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When he trembled, his knees weakened, I followed him to the ground.
"You're at the safe house in Edinburgh. You're not back there. I'm here, I'm Haley. I'm right here, Wane, and I'm not going to let anything happen to you."
I wrapped my arms around him, curving my hand around the back of his head, and pressed kisses to his temple to calm him—
But I was making it worse. I was stilltouchinghim, blindly following instincts that would only harm him.
"Oh gods, I'm sorry," I breathed, letting go of him instantly. Horrified at myself.Idid this, threw him into a memory so dark, I couldn't even fathom what it felt like to relive it.
"No!" he croaked, throwing his arms around me and squeezing so tight it was hard to breathe. His panic spiked, even worse than before. "I can—I can fight it. Ihaveto."
"You're right here with me," I murmured, settling my arms back around him and running my fingers through his hair. It always helped me when my mates stroked my hair. And I didn’t know what else to do. I was lost. I needed to help my mate, but I didn’t know how to stop hurting him. "He's dead, Wane, he's dead."
His fingers flexed against my back, and he sucked air through gritted teeth. "He's dead."
The memories would never die, though. Not when he looked at Harvey, at all of us, and saw what had happened in that basement.
I laid another kiss against his temple, my hands trembling as I stroked his hair and—
"That's an illegal move, Halwen Vakhara," he rasped, taking a deeper breath. "You didn't get a hit on me; you didn't win any kisses."
I could have cried hearing the life and colour return to his voice.
I shoved all my horror down, and gave him an innocent look when he drew back, composing himself with enormous effort."Oh no,I broke the rules. Justhowwill I make up for it?"
He huffed a rusty laugh, giving me a wry look. "You didn't get enough cock last night?"
"Enough to last a lifetime," I groaned, following his lead when he climbed to his feet, pushing hair back from his face. "But I could stand to have some of those kisses you promised my pussy."
"I saidmaybe,"he reminded me.
My mouth fell open. No but—that wasn’t—
"Mean, Wane.Mean."
His next smile came a little easier, but the shadows were thick in his eyesandclinging to his body, wrapping him in a protective layer. At least his magic was healing after Cronus had cut out a swath of shadows, though. There were more every day.
"Alright," he said, stretching his arms above his head and proving just how mean he was when his grey shirt rode up, exposing a mouth-watering strip of bronze skin, his hip bones tempting me to run my tongue along them.4"If you want it, you have to win it, itzaia. Land a hit on me."
"Easy," I scoffed.
Except he was faster, aided by shadows,andhe knew me scarily well. I lost, whichshouldhave meant he kissed me somewhere, but all it really meant was he turned into the world's biggest tease.
By the time we wrapped up the sparring session, we were both sweaty, I was worked up, and Wane's trauma was kicked far enough away that he felt safe returning to bed.
It took me an hour to shut off and fall back asleep, but I didn't mind. It gave me more time to run my fingers through Wane's hair while he laid his head on my chest, and reassure myself he was here, alive, and as stubbornly brave as ever.
He let out a deep sigh in his sleep. Cronus might have broken him, but he was healing. And as long as I was his mate, I wouldn't let a single person hurt him ever again.
CHAPTER10
Iwinced when a thump came from the room above us, my left eye squinting shut.
"They'll be fine," Emlyn said, smiling at me across the coffee table in the living room. Laughing at me.
"I know," I muttered sulkily, holding the mug of coffee he'd made for me in both hands so the heat could work its magic on my nerves. Kai and Harvey were upstairs taking advantage of the training room Wane and I found. By the thuds coming through the ceiling, they were beating the shit out of each other. In other words, business as usual. At least they couldn't destroy my weapons cabinet this time.1
But watching them die had made me ultra clingy and a teeny, tiny bit protective. Not to mention it was amplified by everything that happened in Alphaven, them not remembering me,and thennearly losing them in the Wailing Cavesandthe Labyrinth, and now grieving Wynvail. I was touchy and sensitive, and I didn't like having them out of my sight.
