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Crestfallen, Ronan muttered, "That's my trick"

Plate in hand, she started back toward her rooain Already she swerved closer to him She's helpless no' to want h those claould come out, and finally everyone would understand what they were dealing with Strange that she wasn't looking at him-Ruelle had hardly taken her eyes off hi a step, Chloe reached down to the side table next to him and stole his whiskey bottle

Will's jaw slackened as he watched her trot up the stairs When she entered her rooasted Munro stifled a grin

Ben said, "She's no' scared of you at all Even after she saw your beast"

I could show it to her again She was i At the thought of taking her, lust hit Will like a punch in the gut, ht now

Her succubus allure was already working on hi for her?" Ronan asked "His mate walks by, and he does no' touch her? Or pull her into his lap? It's no' natural! And it's starting to freak me out"

"I canna be with her as I would with a fitting mate," Will said "She couard"

"Can someone please tell , "Ben does no' understand this either"

Munro answered, "They do have powers over lower at Will-"can eainst your will"

"She's Head Case'sto want her anyway Besides, it's no' like she needs any cherowl from Will A defiant look from Ronan

"Succubae form a mystical connection with their bed partners called a venom bond," Munro said "Once the male takes it into hiain, she's his mate They're already bound"

Munro raised his pal

Will took up the cause "They feed off you, boy"

"So do va one his queen," Ronan pointed out "Does it hurt?"

"If you doona do it enough, it'll hurt" As if it'd been yesterday, he could re, over and over again

"So let ht use chemicals to make you want to do her Except you already want to, so it's wasted che to keep wanting to, which would likely have happened anyway, because like I said, she's totally hot"

"And like I said, there's pain involved if you doona"

"Is there no' always? It's called blue ballocks Mayhap you've forgotten what it's like to be in your teens-"

"That fe exasperated

Ronan seeain Munro raised his hands: Pup's got a point

"It's a violation!"

Ben cast a wary glance at Will "Just leave it, Ronan It's no' for us to understand" He rose, squiring his brother away

But the lad wasn't finished with Will "I'll never understand this You're supposed to hunt and provide for yourwith you people?" As they walked off, Ronan told Ben, "If she was no' his mate, then I could see, but she is And she's never done anything to us-except for refusing to cook-and he's threatening to behead her and shite" In a quieter, even more confused tone, he asked, "Are all the old ones this prejudiced?"

"Fairly one, Will sat back, filled with fury "She's already started working on the dunderheaded pup He'll be infatuated soon"

Munro quietly said, "I feel the saot to you too!"

"Nay! I agree with all his points"

"You know they're sympathetic-they make you feel sorry for theainst my own father to protect Ruelle" Why did he no' hit otten his belovedthis, Will stood

"Where are you going?" Munro asked

"To uest understands the rules"

Chapter Twenty-Seven

It's just like reps, Chlo

She figured there were about a dozen bites of sandwich that she had to get down Then she could reward herself hiskey, possibly getting drunk like last night and passing out

Anything to end this day

First bite She used to love burned grilled cheeses Second bite Tastes like cardboard Third She could do this!

It wasn't just her utter lack of appetite that was freaking her out If MacRieve hated her so ain-then why keep her here? This coe, but he'd ordered her to stay here with one wall between theood that would do

He should've let her go with those two succubae at the wall How badly Chloe wanted to talk to someone of her ownspecies To discover how to control her powers and her new strength To deter to feed

To find out about her mother and ancestors

Until Chloe was able to escape this place, she'd have no answers She set her plate aside and tilted her head at her rooet a e out?

To who? Her friends on the team? She'd never involve theht never see the door to MacRieve's rooainst ed "Understand me? And why the hell would you takethe worst day of her life; she didn't need any et drunk and act like the last two days never happened"

He see at him "What reason do you have to look at me like that? You're the one who hid what you were!"

"I didn't knohat I was!"

"How could you no' sense so?"

"I believed there was a chance I was beco immortal, but I didn't knohat kind Yet you knew you had a freakingto surface"