Page 21

C haos.

That is the only word to describe what is going on right now.

Daegyn and I were almost to the den when Altos Palmer, Arek’s dad, along with Mycah Palmer and Reznyk Martin, Arek’s uncles, went whizzing by on some sort of ATV that had a small truck bed. Declan was wedged between them, directing them in the direction Arek had fallen.

Roree, Raelee, and Rhodee are taking care of me. Natalia, Arek’s mom, is being consoled by Domella, the triplet’s mom, and Marlee, Declan, Daegyn, and Jathen’s mom. Aunt Mitzi is the only one not crying, pacing, or freaking out.

For some reason, my attention is drawn to Mitzi.

She is calmly sitting in the corner, crocheting…

something. My head tilts to the side, trying to figure out what she has on now.

Taking her in from head to toe, a soft smile stretches across my lips.

Mitzi, the eccentric older woman, is dressed like a twenties Flapper.

Her outfit is complete with a fringed dress, gloves to her elbows, fishnet stockings, a garter, heels, several lengthy strands of pearls, and, of course, the headband complete with feathers.

Unable to control myself, the absurdity of it has me laughing. I start softly, moving to a giggle, and gradually become so overcome that I am bent over in loud belly laughs.

One of the triplets follows my line of sight, a smile spreading across her face.

“Yeah, she has a way of breaking up the tension.”

Mitzi lifts her head, giving me a quick wink, before returning to her task as if nothing happened.

The doors burst open, and the Palmer/Martin men barge in, carrying Arek in a makeshift stretcher made out of blankets. Rising to my feet, I move to follow before Declan steps into my path, stopping me.

“Let Tavan take a look at Arek,” Declan says as the men begin filing back into the waiting area, from where they took my mate. “He’s breathing, but he has lost a lot of blood.”

“What about the guy who shot him?” I ask, using my anger to mask my worry.

Daegyn smirks, taking over for Declan. “Gunnar and Hayder have him hog-tied and are taking him to the sheriff’s office with poaching charges.”

The fact that they caught the shooter does little to soothe my nerves.

Arek

Pain.

So. Much. Pain.

My eyes flutter open, trying to get my bearings.

Gazing around the room, I realize that I am at Tavan’s clinic. I shift, trying to get comfortable, when a pained groan escapes my lips. Giving up, I look down my body to take stock of my injuries.

Darby’s head is resting on the bed at my side, her breathing even as she sleeps.

“She hasn’t left your side,” a soft female voice whispers in a shifter’s register, too low for humans to hear. Looking to my left, I see my mom, looking weary.

“What happened?” I ask, my throat sore, like a cheese grater was taken to it.

“You were shot,” Mom says flatly. “The boys took Darby into the woods after you were gone for three days, looking for you. They said that you started to make your way to them when a poacher opened fire. You lost a lot of blood.”

“How long have I been here?” I ask, unsure how long I’ve been asleep.

“Forty-eight hours,” Mom says, and I drop my head back onto the bed.

“The restaurant,” I mutter.

“Is just fine,” Mom bites out. “We have run it long before you took over.”

“She loves you,” Mom says after a brief period of silence, nodding her head in Darby’s direction.

“I don’t know about that,” I argue. “I haven’t given her many reasons why she should.”

“You’re right, you haven’t,” Darby’s sleepy voice joins the conversation, drawing my attention to her.

“I’ll leave you two alone,” Mom says, rising from her chair. She kisses me on the forehead before leaving the room, closing it behind her.

“I’m sorry,” Darby whispers, tears running down her cheeks.

“You have nothing to be sorry about,” I argue. “I have messed this up from the beginning. I should have come to you, talked to you. Instead, I freaked you out, scared the hell out of you, and tried to control you.”

“Well, yeah, you have done all of those things,” she says with a watery smile. “I am not, nor have I been, perfect.”

Reaching over, I use my thumb to wipe the tears off her face. Darby leans into my touch briefly before sitting back in her chair.

“Arek, you need to understand something, and you need to listen ,” she says, emphasizing the word listen. “My parents have always had a strained relationship. While my mom stays at home, she micromanages everything and everyone.

“If my father didn’t listen to Kali and me, there’s no telling what kind of miserable life Dayton would be stuck in right now. Mom was grooming her to be a clone. The sister I see now smiles, has a beautiful home, a loving husband, and four beautiful babies.

“That isn’t me,” she says, causing my heart to sink.

“Kids can be on the table, later. I want to work, need to work. You need to understand that owning and operating a tattoo parlor means that I have to touch people. I specifically learned how to tattoo paranormals, knowing that I wanted to move here and live here. My mother drove a wedge between Dayton and me. Slowly, we are chipping away at that, becoming closer.”

Darby pauses, and while so many thoughts are running amok in my head, I bite my tongue, waiting her out.

“I love you, Arek,” she says, shocking the shit out of me. “Being a mate is something that I need to adjust to, so you need to find patience. I will never fit into any type of mold, so don’t try.”

When it seems like Darby is done with her speech, I start my own.

“I love you too,” I say as she gives me a soft smile in return. “Thank you for coming to look for me. I will try harder and do better going forward, to not only communicate better, but be a little more…flexible.”

Darby rises to her feet, leaning over my bed, giving me a soft, deep kiss.

“Don’t expect me to play nurse once Tavan says you can go home,” Darby quips, reaching down to grab her bag and moving to the door.

“Where are you going?” I ask, somewhat outraged that we just had this breakthrough in our relationship and she’s already bailing on me.

“You are not my boss,” she jeers. “Although once you are healthy, be prepared to spend some time fucking me.” Darby winks before leaving the room, closing the door behind her.

I groan as my head falls back onto the pillow, a smile gracing my lips. My mate is a giant pain in the ass and I wouldn’t want her any other way.