Ikissed Adalyn’s cheek, then Nash’s. My friend thankfully assumed my tears were joyful, because she didn’t question them. By the time I made my way toward Liam, my dress felt like a corset made of spikes.
He didn’t speak, didn’t ask what was wrong. He must’ve known, though. Must’ve already smelled my fated mate on me. That was one of the first signs. I raised my shoulder and sniffed my skin, but couldn’t pick up another scent over Liam’s.
Oh, Lycaon, why? Why would you do that to me? Are you testing my affection? Is that it?
Liam extended one of his arms toward me as I trampled the pine-needle encrusted snow.
“It happened,” I croaked.
He curled his arm around me, dragging me into his big body, squashing Storm’s little one. “I know.”
Storm squirmed, probably a little freaked out by how close we all were.
I attempted to muster up a smile for his sake, but my lips wobbled too harshly to shape one. “It’s not fair . . .”
“Here I thought it would delight you.”
“Delight me?” I pressed away from Liam. “Why in the world did you think it would delight me?”
His eyebrows gathered, spilling shadows into his eyes.
“Liam, hand over the Destroyer before you smother my smallest friend.” Lucas plucked Storm right out of Liam’s grip, a smile toying on the edges of his mouth.
If he knew what was happening, he wouldn’t be smiling. He’d be patting my back or Liam’s, offering his condolences. Then again, he didn’t have a true mate, so maybe for him, what had happened wasn’t all that momentous.
“Nikki, I know you think I don’t want this, but I want you, so I want this.”
Sniffing, I scrubbed the tears off my cheeks. “None of what you just said makes any sense.”
He frowned. “What part didn’t make sense?”
“Why would you want me mated to someone else?”
“WhywouldI want you mated to someone else?”
“Why are you repeating what I just asked?” I palmed my cheeks again, hoping the makeup I had on was really waterproof or I’d scare away the man I was desperately trying to keep close in spite of a stupid mating link.
Suddenly, his forehead smoothed. “Babe, who do you think you’re linked to?” He dropped his gaze to my navel.
A hard tug had me stumbling into him.
I froze, my fingers clutching the lapels of the tuxedo jacket he’d worn over a white button-down. “You? Lycaon linked me toyou?”
“You sound positively appalled.”
I pressed a fist to my mouth and didn’t blink for such a long time that tears crystallized along my lash line.
One of his hands settled on the small of my back, the other played with the ends of my hair. “Apparently, my wolf’s the ideal match to yours.” His forehead dropped to mine. “But we already knew that, didn’t we?”
My mouth was parted, yet I hadn’t breathed in almost a minute. “You really want this, Liam?”
“Yes.”
“I mean, you accept to consummate it?” I whispered across my knuckles.
“Well, I was planning on consummating you,” he said all low and gravelly, “so might as well consummateitat the same time.”
Heat splotched my cheeks.
