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One
Lorn
The warm evening breeze stirred through my hair as the sounds of the party behind me faded into obscurity.
You look just like your mother.The words echoed through my mind as I stared at Elan Takado, one of the four elders of the shadow touched people.
“You knew my mother?” My question was quieter than I wanted it to be, but he’d shocked me with his revelation, and I was having a hard time processing.
“We all knew your mother,” Ashkii, another elder, replied. His hair was gray at the temples, his face weathered from age.
“There’s no denying the family resemblance,” Elan mused, motioning toward me with a broad sweep of his hand. “It’s the structure of your face.” His eyes glazed over as his gaze roamed across my features, seeing a memory molded into the arches of my cheekbones and the line of my nose. Then his attention locked onto my blue eyes, and his own narrowed before he shook himself out of the trance. A pleasant smile curved his lips. “Your mother was beautiful, just as you are.” Elan’s focus shifted momentarily toward Tye, his son, who I’d almost forgotten was standing next to me. “Isn’t Lorn captivating?”
My head was still spinning when I glanced at Tye. The natural debris that covered the forest crunched under his black boots, announcing the step he took closer to me. A drugging magick tingled along my skin, so different from what I felt with any of my other mates. It was darker, with a sinister note that awoke the dormant darkness lingering within me, drawing me in like a moth to a flame. What was it about bad boys that held such appeal?
The torchlight nearby reflected in his dark eyes, brightening them just enough so I could make out his green irises. Most girls I knew would kill for that color, a beautiful hazel mix—me included. Combined with his dark hair and tan skin, he was already delicious enough, but his aesthetic appeal was also topped off with a physique I knew was strong and fit from having been in his arms when he swept me across the dance floor.
Tye gripped my chin lightly and lifted my face toward his, inspecting me with his intense gaze. For a moment, I let him.
“Exquisite,” he murmured seductively, as flecks of red glinted in his eyes like sparks of fire.
A low growl snapped me out of the spell Tye had me in, and I pulled away a moment before Dason’s hands clamped down on my shoulders.
His alpha was close to the surface, and the power radiating off of him shivered up my spine. I resisted the urge to lean back into his chest, aching to sooth his riled puma. I wished we were close enough for me to lend him that kind of comfort and reassurance, but our relationship had been turbulent thus far, and while he’d finally proclaimed his interest in me as a mate, it was going to take a hell of a lot more than pretty words to prove it.
My other mates emerged just behind him, and I flashed them a look of thanks for coming to my aid. Even Kota was here, though we hadn’t ended on the best note earlier in the evening.
Pack always comes first, Chayton rumbled into my mind reassuringly, pushing feelings of calmness toward me. It helped ease my nerves a little and take the edge off, but it was an artificial balm at best.
“Hands off, Tye,” Dason ordered, his tone professional with a bite of authority. “You have to wait until the bloodletting to find out if you’re one of Lorn’s chosen or not, though perhaps you need a refresher on the rules.”
“Those may be the rules, but I only see one bite on her skin, and I can sense she hasn’t been claimed by an alpha,” Tye responded casually, unbothered by the tension swirling through the air.
“We’re not rushing the mating bites, but make no mistake about it, Lorn belongs to my pack, and as such, pack rules apply where she’s concerned.” Dason’s voice was steady and reassuring, and I gave in to my better judgment, rocking back on my heels so that my shoulders rested against his chest. A light rumble, almost like a purr, worked through his body, the light vibration soothing my nerves.
Even if our human halves weren’t quite there yet, our primal spirits recognized each other as true mates.
Dason turned to Elan and the other elders. “I know you’re not trying to disrespect me by summoning my mate without her pack. Without heralpha.” It was a statement more than a question, a declaration backed by his power. I didn’t know all the ins and outs of the pack rules, but I knew females were rare and respected above all else. It wasn’t hard to guess that it’d been a slight by the elders to talk to me without my pack present, no matter how sexist that seemed.
One battle at a time, Lorn.
Elan held up his hands, the picture of harmlessness, though the sentiment never quite reached his eyes. “We meant no disrespect, however, it was clear Lorn needed a bit of rescuing, which she got thanks to my son.”
An unhappy growl sounded from my alpha, quiet enough to refrain from issuing a challenge to the elder while still allowing him to air his displeasure.
Tye huffed an amused laugh while I suppressed the urge to purse my lips, disliking the way his father made me sound like a princess in a tower guarded by a cliché dragon. Besides, Tye was no knight in shining armor. I didn’t need to know him any longer than the few minutes I’d been in his arms to label him as trouble. The devilish smirk he wore only served as further proof.
I quickly changed the subject, hoping to ease the rising tensions.
“Mr. Takado was just explaining that he knew my mother,” I told Dason. The words flowed effortlessly from my tongue, but I was having a hard time digesting them and understanding they were real. How long had I been searching for this exact information? How long had I wondered? Dreamed? Hoped?
“Call me Elan,” he urged, adding, “Please,” when I tried to decline.
I nodded, and when Elan waved his hand toward their own private gathering—a bonfire away from the crowd with an array of chairs positioned around the perimeter—I stepped out of Dason’s hold and acquiesced.
Whether he knew it or not, Elan now held me in the palm of his hand, and if my instincts were correct, he definitely wasn’t naive to the fact that he had the advantage. I’d do just about anything to find out what he knew about my mother.
Are you okay, Lorn?Jolon whispered into my mind while he held my chair steady. I tucked my skirt and took a seat.
