38. Chapter Thirty-Seven

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Remmus was embracing a pink-haired woman. Celeste.

There, surrounded by state-of-the-art kitchen appliances and marble countertops, was her mate holding someone else. Tattooed arms were wrapped protectively around the little Raeth, twin puffs of cotton-candy colored fuzz peeking out from where her face rested against his chest.

A snarl built in her throat. Her wolf's first urge was to rip him away from Celeste, to claim Remmus as hers with every bone in her body.

Before she made good on the impulse, Ava stopped. Took notice. Analyzed.

Nothing in Remmus' embrace hinted at intimacy or attraction.

The only emotion Ava felt resonating through their bond was platonic affection. One that was built on years of friendship and mutual trust. As she began to understand, her shoulders relaxed, her breathing evened out, and she simply watched.

When Remmus released Celeste, and she dragged a glittery purple fingernail beneath her black-rimmed eyes. "I'm more than happy to be your friend, Remmus. And I can't wait to finally meet Ava—when she doesn't want to gnaw off my head."

"She's the light of my life, Celeste. I can't imagine living without her."

"Good." Snarky now, Celeste fisted her hands on her hips. "Because if she hurts you, I'll skin her wolf and wear her coat like a prized fur."

Ava's amused laugh startled both Raeths. Turning as one, Remmus and Celeste caught sight of her a moment before the latter jumped away and held up her hands.

"Please don't kill me! I promise I wasn't doing anything untoward."

Ava blushed. "I know. I've been watching."

"Well, doesn't that sound ominous." Remmus quipped. "How did you sneak up on us?"

"I wasn't aware I was sneaking."

Celeste tapped a fingernail to her lips. "But you did. Come to think of it, I can't sense your psychic presence."

"Am I supposed to know what that means?"

Ava wrapped her arm around Remmus' waist. Above her head, Remmus' features pinched as he studied her, then he jolted as though she'd sent a thousand volts of electricity into him.

"I put a shield on you!"

"Is that like ‘I put a spell on you'?"

"No, he actually put a shield on you." A flare of Celeste's energy brushed up against her. It was delicate, like a feather skating over her skin, but without a doubt an energy contained. "You're a walking void."

Now the Raeths had managed to confuse her. "Huh?"

"Shields can bestow part of their ability to another, kind of like donating part of your liver to another person." When Ava made a face, Remmus continued undaunted. "You have a psychic shield."

"And it's a strong one."

"I must've unknowingly given it to you," he admitted, "though I can't say I'm sorry."

Something clicked in Ava's mind. "That must've been why the Citizens' Raeth couldn't poison me."

The temperature around her dropped considerably. Both Raeths stiffened as though she'd dropped a bomb that was counting down to an atomic blast.

"What now?"

"When I met up with the Citizens Raeth at the plant," she explained as her wolf bristled, far more cautious now that both predators were focused on her with unflinching concentration. "He launched an attack against me, but it didn't take. I saw the failure in his expression."

Before she knew it, Remmus' had her head between his palms, his wide seafoam eyes locked on hers with a scrutiny that made her hold her breath. Electricity filtered through the air around her, and within moments, Kaien had appeared.

"Check her for psychic poison!"

The command, as stark as any she'd ever heard from Remmus, was directed at the healer who'd stepped up to her left.

As Kaien dutifully murmured an apology, he asked, "May I check you, Ava? Can't have someone walking around untreated; we saw how well that went over last time."

"I'm sure I'm fine."

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and I'm certain your mate will feel better if we check."

Remmus' compounding fear was eating away at him from inside, a potent, building terror that was debilitating as it travelled through their bond. The intensity is his expression made her heart skip a beat.

"Okay."

Protectively ensconcing her in his arms, Remmus' breath tickled along her neck while Kaien thoroughly checked her mind for any signs of psychic poison. Five minutes later, he straightened and let his hands drop.

"Clean bill of health, wolf," Kaien decreed. "Can't get away from us that easily, I'm afraid."

She turned in Remmus' arms and rested her palms against his chest. "See, Remmus? I'm fine. Your shield protected me."

As the drum of his heartbeat finally calmed, he sighed. "One slip of my shield and he took my mind. It could've happened just as easily with you."

Ava caught his hand before it could tighten into a fist, and as soon as she slipped her fingers through his, the coercion eating away at him dissolved.

"No, Remmus, it wasn't a failure. This was a success."

Bringing up his hand to her lips, she tenderly brushed her lips over each knuckle. She watched as his expression softened, warmed and focused on her with reverence. When he spoke, his words were full of adoration.

"I love you, Ava."

Her lips were on his only seconds later, while his arms looped around her waist. Between them, the mating bond blazed with an unparalleled fierceness, and the depth of his love barreled into her like a freight train.

Ava could only clutch at him as his mouth worshipped hers. After years of fear and solitude, she'd finally found the one who made her heart sing.