“Your what?” Taylor asked as he gave a wide berth to a table holding something that looked very breakable. Chase was starting to know what Taylor was feeling. He felt like a kid in a glass shop. He kept to the middle of the hallway, Taylor close to his side.
“It is a sixteenth century X-shaped curule or Savonarola chair.”
“It doesn’t look very comfortable,” Taylor whispered to Chase.
“I assure you, it is very comfortable, but not easy to sit in considering it is smaller than what I am used to sitting in.”
Chase would have to remind his mate that not only did shifters have excellent hearing, but vampires did as well. Maybe he should let his mate know sooner than later. There was no telling what would come out of Taylor’s mouth, and Chase wasn’t trying to offend the prince.
That would be bad.
* * * *
Taylor felt like biting his nails by the time the prince stopped in front of large wooden door and then raised his hand to knock.
“Is he in there?” Taylor asked.
“He is.”
Taylor pulled his hand from Chase’s and opened the door, walking right in. He didn’t have to knock. Justin was his, and by golly he was going to gather his lover and take him home. He stopped short when he saw Justin talking with another man. And the man was sitting comfortably on the bed with his lover.
“What in the hell is going on in here?” Taylor shouted, heading straight for the bed. He was going to teach the stranger about trying to poach his lover. All Taylor saw was red as he glimpsed the surprised look on Justin’s face. His damn heart felt like it was being torn from his chest, but he wasn’t going to just walk away.
“Taylor, no!” Justin shouted as he jumped up. But before Taylor could get his hands on the guy flirting, or worse, with his mate, Chase grabbed him around his waist and hauled him off of his feet.
“Let me go!”
“It’s not what it looks like!” Justin screeched. “He says that he’s my brother.”
Taylor stilled. Damn, didn’t he feel like seven kinds of stupid? A thought suddenly hit Taylor, and he winced as he glanced around Chase to see the prince standing there with a murderous glare in his eyes.
Shit. This must be the prince’s mate.
“I…uh…sorry?” He cringed back when he heard a low growl rumpling in the prince’s chest. That wasn’t a good sign.
“He didn’t know,” Justin said as he pushed from the bed and walked over to the prince. “I swear Taylor didn’t know.”
Taylor watched as the prince’s features marginally relaxed, and then he dipped his head at Justin. “I will allow him this one time for his error.”
Thank fuck.
Taylor was so not looking forward to getting his throat ripped out. Danny scooted from the bed and walked over to the prince, staring up at him. Taylor had seen that look before. He had used it with Justin. The two were communicating silently. He just hoped they weren’t discussing his demise.
“What are you doing here?”
Taylor’s head snapped back around to Justin. Seriously? He wanted to know what they were doing there? “You left me,” Taylor ground out between his clenched teeth. Was there anything else to say?
“Taylor—” Justin nibbled on his lower lip and then glanced down at his hands as if they were the most important discovery in centuries. “You don’t understand.”
“No, I don’t,” Taylor snapped. “I thought you loved me.”
Justin’s head snapped up. “I do love you.”
“Then why did you leave me?”
“I had to, Taylor. I wanted you to—” Justin’s lips pressed together as he glanced past Taylor. He seemed nervous, even to the point that he was twisting his fingers together until they turned white.
Taylor knew Justin was looking at Chase from the way his eyes kept darting away and then coming back to look beyond Taylor. He just couldn’t figure out why. What did Chase have to do with Justin leaving?
“You wanted what, Justin?” Taylor asked softly.
“I wanted”—Justin licked his lips—”I wanted you to be happy.”
“I was happy, Justin, with you.”
“But you weren’t safe!”
Taylor’s eyes bugged as realization of Justin’s motives suddenly hit him. “You left so that Chase and I would mate?”
Justin at least had the decency to flush and look away. But Taylor knew he was right in the conclusion he had come to. His lover, the man he had sacrificed so much for, had left him so that Chase would finally claim him.
Taylor didn’t know whether to be pissed that Justin had left him in the first place or thankful that his lover had cared enough to try and put Taylor’s happiness ahead of his own. He was overwhelmed by both emotions. But it did tick Taylor off to know that Justin could walk away so easily.
“Well, you got what you wanted then,” Taylor said, watching Justin’s face carefully for his reaction. He knew Justin wanted Chase just as much as he did, maybe even more so. The strength in Chase called to both of them, but the safety the wolf-shifter offered meant even more to Justin. “Chase claimed me last night.”
For a moment, Justin looked like he was going to cry. Tears welled up in his eyes and his face drained of color. But then he blinked rapidly until the tears were a distant memory and his lips thinned out.
“Well, good then,” Justin said. “He’ll take good care of you, Taylor.”
“And what about you, Justin?” Chase asked as he stepped up beside Taylor. “Who’s going to take care of you?”
“Oh…” A flat little smile moved across Justin’s lips, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I’ll be okay. I’m always okay. Besides”—Justin glanced at Danny and the prince—”it seems that I might have family here. Maybe I’ll just stick around and get to know them.”
“You are, of course, welcome to stay here, Justin,”
