Nial looked shell-shocked, and I made another attempt to approach him, but he threw up his hands to tell me to back off. At least he didn’t slam me into the fucking wall again. Maybe that was progress.
“You’re saying you’re a freedom fighter and not a smuggler?”
“Well, technically I am a smuggler, I just smuggle people, not goods. But the smuggling operation was always a great cover when I needed to move people quickly and quietly without anyone knowing.”
“Does anyone else know?”
“Only Marks, Paul, and my team. Before you ask, definitely not your brother. He enjoys the idea of being a criminal too much for me to ever trust him with this. I don’t know where I went wrong with him.”
Nial seemed to process this information, then he dropped his hands in a defeated gesture and left the room as he threw out his last words over his shoulder.
“I’ll get my things together. We can leave in an hour.”
He sounded so lost and defeated. I wanted to scoop him up and hold him close until he didn’t hurt anymore. I wanted to erase all of the pain I had caused him. I knew it was an uphill battle.
“He’ll come around, son. The mate bond is strong, and you two obviously care about each other already. Once you can explain, and he can forgive, you two complete the claiming. Having that completed bond is like nothing in this world. It’ll make both of you stronger.”
Mr. Rourke walked out of the room, leaving me alone for the first time in weeks. I used to love my solitude, but not anymore. I wanted my mate by my side, and I would fight tooth and claw to win him back.
