Page 66 of Brandy Snap: Part One

Mates.

Sin

Shelookedstunning.

I stood at the door to Melanie’s flat, meeting her with wide eyes.

I had only seen her in a maid’s uniform, so it was definitely an improvement. Except for when she was naked, naturally.

But the dress Kai had designed for the first event leading up to the Ceremony was breathtaking.

Blue silk scattered with gold stars, her brown hair styled back in a bun with spirals floating around her ears. Gold dewdrops rained across her shoulders and breastbone. Her glossy lips pink, her lashes brushed with mascara, dark blue to match her dress.

Even though the cut of her rejection was still there, I couldn’t ignore how my alpha instincts awoke as she took in a deep breath, and her throat bobbed as she swallowed down my scent.

“May I come in?” I asked as the seconds ticked by long enough for time to stretch. Four stylists shuffled in the room behind her, throwing us glances. Though they were Kai’s employees, their allegiance was obvious the instant one of them turned to fully face us, casually adjusting what I assumed to be the camera hiding in her breast pocket.

There was no escape from our mother’s webs. But their presence might be another indication of who Melanie really worked for. Caspian admitted that he searched for her, and revealed his results, athough it did nothing to lessen his and Kai's mistrust.

Even though I’d come here specifically to lay the groundwork for what Kai called ‘the big fucking reveal’, I was too distracted by the simple sight of her to remember that we were introducing her to our parents for a specific reason. It wasn’t just to use her as a decoy; it was a chance to see if our parents and Melanie knew each other, and if they were really that cunning.

Melanie pressed her lips together, and a look of determination crossed her face as she stepped back to grant me entry.

I knew it would be difficult to be in her space. But I had no idea that it would still smell of her heat.

With a single wash of her scent, I stirred. The swirl of rich brandy flowed through the room, and the beta stylists couldn’t sense how luscious it smelled.

Her heat would have ended when Kai’s did, and his scent usually drifted away a day later. But Kai preferred to keep the floor to ceiling windows in his nest open as he created new designs on his balcony. And our heat suite would have been scrubbed clean the day we left.

The moment the door closed behind me, her defensive aura morphed into shaky nervousness, and it clicked instantly that she had just invited me into her nest.

A thud echoed through my body, and my alpha instincts switched to high alert, even more intensely focused on her.

I had to control myself so I did nothing that would put us in jeopardy, such as drag her into her bedroom to finally have my way with her.

Kai was tense enough, no matter how much love Caspian and I buried him in. I highly doubted he would appreciate a late arrival due to my lack of ability to control myself.

I scanned the room as I entered, bathing in the pure rush of her home. It was like her small living room contained a festival. Not only the rich red and purple walls, each bottom half hidden by overflowing ocean blue bookcases, but the bold patchwork blankets that covered every surface, the flowers and animals painted across her wooden table, chairs, and doorframes. All enhanced by the way the light graced each corner of the room, reflecting new beauty with a sweep of my gaze.

Melanie glanced at the stylists to my right, clearly uncomfortable. We had forced them upon her, made her invite strangers into her nest. The fact they were betas made no difference when it came to a nest. Kai refused to let a single soul inside unless he had given us express permission.

My alpha instincts sighed with relief as she stepped in close. From how I instantly responded to her scent, there was no doubt that the match was still in place. I couldn’t feel the same bond I had during her heat, but my desire for her still remained. In that, I was thankful she had bitten Kai, no matter how furious it made him.

It didn’t matter how final a rejection apparently was. I still responded to her as if she was my omega.

Vibrant spices consumed me as she edged closer. I pulled in a breath just to glue her scent to my lungs.

Even with heels, she was a head shorter than me, and it was easy to look down at her and admire the arch of her throat as she tilted her head back.

We hadn’t even touched and I already felt as if I was drowning. My head dizzy, my instincts blazing, I reached out, taking her arm, pulling her to me without a thought.

A cry of surprise fled her as she spun straight into my arms. She gasped as her palms hit my chest, and I didn’t hesitate as I wrapped one arm around her shoulder.

“Sin,” she whispered. My name on her lips was the elixir I had been craving.

I took another breath, a small moan echoing from the back of my throat. I prided myself on control, but what could I do when the scent of her heat still hung heavily in the air?

“It appears your rejection did not work,” I said, brushing my lips over the soft curls that framed her cheeks.

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