But fuck, I didn’t want to keep my distance. I wanted my mate, and she wanted me. I told her what my pheromones could do. I explained that I killed someone with them… and she wasn’t fazed.
I didn’t want to take away her choice, but I didn’t want to hurt her either.
When I killed Lynn, her body shut down. It took just a few minutes. She was so mad at me for being upset over Eevie’s murder, and when she forced herself on top of me, I lost it. I wanted her dead and exuded more pheromones than I’d ever produced. I focused them directly on her, and she hadn’t even fully pushed herself onto my cock before her lifeless body dropped to the ground.
I caused that. My pheromones did that. An incubus had only ever killed with pheromones once in known history, and he was a fucking serial killer put to death three hundred years ago.
How could Wren still want someone like me? And how was I selfish enough to let her?
I flattened my back against the cold wall and slid down to the floor, leaning my forehead against my knees as I sighed. Hopefully, I was far enough away from them to not affect them anymore.
Sucking in more oxygen, I focused on pulling in my pheromones.
The silent tug of my magical energy signified there were still pheromones leaking. I had to find a way to contain them or I would never be able to touch my mate the way I wanted.
It was such a mind-fuck.
“Did you see his mate, though?” a whisper pulled me from my thoughts as I looked over.
Around the corner of the hallway, there were two maids gossiping in hushed voices.
“Of course I did! She’s so pretty. I’m happy for him.”
“He deserves a little happiness after what happened.”
“I can’t imagine how hard it must’ve been for him to let her in. After being betrayed like that…”
“And what they did to him?” There was a pause. “Kalista help him. The tattoos may cover it, but they’re still a part of him. I hope his mate sees past it.”
“Exactly! It’s not his fault he was taken and abused.”
“He trusted a human,” she spat. “He should’ve known something would happen, but his heart was too big.”
A sharp gasp made my head turn back toward the hallway, and my heart dropped.
Wren wore Damien’s shirt, and her hair was in disarray. Her small hands cupped her mouth, and her brows bumped together in confusion.
I pulled myself off the ground and stepped closer to Wren. “His mate just overheard you,” I snapped at the maids, who scurried off with a mumbled apology.
“Please tell me they weren’t just talking about Damien.” Her voice was weak, and she knew she was asking for the impossible. “Taken and abused… by humans?”
“I’m sorry.” I held out my arms, and she stepped into my chest, wrapping her trembling arms around my waist. “It’s Damien’s story to tell. No one else’s.”
“But… he never told me, Rhett.Oh, Kalista. I didn’t know.He’d been abused, and I didn’t know.” Her body shook in my arms.
“He didn’t want you to know yet. That’s why you didn’t know.”
“But why?”
“He wasn’t ready, but you can’t hide that you know something. There’s a lot more to the story than the little you heard.” I stroked her hair, and she nodded. “Come on, I’ll take you in there and you can talk to him.”
“Okay,” she murmured and took a small step back. “But I had come out to check on you. Damien noticed your pheromones had affected us, and then I noticed you were gone. Almost as soon as you left the room, the pheromones left too. Are you okay?”
I swallowed back the emotion thick in my throat as my arms fell to my side. “I’ll be fine, baby. Right now, Damien needs you.”
She tucked her bottom lip under her teeth as her brows furrowed more. “Rhett, if you need me too, I’m here. We can figure your pheromones out together.”
Pain ebbed in my chest, and I rubbed it with an open hand. I could feel the pheromones seeping from my pores. “Later,” I promised, reaching out and wrapping an arm around her shoulders and leading her back to the room.
