I made Mason check on Katie and Eli first. Eli was mostly unscathed. He had a few rope burns but no broken skin. He was also exhausted and fighting sleep now that the excitement was over.
Katie had bruises in several places and a tiny cut on her head, thanks to a rough ride in the truck bed. Her wrists were also scraped badly. Mason cleaned the broken skin and slathered it with antibiotic cream before wrapping gauze around her wrists.
“Your turn now.” Mason stood in front of me. “What are your injuries?”
“Couple bites on my right leg. Another on my side.” I dropped my sweatpants, revealing the deep wound on my thigh.
Mason grimaced. “That might need stitches. Lucky for you, Emily added a numbing cream to my first-aid kit.”
“Remind me to thank her.” We avoided the local hospitals, as they didn’t know how to properly care for shifters. We healed faster than humans, so we needed to work quickly. Mason never bothered with anesthetics, something Emily had been on his case about ever since she’d had to stitch Austin up after he got gored by our bull.
He applied the cream, then prepared the needle and thread. Eli came closer, his face a mix of fascination and horror. “He’s going to sew you up? Cool.”
I held out my fist to Eli, and he grinned as he bumped it with his. He watched every stitch, and I told him about shifter healing. Thanks to the numbing cream, I mostly felt only a tugging sensation.
When we returned to the ranch, Emily checked the stitches Mason had done and nodded with approval. Eli had fallen asleep on the drive, so I carried him as Katie and I walked to their cabin. He didn’t stir the entire way back. She pulled back his covers, and I laid him on the bed.
We sat on the couch, my arm around her shoulders as she leaned against my chest. Her legs lay across mine, and I rested my free hand on her thigh.
“I’m sorry you got mixed up in my mess.” Now that everything was over, the fear I’d held back rushed through me. I hadn’t allowed myself to feel it earlier, as I’d needed to focus on saving her. Now, the worst-case scenarios that could have happened played in a loop.
“It’s not your fault. You couldn’t have known your father would take Eli.” She traced patterns on the skin of my forearm.
“If I’d walked Eli to the cabin, he wouldn’t have had the chance.” Guilt settled in my gut. “Can you forgive me?”
“Hey, he’s fourteen. He’s old enough to walk alone for a few minutes.” She peered up at me. “There’s nothing to forgive.”
“The thought of losing you two… I’ve never felt so worried.” My hold on her tightened, and I blew out a ragged breath.
“It’s over now. Your father no longer has anything to hold over your head.” She burrowed deeper into my arms. “Your brothers know about your past, and Eli and I are safe.”
I scrubbed my face with my hands. “Now I just need to wait for the fallout from my brothers.”
“What do you mean?” She rubbed her cheek against my chest.
“I can understand they wouldn’t say anything while you and Eli were in danger, but my past isn’t that easy to accept.”
“Luke, your past doesn’t define you. Your actions do. You saved Eli and me.” Her cheek was over my heart, and it felt like her words had a direct line to it. “You’re a good man. You prove that every day.”
A protest died in my throat. Was she right?
“What about Eli? Is he just a troubled boy?” She asked.
My breath left me in a rush. My voice rasped out. “Of course not.”
“If you wouldn’t hold Eli’s past against him, why do you hold your own against yourself?” Her fingers clutched my shirt, then smoothed the fabric out again.
I took a shaky breath in. “Why do you have to introduce logic? Now I have to question everything I’ve ever thought about myself.”
She chuckled, her cheek vibrating against my chest. “Maybe that’s why I’m your mate. To straighten you out.”
An idea swirled through my head, but I hesitated to put it into words. I might be rushing things and overstepping. Still, I needed to take a chance.
I cleared my throat. “I was thinking… I don’t know if you’re ready for this, or if it would even work out, but I…”
She shifted on the couch to face me. “What is it?”
“I thought if you were ready to be my mate, we could take in Eli.” The words rushed out before I second-guessed them. “I know you were probably going to send him to Shifter Alley, and I’m sure he’d do fine there. But I feel like he’s ours.”
