by Morgan Fox
Brody had heard her explanations regarding Lilly and her situation. Damn him for not believing in her. Damn him for not being the one that she confided in. Damn Ryder for being that man.
Brody closed his eyes, and Bianca’s alluring gaze filled his mind. Her raven hair tumbled over her shoulders as they made love. Her sweet smile sent his pulse racing. Nothing ever felt as good as the time they spent alone and away from the world outside.
“I love you,” she whispered, leaning down to take his lips with hers.
He groaned, loving the soft, sweet purr of her voice as she said those magical words to him. Her electrifying touch sent a jolt to his system, firing his blood.
“I love you, too,” he replied.
“I never could’ve survived in this world without you,” she told him, her fingers dancing over the flesh of his chest and shoulders. “You’ve made me happy in a world filled with so much misery.”
Brody cringed as the memory of her words haunted him. Had she been filling his head with lies even then? Did she mean to say those words to Ryder, but couldn’t so she used him instead? He didn’t know, and it was no longer his problem to figure out. She belonged to Ryder, and now she was only the memories he wished to bury.
“What the fuck are you doing out here?” Ryder’s voice tunneled into his ears.
Brody stepped away from the tree and immediately faced the hybrid. His hands were balled into tight fists. Brody sucked in a deep gulp of air.
“I asked you a damn question,” Ryder said with a growl.
Brody placed his hands palm side up. “I’m not here to hurt her.” I did consider it though.
Knowing what he knew now, he was glad he hadn’t acted out of emotion. But he still should’ve left sooner. Now he was face-to-face with a ferocious shifter that was towered over him.
“That wasn’t my question.” Ryder stepped closer, sniffing the air like a wolf preparing to track down his pray. Ryder’s eyes narrowed. “You’re not Bryce.”
Brody shook his head. “Bryce is my brother. I’m Brody.”
The tension between them was thick and impending. Ryder’s piercing gaze was a reminder of the tracker and killer he was known to be. The best of his pack, Ryder could easily shred him to bits.
Why did I linger for so long?
Ryder scowled, scanning his dark eyes over him. “I remember you,” he said. “You left the pack. Your brother was pissed that you simply walked away from your duties.”
Duties? What duties? The council made it clear that he wasn’t worthy of the titles Brody sought, guardian, tracker, protector. He was expandable, just like Bianca. If not for Bryce and his parents, no one would’ve even noticed he was gone.
Brody nodded. “I wasn’t wanted. The council said I was weak and not trainable.”
Ryder arched a brow, a deep smirk pulling at one side of his mouth. “Were you?”
Brody’s heart pounded, and anger rose up from the depths of his belly. “I had my own reasons for leaving,” he replied.
Ryder glared at him, his gaze scrutinizing. “Like what?”
Brody’s chest expanded with his deep inhalation of breath. He didn’t need to justify his decision with anyone, he knew that. However, standing in front of Ryder he just couldn’t help but place his dig. “Like finding Bianca and keeping her safe while our pack banished her.”
Ryder’s jaw flexed, his eyes darkening to a menacing shade of I’m about to kick your ass. He cocked his head, his bright white fangs drawing Brody’s attention. “You’ve been with Bianca?”
Ryder’s voice crawled over him, his power forcing the hair on his body to stand on end. Nodding, Brody stiffened his spine. “Until a few weeks ago, she belonged to me.”
Without warning, Brody couldn’t breathe and it had everything to do with Ryder’s hands clasped tightly around his throat. As Brody gasped for breath, Ryder raised a solid knee to Brody’s gut, sending the rest of his air fleeing from his body. Ryder shoved him back against the tree and punched him across the face. Wheezing, Brody dropped to the ground. Blood filled his mouth and seeped from the corner of his lips.
Instinct took over and Brody was up on his feet, his muscles flexing as he crouched low and roared. Their fierce growls ignited the air around them. Brody charged at Ryder, a vicious snarl scraping within his throat. He clawed at Ryder’s stomach, a wild slice digging into the exposed flesh. Ryder howled as Brody gouged out his flesh over and over again. Brody twisted and swept his leg out, tripping Ryder and sending him flat onto the ground.
Not bad for a werepanther that’s not trainable.
The moment Ryder hit the hard earth beneath him, Brody was on him, punching and hitting him with all the strength he had. He knew he might not get a second chance to capitalize on the hybrid. Then, Ryder’s eyes flared wide as he pumped his hips, his arms and legs rising up to flip Brody up over his head.
The air in Brody’s lungs heaved out as he slammed onto the ground. Brody was over six feet tall, and he wasn’t a small man. But Ryder had treated him as if he weighed nothing.
Before Brody had a moment to react, Ryder’s weight pressed down upon him. His vision blurred from the pounding fists that repeatedly slammed against his skull. Ryder’s knees dug into Brody’s sides, squeezing his body like a vise. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t think. All he could do was take the beating Ryder gave him.
“Stop!” Bianca screamed, her shuffling feet coming to a stop beside them.
Ryder’s hands froze, still clasping Brody’s throat tightly. Slowly, he eased back, freeing him. As Ryder shifted his weight off of him, negative thoughts overwhelmed Brody. Gazing up into her wide, fearful eyes, he figured maybe it would help for her to see him so vulnerable. He could move on with his life more easily, knowing Bianca had been right to choose Ryder over him. He was the weaker of the two, the one who was consumed by matters of the heart and not so much with the fist.
Ryder lowered his face, his breath on Brody’s cheek. “Saved by a woman,” he murmured, the guttural tone of his hybrid mix present in his voice.
Brody remained on the ground and his head pounded like a hammer as he tried to regain his breath.
“What are you doing?” Bianca asked, clutching a hand to her breast.
Was she worried about him because she cared, or was she more concerned with finding out how he found her? He didn’t know, and honestly, he didn’t care.
Ryder arched his chin in Brody’s direction. “He said you belonged to him. I said I disagreed.”
Brody scoffed, pushing up into a seated position. “You didn’t say anything,” he reminded Ryder.
Through clenched teeth, Ryder replied, “You’re right, my fists did.”
Bianca placed herself between them, her hands pressing out to keep them apart. She shifted her gaze from Ryder to Brody and back again. “Please. No more fighting.”
Ryder eyed her, his gaze curious. “Was he telling the truth, Bianca?” His posture became rigid and stiff. “Was he your lover?”
Bianca swallowed, slowly nodding her head. “Yes, Ryder. Brody—”
“Brody what?” Ryder barked.
Bianca licked her lips, her breathing shallow and quick. “Brody and I lived together.”
“For how long?” Ryder’s questions flew out in rapid succession, and judging from the deep feral tone, his patience was obviously running thin. Bianca’s eyes widened, her gazing moving from Ryder’s to Brody’s and back again. “For how long?”
“Since she was banished,” Brody said calmly. “And her shit’s still in my house.”
Ryder grabbed Bianca by her shoulders. “Why didn’t you tell me about him? Why is he here now?”
Bianca shook her head. “I don’t know,” she said, her voice shaking.
For whatever reason, Brody couldn’t help but want to rescue her from the hybrid. He didn’t want to. He just couldn’t help himself. “I followed her here. I’ve been hiding in town since she arrived at the cabin.”
Bianca gasped, he
r gaze whipping to his. “What?”
Brody’s jaw clenched. He couldn’t look at her. “I’ve been trying to decide what I’m supposed to do.” He swallowed the rising acid in his throat. “Now that she’s mated to you, I see no reason to stay.”
Bianca’s jaw hung open. “You’ve been here all this time and you let me think I was alone,” she blurted out. “Why?”
Brody’s eyes narrowed, anger churning in his gut. How could she even ask that? She knew exactly what she did and how it looked. Why did he even need to state the obvious? “I thought you were a traitor to our kind.”
She steeled herself, fisting her hands at her sides. “I saved your life. I got you away from Lilly and the vampires. Didn’t that tell you anything?”
“No,” Brody said, shaking his head. “I watched you abduct the McCarthy child and I saw you give the child to Ryder only after he confronted you. What the hell was I supposed to think after all that?”
Bianca looked devastated. Good. That was exactly how he felt. It was nice to see that she still had some human feelings remaining inside her soul.
Bianca’s jaw quivered as she said, “You were supposed to trust me.” A single tear trailed down her cheek. “You were supposed to love me.”
Ryder let go of Bianca and stepped back. His eyes filled with hurt and betrayal. “Do you love him, Bianca?”
Brody rose to his full height and dusted off his pants. “It really doesn’t matter, Ryder. Even if she did love me, I don’t love her anymore anyway.” He stepped around them and headed as if to move deeper into the woods.
“Wait,” Bianca cried, reaching out toward him, but then seemed to think better of it.
Brody closed his eyes, powerless to do anything but what she asked. Would he ever be able to get over her? He didn’t think his heart would ever let him.
Inclining his head in her direction, he asked, “What?”
Bianca’s gaze softened, her eyes filled with regret. “Where are you going?”
Brody’s lips pressed into a tight line as he blew out a pent-up breath of air. “If you must know, I’m going to the bar in town to get good and drunk.” He scanned Ryder’s naked body and frowned. “You two can go back to fucking like rabbits again, for all I care.”
Sadly, Brody did care. He was in love with Bianca and he could feel her eyes burning into his flesh as he walked away, a sensation that would always haunt him. Forever.
* * * *
Bianca’s heart sank into the pit of her stomach as Brody walked away. Ryder’s heat-seeking gaze melted her into a puddle of emotional despair. She could only imagine how he must be feeling. She’d never mentioned anything about Brody. Why would she? Until yesterday, she’d assumed Ryder was coming to slaughter her.
How was she supposed to explain to Ryder that Brody had picked up the pieces of her life when everyone else had left her broken? How was she supposed to explain to Brody that the primal cravings in her heart and body for Ryder had never been something she could forget or wanted to?
Ryder and Brody filled a part of her that she couldn’t explain.
Bianca’s life with Ryder was a fantasy. She accepted that even if he didn’t. Together they would never have a happily ever after. There were too many obstacles in their path to overcome.
Brody, on the other hand, had been the one man she could count on. He didn’t expect anything from her but love and honesty. Something she realized she’d never gave him fully. Loving Brody had been easy, but sharing all of herself had proven more difficult.
How was she supposed to explain to Brody that her heart and instincts had driven her to pursue Ryder? The mating bond was too strong to ignore.
She bit the inside of her mouth and wondered if she should just turn herself over to Lilly. The physical torture the vampire queen would deliver upon her couldn’t be any worse than the emotional torture she felt now.
“Don’t even think about it,” Ryder warned.
Bianca’s gaze locked onto his. Her jaw quivered as she saw her deceit reflected in his eyes. “What?”
“You should’ve told me about Brody, but that doesn’t change anything between us.”
She sniffled. “It changes everything.”
Ryder clasped her arms. “You are still my mate, regardless of what you had with him.”
She shook her head, defeated and unwilling to fight. “Ryder, it’s never going to work. Just hand me over to Lilly and let her kill me.” She sobbed softly. “I’m not worth your troubles.”
Ryder shoved her back, and she stumbled against the tree. She swallowed hard as he rushed toward her, fury in his eyes. “You say shit like that to me again and I’ll have your ass so red you won’t be able to sit down for a week.”
She sucked in a breath and nodded. Her chest was tight with emotions she couldn’t describe.
“Nothing has changed,” he snapped. “You belong to me and we’re going to figure this out.”
She nodded.
“Now, let’s get my clothes and head to the bar. I need to speak with Brody again.”
Bianca gasped and shook her head, tugging against Ryder’s hold. “No. No, I don’t want to see him again,” she stammered. “Please don’t make me do this.”
He gripped her hand more firmly and pulled her up against him. “I can’t do this without help, and right now he’s the only option I have.” Ryder’s gaze grew serious as he asked, “Unless you want us both to die?”
Her heart skipped to a stop. “Of course I don’t want us to die.”
“Then stop acting like you’re the only one affected by this situation and start being the tough-as-nails woman I remember sparring with.” He shoved her again, but this time she caught her balance more quickly. His eyes narrowed into a sharp, piercing stare. “Better.”
She sighed, hating that Ryder was right. It would be so much easier to hide in the sand than to deal with her out of whack life. She knew she couldn’t avoid her past with Brody just like she couldn’t avoid the future she wanted with Ryder.
Licking her dry lips, she prayed the three of them could get along long enough to end this nightmare they faced with Lilly and the vampires. Truth was, Bianca feared being physically close to both men. Her heart desired Brody, her body so familiar with his touch and now the newness of what she’d always dreamed of having with Ryder was within her grasp.
She closed her eyes as the memory of Brody’s lips on hers sent a wild shiver racing up and down her spine. The possession of his mouth over hers had her toes curling in her shoes, her tongue licking the seam of her lips. Then the sensation of Ryder’s hands clasping her hips, guiding her as she rode his hard body startled a gasp of breath from her chest. Her eyes opened wide as she stepped back into reality.
“Are you all right?” Ryder’s deep voice filled the space around her.
She nodded, hiding the fact that she was far from all right. Warmth flooded her body and settled low in her belly. Her legs quivered with the image of both men pleasuring her. Blood droned in her ears.
She caught sight of Ryder as he shifted into panther form and ran through the woods in the direction of his motorcycle. Without changing, Bianca followed. She was dressed and couldn’t very well step into the local bar naked. Especially now that her mind was filled with wicked thoughts of two men she knew intimately.
When Bianca thought back on how she assumed this moment would go as she revealed to Ryder her past with Brody, it had not been anything like reality.
Brody had given her every indication that he wanted nothing to do with her after she rescued him from Lilly’s lair. The fact that Brody secretly followed her, had been so close and was unable to see her, confused her beyond reason. Why had he come here, if not to be with her?
She shook the thought from her head as she approached Ryder, who was already dressed in black denim jeans, a black T-shirt, and black boots. Even as a human, he couldn’t escape his black panther roots. She grinned. The closer she moved toward him the darker his gaze became. He followed
her every step, securitizing her movements. The intensity of his stare had her feeling as naked as the day she was born.
She turned and dug her hands into her hips. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
He shook his head, a deep scowl dipping low on his brow.
“Don’t give me that,” she bit out. “I can see and feel that something is on your mind.” She scoffed. “You’re thinking about me with Brody, aren’t you?”
Ryder’s gaze narrowed at the mention of her former lover. “I think for now we need to keep our mind on the mission. We don’t need to talk about your past affair until after we’ve saved our asses.”
“In the meantime, I get to feel your disappointed gaze boring into me.”
“I’m not the one who settled on a lover who wasn’t my mate. My affairs have always been noncommittal. I never loved anyone else.” He clenched his jaw tight. “Maybe I’m just more disciplined than you are.”
Bianca’s mouth hung open. Her heart was twisting in knots. Why would he say something so hurtful? Ryder had no idea how hard things had been for her when she’d been banished. A hot tear leaked from her eye, but she quickly brushed it away. She wouldn’t let him see her cry. Not anymore. She’d be tough like he’d asked of her earlier. And when the time came that things could finally return to normal, she would decide what she needed to do. Even if it meant leaving both men she cared for behind to pursue a life away from all the things that tore apart her heart.
“Get on the bike.” Ryder’s thunderous voice jolted her back to the present.
A shiver rocked her to the core as she slid up behind him on the bike. Her thighs touched his hips, and instantly her skin burned for a more intimate caress. She closed her eyes and prayed for strength. Her body’s reaction to their closeness was betraying her need to be strong, to ignore the cravings burning inside her until they had time to discuss what was really happening between them.
“Put this on,” he ordered.
Ryder handed her a black full-face helmet, and she quickly pushed it over her head and into place. Sighing, she closed her eyes as her hands slid around his waist, holding on as the bike roared alive. Charging down the dark roads, she tried to pretend Ryder was anyone else, but her mind pictured Brody instead. And then when she tried to push Brody’s image from her thoughts, Ryder would return. She was lost, unable to focus on anything but the men who were quickly driving her insane.