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“Don’t worry about it,” he says, holding up a can of something and spraying it all over him.

I cough and splutter on it; it smells like fly spray, making me gag on the fumes.

“What is that shit?” I ask, choking.

“We use it to mask our scents,” he says with a shrug.

I open the door, letting him in, before walking to the kitchen. I flick on the kettle, needing caffeine.

“Coffee?” I ask, and he nods, looking around the kitchen and dining room.

“Place is so… so…”

“Clean?” I offer, and he nods.

“Yeah, Cyrus has a thing about dust,” I tell him, and he looks at me.

He sits down on one of the stools facing me, and I hand him his coffee.

“So, what’s it like living with monsters?” he asks, and I stare at him.

I don’t like how he’s said that; for some reason, it grinds my gears.

He puts his hands up in mock surrender; something on my face must have alerted him I was not pleased by his words.

“Settle. I was only messing around. You are starting to like them, aren’t you?” he asks, and I say nothing.

He sighs. “I suppose it can’t be helped. The bond makes you oblivious to what they are.”

“I am fully aware of what they are, Sam. You don’t have to keep reminding me.”

“Are you, though, Ada? Do you truly know the monsters you live with?”

“They are people, Sam—”

“No, Ada, we are people. They are monsters. Monsters that prey on the weak.”

“They don’t kill people. Enough of this.”

“They have killed plenty. Just because they have you fooled doesn’t mean I don’t see what they truly are.”

“Did you come here just to trash-talk them, Sam? Because if you did, you should leave.”

“Wow, they got you good, didn’t they? You fuck them yet? Is that why you’re acting like this?” he asks, standing up and brushing my hair back to look at my mark.

He glares at Eli’s mark before sitting down.

“What I do with them is none of your business. They’re my mates.”

“They are not your mates, Ada. You need to leave them and come home with me. I can protect you from them. We can have a future together,” Sam says.

Is he serious?

For years, he refused to step into a relationship with me, always left it to fuck buddies, and the moment someone else shows interest, he wants to stake a claim to me.

I shake my head. “No, you should leave, Sam. We aren’t together, and they will be back soon. Just go. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“They won’t hurt me, Ada, but if you want me to go, I will. Just think about what I said. We can be together. You would be safe.”