"Protect. From hunters, mostly." That was all the answer he had, at least that didn't get into how much he'd wanted to save Madison, and couldn't, or how personal it sometimes got for him.

"I know you're not." He ran his hand through his bangs again and just looked at her, with his hand still gripped behind his neck. When he let his arm fall again, he said, "And I'm not a hunter. I never wanted to be. I'm not going to try to hurt you, Caroline. I don't want to."