Page 29

“And that’s all we’ll ever be.” Zane’s alpha authority rang through the room. “Whatever… complications… are developing, they stop now. We maintain appropriate distance. We act like the brothers we’re supposed to be.”

“Right,” Archer drawled, sprawling back on the sofa. “Because that’s working so well for you both?”

Twin growls echoed through the library.

“Face it,” Archer continued, his casual tone belied by the intensity in his eyes. “Something’s changing. You can feel it through the pack bond. The way our wolves react to him. The way he responds to us. Fighting it won’t make it go away.”

“We’re not fighting anything,” Zane snapped, “because there’s nothing to fight. He’s our brother. End of discussion.”

“Keep telling yourself that.” Archer rose smoothly to his feet. “But don’t expect me to pretend I don’t see what’s happening. Or feel how both of you react when he?—”

“Enough!” Zane’s alpha command vibrated through their bones. “This conversation is over. We maintain appropriate boundaries. We act like his brothers. Anything else is not an option.”

Archer paused at the door, his hand on the doorknob.

“You know what’s funny? For someone so convinced we should only see him as a brother, you seem awfully concerned about how much time he spends with me.

You can keep denying it, but sooner or later, we’ll have to address why all three of us can barely breathe when he?—”

A crash from the main library cut through his words, followed by a soft “Oh no” that had their wolves instantly alert. That voice—sweet and breathy and entirely too tempting—could only belong to one person.

The sound of wood creaking had them moving before conscious thought, bursting through the study doors into the main library. The sight that greeted them sent their wolves into a collective frenzy.

Luca balanced precariously on the top of the rolling ladder, stretched up on his tiptoes, reaching for a leather-bound volume.

The silk sleepwear set Archer had insisted on buying him—despite, or perhaps because of, Zane’s growled objections—was a sin made fabric.

Barely there shorts in silk rode high on his thighs.

His matching tank had ridden up, exposing a strip of creamy midriff that begged to be touched.

When Luca stretched higher, the silk molded to his lithe form like a lover’s hands, outlining every delicate line of the boy’s body.

Zane’s growl vibrated through the floor as his wolf howled at the sight. Through their pack bond, Archer felt his brother’s iron control threatening to snap.

Luca’s short black hair was slightly tousled, the soft waves framing his face catching the moonlight like a halo against his pale skin.

As he reached up again, the tank slipped farther, revealing more of his slender torso and a hint of skin underneath that had Ryker turning away with a strangled sound.

“Oh!” Luca glanced down at them, wobbling slightly.

The movement caused the silk to slide against his skin in ways that tested every ounce of their supernatural control.

“I was just… um… looking for this book about vampire maturation? Benedict mentioned there might be something about controlling feeding urges and…” His voice trailed off as he bit his lower lip, unaware of how the innocent gesture affected all three brothers.

The title he’d been reaching for came into focus— Blood Bonds & Territorial Instincts: A Guide to Vampire Manifestation . The irony of his choice wasn’t lost on any of them.

“Could someone maybe help me down?” Luca asked, his voice small and breathy in a way that had their wolves pacing restlessly. A drop of sweat traced down the boy’s neck, disappearing beneath silk in a path their eyes couldn’t help but follow.

Archer took an instinctive step forward, his wolf practically clawing to get to Luca, but Zane’s hand shot out to stop him.

“Don’t.” Zane’s voice was barely human, rough with something that had nothing to do with brotherly concern. Through their bond, Archer felt the alpha’s control fraying. “You’re not touching him when he’s… like that.”

Luca shifted again, the silk whispering against his skin. The sound seemed obscenely loud in the tension-filled library. Luca’s scent—vanilla and cherry blossoms now mixed with something darker, headier—filled the air until breathing became dangerous.

The wood creaked ominously. Luca’s small “eep!” of surprise had Zane moving before thought, crossing the library in a blur. The alpha caught Luca against his chest just as the ladder swayed, one arm under the boy’s bare legs, the other around his back where silk had ridden up to expose warm skin.

The contact made Zane hiss through clenched teeth. Luca was living temptation in his arms, all silk-covered lines and exposed skin that his wolf yearned to mark. The boy’s pulse fluttered visibly at his throat, drawing their collective gaze like a beacon.

“The book,” Luca mumbled, his face pressed against Zane’s neck.

The boy’s breath against Zane’s skin had the alpha’s eyes bleeding gold.

“I still need… I have to understand why I keep wanting to…” Luca caught himself, a blush spreading down his neck and disappearing beneath silk in a way that had all three brothers tracking its progress.

Ryker reached up to grab the volume with movements so controlled they looked painful. When Luca beamed at him in thanks, his fangs peeking out adorably, Ryker had to look away before his wolf completely took over.

“I’ve got you,” Zane managed, though his voice was pure alpha dominance. “Just… don’t move.”

Luca nodded, apparently oblivious to how every slight movement pressed him more firmly against Zane, or how his bare legs draped over the alpha’s arm were slowly destroying Zane’s sanity. Luca’s scent grew stronger, sweeter, with an undertone that had their wolves howling in recognition.

When Zane finally set Luca on his feet in the library, the motion caused both straps of the tank to slip down the boy’s shoulders.

The silk now clung to Luca’s slender form by what seemed like sheer willpower alone.

The boy’s quick intake of breath had all three brothers fighting their wolves’ urgent demand to claim.

Ryker stepped forward with the book and as Luca reached for it, the prince’s fingers brushed Ryker’s, and the contact had both of them freezing. Luca’s pupils dilated, darker lavender bleeding into his irises as his fangs extended unconsciously.

“Thank you,” Luca whispered, swaying slightly toward them. His gaze fixed on Ryker’s throat, then darted to Zane’s, before finally landing on Archer’s. The hunger in the boy’s eyes had nothing to do with blood-fusion drinks. “I just… I need to understand why I keep wanting to…”

Luca caught himself, clutching the book to his chest like a shield. The movement only served to emphasize exactly how little that silk outfit covered, the moonlight turning his skin to pearl and temptation.

“Good night!” Luca practically squeaked, backing away from them. “I’m sorry about… everything. The ladder. The… biting thoughts. I mean! Not biting thoughts. Just… good night!”

The prince fled, leaving behind only the phantom sensation of silk against skin and a scent that had their wolves howling in frustrated need.

“Still think we can maintain appropriate boundaries?” Archer asked quietly, noting how Zane’s eyes still blazed gold, how Ryker’s hands had shifted to claws.

The only answer was the sound of Zane’s fist meeting the nearest wall, leaving cracks in the plaster that matched the ones in their resolve.

Z ane stalked into his private wing of the penthouse, every muscle coiled with barely contained violence. His wolf clawed beneath his skin, demanding release, demanding he turn around and go back to where Luca stood in that scrap of silk, looking at them with lavender-tinged eyes and parted lips.

The doors to his suite splintered under his grip.

Even here, in his sanctuary, Luca’s scent lingered—vanilla and cherry blossoms now laced with something darker, headier.

The sweet musk of arousal that had spiked when Zane held him against his chest, when the boy’s bare legs draped over his arm, when those damnable straps slipped down Luca’s shoulders…

“Control,” Zane snarled, pacing the length of his bedroom.

The word was meaningless. How could he maintain control when Luca’s scent filled his lungs with every breath?

When his hands still burned from touching the boy’s silk-covered skin?

When his wolf howled to claim what it increasingly saw as theirs?

The massive windows overlooking New Vale’s skyline reflected his eyes bleeding to molten gold, his features sharpening as his wolf pushed closer to the surface. In the glass, Zane watched his canines lengthen, his muscles ripple with partial shifts he couldn’t control.

Luca’s small gasp when he’d caught him echoed in his mind. The way the boy had unconsciously pressed closer, his pulse fluttering visibly at his throat. How Luca had swayed toward them at the end, hunger darkening his eyes as he stared at their throats.

Zane’s claws shredded the leather armchair he’d gripped for support.

This was madness. Luca was their brother. Their responsibility. Their…

Mate , his wolf snarled. Ours .

“No!” The word came out more growl than speech. He couldn’t think like that. Couldn’t let himself remember how perfect Luca had felt in his arms, how sweet the boy had smelled, how those fangs had grazed his throat…

The bathroom door nearly came off its hinges as Zane burst through it. Maybe cold water would help. Maybe if he could just wash Luca’s scent off his skin, he could think clearly again.

Steam filled the bathroom as Zane cranked the shower to its highest setting. His clothes lay in shreds on the marble floor, victims of claws he couldn’t fully retract. Even here, with hot water pounding against his skin, Luca’s scent clung to him like a second skin.