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“That was definitely impressive, Trevan. Thank you for repairing the tree for me,” he finally says. I wonder what he’s thinking, but nothing is floating through the bond.
Red turns toward her father. “It seems pretty straightforward. You lift the tree back into place, then reconnect the roots to the system that’s still underground. I won’t be able to do it that fast, but I think I can do it.”
Her new found confidence makes me smile. I’m certain that anything her father can do, she can too.
GARNET
New skills are intimidating, but if Trevan can do it, so can I. Of course, I’m not knocking down trees to test that theory. I’ll figure it out if and when it becomes relevant. I have bigger things to worry over at the moment. Like the fact that I have less than a week before my aunt comes for me. I meant it when I told her I’m not scared of her anymore. I’m not. But the idea that she’s coming after me is intimidating. What if I’m not ready? What if I can’t defeat her?
These insecurities hound me until I’m ready to scream. But I can’t let my mates, my father, or Grammy know that I’m unsure. I have to project confidence. There is no other option. I must defeat Amber, or everyone I love will suffer.
It helps a little knowing that her love potion won’t do much to my guys. I’m still processing Trevan’s little bombshell about him and Grammy being an item. I’m not upset by the news, just a little surprised. I don’t know much about him, but the little bit I know about Fae tells me that he’s either way older than Grammy, or way younger. I guess it’s none of my business either way. I still have to keep them both safe.
I’ll do what I have to. I know that. I may have doubts about my ability to win, but I have no doubts about my ability to fight. Even if Amber defeats me, I’ll take her down with me. It has to be this way. I just wish I understood the Moon Goddess’ plan. There had to be a reason she gave me these mates.
“Red?” The way Ry says my name tells me that it’s not the first time he’s tried to get my attention.
“Sorry, I let my mind wander a bit. What is it?” I ask, playing my distraction off as nothing.
“Are you okay? That news Amber dropped was huge. We have less than a week to figure out how to defeat her,” he responds, pulling me into his arms. Orym sandwiches me to him, and I enjoy their warmth.
“I’m fine, really. I was trying to process everything. It’s a lot. And not just Amber’s news. I don’t know how I feel about my father suddenly being interested in the woman who raised me. I’m not mad about it, but it’s odd.” I decide that a partial truth is better than no truth.
“There’s more to it than that, but okay,” Orym whispers in my ear. “We trust you. You don’t have to tell us everything.”
“I hope you realize that we would follow you anywhere.” Luca comes up beside me, adding himself to our little group hug. He motions to James, but my human mate is hesitant. I wish it didn’t hurt my feelings for him to reject affection like this. “Give him time; he’s still healing.”
“I know. I’m worried about him, though,” I admit. I don’t want to worry, and I hate admitting that I am. “He’s not as sturdy as we are. I wish there was something we could do to protect him.”
My eyes follow James as he walks toward the tree that Trevan healed. A quick glance around tells me that Trevan must have gone back inside with Grammy. Let’s hope they’re not getting it on in the living room. Or anywhere else. I don’t want to think about that at all.
“He just needs time to process. And who knows? Maybe he’s struggling with that same thing. You should talk to him,” Orym suggests. I know he’s right, but I have no idea what to even say. I don’t want James to think that I view him as weak. I know he’s strong. He’s just not supernatural.
“You’re right, I should talk to him. If the three of you will excuse me,” I say, wiggling my way free of the three sets of arms holding me in place. I walk over to James and watch him for a minute.
“James?” I start, pausing when he doesn’t turn to meet my gaze. “Can we talk?”
He nods but doesn’t face me. “I know what you’re going to say. Don’t worry about it. I’ll head back to the city this afternoon.”
“What?” His words catch me off guard, and I don’t know how to respond. “Why would you leave?”
“I don’t belong here. I’m not like your other mates. This was a mistake.” He finally turns toward me, and I reach for him. He shakes his head and continues. “Garnet, you mean the world to me, but I’m not a wolf. I’m not a witch, or a vampire. I’m just a human. This is never going to work. I shouldn’t have let myself be fooled for this long. I’m sorry.”
He turns and walks toward the cabin. I spin around to watch him go. “James. Don’t do this. If I mean as much to you as you claim, you’ll come back here and talk to me.”
James pauses at the door of the cabin, then goes inside. What the fuck just happened here? Where did he get the idea that I don’t want him? Pain slices through my heart, and I drop to my knees. Tears stream down my face, and I sob into my hands.
I feel the strong arms lift me and hold me against a broad chest. I know from his scent that it’s Luca. Neither Ry nor Orym handle tears well. Luca holds me while I purge the pain, while my heart shatters. I wipe my eyes and look around, surprised that my other two wolf shifter mates are gone.
“Where’d they go?” I sniffle with the question.
Luca holds me tight and rubs his hand up and down my back. “It’s okay, Red. They went to talk to James. We felt your pain through the bond. None of us were going to interfere, but it was too much.”
eight
Recovery
ORYM
