Page 15 of Blinded
CHAPTER FOUR
BAYNE
I watched Brett from across the room, feeling his nervousness through our link. He was on the phone with his parents, and from his demeanor I guessed he was having a hard time convincing them not to come to Montana. "Kurt, can you do anything to keep his family from coming here?" I glanced over at my alpha, hoping he understood Brett's need for them to stay away.
"I'll talk to Pete, but there's no telling if he'll help. I've only heard about him, we've never met. He's a different kind of man from what I hear. Power hungry. I don't agree with how he runs things." Kurt rubbed his fingers over his jaw.
"Yeah, Brett mentioned he takes the single women at will. Using your authority for sex is still rape." I bit my lip, trying to keep from going over to Brett and offering my support. This was something he needed to do on his own but staying even across the room when I could feel his emotions was hard.
Cohen laughed. "I never thought I'd see the day you looked like you weren't in control."
I glared at him. "Don't start. This shit is overwhelming. I've never felt anything like it. It's fucking with my mind."
Kurt gripped my shoulder. "You haven't seen anything yet. Just wait until the bond fully kicks in."
I shook my head. "I don't know how you do it. I'm ready to lock him away to keep him safe."
"If it helps, he's feeling the same way." Kurt smiled. "You'll both get used to it. In time, you'll learn to deal and figure out what works best for the two of you to control it."
Cohen reached for a bottle of water on the desk beside him. "The first few days are the worst. No one can prepare you for the feeling. It's like suddenly someone else's life is more important than your own, but you're not able to do anything to make sure they're always safe. Have you two had a chance to talk about it yet?"
I ran my fingers over my beard. "Yeah, we aren't going to fight it. We'll complete the bonding tonight."
"Well, that's unexpected. I'm excited to hear that. I thought it might take some time considering everything going on." Cohen glanced over at Brett. "He's handling this better than he was yesterday."
"The bond helps, I think. He knows he's not alone. His problem is he feels like he's baggage and going to make me live half a life. I'm trying to convince him that's not how I see things, but I think the shock of being blind is too fresh for him to think of it any other way. Once he learns and adapts to not being able to see, then it will be easier. We both agree that denying the mating bond would kill us both. There's no denying what we feel. It's easier to face it and figure out what it means for us than to fight and struggle to stay apart." I took a deep breath. "It's so strange loving someone I don't even know. He is everything to me, yet I don't even know his fucking last name. I've lived my life hearing about the mating bond and how intense it is, but I never imagined this."
Kurt nodded. "Now you know why I like to have Josh with me all the time. I hate being apart. It's physically painful to be more than a few rooms away. Even with the bond I share with all of you as alpha, that pales in comparison to what the mating bond feels like."
I shook my head. "I don't know how the two of you waited to do the ceremony for so long. I don't think I'd survive."
"There were times I didn't think I would either," Cohen admitted. "I'm glad you are doing it quickly. Have you discussed if he'll stay here or you'll go to his pack?"
"We haven't talked about a lot, but he mentioned he'd stay here. If what I hear about Pete is true, I'd never last in a pack like that. I think Brett will be happy here. Bridger was trying to talk him into moving here." I glanced over at Brett again as he hung up the phone. I didn't wait for him to look for me. I went to him, pausing close by his side. "Hey, I'm here. You okay?"
"Did you hear all that?" He turned to face me.
"No, I was across the room until you hung up, but I could feel your stress." I touched his arm and he stepped closer, pulling me into his arms.
"My mom is upset obviously. She wants to be here to help me, but I told her I'd found my mate and you were helping me. I think that upset her even more." He rested his head on my shoulder. "I think she knows I'm not going back there."
I kissed his temple, right over the white gauze that was wrapped around his head. "We'll talk to your family, see if they want to come here. They'd be welcome." I was relieved to hear Brett mention again that he wanted to stay in Montana.
"I mentioned that, but I told them I needed time to get used to being with my mate. I downplayed the blindness so she wouldn't worry, at least downplayed it the best you can when it's blindness. I guess it's better to say I didn't let on how scared I am because of it." Brett pulled back, putting a few inches between us. "My alpha is mad and swearing vengeance on whoever did this."
I nodded, not surprised by his alpha's reaction. "We'll let Kurt handle Pete. You've got enough to deal with." I caressed his chin with my knuckles. "You ready to talk to Kurt and Cohen?"
"Yeah, might as well. What about Bridger's family?"
"They're here. Kurt's mate is with them. They are waiting to talk to you as well, but Kurt wanted to talk to you first."
Brett nodded. "I don't know how I can help, but I'll answer what I can."
I linked my fingers with him and led him across the room to where Cohen and Kurt were still waiting. Once I made sure Brett found his chair, I sat down beside him.
"How are you feeling, Brett?" Cohen asked.
"Better than I was. Shifting helped a lot. I'm still freaked out over my eyes, but I guess it's just something I'll have to get used to. Can you do anything like secure my eyelids shut so it won't freak people out to look at me?" Brett still held my hand tightly in his.
