Page 7 of Bound By Love
It was becoming increasingly difficult to breathe as the flames leapt and danced. She barely felt their heat as the echo of her father’s laughter rang in her ears, and she was once again a young girl, standing beside him while he bestowed the knowledge of his craft on her.
Tears burned her eyes, but she didn’t move away from the forge. For some reason, even as she was melting down some of his work, she felt closer to her dad at the forge.
She could almost feel him beside her, with his hand on her shoulder, as he guided her onward. He’d understand this and would approve, but she still felt like she was losing little pieces of him all over again.
He was already gone, so none of this made any difference. He’d created these things, but they weren’thim. They could never behim. That part of her life was gone; herparentswere dead.
She would never again hear their laughter, go for walks through the woods with them, or feel the warmth of their hugs and the strength of their love. There wouldn’t be any more Christmas mornings full of music, presents, and snowball fights.
At first, she’d believed the memories were the worst part of losing them. She’d desperately tried to reliveeverydetail of the time they spent together, the things they said, and the way they smelled so she wouldn’t forget any of it.
The memories tore open wounds that were far from healed, but she forced herself through them. Now, she was beginning to realize the things she would never do again with her parents hurt far more than the memories.
All she had left were memories; she would never see them again. They’d never meet Saber, never get to know her children, if she had them, and never again be there for late nights on the porch while they shared laughs over drinks.
It was all gone. And now she was destroying what little she had left of the two vampires she’d loved most in the world.
Caro was so focused on her misery that she didn’t hear Saber approach until his hands rested on her shoulders. “Don’t think of it that way,” he murmured.
She was so new to the mate bond that she’d forgotten their emotions and thoughts were connected. It was a disconcerting realization; she’d prefer not to have someone else traipsing around in her mind, but at the same time, it was weirdly reassuring.
“How am I supposed to think of it?” she inquired.
“These things he made will go on to save the world.”
Caro shuddered at the reminder of what Saber had told her about the fire outside her door. He didn’t understand whyhe’dglimpsed such a thing when it was his sister’s gift, but the sealing of their mate bond had to have something to do with it. Otherwise, it was areallybig coincidence.
She didn’t think he was clairvoyant like his sister, or at least not as strong of one as Brie, but she suspected something was there—something he’d locked down many years ago.
He claimed he’d never experienced anything like it as a child, and she believed him, but maybe he’d experienced something else in his lifetime and hadn’t realized what it was. No matter the answer, something had changed in him, and he caught a glimpse of a future that could be years or hours away.
When a small shiver ran through her, he squeezed her shoulders. With a bit of a shock, she realized he wascomfortingher. Such a thing was probably as foreign to him as Jupiter, but he didn’t let her go as he gave her a small hug.
It was strange, but she relaxed against him as his warmth seeped into her bones and eased some of her sadness. She never would have expected the man who walked into her parents’ store, all demanding, bossy, and pure jackass, to turn out to be her mate.
Life had a strange way of pulling practical jokes on those riding this big ball of rock around the sun, and it was laughing its ass off right now. She hoped the joke didn’t turn into heartbreak.
A loud beeping drew her attention to the video monitor. It hung on the wall in the corner of the shop. Someone had driven over the hidden wire that alerted her to anyone approaching the steel gates.
Saber released her, and she removed her leather gloves before tossing them aside. Together, they walked to the monitor as a black SUV stopped outside the gates and the driver’s window went down. A face appeared, and a hand waved at the camera.
“It’s Declan,” Saber said. “You can let him in.”
I can, can I?But she held the question back as resentment churned inside her. She’d known guests were arriving, but she wasn’t thrilled about having strangers tromping aroundherhome. And she especially didn’t like being told who she could let intoherhome.
She was still grieving and craved solace, but Saber’s entrance into her life had thrown it into a tailspin, and now, more vampires were invading. The last thing she wanted to do was play hostess to a group of strangers.
If she was going to finish the swords and prevent the coming hell Saber and Brie had witnessed, then this was a necessary inconvenience. It didn’t mean she had to like it.
A keypad sat beneath the monitor; Caro punched the code to the gates into it and watched as the gates started to swing open. Declan ducked back into the vehicle, and a second later, the SUV rolled through the gates.
CHAPTERSIX
Caro watchedthe gates close before turning away from the screen. Saber had already walked over to the doorway of the forge. He leaned against the wall as he waited for the others to arrive.
With nothing else to do, and no way to retreat, she reluctantly joined him. She had no idea what would happen when they arrived.
Saber and his sister should talk. She hoped they’d somehow repair their relationship, but Brie would have to prove as stubborn as her often reluctant and sometimes callous sibling.
