“I don’t know what to do. I assumed that there was no mate for me, that I was destined for this. But if I’m not, I don’t know who I am.”
She reached toward me, as if she was dying to hug me as badly as I was her. Her hand shook as she pulled it back.
I offered my own hand, palm up. A simple offering of comfort.
She stared at it for a long moment as if it were a venomous snake, waiting to strike. But when her delicate fingers traced lightly over my palm, I shuddered. Such a simple touch, but I would burn the world to protect her. To make her mine. Not because I had some mystical idea that I was already in love when we barely knew each other. But because she wasgood. So deeply precious to my wolf that I would do anything to ensure her safety. My own heart? Well, it was only a half step behind. She would be so easy to love, I already knew it.
“This isn’t smart. She told me if I was unsure, I should leave and come back to the enclave.” Her fingers laced with mine, the sensation of our palms pressing together for the first time was just enough to soothe my frantic wolf. “She said that I couldn’t stay here if I was going to reject you. But how could I go? How could I abandon this pack? They’re family, just like Galyna.”
“You don’t have to. You can stay with us. Build a life with me. We’ll protect this packtogether. The maidens aren’t the only ones who protect the omegas.”
Her brow crinkled with confusion as she looked up at me. “What?”
“My mother used to tell me stories about the guardians. Did you have those stories?”
“No, I’ve never heard of a guardian. Guard duty, sure… but nothing else.”
“Take a walk with me? I’ll tell you everything. It’s a good story.”
“Okay.”
She slipped out, closing the door behind her, never taking her hand from mine.
It was the smallest of concessions, so why was my heart leaping in my chest as if she’d just agreed to wear my marks?
Chapter 11
Elodie
Iknew it wasn’t smart, leaving with him. But damn if I wasn’t all mixed up inside. Holding his hand grounded me in ways I didn’t want to admit. And the story sounded intriguing.
It was a weak excuse, but in this moment, I needed someone else to be strong for a little while.
He led me around behind our cottage, veering left until we came upon a well-beaten path into the forest. I was curious where it led—we hadn’t exactly gotten a welcome-wagon tour from the pack when we’d been settling in—but didn’t want to break the spell of the moment by asking.
His hand was warm and strong in mine, his presence solid at my side as we walked under the bower of trees, branches interlocking and letting only dappled sunlight through to pepper the path. It was peaceful and beautiful. Chirping birds were our only companions, and for a moment, it felt like I was in a different life, a life with possibilities I didn’t dare dream of.
“The guardians lived before the war, many, many years ago, when the omegas were more plentiful. The guardians were marked to rise up beside them.”
His voice was calm and deep, sexy without trying. But the story was what captured my attention now. I’d never heard awhisper of these marked guardians. They were probably just a bedtime story for little Hungarian wolf pups, but still, it was fascinating how shifter lore changed in different parts of the world.
“They devoted themselves to packs with mated alpha-omega pairs, offering extra protection as they went about sharing their Goddess gifts with other wolf packs. Some say the guardians themselves received extra blessings from the Goddess, just to help them in their calling.”
We walked along in companionable silence for a few more minutes, a cheery little gazebo coming into sight. He led me to the swing that hung inside, and we sat, never letting go of each other’s hands.
“That’s a great bedtime story, Brute, but I’m afraid that’s all there is. Surely if these guardians were real, I’d have heard of them. The Maiden’s Enclave teaches us everything there is to know about omegas, and the guardians are nowhere in our records, that I’ve seen, at least.”
He turned my way, one side of his mouth lifting in a cocky grin. “Bedtime stories, huh? I thought you might say that. But I have proof.”
I snorted. “Proof? Of magical beings that haven’t existed in over four hundred years at least? Okay.”
“Come on, then.”
We were up and out of the gazebo in a blink, and now I was even more curious. We wove deeper into the forest, at times dropping to single file, fingertips still linked, until we stood in front of the trunk of a massive fallen tree.
He scanned the trunk, then led me over to a mossy section and squatted down in front of it.
“Right here.”
