“Hate you, too, brother.”
There was a timid knock on the door before it was pushed open to show Edena and Hadyn entering. They came in with food and drink that they set down on the floor, beside their mother.
“We’ll give you space,” Falcyn said before he led Illarion and Blaise from the room.
Alone with his mate and children, Max wasn’t sure what to say. It was extremely surreal to have them here in his solitary loft. Or rather their loft. As a family, they’d be sharing it from now on. Yeah, that really did a number on his head.
Edena sat down next to her mother. “How do you feel?”
“Good.”
She smiled. “Glad to hear it.” Even so, there was a hesitancy that blemished her smile and feigned cheerful words.
Max manifested a blanket, then turned himself human. “Better?”
She blushed profusely. “Um… it doesn’t matter to me. I’m used to Hadyn as a dragon.”
“Deenie’s the one who tends to me whenever I’m sick or… stuck. Did you ever get trapped in one form or the other and not be able to change? It really sucks.”
Max grinned as he remembered those days, and he welcomed his son’s friendliness. Unlike his sister, Hadyn had no reservation in his form, tone, or manner. “It’s been a while, but yeah. It sucks.”
Hadyn came forward more slowly. “We know you need to rest some more. We just wanted to make sure you were all right. You haven’t moved in three whole days. All of us have been scared about that.”
Max choked at his revelation. “Three days? Are you serious?”
Edena nodded. “The demons are so unhappy. Zakar, Thorn, and Fang have put up seals and mirrors all over Peltier House and Sanctuary so that they can’t get in again. So far, it’s working.”
“What about the Amazons?”
“They tried,” Hadyn answered. “Mom and Samia, along with the Peltier females and a Dark-Huntress named Chi kicked their butts so hard that I doubt they’ll be back for a while.”
“Good.”
Edena leaned forward to kiss his cheek. “We’ll be back later to bother you. Get some more rest.” She got up to leave.
Hadyn moved forward. “I’m really glad Mom didn’t kill you.” And with that, the twins were gone.
Max wasn’t sure what to make of his kids. They were a bit odd, but he loved them. And speaking of things that made him uncomfortable…
He gently pushed the blanket back and shifted.
Sera immediately gasped. “What are you doing?”
“It’s been three days. I need to go to the bathroom.”
Sera’s face exploded with color. “Oh. Sorry.” She let go of his arm so that he could stand up. “You need me to help?”
Her offer charmed him. But… “There are some things I prefer to do alone. This is one of them.”
“Okay.”
Seraphina leaned back on her arms while Max went to attend his needs. It’d been a strange few days while they’d acclimated to their new lives. This world was so different than the one they’d known.
Luckily, Hadyn and Edena seemed to be adjusting easier than she was. Of course it helped that the Peltiers had children close to their age who’d taken them under their bear claws and were teaching them idioms and culture.
Max’s brothers were still quite suspicious of her. As were Fang and the others.
There was nothing she could do about that. So she did her best to ignore it and not let it bother her.