Cinderella's Guardian by Khloe Wren Read Free Book Online Page A

at her feet. Then she wouldn't have to put up with Tina at all, but send her away to some rehab facility until she could fend for herself.
    ~ * ~
    Conner parked around the corner in his usual spot before heading to Tina's house. As he got close he could feel something was wrong. Instead of going straight around the back, he crept over the lawn to crouch below her window. He could hear her sobbing, the sound ripping into his heart. He lowered himself on to all fours on the ground, sinking his fingers into the grass, trying desperately not to shift. His leopard wanted to protect and comfort his mate. So did his human side, but he couldn't, as he had no way of entering her room without alerting Robyn.
    Something cold against his palm caused him to start. Raising his hand he saw Tina's necklace lying against the damp grass, the one she hadn't taken off since he gave it to her two weeks ago. His instincts went on high alert. There was no way Tina would throw it away. He held it closer and inspected the chain. Sure enough, it was broken. A growl formed low in his throat, had Robyn discovered their secret nighttime rendezvous?
    He sprinted back to his car, using every bit of will power he had to not shift and go back to take her away. Once inside the confines of his vehicle, he rang Tina's number. Straight to voicemail, meaning it was turned off. Shit, Robyn must have found out. Barely aware of his actions, he started his car and headed home. Dream bonding was the only way he could see her now. But that would never be enough for either of them. He had to figure out how to get her away from Robyn. Quickly.
    As he plowed through the front door he nearly took out his dad, who was walking through to the lounge room.
    "Sorry, Dad."
    "No worries, son. You're not looking so hot there. What happened? Is Tina okay?"
    "I don't know if she's okay! We've been meeting up at night in her backyard. I think Robyn's found out. I found her necklace outside her window. I could hear her sobbing and her phone is turned off."
    His dad's face grew serious as he gripped Conner's shoulder. "Robyn is not a nice person, son. I've been asking around trying to get information about Tina for you. No one who knows Robyn wants to be on her bad side. She's got a real mean streak. Dale must not know about what's going on. No way would he allow this kind of treatment to happen to his little girl. I'll see if I can find out what rig he's on. See if I can ring or email him. Let him know he needs to come home. You going to dream bond with her tonight?"
    "That's what I was planning to do. It's the only way I've got to communicate with her now. I'm thinking I might try to tell her the dreams are real. Not sure, the last dream we shared she lost the plot. broke down in tears before getting angry with herself for dreaming up something she'll never have. Dad, she desperately wanted the dream to be real but she wouldn't believe me when I told her that one day it would be. She sounded depressed and close to doing something really dangerous. Scared the hell out of me, Dad."
    "Well, you better get to bed then, son. I'll do what I can to get a hold of her father. We will fix this and get her out safely."
    "I know, Dad. I just wish I could think of how! Maybe if I was an alpha, I could figure it out..." He finished off quietly, more to himself, but his dad still heard him.
    His dad gave him a small shake before he gripped his face between his hands, forcing Conner to look into his gaze. "Don't ever think for one moment that you are less of a man, because you are not the alpha, or future alpha. We are all simply men, and we make mistakes. Do you think Dominic doesn't kick himself daily for leaving Adele and Kelly alone when he went to organize a guard for them? In hindsight, he can see he should have rung around to get the job done. He never should have left them unprotected like he did. As a result Cole got his filthy hands on both of them. He hurt Adele and Kelly, because of