Compelled (Shadow Beast Shifters Book 5)

When we were once again dressed, sated, and ready to take on the world, Lucien and I headed to breakfast, pausing only for me to find Bowley downstairs and situate him back on my shoulder.

We moved quickly, and for once we talked the entire way, as if we had a desperate need to delve deeper into each other. In more than the fucking sense.

“You’d never been to any places outside of Torma until you came to the library?” he asked. “Were you prisoners?”

“Yep. Alpha Victor was an asshole who controlled his shifters to the extent that we were prisoners within Torma. Shadow did us all a favor when he turned that guy into a ball of flames.”

Lucien shook his head. “I don’t know how your wolf handled that. I’ve fought so hard against being tied down, and there’s not a world in the Solaris System I haven’t explored a hundred times over.”

He’d lived so many lives before I’d even been born. It made me feel weird. Or maybe the weird part was that he still didn’t want to be tied down.

“Didn’t you find all the new experiences were a touch… empty?” I asked as we passed a large group of vampires in the street, all of whom stopped and stared but didn’t approach us. “Always on your own? Being mated doesn’t mean you’re in prison. It just means you have someone else to share this life with.”

Lucien stared down at me like he wasn’t quite sure what to make of my words. “I’m starting to wonder about the emptiness, you know?” he finally said. “The bee is essential, after all.”

That knocked my breath from me, and I found myself unable to speak as we continued through the streets. If Lucien kept this shit up, there was no way I could walk away in the end. Did he feel the same? Or was this all just some elaborate game this vampire was playing because I “belonged” to him during this selection?

When we reached the guarded gates to the Master Chambers, Galco was stationed there again. “Simone!” he exclaimed, a brilliant smile lighting up his face. “I’ve been worried about you. So wonderful to see you healthy.”

Clearly word had spread about the Hattie incident, and while my instincts on her had been wrong, I really hoped Galco was as genuine as he appeared. Bowley hadn’t popped out on my shoulder and tried to kill him yet, so that had to be a good sign.

“I’m feeling great, thank you!” I said. “Appreciate you worrying about me.”

Galco rubbed a hand across his bald head and smiled once more. “Aw, I’ve admired your resilience from the start. Couldn’t have been easy knowing you were competing in a vampire world. But you never complained or asked for special consideration. You’ve shown a lot of grace under fire here, and I’m still hoping you win the heart of Master Lucien.”

Lucien, who was at my side, didn’t correct the guard. Instead, he moved closer to me, and there was no doubt Galco noticed. He shot me a wink as we started to walk through, and I couldn’t stop his words from repeating in my head.

Win the heart of Master Lucien.

I’d started this day determined to be eliminated, but Lucien and now Galco had me wondering if I should be trying to win. Because the truth was, I wanted Lucien’s heart. Not the fake alliance we’d been rocking to try and get through this, but the real deal. All of him and a mate bond.

I hadn’t forgotten that the first time I was in Valdor he’d told me he would never settle, but he was so far from that cold and aloof vampire now that there had to be more going on than either of us could explain. Right?

When we got inside the master’s building, Lucien led me to the breakfast room. “You head in first, and I will linger a few seconds behind. I’m supposed to arrive alone, but I need to ensure you make it in there safely first.”

“Do you think they’ll lose their shit at me today?” I asked, a touch concerned by what might have transpired among the masters and selected while I was unconscious at Lucien’s.

“Not if they value their lives,” Lucien said simply.

And there he went again, romancing me like a psychopath.

Guess I was one too since I liked it.

As I turned to leave, Lucien grabbed my left hand, holding it firmly in his. “Even though I’m keeping an eye on you, use whatever extra senses you’ve been afforded through my blood to stay safe. Hattie’s family is powerful, and while they will hesitate to stand against me, they might realize that you’re a weakness of mine.”

Lucien had no idea how powerful that statement was, or at least how powerfully it hit me. I let out a feeble chuckle to try and offset my current shock. “If they do realize it, then they know hurting me is a surefire way to piss you off.”

He didn’t laugh with me, and I desperately wanted to reach up and smooth away the concerned lines between his brows. Lucien didn’t usually carry tension in his face, being an eternal vampire and all that, but this selection was weighing on him.

“They’re driven by grief,” he reminded me, “and they won’t care about the consequences of angering me. The only reason they haven’t taken me on directly is because they know they’ll lose. But if they can hurt me in another way, I’m afraid they will choose that path.”

The shocks continued. “Hurting me would hurt you?”

Lucien didn’t mince words. “It would break me. Now, go to breakfast and eat nothing until I get there.”

Then he kissed me with a fierce intensity that made the first few wobbly steps into the dining area hard. Inside, I forced myself to focus and take some responsibility for my own safety.

Awareness was the key to that.

It was a quieter affair today, and what little noise had been in the area died off the moment I appeared. The selected were glaring hard at me, but none of them approached, and I was perfectly fine with that.

My only efforts had to be toward staying alive and not ending up as Carter’s mate.

Speaking of Carter, he was the first to rise and approach me. Wearing a light tan, linen suit and with his hair slicked back today, he looked far less woodsman than he had the first few times I’d seen him.

Behind him I could see where the two tables were set up for the morning conversation with a master from the itinerary. All four seats were empty, as they no doubt were waiting for Lucien to arrive. I wondered what all of them would think if they knew he was late because he’d been destroying my body in the best possible way.

“Simone,” Carter said, distracting me from all the delicious memories. His gaze ran across my face like he was memorizing it. “How are you feeling? I tried to see you after the obstacle course, but Lucien blocked all access, citing that you were healing and couldn’t be disturbed.”

Lucien, the guardian angel I’d never known I wanted and wasn’t sure I deserved.

No wonder I was head over heels for the vampire.

“I’m feeling much better,” I told Carter. “Lucien made sure I had the best healing behind me, and I’ve woken today with no trace of the tatan root still in my system.”

“Good, good,” Carter said, and then he reached out and took my arm. “I’d like you to be my first guest for breakfast, if that’s okay with you?”

Okay then, seemed his interest in my almost death was done. Thankfully, before I could say anything about eating with Carter, Lucien strolled into the room. His appearance captured the other females attention, though their smiles faded when he made a direct path for Carter and me.

“Simone?” Carter snapped. “Will you join me to eat?”

“She’s with me first,” Lucien growled, wrapping an arm around my waist to lift me full-bodily away from the other master. Bowley squeaked on my shoulder, but thankfully, no one seemed to notice. “I need to verify her food is safe, and then she can take her turn with you.”

My stomach growled at the thought of food I could trust, and even my poor wolf poked her head up. At least with Lucien vetting the safety of my food, I should be able to eat and enjoy it. Might even add some energy to my wolf.

Other parts of me were stronger from the vampire blood, like my eyesight and sense of smell. Not to mention my hearing, as I caught Carter’s mutter about killing Lucien.

My next hope was for an increase in speed. Accessing the vampire’s way of moving about Valdor would be a true benefit of blood sharing. Not that I would willingly sacrifice my wolf for any extra senses, but I still had high hopes that I would figure out how to build her back up within my new hybrid nature.

I needed to talk to Mera about it, but I wasn’t sure what I’d do if she told me I’d have to lose my wolf, like she had, to evolve into my ultimate form.

No time to worry about that now, though, since Carter and Lucien were done with their little battle and I was being led to the table on the right.

“Everyone grab food,” Lucien told the room as we walked. “We will call you up one by one to converse. Don’t wait for us to eat since it’s best to get as much sustenance in as possible before the day’s events.”

When we reached his table, he pulled out the chair for me. “Sit, Bee,” he said. “I’ll feed you this morning.”

I was halfway into my chair when he said that, and I felt those words deep in my gut. Maybe even deeper than that.

My body vibrated, stimulated by his words, and I saw Lucien’s eyes darken.

No doubt he could scent my arousal.

The word feed… had so many meanings to it now.

All of which were set to destroy me.