he had the feeling he knew why the male had turned so territorial around the human.
It was the same reason he was feeling extremely territorial himself as Holly did the rounds in the marquee, smiling at everyone she spoke to, glancing at him from time to time. A virgin. He blew out his breath, sucked one down and held it as he tried to calm his bear instincts. Keeping them in check had been difficult enough before, but now it was impossible. Every instinct he possessed roared at him to go to her, to shield her from the gaze of every male, whether they were mated or unmated. A black need to lash out at them curled through him, had his hands tightening around the bottles he held.
They were suddenly gone, startling him back to Knox.
Knox frowned at him as he clutched his own beer and both of Saint’s bottles. “You look ready to crush these, and I’m done doctoring your ass. I’ll give them back if you swear you’re not going to take out your aggression on perfectly innocent and good beer.”
Saint huffed and snatched the one he had been drinking, lifted it to his lips and drained it. He sighed. “I can’t help it. Look at her. She’s beautiful… lights up that whole damned room.”
Lit up his whole damned world.
Knox chuckled and shook his head. “Never thought I’d see you lovesick… and here we are. Got the feeling you’re not the only lovesick bear at the Ridge either. Gods help me… I don’t want to be next. Maybe Rune and Maverick can come back and throw themselves under the love-bus for me? Spare me the horror of settling down?”
Saint chuckled now. “The likelihood of either of them settling down is slim to none. I’m not sure they could handle a mate.”
He sobered as he thought about that, went back to a night two decades ago, when he had raided the underground arena run by human hunters, one that catered to their twisted desires to watch shifters like Rune and Maverick trying to kill each other every night. Archangel were sick enough with their false noble cause to deal with only the dangerous non-humans, a lie used to cover the countless raids they carried out on peaceful shifters like his pride.
Like the one that had taken his parents from him.
Taken the parents of so many of his kind over the years.
The fact that there was also a faction within the hunter organisation that were running secret arenas made Saint want to return to his days of uncovering the locations of those disgusting places and taking part in raids on them.
Freeing the shifters they had forced to fight in the cages.
“You look ready to crush that bottle again.” Knox didn’t take it from him though. “Thinking about Rune and Mav?”
Saint nodded. “I’m worried about them. I know they both prefer to be in the city during winter, but…”
“I’ll call Maverick. Let him know we’re awake.” Knox placed a gentle hand on Saint’s left shoulder. “I’m sure they’re fine. They always are.”
Saint nodded, tried to make himself believe that. He always worried when the two of them left Black Ridge, fear that they would end up captured and put through that brutal torture at the hands of humans again lingering at the back of his mind.
“Watch your cougar. It’ll take your mind off it.” Knox tipped the neck of his beer towards the tent.
It would take his mind off it, but it wouldn’t improve his mood. It took a sharp nosedive the instant he looked for her and found her dancing with Rath. The male was happily mated. He told himself that a thousand times as she smiled and talked to Rath. As he smiled at her and laughed. It didn’t dull the edge of Saint’s need to murder the male for touching what was his.
“I think I need a little air.” Saint offered a tight smile to Knox when he looked as if he wanted to go with him, patted his shoulder and nodded.
Thankfully, Knox didn’t follow him as he turned away from the marquee, heading for the bucket of beers. He set his third empty down in another bucket someone had placed beside the ones filled with beer and bottles of wine, and grabbed another beer. He carried it with him as he drifted past the grill and food, following the torchlit path to the firepit. The few cougars sitting there just glanced at him rather than stared, didn’t