Chapter 133

"Renee, this is the part of me that’s been shackled for…safety. The part that wants to protect you, keep you, destroy anyone who touches you…” He glanced over at Dominic. "Except for him, oddly."

“Not like this.”

His eyes burned brighter. “Then how?”

“By kissing me when I’m ready,” I whispered. “By talking to me instead of trying to claim me.”

He blinked, something raw flickering behind the crimson glow.

“I’d really like to kiss you,” he admitted. “But I want you to take off my shirt when you want me. Not when my magic overwhelms you into it. I'd never force anything on you, Renee.”

I nodded. "I know. Can I get up?"

He let me go easily, though the grin on his face remained. Hungry. A little wild, but tame.

“Better,” I said, brushing down my clothes.

He chuckled, but his voice was still that low, altered timbre.

Then the front door burst open and Arielle came in.

“Neil Elias Blackfang!”

Arielle’s voice ricocheted through the condo.

Neil groaned. “Who told you my middle name?”

A blur of motion, and suddenly a cloth bag clattered against his chest. It dropped open and spilled glowing crystals across the hardwood floor.

“If you break a single window in my tower,” Arielle growled, her heels clicking furiously toward us, “I will sue you to replace them all."

Neil held up his hands, trying to look innocent, but the glow in his eyes made it very hard to sell.

“I’m calm now,” he said. “Promise.”

“You better be,” Arielle muttered. “I had to reinforce the wards three floors up, you absolute menace. And Zeke almost got called in for an emergency suppression effort.” She scowled at Dominic. "Do something."

Dominic just leaned back in his chair and grinned like it was the most entertaining thing he’d seen all day.

"I'm being entertained, for now."

She smirked back. "You won't be when he's got you bent over the nearest surface."

His jaw dropped open and Neil threw his head back, laughing. The air shook with it. All the crystals around him lit up in response.

I stood there, heart still pounding, the heat from Neil’s touch lingering on my skin, the mark glowing faintly under my shirt.

And I shifted my weight a little because… this was… my future, gifted to me. And Goddess help me, I wanted it.

Neil gestured and the crystals flew up and into the bag before standing.

"Thanks for the snack. I'll leave your tower before I bring it down."

“Oh, no you don’t.” I moved fast, cutting him off before he could reach the door.

Neil froze.

“You haven’t explained anything,” I snapped, heart still racing. “You practically turned into a different person tonight. Your eyes are glowing red, your voice changed, you said… things, and then tried to crawl inside my soul with a look.”

He winced. “I didn’t—”

“You did.”

I was pacing now, gesturing wildly with every word. “You don’t get to growl at me like that and then pretend it’s nothing. You don’t get to flirt one second and flee the next. And you definitely don’t get to throw me into chaos and then leave!”

Neil opened his mouth, but before he could get a single syllable out, a flicker of something on the back of my hand caught my attention. I stopped mid-rant, staring.

“What the…”

A soft white glow shimmered against my skin: a full moon, encased in a shield.

I held my hand up toward the kitchen light, disbelieving. “What the hell is this?”

Dominic hesitated a moment. “That’s… that’s my mark.”

I turned toward him sharply.

“What?”

He crossed the room slowly, almost reverently and took my hand. A fond smile on his face as he traced the edges of the shield.

“It’s the mark of the Goddess’ Benevolence. That’s what appeared on my back after I came of age. All Brightclaws are blessed with that mark once they’ve shifted for the first time… the alphas at least."

Neil stepped closer, chuckling under his breath. “Of course it’s you.”

I blinked. “What?”

“You’re the most noble of the three of us,” he said, voice soft but amused. “Kind. Devoted. Responsible. You have Benevolent Alpha written all over you.”

"Alpha Daddy," Arielle quipped.

Dominic turned bright red.

I slapped my palm to my forehead. “Goddess help me.”

Arielle tutted. "Word of advice, princess. Do not let either of them leave tonight, or it will all escalate very quickly."

I gave her a look. “Escalate how?”

She shrugged, grinning. “Magical power is most easily shared and banked within a mate bond…." She slid her eyes over to Dominic. " I have a feeling the reason why he's so overpowered, at least right now, is because one of you needs it. Considering that Renee has already been pumped full, I think it's you, Alpha Daddy."

He scowled. "Do not call me that."

"Renee's too shy. I'm working her up to it."

Neil looked toward me. “She's not wrong, but…"

“You are not allowed to leave. I want answers,” I said, heart pounding. “Real ones. No more cryptic comments.”

Neil exhaled slowly. “I’m not trying to hurt you. But I do need sleep. It's the easiest way to keep me from… or accidentally setting the couch on fire or jumping someone.”

Dominic raised a brow.

"You are talking about Dominic or Renee, right?"

I blinked. "Neil… I…"

"Yes?" Neil asked. "Are you volunteering?"

I shut my mouth. "I don't… think I like this side of you."

He flinched a bit, his eyes flickering before his eyes narrowed and he smiled a little.

"I think you're lying." He looked at Arielle. "She's definitely lying. But the point still stands. I need to go."

“And I think that's a bad idea. So does your mother. How about a temporary roommate shuffle?”

I blinked. “Wait, what?”

“You,” she said, pointing at me, “come back to my place. Your boyfriends,” she turned toward Neil and Dominic with an arched brow, “stay here. They can either bond or battle, I don’t care. If Neil decides to jump Dominic, at least he’ll have a worthy adversary.”

My jaw dropped. “Arielle!”

Dominic choked.

Neil laughed. Full-on, clutch-his-sides laughed, as if he hadn’t just tried to devour me with his eyes ten minutes ago.

“Don’t worry,” Neil managed, still grinning. “Your virtue is safe. Consent is the sexiest thing in the world.”

Dominic looked like he wanted to melt into the floor. “This is absurd.”

Arielle grinned like a fox. “It’s progress.”

Dominic

Despite everything, I passed out hard on the couch sometime around three a.m. I probably could have gotten to a bed, but I just couldn't manage it.

When I woke, sunlight was filtering in through the blinds, and the smell of fresh coffee and sizzling food wafted in from the kitchen. I sat up slowly, muscles sore from the awkward angle I’d slept in.

Neil was at the stove whistling.

Whistling. None.

He glanced over his shoulder at me with a lazy smirk. “Morning, sunshine.”

“You didn’t sleep?”

He flipped something in the pan. “Didn’t need to. I meditated. Worked. Cooked. Contemplated world domination.”

I blinked blearily. “ Is this going to be how you usually are? Going forward at least."

“In private, at least. This is the real me,” he said cheerfully, gesturing with a spatula. “The barely-leashed chaos was just my brain trying to process power overload. Now there's hope to get rid of some if not all the excess." He frowned. "Well… enough that I'm not three second form leveling a city anyway. The elders might even agree to take off my binders."

I stared at him for a long moment. “You really are a completely different person.”

Neil grinned. “Welcome to my dark side. I make great eggs.”

I was still trying to decide if he was joking when the elevator dinged and the front door opened.

Renee walked in, dressed to kill in sleek black slacks, a fitted blouse, and glossy lips that instantly made me want to kiss the gloss off him.

Wait a second. I had never been this…

My eyes slid over to Neil who was staring at her with the same hunger in my gut.

By the Goddess, that was him. How long had his feelings been spilling into me?

She paused in the doorway, blinking at us.

Neil raised his coffee cup. “Morning, beautiful. There’s food.”

She just stared. “You cooked?”

Neil nodded proudly. “Dominic’s virtue is intact and breakfast is served.”

Renee narrowed her eyes at me. “Nothing happened?”

"You sound disappointed," Neil said.

Renee flushed, and I rubbed my temples. “Nothing. I slept on the couch, and he didn't sleep at all apparently."

"Neil!" She cried.

Neil handed her a plate. “I told you I could cook. Let’s eat before Arielle shows up again with another bag of crystals. I know she's just using me to power something. Probably her car. I should charge her for the service."

Renee took the plate hesitantly, eyeing us both.

This was definitely going to be a long day.