Page 39 of Sinful Mates

A soft knock on what remains of my door lets me know Theo is on the other side, even if I hadn't been able to see him through the hole of what had been my door. "Leave me alone, please, I'm not in the mood to chat or be treated like a child," I snap.

"Tobias," Theo pushes the other man through the door. "Tell her."

I glance between the two. Tell me what? Unease dances down my spine. What are they planning to do now? Has my thirty days been cut in half? Am I to be killed now?

Tobias shuffles forward, stopping beside my bed, glaring down at me. "If I let you go back, you're promising to grab your things, and return here. That's it."

He is crazy if he thinks I'd give up that easily. But being out? It is worth any risk. "Yes," I reply, lying through my teeth.

But Tobias must hear my heart rate pick up because he stands over me in a second.

“You’re lying.” He glares down at me, lip curled in disgust. I really am a terrible liar, now even worse with their super hearing picking up my heart rate like a damn lie detector.

“I don’t want to be here, okay? I want to go back to work. I don’t want to stay out here till I drop dead, Tobias.”

Tobias and Theo exchange a long look. Hello, eternal imprisonment. I shouldn't even bother talking to them. Tobias storms out again. Theo remains in the doorway, and Tobias shoves past him.

There is one way to make all this stop. I take a deep breath gathering the energy my mom always said is deep inside when you need to say something important. "I'll let Theo mark me," the words come out in a soft whisper. I don't want to give this up, but if it means returning to normal, I'll do it.

Tobias freezes in place before barging back past Theo again and yanking my chin up, forcing me to look at him, meeting his eyes. "Say that again."

"I will let Theo mark me, claim me, take me as his. Can I please go back if I do that?"

Tobias's rage drains out of him. "I have to go back to work. We can't now." I bite back my sigh of frustration. That isn't a no. "I will drop you off with Theo. Never leave his side until I come get you, got it?"

Really? I nod, struggling not to nod too hard. I don't want him to see how excited this makes me. I’m going back! Sure, it is like a few hours but at least I can get my mother out of that damned box. The guilt of knowing she is still there eats at me.

Theo gets me some pants and tosses them to me. I quickly slip them on and follow them both back downstairs. Tobias walks outside and hops in the car. I go to get in the back, but he winds the window down and I already know he wants me in front. I open the passenger door and slide in.

Theo comes out and jumps in the back and passes me a muffin between the seats. "Eat it," Theo orders, a sparkle in his eyes. "He's letting you go back, please, eat."

I take the muffin from his hand and take a timid little bite. My stomach growls at me, outraged I'd neglected it for two whole days. A low growl escaped Tobias, but he starts the car. I do my best to eat my muffin as he tries to kill us with his break-neck driving.

By the time we get to the apartment building, I've finished the entire thing and licked all the crumbs away. I get out of the car and the valet studies me, eyebrows drawn together, glancing over at my clothing choice. I’m still wearing a mix of their clothes, so I can see why he is confused. Tobias leads us to my apartment and unlocks it for me, letting us in. He gives Theo a quick kiss before grabbing me and kissing me so hard he bruises my lips. He peels away from me, smirking.

"I'm serious, behave or this will be the last time I let you out, Imogen." I nod and he saunters out the door, closing it behind him. I don't waste time, I go straight to my bedroom with Theo following behind with a suitcase.

"I'm surprised you weren't the dog," I commented as we entered the room.

"What?" Theo gave me a blank stare.

"The way you follow me around, always at my side. You're a more loyal animal than him."

Theo shakes his head, not taking my bait. "Pack what you need. We won't be coming back for a long time."

I frown, turning on my heel toward him. "But I said you could mark me, right? How long will I have to stay away from everything?"

“Probably a week till the bond kicks in. Then he will let you return to work.” Theo looks away quickly from me, not meeting my eyes.

I’ve never seen Theo nervous before. Is he lying to me? Why do I have a sinking feeling I won’t be coming back here at all? I don't have any other choice, though; running would be my undoing. I'll never see daylight again; Tobias has made that clear. I pack, throwing my clothes in the suitcase. Theo leaves my side at some point, grabbing something for me and putting it in the suitcase. I glance over to see the photo album and pause in my efforts.

“He isn’t letting me come back, is he?” Theo looks away from me again; it’s all I need to know the truth. God damn these men. They always do whatever they want to force me to their ways. “He fucking lied to me, and you went along with it?” This is rich, considering he gets angry when I lie to him. Theo doesn’t say anything, and I know I’m right. They plan on keeping me locked away. “Why?” My strained voice makes him look back at me. I’m furious. If I was a wolf myself, I would attack him. “I am done, so fucking done with everything.”

“We have our reasons, Imogen.”

His soft ways made it hurt so much worse. “Explain then, make me understand,” I beg, tears brimming. I can’t keep doing this. If this is what my life will be like with them, then I want no part of it. I storm over, get my makeup bag and hairbrush, and dump them in the larger bag.

Theo reached for me. “Once I have marked you, and the bond has kicked in, we will explain everything. You just need to be patient.”