Dredyn:
Good. We’re going to discuss boundaries, Hellcat. The ones you just let that asshole cross.
I close my eyes, phone clutched in my fist.
At 11:45 p.m., I slip out of my dorm in dark jeans and a hoodie, keeping to the shadows as I make my way across campus to Greek Row.
The OCK house is dark except for a few lights in upper windows. I slip around to the side entrance, the one that leads to the basement. The door’s unlocked.
Dredyn stands at the bottom of the stairs, arms crossed, every line of his body radiating controlled fury. Talon and Jasper flank him, equally angry, but quieter about it.
“Mara, want to explain what the fuck I saw today?”
I close the door behind me, descending the stairs.
“It wasn’t what it looked like.”
His laugh is harsh. “Really? Because it looked like Chase Harrington had his hands all over you. It looked like you smiled and waved at me while he marked you like property. So please, enlighten me. What was it actually?”
“He showed up at my dorm—my father sent him. I couldn’t… I didn’t have a choice.”
“There’s always a choice,” Talon says coldly.
I wrap my arms around myself. “Not in my world. Not whensaying no means my father hears about it. Not when Chase made it very clear he knows about you—about us. About all of it.”
That gets their attention.
Dredyn’s eyes narrow. “He threatened you.”
“He threatened all of us.” I force myself to meet his gaze. “He said if I’m not ‘gracious and receptive’ to the Harrington family’s interest, things will get complicated. For everyone.”
Silence.
“Complicated… That entitled piece of shit thinks he can threaten what’s mine and call it ‘complicated’?”
Talon’s hand reaches for me, gripping my chin and forcing me to look at him. His green eyes are cold, calculating. “Let me make something very clear, Princess. You don’t belong to Chase Harrington. You don’t belong to your father. You don’t even belong to yourself anymore.”
His fingers tighten just enough to make me gasp.
“You belong to us.”
Jasper moves behind me, bracketing me between the three of them. His hands settle on my hips, possessive and unyielding. When I try to turn to look at him, Talon’s grip keeps me facing forward.
“He touched you, put his fucking hands on you. Marked you like property in front of me.” He steps closer until I can feel the heat radiating off him. “Do you have any idea what I wanted to do? What I’m still going to do?”
“Dredyn—”
“I’m going to break every bone in his hand . . . One by one. And then, I’m going to make him watch while we remind you exactly who you belong to.”
“Chase Harrington doesn’t get to have you. Your father doesn’t get to sell you. The Syndicate doesn’t get to use you.”
“We do,” Dredyn finishes. His hand fists in my hair, tugging my head back. “Only us. Say it.”
“I’m not property,” I whisper, but even I hear how weak it sounds.
Dredyn’s smile is all teeth. “You’re right. You’re not property, you’re a queen—our queen. And we’re going to burn down anyone who tries to take you from us. But first, you need to decide something, Hellcat.” His dark eyes bore into mine. “Do you want to play nice? Be daddy’s good girl? Smile for Chase and let them auction you off to the highest bidder?”
“No,” I breathe.
