now unless I ordered them to let her. I couldn’t do it, not yet. I needed time to work off my need to rip something apart.
“Ember! Come here,” ordered Drake.
I clenched my jaw so hard, my teeth cracked. Fuck me! She’d let another male order her around, but not me! I marched out of the south wing, down the connecting corridors and to the gym.
I headed straight to the bags. Without pausing my step, I launched a brutal attack on the nearest one. My men watched me with stoic, hard faces. They knew what Ember was to me, so it was no surprise to see their tight faces and the empathy in their eyes. I’d fucked up trying to force her hand and giving her obvious protection, they knew it as much as I did. I slammed my fists into the solid punching bag over and over until blood splattered across the mats and the leather with each hit.
“Hey!” Owen rumbled when I eventually missed the bag and my arms shook so much I could barely lift them. “Enough.”
I glared at him—and punched him in the gut.
“Yeah?” He growled and straightened up. “You wanna throw down, boss?” He cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders. “Let’s go, fucker.”
I did. I launched an attack that left us bruised and beaten and exhausted enough we both collapsed on our backs on the mats, heaving deep breaths. Owen slammed his elbow into my abs.
“Ouch! You chicken shit, we’re done.” I panted and coughed, wheezing a breath.
“Yeah, I know.” He rasped a laugh. “But that’s for being an arse, and letting a woman rule your head and actions. Stone’s right. She makes you weak.”
I rubbed my face with my hands. “Yeah, she does,” I whispered. “Talking of bodies—D?” I said in a louder voice.
“Yeah, boss?”
“Go find me Shannon would ya?”
“Are you kidding me? You want those women to start a war over you? Or do you want Stone to kick your arse, too?”
I gave a bitter laugh despite the guilt in my belly. I didn’t want Shannon or anyone else, but rejection was a bitter pill to swallow. “Ember’s made it perfectly clear she prefers that Texan bastard over me, so she won’t be bothered if I fuck someone else, whether it’s Shannon or some other woman, now will she?”
“If you say so. But someone else will.” Owen lifted his head and looked at Stone. “And just for the record, I think you’ll regret fucking anyone while you’re so pissed off.”
“Scrap that order!” Stone loomed over me, purple fire shining in his eyes as his fae side peaked out. “You are not fucking Shannon just to get back at your mate. This is your mess, you deal with it. You don’t get to use her like that ever again, Prime or not. You feel me?”
I rolled back onto my shoulders, arched my spine and flicked myself to my feet in one smooth move. I glared at Stone ready to tell him to go fuck himself when I recognised the tightness around his mouth, his curled fists and the storm in his eyes.
I cocked my head. I’d promised myself I wouldn’t hurt him like that. Owen was right, I was being a total dick—again. “Okay, Stone. I feel you, brother. I’ll find someone else. But...” I leaned into his space. “If you want her that bad, you need to go claim her, because she likes to play the power field; she always has. And if I’m not available, she’ll go after someone else who can give her what she wants.”
Stone rubbed his face. “And what’s that?”
“Other than power? Fuck knows.You’ll have to ask her.” With that I walked off, though Kawan, Myles and Stone all followed me. I clenched my teeth, but instead of telling them to get lost, I ignored them. I’d had enough of fighting them for one night.
Despite all the hard physical training I’d just done, the tension in my body remained, buzzing underneath my skin, until I couldn’t think straight. All I saw was Drake’s hands on my Firecracker. I snarled as I stalked into the female section of my pack. I only ever visited here for one reason, and there were more than enough women all too willing to accommodate me. I prowled over to a tall, dark haired and curvy woman. She couldn’t be any more different to my petite, red-haired Firecracker.
“You want some company, Prime?” she purred as I boxed her in with my arms and body.