Loveless: A BWWM Wolf Shifter Romance (The Alpha Series Book 2)

by Brooklyn Knight

  I looked up at the ceiling.

  “And then I met Anthony Moretti.”

  My jaw tightened. “So my adopted father knew about you too? I am the only one who was in the dark about your existence?”

  “Don’t get angry,” Roman suggested quickly. “All I ever wanted to do was meet you, to meet Remi. I don’t have any family in America – at least not family who can transform into a wolf at a moment’s notice. I need to be around you guys, my brothers,” he whispered emphatically. “This is the part of myself I have been searching for. Now that I’ve found it, it doesn’t matter how pissed off you are; there is no way I’m letting it go.”

  His words struck me, as thoughts of my beautiful mate filled my mind. She was the part I had been searching for, and there was no way I would let her go. On some level, I understood Roman’s position.

  On some level.

  I shut my eyes and pulled in a breath, wondering what I was supposed to say or do next. Roman was waiting, but I did not know for what. I did not have anything to give him. I barely loved the brother I knew, why the fuck would he think there was any love for him?

  I opened my mouth to respond to his story, but suddenly, more sound erupted, and this time, it was coming from the kitchen.

  ‘Vince, help!’ Shenique’s shrieking thought penetrated my skull. Without saying anything, I burst past Roman and bolted up the steps, taking several at a time. My wolf broke out, and to my surprise, the black wolf I had acquainted that morning was at my side. We dashed through the hall and towards the kitchen.

  ‘What the hell is happening?’ Roman thought to me.

  ‘It is my mate,’ I thought back.

  ‘Your mate? I thought Remi said you didn’t have one.’

  I didn’t have the time or the patience to respond. I had spent almost fifteen minutes talking to Roman, listening to his tale of woe, and because of this, Shenique was in trouble. The only thing that concerned me was getting to my woman.

  I skidded to the threshold of the kitchen, not sure of what I would find, but I could sense my mate’s terror. Not only that, I could sense intense anger.

  Roman frowned. ‘It is Remi,’ he predicted.

  ‘It is also my mate.’

  I stomped around the corner, adrenaline making my body tremor, but when I looked in and saw Remi with his arm wrapped around my mate’s neck, all I saw was red.

  Twenty-Two

  Shenique

  ‘What Potion?’

  “This house is too goddamn big,” I muttered stumbling my way through the dark basement and up to a main floor. “And this isn’t even a basement. It’s a one-story townhouse.” I was not exaggerating. I had left Vinny and descended a few steps, expecting to find myself in a dank cellar. Instead, what I found was an underground manor. A huge, soapstone fireplace jutted from the middle of the room, right up through the ceiling, and expensive, gray leather furniture completed the elegant decor. On the right side of the room, a wine rack spanned the entire wall, and I couldn’t resist the urge to see what stocked it. 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon; 2015 Troubador Pinot Noir, and a million others with names I wouldn’t even think about trying to pronounce.

  No wonder Sasha didn’t want to be rescued, I thought, passing the elaborate amenities. She was living in the lap of luxury. A few days ago, I hadn’t gotten past the foyer, but even at these depths, the mansion was no less spectacular.

  I walked up a few steps to the basement door, and pushed it open. I fiddled with Loveless, as I pressed my back against the wall, just in case someone was wandering the halls.

  Vinny had selected this hour on purpose. He said his father was out of the country, so most of the help would be in bed by now. As far as I could tell, he was right.

  I peered into the long, empty hallway, which was illuminated only by dim light, seeping from crystal sconces.

  The place was quiet.

  I inhaled and pushed the door to a slow close, then I eased myself into the open area, now fully exposed. I marched forward, making sure to keep my steps light.

  Vinny was a wolf, and so was his brother. Shit, Julian was a Chatham Raven. Baby Jesus in the manger only knew what other creatures might be lurking around these goddamn corners.

  And this hallway – it had to have been a million miles long! When Vinny had outlined the plan, he hadn’t told me just getting to the kitchen would be a mission, in and of itself.

  I huffed and his voice rang in my mind.

  ‘Carina, are you all right?’

  ‘I’m fine,’ I said, still taking in the aesthetics, ‘I’ve just left the basement. And for the record, it’s not a basement. It’s a house inside a house.’

  ‘Do not get distracted. Down the hall and to the left,’ he insisted, forcing me to refocus.

  ‘Okay, I’m on it. Have you found Remi? Did you intercept him?’

  No answer. In fact, the connection dropped. I frowned, wondering what had happened and if he was okay, but I was cognizant of the time restraints.

  Of course he was okay, I chided myself. He was in his house with his brother. The only person whose safety I needed to be concerned about was my own.

  I needed to get the job done, and I needed to hurry. Vinny was distracting his brother, but he’d only be able to do it for so long. My heels dug into the plush carpeting as I marched down the hallway, clutching Loveless in a tight grip. Even the hallway was a spectacle, and I found myself distracted once again. An elaborate portrayal of a celestial scene covered the entire ceiling, and beautiful masterpieces, of all shapes and sizes, lined the walls. I didn’t know much about art, but the value of these pieces was obvious. Most featured naked women, with creamy skin; their small breasts bare before the viewer, a look of both innocence and worldliness radiating in their eyes. Then I saw an oil portrait of Vince and his brother, Remi.

  At the sight, I stopped walking. My eyelashes fluttered as I walked up to the detailed masterpiece. I lifted my hand and touched Vince’s face.

  He was stunning. And he was happy.

  Both he and Remi were.

  The image clearly captured a time when their cares were nonexistent, and life was better than good. The only thing that existed was brotherhood.

  I frowned as my fingers trailed to Vince’s lips and then curled away. I was getting distracted again. I pushed my nagging thoughts to the side and hastened my steps. Soon, I was rounding a corner and stepping into an industrial-sized kitchen, complete with several stainless ranges, refrigerators, and marble countertops.

  Loveless scorched against my skin and I unclasped it from around my neck.

  ‘Vinny, I’m in!’

  No answer.

  I wanted to be worried, but I didn’t have time. Quickly, I rushed to the small freezer Vince had told me about and jerked it open. I frowned at what was inside.

  “Gelato? Seriously, Sash? I would have thought your cravings to be something more exotic.” A smile played on my lips at the thought of my baby sister being pregnant, but it was quickly replaced by remorse. I hardened my gaze and gripped a container with a broken seal. The freezer was stacked with the cartons, but it was easy to see which one had been dipped into. The container was misshapen and worn. Thoughts of Sasha’s mate, running into the kitchen in the middle of the night made me smile, and I began to think about Vince and me.

  Quickly, I tried to twist the cap off Loveless, but my hands were shaking uncontrollably, and when the amulet tumbled out of my hands and crashed onto the floor, I hissed a curse.

  “What the hell, Shenique?” I chided myself under my breath. “That is so not part of the plan! This entire operation was supposed to be seamless, yet here I am doing mansion tours, art appreciation, and then dropping the potion like – ”

  “What potion?” Remi demanded.

  Twenty-Three

  Shenique

  ‘Perfect Mate’

  My neurotic self-talk died on my tongue. Out of nowhere, a low, threatening growl, stopped me dead in my tracks. I wanted to turn around to
face him, but I was stuck to the spot. I’d heard Vince’s growl that first day at the front door. It had rattled the foundation of the mansion. But this growl... surely it altered the earth’s core.

  My hands tightened around Loveless.

  Remi advanced. His angry energy laced around my neck like poisonous vines, and I gasped as if I was losing my breath.

  “I thought my brother had gotten rid of you,” he snarled, “yet you have the gall to return.”

  I swallowed and snatched Loveless off the floor. Then I rose to my feet to match the bully who had caught me, red-handed, in the kitchen of his lavish home.

  I jutted my chin and tried to steady my trembling jaw. Quickly, I assessed my proximity to the freezer, which was still pulled open. The canister of gelato was perched on top of the other unopened ones. It would only take two seconds for me to lunge for the freezer and retrieve the gelato. But shit – then I’d need another five seconds to take the fucking top off Loveless, and another five to take the top off the goddamn canister.

  I would never make it.

  Besides, if Remi even suspected I’d done something to Sasha’s food, he’d incinerate the entire stock of gelato, not just the contaminated canister.

  Shit! The plan was a bust. The only thing I could do was focus on getting out of there. Alive.

  Remi was still advancing. His eyes were the same shape as his brother’s, but instead of gray, Remi’s eyes were a fierce green; and they were narrow, glowing slits. He inched closer, and I waited for my heart to burst out of my chest and land on the floor.

  ‘Vinny, help!’ I whispered the thought, just in case there was some way for Remi to hear it.

  “What were you doing?” Remi asked. Now, his voice was half animal and half human. My bladder was about to be compromised.

  “None of your fucking business ,” I whispered through my teeth, voice shaking.

  Before I could even process his response, he fled across the room and yanked my hair into a tight fist. I cried as my neck snapped back, and hot tears lined the perimeter of my eyes.

  Remi’s teeth were longer and pointier than Vince’s, and now, I was eye-to-eye with his frightening, emerald gaze. He glowered at me, the heat from his rage rivaling Loveless’s intensity. I tried to look away from him, but he jerked my head and forced my gaze back where he wanted it.

  My mouth trembled and I tried to steady it.

  ‘Vince, where are you?’ The thought was helpless and feeble.

  No answer.

  “I know who you are,” he snarled. “You are my mate’s sister.”

  “Well, since you know that, maybe you should cut me some fucking slack,” I snapped.

  He chuckled. “I might have considered this, if you were not also my brother’s mate.”

  I gasped in horror as his revelation pierced my brain. “How do you know that?” I whispered.

  “I can fucking smell it,” he alleged. “I smell him all over you, just as I smelled you all over him three days ago and this morning. And then, of course, there is this.” Remi yanked my neck to the side, until the tender spot, bearing the special mark Vince had given me that morning, was exposed to his critical eyes.

  Remi’s mouth wrinkled with disdain.

  “You should be happy for your brother,” I said, voice and body trembling. “He has found true love, just as you have with my sister. You should want the best for him.”

  “You mean, the way you want the best for your sister?”

  I swallowed, the action severely inhibited by the way Remi had my neck unnaturally elongated, and the first set of tears rolled onto my face.

  “You are a fucking hypocrite.”

  “I do want the best for my sister,” I muttered through my teeth. “I’ve protected her all my life.”

  “Then allow me to relieve you of your duty,” he growled. “I am her mate, the one that was created to take care of her every fucking need. You may have held the position once, but you have been replaced, so feel free to return to your America and not show your face in Italia ever again; unless, of course, my mate requests your presence.” With that, he shoved me away and towards the exit.

  I tried to steady myself, but my breaths were escaping me. “I believe you,” I admitted. “At first I thought it was bullshit; but then I met Vinny, and our relationship changed how I feel about everything.”

  “Vinny? Is that what you call him?” He snorted. “It sounds like the name of a fucking greyhound.”

  My eyes hardened and I tried to swallow. “This isn’t about my sister anymore,” I said, teeth clenched. “It’s about your relationship with your brother, and how you put everything and everyone else above him.”

  “You have no idea what you are talking about.”

  “It’s about me supporting Vince,” I continued. “You’re a horrible brother, and if teaching you a lesson means ending your relationship with my sister, I’m down for the cause.”

  His eyes narrowed and his body vibrated as if he was about to blow up. The intensity in his fiery gaze increased, and the pointed tips of his teeth glistened like ivory Ginsu knives.

  “Do you really believe that my brother will be a suitable mate?” he asked, smirking.

  “He’s a perfect mate,” I defended Vince. “He’s shown me more care and concern than anyone else in my life. Our love is meant to be. You saw the mark. You acknowledged it yourself!”

  Remi shook his head, as if he was sorry, not just for me and Vince, but for the entire world. “My baby brother would like to be a perfect mate,” he considered. “He is trying his best to prove, both to himself and to me, that he has what it takes to not be a selfish, self-serving sonofabitch, but he is fooling himself, and he is fooling you,” he whispered.

  My body jerked and I tried to disguise the fact that his statement had pierced me like an arrow; but the way he grinned revealed that my disguise was ineffective. “What are you talking about?” My voice cracked.

  “My father was selfish and self-serving, just like my brother is, only we did not know it at the time; just as you do not know it now. He cheated on my mother,” he said, “despite the fact that he had a fated mate, a woman who was devoted to him and believed in him, just as you say you believe in my brother. But Vince is not concerned about love,” Remi alleged coldly, “and he has no idea how many characteristics he shares with our father. He is young and dumb. He does not love you any more than he loves me – and you are aware of that quantity.”

  Bullseye.

  My throat tightened and I took a step back.

  This man was wrong, I thought to myself. There was no way what he was saying was accurate. I knew that Vince loved me and I was confident that what we shared was real. I had never felt this way about any man before. Vince had conquered Loveless, but...

  All of a sudden, panic lifted in my throat, and questions of doubt rose in my mind.

  What if Remi was right, I wondered. What if Vince was just like his daddy, and I couldn’t trust him? Even though he’d told me over and over that I could, the fact remained that the minute I’d asked him about the mission, his only concern was retribution for his brother and the Moretti legacy.

  I tried to shove the doubt away, but it was taking on a life of its own.

  Maybe Vince was only using me for Loveless and for sex. I was used to men treating me that way; in fact, until I made the decision to drink Loveless, that had been the expected trajectory of all my relationships. It was as if I had an inability to spot the bad apple.

  “Their bond will literally be obliterated.”

  “Their bond is not what’s important.”

  “What could be more important than their bond?”

  “Payback.”

  It still didn’t make sense...

  Maybe Remi was doing me a favor. He was pointing out the bad apple, and maybe I would be a fool if I refused to pay attention. It was obvious that Vince’s main concern was retribution for his brother. Not love. Not... us.

  I swallowed and my mo
uth bunched, but I steadied my jaw. Suddenly, old, cold emotions began to rise up in me, collecting in my throat.

  Loveless began to glitter.

  Remi narrowed his eyes. “Give me that fucking potion, and get the hell out of my house,” he warned, but now the former me was resurrecting herself. I’d had enough of falling prey to an elusive emotion. It was history repeating itself. Love had let me down. Loveless was the only thing I could count on.

  I scowled at Remi and called on the hate in my heart to intensify; not just for him, but for Vince as well.

  Thank God, it was still there. All of it.

  My body began to vibrate. Without warning, I drew my knee back and jammed it against Remi’s dick. He lurched forward with an agonizing groan, and I punched him in the face. I dashed for the exit, knocking him with my shoulder, but his arm stretched out and grabbed me. I jerked to a halt.

  His sharp, pointy claws jutted from his fingers and my skin sliced.

  I screamed in pain and red curtained my vision. The feel of thick red blood seeping from my skin burned like the fire incinerating my heart.

  Remi’s eyes were ablaze, as he jerked his arm around my neck and squeezed it until the pressure behind my eyes began to build. “You have been mated by my brother, yet you behave this way.” He grunted out a laugh. “I am not surprised. You are no better than he is. Obviously, the two of you deserve each other.”

  I choked in response as foam began to collect in my mouth. My grip on Loveless loosened, and I heard the amulet clank to the ground.

  Remi squeezed tighter. “No one will separate me from my mate,” he seethed.

  Suddenly, an animal flew into the room and crashed into Remi. He hit the ground with a thud, and I fell next to him, sputtering.

  Twenty-Four

  Shenique

  ‘Loveless’

  Everything was a blur, but I did not miss the sight of the hulking brown wolf hovering over Remi, with his teeth ready to clamp over his neck. Instantly, Remi’s wolf materialized. It was bigger than Vince’s, and more menacing. The fire behind its eyes nullified Vince’s and I scampered away from the ruckus.