Chapter 77

Chapter 77

"That was a misunderstanding," he said, advancing toward us. "I was shielding you from what happened the other night, despite what you may believe. Even though we've been apart for a decade, I've always been your overbearing big brother. I just need you to take a breath and stop using magic right now because I don't want you to hurt yourself or herself. It is reacting to your stress, and when you're like this, I'm unable to respond to any of your inquiries." His calming tones brought me back to the girl he used to look after, and his voice was drawing me in.

We had been apart for ten years, and although he had made me laugh and supported me through many of my breakdowns, I wasn't sure if I could trust him.

Behind me, Vera pulled at my blouse, her presence bringing me back to earth.

She was still with me, still here.

"I don't know what's happened between the two of you, but if this is truly your brother—the brother you spent years and years looking for—you owe it to yourself to listen to him." With a content smile tugging at the corners of his lips, Kyle's gaze shifted back and forth between the two of us. He didn't appear this soft in my apartment the other night; instead, he appeared to be made of sharp edges and shards of metal.

Still, her words soothed me, and my abilities gradually faded away.

I moved away from Vera so that I could confront my brother safely. I wanted an answer to a question more than anything else, and it was burning brighter inside of me than any attempt to figure out why he was here.

"Is she your mate?" He glanced over my shoulder, looking surprised, and then chuckled quietly to himself.

"Still as intuitive as ever," he said happily. "Her scent was all over your apartment; I knew who she was to me before I'd seen her."

I kept quiet while evaluating the two of them. My best friend was either in shock, unaware of our mate bond, or hiding it out of fear of the two of us, but my brother couldn't take his eyes off of her.

"Who is his mate? Is there someone else here?" Vera stood two feet away from me and whispered.

I stepped back toward her, making sure I could always see Kyle, and then I grabbed her shoulders. The fear that matched what she had witnessed me do made her heartbeat thud with uncertainty when I touched her.

"Vera—I know this is a lot to process, and I assure you I will walk you through every step of it, but for now I need the truth from you. Kyle says I have to—because you're his mate.

"I know you've spent the whole time we've known each other lying to me, but I wouldn't do the same to you." "My wolf has been silent since he came through that door, but I wouldn't lie about something like that if he was my mate," she bit back, making me wince. I'm not entirely sure that he is my mate." My brother growled possessively after hearing her words, and I started pushing her behind me once more as he drew nearer.

"I had to mask my scent to get here; her wolf hasn't recognized me yet." With an animalistic intent, he watched her, his eyes darkening as he saw his wolf.

He stopped me before I could ask another question.

He bellowed angrily, "You know exactly why I had to hide my scent, Kylie—don't waste our time asking stupid questions," to which I responded with a sulk.

Vera pushed past me and into his personal space, not realizing that he would have had to find a way to get here—a way to escape our mother.

When she stood in front of him, Kyle's body tensed instinctively, his eyes brightening as he gazed down at her as though he had discovered a new world and he was her only devotee.

She gestured accusingly at him, and my heart faltered.

You can just as easily unmask your scent if you can cover it up with such ease. Kylie may be the sister I've looked up to over the years, but she claimed you attempted to kill her, and even though I'm furious with her right now, she's the only person I can trust. I therefore don't trust you either if she doesn't." She looked at him, then back at me, her eyes full of anger.

In the smallest of movements, Kyle raised his hand to her face.

"Little jewel—I cannot unmask my scent out in the open like this; it will put you in danger." She slapped his hand away from her, and he took a deep breath at her glare. "It will put the both of you in danger." He continued as an afterthought while admiring the gorgeously intimidating woman in front of him.

Vera scoffed, but her cheeks were turning pink.

Despite the fact that neither of us had any reason to believe him, the glance he was giving his partner had me fooled. Derrick's eyes, full of desire, had been on me far too often.

"What if I used my magic?" I said what was on my mind. "You know, back when I was little and my mother didn't know that my magic had yet to manifest, I used to constantly put up barriers to protect you from harm. Would that function in such a way that

"your magic isn't as controlled as it used to be? Kylie; we're not risking it." But he wasn't the focus of this.

I looked over at Vera.

"Tell me what you want me to do, and I'll do it." I was clinging to this as a means of redemption, and I was almost pleading with her to mend what I had broken.

I was aware of her strong desire to find her true love and knew that this was the right place for her.