Ch. 5 Too Complicated

Ryan's POV

A few hours had passed since my conversation with Katalina’s father (or Kat as I had come to realize was the nickname everyone called her). I was currently pacing back and forth through the Connors’ backyard, wearing a path through a patch of wildflowers right on the forest’s edge. After listening to everything Ian had to say, my head was spinning and I felt like the walls were closing in on me. I had to get some air. 

That was nearly two hours ago and I still hadn’t been able to sort through the chaos in my brain. Teague wasn’t helping matters. He felt a connection to Kat’s wolf and had no doubt that she would want him. All he cared about was getting to her. I, on the other hand, had to consider the human side of things. And I had come to learn that it was infinitely more complicated than I could have imagined.

<Flashback>

Ian handed me a glass of whiskey and sat in the chair directly across from me. He opened his mouth to speak then suddenly stopped, a horrified look spreading across his face.

“What is it? What’s wrong? Is Katalina okay? Did something happen?” I poured out as fear gripped me.

“No, no! She’s fine! I just remembered something. You have an identical twin brother, don’t you?” His facial expression changed to a deep scowl at that revelation.

“Yes, sir, I do. His name is Reegan. Judging from the look on your face, you don’t seem too happy about that. Is there some kind of problem with my twin brother?” I asked, not really sure I wanted to hear the answer. Reegan could be a bit of a wild card. What if he had done something stupid and Kat’s dad had heard about it? He might find me guilty by association.

“It’s not a problem for me, son. But it may well be a problem for you. I remember a conversation I had with your dad a few years ago. He was worried about the possibility of you and your brother sharing a mate since you were identical twins. Something about starting out as one fertilized egg that split in two creating two people with the same DNA and one shared soul. If that’s true, then your mate bond is between the three of you, not just two. That makes things a whole lot more complicated and my Kat does not handle complicated very well,” he stated matter-of-factly.

I dropped my head in my hands and sighed. I knew I would have to deal with that issue eventually. I was just hoping to put it off as long as possible.

“You’re right. It is very possible that Reegan is Kat’s mate as well. We won’t know for sure until they meet. I was hoping to build a connection with her on my own first and then ease into that topic.” 

“She’s your mate and I respect the fact that it’s your right to handle this however you see fit. But as her father, I know her better than you do so I feel compelled to offer you some advice. Don’t keep this from her and let her be blindsided by it later. She’ll see it as manipulation and have a hard time forgiving you for it. Let me explain why.”

<End Flashback>

Ian went on to tell me all about Kat’s past, her emotional wounds and why she blamed the mate bond. He explained the way his grief at the loss of his mate had impacted her as much if not more than her own grief at the loss of her mother. I thought of my own parents and could easily see how watching one of them suffer that way might change my perspective on the mate bond.

And if that weren’t enough, he went on to tell me how she had given her heart, and four years of her life to a man, only to have it all ripped away in a heartbeat when he found his fated mate. To make matters worse, that man was no other than Alpha Jesse Klein. 

I could only shake my head at the irony that it was the same man I had worked so hard to build a partnership with these past few months. And the jealousy coursing through me at the thought of her ever loving someone else was nauseating. I knew it was irrational, but my wolf and I wanted all her firsts. The thought of his hands on her had us seeing red!

More than any of that, my heart ached for her. I felt a profound sadness that I had not been the one to support her through the loss of her mother. If it had been me instead of Jesse, I would never have left her for someone else the way he had, leaving her to suffer all over again.

My sadness morphed into anger at that thought. My wolf and I wanted to tear Alpha Klein to shreds for hurting our mate that way. Just as quickly as my anger flared, it burned out again. Because the truth was, I couldn’t change the past. I didn’t know her then and there was nothing I could do to erase the pain she’d endured. That thought left me feeling helpless, but not completely hopeless.

I had always believed the Moon Goddess had a plan, some grand design perfectly orchestrated to ensure her children ended up exactly where they belonged. I had to hold on to that belief now. I had to trust that Kat and I, and maybe even Reegan, would end up together.

I would do everything in my power to make that a reality. And if it turned out she was fated to both of us, I would make sure Reegan did everything in his power too. I had only seen her face but I already knew I couldn’t accept anything less than a future with Kat by my side. 

I still had a lot to contemplate and I had no clear idea of how to proceed. The only thing I knew for sure was I wanted my mate. So, before anything else could happen, we had to meet and have an actual conversation. 

I turned around to walk back to the house, determined to wait patiently for her to wake up. I made my way back to the sitting room we had occupied earlier and found Ian still sitting in the same chair, reading the paper and sipping some hot tea, looking like the picture of tranquility. It irked me a little that he could be so calm while I felt like I could crawl out of my skin.

I took the seat across from him again and tried to relax, picking up a book left sitting nearby. I heard him lower his paper and could feel him looking at me but I didn’t look up. I didn’t think I could handle any more conversation right now. No sooner had I flipped to page one and started to read when I heard footsteps in the room above us. Kat’s room.

She was awake! Teague heard it too and lurched forward in my head, sharing my consciousness. Together we jumped out of the chair and started running upstairs. I could hear Ian running behind me but he was going to have to move a lot faster if he intended to stop me this time! When I reached Kat’s bedroom door I didn’t even stop to knock, bursting right in before her father could intervene. My eyes immediately found her and the sight stopped me in my tracks. 

Fuck! I definitely should have knocked! But I couldn’t bring myself to be too sorry for happening on the scene in front of me. Kat was bent over the side of her bed, reaching to pull up the blankets on the other side. I had an unobstructed view of her perfectly round, firm ass. She had on tight little boy short underwear that did nothing to cover it. The position also showed off her lean, toned legs. 

The sight of her like that, combined with her scent had me instantly hard. At that moment, I wanted nothing more than to shred those little panties and bury myself in her completely. My wolf was totally on board with that plan, begging me to mate and mark her right then and there. I quickly reined in my lustful thoughts. Being caught standing there with a hard-on would not make a great first impression.

Of course she straightened as soon as she registered my presence. I knew the second my scent hit her because she stiffened and took a deep breath like she was steeling herself for something. When she turned to face me, my world stopped spinning. 

I already knew she was beautiful, having watched her sleeping. But nothing could compare to seeing her like this, standing there looking at me with her huge blue eyes blown wide. Cornflower blue was my new favorite color.

She had the most adorable look on her face, her full bottom lip caught between her teeth and a little crease on her forehead like she was concentrating really hard on something. Now that she was upright, I could see how long her hair was, falling in waves like golden spun silk almost to her waist. Her tiny cropped tank top hugged her curves outlining her full, round breasts and exposing her flat, toned tummy. I had been right about her being petite. She couldn’t be more than five foot three. She was perfect from head to toe and I couldn’t wait to hold her in my arms. 

“Mine!” Teague and I said together as I started to step towards her. But I wasn’t quick enough. Her father had come up behind me and once again, yanked me out into the hall. 

“Katalina, get dressed mo leanbh,“ he said, reverting to Irish, just like my own father often did. “We’ll wait for you in the hall. Once you’re decent I’ll make a proper introduction.”

He was obviously less than thrilled about me ogling his half-naked daughter. Teague and I were too amped up to give much thought to Ian Connor at the moment though. There was only one Connor we had any interest in and she was once again on the other side of her bedroom door, out of our reach. 

We wanted to hold our mate, letting her scent surround and soothe us. I knew one of my hazel eyes was fully silver as my wolf shared control with me. It was the only way I could keep him from fully taking over.  So we paced the hallway, anxiously waiting for her to come out and completely ignoring Ian’s aggravation.

Finally, after a few short minutes that seemed like hours, she opened her door and stepped out. I had paced my way to the far end of the hallway so I immediately turned, making a beeline for her. I realized I hadn’t even told her my name yet so I introduced myself as I headed towards her.

“Hi Kat! I’m Ryan Stone, your mate,” I told her excitedly.

I was bound and determined to get my arms around her this time and nothing was going to stop me . . . until she did. I was within arm’s reach of her when she put her hands up palms forward stopping me from coming any closer.

“I’m sorry, I can’t,” she whispered with a sad look on her face. Then she turned and ran out of the house, taking my heart with her.