“I was able to get to the farm before Goode,” Artemis said, “but I have a bad feeling it was him who arrived just as I was leaving. I’m just glad the two of you were long gone by that point.”
“I’m glad, too,” Fletcher said, settling on the chair opposite us after relighting some of the lanterns. He rubbed his face, but I could see, even in the dim light just how relieved he was, now that his alpha was here. “I’m surprised you were able to find us,” he said.
“I just followed?—”
Artemis stopped, and suddenly both men were looking at me with wary, guilty looks.
I swallowed hard, scared of what the future held, scared of losing the only alpha I’d liked in years, and scared of losing my husband.
“It’s okay, I know,” I said, lowering my face and gripping a hand over my stomach. “You followed your bond with Fletcher.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Fletcher
Iwas just so fricking relieved that Artemis had found us. So much that I’d failed to take my own husband’s feelings into account. That was unforgivable. All of this, everything I’d done for years to plan in case Goode found him again and all of my efforts in executing that plan to get Gideon to safety were for him, for Gid.
I felt like I’d blown that all apart by throwing myself into Artemis’s arms and turning away from Gideon as I did it.
“Gid,” I started, squeezing my arm around him tighter.
“No, no, I get it,” Gideon said, holding up his arms in a way that loosened my hold on him. “I watched the two of you during heat. The connection that you had was obvious. I could never do those things.”
“You’re wonderful, Gideon,” Artemis insisted, leaning towards us from his chair. That just made me catch mybreath for a second as my omega hoped he’d pull me into his arms and cuddle me. “This bond with Fletcher likely just happened because we’re sexually compatible and because of heat hormones.”
That was incredibly generous of him, but Gideon saw the flaw in the logic.
“Alphas and omegas only bond if there is some sort of deep, innate compatibility,” he said in a quiet, academic voice, staring down at his hands. “I know because I write about it all the time in my books. I researched it to make sure I get it right in my stories. The two of you wouldn’t have bonded unless you were meant for each other, unless you were—” he sighed and shuddered a little, eyes still downcast, “—unless you were soulmates.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” Artemis insisted, scooting forward even more. His chair was positioned close enough to the sofa that he was able to reach over and take Gideon’s hands. I felt Gideon flinch at the action, but I also felt him lean ever so slightly towards Artemis. “I have very strong feelings for you, too,” he said. “I might have bonded with Fletcher, but I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you. And you know what? Forget me. You and Fletcher are soulmates. Anyone with eyes can see that.”
“But the two of you have bonded,” Gideon said, his voice quieter still.
“It was an accident,” I said, leaning my head against Gid’s. “You know I love you with my whole heart.”
Except I wasn’t sure if that was true anymore. Some of my heart was definitely falling in love with Artemis.
I glanced at Artemis, partially because I could feel him looking at me. I could feel more than that. As our eyes met, I sensed his concern for Gideon. That concern was pure and filled with affection. Enough so that I felt stronglythat Artemis had fallen for Gideon, despite our bond. Maybe because of it? It was so hard to tell.
“I don’t want to be in the way,” Gideon said, gloomier still. I knew there was no way I could feel his sadness directly, at least logically, but I had been with Gid long enough that it was like I could feel his emotions anyhow.
“You’re not in the way, baby,” I told him, rubbing his arm and kissing his cheek. “You could never be in the way. All of this, everything we’ve got going and everything around us now, is all for you.”
“I don’t feel like you’re in the way at all,” Artemis seconded me. “In fact, if you weren’t here, I would feel like something is missing.”
Gideon peeked up for the first time since the discussion had started. He checked in with Artemis, then twisted to stare at me, like he was trying to figure out if we were just humoring him.
I certainly wasn’t, and I didn’t feel like Artemis was at all.
“I tell you what,” Artemis said, squeezing Gid’s hands, then letting them go so he could stand. “It’s getting late and I don’t really know the lay of the land here. Why don’t you give me a tour of the house and everything in it, and then I think we should all go to bed. We’re probably going to need to be well-rested come tomorrow. And the two of you have only just finished your heats, so you’re probably done in.”
Gideon tensed slightly in my arms. One of his hands drifted back to press against his belly. I wondered if he could still feel Artemis’s seed inside him. I certainly did.
“A tour is a great idea,” I said with more enthusiasm than I felt.
I met Artemis’s eyes again as Gideon and I stood. I could tell his eagerness for a tour was so he could plan howbest to defend the house and Gideon if Goode somehow found us immediately instead of taking a few years to track us.
“I’ve only just gotten to know the house myself,” Gideon said, moving subtly away from me to lead Artemis through the living room to the kitchen. “Fletcher bought this house years ago in case we needed to escape. It doesn’t have any electricity and the water isn’t potable, but other than that, I think it has a lot of potential.”
