Page 98 of Undying
I repress a sigh, forgetting how moody shifters can be, especially regarding their mates.
Before they can tear me to shreds, I hold up my hands. “She is both vampire and human. We’ve only been feeding her blood. We haven’t taken into consideration that we might need to feed her human side as well. We might have inadvertently been starving her.”
I want to kick myself for not thinking of it sooner. The wolves whirl, crowding so close to Jolie that they have her sandwiched between them. They look stricken that they might have inadvertently harmed their mate by not providing for her properly.
They peer down at her in concern, like they fear she might keel over at any second.
Milo isn’t much better, fussing over her by checking her eyes, then pulse, before fretting over the wound on her arm. To my shock, the wolves allow it. Most shifters would annihilate anyone who dared touch their mate.
That she’s injured and vulnerable makes them a thousand times more dangerous.
It’s only then that I realized they’ve each claimed her, creating a little pack of their own. While part of me yearns to be a member of the group, I know that I have yet to earn my spot.
And I realize that I desperately want a place in her harem.
After going without a mate for so long, I’d accepted that I would never have one. Now that Jolie has burst into my life, I feel vulnerable for the first time.
Doubting myself.
What I considered a stable life now feels stale and devoid of life.
She’s like a breath of fresh air after being underwater for too long, and I’m not sure how to move forward without drowning.
Because losing her is unacceptable.
If anything happens to her, she’ll take my sanity with her, and I’ll become nothing more than a feral creature bent on destroying the world.
I jolt out of my reverie when I catch Jolie glaring at me for siccing the wolves on her. Her scowl is both cute and a little intimidating, and I barely resist the urge to squirm at her look of betrayal. At any other time, I might feel trepidation at being the focus of her wrath, but I refuse to feel guilty.
Truth be told, I’m just as anxious as the others, struggling with the need to make sure that she really is okay and that I didn’t damage her with my carelessness.
The pull is impossible to resist, and I don’t even try. “Why don’t we head to the kitchen and see what we can find for food? None of us can know the consequences that only half of her essence has been nourished, while the other half has been starved.”
The wolves settle on either side of her, practically marching her toward the kitchen. Milo rushes ahead and pushes open the door, and I take up the rear. I pause at the door, stopping the cat shifters from following.
“I know it’s not your job to get rid of bodies, but Jolie doesn’t need the trauma of dealing with more death in this house.” The shifters glare at me with hard eyes, and I can’t say that I blame them for doubting my sincerity. “I would deal with it, but I can’t be away from her right now.”
Not won’t.
Can’t.
If I let her out of my sight for too long, I fear she’ll slip through my fingers. I can’t exist in this world any longer, not when I know I now have a mate. I need to be near her, if only to keep her safe. I’ll spend the rest of my existence watching her from afar and be happy about it, if that’s what she wants.
“We’ll be conducting interviews later to hire more people to take care of the house and patrol the grounds.” It actually feels good to have a plan in place, taking charge and doing something.
“Very well.” Bryce nods reluctantly, a frown pulling at his brows. “I might know some people who’d be willing to help.”
He doesn’t say anything else, just crouches and slings the woman’s body over his shoulder. As he stands, a grimace contorts his face, not because he’s touching a corpse, but because the woman was an all-around nasty bitch no one wants to touch, even after death.
Kenny opens the door, and I watch them leave. Alone for the first time since the incident where I almost killed my mate, my shoulders slump as I stare blankly at the kitchen door separating us, and I run my fingers through my hair.
That was too fucking close.
I should be pissed the others claimed myreinaas their mate. I never expected to share my woman with anyone, but maybe fate knew I’d fuck things up and gave her more than one mate to keep her safe while I figured out my shit.
Only now, when I came close to losing her, do I realize I want to spend an eternity with her. The half finished mate bond vibrates in my chest, an ache that won’t be healed until she finishes her claim. I’ll spend the rest of my life showing her how much she means to me.
Eventually, she’ll have to forgive me.
