“In this case, I think it worked out in our favor.”
I snorted, pulling my hands away to look at him. “I’m not getting any better at keeping my thoughts to myself, am I?”
“Somewhat. I don’t hear every thought that goes through your head all day long. But when you get emotional about something or, apparently, aroused—“
“Right.” I blew out a blew and fought to keep my cheeks from flaming with embarrassment. “That’s a handy use of this bond though, I’ll admit.”
He chuckled and the sound filled my hollow chest with something I didn’t dare name.
“Happy Birthday, Adrian,” Dante said into the sudden silence.
I turned to face him, propping myself up on an elbow as well.
“That was my present?” I asked.
“Your second present. I know I’ve blown your mind but I’ll be hurt if you’vealreadyforgotten the other one.”
“I haven’t,” I replied with a grin. “I just thought there might be… more.”
“More?” His eyebrows shot to his hairline. “By the Geist, woman, what more do you want from me?”
I bit my lip and then moved so I was straddling him on my bed. He shifted to settle underneath me and gazed up at my face as my hair fell down between us.
“I think this might be more of a present for me,” he said with a smirk. “Though you never did get me anything for my birthday…”
Laughing, I leaned down to kiss him, letting my center grind against the fabric of his pants between us. He groaned against my mouth and I was just about to reach for his zipper when the main door of the apartment slammed open and raised voices carried in from outside. My head whipped toward my bedroom door before I turned to back Dante. He frowned at the interruption as I rose from the bed and started shoving my naked body into the first article of clothing I found. I realized too late it was Dante’s shirt. The voices were rising to a crescendo and, unable to waste any more time stumbling around for myown clothes, I sucked in a breath and opened the door, leaving my bedroom behind.
“—will never forgive you, Harrison,” Graham shouted from the living room.
I froze in the hallway, blinking at the scene.
Sophie had her hands on Graham’s shoulder, trying to soothe him, trying to pull him away, but Graham wasn’t budging from where he stood in Harrison’s face. Harrison’s jaw was clenched, his eyes burning with fury as he glared back at his older brother.
“You can’t tell me what to do,” he spat. “I’m a grown man, and I’ll make my own decisions.”
“Maybe we should leave,” Dante growled in my ear, his breath blowing tendrils of my hair against my cheek.
“I have a good job working for administration,” Graham said. “The band is getting more and more gigs. We’re making enough to cover our rents and more. We’re doing better than most in the Third Ring. Why risk that?”
“Because I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t try,” Harrison snapped.
“What—” I started to intervene but got no further.
Sophie was the only one who’d even heard me speak. She glanced my way apologetically, her eyes widening when she saw the towering shirtless hunk beside me.
“People die, Harrison!” Graham screamed. “This isn’t a game. It isn’t something you just do on a whim. These Trials are dangerous. They kill people. I should know, working with the records like I do. Do you know how many people have died from the third Trial alone? And no one beats them! No one. You can’t possibly think—”
“More people are taking the Oath this year than ever before, Graham,” Harrison argued, shaking his head. “Ihaveto be a part of it. Can’t you see that? This is our generation’s moment, ourpeople’s moment, our Ring’s moment. And I have to be a part of it. I have to.”
“You’re not Adrian!”
I flinched.
“We should go,” Dante repeated in my ear, his hand finding mine. “Adrian.”
“You won’t get paired up with a First Ringer,” Graham continued. “You won’t pass four Trials. You won’t move up to the Second, and you won’t make history, Harrison. A thousand years! Don’t be a fool. Don’t risk your life, don’t risk everything, for a nearly nonexistent chance at glory.”
“You don’t understand.” Harrison shook his head again. “I knew you wouldn’t understand. But it isn’t your choice. It’s mine. And I’m doing this.”
