BRIAR
Itry to shift and realize my ass is killing me. I’ve slept on enough hard floors to know better than to fall asleep sitting up. I groan and flex my fingers, only to find them still tangled in thick hair.
Memories of the time I spent with the wolf before succumbing to sleep filter through my mind. I tip my chin down and promptly scream when I see a male with his head in my lap. Familiar eyes snap open, looking for a threat as he jumps up to crouch in front of me in a protective stance.
“Sunny?” I ask when no other explanation comes to mind. He looks back over his shoulder, and it’s a good thing I’m already on the ground, because that’s exactly where I would have ended upafter getting a good look at him. My heart is thundering so hard in my chest, I’m certain he can hear it if not see it. A bone-deep knowledge hits me hard and fast, and I can’t even speak when I open my mouth.
“My name is Moros, but you can call me Sunny.” His rich voice melts over me like honey dripping off a biscuit. I snap my mouth closed and search for the nerve to say something back, but just looking at him is overloading my senses.
Finally realizing there isn’t someone about to attack, he turns to face me. Without permission, my eyes run up and down his body, taking in every inch of him while trying to connect him with the beast from earlier. He tips his chin down a little, and I get a flash of the wolf doing the same. “You’re a shifter?” My tone is soft and filled with awe, but it isn’t just because he’s a wolf, it’s because he’s so much more to me.
Guilt eats into the bubble of joy giving me butterflies. Ziv isn’t going to be happy.Who cares?Ziv left you.
He crouches and examines my face as if he can read my every thought. I look down, worried that might be the case. “Don’t be bashful now, you already claimed me. I think the exact words were, ‘I’m going to keep you,’ right?” He pretends he has to think back on my promise.
I flush at the thought. “I thought you were a wolf,” I whisper.
“I am,” he agrees just as softly. “I’m pretty sure there was also an offer to provide food and a bed.” He’s grinning at me like he finds this funny. His smile does strange things to my insides, and the devilish charm only makes it worse. Damn it, I’m in trouble.
“I have a mate—two,” I blurt, because I know what this connection between us is. There’s no way I couldn’t after Ziv and Kage.
His smile drops, and his eyes narrow into slits. “Two? Where are they?”
“I don’t know.”
He tilts his head as if he doesn’t believe me.
“If I had to guess, I would say back at the Ivy.”
“That’s where you came from?” He strokes a finger down my arm, and goosebumps follow in his wake. He smirks after seeing my reaction. It doesn’t seem like my confession is too off-putting.
“Yes.”
“They let you leave?” he questions with an air of suspicion.
“I don’t think they had a choice.”
His sunny yellow eyes meet mine when he asks, “Why haven’t they come for you?”
I flinch. I’ve wondered the same things too many times. My shrug must be enough of an answer, because he holds my hand and rises, pulling me up off the floor at the same time.
“Where are you taking me?” I ask when he tugs me down the hall.
“To my room.”
“You have a room?”
“We have a room,” he amends.
“Because I’m your…” I can’t bring myself to say it out loud, even though I know it’s the truth.
“Mine. Because you are mine.” He doesn’t have any problem saying what he thinks.
“What about?—”
“They aren’t here. I am,” he interrupts.
“The rules. I thought you had to earn everything at Frostburn. How can I stay in your room?” I ask, finishing my original question.
