by Stone, Leia
“Very good,” he said. Grinning, he pulled me close and then flopped onto his back before tucking me to his side. “I didn’t even know sex could be that good…” He chuckled. “So, yeah.”
I reached out and laced my hand with his, staring at our fated mate marks. “Do you feel like you got to choose me? Or that you had no control?”
“Woman…” He raised his head and smiled. “Don’t you know by now I’d do anything for you? It’s nice that fate marked you as mine, but I chose to love you. How could I not? Your strength, your loyalty, your courage … I may’ve been in denial at first, but now … I love you more than anyone or anything. You have my whole heart, Nai, and I give that to you willingly.”
Swoon.
That was the sweetest thing to say, and yet … my tongue burned with the words I needed to speak—even if it ruined the mood.
“Rage, I—”
“You’re leaving me again.” He swallowed hard and stared at the ceiling, seemingly unable to look into my eyes. But through our bond, I could feel his disappointment.
“Only temporarily,” I rushed to say. “Because my grandpa is dying, and I need to figure out what all I’m supposed to do and know about spirit magic, and then … I’ll come back.”
He was quiet a long time, just breathing in and out. Through our bond, I felt his internal struggle, but I couldn’t tell what exactly he was wrestling with…
“You’re going to become the high mage of spirit”—he turned his head to look at me—“and yet live with me here, in Alpha Castle?”
I narrowed my eyes, defiance swelling within me. If the high mages ever thought they’d force me to live away from my mate…
“Of course, Rage. Is there some law that says I can’t handle high mage affairs from Alpha Island?”
“Shifter Island.” A twinkle gleaned in Rage’s green eyes, and I froze.
“What?”
Rage rolled onto his elbow and faced me. “I wanted you to be here to see it, but I—”
I crashed into him, throwing myself over him in a giant naked hug as the memory of what he’d done resurfaced. The high mages had spoken about it in the library, but I hadn’t processed it. “Oh, Rage! You united the shifters!”
He chuckled, his chest rumbling under me. “I tried. Some have committed to returning, but not all…”
“I’m so proud of you.” I sighed, thinking of him making that decision—without me—and emotion clogged my throat. “I’m sorry … I wish I’d been here.”
“But you had your grandfather to attend to,” he said with a sad sort of smile.
Fierce determination had me clenching my teeth, and I propped myself up by my elbows, letting my hair fall around us like a tent, closing off the world.
“Rage Midnight, you are my mate, first and foremost, and I will spend the rest of my life here with you.” I hoped he took my bold declaration seriously. “I just need a little time before I’m ready … to do that, you know.”
His gaze traced over my face before meeting my own. He smiled then, and although there was sadness in that smile, there was also pride—and acceptance. “Okay, Nai. Okay.”
He yawned again, and my own body weighed heavy with the need for sleep. I slid off him but settled close, grinning when he tucked me even closer to his side.
“What time do you need to be back?” he asked, slurring with yet another yawn.
“Six … maybe a little before then.” I tacked on the latter part after only a moment of consideration. “I don’t think we want Reyna coming to get me.”
“Mother Mage, no.” He chuckled as his eyes fluttered shut.
A moment later, I felt him reach out to one of his brothers, which was a new sensation and must have been because our bond was sealed.
“Noble will get us at five, plenty of time for you to get back,” Rage said.
With his scent swirling around me, I nestled down next to my mate and fell into blissful slumber.
Chapter Five
When morning came, I didn’t want to say goodbye, but I knew if I didn’t, Reyna would show up and drag my butt back through the portal. We lingered as long as we could, but when the sun streaked the sky, Rage led me through the halls of the castle and then back toward the academy library.
I frowned. “I hate that we can’t talk while I’m there.”
Rage rubbed his hands up my arms. “I think … when you get there, try it again. Now that we’re mate-bonded, maybe we can. Also, I want to see you more.” He took a deep breath and then added, “How about every day, we meet here and catch each other up on what happened?”
I grinned. “Yes. And every week, we have date night, and I’ll stay over. You can take me out to dinner.”
Rage grinned. “I’m buying.”
“Obviously.” I rolled my eyes playfully, but it did nothing to ease the ache in my heart.
After we stepped into the library, we headed toward the back where the portal lay. Honor was there, waiting for me. Rage looked at Honor and smiled. “Thank you, brother.”
Then my mate turned his attention to the onyx stone door, his eyes narrowing with absolute hatred. “Nai, I need you to know something.”
I gulped at the seriousness of his tone, and my voice came out breathy. “What?”
“If anything ever happens to you there, if I feel you’re hurt or in pain through this—” he tapped the left side of his chest just over his heart. “—I need a way through that door. I won’t have anything keeping me from you.”
There was so much pain in his gaze, and shadowy remnants of it seeped through our bond such that I could only imagine what he’d been through after I’d left.
“Understood, my love. I’ll talk to my family and see what we can do.” I leaned forward and rose onto my tiptoes, grasping his cheeks in my hands, and then captured his mouth in a toe-curling kiss.
“Gross, get a room.”
I recognized Justice’s voice and broke away from Rage with a grin as I spun, searching for the other green-eyed brother. I found him leaning against a bookshelf, looking significantly worse for wear.
“Justice!” I pulled him into a hug, and he wrapped his arms around me, giving me a brief squeeze before he pulled away. His hair was a mess, and dark circles marred his eyes.
“You had us worried,” he said, his voice gravelly. His gaze darted to Rage before returning to me. “Honor said you’ve had a tough couple of days too.”
“You nearly started a war,” Noble called as he strode down the aisle. I turned to face the final Midnight brother, who was shaking his head and wagging a finger at me as he approached.
“Okay, lay off the guilt,” I told them, rolling my eyes. “I feel bad enough.”
And I did. Like a twenty-ton brick, guilt hung heavy in my chest—guilt heaped on top of guilt—for leaving without warning, and now … for leaving again.
Rage caught my hand and tugged me back to him, tucking me close once more. “We’ll still meet every day for ten minutes, right? How is four o’clock?”
With a big sigh, which did nothing to relieve the trepidation coiling in my chest, I rose up on my tiptoes and kissed his cheek. Dropping my voice, I whispered in his ear, letting my lips brush his skin. “See you at four, mate.”
He caught me, his hands on my hips as I lowered myself, a smile playing on his full lips at our secret. We’d sealed our bond. No one could take that from us.
Not now, not ever.
Honor and I passed through the portal. Reyna was nowhere to be found in the hallway leading into the library. The only sound was the splashing of the magical fountain in the library’s rotunda, and I turned to look at Honor. ‘Thanks for being here with me.’
He gave me a wolfish grin. ‘Of course, sis.’
I blinked at his term of endearment. ‘Sis?’
Honor padded down the aisle, stopping to look back at me over his shoulder. Not only was his grin still there, but he offered me a short bark that sounded a lot like laughter. ‘You might be able to f
ool the mages, but I can smell Rage all over you—way stronger than ever before. You’re family now.’
My eyes widened, and my pale skin probably turned the color of a flamingo—all the way from my scalp to the tips of my toes. ‘You can? But, I showered after…’
Ever the gentleman, Honor turned away as my admission caught up to me, and my blush deepened.
‘Please pretend I didn’t just say that,’ I muttered, scurrying to catch up to him.
‘You’ve got it,’ he said through our bond as we wound through the library toward the door marked spirit. ‘For what it’s worth, I’m glad you and Rage sealed your mate bond, even though you weren’t able to have a human wedding ceremony first.’
My skin went from pink to deep red, like a freakin’ beet. ‘Uh … thanks? I think…’
‘Are we done talking about this now?’ Honor asked.
‘So done.’ Because what girl wanted to talk about intimacy with her brother-in-law? ‘Let’s focus on something else’—pretty much anything else—‘please?’
Honor laughed, just as we arrived at the doorway to spirit, my grandfather’s study, and then more laughter swelled around me, followed by voices.
“Have you seen her yet?” a male mage asked, his voice sounding younger than the high mages I’d tested with yesterday.
“Yep,” another male answered, his voice having the same timbre as Kian’s. His son. “She was at the records hall a couple nights ago to sign her name.”
Julian!
“And…?” the first voice asked.
“Oh my mage, Xavier!” a female trilled, her voice airy and musical. “She’s not life-companion material.”
One of the males grunted, but I couldn’t tell if that was in agreement or not. Probably not. Not that I cared what the other mages thought.
Looking at Honor, I rolled my eyes and then pulled open the door to Gramps’ study. Perhaps, if that was that, I would’ve walked through the door and said nothing.
Maybe.
But the mean girls’ convo … it just … kept … going.
“There’s not even short-term partner potential with that half-breed,” Kian’s son said. “Dad said—”
“Your dad is a douchebag!” I yelled, just before stepping over the threshold. I started to push the door closed, but my comment wasn’t nearly enough. Not even close. I sucked in a deep breath and yanked the door wide once more. “And I’m already mated!”
The voices cut off, and a female gasped, but I didn’t wait to hear what else was said. I simply slammed the door shut.
I glanced down at Honor and raised my eyebrows. “I’m done playing nice to these evil rich kids.”
His tongue lolled out again as he cocked his head to the side. ‘I’m pretty sure you’ve never played nice to jerks.’
There wasn’t really much to say to that; he had an excellent point.
I peered around the space, but Reyna wasn’t in my grandfather’s study. Honor and I shared a look. “I guess I’m going to go start my first day.”
‘Do you want me to stay here or come with you?’ he asked.
I exhaled a long breath. “You know, I have no idea which would be better.”
‘Then I’ll stay here,’ he replied. ‘But prop the door open so I can get to you if needed. And we may need to replace it … I nearly went crazy yesterday.’
I knelt in front of Honor and buried my hands in his silky fur at the scruff of his neck. “Thanks for being such a good friend to me.”
After a quick goodbye, I continued on into the castle, drawn to the kitchen by the smell of coffee.
“Good morning, Nai,” my Aunt Sariah said as I strode into the kitchen.
“Harumph,” I grumbled. “Bit of a stretch calling it good.”
“Coffee?” she asked, lowering her voice. “Rough morning?”
If she suspected I was having a rough morning, she was way off. It was more like a rough week—no, closer to a month. Honestly, I’d lost count, and my buzz from being with Rage had been killed by the d-bag mages talking crap about me and calling me a half-breed.
I nodded in response, slinking to the table as Donovan walked into the kitchen.
“Hungry,” he grumbled, sitting next to me.
We shared grumpy nods, and Sariah just laughed, setting a steaming mugful of coffee before me and a plate of waffles drenched in syrup before Donovan.
We sat in content silence for a few moments, me drinking coffee until the heaviness left my limbs, Donovan cutting his waffle into perfect squares, popping them into his mouth one at a time.
Sariah held a plate out to me. “Want a waffle?”
“Yes, please.” I smiled at her and accepted the still-steaming breakfast, its baked scent perfuming the air and making my stomach growl.
“There she is! You just needed some coffee.” Sariah winked before she took her seat opposite Donovan and me.
I ducked my head while slathering butter over the waffle. After drizzling maple syrup on top of the glistening goodness, I met my aunt’s gaze. “Sorry for being a grump. I’m not really a morning person.”
She held up her hand as though to stop my protest. “It’s genetic. Neither was your mom.”
My heart panged. I wished I’d grown up knowing my mom like Sariah did. Just then, I realized what minimal things my father had said about my mom might not even be true.
“What was she like?” I asked, taking a bite of my waffle.
Sariah took a deep breath; her gaze went fuzzy as she then smiled. After several heartbeats of silence, my aunt met my gaze. “Funny. Kind. A total smartass.”
“Cuss word!” Donovan shouted.
My heart skipped a beat, and both Sariah and I jerked in our seats, startled by my cousin’s outburst, which then resulted in laughter.
“She was amazing,” Sariah continued. “She was always so sure of herself, confident in her powers and her place in the world. Nothing really shook her.”
I grinned, drinking in this conversation about the woman who birthed me like it was sunshine to my soul.
“Well, nothing shook her until she met your dad, of course.”
My eyes widened, and I gasped. “Do you know that story?” I inched forward on my seat. “Tell me!”
A slow smile crept across my aunt’s face. “Well, going into the Shifter Island library is forbidden to everyone but the high mages … but everyone does it, like a rite of passage. Even if just for a moment in the middle of the night.”
Fully awake now, I bounced my knee as my heart thumped with excitement and anticipation for this story.
Sariah leaned forward on her elbows, her silvery-white curls falling softly around her shoulders. “I dared her to go into Shifter Island’s library and steal a book.”
“Stealing is bad,” Donovan pointed out.
“Yes, it is,” Sariah replied and then looked at me and winked. “So, we went over about nine o’clock at night, long after dinner, when we thought the library would be unoccupied.”
I leaned forward, taking in every word. “What happened?”
Sariah’s voice dropped, and even though she was looking at me, she had that faraway gaze as if remembering… “We opened the black door. Your mom strode into the library, her chin held high. She waved for me to join her, but I chickened out, telling her I’d stay back to hold the door open. I can almost see her now in my mind’s eye—she walked down the nearest aisle, grabbed a book, and then spun around, bolting for the open portal door. Of course, that’s when your father stepped right in front of her, and the two of them collided”—my aunt clapped her hands together—“Bam! Just like that, she ran smack dab into his chest.”
I giggled, and Sariah burst into laughter.
After our laughter waned, she sighed. “It was love at first sight. Well, almost. I mean, first, he called her a thief, and she snapped back at him, ‘Watch where you’re walking, you oversized dog.’ You know, that sort of thing.”
A huge grin took over my face as happiness pour
ed into me. “What happened after that?”
Sariah checked her watch before answering. “He … he apologized. Then he asked her to stay so they could talk … and she did. With a wide-eyed wave, she told me to cover for her, and then I left her there. They ended up meeting that way weekly, at first, and then more often … even going on secret dates.”
That was similar to what I’d just worked out with Rage. The thought that we were doing what my parents once did made me smile even bigger.
“Thanks for sharing that with me,” I told her, my voice cracking at the end. After clearing my throat, I added, “It really means a lot to me.”
She nodded and reached out to squeeze my hand.
“Family,” Donovan said with a mouthful of waffles.
“Family,” Sariah confirmed.
My throat tightened even more. For so long, it had always been me and Dad. Lona and Mack were there too, but my family had always been so small. Now, I had more, and the wonder of it made me feel so lucky.
“Come on, Nai,” Reyna grumbled from the doorway. “We need to get a move on or you’re going to be late for your first lesson.”
Looking at me, Sariah raised her eyebrows. “Reyna’s the queen of not being a morning person.”
“I heard that,” Reyna grumbled as she filled a mug the size of Texas with black coffee and then chugged it down like it was water.
Whoa.
Sariah swallowed and then pushed back from the table, crossing the kitchen to the other wolf-shifter. With her voice lowered, my aunt asked, “How’s my dad?”
I rose and stepped closer so I could hear as well.
Reyna drained the last of her mug and then wiped her hand over her eyes. With a flat expression, she met my aunt’s worried gaze. “He’ll sleep a lot more from now on. He’s too weak to make the potion that gives him energy, which means I’ll feel weak and tired too. I’m doing my best, but…”
She shrugged and then poured another cup of coffee.
I frowned. Taking in all Reyna was saying was a lot. And I wasn’t sure what, if anything, I could do to help.
“Oh, honey,” Sariah placed one hand on each of Reyna’s shoulders. “I didn’t mean … how are you?”