The Wolves and the Vipers

Chapter 47 - A New Bond

Jace was being careful — so very careful — to make sure Zoe and I weren't left alone together. He was happy to disappear off to the pack house while the other shift was on duty, but he was home half an hour before Zoe's shift was due to start, and he stayed there until she had left again. And slowly, grudgingly, I was starting to give up on the possibility of talking to her.

I had other things to worry about, anyway. I had come down to breakfast this morning to find Tyler sitting anxiously on the sofa. His eyes were red, and there were bags under them that made me think he hadn't slept a wink.

"Happy Birthday," I told him, relieved that I had remembered. "Eighteen, right? That's a big one."

He didn't reply. He just ... sort of ... looked at me with big, taut eyes. And then he looked past me, because Jace was only a pace behind me. Sharing a room as we were, it was hard to get up and dressed without waking each other.

"It is her," he said, all in a rush. "I thought so, but I didn't know for sure."

Oh? Was he talking about his mate? And did he mean what I thought he meant?

"Have you been sitting here all night, just waiting for us all to wake up?" Jace asked him, bemused.

"Yes, of course," he blurted. "Kara went to sleep long before midnight, you see. I don't think it occurred to her to wait up. And I didn't want to wake her up and make a big fuss about it. She looked really tired."

"Tired or not, that's big news," I told him. It was sweet of him to let her sleep, but I would want to be woken, so I tugged on the mind-link to Kara until I felt a groggy response.

"Come down," I said. "Tyler's got something to tell you."

It took her a few minutes, but she did come downstairs. She was wrapped up in a dressing gown, her hair still tousled from sleep. She did a double take when she saw the three of us staring at her.

"What's going on?" she mumbled.

I looked at Tyler expectantly, but he was just sat there, his mouth firmly closed. He was staring at Kara with wide, newly-darkened eyes.

"I..." he began, only to trail off. "You're..."

Goddess, this was painful to watch. I knew from experience that it wasn't easy to get the words out — to make such a firm, life-changing statement, but Tyler seemed unable to even finish a sentence. Kara was waiting with raised eyebrows and a frown on her lips. When the seconds turned into minutes, I started to wish I had left the room.

"You're mates," Jace interjected. "Tyler realised last night, but he didn't want to wake you up. Congratulations to both of you. We'll give you some time to ... talk."

The frown vanished in the blink of an eye, and it was replaced by a fierce blush.

"Oh," she said.

"Yes, that's ... um, that's what I was trying to say," Tyler breathed. I was already in the process of leaving, now that Jace had offered up an escape hatch.

Kara padded across the room and sat on the sofa beside him, much to his obvious delight. "Are you sure?"

"I am, yes. Is it okay with you? I know this is all very sudden..."

Her blush went from pink to scarlet, and she was smiling now. "It's okay with me."

Jace and I were out in the corridor, and he shut the door behind us. I noticed that Kara wasn't the only one who was smiling. I followed him into the little study room, because it was either that or go outside.

"You're pleased," I observed.

He shrugged at me. "We have a Beta female now. And Tyler is happy — of course I'm pleased. Kara wouldn't have been my first pick for the job, but she'll grow into it."