Page 281 of Rage

I’m not a real wolf.

“She’s waking up,” Florian states, and the mattress beside me sinks with the weight of the two men.

“Ivy,” Ewan breathes, placing his hands to cup my cheeks. “Are you alright?”

I nod, noticing Florian staring at me. His eyes are this deep brownish gold, and his hair is the same shade, falling down in soft waves around his shoulders.

He’s beautiful. They both are.

“I’m fine,” I promise, giving him a small smile. “A little sore, but I’ll be okay. How long was I out? Is Oli—I mean, Drake home yet?”

Florian winces when I start to say Oliver, and my stomach tightens in a knot, hating that I caused him any pain.

“He’s not here yet, but Flor and I have been discussing a plan of action for when he returns.”

“A plan?” I question, sitting all the way up in the bed. “What kind of plan? Can’t we just leave?”

“You mean run away?” Florian asks, his brows furrowing in clear frustration. “This is our fucking home. This is Olly’s home. We aren’t going anywhere.”

Ewan gives me a somber glance. “He’s right. We made a promise to one another that we would stay here. That we would get rid of him eventually, even if it killed us.”

Ewan reaches out and grasps Florian’s hand, and the man leans in, giving him a kiss. It’s tender and makes my heart swell. It’s clear there’s a lot of love between the two of them, and I know I should feel awkward being here in the middle of it, but I don’t. Instead, I feel at home.

“Alright. I can understand that,” I respond. “Then how do we get rid of him?”

“He’s going to smell that you’re going into heat the moment he walks through those doors,” Florian replies with a shake of his head. “And he’s going to want to fuck you.” The last part comes out more like a growl, and Ewan squeezes his hand.

“But we won’t let that happen. Drake should bring Florian up to make sure it happens, and that’s when we’ll kill him.”

“K—kill him?” I sputter. “You can’t kill him.Wecan’t kill him.”

“Yes, we fucking can,” Florian states. “He murdered Olly, and he deserves to die. He’s only keeping the two of us alive in order to find you and breed you. Gods, Ivy! Don’t you get it?”

His voice is raised, and I instantly cower back from the hulking man, despite my warmer feelings toward him before.

“Shit, Flor!” Ewan curses, hurling himself onto the bed and scooping me up into his arms. “She’s been through a lot. More than we have.”

“Fuck! I’m sorry,” Florian pleads, kneeling in front of the bed. “I’m so sorry, Ivy. I didn’t know.” He runs his hands through his hair, dragging them down his face while tears form in the corner of his eyes. “I just don’t know how to keep on going if he’s not dead. I just… I just need this.”

I know what he means… more than he realizes.

Before I know it, I’m crawling out of Ewan’s arms and grabbing Florian’s head before cradling it in my lap. I run my hand through his hair, reveling in the soft feel as he relaxes beneath me.

“We don’t know anything about one another,” I whisper, before taking a shuddering breath. “But I know. I understand.”

“I hate to break this up,” Ewan interrupts, glancing at the watch on his hand. “But Drake should be home in an hour. Florian, you should probably stay down here since he hasn’t let you up. I’ll call and check in about it.”

Florian nods and places a soft kiss on my thigh before standing up. “Fill the room,” he instructs, and Ewan gives him a dip of his head in acknowledgment. “And let me know when it’s safe.”

I follow Ewan as he leads me out of the room and back up the stairs, not able to help myself from looking back at Florian repeatedly. He remains kneeling next to the bed, his golden-brown gaze trailing me as I go.

My heart aches for him as we make it upstairs and Ewan starts speaking to me about what to expect.

“I know this is a lot to process, but we need to move quickly. You’ll have to act like you’re fully in heat, even though you’renot. What happened downstairs? That needs to happen again, except with both Florian and me. Are you alright with that?”

“You mean I need to have sex with both of you?” My voice is higher pitched than I anticipate, and my embarrassment at the thought is obvious.

Ewan’s upper lip tilts in an adorable smile at my reaction while we walk toward his bedroom. “We have to make this believable for him, Ivy. It’s the only way Drake is going to get close enough to us that we can take him down.”

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