Yeah, yeah. Let’s get started.
Chapter Nine
RAJ
It’s times like this I wish my nose was more sensitive. I’ve been following Bryn’s scent trail through the manor trying to find him, but I think I’ve been going in the wrong direction and he’s not answering when I try to video call him. It’s time to make lunch before we head back to our respective flats this afternoon, and he’s been insistent about helping me cook meals over the past few days. It’s sweet, even if his kitchen skills are somewhat lacking.
Ending at the bedroom we’ve been sharing and finding it empty, I turn and head back in the direction I came from. As cheeky as his request was, sharing a bed at night does seem to have calmed his dragon down at last. It probably helps that during the day my pack are usually out working, leaving the two of us alone here, and although I’ve mostly been working on my laptop, we’ve also had plenty of time to get to know one another. It’s been… nice.
My tiger urges me to hurry, keen to see Bryn again. My tiger has been needy ever since we were in the pocket realm, only happywhen Bryn is holding us. This morning I woke up in my tiger form, draped across Bryn’s chest. I panicked that I was crushing him and tried to move away—I’m a lot heavier in that form—but he petted me and buried his face in my fur before promptly falling back to sleep.
It’s getting more and more difficult to avoid acting on my growing attraction to him.
Before I can get too lost in my head about that, I finally find him. He’s sitting on the floor in an enormous empty room on the west side of the ground floor, huge sheets of paper in front of him, marking something on one of the sheets with a pencil.
He’s as striking as always, but seeing him like this hits me differently. He’s always so intense and larger than life that I didn’t know he could be this still.
My tiger wants to shift and snuggle up for pets. I have to admit the idea has merit, but this isn’t the right time.
As I crouch down beside Bryn, I realise what he’s been doing when he’s wandered off while I’ve been working. He’s drawn detailed floorplans of the manor.
He finishes whatever he’s marking, then blinks up at me. ‘Is it lunchtime already?’
‘It is. So this what you’ve been doing for the past few days.’
He shrugs. ‘It was too good an opportunity to waste. I haven’t drawn plans by hand since uni, but I don’t have my laptop with me and I think I’ve done okay. There are some gaps where things don’t quite line up, and I can’t decide if I’ve drawn it wrong or if there are secret rooms and passages. Probably a mix of both.’
He’s not making it a question, which is just as well. I can’t tell him about the secret grimoire room in the library, or any of the other secrets this place holds.
‘You’re planning to go back to architecture then?’
His career before prison hasn’t come up yet, and I’m curious about his future plans. That, and I still haven’t managed to find Ayo a suitable architect. I’ve been debatingthe merits of contacting firms in London, but Ayo’s been adamant about hiring someone local. Frankly, none of the architects we’ve tried so far have spent as much time getting a feel for the manor as Bryn has. Depending on Bryn’s skills and experience, he could be worth considering.
Unfortunately, he immediately shakes his head. ‘No, that part of my life is over. We’d better get started on lunch, or Ethan and Ayo will be here before we’ve even made it to the kitchen.’
He rolls up the plans before I can ask anything further. I’m not sure why he’s made that decision when architecture clearly still interests him, but it’s not really any of my business. I’ll just have to continue the search.
My alpha and alpha-mate walk into the kitchen, heading straight for us. Ethan scents me and Ayo gives me a quick hug, leaving me with an ache in my heart that this will be the last time I’ll see them for the foreseeable future.
“You will not believe the latest shit the coven council are pulling,” Ethan growls as Ayo waves hello to Bryn and shows him his phone screen.
I transfer the neatly chopped onions into a huge frying pan, along with the peppers Bryn has haphazardly sliced. “Worse than refusing to discuss how to tackle the rise in crimes against humans?”
I read Ethan’s notes from the meeting with the coven council last week, which hadn’t gone particularly well. They seem to think that their strong leadership will solve all the coven’s problems, and that we should back off. Which would be fine if they weren’t risking the exposure of our entire world. Unfortunately, I’m not sure how we can get through to them when Ethan and Ayo already tried explaining every angle.
Ethan leans against the worktop behind him, arms folded. “They’re now accusing us of encouraging other supes to boycott coven businesses. Can you believe that bullshit?”
I turn on the largest burner and set the frying pan on top. “Do they even want other supes to frequent their businesses? They weren’t exactly welcoming before.”
Species divisions were rife across the city long before our pack moved here, and the coven never hid their dislike of shifters.
“They’ll take their money,” He says dryly.
I get distracted when Bryn gestures to the steak he’s massacring. Ayo types rapidly then shows him the screen again. Bryn nods, puts the knife down, and washes his hands.
Ayo beams at Ethan. “You don’t mind taking over slicing the steak, do you? I’m stealing Bryn.”
Ayo and Bryn have been working hard on the shield charm whenever Ayo’s had a free moment, but they’ve not managed to get it to be fully effective yet. No doubt Ayo’s making the most of the last time he’ll be able to work with Bryn for the foreseeable future.
