“Our options are limited,” Archer concedes, and I wilt a bit, hope deflated. “So you aren’t going to do anything – again,” I say. I don’t care how close Archer is, how intimidating he is, or how much he’s glaring. “You are letting Neil take the brunt of your father’s ire all on his own.” “That’s
Beau laughs. I glare at him, but it only makes him laugh harder. “Neil is withstanding torture to protect whatever this thing is, and you expect us to just waltz in and convince him to give it up? Do you know my brother at all?” Okay, that’s a fair point, I guess. Neil is very stubborn. And prot
Beau and I followed closely behind Archer as he made his way toward Neil’s bedroom. Steven, carrying Mia, skirted along behind us. At Neil’s door, Archer doesn’t bother knocking, he simply barges inside. The door’s still unlocked. You’d think Neil would have learned his lesson by now. I’m about
“No,” Neil say, simple as anything. “You can’t say no,” I argue. “I’m telling you I quit.” “I do not accept your resignation.” “You don’t have a choice.” I’m getting angry now. It’s difficult to keep my voice level. “I quit, get it? I’m out. Done. Finished. I’m packing my things and out the do
Neil takes another breath. Then, like it pains him, he says, “I’m drawn to you… in a way I don’t fully understand.” I blink once, twice, as I try to let my brain process the words. It’s taking a good long while. Neil motions to Archer. “Archer is too.” Now, I’m doubly confused. Triply, when Ar
Steven leaves first. Then Archer, with Beau behind. Beau winks at me as he passes. I ignore him, feeling too emotionally raw to interpret whatever he thinks is about to happen here. I highly, highly doubt that Neil feels up for any kind of sexual intimacy. Once Beau’s out the door, he closes it
“Sorry for tasting like silver,” he says. “I can’t tell,” I say honestly. Without a wolf of my own, I don’t notice. Maybe if I was young like Mia, with a vulnerable immune system, I would feel a sting of pain in Neil’s presence. As it is, at my age without a wolf, I feel only his lips. “I might wa
“Promise me you will never approach my father,” Neil says. His eyes hold mine prisoner, the intensity in his so captivating, I can’t look away. “Never speak to him. Even if you are summoned, do not go.” This all seems a bit extreme. I know he’s a major asshole, but… “I’m pretty sure it’s illegal
I’m happy because I have four hearts beating alongside mine.“Do you feel it, too?” I ask. “My connection to each of you?”I blink my eyes open once more. I want to see their faces, their reactions.Neil has his hand over his own heart. “It’s strange. It’s like part of you is inside of me.”“Me, too
In the darkness of my mind, I floated, surrounded by the comforting embrace of love. Distantly, I could feel another presence, one that grew stronger and stronger, the more I focused on it: my wolf.As I thought of her, she appeared before me as if I willed her into being. Maybe I did. We are in my
Damn alpha wolves and their heightened senses.“I’ve already made my choice,” I say. “Honestly, I think I made it a long, long time ago.”Archer relaxes marginally. Steven starts to smile.Neil turns to me, worry still on his face. “You say that now, Chloe. But the pull could be strong…”“I don’t ca
The eve of my birthday, I rest in bed and stare at my ceiling. It’s late, near midnight, but I still have my bedside light on.With my feelings shared and grown with Neil, Archer, and Steven, I didn’t expect to spend any night alone, especially the one right before the day that could change everythi
I awake to a sharp knock on my bedroom door. Neil’s arm is still draped over me but some distance had inched between our hot bodies in the night. I’m able to slink out from under his arm without him waking.Naked, I quickly stop by the bathroom to throw on my fluffy bathrobe. Then, after glancing ba
They.Beau glances at me and see my incredulous look. “What do I need to go out every night? Can’t a man just enjoy staying home for a change?”“You can do whatever the hell you want,” I say.“Good, then.” Beau slumps down on the couch. He stretches out, lifting his feet up and into my lap. “Now tel
For the rest of the morning, I desperately try not to think about Neil. Whoever he’s in love with, I won’t be offended by it. The hurt I feel has nothing to do with this new person. She must be great for her to have won Neil’s affections.The hurt is my own loss, my own problem. I let my feelings fo
After Steven and I have cleaned ourselves up with a quick shower, we fall back into bed together, giggling and laughing all the way. My now, Steven has discovered a few of my tickle zones, which he is exploiting. As revenge, I touch the places I now know make him shiver.For a while, nothing seems l
His hands fumbled with the buttons of his own shirt. Such usually steady hands are rendered useless by his nervousness.“Allow me,” I tell him. I lightly bat his hands out of the way before replacing them with mine on his shirt buttons. My times with Neil have served me well. I’m able to undo all th