Page 137 of Ensnared by the Pack: The Complete Series (Destined Realms #3)

AUDREY

Cyrus’s expression turned hard, and a wave of his power rolled over me, squeezing my chest and compelling me to submit. But I ground my teeth together and resisted everything within me screaming to make myself small and get as close to Knox as possible.

Cyrus had apologized for saying those horrible things to me and Whil had confirmed her magic was still keeping Sterling out of my head. Which meant my instinct that I could trust him came from within me.

And so did that damn fantasy that I couldn’t get out of my head.

It had flared to life the moment Whil had mentioned the possibility of another heat, and I tried to shove it out of my mind, but it was stuck there, on replay. Cyrus holding me like I was precious as he pushed inside me. Kissing me like he cared for me.

Damn it. I shouldn’t be thinking of Cyrus. I should be thinking of my mate— mates. That shared dream had been so hot, my cheeks were flaming with embarrassment. Knox had taken me like he always had in our dreams, wild and ferocious, claiming my body like no one else could. And then Bishop?—

God, Bishop. He was so sweet and sensual. Sex with him had been the complete opposite of Knox but just as sexy. It made my heart swell with love, and I felt our new impossible bond pulsing with warmth and spikes of pain.

Somehow, the connection we’d made in our dream, the overwhelming sense of belonging and claiming, was real.

But that wasn’t possible. It had just been a hot as hell dream. Even if we’d said the vows to each other, a bond shouldn’t have formed because we’d been asleep.

Of course, my bond with Knox shouldn’t have been possible, either.

And yet I’d known the moment Bishop had been hurt that I couldn’t live without him, that something inside me would shatter and I wouldn’t be able to recover.

Had that compulsion been our bond? Had it already started to form before we’d been attacked? And how the hell had I done it without saying the words or even being conscious?

And it had to be me. I was the only common denominator between bonding with Knox and bonding with Bishop.

Did that mean my soul would randomly bond with anyone?

Cyrus sat back on his heels and pulled back his power. His expression was still hard, his gaze unfocused as if he were thinking about something serious. But despite that, my memories of the dream jumped back to my fantasy of him.

A shiver swept down my spine. Would whatever was broken inside me bond with anyone I was attracted to?

I couldn’t let that happen. I couldn’t accidentally mate bond with Cyrus. He’d despise me for the rest of our lives, and it wouldn’t matter if the bond was supposed to make him fall in love with me or not.

He’d made it perfectly clear he didn’t want me, and even if he’d apologized, that didn’t mean he was suddenly in love with me… or that he even wanted to be my friend.

Congratulations, Deacon said in my head from where he sat on the other side of the campfire, still in his wolf form. Bishop will be ecstatic with how your bond formed. Now no one can deny that you’re meant to be together.

“Oh, I’m sure someone will complain,” Cyrus replied, indicating that Deacon had spoken to everyone and not just me.

The muscle in Cyrus’s jaw flexed and he ran his hands through his mussed hair. The braid running from the top of his head to the nape of his neck had almost completely fallen apart and most of his hair hung loose in silky brown waves that would make any girl jealous.

“I have no doubt someone will accuse her of having unnatural magic and that she imprisoned Bishop in a bond against his will,” he added.

“Of course they would,” I groaned. People were assholes and I’d just taken the pack’s most eligible bachelor off the market.

Which only firmed my determination that there was no way in hell I was going to risk accidentally bonding with Cyrus.

Knox’s emotions churned stronger through the bond, his anger rising to the surface as he battled to stay in control of himself and not let the feral nature of his wolf take over.

“I won’t let them hurt you,” he— no, his wolf snarled. “I’ll challenge anyone who says you and Bishop aren’t fated for each other. They might have forgotten that I’m their alpha, but I am. They won’t disrespect what’s mine.”

“And I won’t stop you,” Cyrus replied, a strange look flashing in his eyes before disappearing behind his usual hard mask. “But before we do that, we need to make sure Bishop lives.” He glanced at the sky that was now just starting to lighten with dawn. “Let’s have breakfast and head out. I want to get to the next shelter early so we’re well rested for the days after. The remaining days won’t be easy.”

With that, he grabbed the water bucket and headed to the house while Deacon shifted into his human form and gave me an eyeful before putting on his kilt and following him.

Whil grabbed our travel pot, which sat close to the fire with last night’s leftovers, and got to work preparing breakfast.

I glanced around, looking for something to do so I wouldn’t be useless even though my soul screamed to stay with Bishop and Knox and steady our souls.

Knox tightened his grip and buried his nose in my neck, drawing in my scent, and a violent flash of panic crashed through our bond, threatening to drag me under. He must have noticed my uncertainty about staying where I was or proving myself to Cyrus and the thought had shattered his control.

“I need you with me,” he rumbled, his grip crushing me against his chest.

“It’s okay,” I gasped, trying to focus on pushing love and certainty to him, but a spike of Bishop’s pain shot through our bond and I lost my concentration.

Knox growled, the sound low and dangerous, making Whil’s eyes widen.

“I’m not going anywhere.”

Concentrate. Push it out. Block it off. Something.

Incomplete thoughts whirled through me. Knox’s fear and determination and love had had me clinging to myself and holding myself together when Bishop had been hurt, but add in Bishop’s pain and it was too much.

“Knox,” Whil said and my mate’s gaze snapped to her. “She’s got two bonds now. She’s feeling what you’re feeling from Bishop and all your emotions.”

“Fuck,” he snarled, and the whirlpool drowning me pulled back just enough to let me catch my breath. “I’m sorry, Audrey. I’m sorry.” He relaxed his grip around me and nuzzled my neck in an attempt to soothe me. “It’s just so hard. My wolf is freaking out. I’m freaking out.”

“I know,” I murmured back. “It’ll be okay. We just need to hang on for a few more days and Bishop will be safe.”