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“Their language was a little more colourful,” she admits with a grimace.
I’d guess that’s putting it mildly. She tilts her head as she concentrates on what they’re saying, and I marvel at the fact that her hearing is so good.
“They said if they were me, they’d want to burn every piece of furniture you own because you've probably fucked someone on it.”
Oh, goddess. Ouch. It’s one step forward, two steps back. Maya looks uncomfortable, and she shifts in her seat, inching away from me slightly. That tiny bit of distance may as well be a mile. I feel like a fool for being so selfish all these years. If the roles were reversed, I’d be beyond upset, so I try to draw her attention back to me instead of the conversation going on in the corner.
“Are any of your other senses stronger than normal?” I ask, taking her hands and prying them apart so I can take one in mine. Letting my fingers stroke the back of her hand and around her wrist, I watch her intently as she considers her response.
“My hearing is probably the best, but it doesn’t compensate fully. Dean lets me train with the warriors, but not patrol on my own or anything like that. As you saw earlier, the guys like to take advantage of my dud nose and surprise me. All the time.”
She gives a wry smile that tells me she knows they mean no harm, but it’s annoying. Every time they do it, they’re reminding her of what she lost.
“I don’t think you have a dud nose. I think it’s perfect.”
I lean over and bop it, laughing when Maya turns to face me with a shocked look on her face. Her mouth hangs open as she giggles but it’s better than the sad expression she had a minute ago. She looks so damn cute when that sparkle appears in her eyes.
Eventually, Maya chuckles and shakes her head, stretching her toned, tanned legs out in front of her. My mouth waters at the sight of all that bare skin. It’s definitely a good thing we didn’t make it to Taaffe’s bar. I wouldn’t have been able to cope with all the males admiring her. I long to run my hands up those legs, to kiss her from ankle to hip. What I wouldn’t give to be alone right now, to push up her pretty dress, and see what she has underneath. I need to get an answer to something important first.
“How did it happen?”
Keeping my voice calm is difficult. I force myself to rein in my anger. Knowing this isn’t something she’s had since birth and probably wasn’t an accident, either, and given what I know about her father, I have a fair idea what she’s going to tell me.
“Dean was away at alpha training. It was the first time he’d left us alone with Dad since Maggie, Jax’s mum, had passed. Dad was… in a bad way. She was his second chance mate. Most wolves don’t recover from the death of one mate, let alone…”
Maya trails off and takes a swig from her bottle, buying some time while she gathers herself.
“Dean was freaking out about leaving, but he had to pass the training course if he wanted to take over the pack. Things were getting so chaotic at home, it couldn’t continue. We all knew the day was coming soon, so we convinced him to go. Promised we’d lie low and be fine without him for a little while.”
I nod along, trying to swallow down the bile rising in my throat. I already know what’s going to come next.
“Our little brother always got the brunt of Dad’s anger because he’s Maggie’s child. For other people, to lose a mate and find love again is a miracle. Dad didn’t see it that way. He thought it was a curse. He never wanted a fated mate. He only ever wanted Marie. Ending up with two and being powerless to resist either one of them, was unbearable to him. It’s like we were all living, breathing proof of how wrong he had been. He hated us for it and was getting worse and worse.”
Maya pauses and takes a deep breath to steady herself. I give her hand a gentle squeeze to let her know I’m still here.
“Dean always stepped in when he got out of control; with Dean away, when Dad went for Jax, I did. Most of the time, I could talk him down, but not this time. I did my best, but I’m no match physically for an angry alpha.”
She takes another long drink. I feel like I could use something stiffer, but I’m afraid if I move even an inch, she’ll clam up. This can’t be easy for her to talk about.
“I fought him off as best I could. Ross got word to Dean, but by the time he arrived back, Jax and I were both badly hurt. Dean loaded us into a car to take us to the hospital, but Dad refused to let us off the territory, so Dean did what he had to do to save us. He killed him and got us help.”
I keep my face carefully neutral, but I’m sick at the thought of what they went through. What a choice to make? Watch your siblings die or kill your father? No wonder Alpha Reynolds is angry all the time.
“I was in the hospital for weeks and had to have surgery. I still don’t really know the extent of all the injuries I had, and I’m not sure I want to.”
She pulls up the hem of her dress, showing me a scar on her thigh, and twists her arm around so I can see the faint line left by another deep gash to the inside of her elbow.
“I didn’t have my wolf yet, so my healing powers weren’t strong. And Jax, well, he was there for months. He made it and, thankfully, he doesn’t remember most of what went on. Dean is the one who suffers the most.”
I nod but can’t pretend to understand what they’ve gone through. We’ve had a relatively peaceful life and our family is so tight-knit. We’re probably too close sometimes, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. For Maya, going from an isolated pack with only her brothers as family, to living in a packhouse, and now finding out she has a mate, maybe, must be overwhelming.
Pulling her into my arms for a big hug, it’s as much to comfort me as it is to reassure her. Resting my chin on the top of her head, I smooth her dark hair with one hand and stroke her back with the other.
“I’m so sorry that happened to you. To all of you.”
She nods stiffly against my chest and her small hand rests tentatively on the front of my shirt. Some of the tension in her body has gone, but not all of it. Taking her silence as an indication that she’s done talking about it, I don’t push it and I change the subject.
“Do you care what they think? About what they were saying?”
