Page 89 of Ensnared by the Pack: The Complete Series (Destined Realms #3)

AUDREY

My pulse pounding, half in fear of rejection and half in hope, I rose onto my toes and brushed my lips against Bishop’s. It was a test to see if the connection I felt between us was still there after my heat and not my imagination.

A rumble rattled in his chest again, the vibration somehow hotter and more sensual than his angry growl, fueling my confidence.

He felt it, too, the need, the yearning. The attraction was still as strong as ever and with a soft moan, I tangled my fingers in his hair and tugged him closer so I could deepen our kiss.

Without hesitation, he dipped in and captured the back of my waist with his arm to steady me but let me stay in control of the kiss until both of our breaths came too fast and my body was hot and tingly.

Then he took over, pinning me against the door and plundering my mouth with a desire that stole my breath and left no doubt about his intentions.

“Audrey,” he groaned as he jerked away and pressed his forehead to mine. “If I didn’t have to check in with my betas—” He brushed his thumb over my cheek then took a jerky step back. “What just happened here, between us— It’s a promise for more to come.”

My pulse throbbed, my body aching with the need for more but I nodded instead and didn’t press for more. Desire and disappointment warred inside me, but strangely no sadness. He wasn’t rejecting me. He was saying ‘not right now.’

And God! I couldn’t wait for him to fulfill that promise, couldn’t wait to be with him again when I was conscious enough to enjoy it.

“Take a bath and relax. I’ll have dinner brought to your room.” He cupped my cheek, his attention on my lips as if he were going to kiss me again before pulling even farther away. “Sleep as long as you like. You deserve it, and there’s no need for you to be on any kind of schedule until you’ve decided your future.”

He quickly strode away as if walking too slowly or looking back would break his willpower.

I watched him go until he stepped out of sight, then sighed and opened the door to my new room.

Inside was an opulent room done in creams, tans, and browns with gold accents. A large fireplace sat against the lefthand wall with a mantle covered in scrollwork that matched the door.

In fact, everything was covered in matching scrollwork: the couch and matching chairs’ wooden frames, the dark wood four-person dining room table with its matching chairs, and everything else that could be ornamented. It had to have taken a craftsman months, possibly even years to complete such detailed and extensive work.

The plush couch and chairs faced the fireplace, creating a conversation area, while the table sat at the back and to my right, leaving room for the French doors — which I doubted were called French doors in this realm — that led onto a small patio made private by a flowering hedge and planter boxes.

The room was easily three times the size of the bedroom I’d originally been in, and I hadn’t even stepped into my new bedroom or attached bathroom.

That thought sent a mix of pleasure and discomfort rushing through me. I liked the idea that Bishop wanted to pamper me, but I also felt like I was drawing attention to myself, and being noticed was dangerous.

My new bedroom was just as opulent as the sitting room with a large canopy bed, the mattress big enough that it would have been considered extra king size in my realm, a full-length mirror that could show two people standing side-by-side, and a large wardrobe.

It sent more mixed palpitations rushing through me. When Bishop had said I needed more space, I hadn’t expected it to also come with an upgrade to first class.

My few pieces of clothing had been hung in the wardrobe, barely taking up any space, and I vowed I would be the one to fill it. Not Bishop. I needed to start doing things on my own. I wanted to.

And now I could. Here, in this new realm, I was my own person and I’d been given a second chance. I didn’t want to let it go to waste by becoming dependent on Bishop. I wasn’t afraid of hard work, and I was sure I could find a way to earn my place in this pack in a way that wasn’t just as Knox’s and Bishop’s mate.

The bathroom was similar to the one I’d used before — except this one was private, not shared with the other rooms in the hall. It had shiny chrome fixtures and white marble everything: floors, counters, and tiles. A tub, larger than the previous one, sat at the back, looking just as welcoming even though it didn’t sit in a bay window overlooking a garden, and the stand-up, glassed-in shower was also larger, big enough for three people.

Just like the other bathroom, it was fully stocked, and I turned on the water to fill the tub and dropped in some bath salts that smelled fruity and sweet.

With a groan, I pulled off my boots and peeled away my filthy shirt and pants. My skin was mottled with scratches and bruises from being swept away in the flashflood, and I was so dirty, I felt as if I should peel my skin off, too, and throw it on the floor with my clothes. I really didn’t want to get in the bath while covered in filth. That would just be gross.

New plan!

I slowed the stream of water filling the tub, hopped into the shower, and scrubbed away all the grime that had built up from having walked for almost a month with only two showers and a handful of cold dunks in the river.

By the time I’d scrubbed down and washed my hair twice, the tub was full, and I sank into its sweet-smelling warm embrace and let my mind go blank.

But as I sat there half staring at the marble tiles and half drifting off, an uneasiness grew in my chest. The weight slowly getting heavier and heavier, twisting into something cold and sour.

I shifted, hoping a change of position would relax me, but the uneasiness continued to grow.

It had to be the room. That was the only thing that had really changed in the last little while. It couldn’t have been returning to Stonehaven. I hadn’t felt like this for the few days I was here before we left for the death god’s temple.

No. It had to be the new suite . It was too much, too luxurious. Someone like me wasn’t given a room like this without it being a trick or a mistake and I felt like it was going to be ripped away any second and I was going to be banished to the basement. Or rather, since this was a castle, the dungeon.

Did Cyrus even know Bishop had moved me to a suite? Bishop had said they’d all agreed, but upgrading someone with almost no useful skills didn’t seem Cyrus’s style. I didn’t deserve a room like this. I barely deserved the room I’d originally been given.

Except that was something Merrick and Sterling would tell me, and Bishop wasn’t like them. Cyrus and Knox weren’t like them, either. They might not have welcomed me or thought highly of me, but they hadn’t tricked or punished me.

Yet, a small voice whispered inside me, even as my heart and soul assured me it would never happen. The mating bond might let Knox reject me and be angry with me, but it would never let him be purposefully cruel.

And while Cyrus was tough and didn’t sugarcoat things, he didn’t strike me as cruel either. Without a doubt, all of them would eventually do things to hurt me, but their intent would never be malicious.

Which meant I just had to get over myself and accept the fact that someone wanted to do something nice for me with no strings attached.

Really.

Except the sense of unease didn’t diminish with my certainty that the guys weren’t screwing with me. It was going to take a while to let go of all the doubts and fears Merrick had driven into me for far too many years, and telling myself things were different wasn’t what would help. I needed proof. I needed Bishop and Knox and Cyrus to keep treating me differently until it finally sunk in. My own words to myself didn’t matter.

And neither did soaking in the bath.

I was still too worked up. I could spend all day in the warm water and it still wasn’t going to relax me.

With a sigh, I climbed out of the tub, dried off, and wrapped myself in the big, fluffy robe hanging on the hook behind the door.

While I’d been in the bath, someone had entered my suite and set a large silver tray with my dinner on the table in the living room. That only added to my unease. I didn’t like that anyone could just come and go from my suite. I should have thought to lock the door, but I’d been distracted by Bishop’s kiss on top of being tired from our long journey.

Had that been Bishop’s intent? To distract me?

No. Just no!

I couldn’t start doubting him. He’d taken care of me and been kind and sweet for the entire journey. I had to break the cycle of mistrust and doubt.

But the unease kept growing, twisting in my chest, making me twitchy.

What the hell was wrong with me?

I hadn’t been afraid like this in the entire time we’d been traveling and there’d been times when I’d be in serious danger.

But my current fear wasn’t because my life was being threatened. It was the fear that the safety and comfort I felt with these men in this realm wasn’t real, that it was all a trick, just like my mating bond with Royce.

I paced the room, hoping movement would burn away the tightness that was slowly squeezing my chest, but it didn’t help. I picked at my meal, a pasta in cream sauce with a side salad but couldn’t bring myself to eat much despite having been ecstatic about not eating camp food when I’d first returned to the city.

Jeez.

I collapsed on the bed and buried my face in a pillow. Sleep — if I could fall asleep — was my last option before I broke down and ran screaming through the halls.

With a groan, I rolled over and pressed my hands against my chest. It was so tight now that it was hard to breathe, my unease blossoming into full anxiety.

I could only pray sleep would reset my brain and I’d no longer be freaking out in the morning.