Scorch(9)

Sarah was friends with Wes. Even if I did manage to track Devin down on my own, they’d find out eventually. And the truth was that I felt completely out of my depth. I didn’t know what to do, and I could really use their help.

I honestly didn’t know how Dane and Wes would react. On the one hand, they would understand the driving need I felt for Devin better than anyone. On the other hand, though, they were parents themselves, and married. I couldn’t imagine them wanting to help me destroy that for someone else… but I had no idea how I would go about claiming my mate without doing just that. Just thinking about it made me want to groan.

My emotions felt too raw, the situation too impossible, and the idea of sharing it with the two men who already had what I wanted was painful. I wasn’t used to this kind of strong emotion, and I knew I wasn’t handling it well.

I hadn’t let anything get to me like this since I had been forced to abandon my brother when Dane and I fled from our homeland centuries ago. There had been nothing I could do about that old hurt, and I’d successfully suppressed those feelings for years, happy that my true nature required avoiding any potentially painful involvement with the men who had come and gone in my life since.

But fate wasn’t going to let me off the hook this time.

“I can’t leave,” I’d finally admitted to Dane and Wes this morning. “My fated mate is here. I found him, and now I need to find a way to win him over.”

“You shouldn’t have any trouble with that,” Wes had said, grinning. “Trust me, you’ll be irresistible to him. In fact, if you’ve already found him, I can’t believe you haven’t already…” he’d let that thought trail off as his cheeks flushed. The look he’d shot at Dane made it clear that he’d been thinking of the inevitable outcome of a dragon claiming his mate.

But for once, Dane hadn’t been looking at Wes.

“Who is it?” he’d asked me, frowning. “Where did you find him?”

Even without knowing the details, Dane had instantly understood that it wasn’t always as straightforward as it should be to complete the bond with the man fate had chosen. If it had been easy, I wouldn’t have been standing in their kitchen talking about it—I would have already claimed him.

“It’s Sarah’s husband,” I’d told them.

Dane had groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head.

Wes’s eyes had widened, and he’d started chewing on his lip nervously. “That’s… not good.”

The understatement of the century, and a sentiment I completely agreed with.

Wes felt understandably protective toward his friend Sarah, and when they’d agreed to let me come along to the park to help me find out more about Devin’s situation, Dane had decided that he needed to come, too. I wasn’t sure if he was more motivated by wanting to keep an eye on me, or if he just wanted to offer his support. Probably a little bit of both.

As we’d headed to the park, I’d wondered if Sarah would pick up on the tension radiating off the three of us, but in the end she didn’t have a chance. As soon as she’d shown up, my otherself had pushed the words out of my mouth—tell me about Devin—compelling her to do my will and answer my questions.

I wasn’t proud of it, but I didn’t take it back. I needed to hear what she had to say.

“I love Devin,” Sarah answered now, her glazed eyes telling me that she was responding to my dragon’s power—which meant that what she said was the truth. My heart sank. “I just wish he’d find himself a boyfriend,” she continued.

“What?” I asked, startled.

“A boyfriend?” Dane echoed, raising his eyebrows.

“Devin is your husband, right? The guy we met at Elise’s birthday party?” Wes asked, his brow furrowing. He snapped his fingers in front of her face, trying to bring her out of her dragon-compelled daze. “Sarah, what are you talking about?”

She blinked, her gaze moving between the three of us in confusion. “I was talking about… Devin?” She turned her attention to me. “Did you just ask about my husband?”

I nodded. “You said you wanted him to find a boyfriend,” I reminded her in a normal, non-compelling voice. I was proud of myself for that, especially with my dragon still pushing me to take control and make her tell us everything she knew about my mate.

Sarah gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. “I said that?” she asked, the words coming out muffled. She groaned, rolling her eyes and lowering her hand. “Please forget I said that,” she added, her cheeks flushing. But then something in my expression must have given me away. “Wait. Are you him? The guy?” she asked excitedly. “Were you at Elise’s birthday party?”