Phelan took a deep breath, staring at Jacqueline for a long moment before he sighed and sat down next to Seamus, leaving enough room at the very end of the log for Jac to join him if she wanted. \u201cShe\u2019s right,\u201d he said after a long moment. \u201cWhat matters to Jac is important to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
And yet he doesn\u2019t mention anything about being sundered\u2014more importantly, he doesn\u2019t mention anything about not being quite right after being sundered.<\/em> I stared at him for a moment before I shook my head. \u201cI\u2019d better go see what the boys are up to at the forge. Thom\u2019s up there with Matt and I saw Cam headed in that direction, too, and they are absolutely supposed to be taking it easy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHow\u2019s Thom\u2019s back?\u201d Jacqueline asked as she sank down onto the log next to Phelan. He settled an arm around her shoulders and she leaned in, resting against his side.<\/p>\n \u201cHealing,\u201d I said, shoving my hands into my pockets. \u201cSlower than I think either one of us would like, but it\u2019s getting better. He was going to have J.T. take another look at it to make sure it\u2019s doing as well as we both hope<\/em> it is.\u201d<\/p>\n She nodded slightly. \u201cI\u2019m sorry I haven\u2019t been able to dedicate much time to dealing with him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve had your hands full.\u201d I smiled crookedly. \u201cJ.T.\u2019s had it covered. Besides, I think he likes being able to keep an eye on Thom. It keeps his mind off other stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n Phelan\u2019s brows knit. \u201cHas he been having dreams again?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf he has, he hasn\u2019t told me.\u201d I took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly. \u201cBut I\u2019d be lying if I said I wasn\u2019t worried about him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHas Care said anything?\u201d Jacqueline asked quietly.<\/p>\n I shook my head. \u201cNo, but I\u2019m also not sure she would at this point. In some ways, I\u2019m not sure where that relationship is really at. Sometimes I\u2019m sure that they\u2019re perfect for each other and they\u2019re great and then sometimes I\u2019m just…just not sure.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey balance each other,\u201d Seamus said, rising to pour himself a mug of something hot. \u201cSometimes, that\u2019s something you need.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMore commonly than not, actually,\u201d Phelan said, resting his cheek against Jacqueline\u2019s hair. His gaze drifted to his sister. \u201cI\u2019m sorry for being an ass, Aoife.\u201d<\/p>\n She snorted. \u201cIt\u2019s your defense mechanism. Gods know I should be used to it by now.\u201d<\/p>\n I shook my head, smiling wryly as I turned to walk away. One would hope, anyway. One would hope.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Phelan took a deep breath, staring at Jacqueline for a long moment before he sighed and sat down next to Seamus, leaving enough room at the very end of the log for Jac to join him if she wanted. \u201cShe\u2019s … Continue reading