“We had a conversation about dragons and sharks once.Does that mean dragons are real?”
“Flint.”
“It’s why he’s so warm?”
“Yes.The guy is a walking fire hazard.”
“Fury runs warm too.”
Blade nods.“Yes, but he’s not a dragon.”
“Because you are all different?”
“Yes.We are all something.The MC is full of monsters, things that go bump in the night, but we have a code, and the MC’s motto is ‘Nobody fucks with the Kings.’”
Scoffing, I blurt out, “I’ll say.”
“It’s not just our supernatural abilities.We live with humans, we do business with them, and we care about some of them.”
Not knowing what to say, I fold my arms across my chest.
“Do you want me to leave?”
“No, and yes.”
Blade’s lips turn down.“I’ll go.”
Standing, I reach out and grab his hand.“No.”
“Because I bit you, what you are feeling may not be what you want.Distance and time will help you with that.”
“I don’t need distance and time.”Blade frowns.“I don’t.You’ve never once hurt me, but you should have told me what you are the moment things got serious.”
“Do you think you will stay here in Alaska?”
“I think so,” I reply.“Besides, you’ve got my cat.”
Blade chuckles, the sound warm and surprisingly light.The dark circles under his eyes don’t seem as heavy.“Actually, I think it’s Grace who’s got Vex,” he says, a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth.“He’s bought her toys, ordered a cat wheel...whatever that is.And yesterday, he got her a harness so he can take her for walks.Grace has him wrapped around her paw.”
A laugh escapes me.It feels foreign at first, but then I let it come, soft and free.
“Damn, that sounds good,” Blade says, his eyes lingering on me with something warmer.
For a second, I just stand there, absorbing the absurdity of it all.An incubus.A fallen angel.A dragon.A vampire.A werewolf.And then, somehow, Blade, a Kodiak bear shifter, who fits right in with my world and blew it apart.He’s part of something bigger than anything I could have imagined.
I’m part of this world now too.
Blade looks at me, his expression softening.“I know, Hannah.I know.It’s a lot.”He scrunches up his face in a frown.“The others may or may not want to share what they are with you, but regardless, they’ll need to get to know you a lot better before they tell you what they are.It’s dangerous for you and us.”
“Does anyone else apart from Tessa know about all of this?”I ask, my mind racing, trying to make sense of the overwhelming truth.
“Apart from some of the members in the lower forty-eight in our MC, it’s just you two.Tessa made the decision never to speak of it.The MC, well, we all protect each other.And we’ll protect you too.”
The words are comforting, but they don’t quite stop the storm of questions swirling inside me.I want to believe him, want to trust that I’m safe.I want to know where all of this is leading, whereweare heading.
“What’s next for us?”I ask, my voice trembling slightly with uncertainty.
Blade rests his hand on my shoulder and pulls my shirt to one side, exposing his bite mark.His fingers brush over the bite he left, the sensation of it sends a ripple through me.“This means you belong to me,” he says quietly, his voice thick with something deeper than words.“But if you don’t want to, I’ll understand.We can...”he pauses, his eyes shifting as though searching for the right words.“I can try to slow this down.”
