Kindred Spirit: Book Five of the Bound Spirit Series

Chapter 8

Callie

Main Street Chinese is a cozy little restaurant, aptly named by being the only Chinese food place on Main Street… or in all of Twin Cedar Pass. Connor, Felix, and I are immediately seated at a reserved table near a large window that overlooks a small patio garden lit by strands of fairy lights. Connor pulls out a chair for me and then sits to my left at the head of the table. Felix takes the seat on the other side of me, holding my hand like it’s a lifeline. He’s been weird and fidgety ever since we picked him up from his house.

I gently squeeze his hand and murmur, “Are you okay?”

“Huh? Me? Yeah, I’m fine,” he answers with a manic energy that seems to illustrate otherwise. “Never better.”

Connor gives him one of his silent stares that conveys that he doesn’t believe him and that he’s more than content to wait for the truth.

Felix crumbles under the weight of his eyes within seconds. “Fine! Enough with the third degree!” He sighs and, with his free hand, fiddles with the edge of his cloth napkin. “I found out some stuff about James that I’m… trying to figure out how I feel about.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” I ask, doing my best to keep my voice even and not laced with the guilt that pops up every time Felix is having a hard time with his new life.

He shakes his head. “Not here. It’s Con’s birthday dinner. Let’s talk about something fun. How was demo day?”

“I blasted Bayne through a wall because he was being a jerk,” I share with a quirk of my lips. “Too bad it wasn’t a wall that we were supposed to tear down.”

“Damn, pretty girl. That’s epic!” Felix grins, quickly distracted from his earlier distress with news of me using my magic. “That’ll teach him to mess with you.”

Connor runs his hand down my loose, flowing hair with a soft smile. Pride floats through the bond, but it’s still tinged with a leashed anger that his brother dared to touch me. Navigating wolfy instincts is complicated.

While we’re chatting, Donovan and Nolan arrive, taking their seats across from Felix and me. They’ve cleaned up since I last saw them, dressed in clean, casual clothes and wet hair from recent showers. Nolan appears worn down from the demanding day, the purple smudges under his eyes even more prominent than normal. It’s on the tip of my tongue to recommend we slip away so he can feed before dinner, even though it would mean biting me directly. If I’m honest, I’m starting to miss it—not just the feeling it gave me, but the intimacy that came with it. Recently, his grandmother has been drawing my blood and feeding it to Nolan in a cup, so there isn’t much romance to it.

However, before I can catch Nolan’s eye, the waitress comes by and takes our drink order. When she leaves, Donovan gives Felix a no-nonsense look and asks, “Do I need to kick Dave’s ass?”

Felix blinks rapidly, startled by the non sequitur. “No. At least I don’t think so. Why?”

Donovan leans forward, resting his elbows on the table. “If he’s pressuring you to do shit you don’t want to, then he and I need to have a little talk.” He cracks his knuckles like he’s in an old mob movie. “It’ll include a few bruises so the warning not to fuck with you sticks.”

“No, it’s nothing like that. Not really.” Felix rubs the back of his neck and blushes. “He was, uh, proving a point, I guess.”

Despite his apparent fatigue, Nolan has the dark look of a predator promising pain. With an overly casual tone, he asks, “And what point was that?”

Felix steals a look at Nolan’s face before it bounces to the garden behind him. He swallows heavily and stumbles over his words when he answers, “He, uh… wanted me to know that I, um… have options? Besides Callie—” His eyes are wide as he snaps his head toward me. “Not that I want anyone else. I just want you.”

Stomping down any hint of jealousy, I smile softly and squeeze his hand again. “It’s okay if you do. Want someone else, I mean. It’s only fair.” My gaze sweeps over the others, and my heart thuds painfully in my chest at the thought of sharing them with people outside of our circle. “That goes for all of you too. I know we haven’t talked about it, but I want you to know I won’t…” I clear my throat, emotions I’m not proud of making it difficult to speak. “I won’t stand in your way. It wouldn’t be…”

“Fair. Yeah, we got that,” Donovan finishes with an unconvinced expression.

“It wouldn’t be!” I huff, fisting my free hand in my lap. “I can’t in good conscience tell you that you can’t when I’m dating all of you.”

“I can,” Connor interjects with a low growl. He motions to all of us. “You are safe because we are pack. Outsiders are not pack.”

“They could be,” I argue, despite wanting the same thing as he does. “Packs grow.”

The problem with arguing with one’s mate is that they know when your words don’t match your heart. He’s kind enough not to call me out on it, instead choosing to end the discussion with a firm, “This one doesn’t.”

When I attempt to keep fighting for the others’ right to see whomever they want, Connor silences me with a kiss, his hand fisting in my hair, scattering all my thoughts to the proverbial wind. I’m left breathless when it ends, and Connor looks far too pleased with himself.

“Don’t think kissing me will get you out of all discussions,” I state, trying to look stern, but thanks to my overactive hormones and the full body blush taking over, it doesn’t quite have the conviction I’m hoping for.

“Yes, mi reina,” he replies, his knowing smile still firmly in place.

Donovan relaxes in his seat and rests his arm on the back of Nolan’s chair. “Look, let me make it easy on you.” He points to Felix. “Do you want to be with anyone else?”

“No,” he answers with a hard shake of his head.

“I’m not saying now—” I attempt to interject, but I’m immediately cut off.

“Nolan, do you want to see anyone else?” Donovan continues as if I hadn’t said anything at all.

“God, no,” he replies with a tired, teasing smile. “Callie is wonderful, but you’re far too needy for me to have any left for a third.”

Donovan raises a heavy brow and snorts. “Quit complaining. You’re more than happy to provide everything I need.” His attention moves to Connor, and before he can even attempt to ask, Connor growls like the mere suggestion offends him. Donovan raises his free hand in placation. “Easy. I’m making a point.” He looks at me with an expression that implies I’m being an idiot who’s making this far more complicated than it needs to be. “The idea of dealing with anyone else’s bullshit outside of all of you is exhausting, so no, I also don’t want to see anyone else.” He motions to the empty chair at the foot of the table. “Kaleb is so prudish and proper that assuming he ever pulls his head out of his ass, it would offend his perfect sensibilities to even consider dating another girl.”

I think back to the time in the hospital cafeteria when he got whammied by too much magic and confessed to wanting to pleasure me until I begged for release. “I wouldn’t call him a prude,” I comment vaguely, crossing my legs and wiggling in my chair.

This statement earns the full attention of the table, except for Connor, who seems unsurprised. Then again, between his wolfy hearing and sense of smell, it seems like he always knows more than he ever lets on. I can’t decide if that’s a good thing or not in this instance. We haven’t really discussed how much he wants to know about what I’ve done with the others.

Nolan makes a tsking sound with his tongue. “What naughty things has Kaleb been up to with our Callie?”

“None of your business,” Kaleb answers, startling everyone. He sets a gift down in front of Connor then takes the last remaining seat. “Sorry I’m late. I had chores that needed to be finished before I was allowed to leave.”

Connor nods that he heard him, puts the gift aside to be opened later, and starts investigating the menu.

Donovan gives Kaleb an assessing look as he taps out a small beat with his fingers against the table. “I don’t know. Callie is our girl, I think that does make it our business.”

Kaleb sighs while looking down at the menu in front of him. “When have you ever cared about what I have or have not done?”

“When you finally started to become interesting,” he replies with an amused grin.

“What goes on between Callie and me is between the two of us,” Kaleb states, his expression one of tried patience. “All you need to know is as soon as I learned of her relationship status with all of you, nothing untoward has happened.”

“Untoward?” Donovan groans and rolls his eyes. “You really need to stop reading those old-fashioned, Gothic romances. I know you started because Keziah loves them, but fuck, they make you sound old.”

“I think the word you’re looking for is educated,” he counters, not bothering to look up from the menu. “My extensive vocabulary makes me sound educated.”

Felix steps in before their bickering can get any worse with a question of his own. “Kaleb does bring up a good point. How much do we want to know about, ya know, between all of us?”

Nolan taps his lips with his fingers. “I wouldn’t mind knowing.”

Donovan shrugs. “I don’t care either way.”

“I don’t need to be told,” Connor answers quietly.

My blush burns brighter, embarrassed by just how much information he collects through his senses and mate bond. I know the farther apart we are, the less things are transmitted through the bond, but what he doesn’t feel in the moment, he clearly scents on me later. Crap, does that mean he knows what Donovan, Nolan, and I got up to the night Nolan tried to kill Gina? I peek over at him through lowered lashes, but his expression gives nothing away, and there aren’t any clues of stronger emotions through our connection.

Felix considers his answer to his own question for a moment, playing with my fingers as he thinks. “If you want to tell me things, I’m okay with that, but you don’t have to.” He turns his attention to Kaleb expectantly.

He looks up, his expression a cracked mask of indifference, and swallows heavily before speaking. “Callie and I aren’t romantically involved, so it’s none of my business.”

It hurts to hear it stated so bluntly after all that’s been said and done between us. Afraid my bruised heart will show on my face, I look down at the menu before me, and my hair cascades around my face in a gentle curtain of safety.

Felix huffs with frustration. “Hypothetically then. Would you want to know?”

“No,” Kaleb answers, his voice a low rumble. “What my partner and I do together is private, and I wouldn’t want it shared. Furthermore, our time together is better spent focusing on ourselves.” Despite my eyes remaining riveted to the menu, I can’t help but feel the burning intensity of his gaze as it falls onto me. “In this hypothetical situation, when she is with me, she is mine alone. The last thing I want to discuss is the rest of you.”

His words conjure the memory of his kiss, and the way the whole world disappeared under his demanding lips. I look up into his eyes, and my belly does a low flip. His storms are just within my reach, and I’m begging to be swept away. Make me yours.

“Okay,” Felix chirps. “Thanks for, uh, clearing that up.” He looks eagerly down at his menu. “So what are we ordering this time? I couldn’t eat last year, so I plan to eat double to make up for it.”

“This is so stupid,” Donovan grumbles, his gaze shifting back and forth between Kaleb and me.

“How many sampler trays should we order?” Nolan interjects loudly while jabbing Donovan with his elbow.

He ignores the hit and continues, “Seriously, what’s your hang-up?”

“I think at least three,” Felix answers Nolan with a tight smile. “And maybe an extra order of pot stickers. I love those!”

Kaleb shifts his attention to Donovan, his expression cool and controlled. “My hang-up is none of—”

“My business,” Donovan finishes with an eye roll. “Yeah, you keep saying that, but that’s not how our shit works. Your shit—”

“Is our shit,” the rest of the table says in chorus and then laughs.

“Exactly.” Donovan leans forward and points at Kaleb. “You’ve had months to deal with your shit on your own. You didn’t.” He taps the table with his pointer finger. “No more bullshit. We’re dealing with this right now.”

“It’s Connor’s birthday dinner,” Kaleb responds, his hands curling into fists on the table. “This isn’t the time nor place.”

“K, I fucking swear, we’ll get all of this shit to go if you don’t start talking,” Donovan replies stubbornly.

Nolan looks over as his eyebrows climb toward his hairline. “Are you legitimately asking someone to talk about their feelings?”

“Should we prepare for the apocalypse?” Felix jokes with a crooked smile. “The end times must be nigh.”

Donovan glares at both of them. “You know how much I hate fucking around instead of getting to the damn point.” He gestures to Kaleb and me. “This ‘will they, won’t they’ between the two of you isn’t doing anyone fucking favors. We’re a family, and we’ll deal with this shit as a family.”

Connor nods his agreement. “We are pack.”

At that moment, our drinks arrive, and Kaleb has a moment to collect himself while we order food family style. The guys order like they’ve been starving for years, and I’m pretty sure we’re going to require extra tables to hold it all. The waitress is an older woman, and she smiles indulgently as she writes everything down.

“It’s good to see some new faces around the table,” she comments when we’ve finished and gently pats Connor’s arm. “Happy birthday, young man.”

“Thanks,” he mumbles with an awkward smile.

When she scurries away, Felix chuckles. “Well, she’s not wrong. My face is new.”

“To you, anyway,” Nolan jokes while taking a sip of his water.

An odd expression takes over Felix’s features, like he’s feeling too many different things at the same time.

Before I can ask him if he’s alright, Donovan is back on Kaleb. “So what the hell is it? Why are you holding back when you clearly want to be with Callie?”

Kaleb’s fists tighten as he stares down at the white tablecloth. His posture is tense, like it’s taking everything inside him not to bolt out the door.

Despite how much I hate this limbo between us, I can’t take another moment of Kaleb having to defend himself. “No, we’re not doing this,” I insist, getting up from my seat. Everyone’s eyes follow me as I move around the table and stop next to Kaleb’s chair. “I’m sorry it bothers you, and I know you’re only trying to help, but our dating status is not up for discussion.” Reaching for his forearm, I give him a gentle tug. “How about we get some air?”

It hurts how surprised Kaleb looks that someone stood up for him. I’m reminded of all the times when I should have spoken up but was too scared, too worried how much it would expose my inner scars that I wasn’t quite ready to share.

“Air would be good,” he murmurs, following my lead and getting out of his seat.

As we weave our way around tables toward the front door, his hand clasped in mine, both Felix and Nolan lay into Donovan.

“What did I say about pressuring him?” Felix grinds out through clenched teeth.

“I asked him what his problem was so we can finally fix that shit,” Donovan defends himself. “That’s not pressuring him to say yes.”

“Some things aren’t your job to fix,” Nolan counters. “We have to figure out some things ourselves.”

“Fuck that,” Donovan states stubbornly. “Any time one of us is left to figure our shit out alone, it always ends badly.”

A weighted silence answers his statement before Connor murmurs something I’m too far away to hear.

When Kaleb and I reach the front door, I mumble something about being right back to the hostess before escaping into the cool night air. Unfortunately, now that we’re outside, I have no idea where to go or what to say. Main Street is made up of a long strip of small shops and restaurants, and there really isn’t a good place to sit and talk.

Kaleb notices my indecision and suggests, “How about we walk for a bit?”

“Yeah, sure,” I reply, tucking some of my loose hair behind my ear.

My mouth is dry, and my stomach is in knots as we walk quietly hand in hand down the wide sidewalk. Planters with tall, bushy trees dot the walkway, casting thick shadows under the brilliant light of the streetlamps. Cars crawl down the busy main throughway, most of them hunting for parking. There isn’t a lot to do in Twin Cedar Pass on a Saturday night, so it’s no surprise to see so much of the town here looking for food and entertainment. We get a few waves and hellos from those who recognize Kaleb, but for the most part, we are left to wander on our own.

“I’m sorry,” I finally blurt, unable to handle the silence.

He looks at me with a curious frown. “For what?”

“For all of it.” I make a vague circular gesture with my free hand. “If I hadn’t met and fallen in love with all of you, or at least kept my mouth shut about it, then you all wouldn’t be fighting.”

Kaleb stops and spins me until my back is against one of the trees. His gaze is intense and consuming as he looks into mine. “Never apologize for coming here and becoming a part of us. Yes, you complicate things, but you also add so much. Felix wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you. Nolan wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you. Connor would still be suffering under the old alpha’s hand if it wasn’t for you. Donovan would still be hell-bent on a suicide mission to avenge his family after graduation if you hadn’t given him a reason to hope for more. Their lives are better because you’re a part of it.”

“And you?” I whisper, my heart aching in my chest. “Have I done anything except make your life harder?”

He steps forward until we’re so close, I can feel the heat radiating from his body. Placing my hand flat against his chest and covering it with his own, he murmurs, “Columba mea, you… you make me want to find myself, to discover who I am when I’m not trying to please everyone else.” He touches my face with his other hand. “You make me want to reach for things I would otherwise deny myself.”

My next words come out breathless as heat floods my veins, and my whole body throbs with the need to feel him all around me. “Like what?”

“A future I choose instead of one that’s chosen for me.” His hand slips from my face to the nape of my neck, and he leans forward until our lips are only millimeters apart. “To follow a path that could end with a shattered heart, because I can’t stand the idea of never tasting your mouth ever again.”

“I would never intentionally hurt you,” I promise, fighting to hold still and not close the tension-filled gap between us. I want him so badly it burns, but I won’t force it. He has to make the decision.

Kaleb brushes his nose against mine. “I know. Despite all you’ve seen and experienced, it’s not in your nature to be cruel.” His fingers slide from my neck down my spine over the fabric of my sweater dress, and shivers explode like fireworks all over my heated flesh. “But you have the others to think of too, and like I said before, I’m not like the others. The parts of me that I lock away aren’t easy to love or manage.”

“None of us are easy,” I respond, my voice filled with the love and tenderness I feel for him. “People are complicated, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t worth it. Loving you is worth navigating every storm.”

He releases a shuddering breath and shifts his head in the slightest of nods. “I know I shouldn’t ask this, not with so much still uncertain, but can I… can I kiss you?”

A resounding yes springs to my lips, but I hesitate to speak the word. He still doesn’t know that I’m Connor’s mate, and that seemed to matter a great deal to Donovan and Nolan. “There’s one more thing you should probably know first.”

“After,” he insists gently, guiding my arms around his neck. “Tell me after.”

“It’s kind of important,” I argue, but it isn’t all that convincing with the way I press myself against him, drunk on the chance to finally feel his lips on mine.

“I don’t want to know,” he replies, his touch following the curves of my body. “Not right now.” His breath smells of cinnamon as it falls in weighted puffs. “In this moment, can you just be mine?”

“Okay,” I relent in a lovesick sigh, unable to fight the pull of desire even if I wanted to.

Everything I remember pales in comparison to the reality of his kiss. The world shifts beneath me when his mouth finally claims mine, gravity no longer tethering me to Earth. He consumes me, dominates me, until all I can think about and feel is him. As everything around us turns into a dizzying blur of color and sound, he is my anchor in this existence—the sun in which I orbit.

All of my senses are filled with nothing but Kaleb—his spicy taste, the way he smells of sandalwood and old books, and the feeling of his thickly muscled body pressing into mine, molding me to him as his fingers dig into my softer flesh.

A moan escapes me as his tongue expertly dances with mine, and he hums with masculine pleasure, clearly delighted with the way I burn under his heated caresses. I rock up to my tiptoes, desperate to feel more of him against me, and his hands slide to my ass, lifting and pulling me closer.

I can’t tell if I’m floating or drowning, my lungs stinging with the need to breathe, while I’m weightless under the overwhelming power of his strength. My air is his, and his is mine, and I’m ready to exist only on the stolen breath from each other’s lungs so this moment never has to end.

The outside world invades, though, despite my vehement opposition in the form of hoots and howls of nearby onlookers. Kaleb’s hands move from my ass to my waist, holding me protectively as he turns his attention to the irritating interlopers. We seemed to have stopped near a pizza restaurant, and several members of the baseball team are now witness to our very public display of affection.

I go quickly from feeling burning desire to nuclear embarrassment as Kaleb meets the good natured ribbing with a mask of tight, fake smiles. He says all the right things to placate their teasing, but I can tell being the center of attention is making him uncomfortable. Kaleb is a private person, even if that kiss would argue the contrary. Not wanting him to suffer any longer than necessary, I lie that we have dinner reservations to get to, and we make a quick escape.

We walk back to the restaurant with our arms wrapped around each other’s waists, and I’m fluctuating between giddy excitement and nervous trepidation. No matter how much I want it to mean more, until he says he’s in, the kiss was a stolen moment, not a promise of a future.

Kaleb sighs like he’s bracing himself. “What was it you needed to tell me?”

His question brings all the others back to the forefront of my mind, and my throat feels suddenly tight. It’s Connor’s birthday dinner, and I know he felt every moment that just happened. Well, at least he knows we weren’t arguing.

Preparing for Kaleb to react as extreme as Nolan and Donovan did when they heard the news, I savor the last moments of feeling his arm wrapped around me. Staring straight ahead, I state as neutrally as possible, “I’m Connor’s mate.”

Kaleb stumbles and almost launches us into another tree. “You’re what? How? When?”

Happy that he at least hasn’t bolted away from me, I choose my words carefully. “It happened before we left for Arizona last Thanksgiving. I don’t want to get into specifics, but Connor and I had to work through some stuff afterward before I, um, accepted him and the bond. That didn’t happen until a few months ago.”

He stops in his tracks and looks down at me. “The mate bond is something that is supposed to be mutually made. It can’t be forced on someone.”

“It wasn’t forced, so much as I didn’t fully understand what was happening,” I reply, the words coming out more like a question.

I expected fear like Donovan or possibly cutting indignation like Nolan, but Kaleb is something entirely new. Shaking with a rage I’ve never seen from him, he quietly asks, “Are you saying he tricked you into bonding with him for life?”

Oh crap!

“It’s fine now. We worked through it,” I answer, rubbing his back and hoping that will somehow calm him down.

“This is not fine. He tricked you,” he exclaims, his breaths coming out in heated gasps. In a quieter voice, he asks, “Do the others know?”

“That I’m his mate? Yes,” I reply quickly, nervousness causing my heart to beat faster than a hummingbird’s. “But not how it happened. No one’s asked except you.”

With exceptional care, he extracts himself from my touch, and with the righteous fury of a hundred avenging archangels, he storms back toward the restaurant. I scurry after him, trying to explain how I was also angry at first, but we worked it out, and now everything is okay. I want to be his mate.

I might as well be talking to a brick wall.

It’s no surprise when I see Connor sprinting out of the restaurant, frantically searching for me as he senses my growing panic. The rest of the guys tumble out of the door after him just in time to catch Kaleb punching him so hard in the stomach that Connor collapses to the ground.

“You son of a bitch,” Kaleb spits, glowering down at him. “She was raised in the human world, and you used it against her. I can’t believe you tricked her. It’s her whole life, and you took it without her knowing.”

I feel woozy as pain flashes like stars—the echo of Connor’s injury ricocheting into me. “Stop,” I gasp, stumbling between the two of them. “I know you’re angry because you care, but it’s over now. I could have broken the bond, and I chose not to.”

Kaleb looks at me with the precision of someone who knows and sees too much. “The mate bond sews two souls together. Assuming you could have broken it, it would have had devastating consequences for you both. It’s literally been known to drive a shifter insane if they have to live beyond their severed bond.”

“But a normal mate bond can’t be severed,” I argue, trying to make sense of what he’s telling me. “It’s for life. The only reason it was different for me was because of what I am.”

“Death, Callie,” Nolan states with worried eyes. “Death severs a bond.”

I feel like I’ve been splashed with ice water as I watch Felix and Donovan help Connor to his feet. “If I die, you’ll go insane?”

Shame weighs down Connor’s features as he grimaces in pain. “You’ll outlive me.”

“That’s your plan?” I screech, my hands fisted at my sides. “You didn’t tell me because you planned to die before me?”

“Maybe we shouldn’t have this conversation here,” Felix suggests, his eyes wide as his gaze sweeps the very busy street.

“I’ll get the food to go,” Nolan volunteers, walking back into the restaurant while reaching in his pocket for his wallet.

“So what’s supposed to happen to me when you die, huh?” I question as we make our way to our cars parked in a small nearby lot. “Will I go insane?”

“You’ll have the others to ground you,” Connor answers, holding his hand to his stomach as he attempts to walk under his own power.

“I’m going to live for a thousand years,” I hiss, so mad I’m surprised the town is still standing. “Assuming I’m not murdered because of what I am, I’m going to outlive all of you.”

“You aren’t a shifter,” Connor states, but there’s a hint of unease in his voice. “It shouldn’t affect you the same way.”

“You don’t know that,” Kaleb argues, his barely contained emotions infusing his words. “A bond like this has never happened before. For all you know, it may be worse for her.”

“Is anyone going to tell me what the hell is going on?” Donovan complains, crossing his arms over his chest. “Our pacifist just sucker punched the birthday boy, and I’d kind of like to know why.”

Kaleb’s brown eyes blaze as he stares Connor down. “Tell them. Tell them how Callie became your mate. Tell them how you tricked her.”

“You what?” Donovan shouts, his blue-green eyes narrowing to hard slits.

Deep shame seeps through the bond, and no matter how angry I am at Connor for keeping yet another thing from me, I can’t let this continue. “Stop it, please.” I once again place my body between Connor and the others. “You’re angry on my behalf, but you’re borrowing anger that’s already been spent. I’ve dealt with this already. I’m not happy with how it happened, but I’ve made my choice to keep the bond. I want to be his mate.” My voice is wet when I add, “I love him like I love all of you.”

Kaleb closes his eyes and grits his teeth. “I… I have to go. I can’t be rational right now.”

Donovan gives Connor a hard look before turning away. “I’ll come with you.”

The sting of tears blurs my vision as I watch them go. This was supposed to be a happy tradition, and I ruined it. Why did I say anything at all?

Nolan comes around the corner, his arms laden with too many bags of food, and observes our sad little trio. “Do I want to know what happened?”

“I’m sorry,” I blubber, covering my face with my hands. “This is all my fault.”

Felix shakes his head as he places his hands on his hips. “No, pretty girl, I don’t think this one is on you.” He looks at Connor with disappointed eyes. “Just because it’s resolved between you two doesn’t mean we aren’t going to be mad about it for a little while. He fucked up in a big way, and then you kept it a secret.”

“But it’s between us,” I argue through sniffles.

Nolan kisses the top of my head. “We’re all connected, love. Always have been. What happens to you matters to us, especially if it’s one of us who hurt you.”

“I know how it happened was wrong,” Connor interjects with a rasp to his low voice, “but I can’t regret that it happened.”

“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me,” Nolan comments with a wry pull of his lips, and then he sighs. “Well, we have all this food, and dinner is tradition. How about we go back to my place and watch movies? Just, uh, steer clear of my relatives.”

“Dude, they are weird,” Felix states with a shudder. “They keep looking at me like I’m a walking juice box.”

“Don’t worry,” Nolan reassures him, his smile growing to a grin. “I’ve already told them you’re my juice box as soon as I can drink human blood again.”

“Somehow, that’s not as comforting as you think it is,” Felix grumbles, leading the way back to Connor’s Tahoe.

I wrap my arm around Connor’s waist, threading some of my relaxation spell that I’ve perfected since the last time I whammied Kaleb with it into my touch. His tense muscles seem to ease, and he leans into me as we walk.

“I was going to tell you,” he states quietly, barely over the sounds of the surrounding chatter of life, “but I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.”

“Is this how our lives are going to be?” I ask, my heart heavy with all that I’ve learned. “You constantly keeping things from me until I learn the truth from someone else?”

“I’m sorry,” he repeats, holding me to his side like he’s afraid I’ll dash away at any second.

“Me too,” I murmur, and I let the topic drop for now.

I’ll deal with the fallout later. It’s been a hell of a day, and all I want is to cuddle with my boyfriends, eat Chinese food, and fall asleep watching a movie on Nolan’s oversized bed.