Page 54 of Ash

There was a singular note of outrage from his bear.

What?He shot the question at Ash.

Why would I want her touch?He scoffed.We have our mate. She can touch me as much as she wants. She's the only one we need.

"Uh oh." He heard True's voice in her throaty tone. "I know that faraway look."

Katherine agreed. "Don't tease Ash."

True bumped shoulders with her friend. "I'm not teasing. We've all seen our mates do the same thing. Talking with their beasts. They can be right there with us physically and suddenly they're deep in conversation inside their heads."

Ash looked at True and then back at Celeste, worried. "I... I don't want Suzannah to think I'm not there for her."

"Oh, Ash." True moved closer, standing near his shoulder. "I'm not complaining. It's just something that we learn about our mates. It's another part of their personalities. Don't worry about it."

He shook his head. "I'm going to worry. I have to worry." He looked at True, his heart pounding painfully against his ribs. "What if I do something and she decides it's not worth staying for? That I'm not worth staying for?"

Ash felt a strange stillness inside of him.

He'd said the truth to these women.

He'd told them his fears before he was able to acknowledge those thoughts to himself.

And to me.

He'd been talking to his bear for as long as he could remember.

Over the years, they'd fought with each other. They'd teased. They'd even snarled and bit at each other.

But this was only the second time that he could remember his bear offering him this kind of comfort.

The other being when he'd lost his parents.

He tried not to worry about another kind of loss.

"Ash?" He felt Celeste rub his arm with her gentle touch.

All three women had their own cubs with their mates, but Celeste had been a mother twice over with two children college and two about to enter elementary school. She was one hundred percent a mother.

"What..." he licked at his lips and found them dry and tight. "What can you tell me about being a human? How can I help her to understand what's going on between us."

Katherine's cheeks heated and she shifted from foot to foot. "It's hard to say. I think all three of us had different experiences with our mates." She gestured at Celeste. "You knew Aaron for years before he told you who he was, as a shifter and as your mate."

Celeste nodded. "He was under the impression that he should let me raise my children before he complicated my life." She held up her hand when True looked like she might argue. "I wish I'd known sooner. When my husband left us, I had my hands full raising my children. If Aaron hadn't been there for me through the years, I'm not sure I could have done it."

Katherine and True looked at her with equal measures of love and concern. The three were great friends and they were always looking out for each other.

She smiled at her friends. "Don't worry. During our time together, he's certainly made up for the time that we werejust friends."

They all shared smiles at that admission and Ash was tempted to hide his face in his hands.

Celeste gave his arm a squeeze. "Are you okay?"

"Me?" He grinned. "Of course, why do you ask?"

Katherine shrugged her shoulders. "When Celeste was talking to you, you looked like you were a little... off."

Ash knew what she was talking about. "I think the world of all of you, your mates, and your families, but hearing the details-"

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