Page 58 of Losing My Siren Luna (Hidden Cove #1)

I furrow my brows, concerned now since Lira is supposed to be where Cedric is. I can't feel the bond yet, but my Lycan usually can, and Meldec, even if he won’t admit it, can surely feel his bond with Cedric. If both Killian and Meldec are anxious, there must be a reason.

“Nilo will finish this meeting out. Mel, come with me.”

“Alpha,” he pushes away from the table, “I really need to-”

“That’s where we are going, dumbass. To check on our mates,” I told him, earning an embarrassed groan from him as we walked past all my commanders and the Luna’s guard.

“Everyone already knows, you idiot. I don’t understand why you don’t just hurry and claim him.

He’s annoying, but a hot commodity to the unmated females, and even the unmated males with that preference. Someone else might take him.”

Meldec growls at my warning, making me smirk. “And that’s how everyone knows that he’s your mate, Mel. You make it that obvious.”

“Okay. I get it.” He mumbles, walking next to me as we begin searching the castle for Lira and Cedric. Before we get far, Percy comes running after us. “What are you doing?”

“Sorry, Alpha. I couldn’t sit still. My Lycan and I both feel our bond's pull to Yasmin stretching further and further. I thought maybe she could be running an errand for the Luna, but I remembered that she was supposed to stay with Cedric and Ela.” When I narrowed my eyes at him for addressing Lira so casually, he added, “Sorry, sorry. She was supposed to stay with Cedric and the Luna . Your most gratuitous and more understanding mate.”

“She truly is his better half,” Mel snickers.

“Only half?” Percy snorts.

“You’re right. She’s carrying all the good qualities in their relationship,” Meldec adds, making me growl in annoyance.

“Will the both of you shut up? Percy, can you reach your mate?” Lira is still unmarked, so not part of the pack mind link, and without Mel marking Cedric, we wouldn’t have a way of reaching him either.

Percy closed his eyes for a moment, then groaned loudly after about a minute. “I tried, but she told me she would see me tonight and not to worry about it. She’s put up a block.”

I grumbled under my breath, knowing now that something truly was up. “You don’t feel her in the castle?”

“No, Alpha,” Percy shook his head. “Before she put the block up, it felt like she was to the north at the edge of town.”

Meldec growls. “Why? I thought you told them to stay here?” He looked at me accusingly.

“Watch your tone,” I warned him. “I can’t command my wife or your mate, and I didn’t think I needed to command Yasmin. And if Cedric and my wife are with Yasmin in town, I bet it was your mate’s idea.”

“Mine?!” Mel asked in disbelief.

“Yes, yours. He has a knack for trying to piss me off.” That merman is constantly trying to get Lira to do things to get me riled up.

“ You should have housed him in the pond,” Killian reminds me.

“ He might end up there later if my wife is harmed in any way,” I muttered venomously.

“ We can just barbecue him

and serve him for dinner with chips and tartar sauce.”

“I wouldn’t put any part of that man anywhere near my mouth,” I gagged in disgust.

“If he would just have let me mark him like I wanted, this wouldn’t be an issue,” Meldec groans, pulling my attention out of my conversation in my head with my Lycan.

“You told him you wanted to mark him? Then why haven’t you?” I asked.

“Well,” Meldec looks away guiltily, “I may have made a minor mistake when we first met.”

“Like what? I was there. Did you miss his bum and try to stick it in his ear after I left?”

Percy starts laughing like a hyena at my question, but Meldec looks less than amused.

“No,” he winces, “It may have been worse than that.”

“What’s worse than sticking your nub in his ear?” Percy cackled out.

“No, prick. I'll turn yours into a nub if you refer to mine in such an insulting way again.” He focused a little too hard on strapping on his horse’s saddle. “I, uh, may have made a fuss about not trusting sirens. I told him he couldn't mark me back because of it.”

“Wow,” I feel for him. It’s hard to break animosity when we have been at war with every other race for so long over our land and resources.

All we have experienced from those races through the wars was selfish greed and terror.

Never anything good. Though we never had dealings with sirens before, it’s hard to just ignore rumors and legends when that is all we know.

“Do you still feel that way, because in my experience, sirens are honest and trustworthy to a fault.” I wish King Brennus would be kinder or less honest with his words sometimes. He isn’t hesitant to admit he hates me.

“No, I don’t.” He looked to truly mean it. His expression is somber and full of regret. “I was worried about what others would think, and I still kind of am, but I don't think he is untrustworthy any longer. The Luna’s trust in him, and even yours, is testament enough.”

“That's an improvement, I guess, but why are you worried about what others will think?” If he’s worried about that, he shouldn’t make it so obvious that they are mates.

It also sounds a little unfair to Cedric.

I don’t like the fishboy, but I wouldn’t be embarrassed to be seen with him or associated with him.

Maybe it’s because Cedric is so much prettier than Meldec? Maybe he feels insecure about himself?

“He’s a siren, Alpha,” Meldec states, as if it’s obvious.

“So?” I lift my brow, mounting my horse in a fluid motion. “Why does that matter?”

Meldec pulls his brows together, looking confused by my response. “What if he gets troubled because of being my mate? Our pack isn’t friendly to outside races.”

I growled at that assumption that a siren might be unsafe in my pack.

My wife is part siren, after all. “That’s a bigoted opinion on your behalf, Mel.

He is more than capable of handling himself.

If our pack has prejudices, then you should be an example by treating your mate with the respect he deserves.

Be the change, not part of the problem.”

I learned that lesson the hard way in my first life with Lira. I don’t want my friend to make similar mistakes. He has the benefit of knowing they are mates. He should be treasuring that, not tarnishing it. He is hurting his bond.

Meldec is quiet on the first part of the trek to town.

I use the quiet as a chance to mind link Cherum and let him know our suspicions about Lira and her companions escaping to town on their own.

He is far angrier than me. I’m concerned for her safety, but I trust the fishman to keep her safe.

Cherum threatens to filet him before cutting off the link to prepare a team to find her.

“Do you think I should offer to let him mark me first?” Meldec asked once the subject had finally left my mind.

I was thinking up places to search for my wife and Killian was thinking up ways to get her to pay for worrying us, most of which involve showering her with presents and kisses while we take her away on a date in town, hoping we would find her before anyone else.

I was so consumed with thoughts about my mate, I forgot about his.

“Huh?” I looked at him in confusion.

“Cedric. Do you think I should let him mark me first? Would that pacify him and get him to accept me? Assuming I can actually get him to have a conversation with me for once. He’s been refusing to listen to a word I have to say.”

“ I would too,” Killian huffs, irritated that Mel broke us from our daydreams about dates with Lira.

“I think you should start with an apology and a conversation. You accused him of being untrustworthy, thereby breaking his trust in you. You might have to earn that back.”

“Buy him clothes and flowers,” Percy offers. “Yasmin loves it when I buy her shoes and flowers.”

“He’s a man, idiot,” I scoffed at him.

“So? Yasmin and Luna are close with him and he likes many of the same things they do. He said just the other day his favorite flowers are hibiscus flowers that bloom in the warmer climates near the sea. He also likes sweets. Cherum accidentally brought the sugar cookies the Luna dislikes because they have far too much icing, but Cedric said they were his favorite and ate them all up.”

“Really?” Meldec scratches his chin as he takes mental notes, while I’m busy grinning, imagining my wife’s face when she bit into one of those cookies to discover it was too sweet for her. She makes the cutest faces. Even her disgusted face is adorable. “What else does he like?” Meldec asked.

Percy spends the rest of our ride to town telling Meldec everything he can about Cedric, and I’m able to slip back into my daydreams about my wife.