Page 151 of The Beta's Blind Date

“We figured it was better to ‘divide and conquer,’” another male says from our other side.

I turn my head and then immediately dip it into a low bow to the regal, statuesque male and his dominating presence. I’ve never met him in person—he left the pack several minutes after we did, and I didn’t see him before we left. But my wolf and I both recognize our king, the king of all werewolves and lycans, a direct descendant of Conan—King Malachi.

“Your Majesty,” Reid says from behind me, his head dipping into a bow as well.

“Beta Reid,” he says, acknowledging my mate. “And you must be his mate, Taryn? The healer?” he adds, holding his hand out to me.

I give him a weak smile as I shake his hand. “I’ve healed one person and eased the pain of another. I may have healing powers, but I wouldn’t qualify myself as a healer.”

“My understanding based on conversations with the royal healer is it’s mostly instinctual, and there is very little training needed for a healer to perform their job, especially since it is passed down through genetics.”

I drop his hand as Aunt Gigi walks over to join our conversation. “But there aren’t any healers in our family,” she says, glancing at Reid’s arms wrapped around me.

“Our healer, Julia, is looking into the records of known healers, as well as your family tree, to see if there was maybe a distant relative you were unaware of who was a healer since Dr. Russo said you didn’t know about your gift. She is looking forward to meeting you and working with you.”

“Thank you,” I say. “But I don’t think I’ll be able to travel anytime soon since I’m pregnant.”

“She’ll come to your pack, of course,” he says, waving off my worries. “It’s better for you to learn in a comfortable, familiar environment anyway.”

I give him a genuine smile at that. “Thank you, sir.”

He smiles too. “Of course.”

“What did you want to do first, King Malachi?” Wesley asks, pulling the king’s attention away from us.

“I need to take photographs of the damage. Our team at the palace will review them to assess our next steps and make sure the paperwork goes through the proper channels to limit human involvement and mitigate their suspicions. The fewer humans whose memories we have to alter, the better,” he says.

He walks away, following Wesley and Haven as they continue to talk, his phone out as he photographs the remains of Silver Ridge.

Aunt Gigi’s eyes stay on us, though, honed in on Reid’s arms around me. Her sharp gaze then moves to his face, and he shifts his body, moving around me with rigid, awkward movements as he reaches his hand out to her.

“Aunt Gigi—I mean, Georgia—ma’am. I’m—“

Her lips twitch, and she bypasses his hand, pulling him in for a hug. His body tenses, and I cover my mouth with my hand as I chuckle at him.

“In this family, we hug,” she says. “But if you break my niece’s heart, I will not hesitate to kick your ass, you hear me?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he says, relaxing into the hug and putting his arms around her.

“Aunt Gigi.”

“Yes, Aunt Gigi.”

She laughs and lets him go, then hugs me, holding me tightly. “He’s a good male,” I whisper to her.

“I can tell, but it’s fun to watch him sweat,”she replies in a mindlink, glancing at him and his nervous face, his toe tapping on the ground, his fingernail between his teeth.“I knew from how he acted the night of the attack that he would make you the most important thing in his life, the way a good male should. The Goddess chose well for you,”she adds, squeezing me once more.

“That she did,”I reply.

She lets me go, and I move back to Reid, draping my arms around his neck as he grabs my waist. “What did she say?” he asks, his eyes scanning my face and his voice shaking.

“Don’t worry. She likes you.”

He lets out a sigh, and his shoulders relax, his eyes closing. “I don’t think I’ve ever been so stressed about meeting someone’s aunt.”

“She just wants what’s best for me. She’s all I have left.”

“You have me,” he says, stepping closer. “Me and Sour Patch.”

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