Chapter 18

IF TARUS WAS WORRIED , he didn't show it. Remus, on the other hand, struggled to conceal his emotions. That's why he returned to the quiet solitude of the grassy hill, beneath the towering tree where he and Amy had their picnic. In the cool shade, with a breeze gently blowing, he stared at New Hope, his new home, and silently brooded.

Soon enough, his brother joined him. Without a word, Tarus sat next to him, his back to the same tree trunk, and stared out at the growing capital spread out at their feet. Like Remus, his thoughts were elsewhere.

"Her memories are returning," Tarus stated at length.

"The wax man with the black eyes," Remus whispered. "She dreams of the bastard who almost ended her life."

"Which is why you responded to her disobedience as you did."

"I don't like her walking around town alone. I like even less that he's haunting her dreams." He picked up a rock and threw it, as if it would relieve his frustration. It didn't. "Why can't we simply tell her?"

"The trauma specialist says it's best to let her remember in her own time."

"With terrifying nightmares?" Remus grumbled skeptically. "She should know about what happened. If we filled in the blanks, maybe she would remember what had her running and screaming and scared half to death that day."

"And what happened in the cave? It must have been horrific for her mind to shut off all memories of it to protect her."

"That is my concern as well," he agreed, terrified it was worse than he thought. "I spanked her for walking home alone by those woods, but now I worry it wasn't fair. How can it be when she has no memories of what happened in them?"

"You did the right thing," Tarus reassured him. "She needs to learn to obey her mates."

Remus glanced at his profile. "I'm surprised you didn't beat me to it."

"I was thinking she was at a disadvantage, too," Tarus admitted.

"Then you agree with me. She should know it all."

"Yes, but I won't risk her having a relapse. This was the first dream in weeks, which is so much better than every night when she walked around exhausted."

Filled with frustration, Remus muttered, "I don't doubt the woods triggered it. Have you noticed how she tries to avoid looking at it when we pass by?"

"Yes, but she won't be doing so alone again after today," Tarus predicted with confidence. "We should wait and see if the nightly dreams return after this. If so, we'll ask the specialist and her physics' counsel."

"Why hasn't she transformed?" Remus asked, hurling another rock twice the distance. "The hunger is there, and she carries our scent. Is this all we should expect?"

"I wish I knew, Brother. Believe me, I want her to transform as much as you do. "

"It's damn frustrating not knowing. What do we do?"

"Keep trying," Tarus suggested.

He took a deep breath. "We have her a minimum of three times a day. I'd say we're doing our best."

Tarus leaned forward and plucked a purple flower from the ground. Holding it to his nose, he arched a brow his way. "You know damn well, if we didn't have duties to attend to, our best would be five to six times a day."

"Indeed. Damn duties."

Tarus chuckled as he rose to his feet. "The clinic is closing. Let's go fetch our mate and make it four times today."

"She wanted to go to the new restaurant for dinner tonight," Remus reminded him as he fell into step beside him. "For something she called pizza, which is a type of Italian food."

"Which is all alien to me," Tarus quipped.

"It's only been open three days. There's no way we're getting in."

"Amy said Beck had a reservation for eight people at 7 o'clock and invited us to join him and Adria, so that shouldn't be a problem."

"The new mayor has clout," Remus replied. "I suppose she'll want to linger and visit with her friends."

"Yes," Tarus agreed. "Amy seems to enjoy Beck and Adria's company, as well as her coworkers. For our mate's sake, we should let her enjoy herself."

"So, the elusive fourth time will have to wait."

"You'll survive."

"Yes, but our reputations as warriors won't if word gets out. "

Tarus nudged him with his shoulder, which sent him veering toward the muddy street. He caught himself before stepping into a puddle. When he looked at him in question, Tarus warned, "Word of intimacy with our mate had better not get out."

"I was joking. Sheesh," he said, rubbing his shoulder.

"Then your material needs work," Tarus drawled.

"Huh?"

His brother laughed. "It's a joke I heard from one of Kincaid's construction workers. It means your joke wasn't funny, and you should stick to being a warrior."

"Instead of what?" Remus asked, perplexed.

Tarus was still chuckling when they arrived at the clinic moments later. Amy was waiting for them, bubbling over with excitement.

"I've been looking forward to this all day. Do you know how long it's been since I've had pizza that wasn't on rehydrated bread and nuked in a microwave? Rumor has it they have an authentic brick oven and three kinds of crusts."

Her flushed cheeks, broad grin, and effusive chatter made putting off the elusive four times in a day worthwhile. When he glanced at his twin and saw the gentle smile on his face, Remus knew he was as entranced by their mate's enthusiasm as he was.

They were head-over-heels besotted with their beautiful human, their adoration showing in every glance and touch. The bonding between them had taken hold sufficiently, even if she never transformed. But he fervently hoped she would.

Except for her hair. As they walked the two blocks to the new dining establishment, the gold and orange amid the red rivaled the sunset. He would miss the unique color even as he celebrated if it turned all black.