Claimed by the Primals

Chapter Twenty-Two

"For a long time, Kade and I talked about how we would introduce any future members of our set to our families. Especially if we were lucky enough to find a female."

I closed my eyes and just listened to his beautiful voice. He worked his fingers through my hair. Slowly, my headache started to fade, and the tension trickled out of my body.

"Kade spent a year in Egypt learning about me, my family, and our culture before I agreed to our claim. We stayed there another year before doing the same in Italy to meet his family. We always said that we would spend a year with our next mate and their family, and then slowly introduce them to ours."

I snorted out a laugh full of derision. Can you imagine?

"Yeah, yeah," Warrick laughed as well. "That part may not have gone as planned, but we still needed to take our time. We needed to get you to safety and give you time and space to recover. Kade and I still have our own issues to work through. None of us were expecting our families, especially mine. This is the first time I've heard of Menes leaving Egypt."

Right... Menes. I'm not going to lie, the fact that I could feel some kind of connection with Warrick's father had me a little freaked out. And I needed to stop avoiding asking the questions that needed to be answered. Fuck. I sat up so I could look him in the eye when I spoke. "I think I've met your dad before."

Warrick blinked in surprise, clearly not expecting that. But instead of questioning my mental state—which he probably should have long before this point—he took my hand and waited patiently for me to elaborate.

"It was just before you found me. I thought I was going to die. That night I saw an anubi, and he told me he would keep me safe until the morning. I thought I was hallucinating, honestly. But then I met yesterday and I can't help feeling like he's the one I saw and that... I don't know if that's possible, though. I mean... he was in Egypt, right?"

He was quiet for a minute before answering. "It's not impossible... but it is unlikely," he said carefully. "The concepts of life and death aren't as divided with my kind. We walk a delicate line. Even as children before we fully present, we can step to the other 'side' and interact with the dead and dying. Travelling from one side of the world to the other, also, is not impossible. It's just that my sire doesn't do that sort of thing. I have never known Menes to cross over for anyone who isn't immediate family. And, as much as I love you, without a claim he won't see you as that."

Uhh...

UHHH...

UHHHHH...

EXCUSE ME?!?!?!?!

I think I just had a miniature stroke. Everything we were just talking about just vanished from my head. His dad? Gone. My captivity? Never happened. I'm pretty sure I disintegrated until all that was left was Warrick.

And he was still talking. Did he not hear what the fuck he just said? Or did it just slip out without him even meaning to say it?

What the hell am I supposed to say?! Would it be weird to tell him I loved him too? That I've loved him since we met over a decade ago? When I didn't know where he was or who he was, that I still loved him?

No... no... that would be crazy...

Focus Jay! Listen to what he's saying about his dad and respond. That's what this whole conversation was about.

"I love you too."

Welp. That happened. It was out there now. Too late to take it back.

He finally stuttered to a stop and his face went blank. I watched nervously as he silently processed our previous conversation just like I had. I could see the moment where it clicked, and his eyes widened to the side of dinner plates.

Honestly, he was so fucking adorable as an embarrassed smile stretched across his face. I started giggling, and nothing I could do would stop that or the tears welling up in my eyes. Then he started laughing too, and for a few minutes, that's all we could do. Laugh and, in my case, cry. He pulled me into a tight hug, brushing the tears from my cheeks and kissing my forehead.

Now, I know what you're going to say. "It's too soon!" "You hardly know each other!" "They saved you from a traumatic situation, what you're feeling is affection through gratitude!"

And, yeah, you might be right. But that doesn't make it any less true. I do love Warrick and Kade. Maybe at that exact moment was a bit surface level, but our love would grow together. And, yes, I'm aware how cheesy that sounds. But, again, it's true. I love them both more now than I did when I first said it, and I'm going to love them more and more every day that we're together.

It was a beautiful and silly moment that maybe could have been more romantic, but it was our moment.

We eventually circled back to what we were talking about, and I finally got around to asking if we could talk to Menes about it. Even if it was unlikely that he was the one I saw, there was undeniably a connection between his and my magic. Of course, he said yes. But, because things can never be simple, he also said that Menes had left with Amara early in the morning and weren't planning on returning until much later.

But I was in a much better mood overall, and Warrick mentioned that Ravi was going into the town with Nimat and their other mate, Karim. I jumped on that, especially when he emphasized it would be just them. I only had a few clothes, none of which really fit the way I liked. I was, of course, appreciative that they thought to bring me clothes and didn't force me to wear what I'd been in during my captivity. But I was ready to feel like me again.

And Ravi was beyond excited for it. God, I love that woman. She is the brightest ray of sunshine that everyone needs in their lives. She and the rest of the families had only been in the city for a day before we got there, but already had the small city memorized and knew exactly where we would find the best deals and the cutest clothes.

The little port town has a heavy reliance on tourism to fuel the economy, so there is an abundance of shops to snoop around in. While I am a little ashamed to admit that I fed the beast that is Walmart for the majority of my new clothes, but I did find an adorable little dress that was just perfect to wear pretty much anywhere. It's a sky-blue color with cap sleeves, with a tight waist and flowy skirt that came down to the middle of my thighs.I hummed and hawed over it for ages before finally deciding it was just too cute not to wear right out of that little store run by a delightful old lady.

I knew I made the right decision when I saw Warrick's face after coming out of the store. He got all flustered and started tripping over his words. Nimat and Karim started teasing him about it in a gentle, brotherly way until he was finally able to say it. "You look beautiful."

It was a good day. A great day. One of the best days I've had since before meeting Kade in that bar on my birthday. If Kade had been there, it would have felt like a real double date with Ravi and her mates. I think Warrick noticed how many times I would turn to talk to Kade, just to remember that he wasn't there, because he promised on our way back that the next time all three of us would be together.

I was all smiles when we returned. On top of all the other reasons I had to be happy, one of my bags of shopping held another bag with a number of secret night-time items I planned on showing off to my boys when we were alone. I even felt like I could handle another evening filled with other family members.

That is, until I got out of the car and viewed the scene in front of me. Kade and his family had returned, and he and his brothers were playing a two-vs-two game of basketball. That whole family is tall and made out of lean muscle, but Kade is by far the largest of his brothers and easily stands out. I also happened to think he's the best looking, but I'm aware of my bias.

The problem is that I'm not the only one who was shamelessly ogling at him with lust, and I'm not talking about Warrick.

Amara. 

🧡