Page 13 of Charged By the Razorbacks

Tamsin’s lips curved. She’d known that question was coming.

She turned fully this time, leaning her hip lightly against the edge of the table, ignoring the way her shoulder protested the shift.

She exhaled slowly, letting the edge of it settle before she spoke again.

“I grew up in an orphanage,” she said. “Not exactly your standard setup. A few of the kids there were shifters.”

Both men stilled, but didn’t speak, but she felt their interest in focus when she spoke.

“During that time, I learned a lot,” she continued. “About how you live. About bonds. About what happens when they hit.”

Her gaze held theirs. Steady and unflinching.

“I know what a mating bond is. I also know it doesn’t ask for permission,” she added. “And it doesn’t complete unless the female accepts it.”

Jarek’s jaw tightened slightly, but Aleksy’s expression didn’t change.

She pushed on.

“And I knew,” she said, quieter now, more deliberate, “that once it hit, you’d be able to find me.”

Truth. Clean and simple.

“So, I shut it down.”

She thought for a moment. “Or at least ... suppressed it enough to give myself some breathing room.”

Jarek straightened slightly. “How?”

Tamsin shrugged.

“Tricks of the trade,” she said. “Focus. Control. A few things I picked up along the way.”

Not a lie. But not entirely the truth either. She could see that he didn’t like that.

“I needed time,” she continued, tone sharpening now. “Time to get into Chimera’s system. Time to pull what they’ve done to my work. And time to figure out how to stop it.” Her gaze didn’t waver. “I wasn’t dragging you into that until I had something worth bringing you into.”

Aleksy spoke first. “You knew you had a fuck off big target on your back.”

“Yes.”

“And yet, you chose to face it alone.”

Tamsin’s lips curved. “I usually do.”

Jarek pushed off the counter, stepping closer now. Not crowding or pushing, just holding space.

“And how do you feel about the mating bond?” he asked.

There it was. The real question.

Tamsin tilted her head slightly, considering them both for a moment.

“I’m not against it,” she said, her lips curved faintly. “You’re definitely my type.”

Jarek’s grin flashed, and Aleksy didn’t move.

“And?” Jarek prompted.