Page 292 of Commanding Blood And Bonds

And it took every ounce of willpower to stay on the opposite end of the room instead of taking the seat beside him.

“Getting some fresh air,” I muttered, though no one bothered to hear me as they debated the implications of Adrastos willingly burning an alias.

The chilly mountain air was enough to fill my lungs, but the still-shining sun took me by surprise. We’d been running verbal laps inside for so long, I expected the darkness to have claimed the day.

“Mrrp.”

The happy little sound dragged my gaze down to a black cat perched on August’s front step, his eyes drilling holes into me. Raised voices still echoed from the house, so I hurried down the stairs and scooped him up, carrying us both toward the water. He purred against me, the sound reverberating in my chest as I toyed with the bell on his collar.

For as long as I could remember, cats found me when they needed comfort—or maybe they sensed when I did. This one burrowed into my palm like he already knew which of us needed it more.

A few minutes passed before he gave an affectionate “mrrrow”, leapt from my arms, and pranced away.

Footsteps sounded behind me.

I didn’t turn. Just watched the cat disappear behind a tree, then tilted my face toward the sky, trying to thaw the ice forming inside me.

A zipper purred, then leather settled around my shoulders, two warm hands smoothing it into place. I turned to see Cyrus staring down at me, his wordless gesture warming my heart in a way it absolutely shouldn’t.

Peeling my eyes off his chiseled face, I said, “You’re missing the show.”

“I didn’t come for their antics.”

“What are you doing, Cyrus?”

“I could ask you the same.”

“Breathing.” I stared at the lake I’d spent so many hours on with my brothers. “The egos in that room are suffocating.”

He snorted. A soft shnick made me glance back—he held out a cigarette and I plucked one from the case.

Snapping my fingers, I sparked flame from nothing, lit mine, then his. He nodded in thanks.

We stood there in silence, smoke curling around us. Frustration bled off both our shoulders.

“What a shit show,” I muttered, watching as he blew out a long stream of smoke.

“Yeah.”

“You gather anything else from your encounters?”

“What do you think?”

“I think Reyna’s a thorn in your side, and you’d sooner let the world burn than bend to her.”

He chuckled darkly, turning to watch me as he took another long drag.

“You came for me,” I said, the words feeling heavy with the weight of that new reality. I hadn’t said it. Hadn’t thanked him. Hadn’t acknowledged the significance in him swooping in to scoop me out of harm’s way.

“Always,” he said, as though it could be that simple.

I gritted my teeth to keep from flinching. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Cyrus.”

“That’s the gig, isn’t it?”

“You’re not a Guardian. I don’t expect you to drop your own shit to save me when I offer you nothing.”

His jaw tensed. “A Mate Bond runs deeper than physicality, Freya.”