Page 54 of The Wolf King

“Aye,” Callum grits out.

“Say please.”

Callum’s thighs tense beneath me, and I can feel the restraint in his chest. If he launches himself at Blake like I sense he wants to, we’re going to be in trouble.

“Please,” I say, giving him a hard look.

Blake’s grin widens, and again I notice the dimples in his cheeks. “Looks like your pet has better manners than you, Callum. Very well. I’ll deal with Magnus.” He turns his attention back to Callum. “And you can put your rabbit in a hutch for safekeeping. The chambers in the western tower are empty—”

“She stays with me,” says Callum.

Blake puts his glass down on the table. In a sudden movement, he reaches for me.

Callum grabs his wrist, stopping him.

I’m jolted forward.

“Look at you,” says Blake. “You’re like a dog guarding his favorite chew toy. What happens when you decide you want to play with it?”

“She’s my prisoner,” says Callum.

Blake chuckles. “Please. You’re not a kidnapper, Callum. You’re a savior. Perhaps you told yourself that you brought her here for the Heart of the Moon, but we both know the truth. You saw a woman who needed saving, and you wanted to be the one to do so. She’ll stay in the room in the tower where we can both keep an eye on her.”

“No,” says Callum.

“You truly wish for me to believe you’re holding her captive?” Blake arches an eyebrow. “Fine. Prove it. Make her do something.” His lips curve into a smile. “Tell her to come and sit with me.”

“That is not—” I splutter.

“The day I feel the need to prove myself to you is the day I relinquish my title as alpha of Highfell,” says Callum.

Blake somehow manages to look bored even with Callum tightly gripping his wrist. “If you want my help, you’ll put her in the tower.”

“No.”

“Fine. Keep her in your room. Have her sleep in your bed.”

Panic, mingled with something else, surges through my body.

“Out of interest, have you had many dealings with noblemen in the south?” Blake continues, conversationally. “I have. They’re a primitive lot. Did you know they require their brides to be untouched? Did you know, on occasion, they check?”

The blood drains from my face and Callum’s biceps clench. “What’s that got to do with anything?”

“Well, I’m curious, Callum. How do you expect to get her betrothed to agree to a trade when it’s only a matter of time before you have your cock buried inside her?”

My cheeks flame. “That’s not—”

“That’s enough, Blake,” growls Callum. “She’ll be staying where I can keep an eye on her.”

“The room in the tower is close to my chambers, and to yours. Do you think anyone would be foolish enough to try anything with either of us so close? She’ll be perfectly safe.”

“She’s too valuable to risk.”

“And what of the Heart of the Moon?” asks Blake. “How valuable is that? How will you trade her—”

I jerk forward, freeing myself from both of them and stumbling across the flagstones. Both turn their heads toward me.

Callum’s body is hard with tension, whereas Blake seems merely intrigued.

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