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Chapter Twenty-One
Niko allowed her tofinish eating undisturbed. Although he had little interest in the meal, he ate. He hadn’t had much of an appetite over the past several days and he knew if he didn’t start doing a better job of fueling his body, it could affect his control. It took a lot to truly affect a Therian on that level, but he’d been walking a razor’s edge in the months since his father’s assassination.
Not finding all the involved parties had kept him awake long into the night far too often of late.
Now, with Samuel Day’s death and having Zee back in his life, it all preyed on him.
And, of course, there was the guilt.
His control, where it didn’t involve Zee, was solid but if he didn’t want that to fracture, he had to fuel his body and attend to the other needs. A good, long run was essential, and a hunt wouldn’t hurt.
But those latter two would have to wait at least another day, likely longer.
So he ate the meal, fueling his body in one fashion and watched Zee from under his lashes. That, too, satisfied a need, one that went all the way through to his soul.
When she finally pushed her plate aside and focused on him, he gave up pretending an interest in his food and put the fork down.
“What happened to my father?” Her voice was soft and steady, but he could see how she braced herself.
It was the first time she’d asked for the whole story. Although he’d always suspected their relationship had never been an easy one, he had no doubt that she’d loved Sam at some point, perhaps still did. Zee’s heart was soft and huge, capable of so much love, even for those who didn’t deserve it. Now, she sat in her chair, holding herself rigidly, spine and shoulders stiff, as if braced for a blow.
“What did Colby tell you?”
Her cheeks flushed and she looked away.
Curious at the reaction but electing to hold his tongue, Niko waited her out.
“Not much, only that Samuel was injured saving some Appalachia children and his wounds would prove fatal. That was it.”
Niko frowned. “Nothing else?”
“He... didn’t have time.” She tucked her tongue against her cheek, cocking her head as she studied him, clearly considering her words before she spoke. “He came in while I was having a drink with a guy. He’d kissed me and I was about ready to ask him to come up to my place when Colby came in and saw us.”
Niko’s vision went red, hands clenching into fists as his claws prodded against his skin in an urgent demand to be released.
What guy? He had to bite back the order that rumbled in his throat, knowing he had no right to ask.
Zee gave him a look of challenge, as if she knew exactly what he was thinking.
When he said nothing, she continued, her daring look shifting to a cocky smile that made him want to kiss her—or maybe spank her. “Colby decided he’d intervene on your behalf—which, really, would be funny as hell since you gave up all claim to me—but it stopped being funny after oh, maybe the third, or fourth, or tenth time such interference occurred over the past ten years. This time, it happened at the Mermaid’s Tale in Provincetown.”
Niko set his jaw, some of the details—and the cold burn of Meridia’s anger—surfacing from his cluttered mind. He really did need to yank his head out of his ass.
Lips curving a half-smile that held hints of embarrassment and smug amusement, Zee continued. “Colby went after the guy I was with and Meridia intervened. I’m surprised you hadn’t already heard—he’s banned from Atargarian lands now. Entering will result in his death.”
Under the cover of the table, Niko clenched one hand into a fist while his claws demanded to tear free from his human skin. Rational thought had taken control though, working through the haze of anger and jealousy.
Boone, telling him about an incident involving Colby. How Zee had reacted—deprivation. Colby, his face battered, telling him it would be best if he returned to Appalachia.
“You said the third, fourth, tenth time. I take it Colby wasn’t the first to react in such a way,” he said. His voice was so calm and neutral, he barely recognized it.
Inside, he was a storm.
“You think I was a virgin by choice?” She gave him a sharp-edged smile. “I haven’t spent the past ten years thinking you’d see the error of your ways and search me out, beg me to take you back. The first few years, I might have clung to some desperate hope you’d come looking for me, but I wised up fast enough. Once I settled with Meridia and her people... ?”
The graceful half-shrug she gave filled in the blanks with far more eloquence than it should.
“Perhaps if I’d stayed out west instead of eventually returning to New England, things would have gone differently. But it was almost like your wolves were following me, just waiting for me to try to hook up.”
