“He keeps asking if this is real life,” I said, and glugged down some of my Guinness. I needed it in this place.

“Nothing with Alexis is real life,” Bria said as Liam sauntered up. “She will change your whole perception on things, trust me. Nothing will be normal after she and her kids trample all over your life.”

“Why don’t you have a blood oath?” Dylan asked after she’d ordered and been given her drink.

“In the beginning…because I didn’t want one,” she said. “I didn’t want to be permanently attached to a Demigod, especially one that shared genes with Valens. I accepted the job because he paid well and I’d be training a Spirit Walker. How could I pass that up, you know what I mean? I was ready to walk the second things got weird.”

“And now?”

She shrugged. “He hasn’t made it a requirement. He hasn’t asked, either. It’s probably for the best. I’m here for Alexis, mostly. He’s a good guy, I will admit, but I’m loyal to her. I’d do the oath to stay in the circle, but I don’t feel the need. I don’t have your issues, though. Someone might try to kill me just because I’m in the way, but they won’t try to force me into their inner circle. You need a powerful Demigod at your back.”

Bria sucked down her drink like it was water. She pounded the bar with her fist.

“Mick, how the hell are ya? Nice to see ya,” she said. “Now make yourself useful and call down Liam. Your next drink is on Kieran.”

“Feck off,” Mick muttered, before raising his hand. “Liam! Ye fookin’ deaf bastard. Liam! Get a round, will ya? Yer useless! Like tits on a bull, ye are. Fuck sakes. Liam!”

A ripple of excitement rolled through the bar. I smiled, knowing what it meant—I’d felt Kieran drawing nearer. Someone shrieked in the back, but the voices in the front of the bar had lowered to respectful murmurs.

From my vantage point I could see the crowd parting. Kieran emerged from the throng of bodies like a ship parting the tides, his broad shoulders swinging as he strolled through the crowd of staring spectators. Strength and power oozed from him, filling the bar like a savory aroma. His smooth grace screamed debonair, especially with his pinstriped, tailored suit, but his intense, intelligent gaze and coiled strength spoke of danger in a way that dried up all the spit in my mouth.

As he approached us, his stormy blue eyes focused on me, and my heart surged and then melted down through my middle. I couldn’t help but smile at his deliciousness. His guys walked in behind him, also wearing tailored suits, projecting strength and power and silently promising pain to anyone who stepped in their way.

“That is sex on a stick,” I said in a breathy whisper, watching Kieran draw near. “A bag wouldn’t do much to hide his sexiness. He’d still have the style and the body.”

“Not to mention the power and prestige, yeah. The difference is, he knows it,” Bria said, turning back to the bar. “Soon we’ll find out if he can sell it to the big dogs. Lydia will have all of her people, and Kieran will only be allowed a select few. That’s how it’s done. He’ll be protected, but his people won’t be. We’ll all be put to the test. Soon we’ll see if he’s as good as we all think.”

Kieran stepped around Jerry and slid his arm around my shoulders. “Hey, baby.” He kissed me on the temple, sending my insides into a flutter again. Heat throbbed in my middle at his touch, his proximity. “How was your day?”

“Liam, we’re closed,” Zorn said, leaning over the bar next to Bria. “Close out the tabs and get everyone out. You can stay on. The other bartenders can go home. They’ll be compensated for the tips they lost.”

Liam turned, waved a dingy white bar towel, and yelled, “Get out! We’re closed. Demigod is in residence. No last call. Put your drink down and leave. Out!”

Mick didn’t move a muscle, but none of the guys seemed to notice or care.

“Dylan.” Kieran stuck out a hand. “Good to see you again. I didn’t expect you.”

Dylan shook it. “I’m still not sure if I’m staying.”

Kieran nodded, replacing his arm around my shoulders. “There’s a place on my team, should you choose to stay. No hard feelings if you go. You need to make up your mind quickly, though. We’re meeting with Demigod Lydia in two weeks. We have a lot to plan still.”

Bria caught Dylan’s focus, and then brought him over to the rest of the guys, already cracking jokes and having a good time. The second they could let down their hair, they did. I had a feeling Bria was helping sell Dylan on that blood oath by showing him the kind of camaraderie he could expect. Jerry edged down a little to join them, leaving Kieran and me with a little space.

“Everyone acts really crazy with him,” I said as Kieran trailed his fingers through my hair. I soaked in his warmth, not able to think about much more than his touch. About wanting to get him alone.

His smile was languid, his eyes hooded. His sexy Selkie magic curled within my body, stroking all the right places and bringing a gasp to my lips.

“How so?” he asked.

“Apparently, everyone thinks that if he gets me alone, I won’t be able to resist his not-at-all-seductive ways.”

Kieran laughed and reached toward the bar to grab the Guinness Liam had delivered. “Yes, I got that feeling when Sodge called me. He hinted that it would be best to send someone to watch you when Dylan is around.”

“Tell me you didn’t hurry here for that reason.”

He kissed my temple. “I didn’t. I hurried here because I was shocked as hell to hear he’d come. I’m hoping it means he wants to join our team. While I am possessive to a fault, I have absolutely no fears where you and Dylan are concerned.”

I sighed. “Good. Frank and Sodge—and even Mick—were acting like such idiots. It was really embarrassing.”

“Do you want to know why I have no fears?”

“Because you’re rational and not prone to hysterics?”

He laughed again. “We share feelings through the soul connection, and I’ve never once felt any arousal from you when you’re in his vicinity. I’ve never felt any sexual nervousness or even appreciation for his appearance. The only time I’ve noticed those things through our bond are when I enter a room.”

I ran my fingers down the edge of his suit jacket. “I think I’m going to need to be marked again tonight.”

He slowly let out a breath and squeezed my shoulders. I could feel the desire pooling hot within him. “Come here for a moment.”

He set down his drink, then stepped back and guided me off the stool. He threaded us through the lingering bar patrons, slow to make their way out. Their gawking didn’t seem to bother him as he led me down a hallway, past the bathrooms and to a door that said “Staff.”

He flicked on the light, pulled me inside, and locked the door behind us. I didn’t get a chance to look around as he pushed me against the door, his lips on mine and his fingers at my jeans.

His Selkie magic pounded pleasure through me as I hurriedly unbuttoned and unzipped his pants, moaning. I pulled up the Line and heard his answering groan as he felt my magic.

He shoved my jeans and panties down my thighs before turning me around. My palms flattened against the door. Cool air kissed my wetness, interrupted by the heat of his tip. All the air exited my lungs as he filled me in one glorious thrust.