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I burrowed into his neck. “You didn’t answer my question.”
He ran his hand up and down my arm. “We’re sleeping. Dreaming, in a way. I feel perfectly fine right now.”
I guess that made sense that he would feel good in a dream. Physically, he was probably hurting. I wished I could take his pain away. Get Mikey away from him so he would stop hurting him.
Lincoln kissed the top of my head. “I don’t want to think about all that right now. I want to just enjoy my time with you.”
I kissed his neck. “It’s funny how we’ve become accustomed to being with each other. I feel like we’ve known each other a lifetime already.”
Lincoln and Sawyer were home. I didn’t think I would ever feel comfortable again until we were all three together in the same room for real. For now, this would have to do.
Lincoln combed his hands through my hair. “I miss having you in my bed.” He rested his cheek on my head. “Tell me about the ocean. Have you been?”
I couldn’t stop my smile. “My mom and dad used to take us on vacations every few years when we were younger. I loved the ocean. If I wasn’t swimming, I was just watching the waves crash against the shore.”
I closed my eyes and could almost catch a whiff of sea salt.
“Maybe one day, me, you, and Sawyer can all go together.” He sounded wistful.
“Have you ever been?” I asked quietly.
He made a sound in the back of his throat. “No. We’ve always stuck close to home, even before anything happened with my mom and sister. I think my dad has always had paranoia. It just got amplified after they died. Now the only time we ever go out is to terrorize neighboring packs.”
I opened my mouth and then shut it again. I didn’t know what to say to that.
Lincoln put his hand on my thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze. “One of the things I’m looking forward to most is starting a new life for everyone.”
I turned so that I was facing him. “I like that idea a lot.”
He nudged me. “Where else have you been besides the ocean?”
I chuckled and looked down at my hands. “We took a trip up to the East Coast, New York City, and then Boston. It’s not the same as the ocean or even home. Too many people, too many smells, and it’s never quiet. I swear nobody in those towns ever sleeps.”
Lincoln rubbed my leg, his hand slowly inching up my thigh. “I’ve heard that, but I wasn’t sure if it was actually true or not.”
I shrugged. “It might not be so bad for normal people, but we have heightened senses. I feel like it’s especially worse for us because there are no trees, no place to run. I get antsy if I can’t shift at least every other day.”
“Did you go there just for a vacation? Or something else?”
I shook my head. “We did a lot of fun things while we were there, but we were also there for business. My dad was meeting with some of the alphas from around the nation.”
Lincoln sat up straighter but didn’t say anything.
I drew in a breath and then let it out. “This was about three years ago. I think a lot of people knew your dad was becoming unhinged. They started making preparations, but a lot of people also didn’t want to acknowledge that there was a problem. That’s why it’s gotten so bad now. It’s because nobody thought it would ever affect them.”
Lincoln huffed and shook his head. “Yeah, I can understand that. History is full of people who knew things were going awry but chose to do nothing instead.”
“I guess it’s true what they say. History always repeats itself. I just hope one day we can all learn from our mistakes.”
Lincoln was quiet for a moment. “I’m sure the packs will learn from this. They will have to.”
I thought that too. But hopefully, it wasn’t at such a cost that it made everyone lose their livelihoods. My mind drifted to the men who had died today and then to the ones who were still fighting for their lives. This war wasn’t going to be forgotten.
I shook my head and closed my eyes. “I don’t want to talk about this. If this is the only time we get together, just us, I want to talk about something else. Anything else.”
Lincoln leaned forward and kissed my lips. His mouth was soft and moved gently against mine. I wound my hands around the back of his neck as I scooted closer to him. I was happy to just stay here and kiss him.
His hand moved from my thigh to my hip, and he pulled me closer so I was sitting on his lap. His gaze drifted from my eyes to my lips. “We can keep talking, or we can just relax for a few minutes.”
