ALICIAI didn’t argue with Clarissa about spending so much money on a new car. No way could the other one have fit three of us, the triplets, the babies’ paraphernalia, plus our luggage into his old vehicle. The new SUV with three rows of seats was perfect for our family.And we were only driving a short distance which would probably be not short enough with three small children.Not wanting to fly or drive cross country, Clarissa’s family had agreed to meet us in Oakheart. We’d considered returning to the coast where we spent that amazing day eating lobster rolls and swimming in the ocean. But when we thought about getting three babies onto and off a plane, we all said, “No way.”Unbeknownst to Clarissa, Oakheart had a couple of snow leopard shifters and we were going to not only introduce the babies to their grandparents, but on learning the triplets would be visiting, the snow leopard council decided to hold their annual conference in the town. Luckily we’d snapped up a family suit
There was a beast in their basement.Jules Blake had learned about it completely by accident. He had been looking for his kitten Sheba, and after fruitlessly searching the entire house, Jules had decided to check out the basement no one ever used. His hopes hadn’t been high—the basement was so cold, dark, and damp that even his not-very-bright kitten should have been smarter than to go there—but when Jules got downstairs, he was surprised to find security guards at the door. Armed security guards.There were suspicious noises coming from behind the door. Growls? Had someone just screamed? The guards’ eyes were wary and troubled, their hands close to their holsters. It was beyond strange, considering that the basement door was massive. Nothing should be able to break through that door. Why were the guards so twitchy, then?“What’s going on?” Jules asked, taking a step closer.The guards blocked his way.“Stay away from the basement, kid,” one of them said. “Your uncle’s orders.”“Not a
Swallowing, Jules pushed the thought away. This wasn’t the time for moping.He studied the alpha curiously.The Xeus was… large. He was pure muscle everywhere, powerfully built, with a dark trail of hair leading downward to a—Flushing, Jules tore his eyes away. He felt a mix of embarrassed, flustered, and painfully curious. He’d never been so close to a naked man. But was a transformed Xeus a “man”? Most of him looked like one, but the long, scary-looking claws at the tips of the Xeus’s fingers seemed to point toward the answer being “no.” The alpha’s face was very ugly, his features vaguely male but distorted into something predatory and beastly. Dark, fur-like facial hair obscured his features. And those eyes… those glowing green eyes that were tracking Jules’s every movement didn’t seem entirely sentient, though they were oddly attentive for a simpleminded beast.The Xeus emanated strength and virility, which was probably why it took Jules a while to realize that he was hurt. Ther
The Xeus glowered at him, his harsh breathing the only sound in the room. But he did stop thrashing. Could he understand him after all?Jules cocked his head to the side. “Can you understand me?”The Xeus just kept looking at him with the same unnervingly intense, not-quite-rational look. His muscles were very tense despite him being still. He wasn’t relaxed by any means. He looked like an animal ready to attack at any moment. A cornered, wounded animal.Wounded animals were dangerous and unpredictable; that much Jules knew.Jules looked around until he found a bottle of blood stancher. Clicking his tongue in disgust—why wouldn’t his uncle’s people use it on the Xeus when they had it right there?—Jules grabbed it and headed back to the alpha. He hesitated, meeting the hostile gaze. He was soft-heartened, not suicidal.“I don’t mean you any harm,” he said, keeping his voice as non-threatening as possible. “Will you let me treat your wounds? That gash on your arm looks nasty.”The Xeus
Jules hoped his baby brother would be able to find a nice match. That said, everyone knew Liam was the brother who would be marrying up: he would probably marry some rich, handsome, and important alpha, maybe even one from the upper crust of society. As for Jules… Uncle Wayne said Jules would be lucky if he got any marriage offer at all. Jules kind of hoped he wouldn’t get any marriage offers, but obviously he didn’t share that opinion when Uncle Wayne was around.“There’s no cure,” Eric said, his forehead wrinkling as he read something on the screen. “It’s funny that you asked about that, actually. I can see increased activity for search terms ‘Xeus’ and ‘kerosvarin.’ Something is up. Considering the rumors…”“What rumors?” Jules said.Eric shrugged, his eyes still on the screen. “There have been all sorts of rumors circulating since the Opal House event last month.”“Really? I thought the event was NDA-locked?”“It was,” Eric said. “But the NDA technology wasn’t enabled immediately,
His heartbeat becoming steadier, he walked closer and clicked his tongue in dismay when he saw the cuts on the alpha’s body. They looked worse up close. “I was here last week,” Jules said, pulling out the supplies from his first aid kit. “I helped you, remember?”“No.”The alpha’s muscles tensed a little but he didn’t make a sound as Jules applied an antiseptic to the deepest wounds, even though it had to be painful.“What are you doing?”“What does it look like?” Jules said, applying the blood stancher. “Don’t be such a suspicious grump. By the way, it’s convenient that you’re suddenly talking, but couldn’t you talk to me last time?”“Don’t remember,” the Xeus said, boring a hole in Jules with his eyes. “Who are you? Did they send you?”“No one sent me,” Jules said, applying the blood stancher to the cut on the alpha’s stomach and trying not to blush. He resolutely didn’t look below the alpha’s waist. This close, he could smell the Xeus’s scent: something rich and dark he couldn’t qu
“But?” Jules prompted.“I heard them talk.”Jules made an encouraging noise.“They’re looking for some kind of cure,” the Xeus said.Jules frowned. His uncle was looking for some medical cure? He was literally using the Xeus as a lab rat?“I need to go,” he said when the file transfer was complete. He turned off the computer and said, without looking at the alpha, “I’m going to look through these files and then maybe I’ll find out what’s going on here. Please don’t tell anyone that I was here or I wouldn’t be able to help you—”“Come here.”Jules wet his lips. “Why?”“Come here,” the Xeus repeated, his voice so low it was nearly a growl.Was it Jules’s imagination or had the alpha’s scent become stronger? Jules could still smell him all the way from there, and it really wasn’t helping the situation in his pants.He was pretty sure the Xeus wasn’t using an alpha’s Voice—Xeus alphas didn’t possess that ability—and yet Jules still found himself doing as he was told.He put the flash driv
Jules needed to get him out of there. He didn’t have a choice. His conscience wouldn’t let him ignore the problem, no matter how ashamed and unsettled he was by his reaction to the Xeus. Sometimes one had to suck it up and put aside one’s personal feelings, and this was one of those times.Jules considered his options.It seemed the Xeus’s rational thinking had been restored enough—in his current state, he was unlikely to be a danger to others if Jules set him free. But how was he supposed to do that?He needed the key to the manacles.Later that evening, Jules sneaked down to his uncle’s office. The house was quiet. The hour was late enough for everyone to be in bed. Or so he had thought.He could hear faint voices coming from his uncle’s office.Jules froze, looking at the door. Then he took off his shoes and padded over before pressing his ear against the door.“—it’s been over a month!”“That’s not enough, Mr. Blake,” an unfamiliar male voice said. “We’re doing all we can, and the
“Không, nhưng tôi nghĩ tối nay anh ấy sẽ cầu hôn,” Liam nói. “Nó chỉ hợp lý thôi. Hôm qua, tôi tình cờ nghe được cuộc trò chuyện qua điện thoại của anh ấy với ai đó - tôi nghĩ là một nhân viên PR nào đó. Westcliff nói rằng nhà vua sẽ đưa ra thông báo sau vài ngày nữa - ý tôi là về Hoàng tử Haydn. Westcliff cũng muốn thông báo về việc đính hôn của chúng tôi vào khoảng thời gian đó. Nó có ý nghĩa. ”Jules đã nghiên cứu kỹ lưỡng về anh trai mình.Khuôn mặt đáng yêu của Liam rất khó đọc, nhưng đôi mắt của anh ấy không hẳn là ánh lên hạnh phúc.“You don’t have to say yes,” Jules said, feeling painfully uncomfortable. He was so damn torn about the subject he didn’t know what advice to give. He didn’t want Liam to marry an alpha he didn’t love for the sake of their family, but… He was scared that if he told Liam not to marry Westcliff, it would be selfish advice.To make things more confusing, there was a small, horrible part of him that did want Westcliff as the alpha of their family. That
Except even that fantasy wasn’t enough. Thinking about the Xeus just made his broken bond ache. Ache and hurt like an old wound that was starting to bleed again. The pain somehow amplified the desire, and soon Jules was half-sobbing into his pillow, his hips pushing greedily onto the dildo. Need him, need him, can’t need him, need him. Gone, need him, gone. I need—I need—I need. It was fucking horrible. Jules had never felt worse in his life, his muscles trembling, his cock sore, his body oversensitive and needy, and his bond aching.So he tried not to think about his Xeus. He made himself think of other alphas, trying to tell himself that any alpha would do. Any alpha with a thick, hard cock would do. He was desperate enough to almost believe it.He imagined going to a ball, his cock stiff and his slick dribbling down his leg. He imagined alphas turning toward him, their nostrils flaring and their cocks straining their pants. He would be attractive to alphas for once. They would want
Julian flushed. “It was kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing, after…”After sex.Devlin gave a clipped nod, clasping his hands behind his back. His fingers and his jawline itched, as they did when he was on the verge of transforming. Through sheer willpower, he managed to keep his claws in.It was a normal enough reaction, to feel protective of a young omega he cared about.It was.“But the bond took?” he said, his voice very neutral.Julian nodded, not looking at him. “We were naturally compatible.”Devlin’s claws dug into his palm. He turned away and walked to the window.He took a deep breath, staring at Dainiri’s nearly full disk, and then another, until he had his claws under control.“I see,” he heard himself say. “The risk still exists, then. Medical intervention might be needed.”“What do you mean?” Julian said. “More suppressants?”“Increasing the dose again might do more harm than good,” Devlin said stiffly. “I’m hardly a doctor, but even I know that you can’t keep changing yo
Ignoring the question, Devlin studied him carefully. “Do you feel better?”“What?” Julian said, his brows knitting together.Devlin looked at him sharply. “Your brother said you didn’t feel well.”Julian averted his gaze. “Right! Of course. I feel better now. Much better—”“You didn’t want to go with us.”The omega winced, but he didn’t even try to deny it. So it was true.It shouldn’t have bothered him. It really was none of his business.“Why?” Devlin said.Julian shrugged. “It’s not exactly fun being a third wheel.” He still wouldn’t meet Devlin’s eyes.“You’re not telling the truth,” Devlin said, becoming more certain of it the longer Julian avoided looking at him. Stepping into the room, he closed the door behind him.It shut with a click.“What are you doing?” Julian said. “And I’m not lying. You think it’s fun—”“Julian,” Devlin said quietly. “Look at me.”After a moment, the omega finally did as he was told. There was a half-scowl on his face but some other emotion in his eyes
“All ri—” Liam started saying, but Devlin cut him off.“Your brother can’t leave the ball with me,” he said, looking at Julian. “You don’t want any nasty rumors to start flying around, do you?”He could actually hear Julian grind his teeth.“Fine,” he said, still sounding a mix of annoyed and bewildered.The helicopter ride to the Blake house was a strange one. Liam was the only one talking, chattering non-stop about the perfection that was Viscount Nasr while Julian determinedly didn’t look at Devlin.Devlin bored his eyes into him, his fingertips tingling, his claws itching to come out. He curled his hands into fists and breathed shallowly, trying to ignore the way Julian smelled. It was impossible. Julian fucking reeked. He reeked of another alpha. Devlin wanted to fix it, run his hands all over the brat, until he smelled right.It was probably a good thing that Julian was the first to jump out of the helicopter when they arrived, because Devlin didn’t trust himself.Tearing his ga
Julian glared at him, his cheekbones a little pink. “That was a dick move,” he said, glancing back at Nasr, who was left standing in the middle of the dance floor.“He’s much too old for you,” Devlin said, stroking his thumb against Julian’s wrist.“Stop scent-marking me,” Julian gritted out, his color heightening. “And he isn’t too old. He’s half Korf’s age.”“That shouldn’t be your measuring stick,” Devlin said. “I told you I wouldn’t allow your uncle to give you to Korf. You deserve better.”Julian chuckled. “Better? Who?”Devlin’s lips thinned. “Someone better than Nasr.”“There’s nothing wrong with Viscount Nasr. He’s perfectly nice and pleasant, and he actually sees me for being me. I’ve known him forever—he has a neighboring estate. He was always nice to me when I was a child.”“That hardly says good things about him, does it? What a creep.”Julian stomped on his right foot. “You’re being an ass,” he said, his voice a mix of annoyed and bewildered. He blinked a few times. “I do
Their date that day was unexpectedly tedious.Devlin found it difficult to keep his attention on his date, his mood sour and distracted. He was aware that he was acting like a dick, his attitude probably too cold and unapproachable. Liam seemed to have given up on trying to strike up a conversation with him after a few hesitant attempts and focused his attention entirely on the aircar race. When Liam spoke, he spoke only to the beta chaperone who had accompanied them to the race.By the time the race was over, Devlin had a headache once again, his body brimming with tension and anxiety, the source of which he couldn’t pinpoint. He barely had the patience to smile for the paparazzi as they left the track, and his smile was probably very strained. Hopefully he didn’t actually look like he wanted to punch someone.He dropped Liam off, and then he hesitated, looking at the Blake house. It would be only polite to inquire how Julian was feeling.Devlin pulled his phone out of his pocket and
Several weeks passed like that. Westcliff called on Liam and took him out on dates, putting on that disgustingly charming mask he wore in public. More often than not, Jules accompanied them, serving as a chaperone, for appearances’ sake—officially. Unofficially, he kind of… he went because he wanted to be around the duke. It freaked him out that he felt addicted to the way Westcliff made him feel, but he couldn’t help himself. It felt so good, especially when Westcliff allowed him to rub his face against his scent gland—the euphoria was beyond his ability to express properly. Afterward, Jules felt so embarrassed, but thankfully, Westcliff didn’t make fun of him and always acted as if there was nothing weird about his behavior. “Better?” he would say in a quiet murmur, and Jules would flush and nod and look anywhere but at him. Every time he told himself it was the last time, but his resolve melted into a mass of goo the next time he saw the duke. It was horrible. Horribly addictive.
Jules ôm lại anh trai mình, nhưng cảm giác lo lắng, bất an dưới da anh không thể biến mất. Ngược lại với ý muốn của mình, anh thấy mình đang nghĩ đến cảm giác an toàn như thế nào trong vòng tay của Westcliff ngày hôm qua, như thể không gì có thể chạm vào anh hay làm anh bị thương. Có lẽ có Westcliff làm alpha của họ sẽ không phải là một điều tồi tệ. Có lẽ anh nên cho anh ta một cơ hội. *** Quyết tâm của Jules để cho Westcliff một cơ hội kéo dài chính xác cho đến khi Westcliff gọi điện cho họ - trên Liam - vào buổi chiều. Anh không biết điều gì ở người đàn ông này đã khiến anh nổi gai ốc, tự ý thức và chỉ trích thái quá. Đó là một sự kết hợp kỳ lạ giữa các cảm xúc, nhưng anh không thể không nhìn Westcliff bằng ánh mắt dò xét, hoài nghi khi công tước đang nói chuyện nhỏ với Liam và chú Wayne. Thằng khốn thậm chí còn chưa liếc nhìn anh một lần kể từ khi bước vào phòng. Jules khoanh tay trước ngực, sau đó không bắt chéo chúng. Nhặt chiếc máy tính bảng trên chiếc bàn trong góc, anh n