Tasting 383

383–Mine Forever!

Nora:

I couldn’t believe Clara was suggesting that we overstay here. I kept staring at her, trying to signal

her not to say anything ridiculous, but she seemed to be avoiding my gaze on purpose. Is this what

she came for?

I didn’t think she was acting on Brody’s or her brother’s orders. She was here to get under my skin.

“Then how about you stay here? I’ll go back to my husband,” I gave her a tight–lipped smile, but at

the mention of my husband, she let out a little chuckle that once again caught the attention of the

brothers.

I hated how they were watching us.

“I think Clara is right. You can stay here for as long as you like,” Lord Atwood muttered as he

dragged his body to the edge of his seat, about to continue, until he noticed Clara raising her brow

and glancing our way.

“You should go to your room and rest now,” he quickly changed his mind.

“Sure,” I replied. Now that I knew I’d need to convince them to start on the task soon, I had no

choice but to take the rest they had been insisting

1. on.

I didn’t need rest. I needed my babies.

But who would tell them?

“Clara! You have a guestroom ready for you,” Lord Atwood said, taking her along, leaving me with

the brothers who were watching me like a hawk eying its prey.

11.00

33 Mine Forever!

“Where are you headed?” Ryker asked when he saw me getting up from my seat, ready to follow

Lord Atwood.

“To the guest quarters,” I forced a smile, even though I didn’t feel like offering one.

“You’re not a guest here. You’ll be staying in your own room,” Ryker continued, while the others

examined me from head to toe.

“I think I’d feel more comfortable in the guestroom. Walking upstairs and staying in that room makes

me feel too isolated,” I joked, but in reality, I didn’t want to stay in that room again. I was avoiding

the flood of memories, and they somehow knew it.

“Why? Is it because of what happened there last time?” Silas had the nerve to ask, almost as if he

wanted to see me relive the pain just to satisfy their egos, proving I hadn’t fully moved on.

“Not really. Nothing much happened. The only thing that did was that I escaped false accusations,” I

shrugged.

“Well, your room is prepared for you. And if you’re so happy and have moved on-” Ryker’s tone was

challenging. He was implying that my life was a lie, or just an attempt to seem content.

“Then why can’t you stay in that room again?” He tilted his head, eyes filled with judgment.

“Well, I heard someone else was using that room last time. I don’t want anyone to be kicked out,” I

rolled my eyes, knowing exactly who had taken over that room.

It was Ryker.

“Oh yeah, the room is incredibly peaceful for some reason,” his comment made me quickly avert my

gaze.

383–Mine Forever

“Fine. If you insist on me staying in that room, I’ll do it. But I want the investigation file on the fog

people by the time I’m done freshening up. It’s not wise to delay such an important matter when the

lives of pack members are at risk,” I kept my voice authoritative, sounding like someone who knew

exactly what they were talking about.

“Look at you. The one who used to hide behind us for protection has grown so much in such a short

time,” Nash observed, and I hated how strangely perceptive he was.

Them prying into the truth about my relationship with Brody and my position in his pack could lead to

huge trouble.

They needed to leave me alone and let me handle my affairs. Why were. they coming back into my

life now?

“It’s been months, Nash. People change,” I pouted at him before getting up to walk toward the room

where I would be staying–hopefully, not for too many days.

But I noticed Ryker quickly following me to lead the way. There was silence for a while as we

walked, and then I passed by Cain’s open studio.

It was only for a moment, but a flash of memory hit me–sneaking up to his door and watching him

paint me–before it vanished again.

“Just like you left it,” Ryker wasn’t wrong. He showed me my room, and it looked the same as

before, only cleaned up.

I noticed, though, that the rest of the mansion had new furniture and the walls had been repainted,

except for my room.

“And this will be your room forever. No one will ever take this room, it will belong to you like I do,”

Ryker murmured from behind, causing me to gulp and shake my head, quickly dismissing the idea

and avoiding his statement.