Daylight came too soon. Mac awoke amidst a flurry of white balls of fluff, and realized he was sleeping on the bed and pillow he'd destroyed a few hours earlier.
"Damn,” he muttered to himself. Every inch of him ached. Looking around, he saw the state of the destroyed room. The table was on its side and the curtains had been ripped down. The abstract painting hung askew on the wall and the phone had been torn from the wall.
He'd had one hell of a temper tantrum.
It actually surprised him that security hadn't been called last night, considering the amount of noise he must have created.
Mac pushed off the bed and wiped the fluffies off him, deciding to take a shower to get the rest. As he drew the water, his mind was numb. He didn't hear anything and it soothed him. But it also made thinking on Robyn almost too much to take.
He refused to look at the countertop behind him.
What was she doing right now? Was she all right?
Of course she was all right, he told himself. She was with the guys.
Stepping into the spray, he let the water beat him in the face. It burned, but it felt good.
God, he missed her. He missed her skin, her eyes, her hair, her touch...
"Shit,” he whispered.
Bathing as fast as he could, Mac toweled dry and walked back into the room, dressing in the clothing Robyn had bought him. The t-shirt was white, and simply said, “I lost my heart in Reno". He grunted at the irony, but pulled it
on.
The jeans fit him perfectly, as did the silly flip-flops she'd gotten him. All he could think of was the pair he'd gotten her back in Florida, the ones with flamingos.
The bear suddenly growled under the surface, getting his attention.
Damn. His reprieve was short-lived.
He left the room, fully intending to slip quietly out of the casino. He had no idea where he was headed, he just needed to leave. He couldn't stay in a room that had been sacked. Aside from that, he needed to get rid of his thoughts. The more he thought on Robyn, the more he needed her with him.
"I'm a damn asshole,” he whispered to himself in the empty elevator.
The Kodiak seemed to growl its approval.
"Shut up,” he said.
Amazingly, it did. Thank goodness no one witnessed Mac talking to himself. The mental image made him chuckle. He was still chuckling when he stepped off the elevator onto the main floor of the casino.
Finding the main doors, he walked out into the parking lot, trying to remember where he'd parked the Hummer. His stomach growled something fierce, but he had to ignore it. He didn't have any money. He'd need to remedy that.
Aside from stealing some, he had no idea how to go about it.
Damn. Another reason he needed Robyn. She'd had Wade's credit card when she left.
He found the Hummer easily enough amidst the sea of mid-sized sedans. But the moment he opened the driver's side door, his heart stopped. There on the floor, by the brake pedal, was a wad of twenties. What the hell?
Picking up the cash, he sniffed it and his heart skipped a beat.
Robyn.
She'd left it for him, knowing he wouldn't have a thing if she took off. Her thoughtfulness touched him and made his eyes burn behind his lids. Clutching the bills, he climbed into the truck and laid his head on the steering wheel.
Christ, he couldn't do this. He couldn't live without
her.
Thinking on her face, the bear roared to life and he clutched the wheel even harder. Mac remembered her scent in his nostrils and her voice in his ear, telling him to control it. He was slipping. He needed her touch, he needed a distraction.
Oh, God.
With whimpering breaths, he panted hard, giving every ounce of his concentration to control the Kodiak. Something came back to him from last night. He hadn't felt the bear when he'd become the jag.
Swallowing hard, Mac barely began his shift into the cat. Instantly, the bear backed down, his growls subsiding. It couldn't be that easy.
Could it?
He released his shift and once again his skin was smooth. The bear was gone.
He grinned, then chuckled. His chuckles turned into loud guffaws ringing in the cabin of the Hummer. He'd found a way. He'd damn well found a way to control that bastard!
He had no idea how the jag controlled the Kodiak. Maybe because he'd been imprinted first? All Mac knew was that an enormous weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
Tears formed in his eyes, but these were tears of joy and relief.
Kissing the wad of bills, he whispered, “I'm comin’ baby. I'm coming home."
Firing up the Hummer, he took off in a peal of glory. He had no idea how he was going to win Robyn back, but he knew she loved him. It wouldn't be too hard.
How long a drive was it from Reno to Denver? Punching the city into the Hummer's GPS navigation, he figured it would take him about twenty hours with a straight shot.
Better get going. He wasn't going to get any damn sleep. He was far too giddy. He'd have to remember where Lanie's family cabin was. He knew the highway it was on, so he figured he could find it easily enough.
Stopping long enough to buy some food and gas, Mac was on his way, a wide grin on his face.