Trial by Moon

by Lizzy Ford

  But for what purpose?

  Chapter Seven

  Upon arriving to Ben’s gorgeous home, I close myself up in Ben’s tranquil bedroom and read. A few more pages in the Book of Secrets are visible today, and a letter falls out when I open it.

  Curled up in Ben’s bed, propped up by pillows, I frown at the letter. It wasn’t there before. Or perhaps, I couldn’t see it before, because I can’t read much of the book at all. My name is written on the envelope in my father’s writing. My eyes mist over, and I hug the letter to me, wishing it was him, before I open it and read.

  Dear Leslie,

  If you’re reading this letter, you’re on the first trial. This can be a very confusing time for you. I remember my trials to be the most dramatic moments of my life, when I met your mother and was forced to determine the fates of three strangers.

  I have tried to prepare you for this and only recently realized how poorly of a job I did. I meant for you to be cautious and instead, I caused you to hate the supernatural clans. This is a reflection of my own bitter heart which now, at the end of my life, I am only just realizing I passed on to you. I’ve never been able to forgive the supernaturals after your mother’s death. Her clan hated the prospect of her marrying a Kingmaker and killed her when she refused to return to them.

  We Kingmaker’s are not welcome anywhere, but I want you to know you are not alone. You will always have my words, forever sealed in the Book of Secrets and other references.

  These trials make us the most hated of all the clans but are necessary to preserve the peace among supernaturals and between us and humans. Thousands of years ago, the eleven clans made agreements, sealed by magic, that render our decisions irrevocable and beyond dispute. We Kingmaker’s single-handedly change the course of destiny for every member of the Community with our choices. A good leader will maintain peace and create prosperity. A bad one will destroy both. Our foremost duty is to choose wisely.

  I have done my best to select the candidates in whom I hope you will find a mate as loving as your mother and hopefully the greatest leader yet. There is a very fine line between the candidate who will prioritize the Community’s needs and uphold our quiet existence with humans, and he who will appear to be a good leader while actually plotting on behalf of his clan to take over the leadership position for more selfish reasons.

  Ambition and cunningness are required to be a clan leader, so observe everything and judge carefully. Only you will be able to determine who will lead, who will be exiled and who you will love. These trials will test you and awaken the Kingmaker magic inside you so that you can make the best decision possible. A good Kingmaker needs a combination of intuition, courage and conviction to be effective. You must learn these traits.

  Above all: Choose wisely – or else. It’s not just the Kingmaker fate that rests on your decision but that of every supernatural.

  You will learn more from me in time.

  With love,

  Daddy

  I’m crying by the end. I read the letter in his voice, and I can almost hear his sadness. It’s dated the day before his death. He knew his time was coming, and I’m terrified to consider I, too, will one day write such a horrible letter to my child telling them of the tragic death of my mate, our predecessors and the duty that restricts us to lives of loneliness and misery.

  Does it have to be this way? My wolf is whimpering.

  Intuition, courage and conviction. My daddy above everyone should know those words describe me least.

  I sob for an hour and then put the letter away and collapse on the bed, exhausted. Everything I read is swirling through my thoughts. His explanation of the candidate who must be exiled, or the one I’m supposed to love, is nowhere near satisfying my curiosity yet.

  But his explanation of the trials, of how I have to earn my Kingmaker magic, is another reflection of how much the candidates know that I don’t about what’s going on.

  I can’t let go of his sadness long enough to think about all the things I wish I knew. He had told me about my mother’s death and the zombie clan’s anger with him long ago. It makes sense he hated the supernaturals, and I can easily forgive him for raising me to distrust and despise them, too. How lonely would it have been to raise me with no help and no support from family or either human or supernatural communities?

  I can’t fathom the idea of being cursed with a similar destiny. Is it like this for every Kingmaker?

  I hurt so much just thinking of it, of him, that I start to cry again and then force myself to stop. Climbing out of bed, I don’t resist my wolf and go to Ben’s closet. I drag out two of his dirty t-shirts and hug them, my face buried in his scent. My angst slides away in response.

  Returning to the bed, I sling myself down, exhausted from my day. It takes some fumbling around with a remote on his nightstand for the blackout blinds to hum into place over the windows. Soon, it’s quiet, dark, and I’m surrounded by Ben’s scent.

  Even knowing what I do, that I’m probably in danger from one of the predatory supernaturals who fears being exiled, I feel safe here.

  Promising myself I’ll put his shirts back long before he shows up tonight, I curl up among the pillows and close my eyes for a nap.

  When moonlight hits me, I awaken instinctively, humming with energy and the need to run. I sit up. The room smells of Ben’s recent presence, and I grumble to myself about him seeing me sleeping with his laundry. The blinds are up and there’s a note on the window I can read from across the room.

  Come out back, it says. Naked.

  I groan. I like this command too much. Stripping out of my clothing, I’m hyper aware of everything as I approach the double doors leading to his balcony and open them. The sounds of night hit me in full force, along with a breeze that leaves me trembling with eagerness and awareness. My inner wolf is stronger in moonlight, strong enough that I panic a little at the thought of unleashing her and being swallowed.

  I cross to the stairs leading to the grassy field behind the mansion. Ben is waiting for me, and it takes controlling every muscle in my body not to dash to him and begin rubbing myself all over his body. My sadness from earlier vanishes in the moonlight.

  I twirl and dance, playing with the breeze and knee-high grasses, disappearing into my senses and allowing his strong, masculine smell to guide me to him.

  Ben catches me mid whirl, and I open my eyes and fling my arms around his neck. My breath sticks in my throat at the utter intensity of his golden gaze and the pressure of his erection against my belly.

  Fed by moonlight and my wolf, I’m dripping for him, horny as hell and not about to wait until after we run. I pull his head down to mine and heft myself onto his hips. He catches me with ease and holds me against his swollen dick while his mouth devours mine with reckless abandon I crave.

  I’m losing control faster this time, sliding away from myself, into him. “Please,” I whisper, wriggling against him.

  “I’ve been waiting all day to fuck you.” He lifts my hips and grinds them downward.

  I arch back, impaled on his huge dick, stuck in the moment before orgasm from one single thrust. “Oh, god!” I cry, overwhelmed. It’s even better than yesterday, and I’m close to ecstasy already.

  He traces hot kisses down my neck and collarbone, his strength supporting me with ease. When he takes one of my nipples in his hot mouth, I cling to him, panting within seconds, swirling out of control once more despite some part of me knowing I shouldn’t trust him or any of the candidates until my Kingmaker magic is fully awake.

  Ben suckles my other nipple then lowers us to the ground. He pins my wrists above my head and rests against me. The heat of his skin and hardness of his body are mirrored in the huge cock encased in my pussy. Stars are brilliant in the night sky above us, and moonlight energizes me to the point I’m too restless to wait for him.

  “I like this.” His growl is low, feral.

  I meet his gaze, and a thrill spirals through me. This side of him I haven’t
seen yet, the wild wolf man who behaves every bit as animalistic as my inner wolf wants to. He’s giving me the look again, the one that says he wants to eat me, only there’s no guardedness this time, no restraint. I sense this time around, he’s going to live up to his promise of being rough.

  But it’s not the flicker of fear that tugs me out of my dazed lust. It’s a different sense, one I don’t like at all. For the first time in my life, I don’t feel alone. It’s not a good feeling. It’s one of … vulnerability, as if I’m truly letting someone see me for the first time, truly connected to my world.

  He knows it. I can see it on his face. “I want to fuck you until you forget you’re a Kingmaker,” he says with a slow smile.

  I laugh, a little giddy. “Who do you want me to be?” I tease.

  “My temp mate.”

  “I’m already that.”

  “In name. But we don’t trust one another.”

  “You want me to what? Trust you for a week?” I ask and shift restlessly beneath him. I envy his control, his ability to balance his wolf and normal self when I’m struggling. “Can you do it? Trust me?”

  He starts to move in and out of my body, and I arch, my mental rationale shredded by the intense sensations.

  “Say it,” he orders. He dips his head and licks me then bites me hard enough to draw blood. I shudder, tugging at my hands to touch him.

  “Say … what?” I moan. My wolf tells me gleefully, and I’m at the point where I don’t give a fuck what I have to say so long as he fucks me senseless. “Make me yours.”

  “Good girl,” he whispers. “Hang on. This is gonna be a rough night.”

  He begins thrusting faster and deeper, hard and relentless, nipping and kissing me while his cock sends wave after wave of sensation spiking through me. I scream his name for the first time within a minute and he slows then stops, resting atop me as I pant and try to recover. An orgasm as a werewolf is no joke.

  When I can breathe once more, I kiss his face and bite his earlobe.

  “Ready?” he teases.

  “Yes!”

  “I’m going to let you go and count to five. Your job is to run, and try not to let me catch you.”

  I laugh breathlessly.

  “Go!” he rolls off me.

  I bolt to my feet and run. The world beats into my brain, and I smell nothing but him and sex. I get maybe ten steps before he tackles me from behind and drives me to the ground. Before I can move, he’s fucking me doggy style, biting the back of my neck with one hand pressed between my body and the ground to play with my clit. The sensations overwhelm me, wring tears from my eyes and cries from my throat.

  And that’s just the beginning.

  This night is unlike any other of my entire life. We fuck like feral animals until we’re both unable to breathe, and then the moonlight claims us. Agony shreds me as I turn into a wolf once more. My interest is torn between him and running, and I take off, towards the forest and all its incredible scents and sounds.

  He catches me before I reach it and fucks me in wolf form, an entirely new experience that drives me absolutely wild with my heightened senses. When he releases me, I bolt again, and this time, we both run, together, through the dark wilderness. I remember and am aware of more this time and don’t black out as I did the first night.

  Every time the wind turns, and the full force of his scent hits me, I bolt to him and begin wiping my long muzzle through his fur, needing more of him with feral desperation. He fucks me whenever he catches me then frees me to run again, and we do this for hours and hours and hours. My alpha protects me, nudging me in different directions when we grow too close to roads or people and guiding me back towards the house.

  We end up in the backyard, on our sides, panting hard. The moon is gone and the eastern sky beginning to lighten.

  This time, I feel the agony as I change back into a human, but it’s quickly soothed away as Ben rolls me on top of him and begins kissing me hard, his arms wrapped around me.

  He impales me on his dick again, and I ride him until I’m close to climaxing before he pushes me onto my back and finishes us both. Only then do we collapse to rest for real, soaked in each other’s essences and scents, our bodies joined from our intertwined fingers to the dick that’s hard within me.

  He flutters kisses across my face, and I smile wearily.

  “Hungry?” he asks.

  “I don’t think I can move.” My voice is hoarse from the night. “I don’t want to move.”

  He settles his head against mine, and we breathe each other in. I’ve never noticed the power of smell, of the combined scents two people make when they have sex. It’s intoxicating, and I’m covered in us. I’ve never smelled anything that’s both invigorating and soothing.

  “Was tonight what you expected?” I ask, a little awkwardly, not accustomed to feeling so exposed to anyone or concerned about anyone else’s opinion. If he’s mean again, I’ll be forever crushed, or so it feels.

  He lifts his head, and I open my eyes to see him. I rest my hands on his cheeks. His eyes glow with genuine warmth, and he’s smiling.

  “More than I thought possible,” he admits.

  I almost sigh in relief. The morning chill reaches me, but his warmth chases it away.

  We gaze at one another in intimate silence. I have a feeling we’re both learning something this morning. I’m a little uncomfortable, a little scared that I can’t tell the difference between me and my wolf this morning. We’re united for once, because of Ben.

  “So I pass as your temp mate?” I ask him with a grin.

  “Yeah, you do.” He kisses me gently. “You want to run with the pack tonight?”

  “I don’t fuck them all do I?” I ask.

  He laughs. “No. Just me. But we can join them for a few hours then come back to fuck in peace.”

  “This sounds like a big step,” I observe.

  “Don’t start,” he warns. “I can see you backpedaling already.”

  Am I? Maybe. I’ve never done commitment before on any level. “Okay.” I run my fingers through his soft hair. “I’ll run with the pack. As long as they don’t make fun of me for being clumsy.”

  He smiles. “C’mon. Let’s get some food.” He stands.

  I groan. “I’m serious. I don’t think I can move!”

  Benjamin bends down and scoops me up off the ground. I relax against him as he walks us back into the isolated mansion in the middle of a forest.

  After a hot shower and new clothes, I feel almost ready to tackle my day. I join him in the kitchen, eyes sweeping over his body once more. He’s wearing khakis and a button-down shirt that’s open at his neck. I want to fuck him again, to roll around in his scent every morning so I smell of him.

  He glances up with a half-smile. I swear he can read my mind. Irritated by the idea, I sit down at the breakfast bar and wait for my breakfast. He brings his and mine over and sits down across from me.

  “I need to talk to you about something.”

  I look up, sensing his guarded tone.

  “Drug running.” He’s watching me. “Was that a barb? A lie to get me to fess up to something?”

  “It doesn’t matter. It has no bearing on the decision about your leadership abilities,” I reply. My mind is on Jenny, on her expression when she confronted me about Ben. I’m almost not offended by her threatening to kill me when I admit I kind of fucked up her life. I understand why she’d want a werewolf like Ben, even if I know little more about him than his ability in bed.

  “It does matter.” There’s a note of warning in his tone.

  I’m not sure what to do about it. I study Ben. I don’t want him upset at me, but I have a feeling telling him about Jenny isn’t going to go well.

  “Leslie,” he says. “Tell me.”

  “It’s your company. Shouldn’t you know?” I retort.

  “Sweetheart, don’t make this hard. You won’t like the results.” The gleam of resolution in his eyes is accompanied by the feral
look he got last night.

  Why am I torn? Why do I want to spare a stranger the knowledge the woman he might’ve married is doing illegal shit? I shouldn’t care at all what Ben feels, but I do.

  “Jenny’s running drugs for the fae,” I say slowly. “One of your employees tipped me off. He assumed it was being done with your permission, but when I talked to her … I kinda figured out otherwise.”

  Ben’s gone stiff, and his features shutter. The warmth and afterglow of our sex romps have both fled. He leans back from the table and stares at me, through me. I have a feeling he’s forgotten I’m there, but the intensity of his look is kind of scary. It’s not the I-need-to-fuck-you-now look.

  “Ben?” I call. “You okay?”

  He blinks and focuses on me then shoves away from the table and stands. Without another word, he makes another very abrupt exit.

  I pick up my plate and trail him, pausing at the doorway. He’s not headed towards the bedroom but to the front door.

  My wolf is pacing. I’m not sure how to handle Ben’s reaction, if he’s furious at me for saying something or furious at Jenny for running drugs or flat out furious. I’m a little disturbed, though, because I thought we were trying to do this mate thing this week.

  Ben leaves the house.

  It pisses me off. Again. Whenever I start to think well of him, he does some shit like this. I don’t know how I ever thought I could trust him, even a little, not when he keeps this shit up.

  Angry with myself for falling for it again, I nonetheless roll around in his dirty t-shirts before I get dressed and text the driver to come get me. Today, it’s really, really hard to suppress my inner wolf.

  I text Ben as well and then stare at my screen for a full five minutes, unusually eager for him to respond. My fluttery anticipation makes me feel like I’m a teenager again obsessing over whatever guy I had a crush on at the time.