Page 55

Carla

I ’ve spent the day in a funk, unable to get the images of Verde and Petra out of my mind. While Amari’s been packing up his cabin to move to the patrol cabin, I’ve been sulking, washing my clothes, my thoughts circling the same dark drain.

We’re back at my cabin now to pack up my things, and I can see it in his eyes—he’s about two seconds from snapping at me.

I glance up at him, trying to calm my nerves.

He’s standing over me, looking like he’s about to toss me over his shoulder and throw me back in the SUV, which is already packed with his stuff.

“Do you want me to go inside and do it for you?” he asks, his voice tight with barely controlled frustration.

I shake my head, my eyes dropping to the ground. “I want you to accept that dinner date with Alexis.”

I don’t need to look up to feel the heat of his glare.

“I don’t know why you’d even think I’d betray you like that,” he hisses, his usually smooth voice edged with anger.

His frustration makes me grin a little, despite everything. “I want you to convince her to give me back Verde and Petra so I can give them a proper burial.” The last word catches in my throat, and I sniffle, fighting back tears that refuse to be contained.

“Oh, Carla.” His voice softens as he wraps his arms around me from behind, pulling me close. He buries his face in my neck, his cool breath fanning across my skin. “I can feel your pain.”

I turn in his arms to face him, my eyes searching his. “Do it for me, Amari. You say you love me...”

“That’s not a question, Carla. It’s a fact.” His fangs flash as he speaks, a physical manifestation of his intensity.

I run my fingers over his lips, and his eyes close at my touch. He leans in for a kiss, but I pull back slightly.

“I want Verde and Petra back. I don’t care if you have to?—”

He pushes away from me with a hard glare and adjusts his suit, his movements sharp and precise. “I know what you think of me, Carla. And I love you still.” Then he gets right in my face, his fangs bared. He’s mad. Really mad.

“Don’t you ever say anything like that to me again, Carla. I will not defile what I’ve built with you, not even at your request. You could have simply asked me to retrieve them. Not treat me like the whore you see me as.”

“I—” My explanation dies on my lips as he storms past me, up the stairs, practically kicking the door to my cabin open.

I suck in a breath and put my hand over my mouth, trying to stifle the sobs that I know he can hear with his vampire hearing. He doesn’t come back out for me. I take a moment to gather myself, wiping my face with the sleeve of my jacket before making my way up the stairs and entering the cabin.

I can hear him moving around upstairs, so I hurry up, finding him in my bedroom. I pause at the door. He’s already found a couple of my duffel bags—bags I’ve used in the past for stays at the patrol cabin. He’s opening drawers and shoving my clothes inside with quick, purposeful gestures.

He still wants me to come with him? He doesn’t look at me, though I know he senses my presence.

I take slow steps toward him, watching as he moves from drawer to drawer, filling the bag to the brim before zipping it and grabbing another.

“Amari, you still want me to come with you? After what I just said?” I ask, my voice small.

“Yes, Carla,” he snaps, still not looking at me. “This may be difficult for you to believe, but I can’t sleep without you. I haven’t been able to since I first laid eyes on you.”

The confession makes my heart clench. “I’m sorry, Amari. I don’t see you as a whore.”

He groans and slams the bag down on my dresser, then turns to me, his hands gripping my waist and pulling me into his arms. “You do, Carla.” He presses his lips to my forehead, inhaling deeply. “But that’s my burden to bear, baby. Not yours.”

He pulls away and smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. He grabs the bag from the dresser and resumes packing. “I’m sure you can manage with what I’m packing.”

“I’ll go get my favorite blanket,” I say softly, walking toward my bedroom door. I stop, turning back to him. He still doesn’t look at me. “And just my toothbrush and toiletries in the bathroom.”

He nods, focusing intently on packing rather than meeting my eyes.

“I really wish I could take my words back, Amari. I shouldn’t have said that to you.” He pauses, holding the bag at his side. “I have a lot to learn myself as a fated mate. I can’t just say whatever I want and think it’s not going to affect you. I’m sorry.”

With that, I go downstairs and grab two of my favorite quilt throw blankets, throwing one over my shoulder while holding the other. I make my way to the door, but just as I pull it open, I feel a flash of movement and a hand pushes against it, closing it. It’s Amari, already behind me.

I sigh and turn around to face him, leaning against the door. His expression has changed—that annoying smug grin is back, and his posture has shifted.

“Did we just have our first fight as a mated couple?” he asks, his grin widening.

I roll my eyes and slap his chest. He laughs as I turn around and try to open the door again, but he grabs me, turning me back to face him.

“You have no idea how hard I’m falling for you, Carla,” he says, staring down at me in a way that makes me gasp. My lips part as I look up at him, and he grins wider. “I’m going to prove to you that I’m worthy of your love. I don’t care how long it takes me.”

With that, his mouth crashes into mine. His lips are cool but warm quickly against my own, moving in a way that sends electricity racing through me.

He tastes like mint and something darker, richer, uniquely him.

His tongue slides against mine, and I melt into him, my body forgetting all the reasons I should be keeping my distance.

His hands grip my waist, pulling me flush against him, and I can feel the hard planes of his body pressing into mine.

The kiss deepens, becoming more desperate, more consuming, until my head spins and my knees threaten to give out.

When he finally pulls back, I’m panting, my thoughts scattered like leaves in a storm.

He laughs at my dazed expression. “I’ll retrieve Verde and Petra’s bodies so you and our children can give them a proper burial. And you would have been better off commanding me to kill Alexis, not fuck her. Go wait for me in the SUV. I’ll be down shortly.”

I nod, still dazed, turning back around to open the door. I nearly knock myself out with it as I pull it open too forcefully. I groan when I hear Amari laugh as he runs back up the stairs.

I walk back to the SUV, tossing my blankets in the backseat, then climbing into the passenger seat.

I make myself comfortable as I wait for him.

I can feel Tofi and the others in the forest, watching me.

They’re happy for me. And I feel even happier knowing that Amari is going to retrieve Verde and Petra so I can properly put them to rest.

I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy before. It’s beautiful, actually. A feeling I never thought I’d experience.

Amari isn’t in my cabin long. I see the lights turning off upstairs before he finally comes down, more lights going dark, then he steps out, holding several bags.

He grins at me as he walks down the stairs in his suit and expensive shoes.

He tosses the bags in the back passenger seat, then climbs in, starting the engine.

He looks at me and smiles. “Ready to start a new life with me, baby?”

I nod, unable to find words for the mix of emotions swirling inside me.

He looks into the forest as he puts the SUV in drive and pulls away, smiling. “You too, my children. See you soon.”

I blush as he addresses our children.

I pause at that thought.

Our children.

I’m finally accepting that happiness has found me. But I still can’t get Tofi’s warning out of the back of my mind. Remember, Mommy. I need to catch up with her tonight. What does she want me to remember?

And why is Alexis after my blood sample? I need to find a better way to approach Amari about not dismissing that date. Something tells me she may know something about me that I don’t. And that’s not good at all.

I know my children are protecting me, but from what? So many questions linger in my mind, but when Amari grabs my hand and pulls it to his lips, gently kissing the back of it as he maneuvers the SUV through the path leading back to the road, my worries fade temporarily.

Because I know Amari is here for me, to protect me, to love me, and it’s not just my babies anymore.

I look at Amari as he drives me through Wintermoon, staring at him in awe.

I still can’t wrap my head around it. How Fate prepared him for me, gave him Kemnebi, and when Amari found me, he was ready.

I’m the one who’s not ready. I may not need the veil lifted to love him, but I want it lifted. I want to feel the urge to claim him, to seal the bond between us. Without that, I’ll always feel like he’s not fully mine.

That’s my mission. While Amari’s busy securing the borders and trying to figure out what Alexis is up to, I’ll focus on my children, trying to get them to lift the veil, or at least help me understand why they’re still masking me.

I stare at Amari for a moment, lost in thought, knowing being here on Wintermoon means something. Damon’s library can’t help me because I’m a Blackwood witch.

But I think I know someone who can.

My cousin Angie. She has access to all the Blackwood books. Even the ones in the Witching Glen. I don’t know why I didn’t think about her the first time. Then my face scrunches up as I remember why.

I’ve been avoiding her like the plague because of her hatred for my children. She’s tried to spray them with bug spray more than once. She won’t even tolerate the sight of them.

Amari stops the SUV, looking over at me with concern. “Baby, what’s wrong?”

I frown deeper. “I think I do know someone who might have answers about why my children won’t lift the veil.”

My frown intensifies when his grin widens, his eyes alight with hope.

“Who, baby?” he asks, grabbing my hand.

I sigh and look away from him. “My cousin Angie. Of House of Zorah.”

His brow furrows. “House of Zorah has a Blackwood witch?”

I give him a sarcastic grin. “Not a Blackwood witch. Six of them. She’s got three girls and two boys, all Blackwoods.”

Amari smiles and starts driving again. We’re getting close to the patrol cabin. “I’m ecstatic to meet them,” he says.

I frown at him again. No, he doesn’t. Because he’s going to find out all too quickly just how much she doesn’t like our children, and I’m not sure how he’s going to feel about that.

The patrol cabin comes into view, and a wave of anxiety washes over me. It’s a solid structure, standing alone at the edge of Wintermoon’s border, surrounded by towering pines. It’s been abandoned since Verde and Petra died, and the thought of returning makes my heart ache.

But it’s also where I felt most useful, most connected to my purpose here on Wintermoon.

Guarding the borders gave me and my children a reason to exist, a way to contribute.

Now we’re returning, but everything has changed.

I’m no longer alone—I have Amari. And soon, I’ll have Verde and Petra back, to lay them to rest properly.