Page 68 of The Healer

Rhys raised his gaze to Mona peeking from the dining room. Harriet’s eager face came into view.

“She’s giving me a chance.” He beamed. Leaping to his feet, he swept both ladies into a hug. They squealed and laughed, their cheeks pinkening.

“Hands off my woman.” Amos grinned before popping a forkful of cake into his mouth.

“Coffee?” Harriet offered while patting her hair into place.

“Please.” Rhys chose the nearest dining chair.

“Now what?” Mona gripped the back of the chair next to him.

“I head home. I have a pack to lead.” He spooned sugar into the coffee Harriet slid before him. “I’ll phone Ilona tomorrow night at eight.”

“I’ll call her every morning then.”

He chuckled. “We’re using strategy? Duel attacks?”

Mona shrugged. “I’d love nothing more than for her to move closer, Rhys.”

He nodded, wanting the same thing. So far, he had made it through the door. His chest swelled with welcome warmth, and his bear rumbled his approval. If he played his cards right, she would move into a cabin on Knights Ridge land, would work in his labs, and would warm his bed.

Fuck, he hoped she would mate him.

His heart danced, spiking a fiery excitement through his veins. Peace descended on his soul. He hadn’t thought of Callie as more than a friend since meeting Lona. Chills slid down the back of his neck, and his eyes widened. His need to break the connection to her had been lip service, but with Ilona, the hope pulsing deep within him was boundless.

“I hope you touch her heart, Rhys.” Mona’s unexpected serious tone snagged everyone’s attention. “She thinks her inability to save—” She pinched her lips, and Amos lowered his cake fork long enough to throw an arm across her frail shoulders. Patting him, she met Rhys’s gaze. “Being a doctor didn’t save my Elise, so why trust herself with children? Why risk their lives?”

His breath caught. What Mona hinted at was a deeper layer to Ilona he hadn’t seen yet. No, it was incongruent to the core of steel running through her. The revelation circled, and settled, rose, and churned until he placed himself in her shoes. After spending years studying to save lives, only to fail those dearest to her? It explained her sadness and withdrawal into herself when she thought no one watched her.

Her strength was her shield and mask.

“So, I assume you’re leaving?” Dane leaned against the doorframe. “Come in, piss off our doctor, then fuck off?”

Rhys grimaced. “Something like that. I have a pack to manage and need to plan how to fix this.”

“You’re not staying for the Lunar Festival?” Harriet squeaked.

His body twinged in dismay. His aroused state wasn’t due to the waxing of the moon but because of a certain sassy redhead with hazel eyes and a mix of innocence and fire. He hadn’t wanted to be in Inner City during the full moon, but now, he had no choice. If something should befall Lona, he needed to be close to the airport. The urge to fly to Fenneg gripped him, with his bear roaring at him to leave now.

He had made too many assumptions, had barreled over her feelings, as if she would fall in line with his. She hadn’t as a non-shifter.

“Come, walk with me.” Mona looped a scarf around her neck, then reached for her coat. She settled her hazel eyes on Amos. He nodded and didn’t follow.

Rhys donned his jacket and hurried to open the door for her. Silence reigned while they strolled on the salted sidewalk. The crisp air slapped his cheeks but didn’t reach his bear. He raised his face to the blue sky and sucked in long breaths.

“I forgot how beautiful it is up here.” She rubbed her hands together before shoving them in her coat pockets. “Do you love my granddaughter?”

Air rushed out of his lungs like she had sucker-punched him. “I’m attracted to her.”

“That’s it? No fire and damnation if you can’t mate her?”

He smirked. “There is that, but she doesn’t believe I care, doesn’t understand how shifters love. I’m trying to remember to think like her.”

Mona pursed her lips. “Give her time. She’s a smart woman who spends too much time mired in her thoughts.” She dipped her chin inside her scarf. “I’m trusting you to have her best interests at heart. If you can promise me that, I’ll back you up and give you more freedom.”

“I can’t let her go, Mona, not ever. She’s…” His salvation. How to put that level of desperation into words?

She studied him. “So, if you could keep her forever…?”

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