Erasthai

“What do you mean?” I asked carefully.

Caspian leaned back slightly against my headboard, silver eyes glinting with amusement while he watched me unravel in real time. “What do you think I mean, sunshine?”

The nickname alone made my stomach flip stupidly. I hated that. I hated how every time he looked at me, my thoughts scattered like frightened birds. The man was unfairly beautiful up close. Brown hair slightly messy from the morning wind, sharp cheekbones, broad shoulders stretching beneath his black shirt, golden tanned skin that looked warm enough to touch for hours.

Focus, Livana.

I forced myself to look him directly in the eyes. “Well,” I said carefully, “you don’t own me.”

His expression barely changed. “I do,” he replied smoothly. “And you’ve known that for three years.”

I blinked. “What?”

Instead of answering immediately, he pushed himself off the bed in one graceful movement before nodding toward the floor. “Put your shoes on, sunshine. Let’s go."

I stared at him in disbelief. “You can’t just do whatever you want because you’re a Lycan.”

A slow smile spread across his face then. Dangerous. “You have no idea what I want to do to you.”

Heat rushed violently into my cheeks. Oh my God. Nyx immediately buried her face in embarrassment somewhere inside me. Caspian’s silver eyes darkened slightly as he watched my reaction. “When did you become such a little spitfire?”

The way he looked standing there made him seem less human and more predator. Like every movement was carefully controlled power. Ultimate hunter. Ultimate temptation. It should honestly be illegal. “Careful,” he added lazily. “I might start liking the idea of bending you to my will.”

My heart skipped so hard it physically hurt. Unfortunately my brain instantly betrayed me with several very evil thoughts involving his hands, his voice, and exactly what “bending me to his will” could mean.

Judging by the way his mouth twitched. he noticed.

“I wonder what kind of thoughts are running through that fiery head of yours,” he murmured. I nearly combusted. “I would love to explore them,” he continued smoothly, “but we don’t have time right now.” Then his gaze flicked briefly toward the bedroom door. “Your family’s waking up.”

Before I could even process that, Caspian suddenly stepped forward, lifted me effortlessly by the waist, and sat me back down on the edge of the bed. I froze completely. Then he crouched in front of me.

And started putting my shoes on for me.

My entire nervous system stopped functioning. Every brush of his fingers against my ankle sent sharp little jolts through my body. Warmth spread upward embarrassingly fast while his scent wrapped around me completely now. clean pine, cold morning air, expensive cologne, and something deeper underneath that smelled uniquely male and dangerously addictive.

No human should smell that good. No creature should. I swallowed hard while staring down at his bent head and broad shoulders. This Lycan was going to kill me accidentally.

“Your family is waking up,” he repeated calmly after tying my shoes. “I’m taking you somewhere nobody can interrupt us.”

Interrupt us? My brain immediately supplied several horrifying possibilities involving walls, hands, kisses, and very questionable decisions. Oh God.

Before I could ask what exactly he meant by that, Caspian simply stood again, wrapped one arm around my waist, and carried me toward the open window. “Wait....” Then we jumped.

I gasped loudly as the world tilted beneath us. But Caspian landed effortlessly. Graceful. Elegant. Like gravity itself respected him too much to let him fall badly. I stared at him in complete disbelief. “You’re insane.”

“You’ll survive.”

Then before I could protest again, he pulled me closer against his side and suddenly the world blurred around us. The cold morning air whipped through my hair as we moved impossibly fast through sleeping streets and quiet rooftops. My heart slammed violently against my ribs while New Orleans slowly woke beneath us golden sunrise spilling across old buildings, soft fog curling through empty roads, distant sounds of the city barely beginning to breathe awake.

Caspian moved like he belonged above the world instead of inside it. Sometimes we leaped across rooftops. Sometimes through trees. Sometimes along narrow alley walls so smoothly it didn’t even feel real. I should have been terrified. Instead I couldn’t stop staring at him.

Eventually the city faded behind us completely until we reached a secluded park hidden near the edge of the forest outside town. The place looked untouched. Quiet lake water reflected the pale morning sky while massive willow trees swayed softly beside winding stone paths. Flowers bloomed wildly around the edges of the lake like nature had been left alone to decorate itself freely.

No people. No noise. Just silence. And him.

Caspian finally let me down slowly onto the grass near the water’s edge before turning toward me again. “How much do you know about Lycans?”

I crossed my arms slightly. “Not much.”

His mouth twitched knowingly. “I figured.” He walked slowly beside the lake while speaking, hands resting casually inside his pockets. “We’re secretive for a reason.”

I stayed quiet and followed beside him. “You know werewolves have mates chosen by the Moon Goddess,” he continued. “Lycans don’t.”

That surprised me instantly. “What?”

“We can feel attraction. Desire. Love.” His silver eyes flicked toward me briefly. “But erasthai bonds are different.”

The unfamiliar word rolled strangely through me again. “Erasthai,” he repeated softly. “It’s similar to your mate bond. But stronger. More primal.”

I listened quietly now. “Our erasthai can be anyone,” he continued. “Human. Wolf. Witch. Vampire. Fae. Any creature.”

I frowned slightly. “That sounds chaotic.”

“It is.” His expression darkened slightly. “Because once a Lycan meets their erasthai…” his eyes locked onto mine completely now, “…they don’t let them go.”

My stomach tightened. Then he said quietly “I met mine three years ago.”

Everything inside me stopped. The art store. My breath caught softly. Caspian watched my face carefully before continuing. “You were standing in the middle of the store looking annoyed at several boxes twice your size.”

Heat rushed into my cheeks instantly. “Oh my God.”

“You looked sweet,” he said softly. “Young. Fascinating.”

I stared at him in shock. Because I remembered that day perfectly too. The silver eyes. The way he moved. How beautiful he looked standing in my mother’s store.

“I thought I acted like an idiot,” I admitted weakly.

Caspian smiled slightly. “You did.”

My jaw dropped. “You stared at me for almost five minutes.”

“I did not!”

“You absolutely did.”

I buried my face in my hands in horror. “I’m never recovering from this.”

His low laughter drifted through the quiet morning air again. “The first time we met was three years ago,” I said slowly.

“Yes.” He nodded once. “We had just moved from Germany. I needed supplies.” Then he looked directly at me again. “But I didn’t expect to find my erasthai there.”

My chest tightened strangely. “What happened then?”

His gaze sharpened slightly. “The moment I met you,” he said quietly, “I marked you already.”

I froze. “…Marked?”

Caspian stepped closer slowly. “Not physically.” His voice lowered slightly. “I marked your wolf first. Your scent. Your aura.”

Nyx stirred uneasily beneath my skin. “Any Lycan can smell it on you now,” he continued. “They know you belong to me.”

A chill ran down my spine. “And trust me,” he added calmly, “you never want to witness two Lycans fighting over an erasthai. This town would be destroyed in minutes.”

Suddenly I remembered that day clearly. The moment I thought I felt him sniff near my neck. I really hadn’t imagined it. Then another thought hit me.

“Wait.” I frowned at him. “If you marked me three years ago… why ignore me all this time?”

For the first time, something darker crossed his face. “Because getting too close to you made me want to take you.”

My breath caught. “You were young,” he continued quietly. “And you were waiting for your mate.”

I hesitated before asking carefully “So if my mate had claimed me… you would’ve backed off?”

Caspian stopped walking completely. The expression on his face turned genuinely dangerous now. “The thought of another male claiming you,” he said softly, “makes me want to destroy everything around me.”

Nyx shivered. “But I kept telling myself to do the right thing,” he continued. “Wait for you.” Then his mouth twitched slightly. “Julian and Silas told me I was being ridiculous.”

I blinked. “So Bane rejecting me…”

“Was the best thing that could’ve happened for me,” Caspian finished smoothly.

That should not have made my heart race. It absolutely shouldn’t have. I swallowed carefully. “So you already marked my wolf and started the bond?”

“Yes."

“And all that’s left is a physical mark?”

“Yes.”

My entire body suddenly felt too warm. “How?”

Caspian’s silver eyes slowly dragged over me. “Like werewolves,” he murmured. “Except I can mark you anywhere.”

My brain instantly betrayed me again. Neck. Thigh. Chest. Hip. Oh my God.

I forced myself to focus immediately. “So I don’t really get a say in any of this?”

“Of course you do,” he replied smoothly.

I narrowed my eyes suspiciously. “You can say yes.”

I stared at him in disbelief. “That’s not how choices work.”

His grin widened slightly. “Still counts.”

I sighed dramatically and rubbed my face tiredly. “Can I at least have time to think about all this?”

Caspian looked at me for a long moment. And for once he actually seemed serious. “Yes,” he said finally. Then his mouth curved slightly again. “But don’t take too long, sunshine.”