Page 28 of Bonds of Hate

Cillian takes a deep enough breath to fill his entire chest before answering. “You already know what I think, so there isn’t any point in saying it out loud.”

I regard him with narrowed eyes. “That hasn’t ever stopped you before.”

“Your word is my command, Prince Logan.” His gaze flicks to Poe and Ares, who are both still wrapped up in repeatedly making the same arguments to each other. “Would you like me to make my full thoughts on this situation known?”

Picking up the tablet, I return my attention to the list of names that has already grown longer. “Bring in the next one.”

Cillian gives me a half-bow so disdainful that I would have felt forced to correct the behavior if drawing attention to it just wouldn’t cause more problems right now.

With a long-suffering sigh, Ares collapses back against the wall as Poe gives him a triumphant look.

I cut him off before Poe can start full-on gloating. “We finish the interviews for today and then I’ll decide.”

Ares winks at Poe but address me. “I’m sure you’ll make the right one, boss.”

Poe sinks back into the shadows in the corner of the room, expression as flat as the tone of his voice. “I’m not.”

A dozen interviews later and I don’t even bother to let the last one open her mouth before I curtly tell her to get out of my sight.

Each Omega that walked in the door was somehow even worse than the last. The complete lack of acceptable options would amaze me if it weren’t so damn annoying.

“Absolutely nothing was wrong with that last one,” Poe says with a sigh.

“She had weird lips,” I say, tossing the tablet down on the desk hard enough that the screen cracks. “It would have looked like I had the opening of a balloon wrapped around my dick when I fucked her mouth.”

“Obviously unacceptable,” Ares agrees as he picks up the tablet and smoothly replaces it with a new one.

After I broke the third one, a stack of them had been delivered to the room.

I don’t thank him as I pick it up and scroll through pictures of the dozen women I’d had paraded in front of me for the last five hours. “This whole thing is ridiculous.”

Ares eases closer, looking over my shoulder at thescreen. “That was the last one for today. Does that mean you’ve made your choice?”

Poe appears at my other side, his footsteps absolutely silent on the carpeted floor. “You shouldn’t rush the decision. Take as much time as you need.”

Feeling suddenly stifled and unreasonably annoyed, I push up from the desk and stride toward the door. “I need a stress reliever. We’ve been cooped up in this room all damn day.”

They know I only have two forms of stress relief, working out my aggression in the gym or grabbing the nearest harem beta to work it out in a more primal way.

Judging from the fact that no one moves to follow me, they clearly think I’m planning to utilize the second option.

Ares steps smoothly out of my way as Poe picks up my abandoned tablet and glares down at it.

Cillian avoids my gaze as I pass him, the censure obvious in his expression.

Wisely, none of them say a word as I stomp out of the room and slam the door shut behind.

Enough words have been spoken on the subject.

The damn choice was a made a long time ago.

Chapter Six

MAYA

Defiant energy carries me back into the large antechamber, past the gawking faces of eager Omegas and sullen betas. It lasts almost all the way to the palace gates before I collapse onto a stone bench in between two hedges shaped like birds, shaking like a leaf and holding back sobs.

I give myself five minutes to fall apart completely before I pull myself back together.

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