Page 40 of Hidden Fate

“Why aren’t you two with them, and where’s Peter?” Thorn asked as he placed a hand on my back, our connection buzzing.

“Vlad and Theron made Peter go with them, and El and I stayed behind because we wanted to talk to you.” Eva stood, running her hands down her legs. “I’ve made my decision about becoming a dragon.”

My heart hammered. This was it. And I wasn’t sure whether I wanted her to say yes or no.

CHAPTERTHIRTEEN

Thorn brushedhis fingers against my back. Azingflowed through me, and calm settled into my heart, slowing it to a normal pace. No matter what she decided, I’d respect it as long as she was making the decision for the right reasons.

“Oh, my gosh,” Elliot gritted out. “Just come out with it. She wants to change, so, like, let’s do this thing.” He stood and patted her shoulders while waggling his brows. “Thorn, lay your glowy hands on me. I’ve been ready for weeks.”

“Uh…” Thorn’s nose wrinkled. “I don’t even know how to respond to that. For one, I’m certain you’re trying to make this pervy. And two, I’m not changing you until your sister gives me the final okay, and we’ll do itoutside. I have a feeling that as soon as you feel your dragon, you’ll try to shift, and we’re not messing up this house.”

Leave it to Elliott to speak on Eva’s behalf. I rolled my eyes and focused on my sister. Before I could say anything, Elliott started up again. He placed a hand on his heart, and his bottom lip shook way too hard, like he was being overly dramatic. “I must say, I thought Everly and I sharedeverything.”

I groaned, while Thorn’s mouth dropped open. I was certain Thorn hadn’t thought Elliott would take this further, but my brother loved pushing the envelope.

Wanting to save my mate, I pointed a finger at my brother and popped our biscuits into the microwave. “Sure. I’ll share everything with you once I play a round under your profile on the PS.”

“You bish.” His eyes bulged. “You wouldn’t.”

“Sharing everything would also include your gamer profile and stats so I can play the higher levels I can’t get to on my own.” I pressed the buttons on the microwave and hit start, my stomach grumbling for breakfast.

You play dirty,Thorn connected as his humor wafted between us.I love it. Don’t ever change…not even with me.He walked behind me, wrapped his arms around my waist, and kissed the tender spot on my neck, causing goosebumps to rush over me.

“Fine.” Elliott scoffed. “Just take me outside and change me. I was teasing, but Everly ruinedallmy fun.”

With Elliott deflated, I’d chat with Eva before he started back up again. One thing about my brother—he rebounded quickly. “Is it true?” Needing to see my sister, I begrudgingly pulled away from Thorn. Every tic, every eye flicker, every…well…everything.

She rubbed her lips and nodded. “Yeah, I’ve decided to become a dragon. I just wanted to think everything through.”

Smart. That was what I’d wanted them to do, but I had to make sure she wanted to change for the right reasons. “May I ask why?”

“It would be easier.” She spread out her arms and gestured around the room. “We can help you fight, and we won’t need as much protection.”

Those were good reasons but temporary ones. Something must have triggered her to take the plunge. The microwave beeped, and I opened the door and handed Thorn the plate while I grabbed the other biscuit.I’m going to talk to her alone. I need to make sure Elliott isn’t pressuring her into this.I didn’t think my brother would, not on purpose, but his enthusiasm could be overwhelming.

I’ll keep him entertained, but you owe me. I’ll take payment in sexual favors,he replied and kissed my cheek before speaking out loud. “I don’t know, man. I was thinkingSuper Mario Kartis a pretty badass game. You race other people and get a trophy at the end of it.”

Elliott’s jaw almost hit the table. “Are youfuckingserious? If you are, there is something fundamentally wrong with you.” He proceeded to launch into a dissertation about why my mate was horribly wrong about everything in life, how the games he viewed as badass hindered his ability to think through other things properly and he needed to fix the error of his ways.

I took a bite out of my biscuit, wanting to do something other than laugh and make this situation worse. I glanced at Eva, who rubbed her temples as if Elliott were giving her a headache. When I caught her eye, I nodded toward the door leading out back. She stood and hurried to the door. As we walked outside, I glanced over my shoulder and saw Elliott gesturing everywhere and Thorn’s eyes glazing over.

Yeah, I owed him for this, but I had to admit, I was surprised he knew as much as he did aboutSuper Mario Kart. There was still so much I didn’t know about him, even though I felt like we’d never been apart.

Outside, we could see the group about two hundred yards away in the open field, training. Eva’s eyes darted to Sol immediately. Everyone had paired off, including Vlad with Peter. They were all sparring in human form.

Eva must have felt me watching her because she cleared her throat and put her hands in her jeans pockets. “Is something wrong?”

That was a loaded question. An easier question would be what was right. “I wanted to talk to you where Elliott couldn’t answer on your behalf.” I took another bite of my biscuit and went to lean against the trunk of a white dogwood tree. “I want to make sure you really do want to change. Once you get a dragon, Thorn might not be able to take it back. He couldn’t with me.” Which still didn’t make sense, since he had no trouble removing a born dragon shifter’s magic. Maybe he couldn’t remove a dragon he’d created.

“Yeah, I’m sure.” She nodded. “This is right for me.”

“What made you change your mind?” I wondered if it was because of a certain dragon shifter. If they weren’t fated mates, he could stumble upon his and crush Eva. From what Thorn had said, fated mates were rare and something to be treasured, but given the people around us, I was beginning to think they were less rare than anyone thought.

Her cheeks reddened, giving me the answer without her saying anything.

“Look, I get you think Sol is cute, but changing forhimisn’t the answer.” My appetite vanished. I didn’t want to discourage her, but I had to protect her. “We’ve all seen how you hold hands, look at each other, and sneak away, and that’s all fine. I want to see you smile, but if you take it to the next level, and you two don’t work out, I don’t want to see you hurt.”

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