PAYTON FELT HER face heat as Brodie left the room. Her bra and underwear were soaked, leaving nothing to the imagination. “I can’t believe he saw me like this.”
“You shouldn’t worry, Payton. He was the perfect gentleman. He kept you covered the whole time.”
Although she was glad for his concern, the water still caused the thin material to become see-through. “Not that this gives me much cover, Sam.”
“Don’t sweat it,” Sam said. “I doubt he was looking overly close. He was too worried about you to notice your state of undress.”
“I didn’t want him to see me this way!”
“Honestly, Pay. This has all been rather technical.”
“No. You don’t understand,” Payton corrected. Her thoughts were a little jumbled and she was having a difficult time getting her words out correctly.
Sam cocked her head. “I think I do. You don’t want him to see you before your mating night, right?”
“No… not right.” Payton focused on her thoughts. “I’m in my ungies!”
“Ungies?”
“Ugly undies.”
“Oh, Payton.” Sam laughed. “They’re not that bad. They’re utilitarian. Think of them as a bikini.”
“Oh, yeah, that makes it so much better. I’m wearing a “bikini” that’s totally see-through and doesn’t match.” Payton groaned again. “I want him to find me sexy, not useful!”
“He does, silly rabbit.”
“Silly rabbit?”
“Sorry. It’s from an American cereal commercial. ‘Silly rabbit, Trix is for kids.’ Something Pepper and I say all the time. Anyway, my point is, it doesn’t matter what you’re wearing, Payton. He loves you. You never have to worry about that.” Sam knelt beside the tub and held her wrist. “Why were you mad at Brodie?”
“I have no idea. I’m not sure what brought it on. I wasn’t just mad, I was enraged. It didn’t feel like me.” Payton shook her head. “No, that’s not quite right. Um, I felt angry, but he hadn’t really done anything to warrant me being angry, does that make sense?”
“Sort of.” Sam smiled. “Was it like hallucinations or something?”
“Could have been part of it. It was right after I had a really intense vision.” Payton sighed. “I don’t know. It’s possible I’ll never understand this part of my abilities.”
Sam patted her hand. “Your pulse is back to normal. How do you feel?”
Payton squinted, trying to bring her into focus. “Other than the lingering headache, fine.”
“Do you feel well enough to stand?”
“Yes.”
“Okay.” Sam handed her a towel. “I’ll get you a robe… do you want me to grab some clothes for you?”
“If someone could just bring me my bag and my glasses, that would be great. I haven’t unpacked yet.”
“No problem. I’ll be right back.”
Payton smiled. “Thanks.”
Sam left the room, returning quickly with a robe, and then left her again.
Payton climbed out of the tub.
“Payton?” Brodie called through the door. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, Brod. I’ll be out in a second.” Payton glanced in the mirror and grimaced. Turning away, she peeled off her wet underwear, dried herself, and then slipped into the robe.
“Pay?” Brodie called again.
“Still upright, Brodie.” She smiled, she couldn’t help it. He worried about her and that made her feel special. She pulled open the door, appreciating the sight of his bare torso, even if it was slightly blurry without her glasses. “I’m okay.”
His body visibly relaxed. “Your color’s better.”
“I feel much better.”
He stroked her cheek, his face still taut with worry. “I can feel your headache.”
“Yeah, it’s a bad one.”
“Let me take care of it.” He closed his eyes, wrapping his hands over her scalp. Her headache dissipated immediately and she sighed with relief.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
He drew her closer. “Bloody hell, you scared me, love.”
“I kind of scared myself.” She leaned against his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist.
“I’m sorry if I barreled over you, earlier,” he said.
“You were just worried.” She kissed his chin. “I’m so sorry about the Heather thing.”
“Shhh. We’ll talk more when we’re alone.”
She nodded and closed her eyes, reveling in the feel of the soft, taut skin of his chest.
“Do you want me to grab your bag so you can change?” he asked.
“Sam’s getting it for me.” She squeezed harder. “And I want to stay right here for a while.”
He chuckled and rubbed her back. “I’m having a difficult time knowing you’re naked under that robe and not being able to do anything about it.”
“You are?” she asked a little skeptically.
He leaned back. “You doubt?”
She felt the heat creep up her neck. “No. I can feel your honesty. I suppose I’m just surprised.”
“In three hundred and twelve hours, it will be your birthday, sweetheart, and I intend to assuage your surprise.”
She glanced at the clock on the bedside table. “That would require me staying up past nine o’clock… in just under two weeks,” she joked.
He chuckled. “You won’t mind. I promise.”
She couldn’t stop a nervous giggle. Her mother would have had a coronary if she had any idea the thoughts going through Payton’s head right now.
A knock at the door forced the couple apart and Sam entered at Brodie’s bidding.
“Here’s your shirt, Brodie,” Sam said as she lifted the luggage onto the bed. “Payton, I also brought you a bag to put your dirty laundry in.” She held out her hand. “And here are your glasses.”
Payton smiled and slipped her spectacles on. “Thanks, Sam.”
Sam left the couple and Payton glanced up at Brodie. “I should really get dressed.”
“Do you feel well enough for me to leave you?”
“I feel perfectly fine.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, love,” she insisted.
He frowned. “I’ll be right outside.”
“I figured you would be.” Payton grinned. “I’ll yell if I need you.”
Brodie left the room and Payton unzipped her bag and dressed in matching underwear, yoga pants, and T-shirt before gathering her discarded clothing and pulling open the bedroom door. Brodie pushed away from the wall and reached for her suitcase. “I’ll take that.”
She handed him the bag and led him back into the living room. Her brother was pacing the floor, but rushed to her as soon as he saw her. “How do you feel?”
“Much better,” Payton said.
He checked her eyes again and then grasped her wrist for her pulse. Payton sighed, but didn’t protest. It wouldn’t have made a difference. “I’m okay, Angus,” she insisted.
“Hmm.” Angus narrowed his eyes. “You seem back to normal.”
“Normal’s relative.” Payton smiled. “Truly, I’m fine.”
“I think I found something,” Fiona said from her place on the floor.
Brodie held his hand out to Payton and she stepped away from her brother and let Brodie tug her down next to him on the sofa.
“The book says that as you grow closer to mating, particularly if you have found your mate, your visions will begin to intensify. What did you see?”
Payton glanced at Brodie and then back at Fiona. “I can’t really say, Fi.”
Fiona nodded. “Well, the images you saw probably didn’t give you the full story. So, you may see a vision, but there’s more to it that you can’t see, and that shows up in how you feel, your body taking on what your mind can’t see. The book gives an example of a woman getting a vision of her grandmother in grave danger and then her body breaking out in blisters. Come to find out that her grandmother had survived a fire as a child. Even though no one knew about the fire, the woman felt the effects of the heat her grandmother had endured.”
“So, my body cooled because someone might have been frozen?” Payton asked.
“I think so.”
“What about emotion? Would it explain irrational feeling?”
Fiona shrugged. “I don’t know, but apparently, all will be revealed when you’re bound. The passing out just means you gave up trying to block what you see. You were open and felt safe.”
Brodie lifted Payton’s hand to his lips. “See? I’m not so bad.”
Payton rolled her eyes. “Jury’s still out on that one.”
“Either that, or whoever you were remembering passed out,” Fiona continued. “I’m sorry, Payton. There’s so much to read, and I haven’t caught up yet.”
“It’s fine, Fiona,” Payton insisted. “I think I can speak for everyone when I say how grateful we are that you’re doing all this research.”
“Aye,” Brodie added. “Alice kept so much from us, and fed us inaccurate information most of the time, so it helps that you’re working it out for us.”
“Thanks,” Fiona said, and went back to the book. “It looks like once you’re bound, your visions will be accurate and far more intense.”
“Great,” Payton droned and then frowned at Brodie. “I hope that doesn’t mean I’ll be assaulted with them on our mating night.”
The ladies let out a collective groan.
“That would be horrible,” Sam said.
“Definitely,” Fiona agreed.
Payton bit back a yawn.
“Oh, and your visions will make you much more tired,” Fiona said.
“No, really?” Payton retorted, and then smiled.
“I think you should rest.” Brodie stood and pulled Payton off the couch. “Let’s get back to the flat.”
“We’ll be here if you need us,” Kade said. “Any time.”
“As will we,” Angus added. “We’re staying here tonight.”
“Angus, you don’t need to do that,” Payton said.
Her brother frowned. “I feel I do.”
“We’ll let you know if we need you,” Brodie said and laid his hand on Payton’s lower back.
“He doesn’t need—”
“Your brother’s worried about you, love,” Brodie said, cutting off her argument. “It doesn’t matter what you say, he’s here for the night.”
Payton sighed. “Fine.”
* * *
Brodie took Payton to the flat and set her suitcase back in the bedroom. She grabbed a clip and twisted the damp ends of her hair, securing them to the back of her head.
“Do you want to sleep now?” he asked.
She shook her head. “I should probably try, but I don’t think I’d get any rest. I’m too keyed up.”
Brodie smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist. “How about dinner and a movie?”
“Sounds great. Shall I cook?”
“Sure. Or we could order takeaways and have them delivered.”
“Yeah, because that went so well earlier.” She smiled. “Let’s see what you have left in the fridge. I’m sure I can come up with something much better than anything we could order in, especially considering I made the grocery list for the shop to deliver.”
“Ahh. So, that’s why there were so many microwavable options.”
Payton giggled. “I know my man.”
“Yes, you do.” Brodie grinned. “I’ll open the wine and we can talk while we eat.”
“Perfect.” Payton led him to the kitchen.
She decided to pull together a quick Alfredo pasta while Brodie opened the wine and set the table. Payton’s face started to ache from smiling, their simple domestic act filling her heart with unspeakable joy. Every time Brodie would pass by her, he’d touch her gently. A hand on her back, a kiss on her cheek, or a gentle pat on her bottom. When it was time to drain the pasta, he took it from the stove and they worked in tandem to dish up their dinner.
Brodie set their plates on the table and then held her chair for her. She sat down and laid her serviette on her lap. “Okay, so what happened with Heather? How did you find out about her?”
“Why don’t I take a bite first and then I’ll fill you in.”
Payton sighed and waved her hand. “Go ahead, then.”
Brodie chuckled and took a bite, humming in appreciation. “This is amazing, sweetheart.”
“Thank you.” Payton also took a bite and shrugged. “It’s okay, I guess.”
Brodie took a few more bites and then laid his fork down. He leaned down and then sat up again. “Your leg is bouncing.”
“Sorry.” Payton stilled her leg and picked up her fork.
Brodie grinned. “So, the story.”
“Yes.” Payton sat straighter. “The story.”
“My father had an affair with a woman and Heather is the product of that affair. I found out quite by accident.”
“Seriously?” Payton rolled her eyes. “What is it with your parents? No one seems to be able to keep it in their pants.”
Brodie shook his head. “I think this is proof that it’s important to ‘marry’ your actual mate.”
“Ya think?”
Brodie smiled. “Anyway, Heather managed to get a job at Slàinte—”
“Without you knowing about it?” Payton asked suspiciously.
Slàinte was Brodie’s most exclusive club… and most expensive.
“Jack hired her. Apparently, I’ve been a little distracted the past few years.”
Jack Fletcher was a close friend of Brodie’s and ran two of his clubs along with Slàinte.
“By me, obviously.” Payton bit her lip. “Sorry.”
“Not your fault, sweetheart. You’ve always been my favorite distraction.” Brodie smiled.
“Have I met her, then?” Payton asked, confused. “I don’t remember a Heather.”
“No. You were never there at the same time.”
She narrowed her eyes in suspicion. “You’re a sneaky wee buggar, aren’t you?”
He shrugged. “I couldn’t risk it.”
“No, I suppose you couldn’t. How did you know she was your sister?”
Brodie appeared to contemplate the question for a few seconds. “I started to suspect something was up when I could feel her emotions, which happen to be much different than yours.”
“How so?”
“Your emotions are logical. Hers are chaotic.”
Payton shook her head. “That’s impossible. I’m a woman. All women are chaotic.”
Brodie frowned. “I hear Aidan in that statement.”
Payton giggled. “You know him too well, apparently.”
“He’ll figure it out eventually.”
“My word, I hope so, or his mate’s going to hate life.”
Brodie chuckled. “Anyway, there are so many similarities between Heather and me. Looks for one, telekinesis for another, and then that nagging voice in your head that tells you not everything is as it seems.”
“You’re hearing voices, Brodie? You may want to ask Kade about that.”
Brodie grinned as he continued, “Heather and her mother made me promise to keep our relationship to myself. I promised to keep their secret for as long as I could.”
Payton felt guilt settle over her like an iron blanket.
“Hey,” Brodie said. “This is my fault, love. I botched it terribly.”
“Maybe.”
He reached over and took her hand. “I should have told you. I should have ignored my promise to her and come to you sooner. I’ve been an arse.”
“You can’t take all the blame. I did jump to conclusions and you were keeping someone else’s secret.”
“Och, Payton.” He sat back. “Are you truly this perfect?”
She snorted. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“Just that you’ve always been beyond gracious with me. I don’t really deserve it.”
“No one deserves grace. That’s kind of the point, right?” She smiled. “I love you, Brodie. Even if I wake up the morning of my birthday and discover you’re not my mate, I doubt that will change.”
His face paled. “You don’t really think that will happen, do you?”
“No. I don’t. I bloody well hope not, anyway.” She stared down at her ring. “I’d rather not give this back.”
“So, you’re in it for the big-ass diamond?” he retorted in a bad American accent.
“Um, duh,” she retorted.
He laughed. “I’m so glad I’ve won you over.”
“Aye. Ages ago.” She sighed. “I suppose I have a confession as well. If some other woman so much as looks sideways at you, I feel like I want to scratch her eyes out.”
“Oh, ho.” Brodie grinned. “So, you do understand. At least, to a certain degree.”
“Not that that gave you any kind of excuse to scare all of my male friends away, Brodie Gunnach.” She wagged a finger at him. “But yes, I understand, probably more than a ‘certain’ degree.”
“I never understood your need for male friends anyway. I’ve never had female ones.”
Payton’s jaw dropped. “That’s because you don’t take the time to form friendships. You’d just shag ’em and move on.”
“For your information, I haven’t been intimate with anyone since long before meeting you, and I’d rather stop this line of conversation.”
Payton giggled. “Afraid to find out which of my male friends I’ve slept with?”
“Payton,” he growled as he stood and took his plate to the kitchen.
“I bet you wish one of us was an empath, eh?” She followed. “You wish you could read my mind right about now, don’t you?”
Brodie faced her. “This isn’t funny, Payton.”
“Oh, yes it is.” She cocked her head. “Why’s your face so red?”
“Payton.”
“Yes, Brodie?” she responded innocently. However, she could see his jealousy getting the better of him. “Okay, okay. I’m sorry. No one other than you has even so much as held my hand.”
He took several deep breaths, and she smiled when his face returned to normal.
“Wow,” she said. “We need to work on your sense of humor.”
“No, you need to work on not poking the bear.”
Payton laughed. “I’ll get right on that.”
He kissed her. “I love you. You know that, right? Even outside of the fact that you’re my mate. I choose to love you as well.”
“Aye. I’m sorry I thought the worst.”
“I have to admit, I was a little surprised you thought I’d purposely hurt you. Especially after my very romantic proposal and then the bath thing.”
She grinned. “You’re going to get a lot of mileage out of that, aren’t you?”
“Absolutely.”
She dropped her head on his chest. “I was going on past actions.”
He raised her chin. “What are you talking about?”
She shook her head. “Nothing. Just forget it. It’s in the past.”
“No. Tell me. We’re sharing all our secrets, don’t stop now.” She tried to look at her feet, but he wouldn’t let her. “Look at me, sweetheart, and tell me why you think I’d try to hurt you.”
“Because you already did,” she whispered.
“I did? When?”
“Never mind.” She tried to put distance between them, but in doing so, nearly lost her footing over the sofa.
Brodie kept her from falling. “Pay? When did I hurt you, love?”
She crossed her arms and muttered, “When you left.”
“What do you mean when I left? You know I had to help Kade with the Iceland issues. I feel horrible that you were hurt, but I thought we were past that.”
“Not then,” she ground out.
“Well then, when?”
She sighed. “When you went into the Air Force.”
Brodie’s eyes widened. “That was ten years ago.”
“I know!”
“I had to go, love.”
“Why?” she challenged.
A slow smile spread over his face and Payton suddenly grew just a little more nervous than she had been earlier.
“Is this why you were so prickly when I got back?” he asked.
“No, I was prickly then because you were demanding… and I thought you were lying to me!”
He laughed, the boom of his voice filling the room.
“What’s so bloody funny?” she demanded.
“You are, love.”
He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her onto the back of the sofa. She let out a squeak of surprise and settled her hands on his shoulders. “What are you doing?”
He slid his hips between her knees and grinned. “Had I known that all I had to do was explain to you why I left ten years ago to alleviate all of your insecurities, I would have done it then.”
“I didn’t have any insecurities,” she countered.
“I stand corrected.” He grinned. “I left, sweetheart, because I had to.”
“Why?”
“Because you were fourteen!”
“Way closer to fifteen, Brodie. You just had to wait a few days,” she countered.
“Even if I had waited, it wouldn’t have changed the fact that although we were mates, you were too young to understand what all of that meant. And I was having a difficult time wanting to bind a child. I felt dirty.”
“You did?”
He nodded. “I thought if I could leave for a few years, then we could have a proper courtship when I returned. I wanted to court you the right way until it was time to be bound. But you had other plans.”
“Oh, no, mister, you don’t get to do that.”
“Do what?” he asked.
“Play the innocent,” she said. “Granted, I didn’t let you explain about Heather, but even after I told you to leave me alone, you still managed to ruin every male friendship I had up until that point and then worked on ruining any new ones that came my way… except Niall perhaps.”
Brodie sneered. “Stupid little boys pawing at you any chance they got is not friendship.”
“No one ever pawed at me, thank you very much. Like I said before, you’re the only one who’s ever done more than hold my hand.”
“Is a hand not a paw in other species?”
For some reason, that struck Payton as funny and although she tried to stifle a giggle, she failed miserably.
Brodie laid his hands on her hips. “You find that funny, eh?”
She couldn’t answer coherently because she still couldn’t stop laughing, so she nodded.
Brodie grinned. “Bloody hell, love, you’re adorable.”
He covered her mouth with his, effectively stifling her laughter, and kissed her deeply as he held her close. Payton wasn’t entirely sure what to do. She was overwhelmed with emotion. She loved him beyond sanity.
Brodie broke the kiss and laid his forehead against hers. “Your birthday doesn’t come fast enough.”
Payton nodded and laid her hands on his cheeks. “Has anyone ever tried to bind their mate early?”
“I have no idea.” He chuckled. “But I won’t be the first.”
“Damn.”
“Don’t start with me.” He groaned. “It’s hard enough as it is.”
“Fine.” She smiled. “I do have a question about before. When you were in the Air Force.”
“What’s that?”
She couldn’t look at him. “Why did you stop writing?”
“When you were in school, you mean?” he lifted her chin.
“Yes.”
Brodie frowned. “That’s complicated.”
“Okay. But it’s not like you wrote prose or anything to begin with. You sent me pictures of baby polar bears.”
“One,” he said, and held up his index finger. “It was one polar bear.”
She giggled. “Okay, one polar bear.”
“And my car.”
Payton grinned. “Oh, I know. I still have that one in my wallet.”
“You do?”
“Aye. I would stare at it a lot. You’re extremely photogenic, you know.”
“Thank you.” Brodie sighed. “I stopped because Niall said—”
Payton scowled.
“Before ye skelp me, love. Niall did not betray your trust,” Brodie rushed to say. “He just asked me a couple of innocent questions and I realized that writing to you may not be a good idea, probably because I couldn’t have written prose if I’d tried, and I didn’t want to disappoint you. I felt I’d rather have you not know anything about me than to think I was a nitwit.”
“Nitwit.” She tapped her lip with a finger. “How appropriate… for both of you.”
“I don’t disagree.”
“The truth is, Brodie, I wanted to know you… privately. Have things between us that no one else knew.” She smiled. “I didn’t care if you wrote prose, I still don’t. I love you just the way you are, and quite frankly, I don’t think you should have listened to Niall’s jabbering.”
“Perhaps not.” He cocked his head. “You understand that Niall adores you, right? I only asked him to make sure you were safe while I was gone. I did not ask him to “befriend” you. He did that all on his own.”
“I know. He’s worked hard to prove that to me.”
“How hard?”
She frowned. “Brodie.”
“I just want to be sure how much competition I have.”
Payton groaned, pushing him away and heading into the kitchen. “You don’t have any competition. And especially not from Niall. You haven’t since the day I met you. And you know it.”
He followed. “Just making sure.”
“You’re an idiot, Brodie.”
He chuckled. “I’m painfully aware of that fact, love.”
“Knowing you have a problem’s the first step.”
Brodie grinned. “Yes, you’re my biggest problem. Especially when you make me worry. How do you feel?”
She rinsed some of the dinner dishes and set them in the dishwasher. “I feel fine. Better than ever, in fact.”
“Really?”
She nodded.
He narrowed his eyes and then sighed. “If that changes, you’re to tell me.”
“I will.”
“Promise me.”
“Aye, my liege.” She smiled and threw him a tea towel. “I promise. Now help me load.”
Brodie helped her load the dishwasher and then pulled out his cell phone. “I should ring Heather.”
“We can still go if you want to.”
Brodie shook his head. “No. You need to rest. Besides, I’d rather just stay in and watch a movie, if you don’t mind. I want you all to myself for a little while.”
Payton grinned. “I love that plan… especially if there’s making out involved.”
“Well, duh,” he mimicked, and Payton laughed.