I had to ask, “Found a favorite yet?” I was only half joking. He didn’t laugh. “There’s only ever been one in this competition for me, Simone Lewison. You know that.”
“It’s not close enough,” he said, voice a hypnotic rumble. “You’ll stay here, in my house. After the end of the selection, you will be my mate, and my mate stays with me.”
“I’ll get my carpenter on the expansion as soon as we get back,” she choked out. Shadow growled something about being a fucking god and not a carpenter, but no one bothered to comment.