Blood Bonds(The Bonds That Tie #3)(40)

It’s been done before? I didn’t know that, but there’s a lot about this community that I don’t know about, so I just nod and nibble at my toast some more, avoiding Gryphon’s grumpy looks because he’s clearly in a mood today. One that has absolutely nothing to do with me because I’ve been asleep for... wait.

“How long did I sleep this time?”

North answers without looking up from the paperwork, “Fourteen hours. We weren’t expecting you to wake up. You seem to be getting better at handling the power usage.”

Huh.

I’ll be happy if I don’t need to use my gift again any time soon, but I guess it’s good to know the three-day naps might be phasing out. The moment that his plate is clean, Gryphon takes my plate to refill it with more fruit and then leans down to kiss me soundly on the lips.

I’ll be in the gym training with some Tac guys. Call me if you need me.

I don’t know why he’s talking just to me, but I nod and let him give me one last peck before he’s out the door without another word. Whatever the hell is going on with him, I hope he beats it out of one of the guys downstairs.

I pick through the fruit and then put the empty plate on the bedside table, settling back down against the pillows to enjoy the last of my coffee with my Bonds around me. Gabe finishes off his plate and then collects mine, putting them back on the food tray and pushing the whole lot back out the door for someone to pick up.

North checks his phone and then walks over to me, kissing me soundly on the lips right here in front of everyone. I mean, Gryphon did too, but it still feels infinitely fucking weird for North to be doing it.

“We’ll be downstairs. Just stay here, or in your room. If you want something, call me. Don’t go wandering.”

I quirk an eyebrow at him but he gives me a very don’t-fuck-with-me look, and I roll my eyes at him. “Fine. But you can’t keep me trapped up here forever. Once I’m back to full health, I’ll get bored and become a nightmare.”

Nox scoffs as he heads for the door. “You’re already there, Poison.”

North’s eyes narrow at his back, and I grab his chin to tilt his head back toward me. “Stay out of it. I can fight my own wars with him.”

He gives me a look that says he definitely won’t be doing that, then straightens up to follow Nox downstairs. I’m sure they’re about to have a lovely trip down in the elevator, but I ignore it.

I have Gabe to myself.

He smirks at me and drawls, “Thank God, I thought we were going to be stuck in a full-blown Draven war for a second. I’d rather go to the gym and have Gryph kill me there instead.”

I giggle at him. “Come here and lie with me. If I’m going to be trapped here, I should at least get a cuddle out of it.”

Gabe stares at me for a second and then climbs up onto the bed carefully, moving as though he’s expecting me to fall apart underneath him or something, and when I scowl and tug him down on top of me, he grumbles back at me. With my legs bracketing either side of his body and his head cradled on my belly, he’s barely even on me. The small amount of weight that is there is comforting rather than… smothering.

I take a long, deep breath and feel whole again.

“No more running off,” Gabe says, his tone almost sulky, and I thread my fingers through his hair.

“I didn’t want to. I knew where Kyrie was going, and I couldn’t leave her to that. I survived. I’m fine, and Keiran will heal. I feel guilty about dragging him along, but we’re all going to be fine, because I went there too.”

Gabe huffs and his hand spans over the side of my thigh, gently brushing it through the duvet like he’s imagining all of the damage that has been wiped away thanks to Felix’s care. There’s still a small ache there, but it’s nothing compared to the blinding pain I’d succumbed to, letting my bond take over and wreak its blood-soaked vengeance on the camps.

Gabe’s fingers are gentle as he strokes over the duvet. “Black is going to wish he’d never woken up that morning by the time Gryphon and North are done with him. They both have some very creative plans of punishment for him.”

Jesus freaking Christ.





Gabe falls asleep on me and we spend most of the afternoon napping with Brutus between us, after he’d slowly inched Gabe away from me and taken his place. I doze off and on, watching the shadows cross the room as we waste away the day. Sometime in the late afternoon, I fall into a much deeper sleep, only to wake and find Gabe missing.

North is sitting at the desk, reading more of his endless paperwork with a glass of whiskey in front of him.

“There’s a sandwich on the nightstand. If you want something more substantial, I’ll call the chef for you.”

I stretch out and struggle to sit up, pushing up until I’m once again drowning in the pillows. I’ve never met a man who enjoyed sleeping with a hundred pillows like a princess, but then there’s no one quite like North out there.

“The sandwich is good. I feel horrible, the napping is only making it worse.”

He glances up to frown at me. “Do you need Felix now? He checked in on you earlier but when he saw you were sleeping, he left you to it. He said sleep is more important right now.”

I shake my head and grab the plate. “No, I just feel like I’m lazing around here, doing nothing, while everyone else is busy… doing things to keep us safe. I’m a liability and I hate that.”