Chapter 229

Chapter 229 – Forest Teachings “Don’t cry,” Victor whispers to me, using his thumbs to brush the tears from my cheeks.

“I’m sorry,” I murmur, shaking my head and looking down at his chest. “I’m just so…I want to be done –

I want to go home – I want to take our boys home and start to live our lives again -”

“I know, sweetheart,” he says, his voice incredibly gentle, full of understanding. “But just a little more.

Can’t you feel it? We’re almost there.”

But honestly, I can’t feel it. I am so tired. I had put all of my hopes on this meeting, on the woman fixing us. And here we were – we knew more, yes, and we still had each other – but I just feel so weak. So tired.

Sensing my frustration, my weakness, Victor holds me close against him and lets me cry until I’m out of tears. He knows me well, this man, my Alpha, my astral mate. Knows that if he just gives me a moment, I’ll find myself again.

And I do. Like a passing storm, my tears bring clarity, bring a little grace, and when I look back up at him he’s there, waiting for me, a patient smile on his face.

“There she is,” he murmurs, again using his fingers to wipe my face clear. “I mean, I knew you were going to take the news that you’re my mate hard – but I didn’t think you’d be this disappointed –“

I burst out laughing at this and am again grateful for him – a laugh is precisely what I need.

“Oh, come on,” I say, raising my arm to wipe at my runny nose. “Stuck with you for the rest of my days?

What can I do but cry.”

“You’d better believe it,” he murmurs, still smiling down at me, my constant star. “Because you are stuck with me. The universe said so.”

“Are we getting out of these woods, though, Victor?” I ask. “I know we felt so hopeful before – but damn it, it just feels like this is going on and on –“

“Yes,” he insists, his voice clear and calm. “And if you’re having trouble believing it right now, Evelyn, then trust in me. Because I have no question about it anymore.”

“Okay,” I respond, nodding and leaning against him. “You lead the way then, because I am tired.”

“You got it,” he murmurs and then takes a deep breath, setting me back away from him so that we can get moving.

“Where to?” I ask, taking his hand, happy to let him make all the decisions for now. It’s a power I’m sure I’ll be eager to reclaim if we ever get back home but – for now? It’s on him.

“I don’t know,” he says quietly, walking slowly through the woods at my side. “But the forest told us to trust our instincts. So, I’m just…wandering and seeing what feels good.”

“I mean, is that best?” I protest, looking back over my shoulder. “Should we not go back to that little fire and make a plan –“

But even as I say it, I realize my mistake. Victor looks back over his shoulder as well, smirking a little at the place where the little clearing should be, but of course it’s gone. “I think,” he thinks aloud, “that place belongs to her. Even if we’d wanted to stay any longer, we’d have been asked to leave before long.”

I sigh. Honestly, I hate the idea of wandering aimlessly through the woods. “So, where to?” I ask, trying to encourage him to think of a destination, some sort of aim for us to head towards.

“Actually,” he says, c*****g his head to the side. “I have an idea.”

“What is it,” I ask, narrowing my eyes.

“I thought you were trusting me to decide,” he pushes back, giving me a broad grin.

“Yeah, but I want to know what it is you’re thinking,” I tease, narrowing my eyes at him. “So I can decide whether my trust in you is well placed.”

“Not how it works,” he laughs, tugging my hand and leading me off into the woods. Honestly, I don’t really know how he knows where he’s going – I’m totally lost – but I sigh and put my faith in him. Astral mates, after all.

We only walk a short distance before I hear it.

“Oh!” I exclaim, my eyes going wide, suddenly excited. “Oh, I get it!” I laugh, my heart suddenly eager for it.

“Do you know where we are?” he asks, preening a little at the cleverness of his idea.

“Yes!” I say, rushing ahead and pulling him along. “Back at the falls! The little pool!”

My suspicion is proved correct as I break through the trees and stand again in the little clearing with its soft grass, its wide, clear pool fed by the waterfall pounding into its far edge. I marvel at the beauty of it as Victor sits down next to me. I glance at him, curious, and then do a double take as I realize that he’s taking off his shoes.

“Wait, what?” I ask. He blinks up at me.

“What’s wrong?” he asks.

“You’re – you’re going in?”

“Evelyn,” he laughs, shaking his head at me. “We smell terrible. We’re covered in dirt. We’re exhausted. We have been gifted a magical waterfall. Yeah,” he says, nodding to me as if I’m a little bit dumb. “We’re taking a bath.”

I wrinkle my nose a little at the idea as he finishes pulling off his hiking boots and then his socks. “I don’t know,” I murmur, crossing my arms over my chest. “I like my baths inside. In a tub. With…walls.”

“What,” he pushes, raising an eyebrow at me. “So s*x outside is fine, but getting clean –“

“Well!’ I protest, throwing my arms up. “I did say that s*x outside was fine if you were the one on the ground in the dirt! And I can be on top, not touching the wilderness!”

He laughs at me, shaking his head as he stands up and peels his dirty, sweat-stained shirt over his head. “Fine,” he says, taking my chin in his hand and giving me a little kiss. “Stay dirty, girl. I’m getting clean.”

Then, he unbuckles his pants and pushes them to the ground, leaving the fabric on the ground as he walks into the pool without a second look over his shoulder. I have to admit, I don’t mind the view of his muscular back and tight ass as he wades into waist-high water.

“Is it cold?” I call after him, hesitating.

He turns then, smiling at me, and shrugs. “A little,” he says. “But in a refreshing way.”

I give in, then, looking down at my body, realizing how scratchy and gross my clothes really are.

Suddenly, a bath sounds like precisely the thing I want and need.

And my super hot mate waiting for me in the water?

Just a bonus.

I exhale a deep breath and pull my shirt over my head, feeling the sudden chill of the night air on my skin. I take a second to close my eyes, tilting my head back, relaxing in the sudden feeling of freedom I feel in baring myself to the elements.

My moment of peace is interrupted by a wolf-whistle from the direction of the pool. I open my eyes and turn a playful glare on Victor.

“Rude,” I say, pretending a ruffled pride I definitely don’t feel. “Don’t you know you shouldn’t whistle at a lady?”

“A lady?” Victor asks, raising his eyebrow. “Full warning, Evelyn, I have no intention whatsoever of treating you like a lady for the rest of the night.”

“Horrible,” I say, rolling my eyes and working to hide my smile. “Treating me with so little respect when I’ve done nothing to deserve it.” With that, I reach behind my back to unclasp my bra and let it fall to the grass at my feet. Then, I unbuckle my own pants, pushing them off and stepping away from the puddle of clothes, standing naked before him.

A hungry growl builds in Victor’s throat then, and, like a magnet, I feel myself drawn to him. His growl only deepens as I walk forward into pool, gasping a little as the water splashes against my thighs