Page 44 of Forbidden

Just three more days, he told himself as his dinner partners once again pretended that Lucien wasn’t sitting next to them.

He could do this.

He could ignore the fact that Aksel almost always sat down next to Dylan at the other end of the table. He could ignore Dylan’s melodic laugh.

Lucien focused on his food. It tasted like ash.

Just three more days.

Chapter Sixteen

It was none of his business.

Lucien was none of his business.

But no matter what he told himself, Aksel struggled to keep his face inscrutable as yetanother asshole excluded Lucien from the conversation by turning his back and all but forcing Lucien to leave the group of guests.

His claws itched to come out.

“Do you like dancing, Aksel?” Dylan said, touching his arm.

“No,” Aksel said, watching over the rim of his glass as Lucien pursed his trembling lips and turned away from those assholes, his back very straight.

None of his business.

“Me neither,” Dylan said. “But I love dancing with the right partner.”

Aksel flicked a uninterested glance his way, but then forced himself to really look at him. Dylan Deveraux was his best chance. He was the only young omega in the room whose scent didn’t completely repel him. He didn’t smell good, not exactly, but he smelled nice enough. Tolerable.Dylan was Lucien’s half-brother. Siblings smelled somewhat similar; that was why Dylan’s scent seemed pleasant enough to him.

That was why Dylan had been invited at all. He was Aksel’s best bet to have a mate.And the guy looked a bit like Lucien. Like a poor man’s version of Lucien.

Aksel felt like a bastard for thinking that, but he was cynical enough to know that the superficial resemblance would still help. He would need every bit of help to convince his Xeus that this omega could be his mate.

And never mind that his stomach roiled with unease at the thought of mating him, mating anyone other than Lucien. It would pass. It would get easier after taking a mate. It had to.He needed to move on from Lucien, to cure himself of his unhealthy, unrequited fixation. He had to. Twenty years of pining after a man who didn’t want him was more than enough.

Dylan Deveraux would do.

It didn’t matter that Aksel didn’t love him. If he kept waiting for love, he’d never have a mate.The only omega he’d ever loved wanted nothing to do with him—felt disgusted and filthy after Aksel touched him.

Enough. It had been a year, for fuck’s sake. It was time to stop pining like a lovesick fool and try to move on. He was never going to move on if he remained unmated. He needed to pick an omega compatible enough physically and hope that a mating bite would take. Dylan was his best bet.

“Would you like to dance?” Dylan said.

Lucien had pulled out his phone and was pretending to be very engrossed in it, trying to look as though it was his own choice to ignore the guests and not the other way around. He wasn’t looking Aksel’s way. He hadn’t looked at him once.

Aksel wrenched his gaze away, infuriated with himself for his inability to keep his eyes off him.

“Why not?” he said, looking back at Dylan.

The omega gave him a surprised look and smiled. He had a very nice smile. Perfect teeth. They looked as fake as his smile.

Aksel executed a formal bow and stretched his hand out.

Dylan put his slim fingers into it and allowed him to lead him to the dance floor.

There weren’t many people dancing, so they attracted a fair bit of attention. Aksel forced himself not to look Lucien’s way. He kept his gaze on the young omega in his arms—on Lucien’s brother.

There was a part of him that wanted this to hurt Lucien. If this hurt him, it would mean Lucien cared. It would mean he’d lied, or at least hadn’t been entirely truthful when he’d accused Akselof being no better than his rapists.