The Start of His Betrayal

Annie
*Hours later, I woke up feeling fully refreshed. I rose up to stare down at Gerry as his even breathing soothed me. I pressed a kiss on his lips before getting up to wander into the kitchen. I knew that if I was hungry, he would be too. Male bears always ate more than females. I opened the refrigerator to see what I had inside it to make for him. When I saw nothing but my favorite frozen meals, I groaned before glancing at him. I needed to go buy us some food. I quickly pulled my clothes on before quietly leaving the room.*
*I walked merrily down the street with a little skip in my step, excited to cook for him. As I wandered through the aisles, I began to wonder if his favorite meal was the same. I bit my lip anxiously as I began to load my cart full of the ingredients to make tacos, queso, and homemade guacamole. When I reached for the jar of pickled jalapenos on the top shelf, I cursed my shortness. I began to look around for an employee to help me get it down, cursing out loud at being vertically challenged. A chuckle from behind me as I jumped up in an attempt to grab it had me suddenly spinning around. My heart fluttered in my chest as I found myself staring into the most gorgeous brown eyes that I had ever seen. His eyes glinted down at me as he smiled.*
*“Hello, Annaria.”*
*As soon as my name fell from his lips, I closed my eyes as I swooned toward him. As I fell against his chest, his arms wrapped around my waist, holding me close to his body. When I tilted my head back to stare up into his eyes, he lowered his head to kiss me deeply, causing me to melt into him even more.*
*“What’s your name?” I whispered against his lips.*
*“Logan.”*
*“Logan,” I repeated dreamily.*
I was shaken roughly, which jerked me out of my sleep. “WHO IS LOGAN?!” Gerry roared above me.
He continued to shake me as tears poured out of my eyes. “I don’t know,” I cried. “I swear!”
He slammed his fist into the mattress above my head, making me scream out as fear filled me. I pushed against his shoulders in an attempt to get him off of me.
“GERRY! STOP! YOU’RE SCARING ME!” I sobbed. “PLEASE!”
He rolled off of me, jumped off the bed, and stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door so hard that it bounced back open before he kicked it shut again. I let out a shuddering breath as I sat up, pushing myself back against the headboard as I pulled the blankets up to my chest with tears streaming down my face. When he came out of the bathroom fifteen minutes later, I shrank back against the headboard, desperately trying to make myself appear smaller as he approached the bed. When he sat down on the edge of the bed, I flung myself off the bed in order to get away from him. He sighed as he got up to come around the bed to kneel on the floor next to me.
“Annie, I’m sorry. I flew off the handle when I heard you whispering another man’s name.”
I flinched when he gently took my elbow, but I was too afraid to pull away from him. “I don’t know any Logan, Gerry. I swear. I am so sorry,” I sobbed.
He pulled me onto his lap, cradling me gently as he rocked me. “No, Annie. This wasn’t your fault. I am sorry that I thought badly of you. I know it wasn’t you. When you opened your eyes, I knew who it was. Osprey was showing you things.” He buried his face in my neck. “Please, Annie, forgive me. I swear to you that I’m not upset at you.”
“You hurt me,” I sniffled.
His arms tightened around me. “Did I?”
I nodded before pointing to my shoulders, where large, dark bruises were already forming.
“Fuck, baby. I’m sorry. Please forgive me,” he begged as he kissed over the handprints on my skin.
I nodded. “Okay,” I whispered. “I forgive you.”
He sighed. “Can I take you out on a date, Annie? I really want to make up for my lapse of judgment. I want to show you that I trust you.”
I remained quiet as I mulled over how to tell him what I wanted. His violent reaction to what happened while I was asleep had frightened me more than I wanted to admit to him. I didn’t even want to be in his arms at the moment.
“Annie? Can I take you to dinner and maybe a movie?” He repeated the question softly.
I lowered my head to hide my eyes from him. “Sure.”
“Good. Why don’t you go get dressed so we can head out?” He suggested.
I nodded before getting up to do what he asked. As I went through my suitcase to find something to wear, I mentally kicked myself for chickening out about telling him that I wanted space. As I tugged on a long, pink lounge dress, he put his shoes on. I eyed him as I finished getting ready before giving him a timid smile.
“I’m ready,” I said quietly.
When he reached for my hand, I flinched again as the memory of being slammed against the mattress flew through my mind. He let his hand drop as he studied my face.
“You don’t want to go, do you, Annie?”
I lowered my eyes. “Of course I do. Let’s go.”
He shook his head sadly as he put his hands in his pockets. “Don’t lie to me, Annie. I can see it on your face. You’re afraid of me.”
I shook my head in denial. “No! No, I’m not! I swear!”
He cupped my face, and I couldn’t help but recoil a little, making him sigh. “Yes, you are. I am so sorry, Annie. I swear that I will never put my hands on you again.”
I swallowed hard before letting my eyes flutter close. “I need space, Gerry.”
I held my breath as I waited for him to react violently again. He pulled me against his chest, resting his cheek on top of my head. He rubbed my back lovingly.
“Okay, Annie. I will leave, but promise me if you want me to come back, you will tell me,” he murmured almost silently.
I nodded as he continued to rub my back for a moment before letting me go. He tilted my face up before kissing me tenderly.
“I love you, Annie, and I really hope that you can forgive me.”
He walked out of the room without saying another word, leaving me more conflicted than I had ever been before. I curled up on the bed with my arms wrapped tightly around my legs. Fuck. I asked him to leave, yet I immediately missed him. What was wrong with me? I closed my eyes to sink back into my mind so I could be with Marsha. I needed to think, and there was no one better to run things by than my bear. I frowned deeply when I found her sound asleep. No wonder I was so scared of Gerry. Without her, I was terrified of shadows. I ran my hand over her back.
“Marsha? Wake up. I need to talk to you,” I called softly.
She grumbled sleepily but didn’t rouse. I blinked in surprise when, after a few minutes of gently coaxing, she still refused to wake up. I pushed her roughly, needing her to wake up.
“MARSHA! MARSHA! WAKE UP!” I finally yelled.
When she tried to rouse herself but couldn’t, I became even more worried about her. I began to walk around her, studying her closely, before grunting in frustration when I realized what was going on. Godric’s power lingered in the air, barely noticeable. I sat down defeatedly as I watched Marsha breathe shallowly. I wrapped my arms around my legs as my tears returned. I didn’t understand why Osprey was messing with me so fiercely. First, he put me under and forced me to go home. Now, he had put Marsha to sleep. Who knew when, if ever, he would let her wake up? I crawled over to Marsha to curl up next to her. I needed her more now than ever. I didn’t know what to do. I was so lost without both Marsha and Gerry. I sniffled as I reached for Osprey’s link, barely managing to hold it open. My eyes drifted closed as the effort it took to hold the link open made me drowsy.
‘Why, Osprey? I never did anything to you. Why are you doing all of this to me? I just want to be happy. Like you and Scarlett,’ I whispered.