Chapter 38

Rhi

When we returnto the kitchen, we find Winnie has set Renzo buttering bread for sandwiches – although sensibly, she's the one in charge of the serrated bread knife, whereas he has the harmless-looking butter knife. Of course, he probably has my very sharp knife hidden in his pocket somewhere but Winnie doesn't know that. If she did, I doubt she'd be willing to stand so close to him. Then again, I'm amazed she's willing to stand that close to him at all.

Winnie's gaze flicks to us as we enter and I can tell she's curious about what we've just been discussing, but she tries her best to look casual about it.

"Renzo?" I say.

"Here." He grins.

"Can I talk to you next?"

"You can do whatever you like to me, little rabbit," he says, which has Stone grinding his molars. "Hey, Prof., it's only fair. You did what you wanted to her this morning in the shower."

"What?" Azlan says.

I grab Renzo's hand and drag him out of the kitchen, back to the room I just left. Inside, I pull my hand free of his, but he grips onto it with his fingers and tugs me towards him.

"You smell of him, little rabbit."

"We haven't come in here to talk about my sex life." The last thing I need is Renzo spiraling into some hissy fit because he's jealous or something. However, without warning, he buries his nose into my hair. "I like it." I have to admit, I wasn't expecting that. "Next time, can I watch?" He licks his tongue up the column of my neck and, oh stars, that has me shivering with desire.

"We need to talk," I tell him, resting my palms on his chest and attempting to push him away.

"I'm listening," he murmurs against my throat.

I don't think he is, but I also don't think I can stop him. And yeah, I am a deranged slut, because frankly I don't want to.

"I told them – Stone and Azlan – my other mates – about us."

"About what we did in that shepherd's hut?" He nips at my skin.

"Erm, no. About you being … about you being my fated mate."

He freezes and then he's sucking on my neck, his hands finding their way inside my shirt. I moan, tipping my head back and letting him suck even harder.

"You've never said it out loud before, little rabbit. Never admitted it. But you do feel it?"

"Y-y-yes," I gasp, as he squeezes my tit and grinds his hard erection against my belly. "You're meant to be mine."

"And you belong to me."

I close my eyes, bathing in the sensations his mouth, his hands, his cock, set ricocheting around my body, feeling how his magic tingles in the air.

"I belong to all of you."

"All of us," he growls.

I don't know how this is going to work. I don't know if it will. Maybe fate is cruel and twisted. Maybe she plans to bring us together, only to watch us rip each other apart. But right now, I can't find the motivation to care, not when he makes me feel like this.

"I'm going to have you, little rabbit," he says, biting at my jaw.

"Not yet," I gasp. "I'm not ready for that."

He lifts his head and pouts at me, giving me the full-on puppy dog eyes. The look on his face should be ridiculous. He's a grown man. A killer. Yet, it has butterflies dancing circles in my stomach.

"Oh jeez," I mutter. "Don't look at me like that."

"Why?"

"Because it makes it damn hard to stick to my resolution when you do."

The corner of his mouth twitches and that wickedness glints in his eyes now.

"Wanna do it on the couch right now, little rabbit? Want me to hold you down and–"

"Stop!" I say, covering his mouth with my hand, which only encourages him to nip at my palm. "We're not doing that yet. You need to show me you can behave first. Because you know if we do–"

"Fuck like rabbits," he says against my hand.

"–it will seal the bond and that is forever. Irreversible." His eyes grow wide like I've just suggested the most magical possibility ever. "And I won't be bonded to a man I'm worried might change his mind and murder me any second."

He removes my hand from his mouth. "The only people I'll be murdering from now on are the people who try to hurt you." He glances towards the door. "Including those two if they ever–"

"This is what I mean. You can't be threatening to kill my other mates – or maim them!" I add before he thinks he's sneaking around the rules. "You have to be nice to them," I say, telling him the same thing I told Stone and Azlan.

"Nice?" he says, complete confusion racing over his features. "Nice?" He steps away, tilting his head to one side, like he's finding it hard to compute the word.

"Yes, you know, don't say mean things, don't hurt them, try to get along," I say as if I'm explaining this to a child.

"You want me to play nicely?"

"Yes."

"No one's asked me to play nice in a very long time."

His job has required him to do the opposite. I examine him, realizing he's my fated mate, someone I'm destined to be with until my dying day, and yet I know nothing about him.

"How long did you work for Lowsky? For the Wolves of Night?"

He shrugs. "He picked me up when I was thirteen, fourteen, set me to work."

"Picked you up?"

"Took me in."

"Why?"

"I showed potential. And also I had nowhere to live."

He says it devoid of any emotion as if it isn't the most heartbreaking thing I've ever heard.

"No home? No family?"

His brow creases, anger flashes across his face. "This is boring. Let's talk some more about the fucking."

"No," I say firmly.

"It's just talking," he says, stalking towards me. "We can talk about how I'm going to drag you to your hands and knees and–"

"I'm leaving," I tell him, scurrying from the room with my hands over my ears. It doesn't deter him, he's still describing in intimate detail what he wants to do to me as we step back into the kitchen.

"–and I'm going to stuff my tongue up your pussy," he says as we step back into the kitchen.

"Fucking delightful," Stone says, as Winnie snorts.

I ignore them all, coming to stand by the table.

"Now we have all that straightened out," I say.

"What exactly were you straightening out?" Stone says, throwing both me and Renzo a dirty look and I am grateful it's no longer so easy for him to wander into my mind and read my thoughts.

"We need to decide what we're going to do next."

"We have decided," Azlan announces, "Rhi's dream indicates Spencer Moreau is injured or hurt and so we're going to find him."

"The werebeast?" Renzo asks. Azlan nods. "You know how to find him?"

Azlan pauses. "No."

"Was there any indication of where he was in your dream, Rhi?" Winnie asks.

"The dream last night was different from the one before," I say, biting at my thumb. "Before I was on the mountain, running up the slope. Last night, I was somewhere dark, somewhere cold. I could hardly see a thing."

"I think it's likely he's been detained. We've been listening to the broadcasts made by my uncle. He's arresting and locking up all kinds of people."

"Including werebeasts?" I ask.

"I don't know. But I suspect it's very likely."

Stone sinks down on one of the chairs and taps his fingers on the table. "He could be anywhere. Anywhere at all. It's not a lot to go on."

"There are the memories," I say, "the ones in my head. There might be something in there that could help us."

"I told you before, Rhianna, I'm not going back in there. It was too traumatic for you last time. I'm not putting you through it again."

"I can handle it, Stone."

"You can't," he says. "And, besides, there was nothing about a beast in your head."

"We didn't look–"

"Rhi, no."

I slump down on a chair as far away from him as I can find and cross my arms.

Renzo lifts the bread knife. "Want me to make him do it?"

Stone scoffs.

"No!" I say. "Nice, remember."

Renzo lowers the knife, looking exactly like a scolded puppy dog.

Azlan rubs at his chin. "I could do some investigating, tap up some old contacts, some allies I have in the authorities. See if I can find any information."

"You could reach out to your nephew," Stone says.

"Tristan?" I say, my bond automatically aching in my stomach. "Would he help us?"

"He's your mate," Azlan says. "He's on your side now."

I peer down at the scuffed tabletop. And yet he's not here. He's not with us. As far as I know he's making no effort at all to find us. I'm pretty certain Tristan Kennedy has once again turned his back on our bond.

"Have a little more faith in him," Stone says.

I shake my head. After all, we've been through together, after the way he's treated me, keeping the faith is damn hard.

"Investigating sounds dangerous," I say, spinning in my chair to face Azlan, "we don't know who we can trust."

Azlan walks towards me, crouching down so our faces are level. He slides his rough fingertips over my cheek. "You know I can take care of myself. And I'd be leaving you in safe hands," he smiles, that expression he rarely makes, "Winnie's."

Stone curses at him but I'm too full of anxiety to manage a smile back. I rest my hand over his.

"I only just got you back."

"I won't be gone for long, I promise you that. I couldn't fucking bear it."

He leans in and kisses my mouth.

"Promise?" I whisper, so that only he can hear, my heart now aching too.

"Promise," he says.