Fated for Her Wolves - Tara West Page 0,68
to call for Dimitri. He sat beside her while Amara laid her hands on both of them.
Amara frowned while smoothing her hands across Tatiana’s brow. “I thought Eilea healed you.”
Dimitri’s brow creased as he pushed Amara away. “We’re fine, sister.”
She nodded toward Tatiana. “She’s not fine.” She continued pressing her hand against Tatiana’s brow, her eyes narrowed in concentration. “But I don’t sense anything.”
Tatiana slowly sat up, taking Amara’s hand in hers. “It’s probably just fatigue.”
Her tracker brother Luc hung over her, looking her over as if he was assessing the worth of a market cow. “She looks depressed.”
“You’ve been through a lot,” Amara said. “You need time to recover from your ordeal.”
“That’s probably it.” Tatiana shrugged, suddenly feeling self-conscious.
“Do you want to take a nap on our bed?” Amara asked.
Tatiana wrinkled her nose. She didn’t want to sound ungrateful, but she smelled mating fluids on the sheets. Lots and lots of mating fluids. “I should probably go home and rest.” She hated the thought of having to go home to her parents. Her mother had hung over her like a fussy hen ever since they’d returned from the haunted forest.
Taking her hand in his, Dimitri led her downstairs. Her depression only magnified when she was forced to say goodbye to her mates and return home with her parents. Her mates were going to be staying at her brothers’ house until after their bonding ceremony. After five years apart, she didn’t want to be without them, not even for a minute, but she knew she’d be no good to them unless she could overcome the gloom in her heart. Amara hadn’t sensed anything wrong with her, so perhaps she did need a good night’s sleep. She prayed that’s all she needed.
TATIANA AND HER MATES sat around a campfire the night before the bonding ceremony, roasting fish and toasting marshmallows. They had spent most of the day surveying the land her parents had given them and going over floor plans for their new house. Her mother and Gamma father Arvid kept inventing excuses to check on them and had offered to refill their vodka and soda drinks more than once. She was proud of her mates, who refused seconds on alcohol, opting for soda and water after that. She’d been hoping they’d drink less with this fresh start. She didn’t want to start their new bond by nagging them, but she’d been prepared to stand her ground.
After they were finished toasting their last marshmallow, Tatiana leaned back in Dimitri’s arms, staring into the fire’s flames. She pressed against him when a log loudly crackled. They both jerked up when an owl hooted, then settled back down.
Constantine eyed them over the fire’s flames. “You two are still on edge.”
She looked at him, then looked away, not liking the way the firelight danced across his features, reminding her of a demon. “Yeah,” she mumbled.
Dejan leaned into her, wiping marshmallow off her lip. “You want to talk about it?”
She simply shook her head, wishing they’d change the subject. Dimitri gripped her waist harder when Constantine looked at him. “What about you, brother?”
“Nu,” he said, a cutting edge to his voice.
Andrei, who sat beside Constantine, gave them a sympathetic look. “It might help.”
She hated when his brothers mimicked his look of pity. She stirred in Dimitri’s arms again, her wolf going eerily silent. “It won’t.”
Constantine’s shoulders slumped. “What can we do?”
“I don’t know.” She dismissively waved away his concern. “Take our mind off it.” Amara had already tried, and failed, to drive her gloom away, saying only time could heal her deep depression and fear.
“You can’t hide from your demons forever,” Dejan scolded them like they were toddlers.
Dimitri let out a warning growl. “You didn’t go through the hell we did, Dejan.”
She pulled out of Dimitri’s arms and clasped his hand while expelling a shaky breath. A look of understanding passed between them. She knew this day would come, but she’d been hoping they’d give them time. It was too soon for her to relive that nightmare.
“We know,” Constantine said, sharing looks with his other brothers, “and we thank the Ancients every day for your bravery.”
“Any of you would’ve done the same,” Dimitri grumbled.
“Da,” Andrei said, “but we might not have survived.”
Dimitri let out a bitter-sounding laugh. “Does this mean you’ve forgiven me?”
She blinked at him, then at his brothers. “For what?”
Dimitri squeezed her hand, shadows framing his eyes. “For driving you away.”
She gave Constantine, Andrei, and Dejan accusatory looks. “Why wouldn’t you forgive him?