I see him frown and know I have my work cut out for me when it comes to convincing him of his place here. I'm pleasantly surprised when he proves me wrong.
"I think it's a bit different. She doesn’t bear my mark nor do I have hers, but we’re connected. We havesomething,but I'm afraid it's just the trauma talking."
His words spark a new thought in my mind. We've been so worried about getting her back on track and healthy again that we haven't thought much about anything else. "Is that all you're thinking about?Whatit is?"
"Well yeah," he grumbles and itches his chest.Does he feel her?"I need to figure it out. If I leave, it will be based on that."
I really fucking hope he stays. "So, you haven't wondered why she sought you out in the first place? There was some weird shit going on before she was taken."
His head snaps toward me as if he's hanging on to my every word. "What do you mean?"
A memory from not so long ago slams into me like a bag of bricks.
"Do you not feel that?"
Confusion steals my words for a moment as I study her. What's she talking about? "Feel what, princess?"
I sense her frustration rise at my question at the same time her lip rises. The sparkle of her sharp canine draws my attention, then she's fucking growling at me.Oh no she doesn't. I grip her chin and harden my tone. "Don't you growl at me, Omega. I'm your mate, not your enemy."
"But you don't feel it!" she snaps. Her hands fly up to her hair and yank on the strands. "I don't—I can't—" Tormenting her beautiful hair, she stomps her foot in agitation.
"Silas?"
I glance down at my omega and ponder what must have happened that day. I was there, obviously, but I wasn't privy to even a quarter of the reason we were actually outside.
"She was acting different before she was kidnapped. For a while. She asked me if I felt something, but I had no idea what she was talking about. What if..." I trail off, not sure if I should say it out loud without knowing for sure.
"What if she felt me?" Riot guesses. The look on his face doesn't stop me from nodding, but I feel bad for him. He's pale and staring at the woman in my arms like he wants to do a deep dive into her mind too.
"We'll figure it out. When she's ready," I add, hoping he hears the undercurrent of warning in my voice.
Nothing, not even the possibility of finding answers, will disrupt Vivie's ability to rest and recuperate.
"Understood," he grunts, raising my respect for him.
Kissing the top of Vivian's head, I will her brain to settle and be kind to my omega.I got you, princess.
Fifteen
Riot
Aweek. I've been here for a fucking week. It's beendayssince I gave up keeping my distance from Vivian, but I'm still holding back.
Silas' warning not to push her weighs on me. It's so hard being around her all the time without peppering her with questions. I doubt she'd answer me, but fucking hell Ineedto know what's going on between us.
My alpha is losing his shit about not claiming the omega. She's mine, and I'm not fighting it. Not necessarily, but I've been told so many damn times to be careful with her.
There'ssomethinggoing on here, and I need to know what it is.
Is this some kind of friendship bond? I've never heard of such a thing, and I'd hate it if it fucking was because nothing I feel for her feels just friendly.
I'm struggling to be gentle with Vivian. I understand why her mates tell me to be, considering she seems really sad and tired all the time. Each night she comes downstairs at like two in the morning to hang out with me for a while. I don't mind. We keep our distance and silence for the most part.
I don't think I can be completely on board with this tiptoeing thing we're doing anymore. Fucking hell, I watched this woman get beaten over and over again just to stand back up and sass me. She's not fragile. Her mind might be, but I don't think they're giving her the opportunity to show them she's a damn fighter.
I can't judge. They're her mates. Of course they know her better than anyone in the entire fucking world. I've known her for almost three weeks, so I should listen to them. I just don't think I can for much longer. This isn't in my nature. I'm at the end of my rope here.
Her pack is off doing other things. Jarek's in the office catching up on work, and Kade is in town with Silas. Vivian didn't like that they left, but I came upstairs at the right time to calm her down. All I did was usher her into the kitchen and ask her to help me make some food.
