Page 86 of Ruined Wolfsbane

“I don’t feel the connection,” I automatically protest, but that’s not exactly true. I’ve felt safe with the Wyldharts from day one, even with every brain cell I possess screaming at me that they’re trouble.

Their scents all smell like home. I trust them more than I’ve trusted anyone in a long time. For some reason, I’ve opened up to them about things I’ve never told anyone.

Shit. I think he’s telling the truth about the mate connection, but a pit forms in my stomach as something else occurs to me. “So, you only like me because fate told you to?” I ask in a small voice.

Why does it feel like my heart’s being ripped apart at that thought?

I’m not sure I believe in fate or mates or whatever. It shouldn’t matter if three men I absolutely shouldn’t have feelings for only care about me because fate said so. But it does. It matters a lot to my pathetic heart.

“No, Briar, that’s not how it works.”

“Then explain to me how it does work, Malachi,” I snap, unreasonably hurt and angry. Fuck. This is why I avoid feeling anything. It turns me into a crazy person. Emotions feel like sharp talons are shredding my soul, which is far more painful than any beating Patrick could ever give me.

“Without the mate bond, we’d still be into you. I’d still admire your fire, your intelligence, your humor, and I’d still be having very inappropriate thoughts about you. I’d never act on them because you’d be just another student,” Malachi explains, way calmer than I am.

I want to be angry that he gets to be so calm about completely turning my world upside down. It wasn’t enough to find out that there are apparently wolf shifters and that I’m one of them. The universe also needed to throw three mates at me.

But I can’t focus on anything other than one part of what he said. “What inappropriate thoughts do you have about me?” While I try to play it cool, my cheeks flame as I imagine what dirty thoughts he’s had about me.

“You don’t want to play this game with me, baby girl,” Malachi warns in a deceptively quiet voice edged with a threat.

“Pretty sure I do.” Unlike what Ava thinks, I’m not a virgin. While I’m not the most experienced, I doubt there’s anything he could say to shock me. My confidence falters at the dangerous look in his eyes.

Malachi growls as he leans over into my space again. With his warm breath fanning over my ear, he rasps, “Every time I’ve had you alone in my office, I’ve wanted to bend you over my desk, bind your wrists with my belt, and fuck you until you beg me to stop.”

He nips my ear before standing up, causing me to suck in a sharp breath. My mouth parts in shock as I process what he told me.

I don’t know what I expected him to say, but it sure as hell wasn’t that.

Jesus fucking Christ. That man has a mouth on him.

With the image he described playing on repeat in my mind, arousal licks up my spine and pools low in my belly.

“Close your mouth, Briar,” Malachi orders, placing his index finger underneath my chin to press my mouth shut, “before my control snaps and I decide to fulfill a different fantasy of your pretty pink lips wrapped around my cock.”

I choke on my own spit.

Is he trying to kill me?

Death by dirty talk. What a way to go.

What the hell do I even say to him?

Yes, please? Or, does bending me over a hospital bed work instead of a desk?

Yeah, there’s no way I’m saying either of those. Things are already complicated between us without adding sex to the mix. I don’t know if I can keep my heart safe if I fuck any of the Wyldharts. I snort internally. I absolutely do know. The answer’s no. There’s zero chance of squashing my feelings for the brothers if I sleep with them.

Bastian yanks me from my thoughts. “If we’re sharing fantasies, I have a few you might like, pretty girl. They involve you, me, and lots of rope.”

“I’m good,” I squeak, already feeling on the verge of combusting from Malachi.

Bastian’s eyes twinkle with mirth as he pushes past Malachi. He leans down in my space slowly, giving me a chance to move away.

I don’t.

He cups my face with a warm hand on either side. Bastian leans in and tenderly presses his soft lips to mine. My eyes slide closed at the sweet kiss. His tongue gently swipes along the seam of my mouth. When I open for him, his tongue flits in, twining playfully around mine.

While Bastian’s kiss is soft and slow, it’s no less all-consuming than Malachi’s. I lose myself to his mouth, every worry pushed aside by his careful attention.

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