“It will be ready tomorrow,” Rina says, pulling me back from my errant thoughts.
I turn and wave as I leave the building. With a heavy sigh, I head back to the estate. Rina is right. Although I only just met her, I am lost indeed when it comes to Ella.
Chapter 9
Ella
Devon leaves, and I hate that he’s angry. It bothers me to know he is upset with my decision, but I will not change my mind. I refuse to be cruel to anyone, even if they’ve been awful to me. That’s not who I am, nor is it who I wish to be.
It’s strange how he is human, appearing like the rest. He’s tall, with broad shoulders, short-cropped black hair, and a masculine square jaw that could cut glass. And just like his bond brothers, his entire body is chiseled muscular perfection. But his eyes are different. Even in his human form, they remain green vertically slit pupils. I think again of how he stared at me in disbelief when I asked him not to hurt my stepmother.
I look to Kai. “Where did he go?”
His sparkling blue eyes meet mine. “To find you a dress.” He tips his head to the side as he studies me. “You did need one, did you not?”
“Oh.” And now I feel even worse about our parting. He was leaving to do something nice for me. I hate that I practically snapped at him over him wanting to punish my stepmother. “Yes, I did.”
“Do not worry, Ella,” Kai adds. “Devon is... Devon.”
My brow furrows as my gaze rakes over Kai’s form. He gives me a bright smile as he leans on the door. His short, golden hair reflects brightly in the light. His tall, lean, muscular form is gorgeous—like something carved from stone and too perfect to be real.
Finn’s warm hands on my shoulders draw my attention back to him. “You need not worry, Ella.” He smiles. “Devon is a cat. It is in his nature to be moody.”
Cash lightly touches my back. I look over my shoulder and raise my eyebrow in a silent question.
“We should change this dressing.”
I sigh and lift my arms, allowing them to unwrap my torso to expose my back. The cool air raises small goosebumps across my exposed flesh, turning my nipples into hardened beads. My cheeks flush warm in embarrassment. But I don’t try to hide from their eyes because I know they’d never touch me without my permission. The same bond that makes me feel connected to them also tells me that I can trust them with my life.
I cannot help but notice the way Nyx stares at me, his warm, honey-brown eyes studying me intently. As soon as he notices my gaze upon him, his face flares bright red, and he lowers his gaze. His chestnut brown hair falls forward, the length just barely above his brow.
As I observe him, I still cannot believe these big, muscular men can turn into creatures so small. Despite that he can shift into a rabbit, Nyx’s human form is thick layers of muscle, not an ounce of fat on his body, from what I can see.
He clenches his jaw as he stares at me with a pained expression. “Does it hurt, Ella?” he asks softly.
“It feels much better now,” I reply. It’s the truth. The medicine they placed on my injuries has helped me tremendously.
Cash pulls me against him, smoothing his hands up and down my arms, while Finn cleans and applies more of the poultice to my wounds. It feels so good to be taken care of for once. I can’t remember the last time someone did anything like this for me.
A sharp voice calls up from down below. “Ella!”
I still.
Cash hugs me even tighter.
“Ella, get down here! We need you!” my stepmother calls out. “I didn’t beat you that badly yesterday, for goodness sake!”
Cash growls low in his chest. So does everyone else. The room is full of deep, rumbling noises of anger.
Kai puts a hand on my shoulder. “Do you want us to—”
I don’t let him finish the sentence. He doesn’t understand. None of them do. It’s easier just to do whatever she asks of me. After all, I have nowhere else to go if she kicks me out. Or do I?
I look back at him with a renewed hope. “You said you’re my guards. Can you... take me away from here?”
He lowers his gaze and shakes his head softly. “Until our two kingdoms are at peace, we cannot take you back to our world. It is forbidden to part the veil for a human.”
“Oh.” I force myself to bite back my disappointment.
Steeling myself, I stand. Pain shoots through me, but I grit my teeth and remain silent. It does no good to complain. I allow my gaze to drift over each of them. “I’ll be downstairs doing my chores. But as soon as I finish, I’ll come back up here. Don’t worry. She never comes up here, so you should all be well hidden.”
I move to my dresser and pull out a fresh work dress and apron. I move behind my room divider and change into my clothes. When I emerge, I watch as each of them shifts into their animal forms. It’s so strange to see them so small like this when they are anything but in their human forms.
“We’ll help you,” Finn looks up at me in his chipmunk form as he speaks in my mind, and I smile.
I’m still not used to hearing them in my thoughts, but it’s comforting, in a way, to have such an intimate connection to them. “All right. But be careful that you remain out of sight.”
They follow behind
