Sally prayed to the Great Luna that what she was seeing wasn’t real. Surely Costin’s presence in her dream was simply just part of the nightmare. Surely, her mate wasn’t using the bond to see into her mind. She felt her dream-self hit the floor and squeeze her eyes shut. She didn’t want to see anything. She didn’t want to hear anything or know anything. She didn’t even want to exist. Not like this.
How many times can a heart break before it’s completely destroyed? She wasn’t sure her heart could take any more. She was tired. Things had been so good since she’d woken up and Costin had taken the lead on dragging her back from the depths of her mind’s despair, but she should have known that the battle wouldn’t be won that easily. No battle was. Winning a battle meant blood, sweat, and tears. It meant lives lost and wounds endured. In the end, one could only hope the victory would be worth all the sacrifice it required. Would this victory be worth it, if she could win? If it meant having Costin and Titus in her life, then yes, it would be. She just didn’t know how to fight back. There was no sword that could destroy the memories living in her mind. There was no shield that could block their blows. She felt like a deer in an open field. There was no cover and the frightened animal was surrounded by hunters, their guns pointing right at her. Any move could be lethal. But remaining still would definitely be fatal.
“Sally, open your eyes.”
She shook her head at Costin’s request. She didn’t want to stand in a room—even if everything was happening in a freaking nightmare—where she was in bed with another man while Costin stood by and watched. Just thinking about it made her want to vomit.
“Wake up and open your eyes,” he commanded again. “Don’t make me fling water on your face. I’ll do it, especially since it would mean wet sheets on your very naked body. Now wake up Sally, mine.”
Sally’s eyes snapped open and—praise holy bacon babies—she wasn’t in a dark room filled with noises that made her want to puke. She was in a dark room, but it was a room that brought her comfort, not fear and confusion. She turned her head to look at her mate who was staring down at her. He was propped up on an elbow, and his brow was drawn down into a V. She reached up and smoothed the worried look away.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “In a minute, I’ll address the fact that you will never throw water on me in bed for any reason, at any time. But first I need to address the nightmare.”
Costin pressed a finger to her lips. “You don’t need to address it, beautiful. It was a nightmare. We all have things in our lives that give us nightmares. I have my own fair share. I am sorry I invaded your thoughts, but you were scared, and I just needed to fix it. Guess I didn’t.”
“I’m awake,” she pointed out.
“You’re still terrified that I will leave you, that I won’t want you if I know too much. Until you no longer believe that, then I haven’t helped you.”
“Costin, I don’t need you to fix this,” Sally said after several minutes of just staring at him. She was trying hard to arrange the words in her mind into some sort of order so they’d make sense. “I just need you to be with me in the midst of it. Does that make sense?”
He ran his finger along her cheek and gave her a small, crooked smile. “It does, but that doesn’t make me want to fix it any less.”
He sighed and laid down on his back. She felt cold without him hovering over her, even though the thought of that made her sound like a wilting violet. She leaned over the side of the bed and snatched up his shirt and slipped it on. She felt too vulnerable already, and being unclothed didn’t help. For some reason, Costin’s shirt felt like armor to her, which was silly since armor was hard and actually protected, and clothes were soft and might not even save you from a scrape on concrete. She pinched the bridge of her nose as she laid back down. And now she’s thinking about the protective qualities of garments. “WTH, Sally.” She growled to herself.
Costin chuckled. “I like it when you talk to yourself. It’s adorbs.”
“Did you just say adorbs?”
He shrugged. “If I did?”
“Then you’re a hot werewolf-bartender with a sexy dimple that talks like a dork.” Sally laughed when he pretended to be offended. “Costin?”
“Yes, Sally mine?”
“Thank you for … well … for staying.” Her words were halting, and she wasn’t sure if they even made sense once they’d made it out of her mouth. Sometimes things that seemed clear in her head came out as clear as mud.
“You don’t have to thank me for the honor of being your true mate.” He rolled until he was hovering over her again. His broad, bare shoulders blocked out the rest of the room, and his inhumanly handsome face was inches from hers. He captivated her as he had always done. “Do you think you can go back to sleep?”
She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down until his head was resting just over her heart. His arms came around her, and the weight of him settling on her should have felt stifling, but instead she felt cocooned and safe. “If you will hold me like this, then yes, I think I can.”
“I’m not too heavy?” he asked but didn’t make a move to release her.
“Right now, you’re all that’s holding me together. So, no, Costin, you are definitely not too heavy.”
He lifted his head, pressed his lips to her neck, and then settled back down on her. Sally closed her eyes and let out a slow breath. As she exhaled, she felt the tightness in her chest begin to dissipate, and the panic there slowly receded. This time when she fell asleep, there were no dreams.
Chris frowned at his wife. “You’re sure?”
Cindy nodded.
“How do you know?”
“They contacted me four days ago.”
His eyes narrowed. “Why are you just now telling me?”
“Because I didn’t know she was going to come home. I didn’t want to speak anything out loud, giving power to possibilities, unless it was absolutely necessary. But now she’s here, and there’s something definitely not okay with her.” Cindy began to pace as she spoke. “She looks haunted, Chris. Our sweet, gentle Sally has eyes like a wraith. There’s a blackness inside of them. Something dark has touched her.”
“Then she’s come to the right place. Jen was right to send her home,” he said.
“She was, but then Jen doesn’t know what I am. She sent her home because she knew Sally needed her family.” She sighed and stopped pacing. “I’m just thankful that she came. If she hadn’t…” Cindy stopped before she spoke anything out loud she wouldn’t be able to take back. Chris had always admired that about his wife. She understood how powerful words were and she was careful how she used them and to what end.
“She’ll be getting up soon.” Chris glanced at his watch. “Do you want to tell them together, or do you want some mother/daughter time?”
“I think this needs to be something we talk about alone. She can speak to her mate about it after she’s processed it. Then she can proceed in whatever way she feels is best.”
He stood up and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “She’s going to be alright.”
Cindy nodded. “She is. I’m owning that. Sally, my amazing daughter, is going to be better than alright.”