Page 26 of Tainted Hearts

“I wouldn’t have blamed you.” Isaac laughs. “I was awful. I’m sorry about your ex.”

“Don’t be,” Zed scoffs. “She wasn’t the one for me. Just a stop on the road to my forever.”

“For what it’s worth, I never thought I was better than anyone, not really. It was an act to try to make myself feel better because really, I knew I was the worst of them all.”

“No, you’re not. You were dealt a shitty hand, and you handled it the only way you knew how. It doesn’t excuse what you did, but we get it.”

“You think she will ever forgive me?” Isaac asks, the pain thick in his voice.

“Yeah, I do. She’s fucking amazing. She’s kind, loving, and she likes to see the best in people. So, show her something good, and I think you’ll be fine. Might take some work, and you should work for it. She deserves to know she’s worth fighting for because she is. Also, she felt comfortable to hang out with you and the others, leaving herself vulnerable enough to fall asleep. She wouldn’t have done that if she didn’t want to be around you guys.Allof you.”

“I know.” Isaac kisses the top of my head, and a tear slips free. “She’s everything you said and more. I don’t deserve her.”

“You don’t.”

“But I can’t let her go.”

“I get that,” Zed says. “I couldn’t either.”

“I gotta piss, but fuck, I don’t wanna move.”

I want to hug him tighter, to cry for him, to tell him everything is going to be okay now. I can’t forget the way he treated me, but fuck, I can’t hold it against him. He was abused by the man who should have been the one protecting him.

While I’m nowhere near being in love with him, I do care about him, a lot. He’s my mate, and I need him.

Just being in his arms like this has soothed so much of the pain the rejection left inside me. I know it won’t fully go away until I accept the bond back fully, but it already feels like I can breathe so much easier.

Isaac and Zed talk a little while longer. I wait a little bit, so he doesn’t know I heard him before I roll over to snuggle into Zed, letting Isaac free to use the bathroom.

“Go.” Zed chuckles. “Before she rolls back, and you're stuck here for the rest of the night.”

“I’ll be back.” Isaac gets up. “If that’s okay?”

“Yeah, if you don’t mind Leo sleeping at the foot of the bed. He should be back any minute.”

“I don’t think I really get a say.” Isaac laughs. “We’re going to have to get used to being around each other anyways, right?”

“Yup, my Little Bird isn’t going to allow a wall between her mates.”

“I’ll be back,” Isaac repeats, his footsteps heading into the bathroom connected to my room. Yeah, that’s right, they finally finished my damn bathroom. It’s about time too because I got sick of going down to the guys’ floor.

“He’s gone,” Zed whispers, and my body goes still. Zed lets out a low, deep chuckle. “I know you're awake, baby.”

“How did you know?” I mumble, opening my eyes to look up at him.

“I know you well, Little Bird. And soon, he will too.”

My lower lip trembles while tears fill my eyes. “I know I should hate him. That I shouldn’t even be thinking about forgiving him and move on. But I can’t.”

“It’s okay to want him. No one will judge you. He’s your mate. He’s done bad things, but I don’t think he’s a bad person.”

“I don’t think so either.”

“He’s my brother. I hate that I couldn’t have been there to protect him,” Zed growls, wrapping his arms around me tighter.

“The only person to blame is your sorry excuse of a father. Don’t beat yourself up over it. It won’t do anything but hurt you. He has people who love him, like Luke and Noah, and new people, like me, you, and Leo, to stand by his side. He just needs to let us.”

“Yeah.” Zed kisses my lips softly. “He better not hurt you again.”

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