Page 55 of Midnight of Ashes
“I can’t,” Maddox said. “Not until she’s no longer a student. If we mate, my dragon won’t be able to keep from touching her at school.”
Knox glared at him. “Then maybe you need to switch jobs. This is more important.”
Maddox opened his mouth to argue, but Cillian held up a hand to stop him. “We can’t force this on Hayden. She needs time to make this choice. As much as most of us want this, we can’t rush her.”
He glanced at Easton, who slid off his stool. “I need to call it a night. Early class tomorrow.”
Knox watched his brother haul ass out of the kitchen. “This is such a clusterfuck. She needs us.”
Just the words had my dragon surging to the surface again. I stood, heading for the door. “I need to get some sleep, too.”
It was a lie.
I needed to see Hayden. To feel her body curled against mine. To rest my hand over her heart and feel it beat beneath my palm.
I was out the door before anyone could say a word. Jogging up the stairs, I headed for her room. I didn’t turn on any lights as I slipped inside, letting my vision adjust to the darkness. But the moment I did, I heard a whimper.
My body reacted before my brain, striding toward the huge bed in the center of the room.
Hayden made another sound of distress, a cry almost.
I sank to the mattress, my hand going to her face. “Little One.”
She batted at my arm, jerking upright, her eyes going wide. The moment she registered it was me, she threw herself at my chest.
I caught her, my arms wrapping around her small form. “It’s okay. It was just a bad dream. I’m here.”
Hayden trembled against me. “It wasn’t a dream.”
I pulled back, taking her in. “It wasn’t?”
She shook her head, blonde hair flying around her. “It was a memory.” She took a shaky breath. “I think Dexter Corbett killed my parents.”
28
HAYDEN
Four sets of angry eyes looked back at me. I was sure Cáel’s were angry, too. I just couldn’t see them because he hadn’t let me go since my nightmare. Even now, I was cradled in his lap on my bed while the rest of the guys paced my bedroom.
“One more time,” Cillian ordered.
I let out a shaky breath. “The men that came that night. They spoke a different language. But it sounds like what you guys sometimes speak.”
“Gaelic,” Maddox offered, his voice the mask of calm.
I nodded. “The main man kept asking where she was, but he used another word, too. In that language. Bonna-free-en-sa?”
The guys shared a look.
“Bana-phrionnsa?” Maddox asked.
I nodded.
Knox scrubbed a hand over his cheek. “It’s a term of endearment a lot of men use.” He glanced at me. “Could whoever it was have been Hayden’s birth father or an uncle? Even a grandfather?”
My stomach churned at the suggestion. Could my mother have been running from an abusive relationship or abusive family and that was why she was killed? I shivered, and Cáel gripped me harder.
Knox saw the action and instantly moved to the bed, kicking off his shoes and climbing on top of the mattress. He took my legs, laying them over his lap and framing my face in his hands. “Whatever it is, we’re going to keep you safe.”
