I could scent her arousal, but it was tinged now with fear, with a lingering anger that was bitter on my tongue.
She shrugged. “That’s the gist of it. I’m not really interested in going into detail. But he’s here and based on the things he said, he’s not going to leave.”
I tensed. “What did he say?”
She licked her lips and I stifled a groan. “That he could smell me.” She turned her head and lightly sniffed. No, she had no idea she was a wolf. I sighed quietly, realizing I had to tell her what she was and why Robert was after her. Why I wanted her. Why every fucking male in the area would want her.
And about the claiming ceremony that would make her mine forever.
“And…and he wanted to… to kiss me and touch me. He promised if I let him in he’d…”
Too well could I imagine what he’d said, and worse, what he’d been thinking. They were the same thoughts I was thinking now. Running my tongue over her flesh, tasting her nipples before going lower, to her sweet pussy and taking my fill. Hearing her cry out as I made her lose control over and over before burying myself balls deep and making her mine forever. I growled then and Lily startled. Lifting a hand to her face, I couldn’t resist sliding my palm down her cheek to her neck, burying it in her hair. “I’m mad at him, not you. Never you. But you’re mine now, Lily. I won’t let him touch you.”
She blinked slowly, leaning into my touch. I could see her struggle to find words, to battle the sensual needs fighting for command of her mind and body. Her wolf was close, ready to break free and run wild, unless Lily controlled her. If the wolf wasn’t contained, Lily could go mad, or worse. She needed me, would need the dominant nature of my wolf to help her maintain control.
I ached to kiss her, but I didn’t dare. If I started I would never stop. I settled for leaning closer and pressing my forehead to hers. She sighed, the sound soft. “Why is he here, Kade? Why are you here? Why am I running through the forest in my nightgown? Why does my skin…hurt?”
I knew she wanted to ask more. The hunger to be touched would be strong now, making her body ache with need, her skin itself would crave contact. I couldn’t take her, not yet. But I could help, if I was strong enough to resist temptation.
Leaning my back against the tree trunk I pulled her across my lap. The hand in her hair I left in place, wrapped around her neck, and used it to press her cheek to my chest right over my beating heart. Holding her felt natural, right. She settled instantly, curling into my heat as I ran my free hand up and down her spine in what I hoped would be a soothing gesture. I just had to hope she didn’t feel my cock, thick and hard against her side.
I was a fucking saint. Here I was petting her when all I wanted was to throw her down on the ground and fuck her raw, fill her with my seed and tie her to me forever. The wolf in me wanted that so much so I had to count to a hundred before I could begin to explain.
“Your family, the Windbourns, has lived in Tennessee for a long time. Hundreds of years.”
She nodded and I was relieved she knew at least this much of her family history. The werewolf migration had occurred even before the Declaration of Independence had been signed.
“They came from a long line of nobles in Europe, a family that was followed by horror stories, curses and legends.”
“How do you know so much about us?” she asked.
“My family is from the same area. And we all suffered the same ancient curse.”
Chapter Four
Kade
Lily stiffened. “My family is not cursed.”
“Have you not heard any strange legends? Rumors about your grandfather?”
Her silence was nearly deafening and I knew the answer. “What do you think he is, Lily?”
She shuddered. “Powerful. Strict. Everyone is afraid of him.”
I couldn’t help but chuff out a small laugh. I was amazed at how little she knew. “Are they? Are you sure about that? Aren’t there those who come to him when they are in trouble and need help?”
“Yes. Almost everyone does that, but they’re afraid of him, too. I can tell.”
How the hell was I supposed to tell this beautiful woman that she was a werewolf? She wouldn’t believe me. Then she’d panic and run, and things would go from bad to worse in a heartbeat.
“Why are they afraid of him?” I stroked over her silky hair. “Close your eyes and tell me the truth, no matter how crazy you think it sounds.”
She shook her head and pulled away to look up at me. “No. Just tell me. All my life everyone around me has been keeping this big secret and it’s driving me crazy. Just tell me. I’m tired of being the only one who doesn’t know the truth. Is he in the mafia? A serial killer? An alien? What?”
“He’s a werewolf, Lily. Perhaps the most powerful alpha in the world. And you’re his granddaughter. Born or adopted?”
Her mouth dropped open and I saw her straight white teeth. “Born. My mom was his daughter.” She said the words slowly and I was relieved that she wasn’t dismissing my claim out of hand.
“He’s a werewolf, from a long line of wolves. And you’re his family, his blood, and part of his pack. You’re a werewolf, too. They’ve just been waiting for your wolf to mature and come to the surface.”
She was quiet for a minute, studying me, the tone of my words, the feel of my hands, even the beat of my heart.
“And that’s what Robbie was waiting for? My wolf to wake up?” Her pale eyes met mine.
I nodded. “Yes. A female werewolf can’t be claimed as a mate until her wolf accepts the pairing.”
“That’s insane.” She denied me, but she didn’t move. Her mind didn’t grasp the extent of the truth yet, but deep down, she knew. Her wolf knew, therefore it remained quiet. “How would he know my inner werewolf was suddenly waking up? It’s ridiculous.”
“Can’t you feel her moving inside you? The heat, the need for touch, the lust that’s so strong you can’t think? That’s not you, it’s her.”
I felt her shudder, and not from revulsion.
I ran my hand through her hair, but after that one shift of her body, it was like I was touching a statue. She was cold and unmoving as she worked through what I was saying. “Most female wolves awaken in their late teens. Some, like you, take longer. But there is no denying the call to mate, the scent of a female wolf in heat is nearly irresistible.”
“In heat?” She scrambled from my lap and rose to her feet, glaring at me. She looked so beautiful in the moonlight, the nightgown revealing as much as it hid, her hair a dark curtain. Her eyes wide and wild. “In heat? Like I’m some kind of dog?”
I came to stand beside her, slowly so as not to startle her. “Robert was waiting for you to be ready, Lily. He’s been waiting for this moment to make his claim when he knew you wouldn’t be as likely to refuse him.”
She glared at me, but there was hurt in her gaze. Hurt I wanted to kiss away. “Let’s say I believe you about this werewolf business. I’m not stupid. I’ve seen things, heard rumors. I should be running screaming right now, but part of me knows it’s true.”
Relief coursed through my veins. She knew. Deep down and she was slowly accepting what she was. That meant she could accept me.
“I would never lie to you, Lily. I promise you that.” I took a step closer but she backed away.
“What about you, Kade? How do I know you aren’t exactly like Robbie? Is that what I am to you, too? A female in heat, ready to fuck? Am I just too horny to say no to you as well?” She curled in on herself, her arms wrapped around her waist as she took another step back.
“No.” I let my wolf show, let the amber of my eyes darken to the color of my wolf. “I’m nothing like Robbie. I’m your mate. I will die to protect you, kill to possess you. You’re mine and I’m yours. Even if you deny it, your wolf knows. She will fight to be with me. She’ll be desperate and needy, Lily. Starving for touch, for her mate. For me. Why do you think you climbed out of your dorm and ran to me? Why do you ache for m
e at night? Oh, she’ll accept another if you refuse me, but she wants me…just like you do.” I held her gaze as I said the last because I wanted her to know I spoke the truth. “And I want you, Lily. I knew you were mine the moment I touched your hand on the side of the road.”
She shook her head, her hair swirling about her pale shoulders. “This is crazy.”
“I know.” I held out my hand to her this time, gave her the choice. I would not force her, I could not. Her ice blue eyes were streaked with fire and the power of her wolf was upon her. I could hear the frantic beat of her heart, smell the tang of her need. I ached for a chance to taste it. Sate it. “Come with me, please. Let me touch you. Let me kiss you, Lily. I want you so badly, I can barely breathe. Be with me. Choose me. There is a claiming ceremony tonight. If I claim you there, Robbie will never come near you again. None of them will. Not even your grandfather will be able to reach you then.”
“Why not?”
Moving slowly, I closed the distance between us and cupped her face with both hands because I needed to touch her. To hold her, even if just a little bit. “Because you’ll be mine.”
She looked into my eyes. “And is that what you want? To claim me?”
“Yes. I want you, Lily. So much it hurts.” My entire body was strung tight as a bowstring until she nodded.
“Okay. I want you, too.” She licked her lips. “What does that mean? A claiming ceremony?”
“You’ll be presented to the pack alpha. He’ll ask you if you consent to the claiming ceremony. Once you agree, you’ll be taken to a sacred place in the forest and I’ll come for you.”
“And then what?” She knew. I could see it in her eyes, but she needed me to say it.
“Then we’ll be together.” I leaned down and whispered the rest in her ear because I couldn’t stare into her ice blue eyes and not lose my shit. “I’ll kiss you everywhere, make you scream my name. And then I’ll take you, fuck you until you can’t take any more, until you beg for release, until you know exactly who you belong to.”
“Yes.” A shudder passed through her and into me, her nipples hardened into tight peaks pressed to my chest, her breathing short and fast and her arousal coating the wind like the sweetest perfume. My cock swelled to the point of bursting and I bit back a moan of pain. This woman, my woman, threatened my sanity, my years of iron will and self-discipline.
Nose buried against her neck now, my control nearly snapped. She was naked beneath her nightgown. I pulled back to resist the temptation to kiss her there, but that was a mistake. Her beautiful face was lit by moonlight, and she was looking at me with complete and absolute trust. I lowered my lips toward hers, unable to deny myself another moment.
A branch cracked behind me and I snapped to attention, Lily clinging to me once again. We were surrounded, and I cursed at myself for being so lost in my new mate that they’d sneaked up on us. It could have been worse. I knew the wolf hiding in the trees had made the sound as a courtesy. He was upwind, deadly quiet, and not alone.
“We have to go now, Lily.”
She twisted out of my arms as five wolves emerged from the forest to surround us. She pressed her back to me and I put my hands on her shoulders. “It’s all right. They’re friends.”
It was a small lie. Four I knew. One I did not, but by the hatred I saw in his eyes, this had to be Robbie, the werewolf who’d followed my Lily across a continent to claim her. But she was mine. The only way he’d ever lay a hand on her again was over my dead body.
<><><>
Lily, Two Hours Later
The cold night air caressed my overheated skin and caused tendrils of steam to float up from my flesh like tiny ghosts rising and dancing in the moonlight. I was naked beneath the robe, one they said was used for the traditional claiming. It was bright white and translucent, and fell to my feet in a silken wave. It was obviously meant to tease every male present with glimpses of my body. It left little to the imagination, but since it wasn’t going to stay on for long, I wasn’t going to think more about it.
God, this was insane.
Standing in the center of a small clearing, I tugged at the bonds about my wrists. No give. I could run, but there was nowhere to go. Nowhere to hide. And worse, I’d already agreed to this insanity. The Black Falls alpha, a man named Warren Sommerset, was an older man, close to sixty, with a barrel chest, massive arms and dark gray eyes that seemed to stare straight into my soul.
My Grandad had eyes like that, ice blue, but the same don’t try to bullshit me stare. And when I’d met him earlier, with a glowering Robbie standing a few feet away and Kade next to me, I’d felt the urge to drop to my knees and bow my head to him, like he was a king.
Not a king, an alpha. And the wolf in me knew it.
I’d stayed on my feet, but I had a feeling it was only because I was still a Windbourn, and my pack loyalties remained back home with my family, the people I’d grown up with. I hadn’t realized until that moment how deeply that connection ran within me. The strength of those bonds helped me stay on my feet, even when Kade and the others knelt beside me. Only Robbie and I remained on our feet, and the smug smile I saw on his face told me he knew the reason. I had a feeling he was counting on my loyalty to my grandfather, to our home, to influence my decision.
But Robbie was wrong. So wrong. I didn’t care about the town, or my crusty old Grandad’s non-existent empathy. I only wanted one wolf to touch me…and he wasn’t here.
The meeting had ended over an hour ago. I’d been carted off by the women, bathed and fussed over until I was ready to scream.
And here I stood, surrounded by strangers, and I still couldn’t make my body want the only familiar face among them. I realized now it was because neither me nor my wolf wanted him.
Male voices floated heavy on the night's breeze. I felt like a virgin sacrifice—ha! I was one—with only one other woman in sight to help me. She was already mated and not of interest to any of the males milling about, except perhaps her mate, who had to be nearby. I wasn’t alone in this though. There were other female wolves being claimed tonight, although I’d only met one. Alana. She was standing next to the pack alpha, waiting her turn to be claimed and fucked by a werewolf. But she knew the rules, knew what was going on.
I was the lucky one who got to go first.
"Are you ready?" she asked. She walked over to me holding a long strip of black silk—another ceremonial thing—and it was going to cover my eyes. I wasn’t sure if not being able to see would calm me or if not being able to see all the males circling and fighting for me—was I that much of a catch?—would make me panic. Alana’s hands trembled worse than mine.
"No." I shook my head and searched the gathering crowd of single males. Where was Kade? He was the only one I was interested in, the only one I wanted touching me. Claiming me. Fucking me. Alana, who was from Black Falls and had grown up knowing this night would eventually come, told me many were here from neighboring packs to find a mate.
Now I knew why I could see so well at night. The wolf in me could see every male clearly as if it were noon, not close to midnight. They watched me, lust and need in their eyes as they inhaled deeply, picking up my scent, and the scents of other unmated females, on the air. They growled at one another like dogs fighting over a bone, and since I was up first, I was that bone. "I can’t do this. This is crazy. Where’s Kade?"
Alana wrapped her much cooler fingers around my bound hands and squeezed in a show of support. "Don’t worry. A good man will claim you, a man who won’t allow any of these weaklings to touch you.”
I thought of Kade. His dark hair, full lips. Broad shoulders, intense gaze. God, everything about him made me hot, made me ache with need. Made my wolf almost prowl within. He’d held me, listened to me and I’d felt protected. Cherished. But when his gaze lowered to my lips, when he told me what he wanted to do to me, I felt desired. Craved.
Was he out there? I didn’t see him, didn’t sense him like I had when I looked out my dorm wind
ow. I’d felt…relief and happiness rolled into one at the sight of him. As if I were coming home. He’d said I was his mate and my wolf preened at the idea. I’d barely even talked to him, but I knew. He was my mate, yet I didn’t see him. Would he leave me here, allow me to be claimed by someone else? He wouldn’t. He couldn’t if we really was my mate.
Alana patted my hand, bringing me out of my thoughts. Worrisome thoughts. I appreciated my new friend's efforts to reassure me, but I wasn't convinced. What if something happened? My inner wolf—that’s what Kade said drove me now that I was in heat—wanted him, but what if it was wrong? What if it turned out Kade was just like Robert? What if I didn’t really want him at all? What if I was just in heat, exactly like a stupid poodle?
Chapter Five
Lily
My wolf nudged my thoughts, telling me I was wrong, that it wanted Kade. That he was the one for me. For us. God! I had a wolf in me. I shook my head in continued disbelief, but here I was, mostly naked in the middle of a serious wolf claiming ceremony.
“Explain to me again why this is happening to me,” I said to Alana. She understood. She’d known her whole life she was a shifter. She offered me a small smile.
“I don’t know your specifics, but wolf science says tonight is the first full moon since you’ve reached the Age of Ascension.”
I must have given her a funny look because she laughed.
“Have you been all hot and bothered the last few days?”
I nodded, blushing at how I’d made myself come in my sleep. Once, but it hadn’t been like this.
“The Age of Ascension is wolf-speak for the time the wolfy bits inside you come to life,” she continued. “You’ll be able to shift soon, but you’ll need a mate to help you control your wolf. The presence of a strong alpha is enough. But for women, it’s different. We will only submit to one male, and that’s generally our mate. You’re going to shift soon, Lily. You’re of the age to be claimed, to belong to someone, just as they will belong to you. Tonight, you’ll be mated to one of the single males, and that male has until sunrise to convince you to keep him. You can resist, a few have. Just last month in fact, when the alpha's daughter rejected the male who'd tried to claim her. It was the first time in two decades a male's claim has been denied.”
Wild Wolf Claiming: A Howl's Romance Page 3