Page 29 of Plus-Size Sold Mate
That validation is so simple, yet it makes something in me ache. Nobody has ever given me permission like that, even if I shouldn’t need it.
With some reluctance, I murmur, “That doesn’t mean I trust him.”
“You don’t have to.”
As a comfortable silence settles between us, the two of us sit there a while longer. The conversation isn’t enough to change my mind about Luke or the situation completely, but for once, I don’t feel quite so alone.
“It’s getting colder out here,” Eve says after a bit with a light shiver before she carefully rises and brushes her hands off. “Join us if you want to.”
I hesitate, considering what I might lose if I do. But growing tired of being out here, I push myself to my feet.
“I’m sick of thinking,” I murmur, to which she smiles.
“Good.”
With a satisfied grin, Eve walks with me, and the two of us return to the fire.
Isaac pokes at the fire while he argues lightheartedly with Hunter about fire-building techniques, while Dominic throws another branch in just to get on his nerves. Zane, the quiet and slightly brooding one, observes with a perpetual neutral expression.
Luke looks different now. Rather than rigid with expectations on his shoulders given his role, he seems looserwith his sleeves pushed up, and when his brother gives up from their teasing, he laughs.
I haven’t exactly been here long, but that’s the first time I’ve heard it from him, and it…does something to me. My stomach does a little flip, and I internally scold myself for it.
Dominic notices our return first, lips pulling. “Well, well…reinforcements have arrived. We might just survive the wilderness yet. Maybe.”
Giving him a look, Eve subtly flips him off as we sit down. As I’ve gathered, the playful ribbing is constant with him.
His brows go up, as if scandalized by it, but he laughs as the others do. Even Luke grins, not bothering to reprimand his sister.
“Damn, you never did respect authority, huh?”
“Earned authority? Yes. Men as a whole? No,” she says in return, amused with herself.
“You might as well give up at this point,” Luke murmurs, eyes gleaming in the firelight. “I’m her Alpha, and she barely listens to me.”
“I could be a lot worse.”
“Oh, I know.”
Everyone chuckles at the back and forth, and even I catch myself smiling despite myself.
From next to Eve, I feel involved enough without being completely exposed, and when I feel Luke’s eyes on me briefly, the bond stirs just enough to be noticeable. He doesn’t approach.
“So, Sera,” Hunter says, tone giving away a touch of mischief. “Did Luke tell you about the time he nearly got us court-martialed?”
Luke narrows his eyes at him. “Don’t.”
Dominic grins, well aware of where this is going, apparently. “Oh, we’re going there.”
I glance between them, and at the same time, Eve looks just as curious. “What happened?”
Luke sighs and sits back in his seat, resigning himself to whatever comes next.
“We had orders to secure rogue operations happening in an abandoned town, supposedly. Our intel said the area was clear of civilians.”
“It wasn’t,” Zane adds quietly.
“There were families hiding in the lower levels of the homes. They were scared, malnourished, and caught in the middle of everything. They couldn’t flee without risking their lives,” Hunter continues, sounding a bit more serious now as he recounts it. “Command said to proceed anyway, calling it collateral damage, but Luke wasn’t having it.”
