Page 11 of Unmistakable Mate

She was here. Just like Zenia had thought she would be. Zoey was here.

His little sister who had only been a baby the last time he saw her stood in front of him now as a woman. She was small, made more so by the big man at her side, hovering protectively. She was curvy, like Zenia had been, with the same copper colored hair. Zoey’s fell in long waves down past her shoulders but even if she’d shaved her head he’d have recognized her eyes. They were the same shape, the same vivid green as the pair that looked back at him in the mirror every morning.

This was his sister but he couldn’t seem to find the right words and Zoey only covered her mouth, as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

It was Violet that finally broke the intense silence when she spoke softly, “You look like my mom.”

Zander’s heart squeezed painfully at the words. They were so simple, so innocent, but they held a lifetime of missed opportunities. He reached out to where Violet stood next to him now and pulled her against his side, holding her close. When he glanced back at Zoey he saw the unmistakable sheen of tears in her eyes and he cleared his throat.

“She’s right.” He squeezed Violet’s shoulder, “You look like Zenia.” He blew out a rough breath and shook his head, “You look like Mom. So did she.”

Zoey’s bottom lip trembled and the man at her side moved closer, reaching for her and putting a reassuring hand on her arm. She looked up at him and gave a small nod. When she looked back at Zander the tears glistened on her lashes as she blinked.

“It’s really you, isn’t it?” Zoey’s voice was husky, deeper than he’d have expected, possibly from the tears she was trying so hard to hold back. “It’s… Zander, right?”

He sucked in a surprised breath, “You remember me?”

Zoey reached up and squeezed the hand on her shoulder, the man who must be her husband moving against her side and she must have drawn from his strength because when she spoke again her voice didn’t waver, “No. I’m sorry. I was so young. I don’t remember much of anything from before…”

“Oh.” Zander tried not show the pain those words caused but he didn’t think he succeeded when Zoey winced.

“My parents, my adoptive parents,” she corrected herself, “They never hid the fact I was adopted. They told me about how they’d found me just months after I went into the system. My mom couldn’t have children but they wanted a baby. She told me I had siblings, older siblings, but that we had already been split up. She saw your names on some paperwork, Zenia and Zander, but that was all she ever knew of you. All I ever knew of you.”

Zander didn’t say anything to that. He wasn’t sure what he was supposed to say. He had no right to be angry that Zoey had known their names and never come looking for them. He’d certainly known her name and he’d never gone looking either. It wasn’t her fault that she was the one who had been chosen while he and Zenia were passed over again and again. Bringing up his troubled past wasn’t the reason he’d come here to find her. He was far more worried about the future.

Zoey must have realized he wasn’t going to say anything because she moved her gaze to Violet and her eyes crinkled as she smiled softly, “And who is this beautiful little one?”

“This is Violet.” Zander put his hand on her back so she couldn’t shrink away from the attention, “She’s Zenia’s daughter.”

“Oh.” Zoey’s eyes widened and she whipped her head around the apartment, searching. “Is she here too?”

“No.” Zander’s voice was rough and he felt Violet huddle closer against his side. Zoey frowned so he rushed to explain before she could ask any other questions that might trigger their niece. Their niece. They had Violet in common now, not just the blood in their veins and the green of their eyes. “There was an accident back in Boulder. Zen… She didn’t make it.”

“Oh, God.” Zoey’s hands went to her mouth again and she shook her head, “Oh, God, no. I’m so sorry.”

As tears began to drip down Zoey’s face he realized that this sister who had no memory of Zenia at all, was crying over the loss of her. Yet he had known Zenia. They hadn’t grown up in the same homes, not all the time, but they’d kept track of one another even after they aged out of the system. Still, he hadn’t cried yet, couldn’t even imagine allowing himself to break down over the loss of the only family member who had ever truly known him because if he did, he might never find all the pieces to put himself back together.

“Zen was looking for you, before the… before she…” Zander took a deep breath and tried again to explain. “She was looking for you and I thought, if her last wish was to reunite us then, I should do whatever I could to make that happen. She’d found your name and the address and now here we are. We probably should have called first, asked if you even wanted to see us but…”

“No.” Zoey hiccuped the word through another round of tears, wiping at her face. “No, I’m glad you’re here. You found me. I can’t believe you found me.” She held her arms out but didn’t move any closer, “Can I…”

Zander’s throat felt tight with emotions he hadn’t expected so instead of speaking he only nodded. Zoey stepped away from the man at her side and he didn’t pull her back. He only watched her as she moved across the room and stepped up to Zander, wrapping him in a hug and burying her face against his chest. She embraced him and Violet both and Zander found himself raising his own arms to hug and hold them in return.

He closed his eyes and soaked in the moment. It was so strange. He’d been in Noir, Louisiana less than an hour. He’d only just met Zoey for the first time. They didn’t know each other, not yet, not at all. But somehow, someway, he had the distinct feeling that he’d finally found the thing he’d always been missing.

A home.

Chapter Five

Maya’s heart felt soft, and fragile as she watched Zoey introduce her long-lost brother to her husband and the two men shook hands. It was so sweet, so easy and accepting. She hadn’t expected the gentleness of Rafe’s welcome but she should have known better than to expect him to come in snarling and growling.

He was head over heels for his mate. He would give her anything she wanted. Zoey clearly wanted Zander and Violet to know they were part of her family and there was nothing in the world Rafe valued more than his family so of course he wasn’t acting at all like the overprotective Neanderthal she had warned Zander about.

Maya hated the way her heart ached with longing, wanting to join their little family gathering in the living room. Even her wolf whined at being so removed from the group. Still, she kept her feet glued to her spot just outside the kitchen, keeping an eye on them but maintaining her distance.

There was no place for her in in that circle and she told herself that she didn’t want there to be. It was just the bond surging to life between her and Zander. It was just the mating heat trying to drag her closer to him, close enough to touch, to feel, to taste…

Maya cleared her throat, loudly, trying to get her thoughts back in order. Zander glanced over at her but she quickly looked away. If she got trapped in that lush green gaze she might do something stupid like walk over there and rub her body against him, put her scent all over him so her wolf would stop howling about wanting to mark him. Instead she focused all of her energy on the side of Rafe’s head and when he finally felt her stare and turned towards her, she motioned with her chin for him to follow her to the kitchen before retreating behind the wall that would block Zander Leery from her line of sight.

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