Page 33 of Her Males

He’s generally the most reserved of the three of us, but lately, he’s been the exact opposite.

I know he’s been whispering information about the fates to her, and he went against my wishes and told the shifters we’re working on a cure for the females during our meeting. The fucker refused to meet my eye as he spoke, and he even dared to straighten his spine as if he were proud of himself for sharing our private information.

I’m sure he’ll be all cheesy smiles when he tells Charlie about it, too. I did all the work to set it up, but it’ll be Silas who gets his dick touched as a thank you.

Not that I want her to touch me, anyway.

“Are you okay?” Gray whispers as Charlie finishes retelling her interaction with Shay. “I’m so sorry.”

Charlie nods, but Gray’s guilt still pours off him in waves as he slips his fingers between hers. He should be sorry, fucking idiot.

“I’m okay,” she comforts, squeezing his hand.

“You shouldn’t trust what Shay says,” Silas says.

Gray and I are quick to agree, but Charlie seems hesitant. She glances at Gray, her lips pursing, before turning to me.

“Will you speak to her?” she asks.

I perk up, happy she’s asking me, not Gray or Silas. It’s about time she realizes who’s in charge.

She looks hopeful, and I take no pleasure in shaking my head no. It’s not an idea worth entertaining.

I’m not sure what plan Shay’s concocted in her head, but I don’t believe she cares about the females for a second. I’ve watched that woman tear out the organs of weaker women simply because they looked at her wrong.

Not to mention how she took it upon herself to kill every female Gray slept with while they were together. She even tried to take me out in a fit of rage, sneaking into my room while I was asleep and attempting to rip out my heart.

It was a good attempt, one I found humorous, but Gray was mortified.

I wonder what he would do if Charlie tried to kill me. She’d fail, but I want to know if he’d grow as enraged as he did when Shay made her attempt.

I like to think he would.

Despite what he claims, I know he still feels our bond. He can pretend to be indifferent all he wants, but the guilty way he avoids eye contact whenever he’s been recently intimate with Charlie or Silas tells me all I need to know. He hates the divide between us, and I’m sure he still secretly hopes I’ll change my mind about Charlie.

Charlie presses her lips together.

“Please?” she tries.

I shake my head once more.

It’s not worth the effort.

Charlie tilts her head to the side, the sight making my hands clench into fists by my sides. She looks like a fucking dog when she does that.

Despite my attempts not to, I glance at her covered ribcage once more. Silas’s shirt covers her, and I want to know if her bruising has worsened.

“No,” I repeat before she can ask again.

Charlie frowns, her expression matching my own as she tightens her grip on Gray’s hand.

I don’t understand why she’s looking for his comfort when he hurt her just minutes prior. He was careless, and I hate how nobody else is angry with him.

He needs to be careful.

I’d lecture him myself if it didn’t draw so much attention to my softness toward the human. I’m fully aware I’m having difficulty distancing myself from her, but I don’t need anybody else to realize that.

The memory of Charlie’s gangly limbs wrapping around my body and pinning my arms to my sides calms me, and I clear my throat before running a hand through my hair.