With no light in the cave, Lachlan lit a candle. Since he’d spent many hours in there, he’d stashed food and supplies for various occasions, from having some private time away from his brothers to taking shelter during a storm.
Raina’s hair shined like marble in the candlelight. Rain drops framed her lashes before falling down her cheeks, slipping down her skin in a sultry dance.
When she pulled back deeper into the cave and caught him staring, she asked “What is it?”
He grinned. “Are you ever not sexy?”
She raised a sly brow. “On all fours, covered in fur.” She teased, “Unless, that does something for you.”
He chortled. “The first part, aye. Don’t make me even think of you in that position if we’re to make any progress.”
“Fine.” She clapped her hands. “Let’s get back to work, rock star.”
Her scent wrapped around him in the confined space. The intimate privacy of the cave left his head spinning with sordid thoughts. The urge to take her clouded all else.
He shoved aside his inner desires. “I’m nothing but putty in your dexterous hands.” His face broke into a teasing smile, but he was only half-joking.
She bit her lip while she watched him. In the candlelight, her eyes flickered like the storm outside. “Are you more relaxed?”
“Excuse me?”
“You were—um—tense—earlier. I’m wondering if that tension’s gone.”
The only tension he sensed was the heavy sensual pull that blanketed the damp cave. He assessed his overall disposition; he wasn’t as frustrated.
“Is that why you kissed me?” he murmured, moving closer. “To reduce the strain?”
Her grin conveyed both embarrassment and naughtiness. “That wasn’t my plan. But if it helped…”
“I get tense often.” He leaned forward so her lips were only inches from his. “Maybe you can help me with some relief.”
She bit her lip in contemplation but pulled back, raising her chin with determination. “Focus, Lachlan. We need to be productive.”
“Okay, okay,” he relented. “But if we make progress,” he said with a suggestive raise of one brow, “Maybe you can reward me.”
“Lachlan!” she cried with mock indignation.
“What? The motivation would make me an excellent student.”
She treated him to a small laugh that spread warmth through his chest.
“Och, if it helps you study.” Then she snapped her fingers. “Let’s get to work, loverboy.”
She was right. Lachlan shifted his focus off her tempting lips to concentrate on the task at hand. After an hour, his stomach rumbled.
“Have you eaten, yet?”
She shook her head. “I didn’t have an appetite.”
“I have some food stashed here.” He glanced at her breasts, which still rose and fell with rhythmic temptation. “And I’m starving.”
Snapping himself out of his decadent thoughts, he reached deeper into the cave and retrieved a sac with other provisions. He pulled out a cloth and spread it in between them, covering it with crackers, cheese, fruits, nuts, and other human provisions, and spread it on the cloth he’d stashed with the food. Spreading brie over the crackers gave him something else to focus on besides how close her body was to his. He handed her a cracker and popped another one into his mouth.
“Mmm, so good.”
The sensual note in her tone sent a twinge of excitement between his legs. He shifted his focus by talking about the island. As they ate, their conversation turned to other topics. Talking to her was easy—natural and not at all forced.
“Do you remember what it was like before the island was divided?” she asked.
“Somewhat. I was a kid, but I remember we played together. You probably weren’t even born.”
She shook her head and teased, “No, old man. We’re almost different generations.”
“What are you, early twenties?”
She gave him a coy smile. “Does our age difference bother you?”
“No. A decade or so is nothing to a gargoyle. We age slower than humans. Wolves?”
“Same. Our life spans are longer—if wolves don’t kill each other in some stupid battle of wills.” She tightened her jaw and clapped her hands on her thighs. “So what was it like?”
“Like I said, the kids played together. We didn’t care about different species. I don’t know if the adults interacted. Then things became tense and we were told to stay away.”
Her eyes gazed out of the cave. “That’s how it should be, no? All of us living together. Kids playing together, not raised with prejudices.”
“You sound like my brother Mason. That’s what he tells me.”
“Do you agree?”
He stretched his neck from one side to the other. “I’m coming around.”
When she asked him about the Knights of Stone, she leaned forward, listening intently, as he told her of their travels to various cities.
“I would love to see more of the world,” she said in a wistful tone. “Never ventured beyond the Highlands.” She brought her knees up to her chest. “I don’t understand why you played here, on the island.”
Nobody did, except for him and his brothers.
“The humans on nearby islands had already discovered the natural beauty of the Isle of Stone, and more were visiting each day. My brothers and I have had many experiences with humans as we’ve toured. Sure, there’s a whole range of them—from good to bad, selfless to selfish. We shouldn’t have to hide from them. Our ancestors didn’t. It’s only in the past century or so that shifters have gone into the shadows.”
She blinked in slow motion, as if trying to take it in. “But still…”
“We knew it wouldn’t last forever. And we never came right out and told them we were a different species. We let them speculate—it was good to build up the mysterious aura and exclusivity of our shows. Most chalked it up to state-of-the-art technology. It’s too bad the way it had to end.” Lachlan avoided blaming the wolves. “Once the government gets involved, they botch everything up.” He opened his hand and leaned closer, hoping to reach her, hoping she could understand him. “If you were given the chance to live out your passion as your true self for once, rather than having to masquerade as something you’re not, wouldn’t you do it, no matter how short that experience might be?”
Raina’s gaze drifted off. “I don’t know. I don’t have a passion for something like you do.”
“There must be something.”
She closed her eyes for several beats. When she reopened them, she said, “It’s not the same thing, but I love shifting to wolf form. Running. Hunting. The thrill of the chase is unlike anything I experience as a human.”
“Imagine being able to run wild as a wolf anywhere in the world. Where humans wouldn’t fear you, where they’d admire your abilities.”
A wild mix of emotions danced across her face before she fixed her gaze on him. “Without the fear of being hunted by humans… I’d do anything to feel that free.”
Compassion swept through him as he remembered her horror at the guns. How her mother had been killed by a hunter.
For several more heartbeats, their eyes remained locked. The connection between them so powerful, it bordered on frightening.
Something pounded in Lachlan’s chest, sending a jolt of buoyancy through him. She’d confided in him. Trusted him with her innermost desires. He’d confided his deepest thoughts to her as well; something he’d never done with a woman before. The intensity of the exchange left him without words.
Finally, he responded. “I’d like to give you that experience.”
She raised her brows with clear skepticism. “How? That’s impossible.”
Where was he going with this? He searched the rapid thoughts firing through his mind and shrugged. “I could fly and watch from above. Protect you from harm.”
Protect her. The drive to keep her safe pulsed through him, again.
W
ith a dismissive wave, she said, “Oh stop. We’re talking madness.”
She was right. Why had he suggested such a foolish fantasy? He pulled his eyes away, looking around the cave and spotted the sac that had contained their food. Time to lighten the mood.
He reached for the sac and grinned.
“I have something for you.”
“What is it?”
“Just a wee way to thank you.” He reached into the sac and pulled out a handful of treats. “Dessert.”
“Chocolate,” she said, clasping her hands in her delight. “Where did you get that?”
“One of the agreements we had with the humans for our concerts was for them to bring over food. We have stores of human food. And it’s easy enough for us to get more when we return to the Highlands.”
“I don’t get there often enough, myself.” She scanned the shiny wrappers with a decadent gleam in her eyes. “So many varieties…”
He opened a caramel-filled one and popped it between her sensuous lips before handing her the rest. She closed her eyes and moaned as the chocolate melted on her tongue. A piece of caramel dangled on her lip.
“You’ve got something there.” He reached for her lip and wiped the caramel off before licking his finger.
“Delicious.”
Watching her eat the chocolate excited him far too much. Never had a woman made a simple act of taking a bite of chocolate so damn tempting.
After they’d finished eating, she dropped her hands to her thighs. “That was a long break. Ready to get back to work?”
He forced himself to tear his eyes off her mouth. “Aye.”
For the next couple of hours, they worked together as the candle burned lower. He attempted to tap into and harness his energy, trying not to think about how close her body was. The things he could do to her if they didn’t have the damn human threat to deal with.
Then again, they wouldn’t have a reason to work together.
Time was limited, and he had much to learn. He forced all from his mind except the task at hand.
By the time another hour or two had passed, he was able to pinpoint where the magic originated deep within and control it.
Raina stifled a yawn. It had to be around midnight.
“You should get some rest,” he said.
“I’ll be fine.”
“I can continue to practice while you get some sleep.”
She searched the cave floor. “Okay, I’ll take a quick nap, but I’m not going anywhere. Not when we’re making progress.”
He couldn’t have her sleeping on the hard dirt. He pulled out the blanket he’d used for the food earlier. Too bad he hadn’t stashed a pillow to make her more comfortable.
She lay on her side on the blanket, head cushioned by her arm, and closed her eyes. Her face appeared so calm, her torso rose and fell with each breath. An urge to lie at her side surged through him. Hold her close. Or let her rest her head on his chest.
He tore his eyes from her to focus. Within a couple more hours, he was able to project the energy out. What an accomplishment! The process tapped into all his resources, though, and fatigue weighed him down.
Raina appeared so peaceful; she must have settled into a deep sleep. He lay behind her on the blanket, resisting the urge to press himself against her body and hold her. Heat from her body blanketed his chest as he settled into a restful state.
He lay there longer than he’d intended, cocooned in her warmth and trying to ignore a raging erection. Beyond his arousal, was something deeper. Being with her felt right. He didn’t know how to explain it, but it filled a hole inside he didn’t know existed until now. He could be alpha, play in the band, and have everything he thought he wanted, but still be incomplete.
The earliest rays of light drifted across the mouth of the cave, stirring him to rouse. She soon followed.
“It’s morning,” she said, staring out the cave. “Why didn’t you wake me?”
Because he didn’t want that moment to end. “I needed to get some rest, too,” he said. “It took a lot out of me.” Shite, would her pack be out searching for her? “Am I going to have some angry wolves looking for you?”
“Doubt it.” She smiled. “They’ll probably think I spent the night out in wolf form.”
That was a relief. Lachlan offered her the sac of food and a bottle of water. While they snacked on trail mix, he told her about the progress he’d made. She asked him questions, nibbling on a piece of chocolate, before asking him to show her.
Summoning the energy like he’d done earlier, he projected it out. It wasn’t visible, but the vibrancy was palpable in the confined space of the cave.
“You’re doing it!” She exclaimed, clasping her hands together with clear joy.
“Enough to earn a reward?” He stole a quick kiss on her bare shoulder, too tempting not to touch. He might have been pushing his luck, but he’d held his primal urges in check all night.
“Just a quick one,” she said with a smile.
Without waiting for her to change her mind, he dropped her back to the soft earth on the cave floor and rolled on top of her. She stared at him, eyes wide with surprise but didn’t push him away. When he touched her lips, his tormented body and mind found respite from the longing. She tasted of the chocolate she favored. Sensual. Sinful. Delicious.
He wanted to devour her, taste every bit.
He penetrated her sweet mouth, tangling his tongue with hers. Wanting everything she could give him.
His beast woke and roared for more. To claim her. As his.
The sensations were overwhelming. He couldn’t hold back any longer, wanting to touch every part of her soft curves. Her breasts, her hips, her thighs. His cock ached, growing harder with an insistent urge to bury its way deep within.
Reaching under her dress, he moved his hand over her soft inner thighs. She gasped as his fingers rose. He plundered her mouth again before she protested and he reached higher to seek her wet folds. When he stroked her, she emitted soft moans of pleasure, encouraging him to continue. He buried his fingers into her slick heat with a low moan.
“Lachlan.” Her breath came out ragged. “We shouldn’t.”
Although she protested with words, she pulled him down closer, crushing him to her. He was all too willing to follow her down that path.
Lachlan, where are you?
The voice of his brother in his head interrupted him. Although ready to shut him down with a mental block, he caught the sense of urgency. What is it, Bryce?
I was patrolling over the sea, flying as far as the Highlands. What we thought might happen is happening.
Lachlan’s gut tightened. He pulled himself off Raina. What exactly?
“Is something wrong?” She turned to her side, leaning on an elbow. Her hair was tousled and lips puffy from kissing him.
Utterly sexy, and he had to stop. Damn timing. “It’s Bryce.” He raised his hand. “Hold on while I find out what’s happening.
Humans. On board a ship, headed in this direction. And they’re armed.
His stomach dropped. Right when he’d begun to make progress. On two fronts. How much time do you think we have?
Two, maybe three hours.
Quick, get the others together to the stones. Notify Kayla to tell the witches. We must all do what we can to get the veil restored, now.
After ending the mental link with Bryce, he turned to Raina. She’d adjusted the dress back to where it covered all the delicious parts of her he wanted to kiss, but he couldn’t think of that now.
A worry line etched a notch between her eyes. “What is it?”
Lachlan explained what happened. She bolted up. “I need to tell my pack.”
“We’ll all meet at the ancient stones.”
She rushed to the cave entrance, but stopped when he touched her elbow.
“Raina, I need your help.”
Facing him with a confused look, she replied, “With what?”
“My brothers,” he explained. �
�I don’t think I can do our part without them.”
Her eyes darted with racing thoughts. “How close are the humans?”
“Bryce guessed it would take two or three hours to sail here.”
“Okay. I’ll meet you at the stones.”
With that statement, she exited the cave. Gods, he hated to watch her leave.
He followed her out of the cave in time to catch her tearing off her dress. His mouth dropped open as he gaped at her luscious nudity. He took in every soft curve, her round breasts with pink nipples he wanted to lick, her slim waist flaring out to her womanly hips, and the dark thatch between her legs. He groaned, longing to explore and bury himself deep within her.
She flashed him a sweet yet naughty smile that leveled him before she rolled the dress into a knot and clasped it to a necklace. In another second, the beautiful woman was gone, replaced by a shimmering transformation from two legs to four and a body sprouting fur. Like a mirage. Or a dream. She turned to him and stared through vibrant blue eyes. Before he could blink twice, she’d bounded off through the forest.
To see the sleek female body he’d been playing like a seductive instrument shift into a wolf before him left him gaping with disbelief. And he was a shifter—he knew how it worked. Gargoyles could hide their clothing when they shifted forms. After that vision, he was grateful wolves didn’t share that same ability.
Snapping into action to follow her lead, he extended his wings and flew into the slate morning sky.
The rains had stopped, but dark clouds remained. Lachlan flew to the moors. When he landed at the stones, he was alone. No sign of his brothers. No sign of Raina.
No matter what progress they’d made today, he still had no clue how to save the island.
His heartbeat quickened. He breathed deep and slow to control the rising dread and clear his mind of clutter. Panic wouldn’t help him in this situation.
Think rationally.
What he’d learned was that even though his attempt to summon his inner power was successful, it wasn’t enough. He needed to generate enough power to use his magic, and he needed his brothers to provide theirs as well. His alone wouldn’t be enough for the entire island.
Knights of Stone - Lachlan Page 10