Ximena swiftly moved out of Lucas' hold and went to take Nikolas out of Seb's arms. "Freya came by because we had planned something earlier. But it looks like we have the place to ourselves now."
"Freya's also the kid's godmother…and grandmother." Lucas added in a gruff tone. "She also wanted to express that we're to behave ourselves."
"Grandmother?" Ivan looked at Ximena curiously.
"Let's just say Freya's a mother figure to me." Ximena said as she walked towards Nikolas' room.
She needed to get him bathed and dressed for the day. Afterwards, she planned to sit down with the trio to discuss their future.
"That so…" Seb mumbled, the trio following her.
"Also, we're leaving tonight." Lucas declared.
Everyone else turned to look at him in shock. "What?!"
"Don't look shocked, Ximena. Freya gave you her blessings. There's nothing here holding you down… unless there's something we need to discuss before we leave?" Lucas stared at Ximena.
"There's nothing really…" Ximena mumbled. "Just surprised we're leaving so quickly. Shouldn't we discuss rules or something first."
"We can do that later. We've already overstayed our welcome." Lucas answered. "Besides, Freya seemed interested in us having more kids."
"Lucas!" Ximena gasped in shock. "We both know Freya was joking around."
Lucas' eyes darkened. "Well-"
"Mama!" Nikolas suddenly squealed, pulling Ximena's hair.
"Ouch!" Ximena cried out, getting completely distracted by her son. "No, baby… Let go of my hair.. Ow.. no!"
As she was untangling her hair from Nikolas' fist, Ximena didn't seem to notice the look her three mates gave each other before they moved to help her.
***
It was early afternoon when Ximena completed packing everything. She didn't really have much with her. Everything she needed filled three bags, most of which was Nikolas' things.
She was resting on the couch after having put Nikolas to sleep. The trio came back from packing the car, Seb and Ivan taking a seat next to Ximena while Lucas knelt in front of her.
Ximena shifted, a little uncomfortable with the closeness of all three. They had spoken about rules earlier and they had promised not to get over possessive, but they all seemed to enjoy being in her space.
They were really going to have to learn some boundaries.
"We're going to need you to come clean, Ximena." Lucas said with a serious tone, bringing her back to reality. "Something happened between that party and now… And I have a feeling it's keeping you back."
"Keeping me back?" Ximena raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"You're holding yourself back from a relationship… Like you're scared to be burnt." Ivan explained. "That night when we became mates… fuck, I wanted to complete the mating ceremony right there. We all did."
"But the next thing we know you're gone…" Seb continued. "Maybe it's because your memories are fuzzy but we feel you don't want this… us."
"What we're trying to say is, we're ready to take you as a mate and be your child's father no matter who's genes he has. We were going slow, thinking you needed time, but no more." Lucas finished. "I'm going to stop going slow because whatever you're hiding is hurting you and I hate seeing you miserable."
Lucas' stared deep into her eyes and Ximena felt upset. No. She felt guilty. These three had put up with her lying, giving her the option to deny their bond and yet here they were trying to help her heal.
It made her realize that her sister's betrayal had affected her more than she thought. She was pushing away at a bond which should have been natural. She was fighting her instincts and this bond like Ivan had said.
So, she wouldn't get burnt again.
"I…" Ximena felt at a loss of words.
Lucas placed a cold hand on her face. "Love, we're pushing you not because we want to complete this bond, well we do, but we think you need this push too. I think someone hurt you and that's why you're pushing away at the bond. You feel uncomfortable around us when you should be feeling safe…"
Ximena could see what he meant. Mates were meant to always want to be close, yet here she was thinking about pushing them away. She wanted them around for Nikolas, but was scared to be in a relationship with them.
She needed to come clean about what happened that night.
"My twin sister…" Ximena murmured. "She…"
Ximena stopped, the memories she had buried inside her for so long suddenly bursting out. She felt tears flow down her face and all three males stared at her in shock.
"Mena…" Seb murmured as he and Ivan each grabbed a hand. "Use the link. You don't have to speak."
"Link?" Ximena asked, trying to stop the tears.
"Where's your runic patterns?" Lucas questioned. "Show me them."
"My back." Ximena said, getting up and leaning over the couch on her stomach.
"Fuck they're beautiful." Ivan murmured as she hiked up her crop top.
She then felt three large hands on her back, touching her bare skin and making her shiver. Two warm ones and a cold one. Suddenly a wave of emotions hit her. She gasped as she started feeling something push in her mind.
"Sweetheart… Don't block us." Seb grunted. "Show us who hurt you."
Ximena bit her lip, but nodded. They needed to know the truth even if it was painful. It involved them after all. She let the wave push, gliding it with and showing them what happened.
By the time she was done, she felt numb, her face red and puffy from crying so much. But she also started feeling a sense of relief. Showing someone what had happened felt good. It made the burden on her heart feel lighter.
But she wasn't sure how to feel about the growing rage in her mind. She somehow knew it was from her link they had opened, but she was still nervous.
Were they angry at her?
"Never." Ivan said suddenly, pulling her into his lap. He placed a kiss on her forehead. "Thank you for showing us that."
Ximena rested her head on his broad shoulder, both mentally and emotionally exhausted. But her worries were finally coming to an end and she could focus on the future now.
Closing her eyes, Ximena let the darkness take over.