Wyatt smiled at her and listened quietly.
Nev breathed in sharply. “And, you have saved me every day since. I… I should have told you sooner. But I didn’t, and then it was almost too late,” she whimpered, fighting back the tears.
“It’s okay, you’ve told me now,” he assured, attempting to comfort her.
Nev shook her head. “No, I haven’t,” she countered, taking in a deep breath before looking at him closely. “I love you.”
Wyatt grinned and kissed her deeply for several long minutes. He pulled back slightly and chuckled, “I knew you couldn’t resist my charm forever, all one of them.”
Nev giggled softly and replied, “Aww, I think you have at least two.”
“Oh really, just two?” he retorted, tickling her.
Nev giggled uncontrollably until Wyatt finally took mercy on her and stopped. She lay on her back now, looking up at him, tenderly pushing a curl behind his ear and smiling warmly at him. “So, you aren’t upset with me for not telling you sooner?” she asked, sounding concerned.
“Upset? With you? Perish the thought, my dear lady. Besides, I knew I would win you over eventually. I am irresistible, after all,” he said, grinning widely. Wyatt waited for her rebuttal, but it didn’t come.
“It seems you are,” Nev replied, smiling.
Wyatt thought for a brief moment about resisting his building desire for Nev’s touch, but he quickly acquiesced. If she thought he was irresistible, then he truly had no hope of opposing her. A fact he was totally fine with. He placed a finger to his mouth and winked at Nev. “Quick and quiet,” he suggested, grinning briefly before kissing Nev passionately.
The sound of giggling and muffled voices coming from the back bedroom caused Addi to roll her eyes in response. Wonderful, this is just going to be so much fun. I suppose I should pack some cloth for my ears, she thought. In truth, Addi was mostly happy for Wyatt. Well, she was happy if their relationship was how he presented it. Despite his easy-going nature and sweet personality, he’d always had difficulty making friendships. Also, as far as she knew, he had never had any girlfriend to speak of. Still, for him to have fallen in love in just over a week seemed strange. And what kind of woman falls in love with a man that quickly, she questioned.
The fact that the prowler from her nightmares had trespassed in her brother’s mind was terrifying. That fact alone would have been enough to push her to accompany them. Addi’s distrust of Nev’s motives, however, was all the more reason it was necessary to go with them. Wyatt needed her to look out for him, just as she always had. Nev was just the latest in a long list of things Addi had helped keep Wyatt safe from. He was her baby brother and damn if she was going to let harm come to him on her watch. She had promised their parents, after all. The last conversation they had, before the flu took them, was focused on her responsibility to look after Wyatt.
It was why the decision was easy for her to make when the enforcers started asking questions about rumors involving her and her brother. She’d tried to dissuade the investigation, and for a while, it seemed to be working. Then the prowler arrived in their tiny village. He immediately showed up at their house and began questioning Wyatt about rumors involving someone being hidden from the emperor. Addi knew she would never see Wyatt again if they discovered he was a Tink. The Marked, however, could return home—if they survived the testing, of course. So, Addi presented herself and volunteered to submit to testing. Immediately she was snatched by Sagrine. Wyatt and his abilities had remained safely left unnoticed.
She’d never told Wyatt about what happened to her once she left to be tested. She had endured and survived. Being allowed to go home was the only thing that mattered to Addi at the time. Upon her return, she had immediately packed up Wyatt and a few of their belongings before moving to the other side of Obsidia. She’d lived as an unregistered Marked in the years since. Living incognito carried a few risks, but it was what she needed to do to feel safe. At least safe enough to try and rebuild her life. Most people were satisfied she was following the rules when they saw she carried the brand that signified she had completed the testing.
Now Wyatt and this, Nev, had brought the focus of the prowler back into their lives. Addi had almost lost Wyatt once to that thing. She was not going to let it happen now. She took a deep breath before taking a quick inventory of what she already packed. With Wyatt’s room growing quiet, she decided it was time they were helpful. “If you are quite finished with whatever is so important back there, I could use some help,” she suggested loudly, making sure she sounded sufficiently annoyed.
Nev heard Addi yell back at them. Feeling suddenly embarrassed, she sighed and finished buckling her boots quickly.
Wyatt saw Nev hurrying to get dressed and pushed her back onto the bed, pinning her beneath him. “In a hurry?” he teased playfully.
Nev grunted and scowled at him, responding, “Your sister already hates me. The last thing I should do is keep her waiting.”
“Hates you? Never. How could anyone hate you?” he countered, still pinning her against the bed.
Nev glanced towards the door and replied, “Quite easily, it would seem.” She shoved Wyatt off her and went back to buckling her boots.
“Hey,” he interjected, kneeling below her and looking up at her. “You know she doesn’t actually hate you, right?” he inquired.
Nev looked at him unconvinced and finished latching the last buckle and then moved past him and stood up. She avoided his gaze and began checking her belt and
