Page 2 of Bonds of Fate

“Morning, Finnie.”

He’s gifted a soft smile as Finn sexily pushes his glasses up his nose. “Morning. I never thought I’d get to do this a week ago, you know. I’m sorry I let you go that night. I wanted you to stay.”

The memory of that night is still dim, but he remembers the beautiful doctor and his gentle, elegant, helping hands and sweetsmile. He had made him feel safe, even if he’d felt sadness at having to leave.

“I wanted to stay, but Daw–hewould have hurt you–hurt other people who were nice to me, and I knew I couldn’t lead him right to you.” Gideon drops something loud in the sink by accident and stands frozen for a moment, so Nix continues. “I couldn’t do that toyou. Not when you were the first person who made me feel something other than constantly being afraid. I had to go.”

“Nix.”

Nix knew Finn wanted to say that he could have helped him, that he could have prevented this whole thing, but Nix knows Dawson Hayes and he would have come for Finn, would have torn him down along with anyone else who’d gotten in his way.

He still might try, but this time—and the thing in the back of his head agrees—this time, they will fight.

Thunder booms and rain pours against the windows, but he’s safe and dry, perched on the breakfast bar while Gideon makes breakfast for his family. He hums along to the music under his breath, pausing now and then to nibble a piece of apple or strawberry that Finn offers. It’s sweet and reminds Nix that he had a few unanswered questions.

“Could either of you maybe tell me a bit about mates? Does it mean boyfriend or partner? It seems important, and I don’t want to put my foot wrong, ya know?”

Both men look uncertain, but neither changes the subject.

Finn wipes his hands on a napkin and puts on his “doctor face.” “Nix, mates are like husbands, wives, or partners in the Were community. It’s not something decided through civil or religious ceremonies like human weddings. While people do sometimes choose their mates and there are often celebrations, more often, Were mates are chosen for us.”

“What?! Like arranged marriages? Whoa.”

“Not at all.” Putting aside his breakfast preparations for a second, Gideon washes his hands and looks Nix in the eye. “Mates are gifted by the Goddess, and when we meet our mates, we feel a connection to them that we don’t to any other person. We are lucky to have seven mates. When I met each one, I knew they were mine, and I was theirs.”

“Whoa,” Nix says again. “So, you don’t have a choice? What if you don’t get along? What if the person isn’t…nice?” They all know Nix means someone like Dawson, so he doesn’t have to say it out loud. Even if Dawson isn’t Were, it’s scary to think about.

“Well, I guess that does happen, but the Goddess tries to choose mates that match you in lots of different ways. That’s why packs exist so that we can find a match for each aspect of our personalities.”

“You said seven, and Jamie said at the hospital that—am I a mate, too? With all of you?” Nix thinks the answer is yes. The moment he met each of them—and saw Jamie again—something had snapped into place, and the thing in his mind knew they were his, too. It’s the same feeling he’d had with Grayson yesterday, and even the way just being with Luca makes everything easier. Better.

“You are. We’ve missed you all this time. Jay—”

“Finn, not your story to tell, eh?” Gideon snaps his tea towel at his mate’s butt.

Finn squeaks at the contact but nods in agreement. “You’re right. Do you remember when I said I knew you were special to me? That’s what I meant. I was trying to work up the courage to convince you to stay.”

“Oh.” Maybe that’s why it had been so hard to go. “One more question: there’s this thing in my brain that has an opinion on everything. It’s really loud sometimes. Should I be worried?”

Both men chuckle, and Gideon pulls his cinnamon buns out of the oven and begins icing them. The vanilla icing looks divine, and the scent of the two together is a reminder of Leo.

“Like right now? Those smell so good, and it keeps saying it wants Leo. Whatisthat?”

“It’s your wolf.” Gideon tries to smudge icing on Nix’s nose, but Nix grabs his hand and takes his finger into his mouth, they both moan. Gideon licks his lips, his eyes dark with desire.

Wait. What did Finn say?

Nix inhales sharply—and promptly chokes. Coughing, he manages, “My what?”

“It’s a holdover from the genesis of our species,” Finn explains. “Jay told you that Weres retained some of our enhanced senses. Your wolf is a connection to that part of you—it’s your instincts and feelings with a mental voice of its own. It’s not a separate entity, exactly, but it’s the most non-human part of you.”

Finn dips his finger into the leftover icing, and Nix follows it with his eyes, leaning forward to suck the digit clean. A shiver runs through him.Hot. So hot.

Distracted momentarily, he brings the thing—his wolf—back on track. His chest tightens, and a shiver runs down his spine as the thought sinks in: there’s a semi-sentientcreaturelurking in the back of his mind. Nix swallows hard, his pulse quickening. Okay, maybe he’s more than a little bit freaked out.

Finn must see him still struggling. “Nix, he’s just a connection to your instincts and senses; it acts as an extra way to interpret what your enhanced senses are perceiving or feeling. For example, you smelled the cinnamon buns and the vanilla icing, and your wolf recognized the two scents as Leo and you. It reminded you that you haven’t seen Leo since last night, and you probably miss him. Jay and Leo have gone to work for a few hours, by the way. They’ll be back soon.”

“Huh. Makes sense, though. I need to think about it some more. Test it out on my own.” Nix keeps his tone vague because even though it’s weird, Finn’s words do make sense—his wolf is instincts and feelings, not a separate entity—but it’s more than that.

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