He rubs the back of his head. I’ve noticed he always does that when he is embarrassed or bashful. “I am nothing special,” he says.
“You are to me.”
“The girls in school say that I am not deep,” he admits. “You know, a pretty face but not much behind it.”
I frown, feeling a surge of anger. A surprisingly strong one. It seems like my wolf side is less than pleased that others badmouthed my mate. “Their loss,” I say. “Obviously, they were the shallow ones. I think you are pretty amazing. You are so kind and generous, you accepted me immediately, and you didn’t hesitate to help me. You only thought about me and what Ineed.” I pause, hoping he won’t find me cringey. “You are the sun for me.”
Felix is silent. “Thank you,” he finally says, his voice hoarse.
“Felix, may I ask something?”
“Of course.”
I move my finger down his chest and to a scar on his stomach. “You were hurt once, weren’t you?”
“Oh, that!” He nods. “I haven’t told you about it yet. Dario, Charlie and I once got abducted by someone from Charlie’s family. It was two or three years ago, and it’s a crazy story. The guy was some sort of vampire lord and thought Charlie was his daughter. He wanted to keep his family line clean,” he pauses. “I swear, it’s the truth.”
I stare at him. “It sounds absolutely insane, but I know you would never make something like that up.”
“He had his spies set on Charlie, and she happened to hang out with Dario and me, which is why we got abducted too.”
He falls into silence.
“You don’t need to tell me more,” I say softly.
“It’s just… I haven’t told anyone before,” he admits. “Not the details, at least. Dario and I kept it a secret, but I believe I can share it with my mate. We were kept in a dark cell, and to scare us further, they would take turns with Dario and me, dragging us to a dark, cold place and torture us there.”
I raise my head. Three years ago, they must have all been young teens. My heart sinks at the knowledge of what they went through.
“The scar happened later,” Felix continues. “We tried to escape. It didn’t go as planned, and Dario and I wanted to give Charlie an opening to run. During that fight, I got hurt.” He stays silent again before he continues. “I almost died,” he says to my shock.
His voice is hoarse again, like he struggles to talk.
“I was so scared,” he admits. “The darkness and the pain were so scary. My parents saved me. But I was severely hurt and didn’t have my lycan’s full power yet, so I did rehab and learned how to walk again.”
“Goddess,” I say quietly. I might have only known him for a couple of days, but I know he likes to be outside, he likes to be active, and he loves to be out in nature. He is such a sunny person, yet someone almost took the sun away from him. I wrap my arms tighter around him. “I am so sorry. No one will ever hurt you again!”
“I can defend myself better now,” Felix says. He sounds thoughtful, like he is trying to convince himself, too. “I have learned to fight, and I have trained a lot. My lycan is strong and has healed me. The scar is the only remainder of what happened.”
I rest my hand on it. “Thank you for sharing that with me. Even as a kid, you must have been so strong and brave. I think if I had someone like you in my school, as my classmate, as my friend back then, my life would have been so much happier.”
Felix shifts slightly so that he lies on his side, looking at me now. We are so close that our noses are almost touching. “Thank you for allowing me to mark you.” He pauses, looking at me, then suddenly I can feel something pushing against my mind.
No way!
I am also very thankful and happy that you are my mate,he links me.
We can mind link!?
Of course. We are mates,he says.And I marked you.
I didn’t even know I could do that,I admit.
He blinks at me.Gwen, baby, you were a pack member. Did no one ever link you? Even actual humans who are members of a pack can learn how to mind link. For you, as a hybrid, it obviously comes naturally.
I stare at him, my chest tightening in anger when I realize that no one ever tried to mind link me.I swear, if I ever see them again, I will give them a piece of my mind!
Me too,Felix says darkly.
