Page 86 of Unmarked
Dark oak. Rich leather. Shelves tall enough to kill someone if they fall.
It smells like dust, dominance, and generational wealth.
Kai’s draped across a couch, Theo’s pacing like someone forgot to plug him in overnight, and Lucian’s at the bar pouring whiskey like it’s the only thing keeping his inner demon sedated.
They look up the second I enter.
Theo’s the first to speak. “Well?”
I scan the room. “She’s asking for us.”
Kai whistles. “All of us?”
“She didn’t give a guest list. Just said she didn’t want to be alone.” I shrug. “Could be all of us. Could be me. Could be the fucking furniture.”
Lucian scoffs. “Absolutely not.”
I blink. “Come again?”
“No one’s going in there,” he repeats, like we’re supposed to forget the last forty-eight hours of Lucian’s Doorside Heat Vigil.
Theo frowns. “She asked, Lucian.”
“Of course she did. She’s in heat,” Lucian snaps. “She’d ask a houseplant if it exhaled the right scent.”
Kai raises a brow. “To be fair, I’ve met a few charismatic ferns.”
Lucian turns on him so fast I’m honestly impressed Kai doesn’t flinch. “Right. Because we all know you’d hump a fucking fern if it looked at you for long enough.”
Kai grins. “What can I say? I’m friendly.”
“Thepoint,” Lucian grits, bringing the conversation back on track, “is that we’re not making it worse.”
“She knows what she’s saying,” I bite out. “She was calm. Lucid. Rational.”
“She was crying slick,” Lucian counters.
“Yeah. And?”
He gestures like I’ve just proven his point.
Theo steps in, gentle but firm.
“Lucian. She doesn’t need a lecture. She needs support. Physical. Emotional. Comfort.”
Lucian laughs dryly. “Perfect. Let’s all gather ‘round, sing lullabies, and swaddle her like a burrito.”
Kai perks up from his half-sprawl across the armchair like he’s been waiting all day for this opening.
“Listen, I’m always down for an alpha cuddle pile. I’ll bring snacks. We can all touch pecs. It’ll be beautiful. Real growth moment.”
“Don’t start about fuckinggrowthagain, Reed,” Lucian snaps, turning on him with enough disdain to curdle milk. “I’ve listened to you circle like a dog in heat for two days straight and somehow managed not to throw you through a window. Yet. But you aretesting me.”
Kai stands, stretching with theatrical laziness.
“Surprised you could hear anything, what with all that whispering through the door. What was that about? Erotic audiobook practice? Or were you just narrating her heat like some fucked-up nature documentary?”
Lucian’s voice drops to a low, vicious murmur. “Careful.”
