Page 78 of Stargazer

I now examined the blonde instead of the usual brunette who took up an abnormal amount of my focus.

“Santi is kinda badass. I mean all the Knights are, but he has an unapologetic sweetness about him that makes him even more attractive,” I said, trying to coax out Billie’s thoughts. She was quiet when it came to her own feelings and sometimes needed a little more persuasion to open up about herself, feeling bad about making anything about her.

There was a faint smile on her full rosy lips. “That’s true. It does somehow make him even hotter,” she agreed, not giving away much. But it was enough.

“You should see him in the pool,” Kit added, licking her lips. “Of course, I’m essentially wifed up now so my eyes have only been on Carter.”

I chuckled. “Look at you, Kit! How is that going? You two seem cosy. I love it.”

I felt like I’d missed so much not being around them all the time, but hearing about her and Carter, let alone watching them together, made my heart all fuzzy and warm—a nice change from how cold and withdrawn it had been in recent times.

“Things are really good. Monogamy is an adjustment for sure, but we’re getting there.” She shrugged nonchalantly, yet I could clearly see the happiness in those light blue orbs of hers when she spoke about the British bad boy whose chaotic, restless energy seemed tamed and soothed by her own. They were almost the same person: high on life, full of energy and always pushing the boundaries. Turns out in their case, it wasn’t ‘opposites attract’. Somehow, they just perfectly worked.

“The spark between us is only growing now that we’ve given in to the soul flame bond,” she added.

Soul flames. There was that term again. I was aware those two were soul flames, she’d told me earlier, but it was a concept I kept forgetting. A notion I didn’t have time to think about.

It was something that seemed almost incomprehensible to me, that non-shifters had bonds too—probably because of how little it was actually brought up in my circles. It was fairly common for the Knights, given how many options one got, but not something they fixated on or cared too much about. It didn’t fit with their whole detached and impervious image. If they had one, great. But no one really flaunted it. The only reason we heard about it from Kit was because she was our best friend and confided in us about everything. With Knights, the effects of the soul flame were seen more than discussed, particularly when it came to combat. Or so I’d been told.

I didn’t have much to go by, but I was looking forward to watching how it strengthened the two of them as a fighting unit and as a couple.

Before all of this with the rogues, I had briefly wondered about it; the Knight's Bond. I mean, it sounded intense but equally incredible. Who wouldn’t want that? But since everything had spiralled, it truly had slipped my mind.

And mates? Well, apart from Axel and Aubrey, Blaze and Bear, I didn’t know any other mated wolves. So once again, I wasn’t extremely well-versed on the matter. But the wolves were much more open when it came to talking about their bonds—except for River. The concept of true mates made more sense to me, it was like the ones I read about in all my books. When Axel found Aubrey, he’d shared a lot with me about how it felt; that immediate pull towards each other. Both the mated wolf couples I knew seemed infatuated, thoroughly connected and utterly inseparable once they accepted their bond—in a purely supernatural way. Normal humans were not that attached to their partners. Not like the wolves were. I knew it was treasured in shifters; the greatest blessing to find one’s fated mate.

“I truly love that for you,” I directed to my little firecracker. I hoped my tone expressed how much I meant it, but was sure she could tell just how happy I was with one look at my face. Carter and Kitana were beautiful together and I was overjoyed for my friend. For both of them.

“I will say, it somehow makes the sex even better.” Her icy eyes shone with mischief as she wagged her eyebrows suggestively.

Billie and I belly-laughed at that. Kit’s openness and lack of filter was endearing and part of the reason I’d been immediately obsessed with her.

“I love that for you even more,” I said mid-laugh.

My mirth was soon cut-short though when my gaze caught on Griffin’s irresistible smile.

It was directed at the purple-haired Knight that had joined him.

I had nothing against Winter. She was fierce by nature, serious and mature, and had been nothing but lovely to me. But seeing Griffin smile at her like that made my breath catch in my throat. And not in a good way.

Celeste and Raven were no longer on the mat, but Griff and Santi still stood where they were on the outskirts. Winter claimed the spot on Griffin's other side. In one hand she held a sword. But my eyes felt like they were going to burn a hole through the spot where she touched Griffin’s bicep with her free hand.

The clip holding back her lilac hair did little to stop the flyaways that had fallen out during training from floating in the light breeze, making her look dazzling and ethereal with the wispy colourful pieces. Her eyes didn’t leave his face. Didn’t so much as look to Santi who was still standing with them, clearly part of the conversation.

I didn’t even realise I was squeezing the water bottle in my hand until the metal started to bend inwards, leaving indentations where my fingers had been gripping.

No right—I had absolutely no right to be jealous. Yet I felt the emotions bubble through me against my will.

Griffin was no longer seeing Sienna. He was no longer with me. Winter had every right to shoot her shot.

But that didn’t stop the unreasonable and intruding stab of jealousy from coursing through me.

I tried to push it down. Shove it away and box it up.

I also didn’t realise I had all but frozen in place until I heard a male snicker beside me.

“Jealousy isn’t a good colour on you.”

Zander seemed to have appeared out of nowhere—presumably from somewhere inside the pack house, since he hadn’t been out here training. Neither had Riv. But the Beta had plonked himself down next to me at some point.

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