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She lifts her chin. “Yes.”

Her gaze flits between us, and I know she’s waiting for us to judge her, but that’s not going to happen.

“I think it’s a good idea—both of them,” I tell her. “If you want to bond with Nex, then I think you should do it. Nex might regret bonding with you when he has to deal with me all the time, but I’m happy to show him the error of his ways—without killing him. I just want you to get better, pretty girl—both you and Brenden. And I don’t think Brenden will be angrywith you. He’ll understand. He doesn’t want to leave you either. You’re his obsession.”

Her face softens for a moment, a hint of a smile on her lips as she stares at Brenden. “You’re probably right.”

Cassian runs a hand over his face. “This isn’t something I would usually condone. Forcing a mating bond on someone without their consent is cruel, but Brenden already has a connection to Nex. And you’re right, little mate, he’s dying. Even without the one-sided bond, I’d agree this is the best option to move forward. And if you want to mate with Nex, then I support your decision.”

“And you?” she asks Wraith when he remains silent.

“This is a decision you have to make, Audrey. We can tell you our thoughts, but you’re his mate. You have to decide what’s best for the two of you. As far as Nex goes…” Wraith makes a face as he trails off, letting his displeasure be known. “I hate the idea of you bonding with him—of you letting him into our lives. I also agree you can’t go into war like this, and it’s the only option besides killing him—which I know we’re not allowed to do—so I vote yes.”

A sigh of relief leaves our mate, clearly a heavy weight lifting from her at our agreement.

“Now, I just have to figure out how to get him to agree to bond with us after I told him I didn’t want him anywhere near me.”

I grin. “You let me worry about that, pretty girl. Just keep your day open tomorrow, and I promise to deliver you a willing incubus.”

Because, now that Audrey has decided what she wants to do, I’m going to damn well make sure it happens. Even if it requires threatening Nex—but I don’t think I’ll need to. I think he’ll come willingly. The hard part will be convincing him to complete the bond with Brenden.

Tomorrow, Nex will become a part of my pack—because they are, even if none of them are hellhounds like me—whether he wants to or not.

Chapter Twelve

Audrey

One upside to the rejected mate syndrome is I really can’t stress too much while I wait for Donovan to arrive with Nex.

I’m not sure how he plans to get Nex here, but I don’t really care as long as he shows up and bonds with the two of us.

This isn’t how I want to bond with anyone—especially someone I don’t know if I’ll be able to forgive. But I also know there’s no chance of forgiving him while I’m falling apart, which is exactly what I’m doing right now.

This is the right choice, even if it’s the only choice.

I lie back on the bed, facing Brenden.

He’s why this is the only choice. I refuse to lose him because of Nex’s actions, so he’s going to man-the-fuck-up and bond with us before it kills my vampire mate.

I stiffen, feeling the exact moment they step into the room. Forcing myself to relax, I roll onto my side to find them standing just inside the doorway.

“Nex.”

He bites his lip, eyes moving between me and Brenden. “Audrey.”

Donovan sighs, shoving Nex toward the bed. “You have two jobs, incubus—bond with Audrey and Brenden and make sure they feel good. Don’t fuck this up. If you do, you’re not going to like the consequences.”

Then he’s gone, leaving a blushing Nex standing there by himself.

He shakes his head, refusing to meet my eyes. “This is what you want?”

“Yes, and no. Yes, because it needs to be done. No, because if I could feel something more than absolute agony, I’d be really annoyed with you right now.” I sigh, knowing my words aren’t helping his uncertainty. “I don’t know exactly what Donovan told you, but I need to make some things clear to you before we proceed.”

When he nods, I continue, “This doesn’t mean you’re forgiven. This doesn’t mean we’ll ever have a relationship. It means you’ll be in our lives, and we’ll be the ones to decide how that goes—not you. You’ll live with us because we’ll need you close, but that doesn’t guarantee a damn thing when it comes to us. Bonding with you is a means to an end. We’re about to go to war, and I can’t do that with how I’m feeling right now. Brenden isn’t able to do anything on his own. He’s going to die if he doesn’t bond with you, Nex, and you’re the one who did this to him.”

“I know.” Nex finally lifts his head and meets my gaze with his sorrow-filled eyes. “I fucked up beyond belief, and I know this bonding has nothing to do with me. No guarantees and no expectations. I told you I’d do anything to make this right, and this is the first step.”

His eyes drift to Brenden, his breath stuttering. “Donovan said he wouldn’t be able to consent to bonding with me. You’re sure this is what he’d want?”