“I don’t change my mind once it’s set.”
“No, I don’t suppose you do.” Korrin’s gaze moved to Ariella, lingering on the pale shimmer of her skin, the delicate webbing between her fingers. “And this must be your mate.”
“Yes. This is my Ariella.”
“I’m pleased to meet you.” Korrin dipped a courteous bow and he bit back the urge to growl at the younger male’s grace. “My mate couldn’t accompany me today, but she sent something for you and your daughter.”
He handed her a small basket, and her face lit up.
“Sweet pastries? I haven’t had these since… For a very long time. Please thank her for me.”
“I will. I hope next time you thank her in person.”
If there is a next time.
Even during the introductions he’d been aware of the other male silently watching them, and Seren finally rose and came to join them as well. The Alpha was tall and powerful, dark hair sprinkled with silver pulled back from a calm, stern face that reminded him a little of his grandfather, but his eyes held a warmth his grandfather’s had never held.
“Valrek.”
“Alpha.” He inclined his head, not quite submission, but an acknowledgment of Seren’s authority. “I thank you for receiving us.”
“Korrin speaks highly of you. He says you chose exile rather than abandon your daughter.”
“My daughter is half-human,” he said steadily, ignoring the lingering pain. “My former pack saw her as an abomination. I saw her as my child.”
“And you raised her alone. For how many years?”
“Six.”
Something flickered in Seren’s amber eyes. “Six years of isolation. No pack, no community, no support. That takes strength. Or madness. Perhaps both.”
“Perhaps.”
A smile ghosted across Seren’s stern features before his gaze moved to Ariella. “And this is the mate who chose a Vultor child over her own kind.”
She stepped forward, her chin lifting, and he felt a surge of pride at her courage.
“A member of my own kind who only saw me as an asset. An animal to be displayed at dinner parties. Lilani was worth a hundred of him.”
A long silence stretched between them, broken only by the rustle of leaves in the mountain breeze.
“I see,” Seren said at last, his gaze lingering on the mating mark on Ariella’s shoulder before turning back to him. “And you wish to join my pack? To bring your halfling child and your… unusual mate into our community?”
“Yes. But only if it is a place where we are all truly accepted,” he said firmly.
Seren sighed, a sudden hint of weariness on his face.
“I have done everything I can to make sure that is so, but feelings do not change overnight and there is a lot of history between humans and Vultor. However, you have proven your worth through years of isolation and hardship. Your mate has proven hers through sacrifice and courage. I would welcome you both—and your daughter—into my pack.”
A pack.After all the lonely nights and the desperate wondering if he would ever belong anywhere again. He’d told himself he was doing this for Lilani, but he hadn’t realized until just that moment how much he wanted it as well.
“There are conditions,” Seren continued, a hint of wry humor in his voice. “I’m trying to build something new here. Peace with the humans. Trade partnerships. I need allies who share that vision. You live on the cliffs between our territory and a human settlement. That position could be valuable—a bridge between worlds so to speak.”
“A bridge,” Ariella repeated softly. “I like that.”
“And not just between human and Vultor. Korrin tells me there are other exiles scattered across the region, warriors who fled or were cast out, surviving alone in the wilderness,” Soren added. “One is rumored to be living on the far side of this mountain range, though no one’s been able to confirm it.”
“You’re trying to find them?” he asked.
