Page 40 of Ellie 3

I went over to her, tossing the pillow back on the bed before wiping her tears. “Tell me what you’re feeling and then we pause until after sleep. I hold you and we handle thistogether. Always together now.” I pushed when she hesitated. “You know I’m not on her side or—Ellie, you know I’m on your side.”

She let out a slow breath and nodded. “I don’t like how that played out. If it was Myung who came for me, I wouldn’t have met him without you. There’s contention and issues and it’s not for me to meet with him alone.”

“Fair, but I didn’t know it was her until I was standing in front of her.” I told her what happened with the front desk and then even how she’d hung up the phone for them. “And I made it clear that I wasn’t speaking with her until she brought up an issue in London and made it clear it was my family.”

She bobbed her head as I spoke. “I don’t ever want to feel like I’m an outsider coming into something like that again. We’re supposed to be the team. I might not have been in any real relationships, but I know that. I felt like the intruder and annoyance from you getting what you wanted from the meeting.”

“No, I texted you knowing you would come,” I told her. “I was inshock. What she told me shocked me on several levels and I’m scared about the threat against you.” I sighed when she frowned. “Someone sent her to kill you, Ellie.”

She blinked at me a moment and then stood on her toes to kiss my nose. “Hundreds of years ago, Ha-joon. You act like she was sent here now because someone wanted to kill me.”

I opened my mouth but then closed it. “Okay, yeah, that’s fair and I’m showing I’m a pup probably, but that doesn’t mean the threat is gone. You should know the information. Not forgive her because you said she came for you another time and was a cunt, but… Clearly, more is going on. She didn’t know about Aurora or—”

“You’re right, but that wasn’t something for you to decide right there and try to force. She and I could have settled it later after you and I talked.”

“Fair,” I accepted. “I just heard the threat against you. But yeah, fair.” I sighed. “If I’m in the same situation again, even though you don’t have any other siblings, how do you want me to handle it?”

“Wait for me. Or call me while I’m on my way,” she answered immediately. “I should never feel like we’re not the team, and maybe that’s not fair with what really happened, but that’s how I felt. We become official and my sister shows up and you’re saying I have to talk to her and hear her side. That’s what happened.”

Shit, she was so right.

I wasn’twrongfor what I did… But she was right.

“Okay, yeah, that’s more than fair to say,” I told her, kissing her forehead. “I just need you to say that I didn’t do anything wrong.” I stepped away after several awkward moments of her not saying anything. I frowned at what was on her face. “I didn’t do anything wrong or to betray you, Ellie.”

She turned away. “This was why I said I just wanted to breathe. I can’t…”

She was too tired. She was all beaten up and I had to be understanding.

“Okay,” I accepted, telling my wolf to stuff it. She’d done a lot to push past what she was comfortable with to make me feel more secure and we were solid.

Time to do the same for her.

“What does okay mean?” she asked, sounding like she was about to break down crying, her exhaustion hitting me hard.

“Okay, you need more time to say it after you’re rested. Okay, you know where I’m at on this and let’s hit pause and get some sleep.”

She still didn’t look at me. “Just like that?”

I swallowed loudly. “Yeah, just like that, my sweet kimchi.”

“Okay.” She was on autopilot as she got into bed. She was so down on the tank that I was surprised she made it to pull the covers over her.

I realized what else I could do and got into bed with her before moving my wrist to her face. “Drink, Ellie. Did you get the blood you needed?”

“No, we needed like everything for ourguests,” she mumbled. “How a hospital was housing uninjured like that—there were over a thousand who didn’t even have family at the hospital. Our tents outside were just nicer than the chaos. Great, but we’re a hospital, not a damn hotel. I hate everything and how horrible people can be in a crisis.”

Yeah, she needed rest and blood—everything. It took a bit of coaxing, but she drank and was out before she even healed my bite. I wasn’t mad. I knew it wasn’t intentional or even a slight.

She was just that exhausted.

I hugged her to me and the bite healed on its own by the time we were settled. I was out seconds later.

But woke to more issues or… I wasn’t really sure, but Ellie was clearly agitated.

“No, Alan, I’m not asking that,” she hissed. “He has his own shit and life going on! He’s not my fucking food.” She was quiet a moment but then sighed. “Look, I hear you, but—there has—”

She was quiet again but then chuckled darkly, sounding almost ready to cry in frustration.

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