Burdened (A Burdened Novel) (27 page)

“I’m sorry I just walked in
, but you were screaming. Nathan sent me in here to check on you. Once I knocked on the door, all I could hear was hurt and feel pain.”

“No, it’s okay. I’m fine. I guess I was more tired than I thought.”

She starts getting up. “Thank you for choosing my brother. He really loves you.”

I look at her funny. “Why wouldn’t I choose him?”

“I know he has included you in on all the details, leaving out the worst parts. But it’s because of the worst parts why you wouldn’t. I admit, he has changed and is no longer the way he was. This is a good thing for all of us. And you do something to him—put that additional stitch in him that holds him together, take the night out of his eyes.”

She rubs her arms. “But just don’t misapprehend him. If he ever gets mad, let him
. Don’t try to stop him or calm him down. He is strong and capable of many things. He is our family’s number one, and a lot of people fear him
because
of the things he’s capable of.”

She is freaking me out as she stare
s at me. “If you had a choice, I would tell you not to get involved with our family. But you’re here, and I appreciate you putting a smile on my brother’s face.” She pauses, looking towards the door. She turns back to me. “Just don’t try to control him. That may not end well for either of you.”

I say nothing
, listening to her words. She walks from the room saying, “Get some rest,” before she closes the door behind her.

I know
that Nathan is strong and I saw some of the things he’s capable of. I promised him and myself that I
will
help control him. So letting him spaz out is out of the question. Why would you let someone you love do something you know they would hate themselves for?

I close my eyes with her words
, ‘He’s our family’s number one, and a lot of people fear him.’ I try to ignore it, but I’ll talk to him about it later.

I refocus my attention on last night and this morning
—how last night was intimate and slow, speeding up only when our bodies got overly enthusiastic. His touch and kiss was full of passion, giving me the same thing when he loved on me in the shower.

Everything
—
everything
—felt perfect. Thinking about it sends a pleasurable feeling through me. Where did he learn that stuff?

And this morning’s wake up
—I mean, I knew I was getting something started, but I didn’t know the extent.
That
felt completely different. It felt like I was with a completely different person that cared about what we were doing, not just what we are.

Hard, rough, no intimacy in it at
all, just what it was. And it brought me to another level, making my body feel good in ways I never knew possible. I felt feelings in areas of my body I never paid attention to. Thanks, Nathan.

The nightstand clock reads 12:40. How long was I
sleep, and how long has Nathan been gone? I get up, no longer tired. I get back in the shower, trying to wash off Taylor’s words and that weird-ass dream.

The new shampoo and conditioner call my name
, sitting on the built-in shelves of the shower. I wash my hair, loving that it feels weightless. I stand under the water for a while, letting the heat roll over me. I get out, dry off, wrapping the towel around me, and towel dry and brush my hair, then my teeth.

Nathan is sitting at his desk. “Hi
, beautiful. You feeling better?” he asks, without turning around.

I smile, realizing how much I missed him. I want to run to him
, but I have to control myself. I need to not act like a clingy girl. Pulling my hair up into a bun, I walk over to the side of the bed, sitting across from him.

“Hey. Yes.”

“Good.” His Mac is on, and he has a notebook beside him and a pen in his right hand.

I decide not to bother him yet
, and put on my clothes. I finish and walk over, not able to stay away from him any longer. I wrap my arms around him and kiss his cheek. “What are you doing?”

“The figures for the new office opening in a few months.” He lifts one of my hands
, kissing my palm. “My father wants them done by tomorrow, but I’m not going to be available to do them.”

“So you work for your dad?”

“Something like that. I own half, and him the other half. I work for myself but take instructions from him when he is overworked or too busy.”

“Do you go to school?”

“Not right now. I go back when I get bored.”

“You graduated?”

“Yes, many times. I have degrees in majors mostly related to business.”

“I’m thinking about going to school.”

“We can go after you graduate. We’ll look into a few schools and what you want to major in, before your break is out.” He talks to me, never looking up from his work.

We? “Yea
h, that would be a good idea.” I think about his family and him being their
number one
, as Taylor put it. “I think I’m ready to meet your family.”

He turns to look at me and
a half-smile forms. “Are you sure?”

“Yea
h, why not? I
am
going to be a part of it, right?”

He shakes his head. “You’re already a part of it.”
He turns back around. “Give me a couple; I’ll be done shortly. We’ll do a ‘meet and greet’ before I take you home.”

I sit on the floor
, leaning against the bed in front of the TV. Then I curse myself for not grabbing the remote.

From my peripherals
, I see the remote float and then land in my lap. “Thanks,” I mutter. It doesn’t freak me out; this ability is something to be expected. But turning dead people to dust, kind of caught me off-guard.

“They don’t have to be dead
,” he says, low and amused, not lifting his head.

I ignore him
, grabbing the magical remote, and scan through the menu guide.

Waiting on him to finish
, I watch MTV’s Catfish, which oddly keeps my attention. Not sure why though. People are fooling other people that they meet online. Why?

I watch three full episodes of this
, and it entertains me until Nathan sits beside me. He grabs my hand and his face shows concern.

“What?” I ask quickly.

“Don’t be mad,” he says. “But I’m not going to be able to stay with you tonight.” I open my mouth to speak. “I’ll be there when you wake up in the morning,” he says, before I can dispute. “But there are some things I need to take care of tonight.”

“Okay
, so I’ll come with you,” I say convincingly.

“You’re not going to want to.”

“Why not?”

“
You will be uncomfortable, the bond will take affect tonight. It’s why I feel bad about not being with you.”

“How do you know
that?”

“Because it happens sometimes after
. I can feel it. It won’t be painful, but the pull may be a little unbearable for the two of us. Your need for me may cause an ache in your chest. Something like before, but you should be able to control it, because you understand it now.”

I’m quiet. I don’t like the thought of him leaving me. I don’t like the way it makes me feel.

“If you call me, I have no choice but to come. But I want you to understand that I have something I need to handle and it can’t go on pass tonight. I’ll continuously check on you and will return as soon as I finish.”

“Will people die?” I ask
, calmly looking at his hand. The only question I could manage to try to figure out what is going on.

“Yes
,” he answers impassively.

“And I can’t come with you?”

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but you’ll be a distraction. It will already be hard enough for me to focus with the bond bounding us, and feeling that you need me and I can’t drop everything to be there.”

I understand, but what is he going to do
, and why is it important?

“You
don’t
want to know, Tracey.” I look up at him, meeting his gaze—it’s serious and disturbing. I won’t fight him about it, but this will be the only time I’ll be staying away.

“Okay
,” I state. “Just come.”

He stands
and brings me with him. “Of course. Did you enjoy your time with me, over here?”

I pinch my lips to the side before saying
, “Yeah, it was okay,” with a scrunched nose.

“
Okay
?”

I smile
. “I enjoyed my time with you.” I try not to turn into Silly Sam.

“Maybe we could talk about you coming here once you finish school.”

“Living with you and your family? Wouldn’t that be imposing?”

“No, I told you
, my family stays together, that’s why our house is so big. My oldest brother and his wife live here with their two children. My oldest sister, Taylor, and her mate live here. My youngest sister and her husband live here, then, of course, my other siblings, parents, grandparents, and aunt. My two cousins also stay here with their mates as well.”

He pushes his hair back
. “There’s enough room for all of us to have our privacy and be comfortable, except in the summer. But notice how we’ve been in the house and not ran into anyone? The house isn’t empty.”

He has a point
. We haven’t walked into anyone, save Taylor. And that would explain why there are so many cars in their garage.

“It’s not something we have to talk about now, and you are not obligated to
do it. It’s just a suggestion.”

“Okay, we’ll talk about it
, and maybe go over the benefit about me staying with you.”

He smiles
. “It’s going on three. Let’s go meet our family. They are all waiting for you in the great room.”

“The great room?”

“Yes, it’s the biggest room we have in the house—to hold everyone. Don’t freak out if people try to hug you. They are nice, and only three of us are burdened, so the others are a little smaller than me and my sisters.”

The great room is far from N
athan’s room; it seems like a five minute walk. It holds all the meaning behind it—it is almost the size of a ball room. It’s sectioned off by an entertainment area, a meeting area, and an area for gathering—with only couches that are sizes that go perfectly with the room.

Everyone is sitting around
, talking, as we walk in the room. They suddenly look in our direction and everyone gets up, walking towards us at once. I’m greeted by Taylor first. Nathan steps back as she hugs me. A man—I suspect to be her…mate?—stands behind her.

“Hi Tracey,” she says with a smile
. “Nice of you all to finally join us. This is my mate, Justin.” Justin is slender, with long, black hair that is pulled back into a braid, laying against his neck and back. He says, “Hello,” and waves.

We don’t shake hands with the opposite sex after meeting ou
r mates. It’s uncomfortable until you get used to being a part of the family
.

I remember the shock from Matthew in th
e parking lot at school and when the jerk grabbed my ass at the party.

Yes, that was because of the mating
.

Okay
.

I wave back
. “Hi, nice to meet you.”

Next
, I’m greeted by a little girl who is way too cute. I can’t help but to talk to her. “Hi.”

“Hi!” she responds excitedly.

I smile at her “You are—”

“I know,
soo pretty. I hear it all the time. It’s nice to meet you. You are all Nathan talks about and all the time.” She puts her hand to the side of her mouth and whispers to Nathan, “You were right, she’s really cute,” and winks. She turns back to me. “Do you know—”

“Okay Cindy, that’s enough.” A woman with dark
-brown hair steps forward. “Hi Tracey, it is nice to finally meet you. I am Roseland’s wife, Ann. He is Nathan’s older brother.” She moves to the side, revealing two children. “This is my daughter, Cindy, and my son, Curtis.”

“We are twins
,” Curtis blurts. “Nice to meet you.” He puts his hand out. I shake it, not thinking of the shock, but there is none.

“Nice to meet you both. You are very handsome.” I turn to Cindy
. “And yes, you are sooo pretty.” She laughs, and thanks me with a hug. Ann embraces me as—who I assume is—Roseland steps forward.

“Thanks for j
oining us, Tracey,” he says. “My brother deserves to have someone on his side. Thank you for choosing him.” He smiles at me.

Nathan joins my side. “Thanks
, brother.”

Roseland smiles that same cocky smile as Nathan
. I can tell the resemblance. “I have to say
something
nice about you to your lady.” Ann pats his chest with light force. He straightens up as he looks at her and kisses her nose quickly.