He ran his soapy hands over her sides, then moved to her breasts, lifting and caressing each full globe. Once the spray of water washed away the bubbles, he bent his head and dragged his flattened tongue over her nipples.
Nyx moved her hands to his head and urged him to look at her. “Why are your eyes completely colored?”
Her carefully spoken question suggested she understood the reason and wanted him to confirm it. Instead of responding, he finished washing her body, then his before setting the soap down and grabbing the shampoo.
Anton tapped her hip. “Turn for me.”
She studied his face for a long moment, then followed his command. He lathered her hair, rinsed it, then added thick conditioner to the strands.
Without anything left to delay this, he wrapped his arms around her stomach and held his true mate flush to his chest. “If anyone finds out what you are to me, you’ll die. I don’t doubt that for a second. My enemies would eliminate you, hoping I’ll die when you do or that I’ll follow you into death.”
Nyx covered his arms, holding him while he held her. “Because I’m your true mate.”
Anton smiled. His eyes burned. The conflicting emotions fit right in with the crazy thoughts skipping through his head. He swung from primal ones that had everything to do with lust to softer ones that left him in awe of the power this female held over him. He’d do anything for Nyx. Anything. Even follow her to the grave.
“Yes.” Admitting the truth lifted a weight from his chest. “Our souls were selected out of the billions that have passed through the ages to complement each other.”
“This is why I’ve been drawn to you from the moment I read your ad. I thought it was because of Boris. What he planned for you, for me. Maybe it was part of it. I still want the role he promised me, but the drive…the demand I meet you.” Nyx shook her head. “I don’t think anyone could’ve kept me away.”
While Nyx’s statement should’ve left him feeling important, the rest of her response tightened his muscles. “What was Boris’s plan for you if you didn’t uncover evidence against me?”
Nyx sighed. “I would mate Colin. Or someone. Isn’t that the fate of all shifter females? We mate and have babies.”
“But you want more.”
Nyx nodded.
“And Boris promised you more if you provided the evidence he sought against me?”
Silence stretched. He could feel Nyx’s anxiety as if it was his own.
“Nyx?”
She swallowed loud enough for him to hear. “Please remember that we haven’t known each other long. We also haven’t had much time to sit and talk about things.”
Her urging intensified the uneasiness gripping him. “Part of that is my fault. I’ve tried to hold you at arm’s length, hoping to protect you from the truth.”
“Learning that I’ve been blessed with an honorable and strong true mate is not something I need to be protected against. It’s something to celebrate.”
Anton turned Nyx into the spray of water. He cupped her face in his hands while the warm water rinsed out the conditioner from her hair. “Being with me is dangerous. As your true mate, it’s my responsibility to protect you, whether you like it or not.”
Nyx matched him, holding his face between her delicate hands. “And it’s my job to protect you. I’ll do that whether you kick me out of this house and your life or not.”
“I don’t deserve you, Nyx.”
“And I don’t deserve you.” Nyx dropped her chin to her chest. “You might agree once you learn why I came here.”
“You already told me. Boris wants me off the Council.”
Nyx lifted her gaze to his. “So I can claim your spot.”
He stared at Nyx but without a permanent tie to her soul, he had no idea what was going on behind her brown eyes. The moment in the shower was a one-off. They’d spent the night loving each other more completely than any casual lovers could. “Women can’t hold spots on the Council.”
“Yet.”
“What do you mean? Yet?”
Nyx licked her lips. “Please don’t hate me.”
“My soul was meant to be bonded to yours. If I hate you, I hate me.” Anton brushed his thumb over her cheek. “Tell me.”
“Bianca sold the first Alexander’s book to Boris. He’s had it hidden away ever since, waiting for me to mature so I can claim the title as first female on the Shifter Council.”
Anton shoved away from Nyx and slammed his hand against the shower knob, killing the flow of water. Then he stormed into Nyx’s room and stood there, staring at the bedframe. Before his true mate rested her head there, Bianca had.
“I trusted her.” And he had. Bianca had never given him a reason not to.
Nyx laid a hand on his bare back. “Bianca had secrets. Boris knew one of them. I don’t doubt he used it against her and forced her into a corner where she had no choice but to give him what he wanted.”
“You as the first female councilwoman.”
“Or the Mercer name in the history books. I’m not so sure what his true motive is, but I can guarantee he’s not going to sit back and wait for a spot to open. He’ll create one for me, even if he has to plant evidence against you.”
“Evidence you would have planted.”
Nyx stepped in front of him. With a towel wrapped around her body and the strands of her hair dripping water on the floor, she appeared feminine and delicate. The hard glint to her eyes showed the other side of his true mate, the one that allowed her to stand before the man rumored to be a cold-blooded killer and challenge him. “I would have if I’d suspected you of being guilty. I didn’t. I don’t. You’re being railroaded because men like my uncle fear the power you’ll hold over them.”
“If Boris is willing to fight to put a woman on the Council—”
“Boris is willing to fight to put another Mercer on the Council. I don’t think he cares whether I’m female or not. Because as long as I’m on the Council, I’ll be a Mercer. I won’t ever have to worry about being mated into another family and changing my name.”
Not having to take a mate likely appealed to Nyx, especially after she felt the pull to him. She never would’ve been content with anyone else, even if he’d pushed her away.
Anton twined their fingers. “Where is the book?”
“Colin and I delivered it to the library last night. Boris wants a copy made in case anyone tries to destroy it.”
He exhaled in relief. “Tsar has it?”
“Yes.” Nyx glanced around the room. Her attention zeroed in on the bed. Well, where the bed had once been. Only the frame remained. “So I assume you’re not kicking me out.”
He closed his eyes on a sigh. The recovery of the first Alexander’s book opened a ton of possibilities for them, but he couldn’t promise Nyx anything. Rumors suggested what was written in that book. Not fact. “I’m not sure what our future holds. We still might not be able to be together. Officially, anyway.”
Nyx kissed his chin, drawing his attention back to her. “One challenge at a time, Anton.”
“Exactly.” He pulled her into his arms. “And while you’re dressing, I need to deal with a very important one.”
“Which is?”
“Molly is arriving today with Kade. She wants to step in front of the Council and announce herself.”
Nyx tipped her head back. “Announce herself as what?”
“A pride leader.”
Nyx’s eyes widened and her lips parted, forming a small o. She closed her mouth on a hard swallow. “A pride leader. A female pride leader.”
“And now that the first Alexander’s book is safe, she can rightfully and safely assume her role.” Hopefully.
“And if Boris hadn’t safeguarded the book?”
“Molly likely would’ve been forced to hand the spirit she houses over to a male, willingly or through a death match. And if what Kade says about the child is true, Molly would welcome a fight. Even during the next full moon.”
“She’s only a child.”
Everything he’d heard about Molly suggested she’d never been a child, at least not mentally or emotionally. “Molly’s a pride leader. Has been since the day she was born. Once you meet her, you’ll understand.” Or so he’d been told.
“When is she arriving?”
“In a few hours. Kade left last night to pick her up.” Anton eased out of Nyx’s embrace. “I need to dress and run to the campus store.”
Nyx raised a brow. “For what? I hope you’re still not insisting I use a douche kit.”
Laughing, Anton bent close and kissed Nyx. He loved how she could make him smile when the ugliness of his species darkened his soul. “No. It’s customary to serve pride leaders and alphas something special to eat. Molly likes milk and cookies, so I want to be able to offer her some.”
“There are a couple of bags of chocolate chips left in the pantry.” Nyx stepped out of his arms and raised her chin as if readying for a fight. “I can make some. I won’t mess them up this time. Promise. Last time was a practice run.”
Anton took his true mate’s hand and drew her to him. “Why don’t we make them together?”
Openmouthed, Nyx stared at him in awe. “You bake?”
“And cook. And clean.” He chuckled. “Why do you think I have so many bags of chocolate chips in my pantry or a supply of cleaning products?”
Nyx’s cheeks took on a healthy glow. With her lip caught between her teeth, she turned her attention to his chest. “I hadn’t thought about why. I guess…I just didn’t think a male like you would be bothered with such menial tasks.”
He tipped up her chin. “A male like me?”
“Strong, dominant, aloof.” Nyx touched his jaw. “You don’t look like a man who’d bake cookies.”
“Do I look like one who’d feed them to you?” He slid his thumb over her bottom lip. “Or would you rather eat cookie dough off my fingers? Because either works for me as long as you’re with me.”
“I like this side of you, Anton. Playful, considerate, caring. I never would’ve guessed.” Nyx grinned. “You’re really not the bastard I first assumed you were.”
“I am when I have to be. Anything to protect what’s important to me.” Anton traced Nyx’s jaw. “Sometimes that means I come off cold and aloof. Sometimes that means I have to embrace my primal side. And sometimes that means I have to bake cookies so my guests feel welcome. Means to an end, Nyx. I don’t care how my actions are perceived as long as I can keep what belongs to me safe.”
“Even how your actions are perceived by those you love?”
Anton inclined his head. “Even if it means they hate me. Or fear me.”
“You deserve love, Anton. Not to be hated or feared. You deserve companionship. And you deserve—”
Anton laid a finger over Nyx’s lips, stopping her words. “You. I deserve you. And I’m going to keep you. Do you understand me? I’m going to soul-bond with you. Make you mine. Forever, Nyx. You’ll be mine forever.”
He’d keep Nyx by his side twenty-four hours a day if that was what it took to spend eternity with her. And if anyone ever threatened his woman, he’d prove to the world the rumors about his rage were very, very true.
Chapter 22
The angelic-looking child dipping chocolate chip cookies in her glass of milk reminded Nyx of herself at this age. She’d learned early on how to catch the attention of her uncle. Poise and politeness could make even the hardest of males lower his voice and smile. Maybe that was a sexist response. Or the natural tendency of an adult toward innocence. Whatever the reason, she’d used the tactic to manipulate her elders. If Nyx had to guess, Molly was doing the same.
Kade and Anton sat at the kitchen table with Molly. Both powerful men spoke softly with her, even while their conversation was anything but gentle. Anton wasn’t trying to hide or lessen the dangers Molly would be facing by going before the Council and announcing herself as a pride leader.
“This is too dangerous. I should never have agreed to bring you here.” Kade shoved from the table and stormed to the sink while Molly lifted her glass to save the milk from sloshing over the rim. “Only security has seen you. None of them were Royals. We’ll leave now. Once we’re back on Alexander pride lands, nobody can force you to leave them again. I won’t allow it.”
“Word likely has already spread across the campus. Soon, every Council member will know Molly is here. We’ve been talking about her for months. They’ll want to meet the child who’s caused such an uproar in our society.” Anton turned in his chair and glared at his pride leader. “This is something you should’ve thought about before—”
“I did think about it.” Kade pivoted. “But I didn’t have all the facts I should’ve. You failed to provide them, Councilman Alexander. You failed to warn me that any feline shifter male could challenge Molly to a death match on the next full moon. She’s a kid.”
Anton slid off his chair. “She’s a pride leader. What exactly did you expect?”
“For Molly to be protected by her representative on the Council. You should’ve ensured she’d be safe from a challenge at least until she matured.” Kade ran a hand over his hair and looked at Molly. “Even then, she’s…”
“A girl, and I’ll never be as strong as a boy.” Molly broke her cookie in half and ate it. “But strength isn’t everything. Isn’t that what you told me? Speed matters too.”
“Yes. It does.” Kade returned to the table and sat. “But there are many men who will look at you and see an easy win. They won’t fear you.”
“They should.” Molly fisted her hand, crushing the remaining cookie she held.
The crumbs on the table drew Nyx’s eye. This had gone on long enough. Kade was right. Pride leader or not, Molly was very young. She needed to be protected, even from herself if need be.
Molly might be open to challenges. It didn’t mean she had to be accessible to be challenged. If the Alexander pride would’ve protected Nyx from being forced into a mating, they’d ensure nobody got close enough to Molly to challenge her. And while Molly was growing up in a safe environment, she could train. She’d need to be tougher, faster, and deadlier if she had any hope of surviving in their male-dominated world.
Nyx approached the table and crouched, bringing herself eye level with Molly. “My uncle thought I was adorable at your age, Molly. Boris dressed me in the cutest outfits he could find and would shower me with attention, but he never expected the little girl he’d raised to be more than a pretty face. Until I proved him wrong.”
Molly tilted her head and studied Nyx as if seeing her in a different light. “How?”
“Before my uncle Boris became a councilman, he was a very powerful lawyer. Over the years, he would take turns being the contact person at the office where he worked with other shifter lawyers so the humans didn’t catch on to the fact they never aged, but at home, they reviewed every case together.” Nyx grinned. “Actually, they argued about every case, but I didn’t fear them, no matter how loud their arguments got. I argued with them.”
Nyx couldn’t remember exactly when her uncle and his business associates started taking her seriously, but once they’d started seeking her out to get her opinion, she’d felt powerful. “You see? It didn’t matter how cute Boris dressed me. He learned I was more. So did the other lawyers at his firm. I understood the law. I was able to reference past cases and help build their current cases.”
“I don’t care about the law.” Molly shook her head as if this conversation was ridiculous.
“And I don’t care about being able to survive a death match as I’ll never face one. What I do care about is being able to prove I’m more than a pretty face.”
Molly frowned. “I don’t understand.”
“I didn’t wake up one day understanding the law my uncle referenced. I studied and read constantly. I listened to his arguments. I learned.” Nyx fought to stop herself from smiling as understanding showed in Molly’s eyes. “And that’s what you s
hould be doing. Prepare yourself. Learn from men like Kade and Anton. Make it so people see you as a pride leader. Telling them and expecting their acceptance isn’t going to be enough. I wish it were, but this is the fight shifters, especially female shifters, face. We have to prove ourselves. Constantly.”
Nyx motioned to herself. “When a feline shifter seat opens on the Council, I’m going to claim it. Once I do, I’m going to prove to all those powerful men who sit on it that I deserve to be there.”
Anton rested a hand on her shoulder. “And you’re going to make a wonderful councilwoman.”
“As long as the first Alexander’s book gives equal rights to women.” Kade stood and paced from the table to the opposite side of the room. “We’re basing our assumptions on rumors.”
“Then let’s go see for ourselves.” Anton glanced at Nyx. “Will you stay with Molly? The security guards who accompanied Kade to West Virginia are still stationed outside the house. You’ll be safe inside.”
“Of course.” While Nyx wanted to be present for Anton’s firsthand translation of the book, she’d like to talk more with Molly. They might’ve lived completely different lives, but they were both women demanding a spot in a man’s world.
And earning that spot was a life-or-death situation. For both of them.
Chapter 23
“Do you like to play games, Molly?” Nyx opened the door to Bianca’s old room.
“When Megan or our friends want to play, I play.”
The oddly worded response drew Nyx’s gaze to the little girl. “What about when you want to play?”
Molly shrugged and walked into the room. “I shift into my lioness and play. My friends and twin can’t. Their animals aren’t old enough to come out and play.”
Anton had mentioned Molly had been experimented on. He hadn’t mentioned what exactly happened to her, however.
“You only have one animal, right? You’re not like Anton and Kade, who have three.” Because only Royals could shift before maturity. Those born as single shifters got to deal with their raging hormones and a new furry side once they turned twenty-five.
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