Never one to particularly like tight, enclosed spaces—something he had in common with Morgan—Kellan had been relieved to find that the caverns were larger than he’d expected, with a ceiling of at least twelve feet and a width of thirty feet or so in most places. He was currently walking with his brother and Morgan, while Chloe walked up ahead, talking with Juliana. Every now and then, the Merrick witch would look over her shoulder and smile at him—and every time she did, that simple act of connection hit him like a punch to the gut, sucking the air right out of his lungs. Though he was trying to give her some space, and sensed that she was doing the same for him, Kellan knew it was only a matter of minutes before they would gravitate back to one another, talking about everything from movies and music to their favorite authors and sports teams. Innocuous subjects, but ones that allowed them to tread carefully into the other’s life, like roots slowly tunneling into the ground, until the seeds of friendship could intertwine themselves with the shoots of what was already a full-blown affair. Only, it was a friendship unlike any that Kellan had ever known, flavored by the need to unravel her, piece by piece, until he was able to get inside and explore every part of her, each intimate detail dazzling to him in a way that he still didn’t fully understand. All he knew was that he wanted to break her open, but not with malice or harm. He just wanted to take her apart so that he could gather the scattered pieces into his soul…and be the thing that bound her together.
But it was a double-edged sword, because it meant he had to break, as well. Meant he would need her to bind him back together, when Kellan knew damn well there was nothing she could do to keep him in one piece. He was already broken in a way that couldn’t be undone. That couldn’t be fixed.
And I’m a bastard for taking this thing further, he silently growled, disgusted with himself. He knew they were heading for a nasty, ugly collision with a brick wall, the outcome inevitable. And yet, he couldn’t make himself stay away from her. Chloe Harcourt was like his own personal brand of crack that had him completely hooked, and while there were actually times that he wished he could blame his obsession on the Mallory curse, Kellan knew it would have been a lie. What he felt…it was real. He just wished he knew how to prove it to her.
“You know, I’ve been watching you all day,” Kierland suddenly rumbled at his side, “and all the while, you’ve been watching the witch with this hungry look in your eyes that I’ve never seen you have before. She has you hooked, doesn’t she?”
Kellan arched a brow, deciding to turn the tables on his brother by saying, “I’ve been meaning to ask you the same thing about Morgan.”
Instead of reacting with a sarcastic comment, like he’d expected, Kierland actually gave a husky bark of laughter and reached out, pulling Morgan tight against his side. “She’s got me hooked, all right,” his brother murmured, leaning down to press a warm kiss on Morgan’s smiling mouth.
“You know,” Kellan drawled with a slow, shit-eating grin, “if you think about it, Kier, you actually owe me for getting you into this mess.”
Kierland immediately shot him a dark glare, his muscles coiling with tension, but Morgan simply patted his chest, soothing the Lycan’s anger as she slid Kellan a wry smile. “I know you love pushing your brother’s buttons, but be careful, Kell. He still wants to wring your neck for scaring the hell out of him with your crazy-assed plan to get captured.”
Kellan accepted the warning with a jerk of his chin, then quietly said, “You know, the two of you still haven’t told me what you went through to get here. I imagine it was a pretty rough trip.”
For the next half hour, Kierland told him about how he and Morgan had traveled into the Wasteland with Ashe Granger, after Kellan had disappeared, his brother’s voice getting rougher when he admitted that he’d almost lost Morgan the night he’d gone out on his own to find Kellan, determined to stop him from going through with his plan. Morgan had followed him, and had been attacked by a group of Death-Walkers. She’d been badly injured in the attack, before Ashe and the Sabins managed to scare the creatures away, and it was only the healing power of Kierland’s mating bite that had saved her life. The bite had marked her as his brother’s for all eternity, and Kellan couldn’t have been happier for Kierland, knowing the guy had been crazy about Morgan for years.
Kellan had just finished thanking the couple for everything they’d gone through to help him, when ahead of them Ashe started walking beside Juliana, who was still talking to Chloe. They couldn’t hear what was said between the two Deschanel, but within thirty seconds Juliana’s spine had stiffened and she’d quickly crossed to the other side of the tunnel, putting as much space between her and Granger as possible.
“What’s the deal with those two?” Kellan asked, glancing at his brother.
With one arm draped around Morgan’s shoulders, Kierland shrugged. “No one knows, but they’ve been like that since they met last week. I guess she just rubs him the wrong way.”
“Looks like the little vamp doesn’t care for him eith—”
Kellan’s words suddenly trailed off as Gideon Granger took Juliana’s place beside Chloe, the dark-haired, good-looking vamp walking so close beside her that their arms touched as he said something that made her laugh.
“Gid,” Ashe muttered. “Move away from the witch, bro.” The vampire cast a quick glance back at Kellan, who had his hands fisted at his sides, and added, “The sooner the better.”
Gideon turned his head toward his brother. “There a problem?”
“Just do it,” Ashe grunted, “or the Lycan’s going to have your bloody head.”
Without even bothering to glance in Kellan’s direction, Gideon gave an arrogant snort. “He can try.”
While Chloe sent a curious look over her shoulder, Kellan heard Ashe mutter, “Not the time or the place, Gid. So get the hell away from her.”
Something in his brother’s dark look must have convinced him to heed the warning, because the vamp gave an irritated roll of his shoulder, then turned his attention back to Chloe, his deep voice laced with irritation as he said, “Sorry, sweetheart. I guess you’re currently off-limits.”
Kellan couldn’t hear what she said in response, but as Gideon moved away from her, he could sense that the bastard was still interested. “I hate to cause trouble,” Kellan muttered under his breath, “but I think I’m going to have to kill your new friend.”
“Aw, don’t mind Gideon,” Kierland rumbled. “He won’t push it too far. He’s just yanking your chain.”
Kellan ran his tongue over his teeth, his voice a little grittier as he said, “I don’t give a shit what he’s doing. He stays away from her, or he’s done.”
Aiden came up on Kellan’s other side, whistling under his breath as he whacked him on the shoulder. “I never thought I’d see the day you were actually jealous, pup. Are we going to be brothers-in-law, then?”
“Shut up, Ade.”
“I’m sorry, brother,” the tiger-shifter drawled, clearly enjoying himself, “but this is family business. Seeing as how I’m marrying her sister, it’s only right that I suss out your intentions.”
“My intentions are none of your goddamn business,” Kellan growled, but the words had little effect. The ribbing continued throughout the long day of trekking through the meandering string of caverns, until he was ready to wring Aiden’s bloody neck. By the time they’d made camp that evening and settled down around another one of Juliana’s smokeless fires, he was wound up and aching, the poison eating him raw inside. Juliana continued to send him questioning looks, as if wondering how long he was going to keep the truth to himself, but he responded each time with a curt shake of his head, and she would look away again. But even now, the vampire was talking to Chloe as the two of them kept company with Raine, and he couldn’t help but worry that she would say something he didn’t want said.
“The Merrick likes you,” Morgan murmured, pulling him from his private thoughts as she sat down beside him.
“Of course she
does.” Kellan slid the female Watchman a wry smile. “I got her out of that place. That probably makes me her most favorite person in the world.”
With a roll of her gray eyes, Morgan said, “It’s more than gratitude, Kell.”
“Then what do you call that?” he asked, watching as Chloe left Juliana and Raine to make her way over to Jamison, who was sitting by himself on the top of a boulder, reading a book. Acting as if they’d been longtime friends, Chloe sat down beside the Lycan and started chatting with him. Jamison quickly set his book aside, giving her his full attention, and Kellan felt something raw and possessive settle in his gut, his nostrils flaring with aggression.
“Is she trying to make you jealous?” Morgan asked uneasily.
“That sneaky little witch,” he muttered under his breath, watching as Chloe leaned a little closer to Jamison. “I don’t friggin’ believe it.”
Morgan’s tension mounted. “Are you going to tell me what’s going on, or leave me hanging in the dark?”
Kellan popped his jaw, fighting to control his temper. “She’s testing her theory.”
“Her theory on what?” his brother rumbled from behind them, obviously eavesdropping on their conversation. “How to piss you off?”
“Not the time,” he muttered, his patience already spread thin. “So back off, Kier.”
“Kellan,” Morgan said gently, “does this by any chance have something to do with the fact that Chloe’s a Mallory witch?”
With a sharp nod and a low curse, he moved to his feet…and headed toward his prey.
MAKE A PASS AT ME. Put your hand on my knee.
With her muscles tensed to the point of pain, Chloe repeated the mental commands, the pressure in her head so tight she was surprised her skull hadn’t split in half. Jamison Haley was a nice guy, but her little experiment didn’t seem to be working. Even though she was certain she’d caught him watching her earlier with a gleam of male interest, which the curse should have been cranking up now that she was focusing her attention on him, nothing was happening. If anything, Chloe seemed to be scaring the hell out of the poor guy as she moved a little closer to him, his worried gaze starting to flick toward the place where she knew Kellan was sitting.
Kellan had told her the horrible story about how Jamison had been captured by Spark and tortured by Gregory DeKreznick. He’d been dying when the Watchmen had found him, and Kierland had bitten him to save his life, changing him to a werewolf. After everything he’d been through, she hated playing with his emotions, but she didn’t know what other choice she had. She needed to test the curse, and she was too afraid to try her theories out on any of the other men in their group. The situation sucked, but she had to make some kind of play for a reality check, because it was becoming painfully clear that her feelings for Kellan Scott were out of control.
Last night, Chloe had fully expected him to be furious over her admission about the curse and her suspicions that her Merrick blood could be affecting it, but instead, he’d made love to her again and again throughout the surreal hours of darkness, drowning her senses in wave after wave of devastating, erotic pleasure.
And the day had been even more unsettling, because every time she got close to him, she found herself falling for him a little harder. A little deeper…
God, there was so much danger here. Not from Kellan himself, but from how much she was starting to like him. Enjoy him. She wasn’t even talking about the sex, though it was un-freaking-believable. It was just being with him, spending time with him. He was funny and protective and smart. Arrogant, but humble, as well. The guy was simply too good to be real, and Chloe knew she needed to get a grip now, before she was so far gone she started begging him for more than sex. No way in hell could she let that happen, because as incredible as he was, Kellan Scott had never once made mention of any kind of future relationship between them, as if their time together was limited to their escape from the Wasteland. If she wanted to be able to walk away from this thing between them with her heart still in one piece, she had to remember that he was only in this for the physical, and not the emotional.
Suddenly checking his watch for the fifth time in just as many minutes, Jamison said, “It’s, uh, getting pretty late.”
Taking pity on the poor guy, Chloe finally gave up her scheme and told him good-night, her thoughts mired in chaos as she headed for the small cave where Kellan had told her he would be setting up their tent.
Could it be true? she wondered, feeling even more lost than before. Is the curse truly fading?
It seemed crazy, but Chloe couldn’t deny that she was afraid to believe the curse had finally come to an end. Terrified, actually, of getting her hopes up, when she’d gone into this thing with Kellan with her eyes wide open, knowing it was only short-term. But, God, that had been so much easier to accept before she’d spent so much time with him. Before she’d…before she’d lost her freaking mind and started falling in love with the complicated alpha.
Nearly stumbling over her own two feet, the truth of that statement hit her system with the stunning force of a nuclear explosion, and she took a deep breath, pressing a trembling hand to her fluttering stomach. Shivering with confusion, Chloe had almost reached the cave that held their tent, a small fire flickering within, when Gideon Granger stopped her. They talked for a few moments, and then she went inside, thankful for the privacy the cave provided, wanting a bit of time alone with her thoughts.
“What did he say to you?”
Unaware that Kellan had followed her in, Chloe spun around with a gasp. “Who?” she asked, lifting her hand from her stomach to press it against her pounding heart.
“The vampire.” He forced the words through his gritted teeth as he came to a stop a few feet away from where she stood, the small enclosure accentuating his height and muscular build.
Licking her lips with a nervous flick of her tongue, she said, “Gideon? He told me good-night.”
“That’s it?” he asked, his dark eyes burning with accusation.
Refusing to be intimidated, Chloe took another deep breath and crossed her arms over her chest. “Not that it’s any of your business, Kell, but he said that I reminded him of someone he’d known a long time ago.”
“Be careful around him,” he warned her, pushing one hand back through the thick, auburn strands of his hair. “His reputation’s even worse than mine.”
Choking back a breathless laugh, she said, “I honestly find that hard to believe.”
He took a step closer, his voice dropping to a dark, husky rasp. “And what about that little stunt you were pulling with Jamison?”
“What stunt?” she asked lamely, the heat in her face telling her she was blushing like an idiot. Chloe could tell by the look in his eyes that he’d been watching her the entire time.
His hair tumbled over his brow as he stepped even closer. The rich, delectable scent of his skin filled her head, their bodies nearly touching as he stared into her upturned face. “Are you trying to test me?” he demanded, the words soft, but rough, his chest rising and falling with each of his hard, ragged breaths. “Because I can tell you right now, it’s a bad idea. You’re gonna find yourself with a pissed-off wolf on your hands, and all he’s gonna care about is making sure you understand just who your little ass belongs to.”
“Oh? And who’s that?” she snapped, finding it strange that she could be so irritated and turned on at the same time.
“For now, it belongs to me.”
Her eyes went wide. “For now? God, Kellan. Do you have any idea how chauvinistic that sounds?”
Ignoring her question, he said, “I know what you were doing back there. And it didn’t work, did it?”
“I was just talking to him. Is that a crime?”
“You were flirting with him,” he snarled, taking hold of her shoulders. “Testing him. Christ, Chloe, I thought we settled this shit about the curse last night!”
Choosing her words with care, she stopped evading…and gave him an explanatio
n instead. “This is a dangerous game we’re playing, Kellan. So yeah, I was testing him. I know it was wrong, and I’m not proud of it, but I need answers. After everything that’s happened, I’m too keyed up to just keep screwing around with you like this. I can’t explain why, but I feel like we have an axe hanging over our heads. Like something bad is going to happen.”
“The only thing that’s going to happen is you’re going to get stronger, because we’re going to make sure the Merrick keeps getting what it needs.”
“So you’re only here with me because of the Merrick?” she demanded with a burst of outrage.
“I’m here because I can’t keep away from you,” he growled, yanking her closer and suddenly covering her mouth with his. The demanding kiss was flavored with violence, stealing Chloe’s breath…stealing the troubled thoughts from her mind. With shaking hands, he ripped off their clothes and took her into the tent, quickly putting on a condom before pressing her down on the pallet. His hands were hard on her body, the man reduced to his raw, animal instincts, but she loved it. Loved the rough, graveled sound he made as he ran the damp heat of his mouth along her jaw and down her throat, kissing his way across her chest. With his tongue swirling across a sensitive nipple, he rolled to his back, pulling her on top of him…then pulling her higher up his body. Chloe’s heart jolted into her throat the instant she realized his intention, but before she could stop him, she found herself straddling his face, his tongue lapping hungrily through her folds, and pleasure arced through her body with such stunning force that she had to cover her mouth with her hand to muffle her scream.
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