom." Some people didn't like needles, nor watching her give herself a shot. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she went about brushing the tangles out of her hair first, watching him from across the room. He was cute with those glasses he'd had on and she was amused that he liked to read. "What were you reading?" she questioned.
"It won't bother me one bit." he said. Kris watched her as much as she watched him. He loved how she brushed her hair. It looked longer wet, without the slight wavy curl she had when it was dry. "Hmmm? Oh um, a James Patterson mystery novel." he said with a crooked smile. "You're welcome to read it when I'm done. I promise I won't spoil the ending."
"Heroic, Cute and smart enough to read a book. Where did you come from?" she asked him dreamily. He was the exact opposite of Dan, that was for sure. Aside from the fact that they both had dark hair and were pretty tall, they were nothing alike. "I think I'd like that." she murmured. Which meant he at least wanted her around long enough for him to finish the book. She was happier about that than she thought she might be.
Ok, Kris blushed. He couldn't help it. "Um, mountains in New York." he said as if that helped. He was just odd and he knew it. "You're welcome to anything I have. I don't have many books as a I used to, but anything you want is yours."
That was adorable. The fact that she'd made him blush amused her, but it was what he said after that really caught her attention. With her hair now brushed, she got up and put her towel away and the collected her insulin from the fridge and a syringe before sitting down again. "Why are you being so nice to me?" she asked finally. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I appreciate everything you've done for me but... You're practically willing to give me the shirt off of your back..."
Kris' looked at her, furrowing his brow a bit. "That's what pack does." he said automatically then realized what he said and sighed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that exactly." Even though he did. "You deserve all the niceness in the world and I'm just the lucky one that gets to give it to you."
She arched her brow as she readied her syringe. "So am I like an honorary member of your pack or something?" she questioned. "Do I get a members only jacket?" she teased, flashing him a smile, this time able to smile a bit wider than she'd been able to before, her dimples making an appearance on her cheeks.
Gods above, that smile. It made him melt that smile. How anyone could harm her was beyond him. "Seems my wolf has decided you're pack and he's not giving me a say in the matter." he said with a crooked smile. "The upside is during the full moon you'd get the choicest cut of meat off of what we take down." he said teasingly.
She was curious how his wolf had such a say, but she wasn't all that versed in the world of weres. His teasing had her chuckling a little. Lifting her tank top a bit, she went ahead and gave herself her insulin shot and then went about discarding the syringe and putting the medicine away. "If you haven't given me the boot, maybe I'll come running with you on the next full moon." she smiled. "For a little at least, I unfortunately can't just stay an animal for very long. A few hours at best."
Kris watched her closely as she gave herself the shot, committing it to memory in case it ever arose he had to do it for her. "I will never give you the boot. It's not much here, but Carr and I are thinking about getting a house and all and if you wanted to join us...You could." he said with a small smile. "Well, few hours is better than nothing...I'll be on my own this full moon and it'll be nice for some company."
She was surprised by his offer. "You'd let me live with you?" she asked. She was honestly more surprised by the strong urge to just say yes. "And... it might not be any of my business, but why will you be alone this full moon?" she questioned. "Isn't Carr a werewolf too?"
He leaned back, running his hand through his hair. "Firstly, yes, you could live with me. To a wolf, pack is family and my wolf isn't letting me argue...As for Carr...." He didn't want to over step, but Arabella had a right to know if Kris intended on keeping her around, which he did. "Carr is a cursed werewolf...He was married to my sister. As a full pack he could run with us. We had thousands of acres free of any humans...But it's not safe here with just me to keep him in check so...He'll be kept safe and I'll be on my own." Again. There was pain in his eyes and his speech, pain of loss never forgotten. He stood and went to the window, needing a moment. He looked out of it and remembered when he used to see sprawling acres of grass and forest when he looked out a window.
She listened to what he had to say, still surprised but reading more into the words that he said. Carr 'was' married to his sister, which meant he wasn't anymore and she was curious as to why. We 'had' thousands of acres free of any humans. Who were the 'we' that he talked about? And why wasn't there still a 'we'? She watched him get up and walk over to the window and the look upon his face as he did so. She gave him that minute or two before heading over and slipping her arms around his waist from behind. She rested her cheek against his back and let out a little breath. "Part of me wants to ask you what happened, since something obviously did but... I don't want to step on any toes or be nosy. It's not my business." she murmured gently. "But whatever it is, I'm sorry you had to go through it."
Her arms slipping around his waist almost undid him. Instead he touched her arms gently, letting her hold him together when all he wanted to do was fall into a sobbing heap. "Thank you...maybe someday." he said softly. He would tell her one day, but he couldn't just then. Even though it had been so long ago, it was still as raw and real as it had been. He turned carefully, wrapping his arms around her and burying his face in her hair, inhaling her scent. He let it ground him back into where is was now. Ground him back to her.
She didn't mind that he didn't - or more likely couldn't bring himself to - tell her whatever it was that was on his mind. Arabella was content to just comfort him in the same way that he'd comforted her and continued to do so. "Someday." she agreed with a little sigh. "So tell me about you, Kris." she murmured after a moment. It was only right that she try to get to know him a little better. "What's your favorite color? Cheesy I know, but humor me." she smiled, turning her head upwards so she could see his face. "A little game of twenty questions never hurt anyone."
Kris smiled then, his heart lightening just a little. He scooped her up, still wanting her close to him and flopped down on the bed, curling up as they were the night before. "My favorite color is green, like fresh cut grass, which, incidentally, I love the smell of as well." he said with a crooked smile. "What is your favorite color, sweetheart?"
She giggled a little as he scooped her up and carried her over to the bed. She curled into him instantly, quite liking this position. She felt protected, safe. "Blue." she responded. "Pretty much all the colors that fall under that description from ocean to sky blue." She committed to memory that his favorite color was green. It could possibly prove useful sometime down the road. One never truly knew. "What's your favorite food?" she asked, figuring that would be a handy detail to be aware of as well.
"Red meat." he said with a toothy grin as he thought of what to get her that was blue. Sapphires would look beautiful around her neck and dangling from her ears while her body was swathed in a beautiful sky blue silk. "But I'm a wolf so it's to be expected. I'm actually a big fan of moose, though it's hard to get."
"Well I guess I never get to make you your favorite meal unless you run out and catch it." she smiled. "How exactly would you cook moose?" she questioned, narrowing her eyes a little in thought. It was really more of a question to herself than to him and she shook her head a little. "Okay, your turn."
Kris chuckled. "There are some specialty markets around here where one can find...exotic things." he said, waggling his eyebrows at her playfully. "Alright let's see...Where is your favorite place to go on vacation?"
"I'm almost afraid to ask what other 'exotic things' you might want from these specialty markets." she teased. As for his question, "I've never been on a vacation." she admitted. "I mean not like leave the city and go somewhere on vacation." she shrugged. "So I'm not really sure. My 'vacation' is usually a couple days off work and school." she explained to him. Her family had been close but scheduling vacations was difficult with all the activities her brother and her sister had. "First kiss?"
"Well, that'll have to be something we fix then." Kris had done a lot of traveling, though he missed his mountains something fierce. Part of him hadn't wanted to sell his ancestral home but it was too painful to bear ever going back. He slid her fingers through her hair as she asked her next question and his heart clenched. "My first kiss..." He remembered it so vividly, yet the moment he thought about her he heard the shattering of glass, that painful scream and he tensed completely, his entire body shaking as he tried to pull himself from that painful memory.
The little smile on her lips faded when he seemed to zone out at that question, his words trailing off and his body tensing, then shaking. She lifted her hand to his cheek, urging him to look at her. "Hey." she whispered soothingly. "Nevermind. This game is stupid anyway." she murmured, replacing the smile on her lips as her thumb rode the curve of his cheek.
He looked down at her and his eyes were a bit glassy from unshed tears. "I'm sorry." he said in a hoarse voice and just pulled her tightly into his arms, holding her against him as if he was terrified of letting go. This was why he had never looked at another woman since that night. The pain had almost killed him the first time and the thought of losing another woman....He wouldn't be able to do it. Not again. He had lost too much and while his wolf wanted Arabella as their own, Kris was too frightened of losing her to let her in. It was a horrible catch 22.
"Oh honey..." she said softly, slipping her arms around him and letting out a little sigh as she curled in against him. "It's okay." she soothed. She could tell there was so much beneath the surface of this man that she had yet to even scratch. Things that perhaps had been buried for far too long. She wanted to say something or do something to make him feel better but she was a bit lost for words in that moment. "It's okay." she breathed again.
He just lay there like that for a moment, holding her tight, letting her scent calm him. It took a little while but soon his body began to relax and he let himself nuzzle her. It was times like these his mind became a bit more wolf than human because his human mind was so fragile. He didn't speak, just took in her scent, letting his fingers stroke gently over her skin. When he finally looked at her eyes were more amber than their usual chocolate brown.
She gave him a tiny smile when he finally looked at her. Her hand once more came up to cup his cheek and she shifted enough that she could gently press her lips to the other side of his face. "You know I'm here for you too." she murmured to the man, lingering there against his cheek for a moment before pulling back to look at him again. "Don't think I can beat anyone up for you, far too fragile, but I can make a really great mad face." she smiled, hoping to get him back to the happier version of himself he'd been a moment before.
Kris let out a sigh and gently kissed her forehead. "Thank you." he murmured softly. Emotions so long ago buried were bubbling up in him now and it was making it a little hard for him to keep his head. It was so easy to be happy around her, but a trigger here and there brought back the burning pain of all the loss in his life. But he couldn't worry about him. He had to take care of her, protect her, and get her healthy. "How are you feeling?" he asked, very gently touching the bruising on her face. He had given her tylenol and also an anti inflammatory to help with the swelling.
"Like I got hit by a bus." she admitted. "But I guess that's to be expected. I'm okay though." she assured him. "A couple of days and I'll be good as new." she promised. She wondered if those couple of days would be spent with him and found herself hoping that they would indeed.