He whispered the words, but he knew the guardian heard him. His good mood evaporated and he packed up the blanket before heading back into the house. Andvari met him by the edge of the yard, opening his arms when he caught a look at Sawyer’s face. He couldn’t hide his emotions from his mates.
“What happened?”
“I don’t know. I said something that pissed him off.”
“What?”
Sawyer sighed. “I said I wouldn’t hurt anyone.”
“You wouldn’t.”
Sawyer looked up and met Andvari’s gaze. “You don’t know that. Not really.”
“Yes, I do.”
“You don’t know me.”
Andvari scoffed. “I don’t know you? I know every breath you take, every thump of your heart. I know each freckle on your skin and every hair on your head. I know your thoughts, simply by looking at your face. Don’t tell me I don’t know you.”
“I must have hurt someone, though.”
“Not on purpose. And if someone is asshole enough to believe that, he can just fuck right off.”
The words weren’t directed at him, but they did make Sawyer feel a little better. “Are you sure?”
“Positive. Look, some shit might have gone down when all this happened. You’re right, we don’t know that. But Sawyer, your soul hasn’t changed. You’re still you, just without memories. That doesn’t go away. You don’t become a different person. You don’t think or act differently. You’re the smartest, bravest, funniest, most giving man I’ve ever known.”
“But—”
“Don’t argue with me. You wouldn’t hurt anyone. Not on purpose. Accidents happen. But if someone’s holding a grudge, then they should man up and tell you about it and stop acting like a petulant child. There are bigger issues at stake.”
Sawyer had no idea what to say, so he simply shut up.
Andvari held him close before pulling back and smiling down at him. “Wanna work out this afternoon? I’ve been working on a new form I want you to try.”
“Sure. Eduard has a few things for me to do, and I want to see if I can figure out the hint my sister tried to give me.”
“Go. I’ll be inside soon. We can come back out when you’re done.”
It hadn’t escaped Sawyer’s notice that his guardians were sticking to him like glue. He didn’t mind. In fact, he liked it a lot. Especially because it wasn’t because something was actively trying to kill him. He’d woken up multiple times the night before and his mates were all there with him. He’d been able to go right back to sleep, not having to worry if they were okay.
After stopping in the kitchen to drop off the bag with Viv, Sawyer snagged a few more biscuits and went upstairs to the library. He found Henry at the books once more. He sat the food down and pulled the book out of the way.
Henry glared at him, but then caught sight of the biscuit and smiled.
“I come bearing gifts,” Sawyer said.
Henry grinned and grabbed a biscuit. “I meant to go get one, but got distracted.”
“I know.”
“You okay?” Henry asked.
“Yellow eyes hurt my feelings. But hey, he let me touch him so that’s progress, right?”
“You do realize that I can trap him in a ward, right? All I’d have—”
“No.”
