Eros gave us a woman to tame us.
And that would never happen.
I stalked toward the door, my earlier plan to scoop Lucy up and take her back to the charred bedroom all but forgotten.
When I opened the door, I told myself not to look back.
But when I turned to close the door—facing the room, peering through the narrowing gap—I devoured the sight of her.
She’d just arrived.
And I was already a damn goner.
40
LUCY
I’d been awake for a while, sunlight streaming in through the tall windows and pressing against my eyelids, creating the illusion that the world beyond was somehow a luminous orange. My body was cocooned in a heavy comforter, but it was Xander's scent that truly enveloped me. His personal cologne was sharp and intoxicating, making my mind instantly muddle, but my body ignite. Keeping my eyes closed, I basked in the newness of it all, letting my other senses take lead.
My nostrils flared, capturing notes of leather and spice.
My fingers splayed out, whispering across the fitted sheet. It was silky and smooth to the touch.
My tongue darted out uselessly, as if I thought I could taste Xander in the air.
I should get up, but I couldn’t bring myself to leave this bed or this room, where every item offered me pieces of an Alpha who brought to life something undeniable in me.
Did it mean something that he’d brought me here after the fire?
No, I doubted that. Not enough time had passed for any of them to change their minds. I was still just the unwantedOmega, the recent arrival ruining their lives and keeping them from finding their real mate. I needed to constantly remind myself of that while I was here. I was a steppingstone, someone DemonX had to walk all over so they could make Eros match them again.
Yet, the warm longing in my belly smacked of both safety and insanity for wanting more from Alphas obviously hellbent on destroying me. My Omega side stretched beneath my skin, waking up after a lifetime of sickness. I inhaled deeply again, letting the masculine spice in the air wash over me.
Two sides of myself—angel on the left shoulder, devil on the right—began to argue.I can’t trust them. They hate me. Asher almost killed me. I don’t want to be rejected. I don’t want to be abandoned again. I can’t deny how my body responds to them. I can’t ignore the fact that my Omega wants them. I can’t mate with psychotic Alphas… can I?
Logically, I should find a way to escape. Even if I had to roam the streets of Las Vegas looking for a stranger’s mercy, it would be better than waiting for another murder attempt. But my desire wasn’t logical. I hadn’t realized that attraction could make someone so stupid.
I finally opened my eyes, fluttering lashes as the early morning, golden light pushed against my pupils. I wanted to rest here forever—on the softness of the mattress, aroused by the smell of a man who loathed me—but I had a feeling that if I didn’t choose to face the day myself, the Alphas would force me to face it using zero gentleness.
As I reluctantly sat up, the bedding slipping down to gather against my lap, a whiff of smoke hit my nostrils, tainting Xander’s gorgeous scent. I tilted my face down, sniffing the tight black shirt I’d worn under the protective suit. Suddenly, last night’s fire came scorching into my mind. With the memory, the argumentative angel reminded me that I’d almost died.That wasn’t something new—to dance with death—but dying at the hands of another human being? That was a very different ballgame.
Then, as if the Devil made me do it, I brought the comforter up to my face and I inhaled deeply. The fire faded, and all that remained was the Alpha who made my Omega purr.
Idiot, the angel sighed.
Smart girl, the devil crooned.
I dropped the comforter, embarrassed that I’d been sniffing it like a lovesick moron. These men hated me. Fantasizing about them would only lead to heartbreak.
“Get up, and handle whatever they throw at you,” I said out loud, steeling my resolve to leave the bed. “I’ve been through a lot worse,” I reminded myself, slowly pushing the comforter away.
A fresh wave of smoke hit me when my legs were uncovered. I pulled one knee to my chest, bending down and inhaling. My leggings reeked of smoke just like the shirt. I had nothing to change into though. Unless I was willing to put on the back-up protection suit. That thought made me frown. Waking up in a regular bedroom, on a normal bed, wearing only normal clothes feltwonderful. Even at Eros, in the luxurious suite, I could never forget the fact that I was still a patient. So, no, I wouldn’t put on the second suit, at least not right now.
I was about to swing my legs off the bed, when the sound of footsteps made me freeze.
What should I do?My brain screamed the question. Be brave, like I’d just told myself I would be. Or hide like a coward?
In an instant, I made my choice. I dove back beneath the heavy comforter, heart racing as I rolled onto my side, pretending to be asleep. I was closing my eyes too hard; I could feel the skin around my eyes crinkling. I tried to relax, but the more I tried, the tenser I grew. I couldn’t even steady mybreathing as I clutched the thick bedding against my body like armor.
