They’re all stealing glances at us, and I don’t like the way they’re looking at my sister.

I skid to a halt, sweat prickling along my spine, because I suddenly realize why the looks, their scents, are bothering me. I know what this is. My father has gathered prospective bridegrooms for my sister.

My hand tightens in hers. Zoey turns her big eyes up to me, her smile wobbly. She’s wearing a white eyelet dress and someone has put a flower crown over her white-blond hair. Even with her bare feet in the dirt, she looks like the angels I’ve seen in picture books.

And I don’t want to take her anywhere near those men.

I’m about to pull her away, though I’m not sure where I would take her, when a familiar weight settles over my mind. It’s like going to sleep with your eyes open. My body is no longer mine. No, I’m behind heavy glass, standing next to my wolf. I’m pounding against it and screaming. He howls and yips alongside me.

Eva makes my feet move, and I guide my sister through the tall grass, straight to the grill.

The scene faded, our bond fizzling quiet at the same time, Lou’s magic exhausted from the night. We were back in bed now, and I was shaking, the memory rattling me more than even I thought it would.

Lou has felt every moment of it. Without a word I brush away her tears with my thumb.

“That was awful,” she chokes out.

“Yes.” I was obviously not going to argue with her. It was awful. “I think we can both admit that I’ve effectively killed the mood.”

That surprised a laugh out of her.

I levered myself up so I was over her, leaning on my elbows. “I think it’s also clear that you have never coerced me like that.” I nosed along her hairline, letting my mouth drift along her skin. I loved her skin, the hot silk of it. “Lou, I’ve always wanted your cookie. Even before the bond.”

“Maybe we need to let that analogy die,” she said, brushing my hair back, her expression serious. “If the Tribunal finds out—if they disapprove, and I’m certain they would—I could lose my career.”

“That’s a possibility,” I murmured, and I hated it. I didn’t want Lou to be in that position, to have to make that kind of choice. At the same time, I had never wanted someone the way I wanted Lou. I dropped a kiss on her forehead and sighed. Now that I’d started touching Lou, it would be difficult to stop.

“The problem,” Lou said, her voice breathy. “Is that I’m having a hard time caring right now.”

I laughed, but it hurt to do it. I was going to have to let Lou go, because I couldn’t let her choose me over her career. “Lou—”

“So I guess we’ll just have to keep it from the UTC,” Lou said. “It’s none of their business anyway.” Her face scrunched up. “But we’ll have to tell Mama Ami and probably your therapist.”