Page 57

L ucian washed the blood off his hands in the bathroom sink. After speaking with her father, Eden had gone outside to call the Councilmen and recite the events as she remembered them.

In the quiet aftermath, Lucian recalled the scent of terror lingering in his pack’s garage after he had gone out there to shut the door.

There were alarms all over their property, and he hadn’t received an alert that the garage door closed after Eden sped off.

Had he not gone down and checked it himself, he would’ve never known something was wrong.

Staring at his reflection in the bathroom mirror, he splashed cold water on his face repeatedly until his black hair glistened and water trickled onto his shoulders.

His head was pounding, but nothing topped the phantom pain in his neck, chest, and arms from the Mage’s attack.

Their energy was deadly enough to knock a man out and even kill him.

After he’d flipped his switch, Lucian’s primal side had taken control. If Eden had been in human form, he might’ve scooped her up and run to safety. But since she’d shifted, Lucian’s inner animal braced for a fight to the death.

Resting on his forearms, he thought about the kill while water glossed over his hands.

Damn, that felt good.

Tak once said that a prideful man is a dangerous one.

After winning the challenge a week ago, Lucian hadn’t given Henry a second thought.

They were too busy planning Eden’s move, and she would have the pack’s protection.

He’d seen a few challenges in his day, and losers were usually too ashamed to retaliate, especially since revenge only guaranteed their death or imprisonment.

It never crossed his mind Henry would return after that public shaming, and it made him wish he hadn’t disabled the alarms on the house even for a night.

He pressed his forehead against the sink.

“You wasting our precious water?” Afram said from the doorway.

Lucian straightened and turned the faucet off. The cut on his cheek had already closed up. The knot on his head pulsed, but nothing compared to the burning on his inflamed chest that left every nerve ending raw.

“Well, if it ain’t the Shoe Bandit. You look like something the cat dragged in,” Afram said with a deep chuckle. “Get it?”

Lucian definitely got the tiger joke.

Eden’s father switched off the bathroom light. “Come with me, son.”

Lucian followed him into the living room. Afram turned on the floor lamp next to their game table. Eden had decided to leave it behind since the pack had larger and more comfortable tables.

Afram shuffled to a chair with his walker and took great effort in sitting without falling.

“Shouldn’t you have your oxygen?” Lucian asked.

“I ain’t gonna die tonight.”

Lucian sat across from him and slicked back his damp hair.

“I had you pegged all wrong,” her father began. “Didn’t think you were interested in my girl. Not all serious like. She’s a beautiful woman, so a lot of men want her in the carnal way. Then Eden told me you challenged that fool.”

“Someone had to.”

“Hmm.” He coughed a few times. “I knew a Chitah tribe long ago in my homeland. We didn’t used to hide from the human race.

Couldn’t. The Chitahs stood out, and because of their pale hair and eyes, human tribes feared them.

That made them easy targets for attacks.

Isn’t that always the way? Sometimes I think we’d all be better off if we were born blind.

But I knew Chitahs to be a lot like us. Took care of their families and fought for them.

That’s what I want for Eden: a protector.

Someone who will guard her heart, her future, her values, and her life. ”

“That’s why I challenged the Mage. She deserves everything, including the freedom to choose.”

“Men play heroes, but women have more courage than we’ll ever know.” Afram rubbed his wrists where the rope had left marks in his fragile skin. “Eden almost gave up her future for me, and I feel damn guilty about that.”

“She loves you.”

“My child knows how to fight. She would’ve figured a way out of that mating, but at what cost?

” Afram shook his head. “I only wanted the best for her. Any man would be lucky to have my Eden. She’s smart, kind, and ambitious.

Children are a blessing. Once you become a father, you’ll know that’s all that matters. ”

Lucian hesitated before speaking, but it didn’t seem like a truth worth hiding. “We may not have children. Not because we’re different Breeds, but we’re not sure we want them. I’m trying to earn your approval, but if that’s a deal-breaker, I don’t know what the hell to do.”

“I had my time on this earth. You decide what’s best for you.

Everyone’s path is different.” Afram folded his arms on the table, his skin looser than a younger person’s, his eyes dimmer, his hair whiter.

“Eden is the last of my people. Every beginning has an end. She knows the stories of my tribe, but that time was long ago and forgotten. I learned my lesson about pressuring a woman for children; that’s not the key to happiness.

I only want you to make me one promise.”

“What’s that?”

“Take care of her. Love her like she deserves to be loved. When I’m gone, she’ll be alone in this world—no family of her own. I’m her past, and you’re her future.”

“On my word as a Chitah, I’ll honor her.”

Afram regarded him for a moment. “That’s good enough for me. A Chitah’s word means something. You don’t have a kindred spirit?”

Lucian sat back and crossed his arms. He’d once felt pain and rejection when thinking about Mae. Now he felt nothing at all. “She has a family. I wouldn’t want her even if she left them. The connection between us means nothing anymore.”

Afram nodded as the two men shared something deeply painful in common. “A woman’s love will save a man’s soul. It saved mine.”

“But you got divorced. She left you and Eden. How the hell is that saving your soul?”

Afram cackled and rubbed his whiskery chin.

“You’re not one to mince words. That’s why I like you.

I’ll take blunt honesty over bullshit any day.

I loved Eden’s mother, and for a time, she loved me.

But it’s what you call a whirlwind romance.

I’d never been in love before, and losing that love taught me more about myself than anything.

Love changes you. The only advice I can give you is to be honest. I was so wrapped up in myself that I never asked what she wanted.

Maybe I didn’t care. It was a different time. ”

“Like kids.”

Afram nodded. “I foolishly talked her into having one. She was young and hadn’t found herself, and somehow I thought kids would fix everything, especially since I was getting involved with helping humans. I thought it might give her a purpose and fill the quiet house when I was gone away to work.”

“She should’ve never left.”

“I think she thought it would be easier—that I’d take a new wife and someone else would raise Eden.

There wasn’t shared custody in those days, and we didn’t have cars to drive us here and there in less than an hour.

She mated a wealthy white man, so maybe all she wanted was a life free of responsibility and hardship.

And believe you me, a white woman living with a black man in them days was hard. ”

“You mean banned.”

“Only with humans. It was easy to hide until I got more involved with them. But that’s not what broke us.

When it was all said and done, we didn’t know how to communicate.

That’s what split us apart. Love is never enough.

It’s the foundation, but you’ll spend the rest of your lives building on that foundation, and that means working together.

You have to be partners. Never take someone’s love for granted.

Be honest and respect each other’s wishes and dreams. Figure each other out before you get mated. Life is hard enough. Yes, it is.”

Lucian pondered over the man’s thoughtful words. For a guy whose life was upended by a failed marriage, he seemed optimistic about love. Yet what Lucian most appreciated about Afram was how his emotional scent always matched his words and expression.

It made Lucian want to reciprocate. “I’m not a cuddly kind of guy. What if I’m not enough?”

“Well, that’s up to you.” The old Shifter leaned back. “You might change your minds down the road about what you want out of life and each other—that’s part of growing. But don’t ever put my baby in a situation where she has to choose between your happiness or hers. Do you love her?”

“When I think about life without her, it’s a punch to the gut—and I’ve always been a loner. I wake up thinking about her. When she’s not around, I miss her smell and her laugh. I look forward to our long talks. She’s smart, and I love the way she commands a room.”

“You don’t think she’s the most beautiful woman in the whole world?”

“Obviously. Every time she looks at me, I get nervous.”

“I remember that feeling.”

“I’ve always been the black sheep, so that’s why I know she can do better.”

Afram chuckled quietly. “There’s a difference between a black sheep and a dark horse, and you’re no sheep.”

Lucian rubbed his sore shoulder. “Do you think we’re compatible?”

Her father raised his eyebrows. “From what I know, Chitahs have catlike traits, so that’s something.

” His laugh ended on a wheeze. “Boy, I’m older than dirt.

I don’t care about differences. It’s similarities that matter more.

Figure out what she likes so you can share in those interests.

But also appreciate what makes her special and unique. I know she’ll do the same.”

Lucian stared at the checkers box. “How about a game?”

“Now you’re talking.”

Lucian removed the pieces from the box and set it up. “What do you want to know about me?”

“How old are you?”

“Eighty-fourish. I don’t celebrate birthdays, but it’s somewhere in the eighties.”