Page 11 of Howling With Wolves

I glanced at Donovan with surprise, but he only shrugged.

“I have a sweet tooth,” he offered, handing me a fork before sitting on my left. His fingers grazed my thigh as he sat. “Though, I think I have a new favorite treat.”

Everything inside me heated. It was too easy to recall his mouth between my thighs.

“Eat before it gets cold,” Anthony said as he sat on my right.

I took a bite of my eggs then bounced my gaze back and forth between them. “What does being mated to me mean to you guys?”

“What?” Anthony asked.

“It means you belong to us, and we’ll kill anyone who tries to hurt you,” Donovan said calmly from my other side. “We’ll never again see you in the condition you arrived here in. Broken, bruised.”

“With shadows in your eyes,” Anthony added, and for the first time, I heard anger in his voice. “We’ll make sure the people responsible pay. Being our mate means we protect you. It means we’re here for you however you need us.”

“Whenever you need us,” Donovan added.

“Is there…” I had to stop and clear my throat. “Is there another woman in your life?”

“I don’t know how things are done in the pack where you were, but we won’t be sharing you with anyone but each other. You’re our mate. Only ours. There won’t be anyone in this relationship but the three of us,” Anthony answered.

I nodded. “Not everyone believes in fidelity.”

“Do you?” Donovan asked.

“Yes.” There wasn’t even a question in my mind as to if I could be faithful to them.

“So do we,” Anthony said then leaned in and kissed me. Donovan immediately turned my face toward him when the kiss broke. He pressed his lips to mine in a soft brush.

“Now, eat,” Anthony ordered. “Bastion and Cyan are already on their way here.”

He shrugged when I glanced up at him with surprise.

“They didn’t want to wait, and I wasn’t rushing you.”

“We’ll be with you,” Donovan reminded me.

I nodded, took a shaky breath, and started eating. Whatever the day held, I knew I’d need fuel.

Chapter Six

~Emma~

Anthony sat beside me while Donovan stood behind us, a looming presence that somehow brought me comfort. I felt the rage of the men in the room as if it were a weighted blanket, and I’d only answered one question so far.

“Your father did that to you.” The rumble of Bastion James’ displeasure was unmistakable.

I nodded, though there was no question this time. Cyan spoke before I could add anything else.

“Clayton was always a bastard, but he killed his son?” Cyan shook his head, disbelief clear on his face. “I heard it, but I wasn’t sure until this moment. I never imagined he was that much of a bastard.”

“He killed your father to become alpha,” I reminded Cyan, unsure what to make of him not believing what he’d discovered until he had it confirmed by me. “Jonathan was a threat.” I had to swallow down my tears. I wasn’t there when my brother had been killed, but there had been no limit to the number of my dad’s thugs who’d found pleasure in describing it to me. In vivid detail.

“Your mother sent me away at his request,” Cyan offered, and for a moment, I thought I caught a glimpse of the young boy he’d been then reflected in his gaze. “My father’s body was still warm when she had me removed.”

“She saved your life when you were too weak to defend yourself,” I whispered. “She sacrificed herself to save mine.” Tears poured unchecked down my face. “Do you know what she thought of herself before she went back into that building? She said everything she’d done had been to protect her children, and she’d failed us all. Sent you away. Jonathan dead. Sam missing. And me, her baby, captured and beaten by my father. She blamed herself for all of it, Cyan.”

“Fuck,” Cyan snarled as he pushed to his feet and paced to the door. “Fuck!” he yelled as he pounded one fist on the door before turning back toward me.

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