Page 57 of Bellamy

Gods, that soft gleam in his eyes would be the death of me. His plump bottom lip. His long, dark blond lashes. The straight line of his nose and his high cheekbones. Every part of him had been sculpted to perfection.

“Your brothers won’t like that very much,” I said, ghosting my lips over his. I had a screw loose in my head for even considering such a dumb notion. But… Iwasconsidering it. I couldn’t give two shits about the fate of mankind. But walking away from him now would crush me.

“Fuck what they think. I’m choosing myself for once.” Bellamy grazed his teeth up to my ear. In a husky voice, he said, “You’re mine, Nix.”

And then he bit me.

Releasing a surprised whimper, I wrapped both arms around him as he drank from my neck. He was placing his mark on me. My soul purred as our bond deepened.

“Bell…” I moaned and held him tighter.

From that moment on, any supernatural being we came across would know who I belonged to. As my blood ran down his throat, becoming part of him, they’d know he belonged to me too.

“All paths lead to that wonderfully dark night when the cursed sons draw their final breath,”Asa had said when describing the vision of the future where he wielded Light Bringer.

As Bellamy moved from my neck and kissed me, the taste of my blood on his lips, I knew I wouldn’t lift a finger to save the world.

But I would burn everything down to save him.

Chapter Ten

Bellamy

Phoenix slept in my bed, his dark auburn hair damp from the shower we’d taken together. He’d passed out before it could dry. I hadn’t realized he was that exhausted. Unlikely he’d gotten much sleep lately.

He still hadn’t told me what happened after he helped me escape.

Had Asa hit him? Tortured him? Those wounds would’ve healed, but the memory of the pain would always be in his mind. I knew that from experience.

“What are you doing, B?”Daman asked telepathically.“This isn’t like you.”

I stroked Phoenix’s hair.

The conversation I needed to have with my brothers wasn’t one that could be had through our minds. I needed to face them. Better we do it away from the demon sleeping in my bed.

I left my room and softly closed the door behind me.

“Meet me in the living room,”I projected into all of their heads.“We need to talk.”

I tapped into my connection with my brothers. Each of them had their own thread in my mind—a link that joined us. Galen’s was red. Raiden’s was orange. I made sure none of them were close to my room before I walked down the hall and descended the stairs. The last thing I wanted was for one of them to fuck with Phoenix the moment I left. I loved them, but I would’ve given them a world of pain for that.

The possessiveness over a mate was powerful. More so than I’d realized.

When I reached the living room, Alastair stood by the window, face devoid of emotion. I sensed a deep sadness radiating from him.

Still pissed at him, I said nothing and rooted myself against the wall to wait for the others to join us. It didn’t take long.

Mason came in carrying Gray on his back. My little brother gave me a sleepy smile as Mason sat on the couch and guided him onto his favorite cushion. I guess Gray wasn’t too mad at me.

I didn’t want any of them to hate me. Losing them was one of my worst nightmares.

“Okay,” Castor said once everyone was present. “Talk.”

“As I’m sure you already know, Phoenix is still here.”

“Yeah, his scent is all over you.” Galen’s hand rested on Simon’s thigh. Touching his mate would hopefully keep Wrath at bay so we could have a civilized discussion instead of throwing punches. “It’s stronger now though.”

“I marked him,” I said. And although I’d prepared myself for their anger, I still felt sick with nerves. “Phoenix is my mate. As fucked-up as that is, I’m no longer fighting it. I can’t.”