Chapter 27 Rowan #2
The door opening had drawn Talon’s attention, so he was already standing by the time we entered the room.
He was roughly Cade’s size, a few inches taller, and a bit more lithe.
He was wearing nothing but grey sweatpants, so I could clearly see his muscles were not as bulky as the brothers, but more defined, graceful, and agile.
Tattoos covered his entire body from head to toe.
They swirled around his nimble form, following the contours of his body in a way that highlighted the valleys and peaks of his limbs and chiseled abs.
I had never seen such intricate artwork, and I marveled at the way the strong black ink looked against his skin. The contrast was so bold and crisp.
“Hello, I’m Rowan,” I said timidly.
Ryker slid his big palms under my shirt and traced my hips. I swatted him away, turning red with embarrassment at the way he touched me so brazenly in front of a man who I had only just met. Ryker ignored my protests.
“Isn’t she beautiful, Tally?” he said from behind me in a husky tone.
Talon regarded me, taking a few steps forward, as Ryker gently turned my hips, spinning me for display. When he finally faced me forward again, Talon was much closer, studying me with an unreadable expression.
With every step Talon took, my breath hitched. His closeness only intensified the pull I felt toward him. The invisible force seemed to grow stronger with proximity.
“She is. Hello, Rowan, I’m Talon Grayson. It’s nice to meet you,” he said in a calm, deep voice that was at odds with the raw intensity he was now looking at me with.
I studied his face, gasping slightly when I realized just how beautiful he was.
He had high cheekbones and a perfectly defined jaw.
Large full lips adorned his face, and silver hair, which was shaved on the sides and longer on the top, parted in the middle, falling forward on his forehead in two swooping waves.
Perhaps the most striking thing about his appearance was the color of his eyes. They were a vivid, almost glowing yellow that commanded attention. Locking gazes with him felt like staring down a predator. There was something unsettling in them.
I had seen his eyes before.
I remembered them from my nightmares.
But now, as they glowed, locked intently on me, I didn’t feel fear.
I felt heat.
He flexed his hand and cracked his knuckles, which drew my attention to the tattoos that lined his fingers.
I wondered where else on his body had tattoos as I visually traced the tattoos across his torso, and under the waistband of his sweats.
He stalked forward, making me feel hunted, caught between two vicious predators, with nowhere to go.
I was dizzy and disoriented, clinging to Ryker, who was still touching me gently, feeding my arousal.
Ryker’s warm cinnamon scent was all over my skin, and it mixed in the air with a new smoky pine scent. Talon smelled like a forest on fire, charred but also crisp and invigorating. It was a scent that contradicted itself.
Ryker’s hand had traveled downward again and was dangerously close to the band of my jeans. Talon’s intense eyes tracked it moving under my shirt.
I surveyed the room, suddenly noticing marks on the walls, floor, and even ceiling that looked like an animal had been clawing, trying to get out.
I realized Talon’s shifted form must have made the marks.
At first my heart raced, feeling fear, but then my emotions turned to pity.
Had they locked him here in this room, testing sedatives on him as he tried to get out?
Were we kin, trapped against our wills? Were we both prisoners in our own way?
“Rowan, Talon has missed all the fun we’ve had for the past few days. He’s been lonely here all by himself. Haven’t you, Tally?” Ryker asked him, while lifting my shirt slightly, exposing a taunting sliver of skin along my waistband.
“Yes, I have been lonely, Ryker.” Talon responded in the same smooth, calm voice as before. His voice may have sounded in control, but his dark eyes glinted with feral, unrestrained need.
He was so much closer now, close enough to reach out and touch me. They sandwiched me between them. I turned my head, looking at the glass, pleading silently to be let out of the room by Cade, who was on the other side. I knew he wouldn’t let me go, though.
It had dawned on me soon after entering the room that the men had definitely planned this. The bed in the middle of the room, Ryker leaving me unsatisfied in the hallway, and the fact that Dr. Zolkos had made a quick exit, led me to that conclusion.
I sucked in a sharp breath, my senses overloaded and my mind spinning.
Needing distance, I stepped back from them both, desperate to reclaim a shred of personal space.
Talon caught on immediately, retreating and giving me a generous amount of room.
Ryker, more nonchalant, wandered over to the bed and flopped onto it with casual ease.
“I have an idea! Since we’re stuck here for a while and have nothing better to do! Let’s play a game? Sound good, Kitten?” Ryker suggested in a playful tone that was laced with darker intentions.
“What game, Ryker?” I asked, eyeing him warily. He had something up his sleeve.
“Truth or Dare! It will be fun. You can get to know all our dirty little secrets, and we can find out yours!” he said, winking.
“What are the rules?”
I was familiar with the game's title and its basic concept, but I had never actually played it. Before I met my bandmates, I didn't have many friends, and it was a game typically played with others in social settings.
“It’s simple. We take turns answering and asking questions.
Start by asking ‘truth or dare’ to the person of your choosing.
They have to answer honestly, or they have to complete a dare based on what they pick.
If they don’t answer, answer honestly, or complete the dare, there’s a house rule we determine, similar to a punishment of sorts,” Talon answered this time.
His voice was like smooth, calm, silk and I enjoyed hearing him explain things to me.
“But what will the house rule be, Tally?! We will need to think of something good to keep Kitten honest. She loves to lie! She lied her whole life about not being an omega!” Ryker said incredulously. I rolled my eyes at him.
“Hmm, I think if anyone lies, or doesn’t complete the dare, they should have to take off an article of clothing, just to up the stakes. I have very little to lose myself; it will do a good job of keeping me honest too,” he said, gesturing down to his shirtless form and baggy sweats.
“Okay, doesn’t seem too bad a punishment… I just don't want to get spanked again,” I said as I shot Ryker a scathing look. “How will we know if someone is being honest? People lie pretty convincingly… I would know.”.
“Tally will be our lie detector! He can quite literally smell when a person isn’t being truthful. It comes in very useful during special ops assignments and enemy interrogations.”
“Really!?” I asked as surprise molded my features. “How does that work exactly?”
“It’s simple; when humans lie, they have telltale signs.
My hearing and sense of smell are excellent, far superior to even an alpha’s.
First, their heartbeat increases, even if it’s only slightly, which I can hear.
Then, their mouths will go dry, causing them to swallow frequently.
Finally, their autonomic nervous system causes them to sweat as cortisol floods their brain, which I can smell,” Talon explained.
“Okay, well if you are going to be the shifter lie detector, who will keep you honest then?”
The intercom cracked through a speaker overhead, and Cade’s voice sounded in the room.
“I will. Talon and I have known each other for a long time. I can tell when he’s lying,” Cade said, reminding me he was still listening and watching.
“Okay. I guess let’s play.” I said, conceding to the chosen rules.
“Perfect, I'll go first, Kitten!” Ryker said giddily. “Hmm, Rowan, truth or dare?”