Chapter 31: Friend or Foe?

*Kyle*

“This is Thelma, my…erm..my special guest. Thelma, this is my rebellious and reckless young brother, Tobias.”

Thelma leans to the side and evaluates Tobias with a warm smile on her lips, and a curious look in her emerald eyes.

“Nice to meet you, Tobias,” she greets.

I can’t help but feel like her voice sounds too flirtatious.

“The pleasure is all mine, the beautiful Lady Thelma.”

“Please, just Thelma will do,” the witch clarifies.

Lady Thelma?! What is he trying to start here? I dart a glare at my brother, and then at Thelma, as they curiously look into each other’s eyes. Why are they smiling at each other like damn idiots? 

I should be elated to welcome my prodigal brother back home, but damn! Could my brother have chosen a worse time to return?

*Thelma*

An earthly scent swarms around the new arrival; it should be enough to quench my curiosity, but there is something unsettling about Tobias.

He has a devilish grin that tells me he has more of a quirky and flirtatious side to him, unlike his brother, Kyle. With his dark curly hair, a tanned skin tone, defined cheekbones and almond-shaped brown eyes, Tobias looks nothing like his brother.

“The two of you don’t look alike at all,” I muse. I clasp my hand to my mouth realizing I have spoken my private thoughts out loud.

“Who is more handsome,” Tobias asks with a mischievous sparkle in his eyes.

I find myself mentally comparing the two men. Tobias is a little shorter than Kyle, but he is just as strapping as the latter. Unlike his brother, whose demeanor is more serious and stern, Tobias seems to have a devil-may-care outlook and easily flashes a crooked, yet still stellar smile, frequently. It’s a bewitching smile, so to speak, and I feel drawn to warm up to this stranger and better understand him.

I have never been one who easily warms up to strangers, so I guess that's why I’m still hesitant about cozying up to a guy I have met for two minutes.

“How are the two of you brothers?” I ask this time.

I mean the two are so different in many ways than one. I pray he doesn’t find my question insulting in any way.

“How do two people become brothers? Like…what? I still think you need a biology lesson or two,” Kyle answers nonchalantly.

“So, are you a hybrid as well?” I direct my question back to him, ignoring his snide remark.

“I wouldn’t be that unlucky, sweetheart. I am one-third human, one-third Leviathan, and rounding up the perfection, one-hundred percent charming,” Tobias responds with a wink.

Dang! So that means I won’t be able to use my siren abilities on the brother as well. A slight glance at Kyle, who still stands imposingly between Tobias and me, tells me he isn’t too charmed by his brother’s arrival. The way he is suddenly acting like a protective mate is many ways interesting. Maybe I could use his jealousy to my advantage. Kyle has thrown jabs at me since my arrival, so maybe it’s high time I make him have a taste of his own crude medicine by getting closer to his brother.

I can feel Tobias’ stare boring through me. I raise my face; my eyes meet his. There is something strangely familiar about the way he is looking at me. This is how Kyle looked at me the night he first saw me in all my greasy and nude glory.

“You will take the room on the third floor, left wing. The one opposite Yasmeen’s chambers,” Kyle instructs.

Tobias nods, but his eyes are still locked on me.

“I could walk you to your room,” I offer.

A low forced chuckle emits from Kyle.

“Do you even know where the room I am talking about is? If for some reason Tobias doesn’t remember his way around this house, I will instruct one of the maids or male servants to escort him.” Kyle’s eye is very serious as he regards me with a look on his face I can’t decipher.

“Actually, I don’t know where his room is; that’s true. I thought since he knows this place well, he would be willing to give me a tour. Since my arrival, no one has cared enough to give me a full walkthrough of this magnificent house. I would like to discover more of my surroundings besides my bed and yours. Or am I not allowed to have a life outside the bedroom, Alpha Kyle?”

This time a deep scowl forms on his forehead. “I will give you the stupid tour myself. My brother isn’t here to be your tour guide.”

There it is; the bitterness and jealousy in Kyle’s voice is undeniable, although he is trying to mask it with the irritable tone he always uses when he tries dismissing me like a bothersome mosquito.

“It’s okay, sweet Lady Thelma. I need to go take a bath and rest. My shoulder is killing me. After that, I can be anything you want me to be. Your tour guide, your errand man, your massage therapist, a listener…just say the word, my Lady. Your very wish will be my command after I rest,” Tobias says as he winks at me again.

A deep growl emits from Kyle’s throat. “What is wrong with your shoulder? Did I perhaps hurt you with that slight tussle? I thought you would be a bit tougher now, but I see that you still bruise easily,” Kyle says mockingly at his brother.

“No. Pinning me to the wall just knocked my breath away, but the shoulder is an injury I suffered after a group of rogues jumped me,” Tobias says. He reaches a hand to his shoulder and rubs at it.

“Where? Are those rogues still roaming these woods alive? I will hunt them down and bring their heads in a sack to decorate the walls of this place. I will get the doctor to come to take a look at the injury immediately.”

This time I see genuine worry about his brother sketched on Kyle’s face. Something in his voice tells me Kyle is always the brother who fights his brother’s wars.

“I can fight my own battles, brother. I am not five anymore and you aren’t my keeper.  Also, I don’t need a doctor, I just need rest. My shoulder will heal,” Tobias responds with irritation.