The Reincarnated (Book 2A of Wolfcreek Series)

Chapter 81

Another growl sounded throughout the trees, and my brother scoffed and rolled his eyes as if he knew who was growling and why.

He stayed laying down while he waited for whoever to appear, not caring that I was standing above him with the stick in my hands in a very protective manner.

The other tree people were relaxed as well, which was weird, because I knew that they were protective of not only me but the prince that I stood in front of.

Unless it was because they knew who was coming, and why they were annoyed and very mad...

I pressed my lips into a thin line and grabbed my stick tighter while I waited for the person or wolf to appear, still not knowing if it was a threat or not.

Julian whined and grabbed the back of my shirt with his teeth and pulled, but I didn't look at him. He huffed and rolled his eyes before he pulled on my shirt again to gain my attention, but I still didn't do what he wanted me to do.

Rustling sounded through the bushes before Xav jumped out of them with his ears pressed to the back of his head and teeth bared, narrowing his eyes. He growled again and took a threatening step toward me only to be met with the end of my stick being "slammed" against the top of his head.

Thunk!

Crack!

The stick broke in half when I hit Xav across his head, and Xav reared his head back and snorted in shock and surprise as if he didn't think I would do that.

Xav blinked and blinked again and flattened his ears to the side of his head, looking unamused while the others howled with laughter and trying not to fall out of the trees that they were in.

"That is what you fucking get, Xav," I scowled and narrowed my eyes while I grabbed the stick tighter. "What the fuck were you thinking with all that growling and coming toward us all threatening like?"

Xav wrinkled his nose and set his jaw. He flicked his tail annoyed before he looked at Julian, who still had my shirt in his mouth before he looked at me again.

"Mmhmm," I said and pressed my lips into a thin line, annoyed. "Now, what do you have to say for yourself?" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question.

Xav bit back an annoyed sigh and shook his head. He took a hesitant step toward me, and I wanted to take a step toward him but couldn't because I did not want to rip my shirt.

"Would you let me go already, Jul?" I seethed and flicked my hand behind me, whacking his nose with my hand. "I don't want to rip my shirt, and I want to go over to Xav. I'll be fine and am fine."

Julian whined in sadness, and I could tell that he didn't like the fact that I wanted to move closer to Xav and not stay near him. He didn't let go of my shirt, and I bit back an annoyed sigh and rolled my eyes.

"Jul," I warned, pressing my lips into a thin line. "Please, let me go. You don't have to do this." I paused and cleared my throat while I shifted on my feet. "I know that you want me near you, but I don't want to be near you because he is here. I want to be with Xav."

Julian scoffed and rolled his eyes. He flicked his tail before he let go of my shirt, and I breathed a small sigh of relief because I was grateful that he didn't try to fight me any longer.

I bit back a small chuckle and walked over to Xav. "Hey, Xav," I said, my voice barely above a whisper and rubbed his neck, and he sighed with relief and closed his eyes, becoming relaxed and content. "How are you?"

Xav pressed his nose to my cheek, giving me a small "kiss," and I couldn't help but bite back a small chuckle. He was good but tired and annoyed that someone else was with us. He looked at Julian before he looked at me again.

I snorted and rolled my eyes. "Well, I am glad that he came here," I said while I moved my hand across his neck again. "He was a great surprise, even if it was unwarranted." I looked at Julian and gave him a pointed look.

Julian snorted and rolled his eyes again. He looked at Xav and said something to him before he looked at me with an innocent look in his eyes.

I rolled my eyes and scowled before I turned to look at my mate. "Can you lay down, Xav?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. "Please? I will have to leave here soon, but I wanted to visit you for a bit."

Xav did what I asked and laid down, glancing at Julian before he looked at me again. He wanted to know if I was going to have Julian lay near me too, and I couldn't help but chuckle and slowly nodded.

"Yes, he is going to lay near us," I said while I sat down and placed my back on his side, and he groaned in annoyance. I sighed and closed my eyes, feeling relaxed and more exhausted than normal. "I don't know why you are acting so annoyed with him."

Xav rolled his eyes and scoffed. He didn't say a word and flicked his tail in annoyance while he closed his eyes, enjoying my company some more, and I couldn't help but enjoy his company as well.

Julian started to crawl towards us, and both of us opened our eyes and looked at him in unison. His ears were flat against his head while he looked at us, and I held back an eye roll and scowled.

"Would you hurry up, Jul?" I asked with a soft scowl in my voice while I narrowed my eyes. "I don't want you to be that far away from me. You are allowed to be near me, near us."

I paused and licked my lips, my heart aching and becoming filled with sadness when a thought crossed my mind. "You don't have to act like you are afraid of me, Jul," I said, my voice barely above a whisper while I looked away from him with a small quiver in my voice.

Julian scoffed loudly and rolled his eyes as if that thought had never crossed his mind. He moved closer to me and practically slammed his head onto my lap before he sprawled out with a happy sigh.

He said that he wasn't afraid of me, not at all because he knew that I wouldn't hurt him, but he was scared of Xav and didn't want Xav to hurt him because he was too close to me.

I bit back a small laugh and moved a hand through his fur while I rolled my eyes, and Julian sighed and closed his eyes, becoming relaxed again. "He can't hurt you, though, or else he'll get into trouble with me," I said. "That's why I smacked him with my stick." I flashed him a small wink and a smirk.

Xav grumbled something under his breath and in a way that I couldn't understand while he rolled his eyes and scowled. He flicked his tail in annoyance and closed his eyes, enjoying the peace and quiet that fell on us.

"Hmph." I smirked and moved a hand through Xav's fur, and he shifted closer to me with a soft satisfied sigh. "You're still my favorite, Xav," I said, my voice barely above a whisper, and he wagged his tail happily while Julian scoffed and rolled his eyes. "You're a close third, Jul."

Julian whined and opened one eye to look at me. He slowly blinked, and fake tears appeared in his eyes while he looked at me, wondering who was before him on this tier that I had.

"Well, BryBry," I replied innocently before I looked at Xav. "You should've let him come with you, even though I don't have that much lap room for three full grown wolves to be all cuddled up beside me."

Julian asked if I wanted him to call BryBry over to us, earning a small growl from Xav.

I bit back a small smile and shook my head, no. "No," I said. "Not right now." I licked my lips and closed my eyes while I moved closer to Xav's side and placed a hand on Julian's head. "For now, let me enjoy being near you two for the time being and the peace and quiet that is coming with it because in all honesty, I don't know when I will be able to do this again, so I want to enjoy this as much as I can before it is time for me to leave and go back to a world that seems to be getting far colder than I could ever expect."