by M. L. Briers
“Yeah, well, bat-boy, you can take your humour and shove it…”
“Not in front of the ladies,” Connor berated him.
“You just swore…” Landon growled back.
“And two wrongs don’t make a right,” Connor wagged his finger at the man and the alpha growled once more…
“There’s no talking to you…” Landon folded his arms across his chest.
“Don’t pout…”
“I’m not pouting!” Landon growled.
“I’ll get you a mirror, and yes, there’s no talking to me because I win, I’ll always win, because you have no sense of humour.” Connor offered back.
Landon pushed away from the wall and turned his attention to his mate on a muttered curse or two.
“Call me when you’ve got a way to get me to where I can kill someone…” Landon growled.
“You’re pouting again,” Connor offered and Landon rolled his head on his neck and offered the vampire a dark scowl.
“The moment I know, you’ll know.” Gemma promised, and Landon stalked away from the group.
“I like that man …” Connor chuckled. “He makes life so much more fun.”
“One of these days he’s going to let his bear out on your backside …” Justice warned.
“No, he knows that I’m not that kind of vampire.” Connor offered back.
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Eva felt exhilarated. The feel of Shawn’s body against hers, the hard press of his length that was caught between them, made her feel light headed and as giddy as a schoolgirl while being as wanton as a she-demon.
He’d kissed her with so much passion that she couldn’t have been passive if she’d wanted too. He made her body come to life. The fire that heated her blood and made her want more wasn’t going to go away of its own accord … then he pulled away and she felt lost.
“You need to sleep …” Shawn growled, and boy was that a growl to light the fires in the depths of her soul. It was hungry and as sexy as hell.
“If that’s your idea of a goodnight kiss then you’ve got something very wrong …”
She felt breathless and so lightheaded that she could have floated above the mattress. The man could certainly kiss …
For the first time she heard his deep chuckle and it sounded good to her ears. A teasing sound that made her crane her head back on her neck to look up at him …
It wasn’t just his kisses that were hungry; there was a look in his eyes that said he could have eaten her up right then and there given half the chance, and she didn’t remember not giving him that damn chance.
She didn’t even realise that she was leaning into him for support until he moved a little and she stayed glued to him…
It’s the mating pull. She reminded herself.
I haven’t said yes to him. He’s wooing and I’m …
What am I?
Stupid … I should have zapped him and told him to leave …
Yeah … he has the look of a man that would work on.
I don’t even know if I want a mate … or him in general … but then he is my mate so one would make the other void anyway …
Stop and turn your brain off just for a few moments …
You’re tired and irrational …
Or insane.
But the man is hot … hot, sexy as hell, burn my fingers on that one, hot…
Wouldn’t mind letting my fingers do the walking over his hard …
Stop, seriously, stop …
“Bed …” Shawn broke through her thoughts with the one word that was guaranteed to make her ears prick up.
“I …” she looked a little lost.
Shawn didn’t ask twice. He took matters into his own hands by reaching down and scooping her up. She drew a hard breath in surprise, but didn’t protest as he stalked around the bed and bent at the waist to lay her down.
“Is this what room service is like in a castle?” She offered, and the corners of Shawn’s lips quirked just a little, but it was his dark eyes that sparkled with amusement.
“Hey, if you like it I can do that seven days a week three hundred and sixty five days a year …” he offered back.
“Do you cook too?” She teased and his smile grew. She watched that smile; enthralled with a need to see it at completion…
“Damn it!” Shawn growled as his smile died on his lips and her soul mourned the loss. “I didn’t get you anything to eat…”
“Well, I know females can multitask, but sleeping and eating is above my pay grade.”
“I’ll go now and grab you something – if you’re awake when I get back then you can eat, if not it’ll be there for you when you wake up.”
“Like … cold soup …?” She teased again.
Now that she wasn’t in his arms, now that she didn’t have the rush of excitement and adrenaline shooting into her system, the tiredness was gaining ground within her again.
“Like … I don’t know what a vampire has in his refrigerator…”
“I don’t do liquid diets …” She could imagine.
“That’s … I wouldn’t bring you…” He stopped talking when her lids sagged and fell downwards, and she tried to pry them back up again, but it was no use – they were stuck like glue.
Shawn waited and watched. His ears listened to the beat of her heart and the way that her breathing evened out … he knew the moment that she was asleep, and not just nodding off, but a deep sleep.
He turned and reached for the throw at the base of the mattress, tossing it up and over her body, and then he climbed in beside her and wrapped his body around hers, keeping her warm and protecting her as she slept.
She might have been exhausted, but there was no way in hell that he would have been able to fall asleep. Not then. Not when she was in his arms like that, and not when he needed to protect her.
Mine…
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
~
“I swear, Connor … if you’ve come back for round two then you can just get the hell away from me before I put you down like a damned dog,” Landon growled as the vampire came towards him.
“Relax, Shrek. I’m here as the bearer of good news.” There was a wickedness in his eyes, like mischief personified, and Landon didn’t trust him as far as he could throw him when the man looked like that.
“And what would that be?”
“The Witches of Shrewsville believe they’ve got the perfect spell and we voted that we test it on you,” Connor announced with a certain amount of glee at the thought of making Landon the guinea pig.
“Who voted?” Landon growled.
“The alpha – sphere.”
Landon grunted in annoyance. He guessed that was what he got for walking away from where the action was just so that he didn’t beat the vampire into unconsciousness again, and again, and again. Damn, he practically salivated at the thought of it.
“Fine,” Landon grumbled.
“Seriously?” Connor asked, looking a little surprised. “Found a willing victim.” He announced.
“Willing…” he grunted again.
“Well, you did just volunteer.”
“No … I was voted in…” Landon reminded him.
“I remember no such vote taking place,” Connor shook his head and Landon grunted in annoyance.
“You made it the hell up!”
“Made what up? I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Connor offered back. “You know, between you and me; I think I might be getting a little goldfish brain thing going on, but you did volunteer – which is great by the way…”
“I didn’t volunteer, you tricked me,” Landon growled back.
“Oh, you’re getting cold feet? I understand …” Connor offered on a half whisper as if he didn’t want anyone else to hear.
“Cold feet? They were never warm …”
“That says circulation problem, maybe you should walk more …” Connor offered back, and Landon twisted his head on his neck a
nd stared at the man as if he’d grown another head. “But if you wanna back out now that everybody knows about it …”
“I never said I was backing out,” Landon growled in annoyance.
“Great!” Connor’s smirk made Landon want to grab the man around the neck and squeeze until his eyes popped out on stalks…
“I hate you, vampire.”
“Now that I don’t believe for one second.”
“Trust me …” Landon growled back.
“Seen as how I know you have a secret, not so secret, soft spot for me …” he paused to think on that one. Then he raised his hands and slapped his own cheeks. “Oh my God, not God … that means I can never trust you again…” he overplayed it, so much so that Landon’s fist blindsided him right on the jaw, and he shot backwards a few feet from the impact.
Landon was really hoping that the man landed with a thud on his pride, but it never happened. The damn vampire bounced back in front of him like a boomerang that you just couldn’t get rid of…
“I’m going to let you have that one …” Connor eyed the alpha for a long moment, and Landon growled with annoyance. “Because you volunteered.” Connor said turning on his heels and stalking back towards the witches.
“Damn well tricked me you bloody sucking leech of a soulless vampire that should be burning in hell fire instead of…” Landon muttered with each step as he followed on behind the man, growling and grumbling the whole way.
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Shawn didn’t know how long they’d been locked together like that with his body wrapped around hers and her head against his chest, her hand against his heart, but he drank in every moment of it.
Eva had slept like the dead for what must have been hours. She didn’t move a muscle, but he did feel the tension literally easing out of her as she became softer in his arms.
Then she’d suddenly curled her body against his and his heart had tried to leap out of his chest to get to her, as his beast roared within him. She’d been that way ever since and he liked it. It made him never wanted to let her out of his arms again for fear of losing her.
He’d gone through every possible way to woo a witch in his mind … backwards … forwards and damn sideways, and everything that he could think of he’d dismissed because it didn’t involve being himself, and not being himself would be dishonest – she needed to know the kind of man that she was getting before she took that leap of faith that accompanied mating…
But the trouble was that Shawn didn’t think that he was good enough for her, for anyone, but especially for her – his mate.
She deserved better.
She deserved to be happy, and he didn’t know if he could make her happy, no matter how hard he’d try to do that … and then what? She’d leave anyway.
Maybe it was best to cut out the heartache and let her go without trying to woo her…
Maybe I’m just being selfish …
I want her … I want to keep her …
Not a damn puppy!
I want to woo her as mine. Love her … but …
This was the most at peace that he’d felt with his beast in a long time. Even though the wolf wanted to be set free, to rip into the warlock and end his threat over their mate, he still felt a lot calmer than he had in a while.
No shifter that he’d ever known ever had perfect control over their wild side, but most found a place where they could contain that ferocious side to them unless they were provoked. Lately, his wild side always stalked just under his skin.
Right then though; the beast seemed content to be still, to wait, to revel in the closeness of her.
He’d left his pack because his old alpha had sensed that the wolf was becoming a problem. He’d owed the man that much, and with hindsight, he guessed that fate had played a hand in bringing him to his mate and her to him.
Now he found himself in a pack of alphas. He guessed that was fitting as well.
He didn’t want to be alpha. He’d never been one who wanted to shoulder that much responsibility for others.
A mate was different. The responsibility that he already felt for her was different. He’d die to protect her, but could he find it within himself to live for her?
He’d settled on Dexter’s pack because it was strong. There may have only been Dexter, Brody and George, but he got the sense that when the wind turned and they needed to fight that they’d be a formidable force to be reckoned with, and his beast wasn’t going to be easy to put down.
Isn’t that why I’m here …? To die with honour…
But what of my mate? What happens to her when I’m gone?
She’s the love of my life and I’m hers … she’ll never know happiness the way she should know it with me.
Can I make her happy?
Am I enough for her?
Can I be the man that I should be … for her … for pups…?
I know what I need to do. I know who I need to be – the man I once was, but that’s like trying to catch your own shadow…
I can’t turn back time.
His wolf made the most melancholy sound that he’d ever heard. It shocked him right to the bone. Usually his beast was so damn gung-ho to be claws and fangs out, but now it sounded as if it had already lost their mate, as if it was mourning that loss.
He wondered if perhaps the wolf was finally learning that not everything in life came on the end of a set of fangs and claws.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
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‘Shawn…’ Dexter spoke into the link. He’d been in two minds as to whether he should even tell the man or not… ‘A hunting party is heading out to see if we can track the Warlock…’
‘On my way down…’ Shawn growled like a man eager to taste that very first bite…
‘No. You need to guard your mate. It’s Eva that the man wants…’
‘There are enough witches and shifters in these walls to…’
‘No, Shawn. I know the kill should rightly be yours, but…’
‘Then why deny me that?’
Shawn knew that his place should have been up front and central in hunting any threat to his mate. Getting left behind and having someone else take the kill felt like a slap in the face for him and his wolf … it went against the grain.
‘When we find him the witches are going to try to bind his magic, if that doesn’t work…’
‘Dexter…’
‘Guard your mate, brother – in case things go wrong.’ Dexter’s tone of voice didn’t give Shawn any hope to find wiggle room or convince the alpha otherwise.
‘Fine.’
Shawn resigned himself with not being able to go out with the pack to hunt the man who had caused his mate to flee, caused her pain and suffering, but that didn’t mean that he couldn’t go out on his own.
He had one foot in and one foot out of Dexter’s pack. He was still, for better or for worse, on some kind of a trial run with the community, and if he had to move on, find a different pack or none at all – so be it.
Nobody was keeping him from hunting that Warlock down and ending him.
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In the battle of good against evil, good was supposed to win out every time. That’s what Kal was hoping for now.
Yes, he’d called on the power of dark magic to achieve his goal, but that was a necessity. Once he was done in perfecting his magic and getting rid of the wolves, he wouldn’t need to use it anymore.
Eva had what he needed. The two of them together would make them unstoppable.
Instead of taking on one shifter at a time; he would be able to wipe out whole packs, maybe more, maybe if they pulled in enough power from the dark side then they would be able to wipe every shifter of the face of the planet.
He could only hope.
He couldn’t understand why she would run to the shifters, but now that they had her in their clutches it was a sure fire certainty that they wouldn’t allow her to leave and come back to
him.
He couldn’t even feel her magic – they could have already killed her for what she could do…
Kal could feel the others magic though. The magic that was guarding the castle.
He’d watched the shifters scurry off like rats inside and he’d been happy with the prospect of having them all in one place … until he felt those wards go up.
That wasn’t Eva’s doing, and he had to wonder if they’d hurt her in the process of garnering what she knew.
Eva had left, yes, but she was scared of the power that they could wield between them. The dark magic could be potent at first, but after a while it was easier to control…
Eva wasn’t as strong willed as he was. She was easily led. Perhaps that was why she had used her magic against him to protect that alpha wolf … perhaps they had made her.
Now they were emerging from inside those guarded walls and Kal was tracking them with his magic. If Eva was dead then he’d have his vengeance, but either way, he’d see those beasts in hell before he left their land.
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The Warlock was out there somewhere that was a fact of which Connor was sure, because the witches had felt his magic against the wards of protection covering the castle. But the man was covering his scent well, and Connor was having a hard time picking up anything in the night air.
Morning was fast approaching and that didn’t bode well for the wolves. His property was out of the way, and yet ramblers often crossed his land during the daylight hours and nobody could risk being seen.
If they didn’t find him by dawn that would give the Warlock plenty of time to cause more mischief, and it meant another day and night inside those stone walls for the members of the packs and the clan.
Tension would rise. So many testosterone fuelled shifters in one place was bound to bring trouble … and Connor was more than eager to see the Warlock bound by the witches’ magic to do no harm or boots up in the ground before that could happen…