Serenity

Chapter 18

Tami

By the time that Chloe cut the cast off my arm, I was climbing the walls. The itching was driving me nuts. How humans coped with it for six weeks was beyond me. Four days was more than enough for me.

I

sat through her lecture about exercises to help my arm regain its strength and taking it easy for a few days to speed up the process. She caught my expression and grinned, shaking her head. "Okay. I get it. I've known some stubborn warriors in my time, but you're one of the worst. Just be aware of two things. Even though it's only been a week, the muscles in your arm will have lost part of their strength. Also, the site of the fracture will still be weaker than the surrounding bone for a few more weeks. Take things easy and be aware that you can re-break it if you push things too far."

My eyes rolled, but I stood and listened. She was right. I had given the same talk myself to other Mohiri. But I didn't realise how hard it was from the perspective of the recovering warrior. "Yes Mum, I'll be careful."

Chloe glared at me, then burst out laughing. "Okay. I get it. Go find that gorgeous man of yours and have fun."

I just shook my head and walked towards the pool. After being forced to stay out of the water for a week, all I wanted was a swim.

It felt so good to float while the water supported me. I was there an hour later when I felt like I was being watched. Julian blushed when my eyes caught his and turned to grab the towel that I had draped over one of the deck chairs. "You've been in there for over an hour. Sorry to do this, but James and Andrew found something."

I flipped onto my stomach and swam over to the side. Julian reached down and pulled me out of the pool. He stepped back from the pool edge, taking me with him, and slid his arm around my waist.

Any response that I had to his actions died seconds later as he stiffened, looked at his arm, then released me and stepped back. "Uh... Sorry Tami. I- I- I shouldn't have done that."

"What? Helped me out of the pool? Maybe not, but I appreciated it. Besides, Chloe told me to go easy on my arm when she removed the plaster." I took the towel from him and used it to dry myself off. Julian kept his face averted until I had wrapped it around me to cover the still drying bikini. "You can look at me. We are bonded."

His blush returned, a deeper shade of red than before. "I know. But all I want to do is peel that bikini off and make you my mate. If I can't trust myself to keep my hands off, then I have no right to look, either."

I could feel a blush of my own invading my cheeks. Just like the kiss in the night markets. My body wanted his touch. But my mind was finding it hard to let go of the past. He spun on his heels and headed for the door before I formed a response. "We're to meet with James and Andrew at the lake. I'll wait for you there."

I watched him walk out of the pool area, frozen to the spot for a solid minute, until my mind could switch tracks and process the fact that I needed to get my butt into gear. Even as I was walking up to James, my mind kept returning to its attempts to figure out what Julian meant.

Andrew noticed my preoccupation and nudged my shoulder. "I know he's gorgeous and every young woman's dream, but I need you to get your head in the game."

I blushed and tore my eyes away from Julian. "Sorry."

Andrew winked at me and guided me over to where the men were talking to Jared. The tall Amazon pulled me into a quick hug. As soon as he released me, he sent an apologetic look to someone over my shoulder. I spun around, eyes narrowed. "Is there something you have a problem with, Julian?"

Julian backed up a couple of steps, his hands raised, and shook his head. "N- N- No." He glanced over my shoulder and tried to smile. "Sorry, Mate."

"All good. No need to apologise. I understand."