Page 102 of Their Fierce Little Monster

Lian glances over his shoulder at me and raises an eyebrow. “I hear you, petal. Loud and clear. You want us all alone, in your private quarters. Got it!”

I laugh as we keep moving until we round the corner and come to a fork in the path. Two directions lie before us.

“All right, time to vote,” Kazak states. “Who wants to take the right path?” All our hands shoot up, and he chuckles. “Right it is.”

We follow the curves and keep voting on each divide, and so far, the passage is uneventful. “I can barely hear the party.” The music is a distant hum, and I’m wondering how huge this maze is.

“Perhaps Dawn and I wait here, and you two proceed, then return with the bounty,” Corvin suggests, smirking.

“Like hell, and let you stay here so you can fuck Dawn!” Lian barks out.

“Hey, no one is doing that here,” I answer.

“We don’t split up,” Kazak orders.

“See? Even the Ash asshole agrees with me,” Lian snaps, and Kazak shoves him in the arm, sending him reeling into a wall of bushes.

He flinches back as if the wall hurt him, and rubs his arm, glaring at Kazak. “You fucker!”

The two break into an argument, and I refuse to listen, as the smallest things send them spiraling. Corvin just watches them, not saying a word, knowing he started this argument, probably on purpose.

But I’m getting tired of the fights when, on the inside, I’m torn about what comes next between us.

After today, we’re going to discuss Grimvale and the Selection Portal choosing. Every time I think about those, my stomach churns in knots. I don’t even know how we got to this moment where I care for them more than I ever should. Two of them are bonded to me, and the idea of losing Corvin hurts my heart.

If I say I won’t return to Grimvale, Kazak will fight to keep me here, and he’ll die against two monsters. But with the way they’ve been arguing, I wonder if I’ve made a terrible mistake by letting my feelings get away from me.

“Please stop!” I say abruptly as the pair stand toe-to-toe, chests out, fists curled. They all glance at me. “I’ve had enough of this.” I wave my hand toward them.

“Dawn?” Corvin asks, reaching for my hand, but I recoil from all of them. Anger and heartache are at war in my chest.

“No, this needs to stop.” I hug myself. “I get that you all have a terrible history with one another, and you’ve known nothing but hate for your enemy, but can we just end this between us? I don’t even know how it happened, but I really like each of you more than makes sense. And I’m stressed to my eyeballs about what I’m supposed to do with the approaching red moon. I don’t think I can choose one of you, and part of me is starting to think that it might be easier if I just walk away.”

Adrenaline runs through me as I realize this is the first time I’ve voiced exactly how I feel about all of them.

Corvin reaches for me, his hand wrapping around my back. “Dawn, we can fix this, because under no scenario are you leaving us.”

I frown as the other two march over to me. They surround me, and my knees soften even when I attempt to be brave. “That’s all I ask. Please, just try it for me.”

They embrace me, and my heart flutters. I’m not a fool; I know this won’t fix the problems, but they need to understand that it’s hurting me.

“Petal,” Lian whispers. “You have my word—I’m going to try.”

Corvin kisses my cheek. “Me too. You have my word.”

They both stare at Kazak, but he only has eyes for me. His jaw clenches. “You have no idea how much you mean to me, Dawn. How turning off the instinct to destroy these two isn’t easy, but for you… Anything for you.”

“Baby steps,” Lian says, nudging him with his shoulder.

Kazak just grins, and it’s forced, but I’ll take it. Tension will always linger between them, and I still don’t know what I’ll do about the red moon, but for now, I have temporary peace.

They all hold me close, no one drawing away, until Lian has his tongue on my neck and I burst out laughing. I unravel from them, wiping my neck.

Just then, a guttural snarl erupts from around the bend we emerged from.

I freeze and twist, all of us staring in that direction.

Something black steps out from the corner on heavy paws, reminding me of a cat as big as a huge wolf. It has a line of bony ridges running down its back, long fangs in a wide jaw, and yellow eyes. Its lips peel back over its sharp canines, its head lowering as the fur on the back of its neck spikes up.