Page 215 of Whispers of Wisteria

Titustskedand looked away.

“I saw her with it after you took her to Richards’s place,” Julian mused, and Damen frowned.

“Keep an eye out,” Damen responded. “We know she won’t tell us when she’s in physical pain, so she’d probably hide emotional pain too. We can assume that she only brings it out when she’s struggling and doesn’t know how to ask for help.”

“You have a Soul Bond now,” he continued, looking back to Titus. “You’ll notice when her thoughts spiral. Don’t dig. Just… listen for what she can’t say out loud. If she’s reaching that point, we need to know.”

Titus, still not looking at Damen, let out a breath. “Maybe,” he said finally.

That was probably the best answer we’d get from him. Between that, and my and Julian’s connections with her, we’d be able to help.

“There’s something else,” Damen said. “Bianca says she’ll consent to a physical exam.”

My heart felt as though it’d jumped into my throat. This was what we wanted, of course, but I didn’t expect it so soon.

Julian’s alertness sharpened. “Really? Then I’ll—”

“But not yet,” Damen interrupted, looking between the three of us. “She wants to talk to Do Yun first. She asks that no one pressure her until then.”

I watched him warily. He’d gotten her to talk to Do Yun, too? Was he a miracle worker?

“That’s good,” Julian said finally. “I’ll wait. I’ll let you know if I notice any changes in our Bond.” He paused, considering, then asked, “Are you going to do it?”

Damen, who’d begun to tap his finger on the table, froze. “What?” he sharply replied.

“The Soul Bond,” Julian explained, waving his hand palm up—like it was obvious.

I curled my fingers over my knees. How could he ask that?

It was clearly a touchy subject.

Sure enough, Damen scowled and the temperature soared.

“My answer has not changed,” he said. “No.”

But Julian had never been afraid of Damen’s moods. “What does it do?”

Damen’s presence grew heavier, and now even Titus was looking at him.

“Julian—” I began, pushing against my thighs. “Maybe now isn’t the best time—”

“Now’s the perfect time.” Julian didn’t even look at me. “Don’t you care about her?”

“You know I do,” Damen replied.

“Then what could possibly be so terrible about your Soul Bond that you’d keep her this vulnerable?” Julian asked.

“There’s more than just the Bond. There’s almost no circumstance in which I’d do it,” Damen said, final.

“So”—Julian lifted his eyebrow—“thereisa circumstance youwould.”

Damen’s glare gave me chills, but Julian only watched him coolly.

“We have a more pressing issue,” Damen said instead of addressing his statement. Julian blinked, but Damen didn’t even wait for a reply.

He whistled, and Kiania arrived an instant later. The tiger didn’t show any signs of battle. She sat and turned her face from Damen.

“What?” Kiania asked.