Page 23 of Protected by the Vampire

I felt the shock ripple through the room.

Theo’s brows pulled down. “The hell are they on about?”

I leaned in, letting my lips brush the shell of his ear, letting them see how taken I was with my fated mate. “They can smell it.”

He went still beneath my touch. “Smell what?”

My fingers dug into his hip, grounding myself as much as him. “That you are mine and I am yours.”

The words settled in the room like a verdict.

Danny, one of my guards for the club, approached slowly and cautiously. His gaze flicked between us, wide with something close to disbelief. “Boss…,” he said carefully. “Is it true?”

I didn’t hesitate. “Yes. Spade is my fated mate. The claim has been sealed.” I wouldn’t give them his actual name. That was mine and mine alone.

The reaction was immediate and explosive.

“What the fuck?—”

“A human?”

“He’s fated to him?”

“No way?—”

Theo stepped forward before I could, his shoulders rolling, his presence rising to meet theirs like a challenge thrown. It was wonderful. Beautiful. And scary at the same time because any one of these monsters could kill him in seconds.

But they’d have to go through me first, and I believed I was feared enough to stop anyone.

Theo lifted his arms, spread them wide. “Anyone got a problem with me and Soren?”

Silence slammed down.

Good.

I slid my hand up his back in a slow and deliberate manner. It was possessive and claiming too.

“No one,” I said smoothly, letting just enough of my power bleed into my voice to crush any lingering doubt, “will have a problem with what belongs to me.”

The threat coiled through the room. And just like that, heads bowed in respect.

I was a powerful elder in this domain. I was owed obedience.

Monsters of all types asked for permission to live in my territory under my protection.

The only ones who hadn’t were Riker and his brothers, but they worked for the council, obliterating any who stepped out of line and also ending any human with a corrupt soul.

Since they were doing a job that I would usually see to, we’d become more equals and friends than anything. The same went for Dashiel, who was a royal fae member, even though he preferred to live in this world rather than his own. He didn’t want the title, just a quiet life with his future fated. Now that I had my own, and I knew the feeling it could bring me, I prayed that he would be gifted with such a treasure too.

Theo leaned closer, his voice low against my ear. “You wanna explain that?”

A faint smile curved my lips. “They bow because they understand what you do not.”

His eyes narrowed slightly. “Which is?”

I guided him forward, deeper into the club, where a booth was already being cleared for us and drinks appeared without request.

“Sit,” I murmured.