"Oh... uh, thanks... I mean, cool."
Great, Mara. Awesome. Speech of the year to the stiffest guy you know handing you an apology we wouldn't even have dreamed of. Let's just be glad no one else is listening...
Nathaniel suddenly lifts his hand, and taps his eye.
"Thank you for healing him too. Liam quickly explained to us what you had done for him. It was something that was weighing on our minds for a while, and normal medicine couldn't do anything for him no matter what we tried. I think this injury was what made him somehow... darker too. So, thank you."
"You're welcome," I mutter. "It was... a remnant of Dark Magic, so.... if it makes you feel any better, there really was nothing human medicine could have done."
He nods, and as his hand goes down, I can't help but stare at... his missing one. I bite my lower lip.
"I... I wish I could do something for you too," I mutter.
He glances briefly that way, but shrugs.
"It’s not important. I already knew it was too late after the battle when we couldn’t recover my arm. I spent a long time convincing Selena it was okay, and I really am. I've learned to live with this. But... thank you for mentioning it."
I nod, a bit embarrassed. I guess that's... it, right?
"Nate!"
We turn and Selena is walking up to us, while Liam is standing a few steps away in the garden. She smiles as she approaches Nathaniel.
"Liam asked me to save his girlfriend from you... What are you guys doing?"
Nathaniel and I exchange a glance, but as neither of us comes up with an answer, she laughs.
"Don't tell me, he gave you the brother-in-law speech?"
I blush, while Nathaniel rolls his eyes.
"I'm going to go back," I mutter. "Thanks for the pep talk!"
I turn around and walk away, as fast as I can without running.
Why the hell did I say that…? We were almost done, Liam, you idiot!
Chapter 33
"You're really not going to tell me?" he insists.
"No!" I chuckle, amused by his pout.
Liam's been asking all evening now, but I won't tell him what his brother and I discussed. I feel like this should stay between me and Nathaniel Black. There's nothing really secret, but... I just don't feel like Liam ought to know either. I smile at his grumpy expression and put a quick kiss on his cheek, snuggling a bit more in his arms.
It's been a quiet evening, despite the dozens of wolves present in Nora's garden. Kelsi and I clearly underestimated how much food needed to be prepared to feed a group of werewolves... I feel like I peeled enough vegetables for a lifetime. Still, I'm happy we contributed a bit to the large meal in front of us. Because a lot of them are still in their wolf form, the dinner was served like a buffet on a large table, everyone coming and going to grab whatever they pleased. It's cute seeing the kids happy to hand large slices of meat to big hungry wolves... and a bit odd too when they start fighting for them.
Liam and I took a seat a bit away from the group, to be just the two of us for a little while. I love being part of a pack, but I think he and I are still more like a pair of loners... He sighs and gently rubs his nose against my neck, making me shiver a little. I'm shamelessly sitting on his lap, my hands around his neck as we've been cuddling since we finished eating. The firepit has all the wolves, humans, and couples gathered around, but we are almost the farthest away, watching the nice scene from afar. Kelsi went for a walk hand in hand with Ben a while ago, and I'm happy those two are spending some more time together without any witchcraft books.
I'm keeping an eye on Ayesha, but she's been silently eating against a tree for a while, staying away from all the wolves. I get a witch probably wouldn't be comfortable in the midst of all this... Selena was chatting with her earlier, though, and I don't think she's that uncomfortable. Maybe just a bit uneasy, given the situation. It's a strangely quiet night, despite our current situation. Once again, I have a feeling that this is the calm before the storm...
"We should make plans," suddenly says Liam.
"...Like a battle plan?"
"No, plans as a couple. Stuff we want to do after all this crap is over..."
I smile.
