Chapter 145: The Bond

Marcus' back straightened at Gabriel's menacing aura, but he still lifted his chin and held the vampire's gaze. Gabriel stopped just before them, his eyes still fixated on Marcus. Esme stepped in front of her friend and put her hands on her hips, causing the vampire to slowly look down at his mate. 

"Are you serious right now?" Esme asked irritably. She did not like Gabriel treating Marcus like he was that vampire he'd just tortured moments ago; they weren't even on the same level. 

"I am very serious right now. I trusted Marcus to keep you safe, and not once but twice, I felt through the bond that you are hurt," Gabriel drawled as his eyes moved back up to Marcus, the iciness seeping into those crystal blue orbs. 

"It was not his fault!"

"I take full responsibility," Marcus spoke up from behind her; she sharply turned her head to look at him with widened eyes.

Was he crazy?!

"No, you don't!" She admonished and turned her head back to Gabriel after feeling his hand gently rest on her shoulder.

"Your friend is taking responsibility, Esme; you should let him man up and not hide behind you," Gabriel said in his ultra-sexy voice that was really getting under her skin to please him as her mate, but she couldn't be weak-willed.

"The-"

"We were attacked by rogues; I should have been paying better attention," Marcus interrupted what she was about to say. 

"We both should have been," Esme added, turning around to look up at Gabriel as she slid her hands up his chest. "Don't blame Marcus. We would have returned unscathed if I hadn't stopped to talk to Brody."

Gabriel's brows furrowed, and he clasped his hands over Esme's, keeping her in place. Not that she would run from anyway. "Brody? Who is Brody?" He asked in his chillingly quiet voice. 

"He.." Esme sighed, wondering where to start about their day. "Brody is a type 1 rogue.. or well, he was on his way to becoming one. I managed to talk him into shifting back into his human form. That was when the other two type 1's attacked; we would have been fine fighting them. If anything, I'd return with more injuries than I did get. But Dwayne and Dean-"

"Who are Dwayne and Dean!?" Gabriel's voice rose, and his hands tightened on hers as he stared down at her, his eyes burning into her. 

"Seriously, we need to get some girl friends because pissing off the most powerful man in the world will doom them all," Isana remarked. 

"Most she-wolves hate me," Esme replied, to which her wolf agreed, but maybe it would be a good idea to have fewer guy friends. Nothing would ever happen, but if it made Gabriel feel better, then she would make sure to make friends with her own gender. The only other issue was she was terrible at making friends. 

"That's what you say, but since leaving the Hellhounds and the White Sands pack, we have met a lot of people willing to stay with us," Isana said rather smugly. 

"They are also rogues that I met at the Hub. I even fought them, but they aren't a threat.. I don't think. They hunt down type 1's and really helped us out. Anyway, I just wanted to say don't blame Marcus. This could have happened even if I was by myself. Also.. you should relax a little more. I tend to hurt myself on a daily basis." She tried and failed at making her joke. 

"That does not make me feel any better. It took everything in me not to rush out of here and try and find you." Gabriel cupped her cheek, caressing her with his thumb before lowering his forehead to hers. "I didn't know what to think. I didn't know.." 

"I didn't know that this is what a bond would feel like," He whispered in her mind. "I'd heard about mate bonds, I knew what it involved but to know about it and experience it.. Esme, I knew you were hurt, but I didn't know your location; I didn't know if you might have been kidnapped.. It was killing me."

"I'm sorry," Emse whispered aloud, sliding her fingers up his neck and into his silky white locks before softly brushing her lips against his. Gabriel's tense body relaxed; the waves of anger and angst that had been swirling through the mate bond all melted away as he pulled her into him more, moulding her body into his as he deepened the kiss. 

His voice, touch, and presence made her feel whole as she clung to him, savouring every part of him. 

Marcus cleared his throat after they'd ignored his presence, losing themselves to each other. Still, with Gabriel appearing calmer and the tense atmosphere dissipating, it was safe to interrupt their kissing. Or so she thought. Esme started to pull away; opening her eyes, she caught Gabriel glaring at Marcus as he kept Esme attached to his lips. 

Gabriel!

Even though her thoughts screamed at him, the moan that left her lips said otherwise after he sucked on her bottom lip. Gabriel released her, making her breathless, and he smirked in satisfaction. 

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"You can apologise to me properly later." Gabriel's smooth velvet-like voice purred into her mind making her eyes widen, and a blush crawled up her cheeks before she met his hooded gaze. He kissed her forehead before stepping away and walking to the bar, and started making a drink.

"Marcus, you should sit and make yourself comfortable. It looks like you're not going to die today." Gabriel spoke with his back turned to them.

Esme glanced in her friend's direction, feeling the heat from her cheeks cooling down. Marcus had a singular brow arched at the vampire's comment like he found it amusing, to which Esme knew it was both a threat and a joke at the same time. 

She just hoped Gabriel wouldn't keep putting it on Marcus' shoulders. It wasn't fair on him, and like she told her mate earlier, it was both of their faults. 

"I would, but your little performance of cutting someone's tongue off is stuck in my mind at the moment," Marcus said as he walked closer to Esme and whispered. "You just kissed that psychopath after he did something like that."

Whispering isn't going to stop a fricken vampire from not hearing his words! She looked up at her friend pointedly. "Gabriel was punishing a subject. He is a King, you know.." She walked past him and sat down on the leather sofa Gabriel usually sat at, folding her legs under her body, her boots on the side of the couch.

Marcus followed Esme, unaware that he had taken Gabriel's spot and even lifted her boots up and rested them on his lap, so she now lay on her back comfortably, her head on the armrest. Esme inhaled sharply, wishing with all her might that she could mind-link her stupid friend; she tried to move her feet before Gabriel saw. But it was too late as she heard him chuckle darkly, his footsteps echoing again like a chilling horror film scene.

"I can't save you this time," She whispered.

Gabriel stopped at the armrest, staring down at her with an indecipherable expression. She stared back at him wide-eyed but then sighed at his tender touch. His fingers tilted her chin up, and he lowered his face to hers, meeting her lips. Tingles like an electrical current rippled through her, and her hands went back into his hair, keeping her mate in place. Gabriel chuckled against her lips, then slipped in behind her, pulling her onto his lap sideways, leaving her feet to remain on Marcus' lap.

"Esme, I can feel through the bond that you don't see Marcus that way. You and your heart belong to me," Gabriel whispered in her ear before leaving a few kisses behind her ear and neck. "But just like that tongue, I am not against removing hands either." He looked at Marcus purposely.

Marcus lifted his hands from her boots, and the vampire chuckled again. "I was joking. I know it's a habit of yours," Gabriel replied as he lifted the glass of whiskey he had prepared to his lips. Esme looked between the pair, feeling slightly awkward. She knew if Marcus' mate was here, she would probably have a huge issue with her using Marcus as her feet cushion. 

"What will you do about Paul?" Marcus asked, changing the subject. 

Gabriel paused and lowered his glass. "Paul? Is he the one that attacked you just now?" He questioned in a too chipper voice making Esme shudder. The grip on her waist tightened, though, and she snuggled into her mate further, choosing to let Marcus elaborate.

"Yep. It is a good thing Niko has taken him to the cells. It seemed like he had a huge grudge against Nyx," Marcus explained, looking at her with a worried expression. Why was he worried? Paul was locked away now. 

"He will be punished-"

"He called Nyx your dog," Marcus interrupted with a growl.

Esme pinched the bridge of her nose with her fingers, closing her eyes. "Are you just intent on seeing how far you can push Gabriel before he explodes again?" She asked icily. Gabriel's hand with the glass of whiskey was trembling, and she could hear the crack forming from his grip. He was murderously angry. 

Esme twisted in his lip and cupped his cheeks with her hands, staring into Gabriel's striking blue eyes, they were glowing, and the red in his eyes seemed to flicker like flames. "Gabriel," She whispered.

The glass in his hands shattered, the shards sprinkled onto the couch along with the brown liquid. Esme didn't so much as flinch as she glared at Marcus, who jumped up and dashed towards the bar. He skidded to a stop when the walls started to vibrate, and all of the bottles, the glasses and the mirror at the bar splintered and shattered into pieces. 

"Gabriel, I am fine." Esme kept her voice level even though she felt panicked. She didn't know he could do something like that. Would it be too dangerous for Marcus to be in the room with them right now?

She leaned into Gabriel's chest more and pecked his lips. But he did not respond, making her more concerned. She didn't care what he would do to Paul, but he needed to calm down right now. 

"Gabriel." She started to kiss his neck, trailing down his flawless skin as she undid his buttons and exposed his chest. He shivered as her hand brushed across the mate mark before she softly kissed the crescent moon, and she watched as Gabriel released his breath and flopped his head back. 

The walls stopped shaking, and Esme sighed, leaning her head on his chest in relief. The turmoil she felt in the bond had calmed down like still waters, but she could still feel how Marcus' words 'your dog' still affected him. 

"I will enjoy punishing him."

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