“Why are you being strange? What is going on?” I asked them.
“Nothing, but we should head home before it gets too late,” Tyson said, taking my bag from my mother. The tension in the room was so strong that I could almost taste it. I could feel worry eating at Tyson through the bond as he grabbed my hand, heading toward the door.
“What’s wrong? Didn’t they catch Josie and Melana?” I asked, now worried. Tyson tensed before stopping and retrieving his keys from his pocket.
“No, but we will. We won't let them get to you, Lucy,'' Tyson assured me. Knowing they were out there doing god knows what sickened me. Those girls were never going to stop until they broke me, and I wasn’t sure how much more I could take. What else could possibly go wrong?
We said goodbye to everyone, and Tyson put my bag in the trunk. Just as we were leaving and pulling out, my father’s car stopped beside us. Tyson wound down my window, leaning across me, and my stepfather did the same.
“I just dropped Ace off. We will keep searching tomorrow,” he told Tyson, who nodded before my stepfather looked at me.
“We will find them,” he assured me, and I knew he would do everything in his power to do exactly that.
“I will talk to you tomorrow. Let me know how Ace goes. Fair warning, though; he is in a mood,” my stepfather told Tyson.
Tyson sighed. “I will deal with him,” Tyson told him, and Ryker nodded before winding his window up and parking his car. We headed home, and the entire drive, we barely spoke. I could tell something was on Tyson’s mind, feeling it eating away at him. His grip on the steering wheel was a clear giveaway of how tense he was. I felt like everyone was hiding something from me, but with everything going on, I was too caught up in my own tumultuous thoughts to pry too much just to get answers.
“When we get home, please try not to freak out,” Tyson suddenly said.
“Huh, what do you mean?” He didn’t bother to elaborate, and I gave up trying to understand. When we pulled up at the packhouse, the porch light was on, and I could see Ace’s car in the driveway.
“I will grab your bag. Are you hungry? I can cook dinner or order out.”
“No need. I am already cooking,” Ace said as I stepped out of the car. I smiled up at him, and he watched me nervously before taking my bag from Tyson and walking inside. I looked at Tyson, wondering why Ace didn’t approach me. Did he believe Josie’s and Melana’s lies? Did he think the pictures were true to what they’d said? I followed them inside, my stomach growling hungrily at the smell of food, yet Ace’s strange behavior made me nervous. Ace placed my bag in Tyson’s room, and I made my way to the kitchen to see what he was cooking.
“Something smells good,” I told him, looking in the oven.
“Yeah, pasta bake,” Ace said, leaning on the other side of the counter. I walked around to him, and he stepped away from me, and Tyson cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Come on. Let's go find a movie to watch,” he said, grabbing my hand and pulling me away from Ace. I shook his hand free.
“Wait, I just want to speak to Ace,” I told him, ignoring him. I walked over, wrapping my arms around his waist and inhaling his scent. Ace’s entire body tensed, and I looked up at him, wondering why he was acting weird. When it suddenly hit me. I sniffed him, his scent the same, yet it wasn’t as intoxicating. Where were the sparks and the weird magnetic pull I usually felt toward him?
“It’s my fault,” Tyson blurted out, making me look over at him.
“Pardon?” I asked him, letting Ace go.
“The reason the bond is gone. It can be fixed,” Tyson rushed out.
“Our bond is gone, completely gone?” I asked, looking up at Ace. His jaw was clenched, and he wouldn’t meet my eye, and I stepped back.Is that why he was being weird?
“Yes, Lucy, it is gone,” Ace said, and I felt my stomach drop and my face heat up at his words. So, he was acting like this because he didn’t want me anymore? I was so confused by this situation and now understood why everyone was acting strange. I didn’t even think it was possible without rejecting someone.
“How?” I asked, looking over at Tyson.
“I marked you again. It weakens the bond when you have multiple mates. Lana told me about it. Ace hasn’t marked you, so it forged our bond to become stronger. Apparently, it wears off but takes time.”
“How much time?”
Tyson shrugged, and I could see he didn’t know.
“So, you don’t want to be my mate anymore?” I asked Ace. He finally looks at me, his head whipping to the side.
“No, I do, but you can be free of me if you choose to. I won’t stop you, Lucy,” Ace said.
“Is that what you want?” I asked him, suddenly unsure. Ace also looked uncertain. Was he second-guessing the mate bond now that he wasn’t tied to me? Everything was so straightforward before. The bond made it nearly impossible to reject each other, but with it gone, did that mean he no longer felt as strongly about me as I still did about him? Bond or not, he was still mine.
Chapter fifty-five