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I sighed, ignoring Auren’s curious look, and tried to focus on all the warm fuzzy feelings I’d been having earlier when I was reading how cool she thought I was.
Oh, gosh, I totally forgot to tell you!
Her embarrassment was sharp enough that it cut through my own misgivings.
I smirked.Your crush on me is showing—you write about me like I’m a hero.
The mortification ramped up, and I chuckled, enjoying how easy it was to fluster her.
That’s because youaremy hero, Sariel.
Her sincerity sucked the wind from my sails. My heart stuttered in my chest like a traitor.
I’d been nothing but a fuck-up our entire relationship, barely managing to keep it together at every turn. Sure, she was stuck with me because of the bond, but I’d never imagined she would gothatfar. Something squishy and vulnerable laid roots in my chest, expanding rapidly as she spoke.
I like you just the way you are—well, maybe a little more relaxed, but that’ll come with time,she continued.You don’t need to change, and you’re not a fuck up! I swear, you hold yourself to impossible standards.
Her tirade cut off into a series of rapid-fire emotions and bits of remembered conversation I couldn’t quite make out for a second.
I’ll work on it,I said.
Our bond was burning in my chest, and her amusement was nearly tangible when I realized my own emotion was causing it. Of course, being enamored with your mate was nothing to be ashamed of, but every stifled giggle that brushed against it seemed to fluster me further.
It took a moment, but I finally managed to reel it in despite her prodding, and her affection enveloped me.
The changes to our connection had been amazing. Her feelings might as well have been mine at times, but beyond that, we were nearly living in each other’s bodies.
Honestly, we really needed to take time to investigate how deep it ran, because I sometimes felt like I was getting flashes of her day and seeing the world through her eyes. I wasn’t too sure how to feel about that.
Her very realistic mental hugs were a huge plus, though.
Aria drifted away, citing that she needed to focus on what Kiran was trying to tell her, and I ran my fingers through my hair, lying on Auren’s bed and staring at the ceiling.
“Could you two stop flirting for five minutes?” he teased, smirking when I sat up and glared at him. “You’re even blushing. It’s gross.”
“You’re one to talk!”
His laughter was contagious, though, and I tried not to gape after how he was laughing at all.
Ever since the arrival of his mystery mate, he’d been almost unhinged compared to his usual demeanor. Aria was worried about him, but I was just relieved that he had someone in the world designed specifically for him. He needed that; Iwantedthat for him. If anyone deserved to have a gift from the universe, it was Auren even if the things surrounding Ashe were a bit questionable.
The next few weeks were a blur, repeating the same cycles day in and day out as we tried to make sense of everything. Slowly but surely, the new additions to our sanctuary started to settle in, and things returned to normal; some of the wolf pups even joined up in the hybrid kids' training regimes. Kiran had been thrilled to have more people who wanted to learn how to defend themselves, ushering them into the fold with his normal enthusiasm for life. The kids equally adored him, and I could only assume it must have settled him like it did me whenever one of them beamed at me. It was hard not to surrender to their pudgy little faces, sometimes.
“They’re so cute,” Reese gushed, practically wriggling in excitement as the children mimicked Kiran’s poses.
At some point, they’d graduated Aria from their lessons, but she’d hung around just to watch after the little ones. Somehow, Reese had become her companion in that.
I think she has a crush on the twins,Aria confided, waggling her eyebrows behind the other woman’s back, and I stifled a laugh.
You gossip more than most of the old ladies around here.
Rolling her eyes, she giggled and pointed at one of the smaller kids as they toppled over. Kiran crouched to help them up and back into position.
Reese cooed. Aria gave me a pointed look as I shook my head in amusement.
Our friend group had fractured, though none of us were willing to address it. Marilyn and Johnny mainly kept to themselves or Neo, while Aria and I always seemed to gravitate toward Reese whenever she was around. It wasn’t surprising, considering the whole reason all of us had even befriended one another was because we were all on the run, but sometimes I caught Aria yearning for how we all were before.
I didn’t want to be the one to tell her we would probably never be those people again.
