Page 66 of Finn's Solace

Before I could climb out of bed and go looking for him, he appeared in the doorway with a tray laden with food. The scent of fried bacon and fresh coffee filled the air, and I hummed.

"Good morning!" I greeted him with a smile, and though he returned it, his eyes were still clouded with worry. "I'm okay, Gin. I promise."

Finn nodded, then placed the tray on the bed in front of me before sitting on the other side.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, and he shrugged.

"I'm okay. I wasn't the one who got hurt."

"Yeah, that's not true and we both know it," I said, taking his hand in mine. "You might not have gotten hit by a bat, but he still hurt you."

Finn made a face, then nodded, albeit reluctantly. I couldn't imagine how afraid he must've been, and I was proud of him for keeping his head about him. I wasn't sure I would've done the same if our situations were reversed.

"I should've acted sooner."

"It wasn't your fault. Why do you think it was?"

Finn glanced away, then focused on splitting the food into two dishes and thrusting one at me. I took it from him, placed it on the bed, then took his hand in mine again, waiting until he met my eyes to speak again. "What's going on, Gin? Talk to me."

He sighed, then glanced away again, as if he couldn't bear to look at me as he spoke. "I keep thinking about what happened, and I feel guilty because I'm sure I would've reacted faster if it was Penny or Dean in your place. What does that say about me? I thought...I haven't said it yet, but I was sure I loved you. But wouldn't I have protected you better if I did? Am I just lying to myself?"

"Oh, Gin," I murmured, then moved the food to the other side of the bed so I could pull him closer. "You have absolutely nothing to feel guilty about."

"Did you not hear what I just said?"

"I did. Every word of it. And for the record, I love you too, more than I've ever loved anyone before. But that's me. I don'texpect you to feel the same, and I never would. Like you said before, Penny and Dean have always been your kids more than your siblings, even when you were a kid yourself. I'd never expect you to feel for me the way you feel for them. It wouldn't be fair to any of us. What I do know is, between the two of us, I've always played the role of protector, back when we were kids, and now."

"That's..." Finn trailed off, and I smiled.

"You said it before, didn't you? You feel safe with me. The only reason you reacted when you did last night was because you'd been expecting me to take care of you. So if anyone's to blame here, it's me."

"I'm not blaming you for getting hit in the head!" Finn protested, and I smiled.

"Then how about we just blame the guy who actually hit me and stop feeling guilty, hmm?"

Finn narrowed his eyes at me, then sighed. "Don't be so logical when I'm trying to throw myself a pity party."

I laughed, then pulled him into a soft kiss. I hoped I'd been able to assuage his guilt, because the last thing I wanted was for Finn to think last night was in any way his fault.

"How about we eat this delicious-looking breakfast you made before it gets cold?"

"Okay," Finn murmured as he pulled back. "Then we spend the day in bed. I called in sick for both of us. I hope you don't mind."

I'd be an idiot to mind getting to spend the day in bed with my mate.

"Sounds like the best plan I've heard in a while."

Twenty-Five

Levi

Like we'd planned before the attack, Finn spent the week at my place, but moving his stuff in on Saturday had to be postponed because someone decided it was time for me to meet the clan in one of their customary get-togethers.

According to Finn, the parties were organized with or without a good reason, depending on the members' mood.

This party was a joint "Welcome Levi to the clan" and "Welcome the new baby dragon to the clan" celebration, and I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous. Or a lot.

I'd asked Finn to tell me everything about all the members, but after a while, I'd started losing track of who was who, so I was aiming to stick to the people I'd already gotten to know and branch out from there.

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