Page 48 of The Arabis Triad

Paxt nodded. “It is the way of our Homeland. We would have told you when you were ready to join us in every way possible. We… had no idea this would happen now.”

Moments stretched as she looked between Paxt and Coltan. Her heart thudded heavily. Blood rushed in her ears.

Bonded. Thoughts. Feelings. Soul.

What if they discovered they didn’t like her? That she wasn’t the good person they thought she was. What if she let them down? They didn’t know anything about her. She was a complete stranger to them.

Ashir appeared in the doorway, a tray in his hand and thunder on his face. “Why is our mate distressed?”

“She is overthinking.” Paxt leaned forward and brought his lips to hers.

His kiss was commanding. Urgent. She became caught up in the mastery of his caress, the thrust of his tongue, his taste, his smell. His eyes glazed with restrained desire, his lips glossy. He breathed heavily as he looked down at her, heavy-lidded and languid.

He pressed his palm over her heart. “Do you feel that? Me? Us? Close your eyes and feel our connection. Do it, Evelyn.”

His authoritative words cut through the haze of just wanting to kiss him. She closed her eyes, doing what he said. There was a pulsing warmth within her chest that wasn’t there before. Curious, she focused on it. It wasn’t just one presence, rather all three of them. She detected Paxt’s command, Coltan’s caring, and Ashir’s exuberance. She couldn’t believe it, and yet it was there. An unseen connection pulsed between them. Their thoughts brushed her mind like a gentle caress and a deeper, headier emotion caressed her soul.

She reached out, let them envelop her. Their essences washed through her and when it did, their emotions were stronger. Deeper. Textured with multihued threads she would never know if she didn’t feel them in her heart.

They touched her soul, wound around it and through it. They were separate and yet as one. And she knew each of them on an intimate level she could never otherwise fathom. Not just likes or dislikes or the things of ego and personality.

But things of the soul.

They were so bright and clear. Pure. Love as clear as air flittered around her. Gentle. Forgiving. Firm when needed. Always giving. Without end.Thatwas what had brought her back. It was the bond she’d felt.

“Is that…” She had to clear her voice when her throat thickened with emotion. She pressed her fingertips to her mouth, hands shaking. She was only able to whisper, “Is that… how you feel about me?”

“Yes, my love. It is how we feel about you. So now you understand that we know your soul and you know ours. We have a lifetime to discover the other things, but our souls are linked. We know you and you know us. Never forget that,” Paxt said.

She covered her face with her hands, letting the rush of tears fall. Arms surrounded her, comforting and familiar. She leaned against Paxt, accepting the support he gave. She knew—reallyknew—he offered it unselfishly, only wanting to see her comforted.

There was no hiding from the essence of a soul. She’d seen theirs and they’d seen hers. It was undeniable in its beauty.

“So beautiful,” she whispered. “I can’t believe this is happening.” She couldn’t believe she’d been abducted by Reptiles at first either, until the cold, hard reality had set in. She drew a deep breath, letting go of the unreality of her situation. This was real, this was happening and she found she didn’t mind it at all. In fact, now she knew how they felt about her. She knew that their connection wasn’t based on lies. It was light and golden and completely unbelievable if she thought about it too hard, but it was also right. There really was a bond that connected them all. What they felt for her was... breathtaking. Beautiful. Glorious. Complete and utter love.

Paxt wiped the tear that tracked down her cheek, his touch more mobbing and intimate that she could have ever thought possible. She gave him a watery smile and felt his answering pulse of undeniable affection.

Paxt pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “It is. Now you understand how precious it is. How preciousyouare tous.”

She nodded into his chest. Words were not adequate. She was completely overwhelmed, as she sensed they all were.

“Now, you must eat. And rest.” Paxt’s voice was thick with emotion. “And then, when you are ready, we will complete the bond. The old-fashioned way.”

She blinked up into his handsome face, and then shifted her gaze to Coltan next to her and then to Ashir at her feet. They touched her as though it was the most natural thing in the world.

She breathed out a chuckle, feeling lighter and clearer—and happier—than ever before. “That’s the best thing I’ve heard in a long time.”

* * *

It had been three days filled with kissing, touching, and caring. But it wasn’t enough. Evelyn could feel their thoughts to know they suffered as much as she did, and yet all three were so concerned she wasn’t fully healed to seal the mate-sync they hadn’t done any more than that.

No amount of telling them how she was healed, that there was nothing wrong with her, that she was breaking, on edge with sexual tension, would make them change their minds.

She was taking things into her own hands.

She’d showered. Washed and dried her hair until it shone in soft strands down her back. Applied a moisturizer that smelt like magnolias so that her skin was dewy and extra soft. She’d removed every hair on her body, apart from her head. She was bare—down there.

She sauntered to the bed, the air caressing her newly depilated skin. She shivered, and goosebumps broke out over her, erotic and arousing. Or maybe it was in anticipation of what she was going to make happen.

---