Page 49 of Ember's Claim

My hearing is excellent, meaning I have no choice but to sit and listen in on their bonding.

And it’s not that I’m opposed to sharing.

Truly, I’m not.

Sofia and I have three fathers. Our mother and Sofia’s father are wolves. My father is a lion. It’s how I ended up a hybrid, although it’s rare as hell, considering one animal form usually wins out over the other.

My head tilts as footsteps come up the porch stairs.

I sent Bryant and Toby to find my sister. She should have her mates with her. The rush of emotions that will come from finally knowing her mate’s killer is dead will hit her all at once, and she’ll need their support.

Sofia and I didn’t grow up here. She met her mates fifteen years ago and made the move to live with them. I visited shortly after to make sure she had chosen honorable men, and again when my nephew was born, but I didn’t pop back in until I heard the news about Burke.

I frown as the door unlocks, but that’s a solid indication Cohen or Lorcan is about to walk in. We’ve been friends for over a hundred years, and I still find it unnerving.

Lorcan’s head tilts under his hood, and his face breaks into a dangerous smile. “You’re alive. Can’t say I saw that coming.”

I chuckle, shaking my head. “You see the future, dickhead.”

“Nah, nothing so close to me.” He tosses his hood back and swaggers over with a jaunty skip in his step. “It’s a big black hole of nothingness when I actually give a shite whether someone lives or dies.” Tossing himself down on the other end of the sofa, he glances at the medical supplies still strewn across the table. “Are you officially the new alpha? And what the hell do you intend to do when we’re ready to leave?”

My head tilts. “That’s not gonna be a problem. Aimes played dirty, like we knew he would, but I had my ass saved by a pretty little she-wolf who came out of nowhere.”

“What did you say?” Lorcan chuckles, leaning forward with wide eyes. “Why do I always miss the good shite?”

I roll my eyes. “If you weren’t on a mission to play games with the paranormal council’s lackeys, you could have seen it firsthand. It was majestic.”

“Good, that prick got exactly what he deserved…” Lorcan’s face goes from amused to some emotion I can’t quite place. “I’m sorry, did you say she-wolf?”

The sound of someone sneaking down the stairs has both of our gazes flying toward the doorway.

“I told you that I heard his voice,” Ember says, dragging her mate behind her as she enters the room. She points directly at Lorcan. “You have some explaining to do.”

My eyes widen at the bright red claiming bite on her neck.

Good God.

He wanted there to be no doubt about whether she was taken.

“Well, this certainly is an unexpected turn of events,” Lorcan says with an oddly melodic tone to his voice. He shoves himself off the couch, walking over and holding out a hand. “You must be the mate. Allow me to introduce myself. Lorcan—druid—another of the little wolf’s mates.”

Several things happen simultaneously.

The dragon’s head falls back as he curses at the ceiling.

My jaw simply falls.

Ember jabs a finger at Lorcan’s chest, and he releases the spell that locks away his scent and the ability to remember him. It’s quite fucking unsettling how powerful he is, or it would be if he wasn’t one of my closest friends.

“You set me up to kill the alpha,” Ember growls, her eyes lighting amber with her wolf. “Did you saymates?”

“Let’s not be hasty.” Lorcan raises his palms, possibly because he realizes the dragon isn’t going to shake his hand. “As far as the alpha goes, I did no such thing.”

“You specifically riled my wolf and called me stubborn. Then all she could think about was running around pack lands, hunting, and frolicking.” She plants her hands on her hips. “Spoiler alert—there was no frolicking.”

The dragon glances between his mate and Lorcan with wide eyes.

Yeah, me too, man.

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