by L. P. Dover
I look over at him, and he smiles as he starts up the truck. “How did you get that scar?” I ask him.
He rubs a finger over his right eyebrow. “It happened the night we helped rescue your sister from the Yukon pack. It was a wolfsbane laced dagger.”
It’s not common for a shifter’s skin to scar, but it does happen if wolfsbane is involved. I remember that night very well, even though I was far away. “Thank you for helping save her. I knew what was going on, but Micah refused to let me get anywhere near Wyoming. I had never felt so helpless in my life.”
He sighs. “And now people are after you. Does it make you wish you weren’t a royal?”
“No,” I say in all seriousness. “I’m happy with who I am and where I came from.”
“Besides Tyla and Sebastian’s baby girl, are there more royal arctic females in the world?”
I’ve been waiting on someone to ask this question, and my answer will always be the same. “No. I’m the last full-blooded royal arctic.” Tyla and Sebastian’s daughter is half arctic and half gray, but she’s still a royal because of Sebastian’s blood. Right now, she’s not in any danger, but I have no clue what it’ll be like when she gets older.
When we pull up to Jason and Anna’s house, Tate’s truck isn’t there. Kami pats my shoulder and opens her door. “Come on. I’m dying to see what you’ve done.” I jump out of the truck, and we go inside. The nursery door is closed, and when I open it, Kami’s mouth drops. “Wow. This is absolutely magical.”
I wink at her. “That’s exactly what I was going for.”
My heart races as I watch Jason and Anna walk up the front porch stairs to the door. Their house is done, and even though I only contributed to the nursery, I’m excited to see what they think of everything. Tate and Anson worked hard on finishing the house. They meet the young couple outside and point out everything they did to the exterior.
Seeing Tate smile brings a smile to my face. I’ve enjoyed watching him work and how he takes pride in what he does. Kami stands by my side and gently nudges me. “You know, you don’t need magic to tell who your mate is. If you and my brother have feelings for each other, you shouldn’t ignore them.”
“You know it doesn’t work like that.”
Crossing her arms over her chest, she stands in front of me, blocking my view of Tate. There’s a seriousness to her I’ve never seen before. “Who says it doesn’t? We’ve all been waiting to find our true mates, but I say we go out and find them ourselves. Why can’t we?”
Her passion is what I love most about her. She reminds me a lot of Tate. It makes me wonder if people see similarities between me and Colin and Bailey. I would hope so because they’re two of the strongest people I know.
Kami steps out of the way just as Tate leads Jason and Anna to the front door with Anson following behind them. She makes a valid point. Why can’t we mate with who we fall in love with? The answer is simple … we can.
“You’re right, Kami. We should be able to make the choice.”
Her eyes light up. “What are you going to do?” Tate and the others walk in.
I lean in close to whisper in her ear. “I’m not sure yet, but I’ll figure it out.”
Jason and Anna already know Anson and Kami, so Tate introduces them to me. I shake their hands and walk with them through the house as Tate shows them everything. My nerves are shot. Anna wanted to save the nursery for last. I’m dying for her to see it, but I’m also afraid she’ll hate what I did. I may have overdone it a little.
My palms grow sweaty the closer we get to the nursery. Tate stops at the door and smiles at me. “Do you want to open it?”
Taking a deep breath, I let it out slowly. “Okay.” I walk over to the door and stand next to him.
Anna bounces on her feet excitedly. “I can’t wait to see this.”
Jason chuckles and squeezes her shoulders. “You’re gonna make the baby pop out early jumping around like that.”
Kami bursts out laughing. “I don’t think it works like that, Jason.”
He shrugs. “Hey, it could. You never know. Back in the day, they put pregnant women in confinement so excitement wouldn’t make them go into early labor.”
I nod. “That’s true, especially with the royals. How did you know that?”
Anna snickers and pats him on the stomach. “He’s a huge Tudors fan. I think we watched the show a gazillion times.” I haven’t watched the show, but I had plenty of time to read as a kid.
Placing my hand on the doorknob, I slowly turn it. “All right, here we go.” When I open the door, I step aside so Jason and Anna can walk in first. What used to be a navy-blue room has completely transformed into a magical faerie garden. The ceiling is a bright blue with dreamy white clouds. It almost feels as if you’re outside. The rest of the room is where the magic is. There are flowers and grass painted on three of the walls, and the rolling hills behind that make it look like the faerie land keeps going on and on for miles. On the final wall, I painted a serene lake with a gazebo covered in an array of rainbow pastel flowers.
Anna clasps her hands over her mouth and circles around, her eyes instantly filling with tears. “Oh. My. God. This is …”
Kami is the one bouncing around now. “Isn’t it amazing? When I walked in here yesterday, I couldn’t believe my eyes.”
Anna walks over to the wall and grazes a hand over the flowers. “It’s exquisite. I don’t know of anyone who can do this kind of painting.”
I look over at Tate, and he’s just as shocked by the look of awe on his face. He turns to me and lifts his hands in the air. “Why didn’t you tell me you could do stuff like this?”
I shrug. “I didn’t want to toot my own horn.”
Kami snorts. “I would be if I had this kind of talent.”
Anna opens her arms and pulls me in for a hug. “Thank you for this, Faith. I’m starting to think I want this room for myself.” She lets me go and laughs. “When people find out about this, you’ll be swamped with work. I have so many friends who’d love something like this painted in their homes.”
“Unfortunately,” Tate cuts in, “Faith’s only here for a few more days.”
Anna frowns. “That’s a bummer. If that changes and you find yourself back here, let me know. I know some people who’ll pay big bucks for your work.”
I wink at her. “I’ll be sure to call you.”
Jason asks Tate and Anson to show him the rest of the house again, so they leave the room along with Kami. Anna circles around, and I love how it feels to see people admire my work. A piece of my soul goes into every painting I paint.
“Where did you get the inspiration for this?” Anna asks.
If I told her, she wouldn’t believe me. It came from Laila’s journals her fae mother had written. Only a thin veil separates the fae world and the mortal realm. Laila’s mother lived in both places. In her journals, she described the Land of the Fae with such detail that I could see it as clear as day in my mind. I’ve been waiting for a chance to paint it, and what better way than for it to be in a little girl’s room.
I smile at Anna. “It came from a book I read.”
She giggles. “I’m starting to think I want to live in that book.”
No one other than the fae can cross into the Land of the Fae. If I had the chance, I’d go there in a heartbeat. “Me too,” I say in all seriousness. “It would be an enchanting place indeed.”
Chapter 15
Tate
Jason shakes my hand and then Anson’s. “I appreciate your hard work, guys.”
I slap his shoulder. “You’re welcome.”
He sighs and focuses back on the house. Anna is still in the nursery talking to Faith. “I haven’t seen my wife this excited about anything in a long time.”
Anson chuckles. “Then you must be doing something wrong.”
We all laugh, and Kami shakes her head. “I don’t want to hear about that.”
Jason pats me on the arm. “All right, let me
go in and get Anna before she talks Faith’s ears off.” He disappears inside.
“You ready to go?” I ask Kami.
“Actually,” she says, turning to Anson. “I was hoping you could give me a ride home?”
Anson shrugs. “Sure. I’m ready when you are.”
She grins wide. “Give me just one sec. I need to talk to Tate for a minute.”
Anson pats my back and nods toward his truck. “I’ll be in the truck.” Then to me, he lifts his brows. “We working tomorrow?”
I shake my head. “Nope. I’m taking a break.”
He smiles. “Sounds good to me.”
Faith watches him walk away and waves her hand impatiently for him to hurry, even though he can’t see what she’s doing. “Are you okay?”
She moves closer. “Yeah, I want to talk to you before Faith gets out here.”
“What’s going on?”
Her voice lowers. “Do you have feelings for her?”
Taken aback, I stare at her, wondering why she’d even ask. Did Faith say something? “Why do you want to know?”
“Because,” she says quickly. “Faith has feelings for you; she told me she did. You know my views on this. I think it’s screwed up how we have to wait for our mate to come along. Why can’t we love who we want to love?”
“What do you suggest we do? Act on it?”
Her eyes glow, and she stands firm. “Yes. You and Faith are perfect for each other. I think you’d be stupid to let her go.” Jason and Anna walk out of the house, and so does Faith. Kami grabs my arm, drawing my attention back to her. “Talk to her, Tate. I don’t want to see you give up on this. To hell with the rules. If she cares for you and you care for her, nothing should stand in your way.”
Could it really be that simple? The only problem is that it goes against everything we’ve known. Yes, some complete the bond when they’re not true mates, and they’ll never be fully happy. I don’t want that, but I also don’t want to let Faith go.
“Okay,” I say, lowering my voice. “I’ll talk to her.”
Kami beams. “Great. I’ll let you two enjoy your ride home.” She turns around and says goodbye to Faith before hurrying over to Anson’s truck.
Faith chuckles. “She’s mighty happy right now. Is there something going on between her and Anson?”
Laughing, I open up her door. “Definitely, not. He’s like the annoying brother to her.”
“And you’re not?” she teases.
“Nah. I’m the cool one.”
She hops in, and I shut the door. It feels good to banter back and forth with her. There’s still a lot of tension between us, so much uncertainty and confusion. I want her, and there’s no denying it. But if I tell her, what will it do to us? She’s a friend, and I don’t want to jeopardize that.
We start on our way to the house, and Faith’s stomach growls. She covers her stomach and giggles. “I must be hungry.”
It just so happens that we drive past one of my favorite restaurants on the way to my house. “I know a good place we can get takeout. Their special tonight is buttermilk fried chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, and green beans.”
Her eyes light up. “Oh yeah? I’m good with that. If I had more of your banana pancakes, I’d be stuffing them in my mouth right now.”
That makes me feel good. “Did you like them?”
She nods. “They were heaven. You’ll have to make them again.”
“I can do that.”
I pull into the parking lot of the small mom-and-pop restaurant my parents used to take me to ever since I was a little boy. The older couple who owns it are both in their eighties and still going strong. With my parents still looking young, they often confuse my father for me. That’s one of the things we have to be careful about. We live in a small town, and most of the humans my parents knew when they were younger are dead now.
Faith and I walk inside and order our food. We wait for only a few minutes, and then we’re back on the road, food in hand. When we get to the house, I set the food on the table, and Faith grabs two beers out of the refrigerator.
I lift my brows at her. “No wine tonight?”
She shrugs. “I’m in a beer mood.”
So am I. I need it if I’m going to do what I’m about to do. Hell, I need a whole case. We sit down at the table and eat. I have no doubt she can hear my heart thumping wildly. Hers is doing the same, which doesn’t help matters. Every time I try to speak, I can’t form the words. What I really want to do is pull her into my arms and say that I want her so fucking bad that I’d give up everything just to have her. Even my wolf wants to claim her, and I’ve never had him be so restless before. That last thing I want is to scare her away, or worse, cause a rift between my pack and hers.
“I can’t believe you never told me you painted,” I say, trying to get my thoughts back to reality. “What you did at Jason and Anna’s was pretty epic.”
She looks away and smiles. “Thanks. I actually sell some of my work in one of the local galleries at home.”
I’m impressed but definitely not surprised; she’s very talented. “I’m happy for you, Faith. You’re a woman of many talents. What else is going on in your life you haven’t told me about?”
“Well,” she replies, drawing out the word, “not only do I paint and do landscaping, but I also just got hired to be the art teacher at our elementary school.”
I can see her working with kids. She has that sweetness about her that I know children will be drawn to. “I’m happy for you, Faith.”
“Thanks.” We stare at each other for a few seconds, but then she jerks her gaze away and gets up to throw her to-go box away. She goes over to my kitchen cabinets and pulls out my peanut butter and powdered sugar. “I was thinking of making chocolate-covered peanut butter balls. Is that okay?” Her heart races even more, and I can tell she’s intentionally keeping her back to me.
I toss my box into the trash and slowly close the distance between us. I can’t wait any longer. “Faith, look at me.” A sigh escapes her lips, and she slowly turns around. I step closer, and she lifts her gaze to mine. “What are we doing?”
“I don’t know,” she whispers. “All I know is that I feel things for you. I want things I can’t have.”
My hands ache to touch her, but I keep them to myself. “Who says you can’t?”
She laughs, but there’s no humor to it. “Life. But then, someone brought up a valid point to me today. She said we should be able to choose our path, make our own choices.”
Kami.
“And do you think she’s right?”
Her eyes drop down to my lips. “I want her to be.”
“So do I,” I agree.
Her breath hitches and she meets my gaze. “What are we going to do?”
Taking her hands, I pull her closer, but I don’t kiss her even though it’s what I really want to do. “You’re here for three more days. I say we go out and enjoy life, just you and me. My family has a cabin near Yellowstone. We can stay there, and I can take you to see Old Faithful, the waterfalls, and whatever else you want.”
She squeezes my hands. “I’d like that.”
As much as it kills me, I slowly let her go and step back. “We’ll leave out first thing in the morning.” The need in her rises, and it takes all I have not to take her on the kitchen table. I nod toward the stairs. “I think I’m going to turn in for the night.” What I need is a fucking cold shower. “If you need anything, you know where to find me.”
She nods. “See you in the morning.”
Turning on my heel, I walk away from her. It gets harder and harder each time.
Chapter 16
Faith
I’ve been staying alone with Tate in his house, but something feels different about being alone with him in his family’s cabin. I’m excited yet terrified all at the same time. Last night, he couldn’t get away from me fast enough. I could feel the need soaring in my body. He showed incredible restraint, and I doubt any other wolf woul
d’ve been able to do the same. I always thought I had stellar self-control, but I’m starting to question it.
We left early this morning before sunrise to head to Yellowstone National Park. We entered through the West Entrance and started at Gibbon Falls before working our way to the Lower Falls and Upper Falls. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful in my life. There are many tourists with it being summer, but it doesn’t take the magic away.
There were tons of bison walking around, and I made sure to take loads of pictures. I want to remember everything about the day. Tate and I have talked non-stop, but nothing has been said about us. I know what it does to him when we do. Hell, I’m starting to think it affects me more than him. I’m the one who feels like I’ll lose control if things get heated between us.
We drive past Yellowstone Lake with all the snow-capped mountains in the background. Then we stop by Old Faithful to watch it explode amongst the hundreds of tourists around us. I’ve never heard so many ooohs and ahhhs in my life; it took all I had not to laugh. After that, we visited all the different basins and walked around on the wooden pathways.
By the end of the day, my mind is full of everything we’ve seen. The sun dips behind the mountains, giving the sky a pinkish glow. Tate starts up the truck, and we head on our way out of the park.
“Did you have fun?” he asks, sneaking a glance my way.
Rolling the window down, I close my eyes as the wind blows through my hair. “I had a lot of fun,” I reply.
“It would be the perfect night for a run, but I know you can’t right now. There’s a lake not far from the cabin.”
I look over at him and brush the hair out of my face. “We can still go for a run. I just can’t shift.”
He nods. “Does that not bother you?”
Reaching into my pocket, I pull out the black carmine stone. If I shift, there will be no way to keep it on my body, not unless I put it in my mouth. Knowing my luck, I’d swallow it. “It sucks, but it’s what I have to do to stay hidden.” I slide it back into my pocket. “I’d still like to go for a run. I bet I can beat you to that lake even if you run as your wolf.”