Chapter 18
Emmy set down her tablet, the genetic sequencing data blurring in front of her eyes. She’d been staring at the same screen for twenty minutes without actually seeing it.
It was time, and she wouldn’t be able to concentrate until she talked to Zander and Spence about it. She walked up the steps to the level above and made her way to Spence’s office, which was just outside Zander’s.
“Can the two of you talk? If not, can you let me know when you can?”
He looked at her a few seconds, then stood and motioned toward Zander’s door.
Zander looked up when they entered, a red pen in his hand while he made marks on printed financial reports. He put the pen down and stood. “What’s happened?”
“I’m ready.” The words came out steadier than she expected. “Nothing’s happened, but it’s time. I want the bond. The blood bond. With both of you.”
Spence, standing beside her, went very still.
Zander stepped in front of her, his blue eyes serious, a slight smile curving up.
“Then we’ll figure out the logistics, and make sure you understand what it means.”
“I’ve been thinking about it since we did the blood thing so we can telepath, and I know what it means — centuries together, our lives bound together.” She looked between them. “I want to be bound to you both, to be part of what I know ya’ll have together already.”
Spence’s eyes glistened. “Emmy—”
“I love you both,” she continued, her voice firm despite the emotion threatening to choke her. “I don’t want to wait anymore. I don’t want to keep wondering what comes next. I want this. The triangle, complete.”
Zander’s cool hand cupped her cheek. “Once done, it cannot be undone. You’ll have long life without it. Spence had to do it, so he won’t die and leave me alone. You have options he did not.”
“I know, but we’re a threesome in every way except that, and it feels important.”
“You’ll speak with my authority, once you carry my power in this way. I trust you not to abuse that, but I want you to be clear on the ramifications.”
Emmy hesitated at that, remembering how Spence had bound her to the contract when she’d first arrived.
She blew out a breath. “I think some of your people kind of already treat me like I do, so it’ll just be making it real, but yes, I’ll have to be careful with my words for important things.
You’re right. I don’t intend to step into a role as leader, but if the two of you aren’t around and something needs handling, I can do so. ”
Zander studied her face for a long moment, then nodded slowly. “Then we’ll do it tomorrow evening. We’ll agree to our vows today, and then we’ll wait twenty-four hours before we perform the ceremony. I want to be certain we all have time to consider what we are promising, before we actually do so.”
“What do we promise?” Emmy asked.
“That’s what we need to discuss.” Zander guided her to his sitting area, all three settling onto a sofa with Emmy in the middle, flanked by her vampire and her wolf. “The words create the intention, and the intention shapes the bond. What we say matters.”
They talked for over an hour, discussing what they each wanted to promise, what they were willing to bind themselves to.
Emmy was firm on certain points — no promises of monogamy, no vows of obedience from her.
Zander was firm that the power dynamic between all three be acknowledged, and Spence wanted to voice his role as the foundation, as the strength that holds them together.
By the time they finished outlining the vows and the ceremony, Emmy’s heart was racing with anticipation rather than fear.
“Tomorrow evening,” Zander said, pressing a kiss to her temple. “My personal policy here, to give big decisions twenty-four hours before implementing them.”
The next morning, Emmy found Felix already in the workout room, running on the treadmill. She climbed onto the one beside him and matched his pace, falling into a comfortable rhythm.
They ran in silence for ten minutes before Felix said, “You’re practically vibrating. What’s up?”
Emmy glanced at him. “Is it that obvious?”
“You’re radiating nervous energy.” He slowed his treadmill to a walk, and she did the same. “What’s going on?”
“Blood bond,” Emmy said quietly. “Tonight. With both of them. I wanted to do it last night, but Zander insisted we wait twenty-four hours, and now I guess I’m kind of freaking out a little. Shit, I wish it was already done.”
Felix’s eyebrows drew together. “What are you freaking out over?”
“Forever is a long time.” The words tumbled out. “What if I change? What if I want something different in a hundred years? What if—”
“Hey.” Felix stopped his treadmill completely and turned to face her. “Can I ask you something?”
Emmy nodded.
“How would you feel if you had to leave them next week? Pack up, move back to Chattanooga, say goodbye to what you’ve built here?”
The question hit her like a physical blow, a sharp, visceral impact that made her heart hurt. “No. I couldn’t. I wouldn’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because they’re mine.” The certainty in her voice surprised her. “They’re my home. My family. My everything. Leaving them would be like ripping out half my soul.”
Felix smiled gently. “Then you already know your answer. The bond doesn’t create that feeling, it just makes what’s already there a tangible thing.”
Emmy stared at him, the clarity allowing her to breathe easily. “How did you get so smart?”
He grinned and restarted his treadmill. “Stop slacking on your workout. You’re going to need to keep in shape if you intend to keep up with both a vampire and werewolf.”
She laughed and ran.
By evening, Emmy’s nervous energy had transformed into eager anticipation. She showered, dried herself, then her hair, which she pulled into a ponytail, and then walked into their bedroom without bothering to dress.
Zander had brought a large, upholstered, armless chair into the center of the room, with the other furniture pushed away from it.
Spence was already naked, kneeling beside the chair, his ass on his feet, hands on his thighs, palms up.
“Any questions?” Zander asked.
Emmy shook her head, and Zander, already shirtless, dropped his pants to the floor then walked to the chair and sat.
Emmy straddled his lap, facing him, with the vow she’d agreed to say running through her head like a mantra.
She rested her hands on his shoulders, and his arms wrapped around her.
Beside them, Spence kneeled up, so his cheek was inches from her waist, and he looked up at the two of them, his warmth radiating out.
Zander gave him a soft smile, then focused on Emmy, his blue eyes holding hers. “Emerald Drake, do you come to this bond of your own free will?”
“I do.”
“Then speak your vow.”
Emmy took a breath, feeling the weight of what she was about to promise. “I choose you both, vampire and wolf, and I bind my life to yours — not out of need, but want. Whatever time we have, we face it together. Our triangle, complete.”
The words hung in the air, shimmering with intent.
Zander turned his gaze to Spence. “Spencer August, do you accept this dragon into our bond?”
“I do.” Spence’s voice was thick with emotion. “I choose you both, vampire and dragon, to be your partner, your submissive, your vessel — whatever the two of you need me to be. Our triangle depends upon my strength, and I choose to bear that weight with joy.”
Zander’s expression softened, then he looked between them both, his voice taking on a ceremonial quality that made the air feel heavier, more present.
“I choose you both. I accept both dragon and wolf to share my life force and my power.” He turned to Emmy, his cool hand cupping her face. “I vow to respect your strength, to never cage what makes you magnificent.”
Then to Spence, his other hand settling on their wolf’s shoulder. “I vow to respect your strength, to force you to stand on your own and live your life as an individual while also caging you as I see fit.”
His gaze encompassed them both. “I accept you both, and you are mine as I am yours. Our triangle, complete.”
The air seemed to thicken, magic gathering like a growing storm.
“Now,” Zander said softly, “the blood.”
He leaned forward, Emmy tilted her head to give him access, and immediately felt the sharp pierce of his fangs without the anesthetic, which was apparently important.
Pain hit first, then pleasure, then something deeper — a connection opening between them like a door she hadn’t known was there.
Golden warmth flooded through her veins, and she gasped as she felt Zander on the other end of it.
His satisfaction, his fierce possessive love, his utter certainty that she was his.
He pulled back, blood on his lips. “Drink.”
Emmy watched as he pressed one sharp nail to his chest, drawing a clean line that welled crimson. She leaned forward and sealed her mouth over the wound, tasting copper, power, and ancient magic.
The connection between them flared brighter, stronger. She felt herself sinking into him, merging with him, becoming part of something larger than herself.
Then she felt the thread between Zander and Spence, golden and strong, woven through years of blood and trust. And as she drank, she felt that thread begin to unravel.
Not breaking. Unwinding.
She pulled back, gasping. “What—”
“It’s all right,” Zander said. “The bond is reweaving itself to include you.”
He turned to Spence, and Emmy stood on shaky legs, moving aside to give them room. Her hands fumbled with the harness she’d prepared earlier, settling the dildo against her clit with practiced ease.
Zander leaned down, biting Spence’s neck with the same fierce possession.
Spence shuddered, his eyes closed, and Emmy felt what Spence experienced through whatever Zander was creating to connect them.
But she also picked up some of Zander’s feelings.
She felt his pleasure, dominance, and confidence in the way he wielded his power, weaving them all into a single, tangible unit.