Arslan ignored them.“Do you have any objection to returning to the den tonight?”
Marrick glanced at Ryland.Going back to Arslan had helped him—it had been the only thing that had helped him by the sound of it.He saw a touch of sympathy Ryland’s eyes as he watched him come to a decision.
“Luther and Blaine will also be our guests, but you’ll be free to leave whenever you want,” Arslan promised.The glare he gave Luther and Blaine as he said it made it quite clear he would have the final say on the matter and not them.
Marrick nodded, slowly, as if there had ever been a possibility he’d come to a different decision when faced with the prospect of spending another night with the lions who’d been filling his brain and stealing his ability to sleep for more than a fortnight.
“Okay.Just for tonight.”
Chapter Three
Eyes closed, Marrick stood in the middle of the room.The heat from the fire coupled with the sensation of several pairs of eyes watching him intently brought it all back.He could almost feel leather sneak around his wrists.It would have been so easy to fall into the idea that a blindfold was still covering his eyes, too.The memory of being bound and helpless rushed through his mind and dropped straight to his cock.
He opened his eyes, and his gaze fell on a battered leather sofa.That was where they’d curled around him afterwards, snuggling up to him in a way he was sure no one-night stands ever should.
Looking over his shoulder, Marrick found Luther and Blaine both watching him with blatant curiosity, probably wondering why the hell he’d been standing there with his eyes closed for so long.He was about to laugh off his silliness when he noticed that Arslan was studying Blaine and Luther in turn, an unreadable expression on his face.
“And which kind of human is he?”Arslan asked, never once looking in Marrick’s direction.“Adrenaline junkie, nympho or whore?”
Blaine spun around to face Arslan.“What?”
Arslan repeated the question, word for word.
As Luther moved to stand next to Blaine, Marrick felt Ryland step closer to his side.
“Why do I get the feeling he’s quoting one of them?”Marrick whispered.
“Because you’ve probably got more sense than both of them put together?”Ryland suggested, no small amount of amusement creeping into his voice.
Marrick grinned.His guess at who Luther and Blaine had been talking about when they said it was obviously right.Two minutes in their company, and he already knew Arslan wasn’t the type of man to nod and smile when someone insulted his…his pet.
Luther and Blaine stared at the same time, their words tangling together into a garbled mess.
“It’s not the same as—!”
“He’s nothing like—!”
“Adrenaline junkie,” Marrick cut in, before another feline shouting match could descend upon the room.
All eyes turned toward him.
“With maybe just a tiny bit of the others mixed in,” Marrick added, for the sake of complete honesty.
Blaine swung back to face him.“What?”
Marrick shrugged.“I heard they were looking for volunteers.It’s not often someone offers to pay you to get that sort of rush while you’re getting laid.”
“The money will be returned.”
Marrick looked Blaine up and down.Best start as he meant to go on.And it wouldn’t do them any good to let them think they could ride roughshod over him just because he was human and they could turn into pretty little tabby cats whenever they wanted to.
“It’s my money, not yours.”Blaine and Luther both opened their mouths, the movement so in sync it was hard to believe both jaws weren’t operated by one person pulling both their strings.“Anyway—it’s already gone.”
Blaine glared across the room at him.“Where?”
“Children’s Hospice.”
Blaine’s lips parted again, but he stopped himself short.”What?”
