AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Good.”
“Seb…”
“Yes, baby?”
“If Lukas was all angry and getting into trouble. And Darion was recovering…did you look after them for those first couple of years?”
Seb’s chest freezes before he exhales. “We needed to eat. When I found Oma and could get the two of them to stay with her, I had to get a job. I needed to find enough work to get food for us. Or I fought in the underground fights. Or I stole. Not particularly proud of that, but we needed to eat.”
“How long?”
“Hmm… a year, maybe a bit longer. When they improved, I found a better job, and we had enough to rent a little dumpy apartment. Then Darion opened his eyes one day, and he was back, and he had these ideas. I had a choice. I could believe in him and his ideas or keep doing what I was doing.”
“You trusted Darion.”
“He’s smart, and he knows people. I’m not good at manipulating people, but I know how to get the job done. It’s easy to follow Darion. He’s the lead alpha.”
“It's hard to step up and be responsible when you’re alone, though,” I murmur. “He knows he needs you and Lukas.”
Seb tugs at his beard. “They needed me, and they need me now. But we need Darion, too. And Lukas, and more than that, we need you.”
I pull his fingers away from his beard and lace them with mine. It’s strangely intimate, and I feel closer to him because of it.
“So you did it.” I whisper, staring at our hands. “You survived and cared for them and kept them alive.”
“Yeah. Anyone would-”
“No, they wouldn’t have.” I lift my head off his chest and lean up to kiss him. “No, Seb, they wouldn’t have, but you did.”
He stares at me, and I stare right back. He might be able to see all of me and get down to understand the core of me, but I’m learning how to read him. I’m learning what makes him tick. And Seb is that one in a million man. The one who sits in the shadows and does all the things needed, even if they stain part of his soul.
I want, no, I need, to protect this man. I’m going to love him the best way I can. That’s by seeing and appreciating all of him.
There’s so much about him that I don’t know. And so much that I do. He eats corn chips with his stew. Pulls the batter off his fish and gives it to Lukas. He has a scar on the inside of his wrist in the shape of a moon. He enjoys playing sports but hates watching it. He abhors violence against women and children. He loves by understanding that person and providing what they need.
I’ve seen him spot Lukas across the room, take one look at his face, and throw keys at him. He brings Darion his favourite ice-cream when he is trying to get through paperwork that is frustrating him.
“You do the same.”
I’ve almost forgotten the conversation we were having. “No, I-”
“You do the same,” Seb says evenly. “You went and told Darion that Trinity was coming. You protected your family, signed a contract with us. Changed your future. You put up with Darion’s shit and let Lukas whisk you off when he needs you.”
“I don’t mind-”
“Maybe we give too much of ourselves,” Seb offers. “Maybe that’s who we are, and it’s okay.”
“Maybe I can be that island for you, and you can be an island for me.” I counter.
Seb smiles. “I like that idea.”
Silence sits easily between us, but there’s something I want to ask.
“Why haven’t you put a bond on me?” My voice is small and insecure, and I hate it. “It’s been over a month. I’m not pushing. I just need to know.”
“Hey, hey. I want you and this and us forever. Missy, you are my omega, and I am your alpha. As far as I’m concerned, that’s already a done deal. I just want to wait until we aren’t feeling hunted. I want it to be because we are happy and free of that toxic shit.”
I nod. “Do you know why Darion won’t?”
