Page 55 of Ember's Claim

“I swear to fucking God, you keep her safe, or I’ll rip your head off before removing your heart to make sure the murder sticks,” Veryn growls, sounding dangerous and slightly unhinged.

“I will,” Anders says softly as he runs his fingers through my hair.

“I am perfectly capable of protecting myself and Anders, for that matter,” I mumble.

“Yeah, baby,” Veryn says, patting my ass. “We all know you’re a badass.”

“She really is,” Anders says.

“Suck-up,” Veryn mutters. The sound of his booted feet hitting the wood flooring echoes as he moves toward the door.

If I was more coherent, I would feel really strange about sticking my nose in Anders’s armpit. As it stands, I’m just grateful his scent is settling my tender stomach.

I pass out again and wake before the sun has even fully risen. It’s that dusky time when everything is hazy, and no one wants to be awake just yet. My job requires a lot of late nights and going to bed in the early morning hours.

“Good morning, sleepyhead.” Lorcan lies on his stomach, keeping his top half up with his forearms and looking entirely too handsome for whatever ungodly time of the morning it is. “How are you feeling?”

“Fine, where are Veryn and Anders?”

The druid runs his fingers over my cheek. “Veryn left a little less than an hour ago to retrieve your belongings. Anders went to locate Sofia to have the females gathered for some sort of meeting he said you wanted orchestrated.” Lorcan shrugs. I knew Veryn was leaving, but I expected him to be back by the time I woke up. “I made breakfast, but you’re still covered in dried blood. You might want a quick cleanup before coming down to eat.” A lazy smile crosses his face. “I’d be more than happy to help you into the shower if you’re still feeling unwell.”

Goodness.

He’s delectable.

My wolf stretches lazily in my mind and her ears perk up. It feels a little like she’s waiting for something, but I don’t know what.

“Ahh.” Lorcan grins mischievously. “There you are. Feeling better after the wolfsbane poisoning?”

My eyes light, and the glow reflects on his skin. His gaze dips to the bed, offering deference. It allows her to feel dominant in the exchange. Dammit, he really is smooth. He knows exactly how to win her over. His fingers slide into my hair, giving a playful scratch behind my ear.

“She much prefers that when we’re partially shifted,” I tell him, rolling my eyes. “Also, you better not out all of your tricks about how to seduce a shifter. Otherwise, she’ll start to wonder how many came before her.”

Lorcan chuckles softly. “I’ve seen many shifters wooed throughout my lifetime, but I’ve never done the wooing, little wolf.”

I quirk an eyebrow, but he simply shrugs.

“Now, would you like some help to the bathroom? Or can you manage on your own?” His fingers dig into the back of my head, reminding me that he asked a question.

Holy shit.

Lorcan might just be stubborn enough to go toe-to-toe with my wolf.

I hurry through the shower and grab the towels I left out for myself, wrapping one around my head and the other around my body. Maybe I’m spoiled. Part of me expected Veryn to meet me at the door with my clothes.

The door opens slowly, and instead of my sexy dragon, Lorcan stands. His eyes glimmer with something.

“Come have a seat.” He gestures to the small bench in front of the mirror. “We’re going to make sure you look fierce when you address your wolves for the first time.”

My wolf perks up.

And she turns cocky real freaking quick.

I stand, blinking, like a total goofball for way too long.

“Ass in the seat, Alpha,” Lorcan growls.

My body snaps into motion with the sound of his low chuckle as the backdrop.

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