Page 54 of Unforgivable Fate
“Wouldn’t be the first time.” He chuckled and she pretended to be annoyed by trying to hide her smile.
“There may be other Pack Alpha’s there.” Nova sighed and turned in Griffin’s arms until they were face to face. “And as much as I love having your scent all over me, and mine on you, I don’t want to accidentally insult some random pack just looking for a reason to back out of Leo’s Pack Alliance.”
Griffin leaned his forehead against hers, “Good point. Again.”
“Thank you.” She smiled, leaning up to brush her lips over his.
“Mmm.” He kissed her softly and then pulled back, “Come on then. If I can’t ravish you again, we may as well get going.”
Nova giggled but followed him out of the bathroom. They did need to get going. She didn’t want to be late. Leo hadn’t seemed happy when she texted earlier in the day to say they weren’t going to make it for the morning arrivals. He’d wanted her with him to welcome the Pack Alpha’s who had agreed to meet with him and she’d felt bad about putting him off. She’d just have to make up for it by being as charming and helpful as possible tonight with the late arrivals.
Leo hadn’t explicitly said that he wanted her there to know if she saw any visions from their guests but he didn’t have to. She knew he relied on her visions. He needed her gift and she wanted to be there to help him and her pack.
Griffin was going with her because, since they’d bonded, she’d realized that her gift worked better when he was nearby. She couldn’t explain why. She didn’t know what it was about the mate bond, about their connection, that strengthened her gift, but it did. She was actually hoping that with all of the new connections Leo was making with these packs that she might find another Seer and be able to talk to someone who had experienced the things she had.
After slipping her shoes on, she let Griffin hold the door for her and then waited for him on the porch. He slid his hand into hers and she smiled as their fingers automatically laced together. He liked holding hands, liked to feel the connection between them pulsate when they were skin to skin. Nova had never been big on touch since it usually brought visions but with him, it soothed her and gave her strength.
They walked through town like that, holding hands and waving or speaking to other pack members as they passed. She promised Tina that she’d stop by on their way back to pick up some vegetables for the dinner she wanted to make. Griffin asked Ray about the different kinds of peppers and how he grew them so hot. They were still smiling and holding hands as they moved on but once they neared her brother’s house Nova’s senses went on high alert and her wolf stirred beneath her skin.
After their morning of lovemaking, she’d completely forgotten about the bad feeling she’d woken up with. It had faded away and she’d thought maybe she was just imagining the worst because it’s what she’d grown up expecting. But now, in a split second, the feeling was back and her stomach twisted with anxiety.
She glanced at Griffin, “Do you feel that too?”
“Tension.” He nodded. “So thick you could cut it with a knife.”
Nova frowned, “I don’t know what’s happening but clearly Leo is annoyed and it’s bleeding out to the pack.”
“Maybe we should come back later?”
“No.” She shook her head. “We need to find out what’s happening. Maybe one of the other Alpha’s showed up early and I can help settle things down.”
“It could be dangerous.” Griffin frowned but Nova only shook her head.
“Our family is in there.”
“You’re right.” He winced but nodded, “You’re right. You’re always right. Come on, I’ll go in first just in case…”
He trailed off but Nova didn’t need him to elaborate. Her mate wanted to protect her. He wanted to be first through the door and though her Alpha side wanted her to remind him that she could take care of herself, she bit her lip and nodded her agreement. It was sweet that he wanted to put himself in front of whatever trouble might be on the other side of the door and her wolf was only so on edge because of the tension Leo was radiating through the pack connection.
Griffin took her hand again, “Let’s see what’s going on.”
Nova let him knock on the door and then open it without waiting for a response. She’d learned a long time ago not to walk into the home Leo shared with Darius unannounced unless she wanted to find them in a compromising position. This was different though since they were expected and since they knew their Pack Alpha wasn’t alone inside.
“Hey, we…” Griffin was clearly trying to keep his tone light as he pushed into the room but he faltered in the doorway, going stock still, and Nova ran smack into his backside when he didn’t budge.
Nova furrowed her brow as she stepped around him, trying to see what had brought him up short. She glanced up at her mate but he didn’t look down at her. She wasn’t even sure he blinked. She turned her gaze from him to the room, taking in first Leo’s tense stance near the bookshelf and then the way Darius was poised on the edge of a chair, putting himself between his mate and their guests but doing so in a way that might have seemed casual if the entire room wasn’t clogged with Alpha testosterone, anger and frustration.
She turned her eyes to the men that sat on the couch and felt the air rush out of her as if she’d been punched in the stomach.
The man sitting in the middle was a relative of Griffin. He had to be. Because just like she’d first looked at Griffin and only seen Maddox, she looked at this man now and saw the same thing. It wasn’t even that he looked more like Maddox than he did Griffin. He had Griffin’s eye color and build, he had the softer, rounder face, but that was the only thing soft about him because behind those eyes wasn’t the warmth and empathy her mate carried but the cold, psychotic gleam that was all Maddox.
She swallowed down the rush of terror and darted her gaze back to her brother, looking for an explanation. When he didn’t immediately speak she pursed her lips. A glance at Darius told her he was too busy managing whatever conversation he and Leo were having through their mate bond to fill he right now. She straightened her shoulders and stared at the man on the couch.
“I’m Nova DeLuca, the Pack Alpha’s sister and a princess of the Crescent Pack. Who are you and why are you here?”
The man on the couch might have smiled but all Nova could see were his bared teeth, “A princess? Nice. Never let it be said that we Clary men aren’t attracted to a powerful female.”
“Your name.” Nova demanded, her voice steady despite the confirmation that this man was related to the psycho who had murdered her parents… and by default her mate as well.