Break the Day - Lara Adrian Page 0,64
my quarters for me.”
His commander’s mate smiled. “Of course, I did. I expected you’d be back eventually. Now, I’m not so sure.”
Tavia had been aware from the beginning that his exile was all part of the operation. But she wasn’t talking about him returning from his mission. She meant ever.
And he couldn’t seem to tell her any different.
“Devony is a special young woman,” she said. “I can see that right away. I can see why you love her.”
Rafe scowled, but he couldn’t deny it. Tavia was too astute to believe otherwise. He’d grown up in the Order from the time he was an infant. The elder warriors and their mates were his family, his fellow comrades were closer than any brother could be.
As for Tavia, she was a respected tactician and valued member of the Order’s team, much like the rest of the warriors’ mates. Right now, what Rafe needed was a confidante.
“I drank from her tonight. I was injured, and she helped me.” He lowered his head and swore under his breath. Because taking her blood in a moment of weakness would be selfish enough, but then he’d gone and made it worse. “A little while ago, I let her drink from me. We’re blood-bonded, Tavia.”
“Congratulations.”
“No.” He shook his head. “No, I did it all wrong. I fucked this up. We’re together because of a lie. Because I was on a mission and she was an asset I needed to win over. Then I discovered her secrets and I exploited them. I made her think she could trust me.”
“Are you saying she can’t?”
“No, that’s not it. I’d do anything for her. I’d give my life for hers.”
Tavia’s gentle gaze held him. “Let’s hope it doesn’t come down to that.”
“After what happened in Montreal, I told myself never again. I was never going to trust myself to believe what I was feeling because it might not be real. I never wanted to be blinded like that again.”
“You were tricked, Rafe.” Tavia shook her head. “That Opus spy could’ve chosen anyone. And from what I saw of Devony tonight, I don’t think she could possibly be more different.”
“I know that. It’s not Devony I doubt.”
“Then what?”
“It’s this.” He held his fist to his sternum, where it felt as if a hole were opening up.
It had only worsened after he allowed Devony to drink from his vein while she still had faith in him. Was this helpless feeling love?
“I must be crazy, right? I must be fucking nuts to feel like this about Devony when I’ve only known her for a handful of days.”
Tavia smiled. “You’ll have to ask someone other than me. In fact, you’ll have to look further than this city. I don’t think there’s anyone under this roof, or any other Order command center around the world—including your parents—who needed more time than you and Devony have had to know in their hearts they’d met their mate.”
As much as he wanted to take some solace in that, what it meant was he had a lot of explaining to do. And a lot of making up.
He only hoped Devony would give him that chance.
First, he needed to inform his commander and Lucan that starting now, they were going to have to trust her as he did.
On his way out the door, Tavia reached out and gave his beard-grizzled cheek a reassuring caress. “I know Sterling isn’t happy with you right now, but I can’t thank you enough for looking after my niece. For loving her. The rest will fall into place as it should, you’ll see.”
He wasn’t so sure about that, but he nodded. She accompanied him as he continued to the command center’s war room.
He’d been expecting the meeting to be between Chase and him in Boston, with Lucan and Gideon on video from headquarters in D.C. That was the case, but in addition, all but two seats at the large conference table were filled. Tavia walked in and took the one immediately beside the commander.
Elijah and Jax sat with Nathan and Jordana on one side of Chase, the lone vacant chair situated between the commander and Rafe’s captain. On the other side of the table from Chase was the team commander from London, Mathias Rowan. He hadn’t brought his pregnant mate, Nova, but her brother, Rune, was seated beside his blood-bonded mate, Carys Chase.
And displayed on the large panel screens around the war room were all of the photographs, notes, and data files Rafe had collected while he