Undying Hope. Emma Weylin
the cavern-like dwelling.
Everything was dark, heavy, and masculine. The style wasn’t bad, but it did leave Haven feeling as if she’d just moved into a large cave. A cave with weapons lining the walls. Haven was sure they would give off a pretty flicker of light if there were a fire in the giant stone fireplace that took up all of one wall in the living room. “Don’t touch anything,” she said to Bastian. “You might get hurt.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said respectfully. He stopped when they got to the hallway on the other side of the penthouse and turned to Quinn. “I don’t know what I am supposed to do in this situation.”
“You need rest first, young Bastian,” Quinn said in a stern tone. “You will have time to learn what you must. For now, you need to sleep.”
“Thank you, sir.” Bastian awkwardly bowed his head. “Which room may I use?”
“The room at the end of the hall.”
Bastian bowed his head again. He lifted his backpack over his shoulder and leaned down to kiss Haven’s cheek. “Good night. I’ll see you in the morning.” Then he sauntered off down the hall.
Haven stood there and watched him walk away. She had to remind herself he was getting to be an age where he didn’t want someone to tuck him in at night. She waited until the door of the guestroom closed before she turned to face Quinn. “I don’t understand. Why is he so accepting of you? He doesn’t like men near me.”
“His treòir has enough of an education to keep an altercation from happening before either of you are ready.” Quinn crouched down next to Nikon and gave him a good ear rub with one hand while patting Medea softly with the other. “Bastian has hope. He is still good and recognizes the good in me.”
She turned away and cleared her throat. “If you’ll just tell me where to go…”
Quinn gave an extra pat before he stood up and snagged her bag out of her hands. “I’ll show you.”
Haven could only nod. She had no idea what she was doing or how she was supposed to be reacting to anything. He was taking her to his room. Did that mean he was expecting sex?
“No.” Nikon said softly only to her. “He knows you’re not handling any of this well.” The wolf padded over to her to offer her support as she followed Quinn through his home.
She stared down at Nikon. He managed to look guilty. “I can hear what is important for me to hear. Every other thought you have is your own unless you choose to share.”
She wasn’t exactly sure how that was supposed to work. Mason had been able to pick up on her thoughts, too, but she had only gotten hums and whispers before meeting the wolves. Her gaze snapped to Quinn’s back as he bent down to grab her other bag. She slapped her hand over her eyes. But damn the man had a nice ass, and he could probably hear her thoughts!
The sound of Nikon laughing resonated in her head. “He is honorable. Even if he was listening to you, he wouldn’t mention it.”
Haven stroked her hand down Nikon’s back before they started the assent of the stairs. She kept her eyes on her feet so she wouldn’t trip up the steps. Which also kept her from checking out Quinn’s butt on the way upstairs.
“I am sure he is,” was Haven’s reply, but it also disappointed her. If the world could be different… She let the thought fall away. Nothing was different. She had Bastian to worry about, and she needed to figure out how she was going to manage to keep herself from getting too wrapped up in the man that was Quinn Donovan.
He opened the door at the top of the stairs and flicked on a light. He stepped back and allowed her to enter the room first. His size made the space in the hall scant, and their bodies brushed against each other. She shivered from the intense heat and quickly darted into the room.
Quinn followed Haven and set the bag down by the bed. He pointed to another door along one wall. “Bathroom is in there, and I’ll be downstairs in my office if you need anything. The first door before Bastian’s room.”
The room was just as dark and cavernous as the rest of his home. Deep blues and warm, dark woods shrouded the room. A California king-sized bed sat in the center of the far wall between two long horizontal windows looking out at Lake Michigan. One tall dresser sat to the right of a wall of closet space. A fluffy dog-style bed big enough for two wolves rested under the left window. Haven did her best to ignore being in his bedroom and turned around to face him. “I haven’t thanked you, yet. For helping us.”
He smiled. “It wasn’t any trouble.”
But saving her had been trouble. Kyros had emanated a power vibe that nearly matched Quinn’s own. They both had more than Mason. She managed a wobbly smile back. “Thank you, anyway.”
“You’ve been through a lot,” Quinn said. There was a flash of a golden glow in his eyes. “You’re safe here. I will leave Nikon with you.”
“What about Medea?” she whispered. Nikon wound his body around her before he sat at her side. Her hand went to the top of his head.
* * * *
In that moment, Donovan believed she could be his. He swallowed hard, trying to get the lump out of his throat. “She’ll stay with me.”
His treòir stirred at the image presented to them, evoking primal emotions from deep within. His wolf had bonded to a woman. Somehow, he’d missed, or more likely ignored, Haven’s connection to him before, but now he could clearly see the link. Nikon would kill any being stupid enough to try to hurt Haven. The thought scared him. He didn’t know which way Haven’s decision would fall, nor did it matter. His power didn’t have much longer to live in the world.
“I will not leave my lifebond so easily,” the treòir promised in a deadly tone.
Giving up his power wasn’t an easy task, but he would do what he had to do. She was human. The only way to make her Undying was a long and painful process that could end up killing her in the end anyway. He wasn’t about to put any one through that kind of hell, least of all a woman he was supposed to love with the entirety of his whole self.
“She is mine,” the treòir snarled at him.
“There is time.” Donovan spoke the truth. Giving up his treòir was a fatal decision. He’d eventually grow old and die without his power. As much as he knew giving up his treòir was best, he also knew his people needed him. Haven would have need of his treòir while Kyros still lived.
“You will not give me up!”
He winced with the pain the treòir caused. Many centuries had passed since he and the power inside of him struggled for dominance. He put a hand to his temple as he went through the mechanics of keeping the power contained inside. Then Haven was standing next to him. The power faded back but remained closer to the surface than he liked.
“I’ve done something to aggravate your power thing?”
He opened his eyes, and his body trembled at her closeness. He took a defensive step away from her. “No. I can irritate my treòir all on my own.”
Her eyes searched his face before she nodded. Her breath faltered before she spoke again. “You don’t have to hide anything from me. I might not completely understand, but if there is anything I can do to help you, let me know.”
Donovan reached up and touched the tip of a finger to her lips. “I am not your worry. You need rest. I should go.” He turned to walk out of the room. He would have escaped, but the treòir would not let him.
“She is broken!” the power said with rage bubbling at its core. “She leaks. Fix her or I will find a way.”
Going back in was a mistake. It was better to flee the room and spend his night fighting with the treòir than to look at her, because he knew what he was