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Though he could easily move silently when he wanted to, Wild gave me plenty of notice by stomping up the stairs to the bedroom. He’d been doing his best to contain his rage, blocking me from feeling the depth of his emotion, but it was there lurking beneath the surface.
My rage had called to his, drawing him to me.
He prowled into the room like a caged tiger, kicking the door shut behind him and pacing back and forth, crimson eyes filled with the need to avenge my honor. A need that couldn’t be fulfilled. Killing my mother wasn’t an option, my instincts would never allow it, even if a dark part of me wondered how much easier my life would be if she wasn’t in it.
Wild tossed his burner phone on the bed next to me, and I picked it up, holding it above my face and scrolling through his message thread with Onyx.
Onyx:Say the word and we’ll burn Grace’s mom’s house down.
Wild:I’ll get back to you. Grace has little brothers that live there.
Onyx:We’d get the kids out first. Maybe one or two of the dads—aren’t a couple of them marginally less awful?
I glanced up from the phone. “No burning the house down.”
He had the gall to look disappointed, still pacing as I returned to scrolling through his messages.
Onyx:Obviously, we all think her mom is full of shit, but you can tell Grace that plenty of humans do too. I’ve got eyes on the ground and the response to Faith was pretty mixed. Lots of people found her too rehearsed and kind of creepy.
Onyx:She is rehearsed and creepy.
Onyx:Any update on the fire idea? I’ve got people in Auburn already, monitoring the agathos.
Wild:No retaliation until I specifically get the go-ahead from Grace.
I laughed before I could help myself. “That’s kind of sweet. Thank you for taking my wishes into consideration before kicking off Operation Revenge.”
Wild raised a questioning eyebrow at me, clearly asking if I wanted him to issue the order or not. Even if I could, I didn’t want to make more of a martyr out of my mother than she’d already done herself.
“No,” I said firmly, typing my reply to Onyx, saying the same thing. “No retaliation. I have to believe that we’re doing the right thing, that fulfilling the prophecy is addinggoodto the world, not evil. And if my mother is on the wrong side of that, well, I’m sure she’ll learn soon enough with no interference from us.”
Onyx:Oh Good Girl, you’re ruining all my fun. How are you holding up? Wild said Dare got there okay. Are you walking funny yet? I’m surprised you make it out of bed at all with four boyfriends.
I surprised myself by nearly replying that I was, in fact, in bed right now. That I didn’t feel the urge to blush and immediately downplay the sexual aspect of my relationships had to be a positive sign, didn’t it? I’d wanted to get more comfortable with this side of myself, and I was.
The only reason I didn’t send Onyx a teasing response is that I needed to give Wild my full attention. His arms were crossed over his chest, fingers drumming impatiently over his biceps in frustration. He wasn’t used to feeling helpless, and my mother’s targeted attack on my reputation had made him feel that way. At any moment, he’d disappear downstairs to spar with Riot to work off that excess aggression.
I liked that the two of them had something to connect over, but this time, I wanted to be the one to help him.
“Come here,” I said softly, setting aside the phone and reaching for him with both arms. He paused his irritable fidgeting, raising an eyebrow at me. “Please?”
He nodded, lips tipping up slightly, the closest thing to a smile from Wild. Apparently only willing to let me call the shots to a certain point, he laid down next to me and snatched me up, dragging my body over his, trapping my leg between his while I propped myself up with my forearms on his chest, looking down at him.
“Don’t go fight,” I whispered. “Let me help you relax.”
Wild was already shaking his head before I could finish speaking. He didn’t trust himself with me, not all the way, and while I appreciated his concern, we’d never know until we tried.
“Stay,” I insisted, smoothing my hands over his chest. He shook his head again, though his palms drifted down my back, giving my butt a distracted squeeze. “I know you won’t hurt me. I trust you completely, and you should trust yourself. Besides, if I felt even a moment of fear or panic with you, Riot and Bullet would be at my side within seconds, making sure everything was okay.”
Wild pursed his lips contemplatively, and I could feel his resolve weakening, an undercurrent of arousal stirring beneath all the rage and frustration that fed into my own desire. It was indulgent—there were a million other things I could be doing—shouldbe doing—but…
But I wanted this. I wanted Wild. I wanted to be a little selfish for a bit longer.
His lips brushed against mine, hands sliding beneath my dress to pluck at the fabric of my panties, teasing me with a brief hint of amusement in his eyes before rolling me onto my back and carefully straddling my waist. The moment he bent down, I moved to cup his jaw, but Wild was faster than me, collecting both my wrists and pinning them above my head with one enormous hand. My heart rate spiked, but it was definitely from excitement rather than fear, and I knew that Wild would feel that through the bond.
I liked feeling a little helpless beneath him. Liked knowing that he’d take care of me, and that all I had to do was feel. Wild’s eyes flashed with approval as he nipped my lower lip, his free hand sliding down my body to bunch my dress around my hips. He trailed kisses down my jaw, nudging my chin with his nose, encouraging me to let my head fall back onto the mattress, and I didn’t argue. He kept moving down, teeth raking over one nipple through the fabric of my dress and thin bra, the movement in rough contrast to the soft ghosting touch of his fingers between my thighs.
My legs fell open, and I did my best to arch up into his hand despite his bulk pressing down on me. Wild tutted, stopping his ministrations completely.
