by Sam Crescent
Looking up into Titus’s dark eyes, she realized this mission had gone terribly wrong.
She’d fallen in love.
Chapter Four
Titus had never been more afraid than seeing Danny fighting with his mate. What he didn’t expect was to see Lilly’s true colors. To many wolf shifters, cats were a pest, especially wildcats, only Lilly wasn’t a pest.
She was real and beautiful, and the moment he looked at her, saw her true cat form, he’d become even more in love. It was like her cat called to his wolf and the ferocity with which she fought Danny had turned him on. He’d been worried for Danny, not his mate.
Yeah, he was a sick fuck, but he didn’t care. All he knew was that he had to have Lilly, and soon. There was no way he could go another day without having her.
With Lilly trapped beneath him, her soft body struggling against his, he wanted her. To bite her, to claim her, to mate her.
“You’re fucking perfect,” he said.
The moment he spoke, she froze beneath him. “What?”
“You heard me. I’m not repulsed, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“I just killed one of your bitches.”
“I don’t care. Danny had it coming.”
She frowned up at him. “You’re not making any sense.”
“Nothing in life makes sense.” He released her hands and cupped her face. He ran his thumb across her lip but she attempted to bite him, which he found so incredibly cute. “You really are a wildcat.”
“You’ve got to let me go.”
“Why would I even dream about doing that? You’re my mate and I’ve spent a long time trying to find you. I’m not letting you go that easily.” There was no way he’d be able to let her get far. The moment he saw her running, every instinct within him made him react. He had to follow her. He loved to chase and she was a sweet little prize.
“I’ve got to go. Please, Titus. You have to let me go.”
He saw the tears in her eyes but he refused to budge. “I’m not falling for your crocodile tears anymore. You don’t want to go.”
“I’ve got to go.”
“That’s not the same thing,” he said. “You don’t want to go but you have to go. Why? You worried about what your pack will think?” He hoped she wasn’t a spy for other wildcats trying to move in on his territory. “I need you to be serious with me right now, Lilly. It’s the only way I can protect you.”
“I don’t need you to protect me.” She tried to fight against him, but he was stronger, more powerful, and an Alpha.
He laughed. “Honey, you need me a lot more than you think right now. You’ve already killed one of my pack and the rest don’t trust you. When they find out you’re a cat, they’re going to be begging for your head.” He wouldn’t let that happen.
To protect his mate, he’d slaughter anyone who tried to take her from him. Even if that meant taking on his own people.
“Then let me go.”
“Can’t do that.”
She growled. “I’m a cat. This is never going to happen. We’re incompatible. There’s no such thing as mixed species mating or breeding. You know it. I know it. Stop fighting me on this.” Lilly took a breath. “Okay, I get it, you want power. You’re greedy for it. You’re so fucking hungry you can’t even see when someone is not of your species. Now let me go.”
He frowned down at her. “I’m not hungry for power.”
“Get the fuck off me!”
“No, you don’t go throwing out accusations like that without telling me the truth. I’m not hungry for power, or for anything. I take care of my pack because that’s what I’m supposed to do.”
“You took him!” she blurted. Her voice echoed around the forest.
“I’ve not taken anyone. What are you talking about?”
“Don’t lie to me, Titus. It’s the reason I’m here. I’m the best damn tracker my family has. You have our elder and you can’t have him. You want to suck him dry. To draw all the power to yourself to keep your pack strong. I don’t want a weak man for an Alpha and you’re weak.”
He was a little taken aback by her accusations and he paused.
She kept on wriggling.
“An elder?”
“Our elder.”
“I’ve not taken an elder.”
“Liar!”
“Look at me, Lilly. We’re destined to be mates. You should know if I’m lying or not.”
“You couldn’t tell that I was lying,” she said, throwing that back at him.
He smirked. “Babe, you weren’t lying to me. You simply didn’t tell me the whole truth and you’re a shifter so you’re part human.”
She kept trying to fight him, with no sign of wearing out. The feisty little thing would be amazing in bed.
“I don’t have captives. I haven’t trapped any elder. I don’t need power given to me by anyone because I’m a fucking Alpha. I’m the one in control.”
“He was locked up in a cage. I found him close to your camp. He was taken by one of your own,” she said. “If you’re such a great Alpha, you’d know about it.”
None of this was making any sense to him. He was so confused.
Letting go of her hands, he held her face and kissed her lips. At first, she fought him, even trying to bite him. If they were true fated mates, then she’d relent. He knew she would.
Seconds passed.
Finally, the fight within her died. She stopped tugging on his hair, running her fingers through it instead, kissing him back. “Yes,” she murmured. Her tongue trailed across his lips and he let out a moan, opening up to the kiss, meeting her halfway, tasting her.
She was everything he imagined she would be.
Fire and ice.
So perfect.
So hot.
So sexy.
She belonged to him.
Mate her right now.
Take her.
Fuck the fight right out of her.
She’ll never want to leave.
He groaned.
Titus was so tempted to do what his wolf wanted but he couldn’t. She believed he’d taken an elder but that wasn’t the case. All these lies and misunderstandings needed to be cleared up first.
He’d heard of mystical elders, older beings with the power to pass on great wisdom and as such, great power as well. He’d truly believed it was just a rumor. Some fantasy story parents made up for their pups.
If this was true, someone within his pack had taken an elder and intended to use him against Titus.
Breaking from the kiss, he smiled down at her. “You can be angry at me all you want. You’ve got me now, Lilly. I can’t turn back or turn away. You need to learn to trust me.”
“And if I can’t?”
“Then we’re stuck, but I swear to you, I have never taken an elder.”
She stared into his eyes. “If you didn’t take him, who did?”
“Do you know where this elder is?”
She nodded.
“Please, trust me. I won’t do anything to hurt him or you. Do you understand?”
“I … I can’t let anything happen to him. He’s important to me. Oslow’s a good wolf.”
“I’ll guard you and your elder with my life. I don’t want to use him.”
She nodded again. “Okay. I can track him. I tried to get him away.”
“Then lead me to him. I need to know who took him.”
“If you didn’t take him, it means someone else did and they intend to take your pack,” she said.
“That’s the risk I’m not willing to take.”
He lifted up off her and held his hand out for her to take. “Please, Lilly, trust in me. I want to do what is right for you. You’re not alone.”
She stared at his hand and he knew she struggled to accept his offer of help.
He waited though.
Being as patient as he possibly could, he left the decision up to her.
Slowly, she reached out and he felt like he was on top of
the fucking world when she took his hand. Lifting her to her feet, he wrapped an arm around her waist. “Thank you.” He kissed her lips and released her. “Now, let’s go find your elder.”
She hesitated for a split second before turning her back on him and started into the woods. He kept his distance, making sure to give her the space she needed to track.
****
Lilly was exhausted. Fighting against an Alpha, trying to win, knowing she couldn’t back down. Fear for Oslow’s safety was what drove her. She had to get him away. When she found him in that cage, he looked weak. An elder needed to constantly be free to roam. To be one with all the elements so that he could remain strong. Without that connection, elders started to weaken.
Oslow was known for being one of the strongest elders and yet, he’d not had the energy to break out of the cage.
She had to believe Titus.
There was no choice left to her. Forever relying on herself was exhausting.
It had seemed strange at the time for him to even need Oslow. Trying to keep her cat hidden, she’d felt the power within him. Titus didn’t need help from anyone, and the fact turned her on.
He was strong.
Powerful.
Fierce.
A true warrior, and one she was falling for fast.
Get your head in the game.
Not on him.
She had to focus.
Oslow was in danger and if Titus wasn’t responsible, someone else was.
Please let it be the bitch I already killed.
Rushing forward, she smelled Oslow. He’d taken a seat and she smelled blood.
Not good.
Speeding up, she was aware of Titus staying close to her. Breaking through the tree line, she saw a narrow river, water rushing over rocks. The current flowed particularly fast but Oslow was at the edge on his stomach. He was covered in blood. Lilly dropped at his side, kneeling down in the dirt. His hand was in the water and he let out a groan.
“Oslow, sir, what is it? Please, let me help you.”
“Honey, I need water,” he said.
Cupping some water, she tried to present some to him, but he wouldn’t take it.
“Here, let me,” Titus said.
He easily lifted Oslow, resting the elder against his chest so that she could feed him water.
Oslow looked so pale and weak, it scared her.
“I should have known they’d send you,” Oslow said. “They’re so stupid not to see how strong you are.” He let out a cough but she gave him more water, which he took.
“Please, don’t say anything. Rest.” Oslow had always been the nicest wolf she’d ever known. Even when everyone was spiteful to her, he always found a way of making her laugh. She adored him so much.
Oslow took more water and with each gulp, she saw the color returning to his cheeks.
She couldn’t let him die.
“Who took you?” Titus asked.
Oslow chuckled. “You couldn’t shake this one?”
“He wouldn’t let me,” she said.
“You know our pack won’t let him near,” Oslow said.
She bowed her head. They would scent Titus on her and the moment she delivered their elder, she’d be expelled, and she knew that. Still, Oslow’s rightful place was with their kind, not being some slave for a bunch of wolves.
Oslow cupped her cheek. “You don’t know why they hate you so much, do you?”
“They’ve never liked me. I get that. They think I’m the weaker species.”
“No, sweet child. They always think wrong of the child. You’re not weak. I am weak.”
She frowned, looking at him.
“I was forbidden to tell you the truth. To keep my title and secure your position within the pack, I had to stay silent. You’re my child, Lilly. You always have been. You’re not a weak cat or a feeble one. You have great strength and wisdom and you’re so much like your mother—in every way. She loved to travel. Wanderlust is what she called it. She was a shifter but she didn’t have the desire to live in a pack. Cats generally keep to themselves. Once she gave birth to you, I never saw her again. Despite the secrets, you’ve always been my greatest treasure.”
She froze, staring at Oslow. “You’re my father?” It was outlawed for any of the elders to have a mate. Their sole purpose was to provide power to the pack that they were with. All of her life she’d been made to feel like an outcast. Like she’d been thrust upon the pack as some kind of disease.
Stepping away from Oslow, she stared at the water, somewhat shocked. She couldn’t believe they would do this to her. Her entire life was a lie, and her thoughts were scattered.
“Lilly, I know this is a lot to take in,” Oslow said.
“Is this why you were always nice to me? Because I’m your daughter?”
“I didn’t want you to grow up without someone. Our world, it’s cruel and harsh. I did what I did to protect you. If I didn’t, they’d never allow a wild cat into the pack.”
She felt tears fill her eyes and for the first time in her life, she actually felt weak, stupid. Shaking her head to clear all the thoughts going on inside, she stared at Titus. She had to focus on the task before her emotions destroyed her. “We need to know who would try to take over Titus’s pack. Who had you?”
Titus let the elder go and he moved toward her. “Are you okay? You look shaken.”
She stepped away from his concern.
Lilly was holding on by a thread. All this time, people knew and yet they treated her like shit. She had to deal with knowing when she returned her father, their elder, she’d never see him again.
It was all just a little too much and she had to focus.
“It was Axel,” Oslow said. “That’s what he called himself.”
She saw the shock on Titus’s face. Then his brow furrowed.
“No, it couldn’t be him. He’s my best friend,” Titus said.
She heard the pain in his voice. The disbelief. She put a hand on his arm but he shook her touch away.
“Please, listen to him,” she said.
Titus shook his head. “You’ve got it wrong. You have to be wrong.”
“I know it’s a lot to take in but Axel doesn’t like the way you’re doing things. He kept blathering on incoherently. He only sees his own agenda. He believes that he is far better than you. That he can do better by the pack. He wants the power to overthrow you, and when you’re weak with your need to mate, he intends to strike.”
She stared at Titus, knowing that she couldn’t let anything happen to him. She wasn’t ready to mate with him and because of that, he’d get weaker. She didn’t have a choice. The thought of losing him made her feel sick to the core. She had to protect him.
Chapter Five
Titus always held on to the hope that Axel would come through, to prove himself a worthy beta. To find out he’d been planning a damn revolt behind his back was the ultimate betrayal. He paced back and forth, knowing he had to kill his friend, and was pissed off he was forced into this position.
What kind of male left an old man beaten and broken? It pissed Titus off to imagine his so-called best friend using his power against the weak.
Axel had kidnapped an elder, creating upheaval and enemies along the way. The bastard had planned every detail, even using Titus’s obsession with Lilly to his advantage. He wasn’t at his best, his wolf’s need to mate with the wildcat off the fucking charts.
“Where would he go?” Titus was talking more to himself than anyone else, wondering what move he should make next. Axel had been MIA for days, so only the gods knew where he was.
“We can track him,” said Lilly. “I can track him.”
He turned to face her. “First, we’ll get your father to safety.”
She smiled, a barely there tilt of her lips. “That sounds nice,” she whispered. “I’ve always thought I was an orphan.”
“You’re a woman now. Regardless of your past, all I care about now is you and me. The future.” He
ran his hand over her hair. Her happiness had a profound effect on him. Titus was completely in love with a woman he barely knew. A wildcat, no less. He couldn’t wait to make their mating official.
“Axel wants to kill you.”
“He can try.”
She shook her head. “You heard his plan. He knows you’re weak … because of me.”
“I’m not worried, baby.” He winked at her, not wanting her to worry or blame herself. “I have a place we can bring your father. Your village is too far. He’ll be safe until after I deal with Axel.”
They helped Oslow through the forest to a shelter he used on occasion when hunting. It was far enough from his camp that he wouldn’t be sensed by the others.
“What is this place?”
“It’s a relic from my grandfather’s day. Hunters used to set up here until the wolves scared them off.” He settled the old man on the twin bed, the springs protesting.
“He’s still bleeding,” she said.
Titus examined him. “Oslow, you need to shift. It won’t be easy, but it’s the only way your body will heal.”
The elder nodded, then he closed his eyes, his entire body convulsing. It was painful to watch him shift. It didn’t come easy, but after an excruciatingly long few minutes, he managed to change shapes.
Now he could heal.
Lilly knelt beside the bed, running her hands over the gray wolf’s head. “We’ll come back for you. Everything will be okay. I promise.” Her eyes shimmered. Titus wanted nothing more than to be her hero, to fix all the bullshit going down. And he would.
“We have to go, Lily. He’ll be safe until we come back.”
She got to her feet, took his hand, and he closed the cabin door behind them. They rushed away from the shelter, not wanting to draw any attention to it. Miles later, they came to a stop. Lilly took a deep, cleansing breath, as if turning off her emotions and preparing for a fight. “Okay, let’s do this. Let’s find Axel.”
“Why the rush?”
“What do you mean? You know what he’s done.”
“First things first.” He ran the backs of his fingers down her arm. She froze. Realization settling in. Goosebumps spread across her skin and her cheeks flushed. The scent of her arousal perfumed the air, making his fangs prick his gums.