CHAPTERFOURTEEN
Finn turned his attention toward me, his glacial eyes staring into my glare. “No harm will come to your mother, either. You have an extremely intelligent family. They know what they want in life, and they know how to succeed in their agenda. That does not include pissing off a shifter.”
I still glared, hissing, “I will ruin you if you touch a hair on her head. Do you understand me?”
His lips twitched. “I like how fierce you are for those you love. It’s passionate and respectable.” Those sinful lips trembled once more. “And a little adorable coming from you.”
“Answer me,” I demanded.
“I already said my piece. I didn’t lie.”
I eyed his strong features, my hands fisting. “You better hold up to it. My mother means the world to me.”
His head cocked. “What about your father?”
“Our relationship is different, but, yes, he means the world to me too. I love both of them with everything I have in me. They have been wonderful parents, and I’ve learned so much from them about life, business, and caring. I don’t want anything to happen to them.”
He nodded. “That’s understandable. I feel the same way for my best friends. They are what keep me sane most days.” His attention swung back to the waterfall, the blue of his eyes shimmering in the sun. “Which is damn near comical because they also drive me insane every other day.”
I ran my gaze over his profile. “You love them.”
“Yes. Allfiveof them. That does include Cass.”
I pressed my sweating palms onto my legs, the silk of my dress sticking to my hands. “It’s good to love and be loved in return. Without it, life would be miserable. And long.”
He grunted, his gaze now on a tree to our right, examining each green leaf. His voice was soft, purring, “Ask your questions, Mina. You reek of anxiety.”
I chewed on the inside of my mouth, and then spewed, “Speaking of a long life. How old are you? And are you immortal?”
“I’m one hundred and ninety-nine years old.”
He didn’t turn to watch my expression.
Finn allowed me the privacy I needed.
Astonishment ran through my veins. I didn’t breathe, my chest unmoving. My hands pressed harder down onto my legs, and my fingertips dug down into my muscles. His age ran on repeat inside my head, trying to comprehend a man who had lived for so long. Had seen so very much.
A person who had experienced life before the final war had ravaged our planet. The beauty and places he must have seen. A life completely unlike what I had grown up with.
He cleared his throat. “And yes. Shifters are immortal. Mates are too after they’ve mated.”
My eyes widened. “Truly?”
Finn did turn his regard to me then. Blue eyes searched mine, and he nodded. “Yes. Shifters and their mates are immortal.”
“You can’t die,” I repeated.
Maybe if I said it enough times, it wouldn’t be so hard to believe. An undying man sat next to me. The world was limitless to a being such as him.
“Actually, there are two ways a shifter can die. One, if their mate kills them. Or two, if the seer kills them.”
“What’s a mate and a seer?”
“A mate is forever. Magic chooses the human female, the perfect female for the shifter. And only a mate can provide a shifter offspring.” He sighed with extreme aggravation. “And you’ve met our seer. It’s Cass. The seer has certain powers that allow him to keep the shifters in line, theextreme soldierof sorts.”
My blonde brows furrowed. “I understand a seer for shifters. But why can a mate kill her shifter if the magic picks perfection?”
“Forever is a long time to live…”
