The silence that followed Alex's declaration was the kind that had weight to it—the kind you could feel pressing against your eardrums.
Naga's coils tightened once, then deliberately, visibly loosened. He held Lucas's gaze for a long moment—predator to predator, lord to lord, mate to whatever this new thing was—and Alex held his breath.
"You took a killing blow for him," Naga said finally.
"Yes," Lucas said.
"Without hesitation."
"There was nothing to hesitate about."
Naga was quiet for another beat. Then: "I don't like this."
"I know," Lucas said.
"I also understand it." Naga exhaled through his nose, a long, controlled sound. "That doesn't mean I like it."
"You don't have to like it," Lucas said. "You just have to believe I'm not going to hurt him."
Naga looked at him for another long moment—calculating, reading, the way he always did when someone new entered Alex's orbit and he was deciding exactly how much of a threat they presented.
