Talon was so used to being excellent at everything he attempted to do, including driving for the first time, that he was flummoxed with his lack of skills at gaming.
“Brother, I could have warned you not to go up against our resident nerd,” Slade said with an amused huff, close at my back as he’d been all afternoon.
Fighting the urge to lean into him, in case it was all too much forone day, I jolted when his heavy arm snaked around my middle and yanked me back.
I rested my head against his chest, meeting his gaze. “Did you just pick up on my thoughts again?”
His nose traced down my cheek, andwho the hell was this shifter?Not my usually stoic mate. “Only the ones you scream really loudly through our bond,” he murmured, as his lips grazed mine. “You don’t even bother to try and hide them. Youand your thoughtsbelong to me.”
Hunter chuckled, giving off the vibes that he totally agreed.Possessive bastards.
Thatthoughtwent freely into our quintet and all three of them released low, husky laughs.
It was almost cute when they ganged up on me.Almost.
Hunter jumped to his feet, and within two strides was in front of me, caging me between him and the dragon. “You’re our number one priority,” he said, goingallentitled alpha. “We might outnumber you, but we’ll never use that to gang up on you, Emme. You hold all the power here, and I hope you know that.”
Talon propped himself up on the couch as he turned my way. “Just say the word, Honey. I’ll kill any of these bastards and not lose a night of sleep.”
Hunter and Slade didn’t even flinch at what was absolutely a real threat. “That’s disturbing,” I noted, narrowing my eyes on them. “Please don’t talk about killing each other to make me happy. I can tell you all right now that would be the farthest thing from happy, and we’d probably all suffer from some sort of bond sickness and die.”
“Who we killing?” Kellan chirped cheerfully as he strode into the room, practically beaming.
Finley was right behind him, and as our gazes locked, his expression softened, his big body relaxed.
“They’re showing their love for me by threatening to kill anyone who bothers me,” I told them. “Including you five in my pack.”
There was a long beat of silence, and then Finley’s big belly laughter set them all off again.
I just shook my head and scowled. “Figures that my alphas would be a bunch of psychos.”
Hunter wiped a hand over his mouth, but his smile remained. “I mean, I wouldn’t enjoy destroying my brothers,” he said. “But you come first.”
Kellan snorted again. “I’d take all you fuckers out for my Shortcake.”
Disengaging from the alphas, I marched over to the couch and somewhat dramatically threw myself into the soft cushion. My faux-annoyance faded when I noticed the tray of snacks on the coffee table.
Selecting a small pizza roll, I shoved it in my mouth, muttering as I chewed, “Why don’t you idiots kill each other inCall of Duty.” I swallowed the bite. “There’s clearly some frustration to work out here, and I promise, I’ll be very upset if any of you hurt each other in real life.”
Talon, the only one on the couch with me, slid over to settle by my side. “I missed you today,” I said with a sigh.
That had him wrapping his arms around me, holding me close in a moment of calm and silence. “I missed you so much,” he breathed. “It was a dull ache that had nothing to do with our bond separation and everything to do with not being close to you.”
That was exactly how I’d felt too. Burying my face against his hard chest, I just breathed him in. It really wasn’t just Slade and Hunter like this… it was all of us. Disgustingly obsessed.
“And proud of it,” Talon said with a rumble, once again picking up on thoughts that hadn’t really been meant for him.
When we pulled apart, I found myself staring at the split screen, which was paused in the middle of a warzone. “Do you know how to play?” Talon asked, as the others started to make their way over to us.
“Video games weren’t part of my life growing up or in the human world,” I said. “But I’ve sat with Hunter a few times and watched him absolutely demolish anyone who goes up against him.”
Hunter slid in on my other side, Kellan crashed on the floor between my legs, and Finley pouted briefly, before slumping down beside Hunter.
When I turned to Slade, the dragon shifter remained perched near the doorway. “I’m going to get a workout in,” he said. “As much as I’d enjoy seeing Talon smash more controllers, I’ve had you all day. I can share for a few hours so the others get their bonding time in.”
He strode over to trace his finger down my cheek, in a verySlademove. “But I will see you later,” he murmured, and I nodded.
Before he left, he said to Talon, “We must train tonight too. Emme can’t be the only one building strength when we’re the perfect weaponto use against magic. We need to ensure our ultimate beast is as strong as possible.”
