“Okay,” he says on a quiet breath. I watch as the switch flips in his head, bringing him back to what constitutes as his normal. “Last thing any of us wants is to get stuck on dish duty again, so if you’re wrong about this and she leaves, by default it means you have to do all of the chores for the rest of forever as penance.”
Flipping him off, I start walking back to the house. “I’ll take that deal, because I’m never going to have to honor it. You just wait; by this time next year, I’ll have a ring on that woman’s finger.”
He falls into step beside me, the obscene summer heat making us both irritated already and ready to get back inside to the air conditioning. “You sound like a human. Do you have any idea how expensive that’ll run, replacing it every time she loses it during a shift?”
“Necklace then, depending on what she changes into,” I contemplate as we cross the lawn, knowing we only have a few more feet before we’ll have to cut off the conversation. “Think about it; visual proof that she’s ours. Even if someone can’t sense it, they could see that she’s taken.” He doesn’t get the chance to respond, too close to the house to risk it, but the possessive glint in his eye has me smirking.
Call me a bastard for manipulating him, but the only way to save Mason is to get him out of his own way, and it’s a delicate dance to pull off. He’ll never be able to see the clear path as anything other than a trap, won’t take the hand that tries to guide him to safety. You need to set the forest on fire behind him so that he’s forced onto the path you want him to take, thinking it’s the lesser of two evils. He’ll get there eventually, but he won’t drop his guard, so it’s slow going.
Trusting the wrong person got his family murdered, after all, and left him waking up in their blood alone to take the blame with no idea what he was.
Bane and Risa are already in the media room, and I pick up my pace so that I can steal the free spot next to her. The oversized, black leather couch is so plush that I sink a few inches, and she’s forced into my side as the material dips.
Shelves line three of the walls, the largest behind us stocked with books like a small library. To either side are rows of movies, video games, or board games, and straight ahead is the massive television. An entertainment center beneath it holds all of the consoles and controllers, one of which is already in Bane’s hand as he gets the movie set up. A coffee table sits in the center, and two matching, black recliners flank the couch. It still manages not to feel overcrowded, to the point that it was obvious it shouldn’t be wasted as a bedroom for a single person.
One movie turns into two, with a snack break in between. The hope is that if we spend the day getting her to relax as much as possible, we’ll have a better shot of tonight going well. It doesn’t keep me from getting lost in my head, though, attempting to figure out what could have caused her to run away from home rather than wait it out six more months when she was that close to eighteen. But if she shut down that conversation when she was actively open to answering questions, I’m not about to bring it up again now when we’re trying to get her to drop her defenses.
Still, I can guarantee that Bane chose to ask what city she’s from last night for one specific reason. With Mason and I being the messes we are, Bane appointed himself the unofficial protector of his broken toys. And since he hates damn near anyone except the two of us, it’s a fairly manageable job. Now that Risa’s been pulled into our ranks, there isn’t a doubt in my mind that he started digging into her past as soon as he woke up before me this morning. We may not know her last name, but her first isn’t that common. Between that, the city, her age and occupation, and the ex-hole’s name? More than enough to get him started.
She ends up dozing off halfway through the third movie, and I lean into the back of the couch so it dips, causing her head to gradually slide my way instead of Bane’s. When her cheek presses into my arm, I stick my tongue out at an unamused Bane. When she starts snoring softly, I turn all of my attention her way, carefully tucking her hair behind her ear.
Keeping my voice barely more than a whisper, I admit to the room, "Yep, I'm a fucking goner. It's official, Mason, I rescind my previous arguments; fated mates have to be a real thing." I gently run my fingers along her jaw and down the side of her neck. "Fuck, guys, I'm going insane here. I don’t even really know her, but can’t figure out how I ever lived without her."
Mason sounds pained. "Same. I thought getting trashed last night would help me sleep, but it just made it harder to convince myself that crawling in to sleep next to her wasn't a perfectly reasonable idea.”
“Maybe you should,” Bane suggests, and we both turn to look at him in confusion. Heck, even I know that’s likely too fast for her, and I’m already picking out her engagement jewelry.
Rising to his feet, Bane jerks his head towards the open spot. “Perfect chance for a nap, and innocent enough out here. You’re exhausted, and have been fighting the bond’s pull tooth and nail. It’s tearing you apart, Mas, and none of us make the best decisions when we’re tired.” He takes a seat in the free recliner, focusing on the movie and clearly not open to debating the topic.
Hesitantly, Mason crosses over to the couch. Sinking into the open seat, he keeps distance between us, so I sacrifice my well planned position, slowly tilting us without waking her. Cupping her head, I gently ease her onto Mason’s shoulder instead, letting him be her pillow. So that I can still soak up her proximity, I slide down so that I’m resting my head in her lap, tossing my legs over the arm of the couch and closing my eyes.
And for just a little while, I imagine what it would have been like if she’d loved us without the bond forcing her hand.
Chapter 9
Risa
