Page 212 of Inside the Sun

"No. No, not at all." My head is spinning, my thoughts unraveling into pure chaos. What the hell is happening right now? I feel like Fate itself is sitting in this cell with me.

"Is that… a nickname?" I ask, quieter now.

"Nope."

"Just… a real name?" Disbelief overtakes me.

"If you insist on hearing my story, here it goes. It’s what my ever-absent douchebag of a father gave me. All seven of his kids have names that start with S, after his own name, Sven. Most of them from different omegas… but the damn S unites us. Sage, Stone, Seth, Sirius, Soren, Salt. And me. Sun Einarson. I bet he would’ve found it hilarious that my life’s been anything butsunshine and rainbows. If the bastard was still breathing, that is." His tone is light and kind of carefree, like he doesn’t mind sharing this little family story.

I sit down beside him on the cot. I need to see this guy’s face.

Our eyes meet.

Wow.

He’s an alpha!

Which is weird, since betas are always housed with other betas, alphas with alphas, and omegas with omegas. But somehow I ended up in a cell with him. WTF?

There’s something else.

He’s missing a part of himself too—just like me. One of his eyes is gone, replaced by a smooth metal plate with a tiny screen that glows a faint, electric blue. Another chill creeps up my spine. I’m pretty sure it’s a high-end cybernetic eye. The irony stings. We’re both part-machine.

His other eye, a steel gray, studies me closely.

His hair is shaved down except for a narrow strip running from his forehead to the back of his head, dyed a venomous neon green. He looks straight out of a cyberpunk flick.

Tattoos peek out from the collar of his prison uniform, climbing up his neck and probably running further beneath it.

He looks about thirty, maybe thirty-five, give or take. Hard to say. His face though… fuck, he’s exactly my type. Handsome. Sharp, exotic features with something almost feline about them. I feel another shiver crawl up my back.

"I don’t really know prison etiquette," I admit. "I’ve heard you’re not supposed to ask why someone’s in, but go easy on me. I’m new. So… what’re you in for?"

His sensual mouth twitches with faint amusement.

"You’re right. That’s not really the kind of question you open with. Especially since anything I say can be used againstme, yadda yadda, you know the drill. But I can tell you what they’ve accused me of. Which, of course, I deny. I’m innocent."

The corner of his mouth curls into a dry smirk. God, he’s hot. My hole clenches at the thought alone of his dick fucking me senseless.

"Those unfair and extremely rude cops claim I’m a hitman. But I’m not admitting anything. Just disgusting slander. And no solid proof!"

His smile widens. And for the first time in ages, I feel this weird flutter of amusement in my chest.

"Of course, I’m not the head of a mafia empire either. Though some footage might claim otherwise, but hey, that could’ve all been made by AI, right? You can’t trust anything anymore these days."

Sun nods enthusiastically. "Exactly! The tech’s gotten crazy good." He shakes his head with exaggerated disapproval.

We both laugh, and damn, it hits me hard. I haven’t laughed like that in years. Maybe not since I met Moon. There’s something strange between us. Something light. Easy. Something I want to sink into. So NOT me.

Then I just can’t help myself. I reach out to shake his hand. That little wave I gave earlier just isn’t enough.

He takes my hand without hesitation and our fingers touch. The electric shock makes my body jerk.

O wow!

Bzzzz!

What the fuck!

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