Page 793 of The Bonding Games: Part 1

“Don’t leave us again, Ezzy,” Tiger whispers, voice unusually subdued, and my heart pinches for another reason entirely. I know he cares for her, loves her, as much as I do, and it makes me fall even harder when I think about all the times Ezla’s been around Tiger when he’s at his most expressive and hyper, and not once did she make a nasty comment about it like so many before have. Not once did she make him feel less than for his ADHD or treat him differently because of it. It’s just one of the many things I adore about her, and one of the countless things that make her perfect for the both of us.

But I sometimes worry, have admittedly felt sparks of anger when she dismisses him so easily. Because I know he’s affected the most deeply by her constant rejection, the cruelty that’s always a moment away from being unleashed on any one of us. We all need her, and I just wish she’d give us the time of day, if not return our affections.

“Stay, Vengeance.” Cooper’s deep brown stare is intently locked on her, drilling into her as if he could will our Bonded to give in to us with his eyes alone.

“Please, Havoc.” Tate doesn’t make an effort to hide the vulnerability in the request.

It’s so, so still.

No one dares move, no one dares breathe so loudly. And I think, She’s not going to stay. She’s not going to stay, and I don’t know how much more of her rejection I can take. I don’t know how I’ll move on, and I don’t know how I’ll heal my brother. But I wonder if I’ll have to do all of that if this keeps up.

But the thought is discarded as quickly as it came.

Because it’s impossible. She’s not someone we can move on from. And I never want to. No matter how much it hurts. She’s it for me. For us. I know it. The other men know it.

We’ll never stop trying.

But if she leaves today . . . I know it will destroy Tiger, as well as a part of me and a part of all my new brothers. And I’ll do what I always have to do: hold everyone together.

Ezla still hasn’t so much as blinked, and my heart sinks, a sombreness weighing down on us all.

She’s going to leave.

Lifting her foot, she—

Steps forwards.

Sharp inhales ring out all around, and relief crashes through me so strongly it makes my head spin.

Our Bonded moves over slowly . . . and while she does, she starts to undress:

Her gloves come off first, and she lets them fall to the floor.

Then, with a pause in her steps, her boots and socks follow, and she carefully sets them aside, slipping her armoury sticks from her back before placing them soundlessly by her shoes.

Continuing onwards, she reaches a hand over her shoulder again, this time unzipping her Avri suit and peeling it down her lithe figure, revealing more and more silky skin that has my cock pulsing in time with the beats of my heart. The black bra beneath is made for practicality, supportive and seamless, even if the sturdiness of an Avri suit could easily allow for a naked body beneath without issue, and yet the way it hugs her breasts only has my erection demanding attention with increased aggressiveness, balls heavy and aching already.

Tate’s moan is the only sound that splits the silence as the rest of her suit comes to lie on the floor, and my eyelids droop to half-lidded as I take in the matching seamless thong she wears, my gaze raking up and down her body to take in all that smooth skin, breasts that would fit my hands perfectly, and a slim, toned form that flows all throughout her narrow shoulders to her small waist and her back, shaping her miles-long legs but flaring out slightly at the hips my hands itch to grab onto in a firm hold.

Panting breaths enter the otherwise-mute room from all of us, and at some point in the last few minutes, the hot tub has automatically gone to sleep, too, leaving no froth to obscure our view of this perfect creature before us as she slips into the spot between Alby and Tate, the former who looks a second away from passing out, and the latter whose pupils are so dilated I can hardly make out the grey of his irises. “So, so gorgeous, my Havoc,” he says lowly, large fists balled up beneath the water as he fights not to snatch her up. But even he knows this moment is far too precious to risk with something so forward, something that could send our woman running.

Though it’s anyone’s guess how long that will last when he’s visibly shaking with restraint.

Sensing we need to try and ease some of the tension before something goes very, very wrong, before someone pushes her too greatly and all hell breaks loose, Tiger starts yapping nonsense that I cling to like a lifeline, needing my attention diverted.

Because having all of it on Ezla feels dangerous, like I’m just as liable to snap as Tate.

I try to join in with the conversation my brother creates, as does every other Evot here. But it’s incredibly hard to focus, and my words keep trailing off as I watch our Bonded sit in a languid way: head tipped back to the ceiling and elbows leaning against the side of the tub, fingertips skimming the motionless water inside while, below the water, her right leg crosses over her left. She’s effortlessly seductive.

Yet I can see the slight stiffness to her, the way she’s prepared for anything. Most of all, prepared to flee.

Because no matter how fearless she appears to be, I know for sure now that The Bonding Games Champion is afraid of something:

Feelings.

Especially the love and affection we want to pour all over her.

We all know that touching her could never just be lust, and since she can read us through the bond that links our minds to hers, I have no doubt she knows this. So she must also know how little willpower we collectively have right now.