Seth wanted to just go home and wallow. He'd finally found the one woman he was destined to be with and she wanted nothing to do with him. However, his mother would have a fit if he didn't explain himself.
He let himself in the back door with a sigh and sank into the chair in front of the TV. Sue let him settle in for a moment and then arched an eyebrow expectantly.
Seth took a deep breath and then dove head first into it, "I imprinted today." His mother's eyes lit up and filled with tears. "Anne?" "Yeah." "She's a nice girl." "There's a problem." "Overcome it. Don't look at me like that. She is your everything Seth. Figure it out."
She made it sound so simple. "Did she tell you guys anything? Where she came from? Anything?" "No. She kept to herself. Charlie ran a background check on her when she leased the house; it came up clean. But Charlie seems to think she might have been hurt in the past. Is that the trouble?"
"What did Charlie say?" The man in question was snoring from their bedroom down the hall. "Just that she had a skittish way about her. She's definitely closed off. I've never met anyone more reluctant to connect with another person. You may have your work cut out for you." "I wish she'd just tell me why she's so afraid." "What happened tonight, Seth? I heard that howl."
Nothing gets past Sue Clearwater.
Set held his breath before he tried to tell his mother about the woman he loved. "She got lost in the woods." "Why were you two in the woods?" "I left her on her front porch when I came to get the key and when I came back she'd vanished. I looked through the house and then shifted and followed her scent.
"She was terrified when she ran from the house. I have no idea why." "And when you found her?" "She had sprained her ankle. She wasn't afraid of me. Perfectly calm, she stuck her hand in my face to be sniffed. She is amazing."
Sue studied her youngest child. Seth's eyes were bright with adoration and a smile full of pride stretched across his face. "Seth, you're going to have to move very carefully with this girl. She's fearless when her life is on the line but she is terrified of emotional and probably physical connection." "I'll do and be anything she needs me to be. Mom, I don't know how to explain it. She's everything." "I know baby. I see it in your eyes."
And there it was: his frustration and helplessness, his love and adoration, fear and trepidation. It all shown out of his chocolate eyes like a beacon.
"But she wants nothing to do with me. How can I help her? How can I be with her?" "Honey, you have to be willing to put yourself on the back burner. Focus on what she needs. She needs you even if she doesn't want you." "How am I meant to help if she won't let me in?"
Sue looked at her son. He was so young and yet the world seemed to rest so heavily on his shoulders. She went to sit on the arm of his chair and wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders.
"Give her time. Be there for her. Always be patient and don't push too hard. That's really all you can do." "You make it sound so simple. It's killing me not being over there taking care of her." "Does she needs you to take care of her or do you need it?" "Probably I need it. It's still killing me. I've never felt so rejected and useless. She just dismissed me like a bad waiter.
"To top it off, she's going to avoid me like the plague now. Even if I find reasons to see her I don't think she'll react well." "Stalker does spring to mind when you put it like that. But I wouldn't worry too much about getting to see her." "Why?" "Charlie offered her the office manager position at the station. You'll be working together starting Monday."