“Hold that thought.” I bolt upstairs, nearly escaping Hazel’s probing stare.
Nevaeh is probably tired of adjusting in my arms and needs a proper bed.
I push the door to my room with my foot and pad over to my bed, carefully laying Nevaeh on it, ignoring the blood and dirt staining the sheets.
Grabbing a towel from the bathroom, I run it under warmwater before gently cleaning the grime off Nevaeh’s face and arms, mindful not to overstep.
The condition of her dress has me considering calling Grace to help Nevaeh into some fresh clothes, but I don’t want to push my luck and do anything that might make my mate uncomfortable. It’s probably best to wait until she’s awake to ask what I can do to help.
I push down the fury and sorrow swelling in my chest as I cover Nevaeh with the softest blanket I can find.
Before heading down, I pause at the kid’s door to check on him. The flashes of him unconscious in my mate’s arms, covered in blood, haunt me. A huge part of me wants to plant myself outside his room like a guard dog until I find his parents so they can take over the protection duty.
As I run down the stairs, I’m excited to tell my family about Nevaeh, only to stop abruptly at the sight of all three idiots waiting for me with barely concealed grins. When their teasing smirks morph into crude gestures, I turn to walk away because nothing good comes from that expression, but Grace and Seiji tackle me before I can.
Good thing Grace is tiny, because Seiji alone is enough to break my back when he flings himself on me.
To my surprise and absolute horror, Seiji whoops enough to wake the dead while Grace starts laughing with tears running down her face.
Hazel strolls over with a rare, genuine smile. She doesn’t hug me like the others, but the excited gleam in her eyes says it all. “Congratulations on finally finding your mate, Horseman Alarie.”
This is why they’re my family, eagerly celebrating my happiness like it’s their own. This isn’t the family I was born into, but the one I made.
5. Brain = broke
Nevaeh
I’m floating in a blissfully calm abyss. My body feels weightless and relaxed. Nothing hurts anymore.
This kind of serenity is foreign to me. My world is not on the verge of falling apart for the first time. I’m not used to feeling so peaceful. Between running from the monsters around me and the ones inside my head, I’m always jumping from one nightmare to another.
My confusion tricks me into dropping my guard long enough to forget why I was afraid of the darkness in the first place.
‘Silly girl. Did you really think I’d let you go?’
A ragged gasp startles me awake. Sheer terror grips me when I don’t recognize the shadows around me, but confusion takes over my budding panic when my freezing fingers brush over something soft and silky.
I scramble back, and the plush mattress under me dips with my weight. The spine-chilling fear I woke up with is quickly replaced with shock.
Where the fuck am I?
I grip the silky sheets like they’re the only thing keeping me from slipping back into the land of terror.
“You alright, sweetheart?” A deep voice jolts me halfway to the ceiling.
I rub my eyes aggressively, squinting at the silhouette hidden behind the shadows. My racing heart slows down when he repeats his question, gentler this time.
Rising from his seat in the corner of the room, the man swiftly pulls the curtains aside, and bright afternoon sunlightblinds me for a second, but at least I can see now.
The most bewitching man I’ve ever laid eyes on strides toward me with his hands firmly tucked into the pockets of his dark trousers.
Am I dead?I have to be. It’s the only explanation for how a breathtaking angel is looming over me. But that doesn’t make sense. I’m definitelynotgoing to Heaven.
I snort at the absurd thought, and when the Angel tilts his head in confusion, it effectively stops my inner monologue. His frown melts into amusement, brightening his perfectly sculpted face when he catches me mimicking his head tilt, unable to tear my eyes off him.
“Angel?” The word slips out of my mouth before I can catch it.
Why does he feel familiar? And why is he so stupidly pretty?
