by Celia Kyle
Isaac tugged her close, desperate to soothe away the growing panic in his mate. At the same time, he glared at Ty and urged the man to agree already.
“Her name is Zoey?” the wolf spoke.
“Yes.” Isaac didn’t know much else, but he knew that.
“And she is Reid Bennett’s long lost sister?” The alpha’s lips formed a grim line.
“Yes. At least, Flynn thinks so.”
“He’d know. Reid’s still doing time with Terrence, but when he finds out… I’m not sure how long anyone can keep him away from her.”
Isaac agreed and Ty didn’t look too happy with the prospect of having the unstable, homicidal male in his territory once again.
The alpha closed his eyes and breathed deeply, once, twice, and on the third time, yellowed eyes met Isaac’s. “Is there only one wolf in there that doesn’t belong to the Redby pack? Is that the female? Zoey?”
Isaac nodded. “Yes, I recognized the others as belonging to you. There’s just Zoey.”
The alpha drew in more of the scent and then turned to Ty. “Itan, I’m asking for your hospitality from Alpha to Itan. I have need of your clan’s protection and care.”
Ty looked as confused as Isaac felt. The Alpha’s words were ceremonial and exacting, a quote from the laws themselves.
Ty voiced the question spinning through Isaac’s mind. “Why?”
The wolf’s body seemed to grow in size, nearing Ty’s width and breadth while gray fur peppered his skin. “Because you do not just have an injured wolf on clan lands. Nor is she simply a member of the ex-alpha’s family. Your Zoey is not yours. She is mine.”
“Oh, shit snacks.” A familiar feminine voice—Zoey—cut through the ensuing silence, drawing their attention to the bandaged and battered woman standing in the doorway. “With a side of fries and a strawberry shake.”
Chapter Sixteen
Kira peeked through Isaac’s drapes, nudging them aside enough to spy on the house next door. Her house next door. The house she was currently not residing in so Zoey could spend wolfy time with the local pack. It hurt her a little, stinging her heart, even though it shouldn’t. Back at home, her best friend often did werewolf things that didn’t involve an itty-bitty weremole.
But they weren’t with their old pack anymore, and Zoey didn’t even have a pack. Now Kira was the woman’s pack and why…
Why was she alone again?
Her mate encircled her waist with his arms, the warmth of his chest sinking into her and heating the skin that’d cooled without him. He surrounded her with his care, attention, and protection.
Maybe she wasn’t entirely alone.
A wolf trotted between Isaac’s and Kira’s homes, the silver fur gleaming in the lessened light. Its nose hovered over the ground, obviously sniffing and hunting for a scent that didn’t belong. Finally it huffed out a breath and moved along, searching for any other threats.
Damp lips brushed her neck, Isaac nuzzling her throat and more of his flavors sunk into her. “She’s going to be fine, you know,” he murmured against her skin.
“No, I know.” And she did know. Mostly. “I just worry.”
“You know how wolves are. You know they’ll protect and care for her. Especially if…”
Especially if the alpha, Bates, was Zoey’s mate. Considering that werewolves found their mates by scent alone, she didn’t have much of a doubt. Especially after they’d all traipsed into the house and she’d witnessed her best friend’s reaction to the male. She wasn’t going to say Zoey was drooling but… Kira had handed over a tissue or two.
That was the only reason she’d left her home and let the wolves overrun the place.
Most packs weren’t like Kira’s. Most alphas cared for their pack and protected them. There was no violence outside of challenges. They did not allow one wolf to pick on weaker wolves. Bates assured Zoey and Kira that was the case in Redby.
The alpha had not been happy having to justify his treatment of his pack to a mole. He almost put voice to the words, but Ty and Isaac stepped forward, their massive bodies backing her up.
When all was said and done, when all assurances were given and accepted, and a handful of calls were made to check Bates’ references (that annoyed the hell out of him), they left Zoey to the care of the pack. Isaac and Kira retreated to his home to spend the night, promising one and all, Kira would be back first thing in the morning to check on her best friend.
Bates looked pissed off that she didn’t trust him while the others stared at Kira as something akin to a ghost. They couldn’t believe she existed. She was prey who’d lived with wolves and survived. Not only survived, but she’d become best friends with another wolf.
Kira didn’t want to know what happened to other prey shifters. At all. Flynn tried to assure her they were merely run out of Redby, but she’d also heard murmurings about the now-dead beta Morgan and what he’d done…
No matter what, she was here and Zoey was there, and they had a long night stretching before them.
“Kira?” Isaac whispered into her ear.
“What? Sorry. I was thinking about Zoey and Bates and what their mating would mean.” To me. She didn’t add that part. “Bates is only the temporary alpha. I worry…”
“Bates may seem like a mean and gruff male, but even the meanest are putty in their mate’s hands. If Zoey wants to stay, I imagine he’ll figure out a way to make that happen. Even if it means taking over a small patch of nowhere in Georgia.”
Isaac seemed so sure and solid, and Kira let herself feel a small ray of hope.
“Now, c’mon. I wanna shower, and I think you could use a good soak in the tub.” He nibbled her earlobe. “It’s got jets and I’m sure it’s big enough for two.”
“Jets?” She tilted her head and gave him more room.
“Uh-huh. Zoey is safe, you’re safe, there are—knock on wood—no dangers hanging over our head. At least not immediately. I know they’re still out there, but we’re surrounded by wolves. I figure we can relax enough to finish what we started.” He ended the sentence with a low, husky whisper that traveled straight to her core.
“Finish…” He captured her earlobe and tugged, forcing a whimper past her lips.
“If you’re willing. Only if you’re willing, Kira. No matter what, you’re mine. Today or two weeks from now, I’ll eventually make you mine.”
His. She wanted to be his more than she could say. Now it was time to make it a reality. Was she ready?
Yes. No question, no hesitation. The answer was yes.
She wanted to be Isaac’s.
Even more, she wanted Isaac to be hers.
“Yes,” she slowly turned in his arms, meeting his gaze as she clutched his shoulders. “Yes.”
“Yeah?” A grin teased his lips.
“Yeah.”
That grin spread to a blinding smile, one that was accentuated by lengthened fangs and deep, midnight eyes. The bear had come out to play, probably encouraged by Kira’s acceptance of their claim.
“C’mon then.” He stepped out of her embrace and extended his arm, hand open and waiting for her.
There was no hesitation when she reached for him and slid her palm over his. She twined her fingers with Isaac’s and easily followed him as he led her through the house. The sounds of the home followed them, the shift and creak of the old walls and aged floors. The steps whined as Isaac and Kira climbed, but it did nothing to bank the growing arousal.
The closer they came to his room, the higher her need climbed. She’d felt his mouth on her, but now he’d be everywhere, he’d touch everywhere, he’d… see everywhere.
Would it disgust him? She’d already felt his scarring and she couldn’t care less.
Would he be the same way? He hadn’t said a word about her marred flesh after their almost love making in the forest, but she didn’t think he’d truly had a moment to look, either.
Now he would.
Kira’s heart stuttered, fluttering with the prospect
of being bare and revealing all. She knew that he was her mate, that they were meant to be together forever, but… But lifelong insecurities were very hard to banish. Hell, these weren’t even lifelong. They were about ten years old.
They stepped onto the landing, padding toward their destination, when Isaac stopped. She nearly tripped, tumbling into him, but he caught her with ease.
“Isaac? Wha—?”
He whirled and grasped her by her forearms. “We don’t have to do this.”
“Huh?” She wrinkled her brow. “I thought you wanted… Did you not want…? But…”
“I can scent your emotions just as you can discern mine. I know what I’m smelling, Kira, and it isn’t an overwhelming wave of need for me.” His voice was rough, the bear’s growl making it rumble even more.
“You scent… You don’t think I want you?” She shook her head and sighed. Still holding his hand, she strode past him and tugged him along.
“Kira.” Another growl followed by a snarl.
“No, you don’t get to drive this train anymore.” She returned his gruff tone and kept walking. When his steps slowed, she yanked harder. “I am the captain of this ship to Matetastic Island. Let’s go.”
“I thought we were on a train.” She heard Isaac’s suppressed chuckle and released a small, relieved sigh. Laughing was better than backpedaling. She managed to get him through the bedroom door before he slowed once again. “Kira, I know what you said, but I also know what I scented.”
Kira swallowed her groan and released him, turning as she did so. “God, you’re going to make me be unsexy and blurt this all out aren’t you.”
“I don’t—”
She held up a hand, silencing him. “You know how you didn’t want me touching your face? Because of your scars? You were afraid I’d turn away from you like everyone else.” She asked the questions, but didn’t give him a chance to interrupt. “Well, that emotion and self-consciousness isn’t reserved just for you.”
Okay, time for the hard parts. She could do this. It was like a Band-Aid.
Though, really, that saying didn’t really work since if a Band-Aid was left on a person’s skin for a while, it sorta dug its heels in. Then when it was yanked off, it wasn’t a quickly banished pain. No, it lingered with icky, sticky residue and bright red, itchy skin in its wake.
She tossed the twisting thoughts aside and realized Isaac still stared at her. She wondered how long she’d debated the Band-Aid analogy.
“Right, you’re not the only one who gets to have a pity party.” He opened his mouth as if to interrupt, but she kept on trucking. “Women have rejected you because of your scars. They were idiots as far as I’m concerned, but it happened. Now, you seem to be okay with me being a little bit blind.” She ignored his snort. “But,” she squeezed her eyes shut tight. “But what about when you see my scars? I don’t even know what they look like, but I’ve felt them and they’re not pretty, Isaac.”
Kira ignored the sting in her eyes. “I mean, I was half-naked in the forest, but I doubt you were all that focused on anything but my vagina.”
“Oh, baby.” The words were whispered and then she was in his arms, cradled against his chest as he carried her to his bedroom.
He didn’t release her immediately, didn’t lower her feet to the ground. No, he strode right to the bed and gently laid her on the soft surface.
“Isaac, you’re the one who started this topic, you need to—”
“I need to show you that you have no reason to worry about how I feel for you.” His fingers went to the button of her shorts and she covered his.
“Wait a minute. Naked isn’t gonna—”
“Fix this? Of course it will.” He stared down at her and the full weight of his emotions slammed into her. Was this what love smelled like? It was new, unfamiliar, and it sure as hell better not be new cologne. “Because, while you saw nothing but my face, I saw so much more of you. Lemme show you,” his murmured plea struck her heart and she nodded.
The snap of her shorts was followed by the lowering of her zipper and then, once again, she was naked from the waist down before him. She wondered when she’d get to see, er feel, him naked.
Oh, wait, at his urgings she was now fully naked. The cool air bathed her heated skin, chilling her, but doing nothing to ease her growing need for him.
“Isaac?” Unease assaulted her. He saw it all now. Every lumpy curve and dip, every twisted inch of her skin. From the thin lines to the wide swaths, they were all bared.
He whipped his shirt over his head, the fabric covering his tanned body suddenly gone. Then his jeans were gone, leaving her with a large expanse of tanned skin filling her vision.
Isaac went into motion once more, easing her to the center of the bed and then knelt between her spread thighs.
“You don’t think I see you, Kira? That I’d be disgusted by your body?” He shook his head. “No way. Because, even as I knelt on the rocky ground, I saw you.”
He leaned over her, propping his weight on one arm as he reached for her chest. He traced the top curve of her breast with one finger. He’d kissed her there. Kissed and sucked and nibbled… He drew that digit down her body in… a… straight… line…
She’d been so caught up in the passion, in the heat, that she hadn’t even realized that…
“You kissed them all,” she whispered.
“I kissed every one I could find.” He leaned down, tongue lapping at that spot. “I made love to every part of you I could reach. Because I want you as my mate, Kira. Not just the good parts. Everyone loves toys that are new and shiny and perfect. And then the moment they get dented, they’re tossed aside.” He cupped her cheek with his free hand, forcing her to focus on him entirely. “Someone tossed away something perfect and I’m picking you up. You’re mine, bruises, scars, and oddly named dog. All mine.”
She grinned at him, loving him a little more with every breath. “Talking about the dog when we’re naked is not sexy.”
“No more talking,” he whispered the words a moment before he captured her lips.
It wasn’t the fast and furious meeting they’d shared in the forest. No, this was a soft, sweet seduction.
And Kira was very, very ready to be seduced. A lot. Times two.
*
Isaac had never tasted something so sweet in his life. She was delicious berries and pure woman, and he couldn’t wait to see if every inch of her tasted the same. He delved into her mouth, tracing her tongue and sucking lightly, swallowing her moans.
His cock pulsed and ached and his bear demanded he claim Kira already, but Isaac was going to take his time. They’d only have one shot at this and he refused to be rushed.
Fast and furious could be saved for round two.
He lapped at her skin, following the lines that marred her body. Back in the forest, when he’d first brushed his lips over her breast, he’d nearly gone into a rage. The line was wide and had obviously gone deep. It was puffed and raised against her smooth flesh. It’d been painful and he did his best to kiss away the past.
He repeated the process now as he did then. Lick, kiss, suckle, and then nuzzle. He wanted to banish them all, wanted to draw out the pain and replace it with pleasure. She would know nothing but happiness and freedom now. She would never again be afraid of what the world held. Not with him at her side.
Each touch was a promise. A promise for the future.
He loved every inch of her body. He began at her collar, tracing the thin, pale lines. Probably a razor blade. The remnants were too small to be a wolf’s claw. Maybe a knife? The instrument did not matter.
The next was the largest and one that’d nearly sent him over the edge in the forest. He traced the top edge and then continued following the path between her breasts. He paused a moment to kiss one large globe and then the other, flicking her nipples before moving on. He wanted her aroused and needy by the time he finished exploring her.
Wait, her nipples were like ripe strawberries and he w
ent back for another taste of those hardened nubs.
He was rewarded with a low gasp followed by a soft whine. “Isaac.”
He fought his grin and repeated the caresses, bringing one into his mouth, sucking hard and flicking the nub with his tongue. She fisted his strands as she arched her back, pushing deeper into his mouth, and he gave her exactly what she desired.
She ached for more and he was resolved to give her whatever she desired.
Kira rocked her hips, lifting them from the bed and he gripped her side, stilling her movements. At her pleading whine, he released the nipple he’d tormented. “Let me love you, Kira. You can do it your way next time. It’s my turn, right now.”
She narrowed those clear blue eyes. “Does your turn include mating bites and orgasms?”
Isaac grinned and then bit her breast, tightening his grip until a tremble overtook her. He loved that she got off on that tiny hint of pain and he couldn’t wait to see what else she enjoyed.
“Yes.”
She grinned and twirled her hand at him. “Carry on, then.”
He chuckled and nipped her breast, loving when her grin morphed into a wide smile. “I’ll carry something on.”
Kira didn’t have much else to say because then he focused on the task of making his mate writhe, scream, and moan.
All the while, his cock throbbed. Each time he pressed his lips to her skin, it pulsed. Nibbles had that part of him twitching and long licks sent a shudder down his spine.
His bear roared at him, demanding he take Kira and claim her. She was ripe and ready to belong to them.
Isaac didn’t deny the animal’s assertions. He just wasn’t prepared to give up his feast. Despite the beast and his aching shaft, he wanted to draw out the sensations of her body beneath his.
She wasn’t a hurried snack. She was a lush, delicious meal.
And he would take his time.
He continued working his way down her body, his heart aching when he got to a mass of twisted flesh below her right breast. His eyes stung as he washed the past away with his care.
“God, Kira.” He rubbed his cheek against the marks, coating her in his scent so any male who got close would know if they threatened her, if they hurt her, they’d die.