Page 17 of Secondhand Garagyre

Hisvoice is tender as he reassures me, the deep rumble of his voice reaches out and caresses me as his brilliant jade green eyes rove across my face.Laithogremoves his finger and picks up our plates, striding over to the sink whenIfeel a slight tug on my ankle.Peeringdown,Isee his tail unwinding from my leg.

Ignoringthe flick of heat pooling in my lower bellyIget up from the table and begin putting the food way.Withtwo of us working together, it doesn’t take long before the kitchen is clean.

Igrab a glass from the cabinet and pour myself a glass of wine, heading towards the living room, waving atLaithogto follow.Hislarge body following close behind me causes the hair on the back of my neck to prickle with awareness.He’sso much biggerthan me, he makes my full figure feel almost delicate and petite.Somethingthat is rather hard to do sinceI’vebeen described as having a renaissanceVenusbody type.

Weenter my living room andIhead towards the couch.Theclick clacks of little claws on the hardwood floor as my dogs follow me to the couch make me smile.Thereshould be enough room for both of us to sit and hopefully it won’t pinch his wings.

Laithogpeeks over at the fireplace, before glancing at me with a questioning expression.Theearlier discussion in my library comes to mind andIcan’t help the disappointment that wells within me.StupidGradyand his stupid visit ruined the almost jovial mood of earlier.

Ishake my head no, in answer to his unspoken question and all he does is smile at me.Grantedhis smile it taking a bit of getting used to, due to the mouth full of sharp teeth, but it does nothing to detract from how handsome his strange features are becoming.

Oncewe are both settled on the soft surface,Imotion forMerryandPippinto get up on the couch, snickering atLaithog’spained look as my boys force their way between us.Itake a bracing sip of wine as he waits, looking at me with an air of expectancy.

Iguess it’s time to talk.

Chapter Nineteen

LAITHOG

Diggingdeep within the well of my patience,Iwatch asPaisleytakes a sip of the fermented beverage.

She’sstalling.

Whateverit is she has to tell me must be worse thanI’vesurmised.Iknow it’s not good, which is an understatement.Humanmalesbeata defenseless female.Hadthey beenGaragyre, they would have been executed for their transgressions.Shereaches forward and sets her glass on the low wooden table in front of the cushion bench we are sitting on.Thepadded back is surprisingly comfortable to lean against, no wing pinching at all.

Marvelouspiece of furniture if you ask me.

Leaningback against the arm rest of the bench she pivots to face me, curling her legs up under her and wrapping her arms around herself, while her creepy little animals snuggle in around her.Theycan smell the pain, stress, and sadness emanating off her, just asIcan.Theaction makes my hearts pang.She’sholding herself for comfort.

Howlong has it been since someone has held her?

Howlong has it been since she’sallowedsomeone to hold her?

Idare not move.

Notnow.

Hervoice, when she speaks, is clogged with tears.Thepain she feels is obvious. “Sixmonths ago, my brotherPatrickdied in a vehicle accident.”

Shemust notice my confusion because she elaborates before continuing. “Avehicle is the machine we drove here in.It’scalled a pick up, truck, or vehicle.”

Atmy nod of understanding she carries on.

“Ithought…Ithought it was an accident.Everyonedid…but a week ago the man that hit my brothers truck told me he did it on purpose.Thathe targetedPatrickwith the intent to kill him and remove him from my life.Hetold me that if he can’t have me, then no one else will.Thebastard propositioned me atPatrick’sfuneral andItold him to leave me the fuck alone.Thatit would be a cold day in hell beforeImarried him, and that is beforeIknew he murderedPatrick!Iguess he figured he gave me enough time to grieve because he approached me last week.WhenIdenied him a second time he ordered and then watched as his goons beat me until my broken body lay on the ground.”

Herluminescent multicolored eyes are filled with pain. “Idon’t understand,Laithog.Ireally don’t,”Shepauses slightly before finishing with, “Patrickisn’t just my brother…he’s my twin.Thatbastard killed the other half of my soul.”

Theword “soul” ends in a tortured whisper before she crumples into herself, her tiny body rocking with the force of her sobs.Withoutthought to the consequences of my actions,Ilean forward and scoop her little body up, jostling her wee creatures, and placing her in my lap as my wings envelope us both.Tomy surprise, she doesn’t recoil from me but latches onto me and the comfortI’moffering, her wee hands clinging to me desperately.

Myarms hold her to me asIgently rock her, a soothing purr rumbling in my chest.Idon’t say anything as she cries out her sorrow.Eventually, her sobs lessen and her breathing evens out.Whenshe leans her face against my chest, nuzzling her cheek against my hide, my purr swells within me, so much so that my chest is almost rattling with it.

OnceIknow she’s calmed down some,Ibegin speaking. “I, too, know what it is like to have the other half of your soul ripped from you.”IknowIhave her full attention when her lush body freezes. “Longago, when mankind was young.Theworld was a darker place inhabited by all manners of beings.Goodas well as evil.Iam a warrior in theLegionof theLight…and so was my mate,Ilayahan.”

Paisleyraises her head to look at me. “Yousaid ‘was,’” andInod at her whispered words.

“Yes, my mate is no longer amongst the living.”Thewords scrape against my throat, though not as abrasive as they once were.Thisis because of the precious being within my arms.

“Oh,Laithog.Iam so very, truly sorry.”

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