“She’s gone,” Zack yelled over, searching for me. “Fuck. I’m going to pound those assholes. She fled.”
I pulled off my magic and grabbed his arm. “I didn’t. I’m here. Sorry.”
He yanked me into a hug, kissing my hair. “I get it, kid. It’s fine, you default to it now, which is good. I got scared we failed you again.”
“I thought they had mates?” Hudson shouted from behind me.
“They do, and they’re MIA, so don’t be a dick,” Izzy blasted. “I don’t care you’re the prince like Mel does. Right now, you’re just one of the dickheads hurting my friend. I was on your side to make amends because I thought you could make her happy, but coming here tonight to pee around her was shitty. We weren’t doing anything wrong.”
“I’m sorry I ruined our night,” I grumbled. “I’ll go; you guys stay.”
“We came for food and to see you have fun. I do not dance,” Zack promised me, Ray snorting behind him. “You guys staying?”
“No, we’re coming,” Mel answered, her voice icy.
“Wait, we didn’t want you to leave,” Lucca called over. “Come on, don’t go. We didn’t mean to—”
“Shut up, Lucca,” Izzy snapped. “All of you just shut up. You didn’t even fight for her. You let her think you were done too for months when you know she’s got abandonment issues, and now suddenly give a shit after her sexy photo shoot and she’ll be back at school? I don’t like any of you anymore!”
That sounded almost childish to say, but Izzy was so nice and sweet that it would hurt worse than all the foul language and insults in the world. She was almost on the level of the hobgoblins, where you might cry if they hated you.
“Agra, please, we just—” Darby tried again.
“Gang up on her,” Ray snarled. “Your new ploy is to gang up on her because none of us would help you see her. She dumped you. Accept that.”
Everyone must have joined us and gotten their stuff because Zack quickly led us to the door. My ears rang from the music once we were outside, Marshall leading the way to the public portal.
“Move or we will make you move,” Zack growled, making me finally raise my head. Hudson had moved in front of our group, and people looked ready to throw down.
“You know some of this is instinct,” he snarled, chuffing because his dragon was riding him. He met me gaze and winced. “Other men are taking you away from River and I. I know I deserve as much, but I walked in to find a strange man with his hand on your ass, and you won’t even see River. I’m trying to keep control, and you said you needed time. I gave it. Tell me what to do.”
I opened my mouth to say I wouldn’t ever be with him, but remembered what his parents had begged me before, and how his mate denying him would make him go feral. No matter how hurt I was, I didn’t want that either. I didn’t think there was any world in which I could ever be with him, but I would die if Hudson went feral.
“I’ll come meet River in the dragon territory tomorrow for lunch. You can’t just expect a pass, or forgiveness, because of what we are. I don’t deserve that, just because fate decided something for me, and you didn’t respect me. You need to come up with a game plan so your parents’ fears aren’t ever realized.”
He swallowed loudly, understanding I was telling him to figure a way not to go feral. He looked pale and ill as it sunk in, but then he shook his head. “I can make this better. I can fix this and show you fate was right.”
I felt my lower lip quiver. “But I don’t want you to.” I moved past Zack and shoved Hudson out of our way, energy dancing all over my skin, trying to bring us together.
He was faster than I could get away from him, grabbing my arm and pulling me closer. He leaned down so our foreheads touched. “Fuck fate then. I will show you what we had was real, I was real with you. I fucked up, but it was not my lack of respect for you. I cared, you know I did.”
“I can’t—”
“You deserve it,” he whispered. “You deserve to stop feeling so much pain.” He swallowed loudly. “Even if you never let me be with you again or grow what we had, I’d still do it. You deserve to know the truth and how I felt—still feel, and I will show you, because words won’t do when I messed up everything by not saying what I should.”
Well damn. Like dayumn. My heart fluttered, and for a second, I almost wanted to say I hoped he could really pull it off.
But I didn’t think it was possible for anyone, not just him. Too much had happened and damage done.
Instead, I decided to say something I knew would at least help him keep control, since he needed to. His family kept people safe, and they couldn’t afford the problems his losing control would have.
“River, I wasn’t doing anything bad,” I whispered. “I’m not looking for another mate. I hurt, and I went to have fun and dance. I’m free to do what I want, and you have to let me fly when I need to. I deserve that. I deserve to pick my mate and if the time is ever right, to mate, not have one forced on me.”
“He’s sorry,” Hudson mumbled. “That makes more sense to him. He didn’t want to give you space, and maybe he was right that I made the wrong decision. I thought I was doing what
