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“He probably feels the same way you do,” I continued. His doubtful look got a smirk out of me. “No, seriously. He’s probably feeling the mate bond just as sharply and doesn't know how to deal with it—especially since you say you guys are already telepathically connected. It’s uncomfortable suddenly having a sense that you didn’t have before.”
Auren nodded slowly, accepting this answer with a sigh. “I just… Ineedthem to like me.”
It seemed to physically pain him to admit that.
I nodded in understanding. I could remember that stage, the way I’d struggled and rebelled against the desperate need that had clawed in my chest.
I waffled back and forth on whether to tell Auren all of what Ashe had told me about himself—his relation to Elias, his mother’s disappearance, and the rest of it—but figured that that was something he should tell Auren on his own time. It shouldn’t come from me.
“Give him some time,” I suggested, thinking back to what I’d learned of Ashe in our interaction. I needed to word it so that Auren wouldn’t get discouraged. “He was friendly to me, but I’m not in his head. Maybe he’s just trying to work out how things should work on his end, too.”
Marilyn had drunkenly revealed her back-and-forth with Johnny the other night, and it was sticking out to me now. She’d accepted or rejected the man based on the day’s feelings; I couldn’t help but hope Ashe was just the same way with Auren, and it was just taking him a while to register or acknowledge the bond.
He deservedsomethingto go right for him, after the shitty hand he’d been dealt.
“Any more pointers?” he asked.
I laughed, opening my door and inviting him in to talk about how out of touch he was. As it turned out, he’d never even dated someone, much less actually been romantically interested in them, so there was a lot to cover.
The fact that he didn’t break out with something to take notes with as we talked was a miracle in and of itself.
By the time it was my turn to relieve Aria of her patrol, Auren seemed more confident than when he’d arrived. I could only hope I hadn’t just terribly misled him as I headed toward my own mate and waved our goodbyes.
My day was lackluster, then, just wandering the paths between our new addition to the compound and making sure everyone was being well-behaved. The fallen wolves still raised my hackles, but thankfully, I’d mostly mastered the reaction and kept it under wraps.
These people had been tortured by my father and didn’t deserve me being bigoted on top of everything else. They were just people trying to survive.
I couldn’t help but wonder how many of them had been there with my father, trying to hunt Aria and me down and drag us back to him, though.
“You’re Sariel, right?” a voice suddenly came through to me.
It was a kid who’d said it, nearly tripping over herself to get to me. She couldn't have been older than ten or eleven, grinning up at me like she didn't have a care in the world. Her dark curls were piled into a pair of space buns, making her seem even younger than she probably was.
“That’s me.”
She beamed wider at my confirmation, bouncing on her toes. Her hands folded behind her back as she rocked a bit, and I chuckled.
“My mama said you and Aria are the reason we’re getting medicine and stuff now, so I just wanted to say thank you.”
She was so genuine that I nearly flinched at the praise, trying to smile instead.
“No medicine yet, though,” I managed to croak out as her red eyes shined.
“Yeah, but wewillget some. My granny went feral a few years ago, and I don’t remember her well, but everyone was really upset about it. So it’ll be cool not having stuff like that happen anymore, you know?”
I nodded, struck mute as she continued to ramble about how amazing it was that either of us cared about them at all. From her monologue, I guessed that a few of the kids had been nervous about Aria passing by earlier, then gotten an earful from her mom about us and being grateful.
It was sweet, in a weird sort of way.
“Maisie!” another young voice called out, and she turned on her heel to find the source. Upon spotting the group of kids a few yards away, she waved, turned back to me with a hurried goodbye, and bolted.
I watched them running and playing together for longer than I probably should have, trying to rub the uncomfortable ache in my chest away.
“She means well,” Tiana promised, giggling as she approached. I grimaced but nodded in agreement. “Little ears listen in even when they’re not supposed to.”
“I don’t mind.”
It wasn’t a lie, but she gave me a knowing look. “I’m happy she wants to stay informed. Shows she’s smart,” I elaborated.
