by S. K. Yule
“It was an accident, Aldin. Let it go. I have.”
“It’s hard for me to let something go that hurt you.”
She nodded. “That’s how I feel about my sister. And while I know neither Uriah nor any of your family other than Marilena had anything to do with hurting my sister, Lindsey doesn’t quite view it that way.”
“Forget this whole conversation. Okay?” He cupped her cheek. He should have never brought the subject up. He would never ask her to convince Lindsey to go out with Uriah, to forget what had happened to her. He’d simply thought to ask her to put in a good word for his brother. Simply tell Lindsey that he wasn’t a bad guy. Maybe that would help her realize that it was okay to give him a chance. But he’d been wrong to ask that of Wilhemina.
He loved and cherished his mate above all others, above all anything, and he shouldn’t have asked her to do such a thing. Uriah had pleaded with Aldin to put a good word in for him, and Aldin had caved.
“I know you only want your brother to be happy.” She blew out a puff of air, which signaled she was agitated. “He is as much a victim in all of this as Lindsey. To be completely honest? I believe she and Uriah make a great pair, but I can’t be a part of that decision. She has to decide on her own whether to give him a chance or not.”
Aldin nodded.
“I really hope she does. I’m worried for him. For all of you. The ritual is tonight. Do you think he will be strong enough to handle it without Lindsey by his side?”
“I don’t know.” He shrugged. “It’s our only chance. I have to tell you something else, Wilhemina, and I hope you don’t hate me for it.”
She turned to him, eyes big with worry. Funny how she could rip him to shreds with one look. “What?”
“After the ritual, after we come into our powers. If the darkness starts to over take Uriah before Trinidad has been dealt with, Lindsey will be compelled to accept him.”
“No! You promised!”
Her eyes spit daggers at him, and her anger beat in waves throughout the room. “I did not make this decision, but will not deny being a part of it. I promise you, I will do whatever I have to in order to make sure it doesn’t come to that. But you have to understand my family’s position on this. We cannot stop Trinidad without our powers, and if he is not stopped, you, your sister—all of us—will be lost. There is no choice in the matter.”
“And what happens if Trinidad has been dealt with? What if the darkness threatens Uriah then?”
“I believe he will choose to end his life. He does not want Lindsey to be forced to accept him. None of us want that. But we have no choice but to look at the bigger picture here. All of our lives may very well depend on Lindsey accepting Uriah as her mate.”
Wilhemina sat on the couch, and he sat beside her, relieved when she allowed him to take her hand. Tears glistened in her eyes, and he wished he’d never told her about Uriah, but he could no more lie to her than not breathe. He waited, and she finally turned to look up at him.
“I understand the position that we are in, but we agreed to never lie to one another so I’m going to tell you the truth. If it comes to Lindsey being forced to accept Uriah, I do not know if I can ever forgive you for being a part of it. Because even if you don’t do the compelling, you are a part of this family and are playing a part in it by allowing it to happen.”
He squeezed his eyes shut and tightened his hold on her hand before bringing her palm to his chest and laying it over his heart. “You are my life. I swear to you that I will do everything in my power to keep your sister from being affected by all of this any more than she already has. Even if I have to give my life to do it.”
She bunched his shirt in her fist and pulled him closer. “Aldin.” She waited until he opened his eyes and focused on her. “While I may not be able to forgive you for such a thing, I will never stop loving you. I cannot tell you how bad it pains me to think of your life ever being in jeopardy. I know you would never do anything to intentionally hurt me. You are my other half and that will never change, no matter how angry you might make me.”
“I love you, Wilhemina.”
His mouth crushed hers, and they frantically tore at one another’s clothes until they were both naked and she was underneath him. He loved the way her thick, red hair lay in wild waves around her head, forming a halo. She was perfect in every way. He roamed her body with his eyes and rested on the small black rose on her hip. He ran one long finger over it. “Mine.”
She reached up and did likewise to the identical rose on his hip, which was proof that they had been bonded, that they were mated until one of them died. “Mine too, and I love you too,” she whispered.
As his body sank into hers and his mouth drank in her cries of pleasure, he hoped that Uriah could control the powers they would shortly receive. He’d have no choice but to allow Lindsey to be compelled if it came to it. Although he couldn’t bear the thought of such a wedge being driven between him and Wilhemina, he could make that sacrifice if it meant she wouldn’t end up dying at Trinidad’s hands.
“I love the way you feel inside me.” She moaned and flexed her hips to welcome his hard thrust.
“I love the way I feel inside you,” he answered as he slammed into her again.
After those endearments, there was no more room for words. Caresses and kisses said all that needed to be said. Nothing mattered at that moment. Not the upcoming ritual, nor the impending second round with Trinidad. All that mattered was her, him, and the love they shared.
Epilogue
Uriah’s life had been complete and utter bullshit up to this point. No innocent should suffer hundreds of years in captivity. He snorted. No innocent should spend one minute in prison yet it happened every day. He hadn’t been deprived. He’d been given everything anyone could ask for…everything except family, friends, and Lindsey.
It had been bad enough that Marilena had kept him from his brothers, from his father, but she’d planned to keep him from his life mate as well? That, he could never forgive. And now, because Lindsey had suffered the same fate he had—being kidnapped and held in captivity by Marilena—she hated him, would probably never accept him. His one chance at true happiness had been taken from him by the very person who should have loved him above all others.
He understood the reasoning behind his mother’s actions, but that didn’t mean he agreed with them or condoned them. In fact, he hated her for them. A son should not hate his own mother, but the seething anger that slithered through his veins every time he thought about her was consuming. He’d been willing to try to get past what she’d done to him. But after finding out about Lindsey? He’d never get past that, no matter how hard he tried.
His heart thumped when he thought of Lindsey’s clear gray eyes, full lips, and long, strawberry-blonde hair. She was beyond breathtaking. She was an angel. She was his angel. He snorted again, linking his hands with Aldin and Aiston, who in turn, linked theirs with Ashe’s, forming a circle. The blue moon was nearly upon them, and the completion of the ritual was at hand.
She’d never be his angel. She’d made that bluntly clear to him. He couldn’t blame her. Even though he’d had nothing to do with her kidnapping, she couldn’t help but tie his whole family in with Marilena’s actions. She was an intelligent woman, and he was sure that logically, she could differentiate between him, his family, and his mother. But apparently, her subconscious didn’t want to play along with logic.
She tolerated his family only because Wilhemina was with Aldin, and agreed to stay at the mansion until the uprising with the drifters had been dealt with to keep her sister and herself out of harm’s way. She was forever tied to his family whether she wanted to be or not, and Trinidad knew that. Trinidad would use that and any other means to destroy his family. She’d never be safe again until Trinidad was dead.
And what of Ragnor? Marilena said there was a way to bring him back, but she’d been instructed not to share that information just yet. Unfortunately, there was no way t
o bring Conrad back. They had all gathered last night and burned his body in the traditional ceremony of their kind. Dominic had not been himself since.
Rain began spitting from the sky as if Mother Nature herself was condemning the ritual about to take place. The breeze picked up, and clouds periodically blocked out the rising moon’s light in the pitch black night.
“Are you sure about this, Uriah?”
The concern in Ashe’s voice was evident.
“Yes.”
He had no choice. They had no choice. He was taking a risk by completing the ritual without being accepted by his life mate. Ragnor had warned them that anyone not bonded would be threatened by the darkness of the overwhelming true blood power. Without Lindsey, he was in danger of losing his marbles so to speak.
He took a deep breath. If it happened? So be it. He’d do his damndest to keep the darkness at bay until they had Trinidad’s head on a platter. After that? He refused to think about after that. Whatever would be would be, and there was no sense dwelling on it like some whiny bitch with her panties in a bunch.
The blue moon was finally at its peak, and Ashe nodded. Without hesitation, Uriah sank his fangs into Aldin’s wrist, Aldin sank his into Ashe’s, Ashe sank his into Aiston’s, and Aiston sank his into Uriah’s. There was no going back now.
After the blood exchange was complete, they continued to stand in the circle. Uriah felt nothing…at first. Within seconds, agony like he’d never experienced ripped through him like talons clawing and tearing at his insides. He bit back an anguished cry and crumpled to his knees. He barely registered that his brothers had done the same.
He writhed and tore at his skin, trying to get whatever poison was inside him out while blackness dimmed his vision. His brothers’ cries echoed his own excruciating suffering. Just as he thought he might actually pass out, the pain began to subside into a dull, throbbing ache.
He flopped onto his back, and the rain beat down on him, soaking through his clothes and biting into his sensitive skin.
“Holy son of a fucking bitch,” Aldin muttered beside him.
“Couldn’t have said it better myself,” Uriah choked out.
“What the hell was that?” Aiston asked.
“I think the better question is what the hell have we done?” Ashe said hoarsely.
“I don’t know, but I have a feeling it’s going to be one long, bumpy ride.” Uriah clenched his fists at his sides. He reached deep for control to tamp down the blackness that suddenly swirled in his chest, threatening to swallow him whole.
One long, bumpy ride was putting it mildly.
The End
About the Author
S. K. Yule’s love for reading started in high school, and finally inspired her to try her hand at writing. Once an outlet was discovered for an over-active, and at times overwhelming, imagination a passion for creating stories for others to enjoy was born.
You will most often find S. K. Yule tapping away on her laptop in her farmhouse located in a tiny Midwestern town with a population of 150. She lives with her real-life hero, her husband, and plans to have the happily ever ending with him that she so often writes about.
Their children consist of yorkies and miniature schnauzers, all of which are spoiled rotten.
S. K. Yule’s previously published, bestselling Romance works include:
Darkest Hours, Darkest Book I
Darkest Desires, Darkest Book II
Darkest Intentions, Darkest book III
Lycan Lover
Lycan Lust
Lycan It
Lycan Heat
Lycan Vengeance
Lycan Christmas
Lycan Contempt
Demon Scorned
Jericho’s Revenge
Breaking The Cowboy
Three Lovers For Lucy
Second Chances
Melandra’s Men
S. K. Yule loves to hear from readers and other authors/writers. You can find more information about her and contact information at:
www.skyule.com
www.facebook.com/skyule
www.facebook.com/skyuleauthor