Page 39 of Midnight of Ashes
Easton nodded. “He drugged us at dinner and set the house on fire. But he must’ve underestimated my and Knox’s weight. We were growing fast back then. We woke up to smoke. We tried to get our sister and our parents, but they were already gone.”
I had to move then, couldn’t hear Easton’s pain and not touch him. I crossed into his space, taking his hand in mine. “I’m so sorry. I wish I could take all the pain.”
He stared down at me, eyes glittering in the moonlight. “Do you see now? You terrify me, Hayden. You already own me, and I’ve barely touched you.”
My heart jerked in my chest. “Easton…”
His free hand lifted, his thumb ghosting across my bottom lip. “It would already ruin me if anything happened to you. The more I let myself into your orbit, the worse it gets.”
Everything hurt because I could truly see Easton’s fear. The reasons behind all of his assholish behavior. He was doing everything he could to push me away to protect himself. And here I was, trying to smash down those walls.
“But you make it so fucking hard.” Easton’s hand dropped to my neck, his fingers trailing over my pulse point, his mouth slowly moving closer.
My breath caught in my lungs. He was so close I swore I could already taste him. His scent, sea air and a hint of citrus, swirled around me.
The door behind us flew open with a bang.
Nolan glared through the night. “It’s time to begin.”
20
HAYDEN
Easton jerked upright at the sound of Nolan’s voice, but to his credit, he didn’t drop my hand. I knew it cost him. That fear was a living, breathing thing inside him, and he was battling it not to leave me alone.
“We’ll be right there,” I said as calmly as possible, even though my heart felt like it was ricocheting around my rib cage.
Nolan’s eyes narrowed on us. “No. You’ll come now.”
Easton let out a low growl.
I squeezed his hand as hard as I could. “Lead the way.”
Nolan let out a huff and started back inside.
We followed, but I slowed my pace enough to create distance between us and him. The last thing we needed was Easton snapping at him, too.
I took a deep breath as we stepped back into the living room. Our bond was waiting, their gazes coming to us as soon as we walked through the door.
Knox’s eyes zeroed in on my and Easton’s joined hands. Hope flickered to life in his expression. I didn’t begrudge him that hope, but I also didn’t want him to be disappointed.
“We’re ready for introductions. Please assemble,” Nolan called to the small crowd.
Men clustered together in groups, and I realized that Cillian had been right. There were what looked to be five hordes. Hal and his bond were standing off to one side, and I didn’t let myself look in that direction.
“You aren’t seriously going to make her shake hands with the man who almost killed her,” Easton spat.
Nolan sent him a droll look. “It sounds to me like it was an accident. One you caused. There’s no reason why Hayden shouldn’t meet the Corbett bond. Hal will be the next alpha, after all.”
Easton’s jaw tightened.
I squeezed his hand again. “I’ll be okay.”
I tried to make my words as believable as possible, but I wasn’t sure how successful I was. I released Easton’s hand and turned to Nolan. “Let’s get this farce over with.”
He glared at me, eyes sparking with anger. “Show some respect, girl.”
I met his stare dead-on. “Respect is earned.”
