Page 37 of Bloom in Darkness

I glance down at Astra. “And now we know Bloom is part of whatever’s going on.”

Caelan picks up the jar and turns it over in his hand. “We know it’s part of Astra’s life. We don’t know if Sabine has anything to do with it yet.”

There’s no pharmacy label, just the handwritten sticker across the lid. “We don’t even know where he’s getting it.”

My jaw tightens. “If it’s Sabine, I want proof.”

Caelan looks at me over the jar. “Then that’s what we get.”

Astra

Caelan catches me just as I’m almost out the door. My bag’s slipping off my shoulder, and I’m wrestling with this stupid zipper on my jacket—I’m so late Sabine’s definitely going to say something. Behind us, Bryn leans against the desk, watching with that heavy, lazy look he gets when he’s had his hands all over me for too long. Bryn’s scent still clings to my clothes strongly enough that I know I won’t lose it until I shower, but Caelan was worse. He scented me until I was practically liquid on the sofa, his warmth pressed into my throat, my hair, anywhere his face could reach. I still feel the rough scrape of his jaw under my ear when he steps in front of me.

“One question before you go.”

I narrow my eyes because Caelan’s questions are never as simple as he pretends they are. “Depends on the question.”

His mouth curves without the teasing I expect. “Can I buy your time tonight?”

The warmth in my chest drops out so fast my fingers freeze around the zipper. “At the club? You mean a room. You want to book me.”

Caelan’s expression loses most of its teasing. “I want to spend time with you tonight. You have to work anyway, so I thought I could steal an hour. But only if you’re okay with me booking you.” His eyes stay locked on mine while I work out what he’s asking.

I glance past Caelan toward Bryn, finding him exactly where he was except for the sharper focus in his eyes. He knows what Caelan’s asking and apparently doesn’t mind. “I don’t know how I feel about you paying her for me.”

“Figured you wouldn’t.” Some of the amusement leaves Caelan’s expression. “I’m not asking to treat you like a booking. I just want the time. If the answer’s no, it’s no.”

I look down at my hands. Part of me hates this—Sabine getting money because Caelan wants me feels too much like every other man who’s ever booked a room. But another part remembers the auction, how he sat across from me and asked for nothing. “You’re not expecting…” I trail off, hating that I have to ask.

“No, sweetheart. I will never expect you to give me anything.” He moves a little closer. “The Forge will be slow tonight. Thought maybe I could just hold you for a bit.”

I snort. “I swear you do this on purpose. But yes. I’d like that.”

Caelan’s brows lift like he’s making sure he heard me correctly, so I point at him before he can ask twice. “You can buy my time. I reserve the right to complain about it.” His mouth is already starting to curve.

“That seems fair.”

I try to step around him, but Bryn catches the back of my jacket before I’ve gone two feet. He pulls me back between his knees, one huge hand settling possessively around my hip while he buries his face against the side of my neck. The sound he makes is so low it vibrates straight through my bones, and I close my eyes. “You’re going to make me late.”

Bryn just scents the other side of my throat anyway, rough and thorough. When I finally pull back, Bryn’s pupils are blown wide enough to swallow most of the green, his expression gone completely feral as he looks at me. “You’re enjoying this,” I accuse.

“Yes.”

Caelan laughs softly from behind me. “Go before he decides you don’t need a job tonight.”

I leave before either of them can make that suggestion sound reasonable.

By the time I reach the club, I smell ridiculous enough that Lio notices before I’ve even made it through the dressing-room door, his eyes widening as they sweep over me while I drop my bag beside the vanity. “Good fucking lord.”

I look at him through the mirror. “What?”

“You smell like those two spent the morning marking territory.” Heat prickles up my neck. I reach into my bag for my makeup.

“Please stop smelling me.”

Lio laughs and goes back to his mirror. “Hard not to when you walked in like that.” in my direction, laughing as I pull out my powder. “Whatever Caelan King uses, it’s clinging to you like a second skin.”

I laugh despite myself. My fingers brush the Bloom jar where I left it in my bag, Caelan’s questions about how much I’ve been using coming back before I can pull it out. Eventually I still use a little, rubbing a thin layer into my feet and lower back because I know exactly what tonight’s sets will do to me without it—but it’s less than usual. The restlessness is still there, maybe worse now, my skin too warm and sensitive after days of reacting too quickly to every scent and touch. Even now, with Caelan and Bryn all over me, I feel unsettled underneath it all. At least tonight I’m not trying to numb all of it.