by Leah Blake
Nico left out the rest of the question. It was too soon for Mikhail to make that decision.
Mikhail stroked Nico’s cheeks with the tips of his fingers. “I think I already have.”
Chapter Twelve
Mik reveled in the tenderness Nico doted on him over the last hour. He couldn’t remember the last time he felt so safe, so special, so…fulfilled. For years, he sought this sense of fulfillment, not with a lover but with each hunt and kill. He sought a filler for the painful void the deaths of his brothers gouged out of his soul. With each hunt, with each scratch that signified another paranormal’s demise, that hole stretched open a little more.
Hunting was a drug. He knew it was killing him inside, but he couldn’t stop.
Moonlight shimmered through the thick canopy of the forest’s trees, dotting his wet skin like slippery diamonds. Never in the last twenty years could he have imagined doing what he and Nico did. Fucking in a forest in the middle of the night. Now, he sat on a rock in the middle of the creek, water sluicing around his waist and splashing against his back. Nico sat behind him, his legs resting against the outside of Mik’s, his erection—the man had a godlike virility, he was learning that quickly—wedged between his ass and Nico’s leg.
Mik clenched his teeth and dropped his head forward as a dull spear of pain passed over his shoulder blade. Nico pressed a soft kiss to his shoulder before pouring small scoops of cool water over the abrasion.
“I’m sorry, little one.”
“Don’t be. I didn’t tell you to pull me away from the tree.”
In fact, I enjoyed the pain.
Strange, being he had always leaned toward a more conservative love life. Beds, showers, occasionally a sofa. Once in a car. Once on a kitchen table. His sex life was existent, barely. His focus had always been on hunting.
With Nico, something had changed inside of him. A shift occurred, one that led him away from the hunter engrained in his blood and toward a flickering light buried deep in his soul. There was no need to think, no need to contemplate the consequences of his actions with Nico because everything inside him told him this was right. This was what he had been searching for all of his life. This was the fulfillment, the wholeness he craved but could never find.
Sitting naked on a rock in a creek in the middle of the night, his wolf mate at his back, tending to wounds created through their…their…
Not fucking. It was certainly not a fuck.
Union. Joining. Coming together.
A change. A new beginning. Something bright and promising that Nico cradled in his spirit, waiting for him to reach out and accept the gift.
The sharp pinch of Nico’s wolf claw pressing into another cut drew him up straight. Nico rested a hand on his shoulder, kissed the nape of his neck, and sighed.
“I think this is the last piece.”
Mik squeezed his eyes shut as that claw dug out the wood lodged in his skin. A claw. God, the very thought of everything that had happened should have been revolting to the max. Yet, the idea of returning to the hunters, to Jude, left his stomach roiling.
Cool water dribbled down his back, stinging as it cleaned out the wound. Heat swelled around each abrasion and laceration, but nothing could compare to the warmth that cocooned him from Nico’s frame. The wolf was warm, always warm. Heat pulsed off his body, keeping a chill at bay despite the balmy night air.
“Next time, no trees,” Nico said.
Although he groused the comment, Mik picked up on the thread of humor laced in his tone. He couldn’t keep a small grin from his lips as he leaned back into Nico’s welcoming arms. Tucked securely against his mate, it was so easy to forget the horrors of his past. This was what he so desperately wanted. Whether it was because he and Nico were mates or if it was because Nico was the dream man Mik had always hoped for, he wasn’t sure. It didn’t matter.
“A tree every now and again would be fine.” Mik folded his hands over Nico’s encompassing arms. “I didn’t just say that.”
“You did.” Nico’s lips brushed along the shell of his ear, setting goose bumps free along his arms. “I’ll hold you to it.”
“You’ll have to hold me to it if you want to fuck me against it.”
Mik tipped his head back and caught Nico’s gaze. He smiled, waiting for Nico to get the joke. Instead, Nico leaned down and kissed him, a sweet, slow, sensual kiss that reached the farthest corners of his soul and drew him closer to the gift of his mate. Reaching back, he slung an arm around Nico’s neck and deepened the kiss, following what his heart desired most.
Nico.
“He better not be tailing you when you’re on patrol.”
Nico’s mouth ripped away, his arms tightening around Mik. They both looked toward the creek’s bank. Two men stood at the water’s edge, their glinting eyes piercing Mik. One crossed his arms over his chest, one side of his mouth lifting in a snarl. The moonlight glinted against a gold medallion that looked very similar to Nico’s. The other’s face was sheet-metal hard, the full power of his ferocious glower bearing down on Mik.
“Let the fuck up, will you? I’m not on patrol tonight, and he won’t be with me when I am.”
Nico’s body tensed around Mik. Mik dropped a hand to Nico’s thigh beneath the water and squeezed, trying his hardest to relax the wolf.
“Can’t believe you’d fuck that thing. Don’t care how cute he is, he’s the enemy.”
Mik dug his heels into the rocky bottom of the creek and prepared to launch out of the water, straight at the sneering beast.
Nico beat him. The damn man had the guy to the ground before Mik’s heels gained leverage. He sat in the water and watched in a mixture of anticipation and concern as Nico pinned the man down and growled inaudible words at his face.
A few moments later, Nico pressed to his feet in one fluid motion that captivated Mik as much as the fierce predator standing up for him, and took a step back. Silence stretched. Mik’s gaze shifted between the beast climbing to his feet from the ground and the steel-faced man. Their expression changed a little every few seconds, and it occurred to Mik that the three were having a conversation he wasn’t privy to.
The telepathy thing was really starting to piss him off.
“Leave,” Nico barked. His massive frame was puffed up and mouthwateringly impressive. Mik hadn’t had the opportunity to appreciate the fine cuts that created the masterpiece of his mate. He wasn’t above turning this otherwise tense standoff into an opportunity to appreciate his mate’s beauty either, right down to the rivulets of water coasting along the finely honed curves of muscles in his thighs and calves. God, he had a nice ass. Perfect globes as tanned as the rest of him. A back of sinew and steel, ripped with muscle. Broad shoulders, narrow waist.
Between his spread legs…
Mik looked away as a deft pulse of desire stiffened his cock. He draped his arms casually over his rising erection. Now was not the time for a hard-on.
One of the two men snarled before Mik heard the solid sound of footsteps receding into the forest.
Nico barely made a sound as he padded through the water and came up before him. Mik raised his head, pressing his lips together.
“That’s the second time you’ve done that today. It’s not right that I’m causing a rift between you and your friends,” Mik murmured. Nico rolled his eyes and held out his hand. Mik stared, aghast. “Did you just roll your eyes at me?”
“Yes.” Nico motioned for Mik’s hand with a flick of his outstretched fingers. “Come on. Let’s get back to the manor so I can patch up some of those deeper lacerations.”
* * * *
A week ago, Mik wouldn’t have cared what he caused between the paranormals. A rift was a good strategy, one that left beasts weakened without the help of their friends. A week ago, Mik would have already escaped Shadow Creek, mentally mapping out the grounds to deliver to Jude.
A week ago, Mik didn’t know Nico. He had no idea how drastically his life would change.
It was
some late hour. If Mik cared to guess, probably two or three in the morning, but he didn’t. The events from both the gym and the forest faded by the time they reached the manor. He bet that had everything to do with Nico’s presence, his touch, and the increased craving to have the wolf take him again. He had showered while Nico gathered up antiseptic and gauze, and now lay belly-down on the large bed, his mate straddling his ass.
“I’m not hurting you?” Nico asked, his voice soft, concerned.
“I’ve dealt with much worse.” Mik lifted his right arm so Nico could see the healing blade wound. The stitches had been removed while he was in his coma and the healing process appeared to have sped up. The thin scab was starting to peel away. “Jude doesn’t skimp during his boot camp. We were brutalized. I grew to despise blades after training.”
Nico’s fingers stilled against his back. Mik lowered his arm, tucking it around the pillow he hugged. A dark, dangerous energy flowed into his mind before snuffing out. He sighed into the pillow.
“Blades? What exactly does that entail?”
“History from four years ago that doesn’t apply now.” Mik closed his eyes, absorbing his mate’s warmth. Nico resumed dabbing moistened gauze against each cut. “You’re angry. I feel it.”
Nico grunted.
“Don’t you guys duke it out to keep your skills sharp?”
A dangerous sound resonated deep within Mik’s ears. It was a sensation more than an actual sound that warned how displeased Nico was with his training.
“Yes, we do. We spar. We fight. We have manor competitions twice a year. I doubt our type of ‘duking’ is similar to your sadistic leader’s training.”
Mik’s heart sank. “Not by much.” After boot camp, that is. “We’re assigned opponents every week, and we’re expected to practice five days a week with that person. We have a gym with a boxing ring. Weapons. Gear. Weights. You name it, Jude’s got it, and so do we.”
“Do you have a job outside of Jude’s cult?”
Mik groaned and glanced over his shoulder. Big mistake. The sight of Nico sitting over him, his brows drawn as his gaze coasted between the cuts and Mik’s face, shook his thoughts back to their stolen moments in the forest.
“It’s not a cult.” Mik rested the side of his face on the pillow again. “It’s an organization.”
“Until you’re told to drink the Kool Aid. Then it becomes a cult.” Nico snickered, leaving ice crystals along Mik’s veins. “Oh, wait. You already have, in the form of a signed piece of paper selling your soul to the devil.”
“Don’t give me that shit, Nico.”
“That shit, honey, is called the truth. Better learn to accept it. Masking it behind Jude’s glorious proclamations of revenge doesn’t make it disappear. The bastard should look at himself in the mirror next time he accuses us of being soulless murderers.”
Damn it, this wasn’t going the way he wanted it to. For fuck’s sake, he didn’t even want to talk about the hunters.
Yet, he knew he had to if he held even a smidgen of hope for this mating thing to blossom.
“Anyone who joins Jude is doing so with everything they’ve got. The guys who are part of Jude’s group have nothing to lose and everything to gain by the hunt. Each man suffered at the hands of paranormals. Some worse than others. Those little cells you talk about? They’re wannabes. I know. I was part of a few of them before Jude recruited me. Their resources are poor compared to Jude’s. Half of those kids want to see a shifter or a vampire more than kill it. The small groups don’t have the heart invested that we do.”
Nico’s tenderness toward his wounds didn’t wane beneath his increasing ire. “Where’s that heart now, Mikhail? Still all for Jude?”
The razor sharp edge to Nico’s voice was warning enough not to try and be a smartass. Nico’s demeanor confused him. His guard went up a little.
“I’ve known you for a matter of days. That’s all. I’ve been part of Jude’s organization for over four years. I’ve been a hunter for almost twenty. You can’t ask me a question like that and expect to receive the answer you hope for.”
“And what do I hope for? That you tell me your heart belongs to me?” Nico snorted, dabbing antiseptic against one of the larger lacerations. Mik dug his fingers into the soft pillow, the sting lashing through his thoughts for a moment. Nico paused and leaned over, his sun-kissed eyes narrowing. “Are you okay?”
“No,” Mik groused. He shook his head. “Yes. I’m fine.”
Hell, he was a fucking mess. Again. Nico brought out the tornado in him, that was a given. The damn man left him in shambles that he never fully recovered from before suffering the blow again. And again.
Mik tried to find something of worth in that thought, something to keep at least a pace of distance between them. Unfortunately, his head accepted the shambles and found them not all bad.
It was so much better when Nico made him forget the conflict he faced.
Nico went back to dabbing that painful shit against his back. “At some point, Mikhail, yes. I’ll expect to hear your heart belongs to me, but not now. You have too much to work through before you can reach that point.” Dry gauze rested over the wound. “I don’t want a heart that can’t give me everything exclusively. I’m a selfish prick like that.”
So am I.
“You still have some skewed idea of loyalty to your boss man. Once that’s gone, then we’ll revisit this topic.”
“You don’t like to give people an opportunity to answer your questions, do you?”
“So I’ve been told.” Tape pressed along his skin surrounding the gauze. “Help me understand your drive, Mikhail. Why are you so invested in killing us?”
Mik jammed a hand against the mattress and twisted up until he looked Nico in the eyes. The wolf’s weight pressing down on his bare ass kept him from completely flipping to his back, not that he wanted to lie on his back at the moment.
Looking into the handsome face of his wolf, honey-colored streaks of dark hair falling over his eyes and determination set in his expression, kicked the wind out of his fight.
Nico didn’t take his eyes off Mik as he dropped another square of gauze into the small bowl resting on the mattress at his knee. Mik lowered back to the pillow with a sigh.
“You mentioned your brothers being killed by lamabra. Would you tell me about it?”
Mik closed his eyes only to snap them open as flashes of his brothers’ murders played in his head. He hadn’t told anyone details of that fateful evening. Jude understood his drive without digging into the full nightmare of his past.
For some strange reason, the gates of that dark memory unlatched and creaked open. The need to purge his past to Nico came out of the shadowy pits of his memory like a tidal wave.
“I grew up in a small town in Colorado. Myself, my two older brothers, and our mother. Father left when I was a baby, ditching his family for a younger, child-free woman. Mom worked three jobs to put food on the table and clothes on our backs. We lived in a small trailer a short distance from a park, and went there every chance we got. Three boys, we needed to burn off energy. When your mother couldn’t afford gear for sports, you did what you could to make good use of the time you had. We concentrated on our schooling, excelled in classes. The park was our go-to for a few hours of fun.”
Mik groaned again, antiseptic burning through his wound.
“Okay, no more trees, unless it’s a birch or something smoother. I can deal with a boulder, but not another tree like that. Damn fucking thing tore up my back.”
“I apologized.”
“And I told you there was no reason for it. I liked the way you held me.” Mik strained to steal a side-glance at Nico. The small half-grin on the wolf’s mouth settled his nerves and left him warm and tingly. “At the time, I actually enjoyed the pain.”
“I’ll tuck that bit of information away.”
“Hey, I’m not all into that pain and gratification stuff. Tuck that away, too.”
Nico chuck
led, a warm, humored sound that had Mik’s mouth curling.
“You’re not distracting me, little one. Back to the story.”
“I’m not so little, you know.” Mik tried to figure out the nickname Nico gave him, what the significance was. He wasn’t much smaller than the wolf and his dick sure wasn’t little, though in comparison to his mate? Maybe a tad smaller. “By any means.”
“Next to me and the majority of the men here, you’re small.” Nico trailed a single knuckle down his spine. Mik’s breath hitched when that knuckle reached the crease of his ass. “Don’t take it as an insult. It’s an endearment.”
“Mocking someone’s genetic predisposition is an endearment?” Mik laughed. “I know I’m smaller than you and the rest of your friends. I’m the smallest one on Jude’s team, too. The guys make jabs at me constantly for my shortcomings until I kick their asses. You’d think they’d learn to shut their traps.”
“Sounds like a loving family you’ve got there.”
Mik opened his mouth to defend the group, but found himself lacking the force to spit out the words. Instead, the smile on his mouth faded. He twisted his head, giving his neck a rest from straining to the left.
“It’s much different than what I’ve seen here. Much.”
“And to think you’ve barely seen a thing.”
“Yeah.”
Another square of gauze became a bandage over a cut on his back. Mik wondered if it would be better for Nico to simply wrap his entire back in gauze.
“Go on about your past,” Nico cooed, his voice soft and tender, calming him back to his memories.
“The evening it happened started no different than all the other times we went to the park. We’d finished our homework, studied for our tests, helped Mom make dinner. We cleaned the dishes, took out our clothes for school the next day, and left the trailer. It was about five or six. The sun was starting to set so we wouldn’t have as much time to play. We loved pretending we were famous athletes or ninja warriors. We’d brawl in good fun. We’d swing and talk about what we wanted for our futures. I was twelve, so I wasn’t as invested in the future talk as much as I was in the brawls. On occasion, some other kids in the trailer park would come by and join in the fun. That evening, it was just the three of us.”