Page 9 of The Fate of Eternity

The bedroom door clicks shut behind me as we all filter into Raiden’s room. As much as relief floods my system from the privacy we’re now finally offered after a chaotic evening, it still doesn’t settle the uncertainty in my chest.

We’re wading our way through uncharted waters, murky with the sins of others, leaving us at their mercy. The fact that Bozzelli wasn’t aware of The Council’s true plans shouldn’t surprise me, but her now knowing, and what she may or may not do with that information, only serves to fuel my distress further.

“What do we do now?” Brody asks, pulling Addi into his side, and my gaze falls to her face.

“We sleep,” I grunt, earning a look of surprise from each of them, Addi included.

“Sleep?” Raiden snaps.

“We can’t just sleep,” Kryll adds, and I shrug.

“Maybe you can’t, but she needs to,” I state, pointing at my fucking alpha. She’s dead on her feet, exhaustion clinging to every inch of her. I don’t need to look at my brothers to know they see it too.

In true Addi style, she waves me off. “I’m good,” she breathes, stifling a yawn.

“If that’s what good looks like, I don’t want it,” Brody muses, pressing a kiss to her forehead before she peers up at him with a deathly glare.

“Hey,” she warns, and he boops her nose.

“Please, I’m teasing and you love it.”

“It’s questionable,” she mutters, covering her mouth to hide the next yawn.

I nod at Brody, who takes the hint, tightening his hold around Addi’s shoulders and leading her toward the bedroom in Raiden’s ridiculously huge room.

“Come on, Dagger. I’ve got you,” he murmurs, and she follows after him. Just as they reach the doorway, she peers back over her shoulder.

“We’re all sleeping here?”

“Yes. Is that okay?” Raiden offers, tilting his head at her, which earns him a pointed look.

“Are you actually asking?” she retorts, and he snickers.

“No.” The smile on his face is unbearable.

“I didn't think so,” she states, waving us off as she looks up at Brody.

“I need to get out of this dress.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” Brody says, wagging his eyebrows before they both disappear from view.

Addi snickers, the noise sweet as it dances through the air. “For a player, you have some pretty cheesy lines.”

“That’s because my player days are over, Addi. I told you that.” The fucker ushers back to the door, kicking it closed without a single glance in our direction, keeping our girl all to himself for a moment.

Swiping a hand down my face, I take the few steps over to the sofa and collapse back with a sigh. I’m consumed withexhaustion and the tendrils of wonder that cling to my bones. A feeling I’ve never even come close to experiencing before.

“Did you ever think a public bathroom would play such a magical part in your story?” Kryll asks, dropping down on the sofa beside me.

I shake my head, bewildered now that I finally have a moment to think about it all.

“What actually happened in the bathroom?” Raiden adds, taking a seat on the sofa across from us. “Why do you look all whimsical and shit when we bring it up?” he pushes, and I quickly try to smother the smile touching the corner of my lips.

He knows. I already know he knows, and for once in his selfish vampire life, he’s being selfless. Even if it’s just for a moment. Letting the question sink in, I allow my whimsical smile to return as my eyelids fall to half-mast.

“I found my mate.” The words are warm on my tongue, igniting a pull in my bones, eager for me to get my alpha in my sights again, but I fight against it.

She needs to rest and recuperate. She shifted for the first time, and that’s going to be a lot on anyone. Including her.

---