Chapter 21

Chapter Twenty-One

Runa

Nathan was gone for longer than I expected, checking the perimeter. Martha sent Laurie to rest at one point, and she encouraged me to do the same, but it bothered me that Nathan hadn’t come back yet. I almost wanted to ask the wind to call him back, but it was hard enough to do when it was urgent. I couldn’t ask now just because I was bothered.

He came back eventually, but he didn’t say anything to me or Martha. He disappeared into the bathroom long enough to strip and shift before coming back into the room and jumping onto the foot of the bed. He got comfortable watching the doorway, his tail flicking now and then, like he was agitated. I wanted to ask what he was doing for so long, but he couldn’t answer me in that form, and I doubted I’d get much out of him tonight.

Fed up, I shut my eyes and willed myself to go to sleep. It didn’t come easy. Martha had opened the window to let the breeze in, as well as the smells of the earth, but we were on the second floor and I didn’t like that. It made me feel disconnected from the earth. I tossed and turned for a while, and not even Martha’s magic could get me to settle. Nothing helped until Nathan moved to lie beside me, warmth spreading along my side and his rumbling purr drowning out my thoughts. I slipped into unconsciousness with my fingers digging into his fur and slept soundly for the rest of the night.

When I woke, it was to a heavy weight on my head. I blinked my eyes open, frowning, and it took me a minute to realize what was happening.

“Is he seriously using me as a pillow?” I grouched.

Laurie, who had replaced Martha at one point, snickered and nodded. “Yes. It’s cute. Is he hurting you?”

I wanted to say yes just to get him off me, but I didn’t trust him not to be faking sleep and listening to us. I didn't want to lie to him more than I already had by omitting most of my story.

“No. But I need to use the restroom.”

I was right. He was definitely listening. He lifted his head immediately and shifted back to his human form. The brush of magic that came with the shift swept over my body harmlessly. When I turned to ask him why he thought I was his pillow, I nearly swallowed my tongue. He stretched tight muscles, putting his full body on display without a hint of embarrassment. Then again, what did he have to be embarrassed about?

He had a shifter’s body, barely an ounce of fat on him, with tight abs and thick muscles. What little I remembered of our night together, I didn't get to explore him much. We were both too drunk and in too much of a hurry to consider that. I almost regretted it. He was incredibly handsome. Who wouldn’t want to spend a night with him?

“Runa? Do you need help getting up?” Laurie asked, her tone tinged with amusement. My cheeks flushed, and thanks to my complexion, there was no hiding it. I jerked away from the gorgeous, oblivious man beside me, forcing myself upright way too quickly. My head swam, and I rocked a little, steadied by Nathan’s gentle grip on my shoulder.

“You okay?” he asked, his voice rough with sleep.

“I’m fine–”

Laurie picked up my hand, letting her magic sweep through me. I pursed my lips against the urge to complain about the coddling. She was here to help with my seedling. I had to acknowledge the fact that I couldn’t manage on my own yet.

“She’s okay,” she said finally. “Just moved a little too quickly. Take it easy when you stand. I’ll help you.”

She waited for me to twist and toss my legs over the side of the bed before pulling me to my feet. My recovery was faster than last time. It took months for me to be able to move on my own without shaking. I was still lightheaded, but I made it to the restroom with minimal support and she left me alone to do my business without hovering.

When I came back out, Martha was back and Nathan was getting an earful as he pulled on his clothes.

“Not all of us like to see your parts first thing in the morning. Have some modesty, why don’t you?”

I pursed my lips against a smile. I didn't have a problem seeing him naked first thing in the morning, but apparently, Martha felt differently. Nathan tugged his shirt over his head without a word, and when he caught me watching him, a flicker of a smirk flashed across his face too. It was a little funny.

Christian showed up not long later with breakfast for everyone. Nathan disappeared long enough to rouse his dad, who was lured out of bed earlier than he wanted by the smell of food. I was just sitting down to eat when the smell of waffles and syrup wafted into my nose. I gagged immediately and shoved away from the table, backing away from it as quickly as I could manage. My butt hit the edge of the bed and I sank onto it and grimaced when Heath practically drowned his waffle in syrup.

“What’s wrong?” Nathan asked, coming to sit beside me.

“I can’t…” My mouth filled with saliva and I shot him a wide-eyed look. To his credit, he moved quickly, snatching the waste basket under the nightstand and handing it to me just as I lost the battle to keep my stomach contents where they belonged. His rough calloused hands carefully pulled my hair out of my face, and he didn’t complain once about being right next to me through the whole experience.

Warmth spread through as Martha sat on my other side, rubbing my back soothingly.

“Is she alright? Did she get dizzy?” Nathan asked, his tone worried.

Martha’s chuckle was warm and understanding when she explained, “No, she didn’t get dizzy. This has nothing to do with her energy levels and everything to do with the seedling in her belly. Runa, what are your triggers?”

Once I could breathe without gagging, I lifted my head enough to answer her. “Sweets. Sugar makes me ill.”

“Mm. Maybe a boy then,” she commented.

I wrinkled my nose. “That’s a myth. I’ve assisted in plenty of births where the salt-loving mama had a girl.”

She chuckled again. “I’ll trust your judgment, healer. I’ve only assisted in family births, and I never looked too closely at old wives' tales. I focused on the health of the babe instead.”

I could probably check myself if I had the energy for it. But since I could barely manage to walk to the restroom, using my magic to check on my seedling was probably not going to happen any time soon. It was going to have to be a surprise.

We took things slowly up the mountain. Not only for my sake, but for Nathan’s too. He was on high alert, almost too busy looking around to focus on driving. Martha offered to take over, but he refused. He didn't want anyone driving me but him.

When we finally pulled up in front of the compound, I heard a disgruntled sound from the back seat.

“What an ugly building.”

I couldn’t help myself. I laughed outright.

“I’ve been thinking that since the day I was brought here. It has horror movie vibes to it.”

The construction didn’t help. They were still fixing the issues from after the attack, but apparently, no one outside of those who lived here was allowed on the property while Aiden was away. He would become as suspicious as Nathan if he wasn’t careful.

Laurie leaned forward, a deep frown on her face. “You live in that? How can you connect with the spirits with all that glass?”

I shook my head with a scoff. “I live in a cottage farther out. I didn’t want to share space with the beast. It’s only one room, though.”

Martha waved her hand dismissively. “We’ll make do. Once you’re back on your feet, we won’t need to hover. Perhaps we can stay in town. It looked quaint and the B&B was nice.”

Nathan’s hands flexed on the steering wheel, glaring at the parts of the compound still under construction. While the rest exited the car, he didn't move, and he couldn’t look away.

“Nathan? What is it?”

He didn’t look at me, and his voice was tight when he asked, “How close did they get to you? Did they come just for him? Or for you too?”

It took a second to figure out what he was asking about before I finally clued in. “Ah. The beast told you, then.”

He growled, still glaring at the building, until I leaned across the seat and cupped his cheek, forcing him to face me.

“They didn’t come for me. If I’d wanted, I could have hidden in my cottage and waited for it all to be over. I joined that fight only when it was time for me to do so. Up until I lost my magic, my home was warded. They couldn’t have gotten close if they tried.”

He frowned at me, his gaze flicking out the window a few more times before settling again. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“About the attack?”

He nodded.

I shrugged. “You never asked. That day was… difficult, and I’m not going to volunteer that information without prompting. If you want to know something, you need to ask.”

His hand came up, resting on my wrist. “I can ask anything?”

“Within reason,” I corrected. I wasn’t going to tell him my vision. It’d only make things harder on him. Until I understood it better, it was better left unsaid.

His expression flattened for a moment, but smoothed out a second later. He thought about it, his eyes searching mine, and when he finally asked, I wasn’t expecting the question that came out of his mouth.

“What do I have to do to keep you safe?”