Page 10 of Chaos At Second Sight

A breath later, the left side of my face was pressed against the short fur covering his pectoral. Heavy arms engulfed me while he buried his muzzle in my hair…sniffing.

He was so warm that Scotland suddenly felt tropical. His scent was sending my nose into overdrive. I wonder what he thinks of my scent.

“Another kiss?” His hopeful tone sparked a giggle out of me, and I pecked the side of his muzzle again.

Lucien beamed, flashing me that prehistoric dentition. “One more?”

I smiled. “Last one.”

I repeated the operation, with Lucien watching me with rapt eyes, arms secured around me. It was an electrifying experience, literally and figuratively.

“Last one now?”

“You said that last time!” I poked his rock-hard abs. “Are you cheating?”

He lowered his head. “Yes.” A pout tugged at his muzzle. “Lucien is sorry.”

His honesty was almost alarming. Had Lucien inherited it all and left Logan with none?

“I forgive you,” I teased.

When his eyes darted back to mine, my stomach fluttered. I’ll need time to get used to those. They were crimson, flecked with silver specks lost within.

Was Logan also lost? Lucien and Logan were so different. Colors, voices, mannerisms…

“You threw branch at Lucien,” he said with a reverent tone.

“Oh, sorry about that. Did I hurt you?”

“No.” His chest puffed out. “Mate strong. Lucien proud.”

A laugh escaped me. “Well, it was still wrong of me, even if it was self-defense. Violence is never ideal.”

“Human is captain. Human beats up many players.”

I pursed my lips. “Don’t remind me.”

“Now Lucien can mark mate?”

My hand flew to my neck. His eyes followed, glinting with ferocious hope. “What? No!”

Those fangs looked perfectly capable of causing a hemorrhage, assuming they didn’t burst my carotid artery first.

“But Lucien must mark mate,” he said with a hint of a growl and a plea, eyes darkening. Until now, he’d been nothing but gentle, but there it was—that Alpha edge.

“No, Lucien, you can’t. Please understand.” I tried slipping from his arms, but they didn’t budge.

“Why Mate always say no?” He huffed, releasing me and turning away with his arms folded over his chest. “No here, no there. No, no, and no!” Another long sigh. “Always no to Lucien.”

He had a point. Saying no shouldn’t be so easy. Like Pythagoras said, the shortest words, yes and no, often require the deepest thought.

“And the human never let Lucien see mate. Human pushed Lucien away. Human said we can’t mark mate. Human said we cannot mate, Mate.” Lucien glanced back at me with a frown. “But why not? We are mates.”

Human. He was referring to Logan. Could Human hear us? Was Rudolph spying on me through Lucien’s eyes while I stammered and blushed? Was he mortified? Amused? Or was he just…away?

Logan and Lucien were two souls forced to dwell in one body.

“I…” My cheeks warmed, probably matching his eyes by now. “We should get to know each other first. Spend time together. Talk.”