Page 11 of Guarded
Luckily, so was I.
Releasing my own wings, I prepared to launch myself into the air. I may have run from Noah, but now I’d run after him. I’d chase him for as long as it took. This meeting hadn’t put me off the idea of him being my mate, it had solidified it. Noah was a man who knew what he wanted. Who’d stand up to whoever challenged him, even if it was his fated mate. He was beautiful, fierce, and unforgiving.
Exactly what I wanted in a man.
Now all I had to do was convince him to give me another chance.
Before I could take to the air though, a hand wrapped around my wrist, holding me in place. “Oh no you don’t.”
Puzzled, I turned my head to see it was Micah holding me, a grim set to his mouth. “What?”
“You’re going to have a little chat with the rest of us before you go hounding Noah,” Micah said, a chill in his voice that had never been there in our previous conversations. “He’s not the only one you need to explain yourself to.”
The rest of the Seraphim fell into position behind Micah, equally serious expressions on their faces. All except the twins, who looked positively gleeful. Probably hoping they’d get the opportunity to beat on me a little bit.
Fuckers.
I turned to Nox, who was leaning against the doorframe, sending him a silent plea with my eyes.
Nox chuckled, shaking his head. “Nope, you won’t get any help from me. Unlike you, I know better than to upset my mate. He wants to have a conversation with you, so that’s what he’s going to get. It’s a lesson you need to learn if you want a chance of anything happening with Noah.”
“That’s if he survives this chat,” Rami said darkly.
One of the twins clapped his hands. “This is going to be so much fun!”
Ten minutes later, I was still alive and seated at a long conference table. My eyes kept drifting to the one empty chair. The one I knew my mate should be in.
My mate.Now that I’d finally acknowledged it, my mindcouldn’t stop repeating it. Like it was crowing over the knowledge that I’d given in. That I’d made the right decision after so many moronic ones.
Ironic really, given how little I knew about him. But I’d spent months running from it. From him.
From Noah.
I didn’t want to run away anymore. I had many flaws, but cowardice wasn’t one of them.
True to his word, Micah had given me the opportunity to explain myself. Knowing I needed Noah’s unit on side if this was ever going to work, I’d told them what I could. The reason why I’d run. Why I’d stayed away.
Why I’d chosen myself over Noah.
I didn’t go into the details—I wasn’t sure I could—but I’d told them enough to understand. At least, I hoped I had.
When I was done, there was a beat of silence before Nate spoke. “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever fucking heard.”
Fuck. Apparently, it wasn’t enough.
His twin grunted in agreement. Nox had given me a heads-up as to which was on the left and the right. That was all he’d done though, merrily throwing me to the wolves otherwise.
“Surely you must understand?” I said desperately. “You’re trapped as much as we are, right?”
“We are,” Ezekiel grunted. “But we still wouldn’t put our freedom ahead of making our mates happy.”
That was obvious given what he’d recently gone through for his human mate. I had no doubt that he would’ve sacrificed everything for Sam. It wasn’t just Ezekiel either. When we’d arrived on the scene, the entire unit had been prepared to fight to their immortal deaths, if that was what it took.
Including Noah. My mate was a far more selfless being than me.
I hung my head. They were right. I’d put myself first over my mate, hurting him in the process.
Nox interrupted my self-pity party. “Actually, you aren’t.”
