Chapter 2
Effie Harlow
Tore’s fingers moved skillfully through my hair, the massive Viking-like man seemingly completely focused on the task. Honestly, I had come to hate my hair just a bit because of how weird everyone thought it was, but the way he was looking at it? It made me like it far more.
The unique braids he was doing started at the top of my head and came all the way down to where my hair hung at my butt. I loved what he was doing—it was gorgeous—and I knew he wanted to take care of me, but I was feeling far better after the shower and large glass of water he’d brought me.
“Tore, you don’t have to do this.”
I felt my face flush as he looked up at me through the mirror in confusion. “Do what?”
“I just…I don’t want you to feel like you have to do it or something,” I stated awkwardly, my stomach tightening as he frowned, tilting his head.
“Lil bit…” He finished the braid at hand before meeting my gaze again. “You’re my… I want to take care of you, Effie. I enjoy it. It makes me feel like I have some type of control over your wellbeing.”
I pressed my lips together, knowing what he’d been about to say before he stopped himself—that I was his ‘mate.’ And I wanted to hear him say it. I wanted him to confirm what Ruby had told me. “I’m your what?”
His eyes met mine again as he closed off the braid with a plastic band. “We should talk about this together, all of us.”
“I already asked Dakota, and he told me that we were mates.”
Tore froze for a minute, his energy jumping as he inhaled sharply. I felt a moment of insecurity that quickly disappeared at the expression on his face as he gently turned me towards him, his touch soft yet commanding.
“Repeat that.”
“Repeat what I just said?” I asked in confusion.
“Yes.” His eyes were nearly electric blue, and it made me feel almost breathless at the power radiating off him.
“I found out that all of you are my mates. You’re my mate. Well, I’m your mate.”
I thought at first that he was maybe mad or uncomfortable, because something crossed his face that almost seemed feral.
But then I understood exactly what he was feeling because he surged forward, cupping my jaw and bending to slam his lips against mine.
The pure force of his body had me letting out a surprised sound as everything exploded in a cold blast of icy power the moment our lips met.
Sparks of blue, white, and silver popped behind my eyelids as Tore’s taste exploded in my mouth, the sweetness completely unexpected and making me deepen the passionate kiss.
I could hear a thumping in my ear, and I realized it was two heartbeats.
Mine and Tore’s heartbeats. Connecting together and synchronizing…
holy crap. The thrill of that concept had me feeling euphoric.
I felt inexperienced and clumsy, but it didn’t stop my body from melding into the kiss naturally, allowing him to lead me.
When his hand wrapped around my braids and angled my head, a whimper left my lips, the slight tug making my skin break out into shivers.
Nearly out of breath when he broke the kiss, my fingers pressed against his heart as he lifted me onto the bathroom counter and stepped between my legs.
Both of us seemed at a complete loss for words.
“Sorry, lil bit.” His voice was rough and uneven, his eyes filled with apology.
Sadness and pain slammed into me. Sorry? Sorry about the kiss? Did he regret it? His eyes traced my expression as panic turned them dark.
“What did I say? You look sad. I have no idea how I keep fucking this up.”
“You said sorry…” I hedged, feeling confused now by his reaction. “I thought maybe you regretted our kiss.”
He blinked in confusion. “Goddess, no, Effie. I do not regret that kiss or anything else between us. I just lost control. I don’t want to ever scare you again with my aggression, and sometimes when I’m around you, I lose myself.”
Oh.
I smiled hesitantly. “I don’t mind it when it’s like that. I liked that. A lot. You losing control like that makes me feel…” I didn’t know how it made me feel. “Why does that happen? Is it something I’m doing?”
I would possibly continue to do it, if it was.
“Hearing you call yourself my mate for sure didn’t help, but honestly, my control is very limited around you. You just incite something really dangerous in me, and the hardest part is that it feels completely natural. I just need to be better about it.”
“We are mates,” I said with a small smile, loving that the term made him feel something so powerful, and then went more serious.
“I don’t want you to control yourself. I may be jumpy sometimes, but I know you don’t want to hurt me.
I would rather explain how I am feeling than feel like you are holding yourself back from me. I would never want that.”
Tore examined my expression before nodding and helping me off the counter. “Come on, lil bit, I want to set you up on the couch and get you that food I promised.”
I nodded, deciding not to push the topic as I followed him through my bedroom, already having changed into Dakota’s sweater and a pair of faded PJ pants from home with fuzzy socks that were brand new.
It wasn’t a cute outfit by any means, but I felt significantly better after showering, and now the prospect of food sounded extremely appealing.
“Hey Tore, how did you learn how to braid like that?”
My mate pulled to a stop as a pained look came across his face, making me immediately feel guilty for asking. “My sister, Isabella. I used to help her while we were growing up because her hair was long and she couldn’t always reach it.”
I nodded slowly, not positive where the boundaries were in this conversation. Something about his tone regarding his sister was off. “Isabella is a really pretty name, does she live in Washington with the rest of your family?”
Tore’s gaze darkened. “She doesn’t live anywhere. She was killed by her mate.”
My mouth opened as horror hit me in the chest. “Tore, I am so sorry, I had no idea. I would have never asked.”
He offered me a soft, sad smile. “Don’t think twice about it, lil bit. Nothing can be done now, and I made sure her mate got far worse treatment before dying.”
I should have been scared of his statement and the obvious violence behind it, but instead I felt like it was justified, the extent he’d gone to avenge his sister in her death.
I squeezed his hand, relief flooding his gaze at my reaction as he led me forward into the main room of the dorm.
I squinted, sunlight from the lake breaking through as I looked around the gorgeous space.
I wasn’t positive I would ever get used to living somewhere like this, truth be told.
“Here.” Tore motioned for me to sit as he set blankets and pillows around me, his fussing making my cheeks flush.
He barely noticed, and when he went to go to the kitchen area, Dakota appeared in front of me, crouching down and offering me an appreciative glance as he tucked a stray hair behind my ear.
“Need any more pillows?”
I smiled. “Do we even have any more? I may fall off the couch.”
Dakota frowned. “I didn’t think about that.”
I laughed, causing him to smile. “I promise I am totally fine.”
“What about pain medicine?” Julian called from his room. “I have some Tylenol.”
“She should take some,” Caedmon agreed, sitting down in one of the chairs.
I nibbled my lip, not knowing how to explain exactly why I wasn’t comfortable with that. “Taking pain medicine makes me a bit nervous… The one time I did, it didn’t go as planned, and I wouldn’t love a repeat of that.”
“Didn’t go as planned?” Dakota demanded softly. “What do you mean?”
I tugged on the bottom of a braid. “Honestly? It was after one of my altercations at school, and Theresa had just tossed me a bottle of pain pills when I got home and said ‘take a few.’ Well, a few turned out to be too many, and I spent the night throwing up and super out of it… So yeah, makes me a bit nervous.”
Dakota inhaled sharply, anger infusing his features. “If I ever come across those pieces of shit—”
“Dakota,” Julian warned, walking into the room, “let’s not go there.”
I didn’t disagree with him.
“Here is some soup.” Tore gave me a little mug with a plastic spoon. I curled my feet underneath me as my eyes went to the television, which currently featured the weather. I tilted my head curiously, looking at the radar.
“Is there a storm coming?”
Before they could answer, the elevator signal rang and Caedmon muttered something in a different language as he stood and walked towards the door.
I could feel shivers racing up my skin, and I had an idea of who was about to walk through there.
My nerves went haywire as I swallowed nervously but kept my eyes on the doorway.
My hands were almost shaking, and I had to actively focus on not spilling soup on myself.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Caedmon snapped as Ryder stepped in, his eyes immediately meeting mine.
I felt my breath rush out of me as his burnt-orange gaze darkened on my face.
His frame looked far larger than before—at nearly the same height as Tore, his size wasn’t surprising, but his lean cut somehow looked more bulky today.
His shoulder-length dark hair was pulled back, and he had snow dusting the top of his head and his tailored jacket.
Everything about the way he held himself was powerful, and not for the first time, I found myself unsure on how to handle Ryder.
His tobacco and citrus scent grew stronger as he came closer and put his hands on the back of the couch I sat on, examining my face and completely disregarding Caedmon.
“You look better.”
I cringed. “Did I look bad before?”
His eyes shaded with a darkness that came out in the roughness of his voice. “Kitten, you still looked blue the last time I saw you. Yes, you looked bad.”
I knew what he was saying, logically, I just didn’t understand why it hurt so much.