by M. L. Briers
He could feel just how close she was to reaching orgasm. The inner muscles gripped him as her whole body tensed. Chase’s own orgasm threatened release and he sunk his fangs deep within the flesh of his mate’s shoulder where it met with neck.
The scream of pain from her lips that echoed through his mind, stilled his heart for a long moment, before the taste of her blood filled his senses, her body shuddered beneath him, before she bucked against him.
He tightened his grip around her body, holding her still, as he thrust hard and deep, his seed exploded from his body, as a fire took him. Flames tore through every inch of him, but they caused him no pain, only the most intoxicating form of pleasure he had ever known.
He pulled his hips back and thrust deep inside her again. Her inner muscles clenching hard around him, massaging his seed out of him with the intensity that he had felt before. His mind searched for hers and he opened himself up to her. Waves of pure pleasure coursed through her, caught up in her own release of a ferocity that matched his own.
Love, desire, passion, and pure gratification mixed together in wave after wave that washed over them. Chase’s heart missed a beat within his chest and aligned with hers. Two hearts beating as one, as the bond was formed between them.
His wolf roared within him. The bonding cry ripped through him and was torn from his lips, with one last powerful thrust that took the last of his seed and the last of his energy from his body. He released his fangs from deep within her flesh, his tongue tasting the last of her blood, as he cleaned and sealed the wound, taking care of his mate as his wolf demanded, as his honour demanded.
Chase almost collapsed onto her. His arms and legs had turned languorous beneath his weight. He pressed her back against his chest and rolled them over on the bed. Still buried deep within her. He wrapped an arm and leg around her and held her to him, safe within his protective cage.
His wolf retreated. Glorying in the union of mates. Joined together for life.
“Cass?”
Chase stroked his hand down the length of her spine and she shifted slightly against him. The only sign that she was still awake was the gentle pull of her breathing, as she tried to get her heartbeat under control. Soft, spent and wrapped in his embrace, she had no intention of moving until she had too. Her whole body hummed with the aftermath of the bonding.
She didn’t know if that was to do with the bonding itself, or the fact that Chase had been so wild and intense that she had climaxed, one after the other at the end. The likes of which she had never felt before. Her whole body had been alive with the release that seemed to roll on through her forever.
“Sweetheart, did I hurt you?” His voice was still husky with the wolf that had taken its place up front to claim their mate.
When she didn’t answer him, he gently rolled her over onto her back. Propped up on one elbow, he kept her against the length of him, unwilling to let her go any time soon.
He ran his fingertips down her cheek and brushed the hair that clung to her face away, so he could inspect the wound he had inflicted on her beautiful skin. He winced with his regret for damaging her body. It was an angry wound, but he could see that it was already starting to heal, although it would take longer than just marking her had done.
She was human; she would feel the soreness from that bite for a day or two.
“Cassidy. Answer me love.” He put a little more force in his tone, not a command. Not yet. But he needed to know that she was alright.
Her lashes fluttered, hesitated for a long moment and then revealed her beautiful, tired, passion filled eyes to him. Her focus wavering until she had him in her sights. The gentle curl of her lips upwards.
“Did I hurt you?”
“I think I’m going to be a little sore… everywhere, but I’m not hurt.” She smiled up at him as he stroked down her cheek again. A lover’s touch.
“How’s your shoulder feel?”
“Throbbing, much like the rest of me.” She went to reach for the wound and he snagged her hand.
“It’s healing, let it be.” He felt the wave of guilt wash through him every time he looked at the mark. Being human, she just felt so much more fragile to him.
“I want to see it.” She went to move away from him, but he held her still.
“Not yet. Let it heal a little more.” She felt the tension sweep over her, but the emotion wasn’t her own, it was coming from him. Guilt, anxiety, and remorse, were lapping at her body in waves.
“Chase. Let me up.” How bad was it? Did she look like Frankenstein or something? What had he done to her that would flood him with so much guilt?
He let her go then, and she shimmied to the end of the bed and pushed herself up. Her legs were weak. But curiosity flowed through her, as she made her way over to the mirror that hung on the far wall.
She saw her reflection as she gained ground on the mirror. The red mark was evident against her pale skin even from that far away. The closer she got, the angrier it looked, until she was finally standing toe to toe with the wall, her eyes fixed on the wound.
She could see the teeth marks clearly, his bottom jaw and the deeper puncture marks of his fangs, she angled her body to the side and swept her hair up from the back of her shoulder to get a look at the rest of the mark behind her.
“My, what big teeth you have.” She chuckled on a rush of amusement, her eyes catching sight of his reflection in the mirror. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, his head dropped forwards and his fingers fisting the covers beside his legs.
With her comment he raised his head. His eyes pinning hers in the mirror, as he pushed himself upwards and closed the distance between them in a heartbeat.
“You’re not disgusted by what I’ve done to you?” There was confusion coming from him, relief and self doubt all mixed together in a heady rush.
“With me. You did it with me. We’re mates remember. I asked you to do this. I told you to let your wolf free and I accepted your bite…” Pure relief battered her already overloaded senses, as he gently placed his lips against hers. Almost as though he were trying to show her just how gentle with her he could be.
“Chase, I’m not broken, just slightly mauled.”
“Mauled?”
“Nibbled on. Nipped. Tasted. A light supper.” He felt her amusement, just as much as he heard it. Her sense of humour might just take more getting used to than anything, but at least being able to feel her emotions, he might be better able to know when she was joking, or teasing him.
His low growl told her ears that he was annoyed. The waves of love that flowed from him told her, he was just being Alpha.
“I feel you.” She offered, slightly in awe of the sensations that were washing over her, as her own emotions played with them.
“I feel you too. So I shall always know when you’re lying.” He double raised his brows at her as he wrapped his arms around her in a tighter embrace. Her body pressed against the length of his.
“No faking a headache then?” She teased, and he rubbed his new found erection against her belly.
“Thinking of faking a headache already… that doesn’t bode well for the future.” He grinned down at her, and she rubbed back up against him. This time his growl did match his mood, and that mood was decidedly horny.
“I’m Fae my Alpha, and we Fae are insatiable.” That felt like a challenge to him if ever he heard one.
“We shall see about that.” He looked decidedly sexy right at that moment and her heart skipped within her chest, as her body came alive with a need for him. “I’ll be gentle.” He whispered, nuzzling against her ear, and she couldn’t help the chuckle that ran through her.
“Not too gentle.”
Connor turned on a dime. He had picked up a scent in the air that he knew damn well wasn’t one of his pack. He had that scent imprinted on his memory, he’d know it anywhere. Rogue.
He sniffed the ice cold air in. Still there. The rogue was close; he could feel it in his bones. He would hunt the b
east down if he had to stay out here until the damn snow thawed beneath his paws.
Not only had this rogue the audacity to come onto pack land, but he had threatened one of their own. The rogue had a death wish and he was more than willing to oblige. Even though it should be Chase’s kill. If Connor just happened to come across him first and a fight ensued, well…
Connor followed the scent. Stronger now, easier to pick out as he raised his eyes in the direction of the land he followed. The white wolf was headed back into the heart of pack land. Houses doted the landscape not that far in the distance, and Connor wonder if the wolf was looking to pick a fight with someone other than Cassidy.
He shot Ethan a glance to make sure his brother had seen his change of direction. He didn’t want his nose in the dirt while the rogue crept up behind him. He didn’t fancy a set of claws in the backside tonight. Ethan was keeping a steady pace with him. His attention focused on the landscape around them.
It was a sure sign that the rogue was too far gone to be sane that he had dared to enter the Alpha’s home to go after Cassidy. No sane wolf would ever have been that stupid. He knew he was signing his death warrant, and maybe that was what he wanted. An end to his life.
Connor stopped dead in his tracks, the scent was strong. Too strong. The beast was close, but it was as though the wolf had been running rings around him, the scent was everywhere, all at once. He couldn’t pick out a direction.
‘Ethan!’ By the time Connor saw the white wolf move with speed and purpose towards Ethan, it was too late. The wolf was already upon him. Claws cut into his flesh in a powerful attack that had Ethan rolling beneath the rogue’s body. Jaws clamped into Ethan’s back leg, his pack mate howled with the pain of the bite that tore through muscle and sinew down to the bone.
CHAPTER TEN
Connor tore into the frozen earth with his claws. His heart raced along with his mind. He would finish this beast here and now, and propriety be damned. Chase had other things to take care of. Connor was here now, and this wolf needed to be put down.
By the time Connor reached Ethan’s side the rogue had vanished. A hit and run attack that had taken down a member of their pack.
‘Didn’t see him. Came from nowhere.’ Ethan growled. The pain from his injuries evident in every word.
‘Damn it to hell!’ Connor snarled. He wanted that damn wolf between his jaws. But he didn’t know where the hell the beast had gone. He was masking his scent again.
‘Go after him.’ Ethan growled out. Trying and failing to get to his paws on the frozen ground. His blood was a deep crimson against the pure white beneath him.
‘Lost the sucker. Stay down idiot.’ Connor growled, standing guard over his brother in case of another attack. ‘Chase, we have a problem.’
Chase felt Cassidy stir in the bed beside him, as he pulled himself up to a sitting position. Connor’s voice had floated into his semi conscious mind just as he was drifting off to sleep beside his mate.
The tone of Connor’s voice had wrenched his mind from the haze of near sleep, and he was alert and poised for action in a heartbeat.
‘Tell me.’ Chase growled, knowing the only reason for his brother’s intrusion tonight would be the white wolf. Anything else, he would deal with himself, as Beta.
‘Ethan’s down. The rogue played us. It’s gone, but we’re near to the dwellings. I don’t like it Chase.’ Connor’s instincts were always spot on the money. If his gut was telling him something was wrong then Chase would gladly put money on that bet.
‘Warn the pack. Make sure they are ready for an attack. Send Tuck to me to watch Cassidy. I’m joining the hunt. I want everyone not mated out looking for this wolf, secure a perimeter around the attack site and work inwards. This ends tonight.’ Chase had already untangled himself from his woman. But the movement had brought her eyes open and she was staring at him in the darkness.
‘Call me crazy, but this guy was an Alpha.’ Connor growled. Not happy at his own words. An Alpha rogue would be a challenge for any of them. Even Chase. Alpha to Alpha rogue was not a fight he had envisioned taking place tonight. But Chase had Connor to back him in any play he made. If it came to it, they would take the beast down together to protect the pack.
‘It’ll be a fair fight then.’ Chase growled back, his blood already at boiling point within his veins. The bloodlust ran through him like a wildfire. Ethan was attacked and wounded. His mate had been attacked. This demanded retribution and Chase was eager to deliver it.
“What’s going on?” Chase was already pulling on his jeans, as she pulled herself up in the bed. She could feel his emotions even stronger than she had earlier, but these emotions were so much darker. He had a need to run. A need to fight. A need to kill and the fear inside her washed back across the bond between them, and stilled his actions.
“Fear little one?”
“You’re going out to kill, what’s not to fear Chase?”And she did fear it. But it was his loss she feared, something happening to him, not the fact that the beast within him was out for blood.
“The rogue has attacked a member of the pack. I need to join the others. Tuck is going to stay with you…” He leaned towards her, his fingers brushing over her cheek, and she batted him away.
“I don’t need a babysitter. Take Tuck with you.” She scooted out of the bed without a backwards glance. Reaching for her scattered clothes, she started to pull them on as he came up behind her.
Cassidy felt his hands on her bare shoulders just as he turned her towards him. Cupping her chin and bringing her eyes up to his as he stared down at her.
“I want to know you are protected while I’m out on the hunt. Do you understand? I need my mind focused on what I am doing, not here worrying over your safety.” It was a gentle push to her to remember who he was. What he was. He shouldn’t even need to be having this argument now. It should have just been accepted. But he was trying to remember that she was Fae not Lycan.
“Fine. Go.” She shrugged out of his hands and took a step backwards from him. She knew that now wasn’t the time to argue this out. He needed his focus. But she still didn’t need a damn babysitter.
“Don’t give Tuck a hard time. Stay indoors no matter what.” Chase growled down at her, putting even more authority into his words, and she just nodded back at him.
Connor paced the area around Ethan. He was eager for the hunt, eager to pick up the scent of the beast, eager to not be babysitting Ethan right now. But his brother was injured and unable to defend himself in the face of another attack should the white wolf double back and come at them again. He wouldn’t leave him. Even though Ethan was cursing him with every profanity he had ever heard and in many different languages.
‘You read too much brother. English is a perfectly good language to curse me in.’ Connor assured him and Ethan growled out his displeasure at having his brother watching over him as though he were a helpless pup.
‘Just get the hell out of here Connor.’
With the sound of fast approaching paws both wolves turned, poised for action.
‘Coming in Connor.’ One of his pack brothers warned a few moments before they reached them in a cloud of vapour and churned up snow. Their eyes took in the scene.
‘Jesus Ethan that looks bad.’ Max was given to small talk or sugar coating anything and Connor snapped his jaws in a warning to his brother to keep his mouth shut. The grey wolf dropped his eyes to the ground and gave way to his Beta’s superiority.
‘Stay with him while he shifts to human and back to wolf, it’ll help the healing process. Then you can all shift to human and get him back to his mate to tend him. Once you’ve done that join the hunt.’ Connor wasn’t of a mind to put up with anyone’s bull tonight. He wanted that damn wolf and he wanted him now. His beast was chaffing at the bit to get out there after the rogue and who was he to say no.
‘Just get that mother…’ Ethan growled as Connor bowed to his brother before taking off into the woods. His claws digging deep a
s he powered through the frozen earth.
Chase had shifted the moment he saw Tuck coming towards the house at break neck speed. He liked to give credit where it was due, and Tuck was one of the fastest runners they had. But he was still young and not as powerful yet as some of the other pack members.
Who knew, in a few years maybe Tuck would be challenging him for his Alpha position, although he doubted the young wolf had it in him to be an Alpha. Alphas were born to it. Tuck just didn’t seem to have the right temperament for the position.
‘She’s inside. Do not let her leave, even if she says the sky is falling.’ Chase growled out to the young wolf, his claws already in the snow and powering beneath him as he set off to the east of the property, where he knew Connor was now starting the hunt.
‘No problem Chase.’ Tuck shot back and Chase couldn’t help the rumble of laughter that rattled through his mind.
‘You haven’t met my mate yet Tuck. Problem is her middle name.’
The perimeter had been set. They had many paws on the ground in a wide area around where Ethan had been attacked, and they were slowly circling inwards, closing the net around the rogue wolf.
They would have him by morning. Connor could feel it in his bones. At least they had better. Now Chase was out on the hunt though, Connor doubted that he would get to strike the final blow that ended the rogue’s life. He could live with that, just as long as the beast paid for his crimes in blood.
He had picked the scent back up not long after he left Ethan’s side. The wolf was certainly leading him on a dance and he didn’t much care for it. His gut was trying to tell him something, but what that was he had no damn clue.