“You’ve never had a mate. You have no idea what’s ridiculous,” I snapped.
“I know your temper is about as sharp as a fucking razor blade,” he muttered. “Would it be that bad to be mated to her? The woman is gorgeous, smart, and appears comfortable holding her own in a room full of predators. You could do far worse.”
“And why exactly do you think it’s just up to me?” I took a long drink, savoring the dark, heady flavors of the Guinness. “Accepting a mating bond goes both ways.”
As if she’d felt my stare caressing the delicate line of her bare shoulder, Valor looked back at me and smiled.
Now the semi I carried around constantly was a full-blown hard on. Awesome. All the woman had to do was look at me and I was ready for sex. I bit back a groan, and drained the glass as she walked over.
“Maybe I’m wrong, and she’s the predator,” Ransom murmured. “Because it sure as hell looks like she’s the one hunting you.”
I slammed the empty glass down on the table next to us a little too hard but didn’t break it.
“Hey, Valor,” Ransom greeted my mate with an easy smile that faded when he caught my dark expression. “I’m, um. Going somewhere else. Anywhere else.” He took off, beelining it for a group of nobles that had Alek ensnared with their list of political wants. Thank God I wasn’t king, because I would have killed them all out of boredom by now.
“Lachlan,” Valor said as she looked up at me, a slow smile playing over her lips.
“Valor,” I replied, trying to look anywhere else. My self-control was at an all-time low.
Her smile only grew, and the second I looked, I was hooked.
“What?” The word came out nearly at a growl.
“Just counting to see how long it takes for you to run away,” she teased. “Last night, you made it a whole thirty seconds.” Her eyes danced, but there was something else there, and a scent that burrowed deep into my lungs and reminded me of my own, sharp and bitter…desperation.
The pieces clicked.
“Since when do you wear dresses?” I asked, thinking back over the last three nights.
She blinked. “I wear dresses whenever I feel like it.”
A corner of my mouth tweaked upward. “Eh, but you don’t, lass. Not until the last few days.”
“Nice of you to notice.” She rolled her eyes and swept her hand out, gesturing toward the nobles that mingled all around us. “I don’t see you harassing any of the other women in cocktail dresses even though they’re all in them.”
“I don’t concern myself with what the other females are wearing.”
She scoffed, shaking her head. “Just me?”
“Just you.”
Heat bloomed in her cheeks. “I thought the dresses might be a little more…feminine. That’s all.”
There was something else going on here, and I was missing it. My eyes narrowed slightly, and I tried to remember if any other males were sniffing around my mate. “Are you trying to catch the attention of a male?”
“What if I was?” Her head tilted slightly as those green eyes burrowed into my soul.
That’s all it took, just that contact between us, and the air shifted, thickening just like my dick. My throat caught fire, parched like I hadn’t just swallowed down an entire pint, but I knew it wasn’t ale or water I was thirsting for…it was her.
I’d fed earlier this evening, but the blood had tasted like ash and cinders, churning in my stomach, and I hadn’t taken a full feed. I hadn’t fed fully in months, if I was being honest with myself, and it was only getting worse with Valor here, in my sight but not my arms. My body knew exactly what it wanted, and I was expecting it to go on full hunger-strike at any moment, just like Alek’s had when Lyric showed up.
God help us all, then.
What if I was?
Wait. What the fuck?
My vision flickered to thermal, and for a moment, every single being in that dining hall was prey. I was going to slaughter them all, especially whichever male she was trying to attract. That fucker would die first. Painfully.
“Lachlan?” Valor asked, concern dripping from her voice as she stepped closer.
Fuck, I could feel the heat of her skin through my clothing. Her bergamot and lime scent filling my lungs as I breathed her in. She was wearing dresses for some other male.
Because she’d made it more than fucking clear that she didn’t want me.
“My friend.” Alek’s voice pushed through the fog of my bloodlust, but he didn’t put a physical hand on me. Even he knew better. He’d broken through with his mental powers. “Valor, if you’ll excuse us, there’s something urgent I need to talk to my second about.”
“Of course,” she murmured.
“Outside. Now.” Alek’s order was low and quiet enough so that only I heard.