Athena’s POV
The silence that followed was thick. Orion’s fork stopped halfway to his mouth, and Tristan went completely still.
“What….. do you mean?‘ Orion asked in a low soft tone.
‘I mean I want to find my own apartment. Be independent. I can’t live with Tristan forever.”
“You can live with me as long as you want, Tristan said quietly.
I looked at him directly then, keeping my voice steady and my smile in place.
“That’s very kind of you bro, but I think it’s time I stood on my own two feet. I’ve been dependent on other people for too long.” I could see his jaw tightened but I acted like I notice.
“Athena, you don’t have to do this,” Orion said, concern creeping into his voice. “If something’s wrong…”
“Nothing’s wrong. Tristan has been such a supportive elder brother…” The words tasted bitter in my mouth, and I saw Tristan’s eyebrow
raise slightly.
Calling him that felt like shooting myself in the foot, but that was what he was. “I just think it’s time for me to have my own space. Make my own decisions. Live my own life. Daxon is gone, there’s no need to still act like I need protection.”
Under the table, my hands were clasped so tightly my knuckles were white. But my voice never wavered, my smile never faltered.
I was done being the girl who needed rescuing. It was time to rescue myself.
I could see Orion was trying to talk me out of it. He looked at Tristan, and I noticed a strange look pass between them. It was brief, but intense, like they were having an entire conversation without words.
It looked like they were communicating through their mind link, but that was impossible. Or maybe not that impossible.
Though they weren’t from the same pack, there was still a way around it.
A way only few men knew, men like my dad and Tristan’s dad.
I knew my dad and Tristan’s dad used to communicate somehow, but I’d never bothered to ask how.
Since I’d gotten back, I hadn’t even tried to communicate with Orion through our pack’s mind link. It was like I’d completely forgotten where I came from or what I was capable of.
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8:47 Wed, Jan 7
Chapter 103
The whole concept of mind linking had always made me uncomfortable.
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Why would I want someone invading my privacy, talking inside my head? But my mom always said it was what made us unique as wolves, so eventually I’d stopped fighting it and started trying to embrace the gifts they’d taught me to accept.
Well, some of them anyway. I wasn’t allowed to embrace all my abilities since I was little. I didn’t know why, but I’d been taught to always
suppress Claire.
She wasn’t allowed to take her full form except during the full moon, which was probably why she wasn’t stable now.
Sometimes I forgot I was even a werewolf. I acted and felt completely human most of the time. Wasn’t that funny?
Humans would give anything to be like me, but here I was wishing I could be like them. Though I did want Claire back properly, and I also loved being a werewolf when I let myself think about it.
“When?” Orion asked, bringing me out of my wandering thoughts.
I raised a confused eyebrow, not understanding what he meant.
“When do you plan on finding your own place?”
Oh right. My apartment. I’d been so lost in my thoughts that I’d forgotten we were still discussing my moving out.
“Tomorrow if possible.”
Both of them raised their eyebrows, clearly surprised by my timeline.
“Tomorrow? Isn’t that a bit too soon?” Tristan said, and from the look on his face, I could tell the words had slipped out before he could
stop them.
“I’ve been back for more than a month now. I don’t think it’s too soon,” I replied with a smile directed at him.
“Have you already found a place?” This was Orion, making me turn my attention back to him.
“I have some options, but I’ll be checking them out today after work.”
“Ath…” I could see the sadness creeping across his face.
I knew this was going to hurt him, but it was something I needed to do. That’s why I’d chosen to look at places that weren’t too far from his house. I wanted independence, not isolation.
“You can come with me if you want. Both of you.” I looked between them, seeing hope flicker in their eyes.
I knew Tristan had hurt me, but this was how I was going to prove myself that I was truly growing.
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The Biker Alpha Who Became My Second Chance Mate
C
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
