Compelled (Shadow Beast Shifters Book 5)

Even though there’d been no official summons yet, Lucien decided it would still be best to return to Valdor and rest at his home. “There’s a decent chance they won’t allow you to stay with me during the selection,” he said as we wove our way through the maze. “Carter will cite it as an unfair advantage, since I am now in the running for a mate as well.”

“Where will I stay?” I huffed, struggling to keep up with his pace but determined not to slow us down. “And will I be safe there among vampire females competing to be chosen?”

Lucien caught an arm around my waist and lifted me into his side as he took off, whipping past many curious onlookers, who were no doubt wondering why I was in their city. Until the selection was called, it would be big news that I was wandering around.

“My one stipulation,” he told me, voice not even remotely breathless, “is that you have security of my choosing.”

Security he’d hopefully be more selective of than last time, seeing as his friend had been the one who’d almost gotten me killed. I would also choose to be less of a fucking moron this time. With any luck, that would keep me alive through this selection.

When we reached Crimson House territory, Lucien slowed and spent some time talking and interacting with the vampires in his enclave. More than a few curious looks were shot my way, but no one mentioned my presence. They knew better than to question their top master.

One thing I appreciated was that no one in Valdor appeared to be homeless or poor. They didn’t even have such concepts, with the many provided for by their masters. Lucien, despite all his dislike of being a master, appeared to look after his vampires very well.

It was clear that they adored him.

By the time we reached the large, gated compound where he lived, I was so exhausted I could barely keep my eyes open. My wolf was basically nonexistent inside, and I needed to address whatever was happening to her energy as the vampire energy grew stronger. Being back in Valdor was affecting me. I’d been keeping Lucien’s blood at bay all those months in Torma, but here, I could no longer stop its swirls from taking over.

Lucien opened the gates, and we stepped into the front courtyard, which was paved and filled with three large, spouting water fountains, each a depiction of a different god carved from the crimson stone of Lucien’s enclave.

Being surrounded by my favorite color always made me feel better, and even when the large gates closed, all but trapping me inside, I’d never felt as free as I did in Lucien’s home.

I’d never told anyone this, but Lucien’s compound was my secret happy place.

A sanctuary from real life and the dangers that were always around.

“Are you okay?” he asked, too damn observant as always.

“It just feels a little weird to be back here,” I lied. “But also, not weird.” And there was the truth.

“It felt emptier when you were gone,” he admitted, and then he shook his head and strode off, like he hadn’t expected to say that out loud.

I followed slowly, trying not to let those words settle into my heart as I stared up at the white, two-story house. Torma had no homes like this, not even among the very elite and richest shifters. The best way to describe it was a mix of contemporary and colonial. It had clapboard in some section, smooth panels in others, and a small front porch led to a door that was twice my height and width.

Huge windows lined the front façade, with more out the back, along with a very large deck looking over a few acres of land. Unlike most of Crimson City, Lucien had plants and herbs and flowers in his garden. He’d spent decades bringing touches of other worlds to his.

“Come in,” he called, and I tore my gaze from the house and moved toward the door he held open. Stepping inside, I realized I’d forgotten how vast and impressive the entryway was. It spanned the full two stories, and the ceiling above contained well-placed skylights, giving it a bright and open feel.

The entry was circular in design, with curving stairs that led to the second floor. His massive house had multiple living areas, a huge kitchen, an atrium with glass walls for a full view of the garden, a gym, and theater. The last was not a normal addition to homes in Valdor, but apparently Lucien appreciated the arts and, like with the garden, his home had imported elements from other worlds.

The perks of being best friends with the god who created the Library of Knowledge.

“Your room is just as you left it,” he said, and I tried really hard not to react to your room. Instead, I pasted on a neutral expression and followed him up to the second level, which housed the dozen or so bedrooms and bathrooms in this place.

The long hall led to Lucien’s master suite at the end, which I’d never seen but had spent way too much time thinking about. This time, though, I had a focus and a mission to occupy my thoughts: make it through the selection not mated to Carter.

When we reached the room I’d used last time, I entered to find that Lucien was right. Nothing had changed. It had pale blue walls, a large four-poster bed with cream bedding, and two doors that led to the closet and the bathroom. One large bay window let in rays of low, red light, and I wondered if it was close to the sleep cycle. Shutters would close over the windows at that point, and the inside would turn pitch black if you didn’t use fake illumination.

Valdor didn’t have the same plumbing or technology as Earth, but it was close enough that I never felt completely out of my depth.

As I walked in and collapsed my exhausted ass on the side of the bed, I couldn’t get over the sense of calm that filled me. I mean, I should be panicked about being back here, panicked about the selection, and panicked about vampire blood turning me into some sort of hybrid.

But I felt none of that.

“Why does Valdor feel like home to me?” I asked, needing to understand.

He moved closer and, to my surprise, took a seat right beside me—close enough that I could sense his energy swishing across my skin.

“I wish I knew,” he said quietly, and there was this odd catch in his tone that had me turning to examine his features. “I also wish I knew why it feels right to have you here and why it was empty when you left. You’re a shifter, but it has never felt like there’s any difference between our races.”

I swallowed roughly. “Is there a chance that Carter is a true match to me then? Should I actually participate in the selection and just see what happens?”

I had no idea why I asked those questions when I knew in my heart that Carter was not the one I wanted.

“He’s not for you, B,” Lucien said, an edge to his tone. “Trust me on this. I said I would protect you last time, and I failed. There’s no chance of that happening again. This time you will obey my rules and stay alive. No exceptions.”

Frustration rose inside me for so many reasons. “Stop calling me by my damn blood type,” I snapped. “And also, I said I would follow your rules, but don’t think you can tell me who is for me. You don’t own me.”

He reached out and in one swift move turned me so that we were now inches apart, facing each other on the bed. “I don’t just call you B because of your blood type,” he rumbled as the black crept into his eyes again. “At first it was due to the damn buzzy nature of your personality. You were always everywhere, buzzing around, distracting me from life.”

Great, I was an annoying bumblebee. So much better.

“But then” he continued, and I forced myself to breathe through gritted teeth, “I started to understand the true importance of the bee. You see, Earth could not exist without it, a fundamental creature that performs the most important task: creating new life. I didn’t understand until you were gone and everything suddenly felt empty. So now, it’s Bee for more than one reason.”

My throat was tight, and in my head, I’d already adjusted my thoughts to Bee instead of B, because that was actually… kind of perfect.

“Okay,” I found myself saying. “I guess Bee can stay.”

His lips twitched, and he closed the distance until our legs were touching, upper bodies close enough that I could smell every note of cherry. “As to your other point,” Lucien continued, leaning in so I was all but engulfed by his huge frame, “about not owning you… While you’re here in Valdor, you do belong to me. Mine. Mine to protect and control.”

Before I could respond, he leaned over and scraped his fangs slowly across my neck, dragging those tips with such exquisite care that he never broke the top layer of skin. There was no scent of blood, and I almost jerked into him, needing to feel those tips enter my body.

The vamp blood inside me surged as my body pulsed with need. Lucien let out a rumble and was gone from the room in a second. The door slammed closed after him, and I fell off the bed onto my hands and knees on the soft rug. My body trembled as I dug my fingers into the wool, the swirling blood surging and filling my insides until I thought I was going to explode.

I muffled a scream as heat engulfed me. What was happening?

Somehow, I managed to drag myself into the bathroom and get the door closed before I continued across the tiles. When I got to the shower, I hit the lever to send freezing cold water onto me. Without thought, my hands scraped at my clothing, getting them off so there was nothing on my sensitive and burning skin.

All the while I prayed the freezing stream would cool me down.

Only it didn’t. The heat continued to build, and even though the shower stream soaked me, I knew that the damp heat between my thighs was pure arousal. Pure need. My pussy throbbed with no relief in sight.

My hands slid down my stomach and over the junction of my center; I needed to find relief from this pleasure-pain fire.

I really fucking hoped Lucien was out of earshot by now. Even if it was his damn fault—triggering me with fangs at my throat—I didn’t want him here to witness this.

Him taking care of what he’d created was a complication we didn’t need, so for now… I would have to take care of it myself.