NocC 023 - The Ancients 05 - Bonnie Vanak - Incubus Wolf - Harlequin 2012-09

by Nocturne

  Alexandra ran to him as he stood, kissing him fiercely. “You brave wolf. Did you think I was that shallow, that I didn’t love you, that I’d let you give up your life just for my silly looks? I knew something was wrong. Fortunately, your second in command doesn’t listen well to your orders.”

  His heart beat fast with love at her firm declaration. She’d made a sacrifice of her own to save him, but more importantly, proved she’d accepted her own true self. She’d be a worthy mate if she agreed to take him.

  Dominic held her tight, laying his head atop her head. He kissed the golden locks, relishing the silk beneath his mouth. Then he leaped off the table and dressed.

  She wiped furiously at the tears on her cheeks. “At least he’s dead now and will never bother you. Belaramos, you bastard…”

  Alex stared in horror at the dead man.

  Then she looked up, and he realized she discovered the hidden truth at last.

  *

  The dead man lying at Dominic’s feet was not a stranger but her stepfather, Devin Edwards. The glamour had faded, revealing the harsh, puffy face and the slight paunch that was always an affront to her stepfather’s vanity.

  Shock pummeled her. It couldn’t be Edwards. He loved his power too much as leader of her clan to give it all up for Alaska’s wilderness. She stared at the man’s face. Scars marked every inch of his skin. Puckered, twisted, they made him appear vicious and evil, even in death.

  “I don’t understand.” Alex looked up at Dominic. “How could he have slipped past me like that? Why didn’t anyone tell me?”

  “Two years ago, the Society hired a new director. He looked into cases, like mine, that reeked of political injustice. He exonerated me, restored my powers twice-fold, and privately told me I could punish Edwards for framing me for a crime I did not commit… raping a virgin Fae.”

  Dominic’s eyes narrowed. “The director told me I could do whatever I wished to make up for my years in prison. I just had to keep it quiet. The director needed to be disavowed of the process because of politics. He was new, and still weeding through bureaucratic red tape.”

  He opened his right hand. Power sang in the air as white fire surrounded his hand. Dominic closed it, making a fist.

  “I’m much more powerful than you realize, Alexandra. I cursed your stepfather for every hurt he inflicted on you. I did it for you. I didn’t know what he had done to you, but I knew you were hurting.”

  “You marked him.” Wonder filled her at this man who had fiercely defended her and gone to prison to protect her.

  “No,” he said quietly. “I only made him as ugly outside as he is on the inside. The world would never see him again as handsome and charming, but witness the darkness of his soul. If he ever experienced a true change of heart, he would have regained his looks. It’s why he wanted my blood. No woman would approach him. He was thrown out of your colony and the rival Fae king took over. Edwards thought my blood would make him sexually appealing to women. He came here to Alaska after the real Lord Belaramos died and assumed his identity. He hid behind a lie.”

  She hugged herself, trying to deal. Lies surrounded her from the moment she’d stepped into the trap. “The potion, he lied to me.”

  Dominic gentled his voice. “He used a spell to make you believe you looked as you once did. But to others, it made your runes appear. It did exactly the opposite of what you desired.”

  There was no magick cure, no potion to make her beautiful. It was all a ruse.

  She’d been ugly from the moment he’d tossed the elixir on her face. Yet Dominic and the pack knew what she looked like.

  And they treated her with respect.

  “You saw what I really looked like. And you didn’t run.” She looked at Michael who nodded.

  “Because we saw inside you, Alexandra. We saw your heart,” he said quietly.

  She’d always be ugly and repulsive to the world. Maybe. But not among Dominic and his people.

  He cherished her, this wolf who’d gone to great lengths to make her dearest dream come true.

  “Michael, burn him.” Dominic gestured to her stepfather. “I do not want his blood tainting the earth.”

  Dominic led her upstairs, out into the clean, cold air. They walked back to the lodge in silence. Inside the living room, he threw a blanket over her shivering body, rubbed her to keep her warm.

  Then sitting on the couch, he took her hand, his fingers warm. He opened his other palm, revealing the ugly scar on it. “I received this when I was twelve and my father kicked me out of the pack for being different. He was afraid I’d take over and pollute the pack with more hybrid blood. I’ve left it as a sign of honor. Just as your marks are badges of honor, Alexandra, of your inner strength. Will you stay with us and be my mate?”

  Alex crossed the room to stand before the mirror above the fireplace. Dominic joined her as she looked, really looked at herself. The runes were intricate and elegant. Not ugly. They were marks of courage, as Dominic said.

  Then she glanced up and saw him looking at her with tenderness, with love, with admiration. As if she were the Alexandra who’d first taken him into her bed.

  Alex turned, watching Dominic. Waiting, his big shoulders tense, every muscle taut. Waiting for her to give an answer. He would not force her.

  With him near, she would never hold the illusion of beauty again. Yet the thought did not distress her. She touched her cheek.

  He seemed to understand and placed his palm over hers. “You’re beautiful, Alexandra. You always have been to me. All those years in prison, I kept the memory of you alive and it gave me strength.”

  Emotion clogged her throat as he took her palm and guided it to her chest, letting her feel the steady beat. “But your heart. This is the real you, the woman I’ve craved all these years.”

  Alex rested against him, happiness stealing over her. Then realization struck.

  “I don’t get it. If you were released from prison, why did the Society send me after you?”

  “I set you up, sweetheart.” Was that a sheepish look on his face? Dominic shrugged. “It’s why the Society gave you this assignment.”

  Alex drew back. “I got this assignment because I claimed celibacy and immunity to your charms.”

  “No, I arranged with the director for you to get this assignment so you would come after me. It was the only way I knew to reel you in.”

  “I’m not a damn fish,” she snapped. “It was all a ruse?”

  Dominic gathered her hands into his, resisting her efforts to pull away. “For you, sweetheart.”

  Emotions spiraling out of control, she shook her head. “I don’t understand. Why the scheme? Why didn’t you contact me directly?”

  “I tried. All these years, I sent letters, I even bribed guards to deliver messages. I tried to contact you, but you threw away all your letters the Society sent. And you blocked all emails. So the director arranged for you to come to me instead, with the guise of the bounty.”

  Alex felt a sinking feeling settle into her stomach. She’d shunned any contact or mail because she’d been so badly hurt, and Dominic had been trying all these years. “Why did you go to such lengths?”

  The words were a whisper, her heart beating fast.

  “Because I wanted you from the moment you set the gold coins in my hand. I fell for you, the little stubborn line between your brows that said you were not backing down, that no one told you how to live your life. And after we’d made love, I knew I could never leave you.”

  “It was all just sex to you.”

  Tenderness shone in his face as he framed her face with his hands. “No, it was something I’d never felt before, and had been searching for my entire life. Not sex. But a connection, one forged so deep I could never forget it. I did not put my mark on you, Alexandra. You put your mark on me, on my heart.”

  “I thought you’d forgotten about me.” Tunneling her fingers through his hair, she gazed into his eyes, seeing the lost Dominic who had patiently
waited for years in a cold, dank demon prison.

  “Never. I did my time to keep you safe. I knew if I were locked up, your stepfather would have no claim upon you. He’d be forced to let you go or have to answer to the Society.” His expression darkened. “Although I didn’t realize he would mark you first before banishing you.”

  “It’s okay,” she whispered. “I’m not afraid of showing them anymore because now I’m like your pack. I have my own scars.”

  Dominic traced the edges of a flaring rune. “These are symbols of independence and the courage of a woman who dared to walk her own path, no matter what the adversity. The kind of woman I need at my side to rule my pack. I want no other. Will you have me, Alexandra?”

  A lump rose in her throat at his simple declaration. He saw the heart of her, her true self, no matter what had been done to her body.

  “Yes,” she said.

  Desire flared as he kissed her, his tongue sweeping into her mouth as he nibbled at her lower lip. Leaning into him, she gave herself fully to the kiss, to the bond that had been forged from the moment their palms had touched.

  When they drew back for breath, both a little shaky, Alex managed a smile. “So, when do we get mated? I want to take advantage of your skills as soon as possible and keep you locked up. Can I take your incubus half for a test drive?”

  Dominic laughed and playfully rubbed his nose against hers. Every nerve ending seared with heat, even as something settled over her so new and wonderful that she barely recognized it.

  Peace, she realized. She’d hoped to find it in Colorado, but instead, found it with a wild incubus wolf in Alaska.

  “We’ll be formally mated as soon as possible.” Mirth twinkled in his gaze. “Because I intend to have my wicked way with you in bed. For a very, very long time. You’ll never be bored.”

  He paused and gave a crooked grin. “Not as long as there are scrub brushes and mops in the house.”

  “Kinky,” she murmured. “A man who will always keep his woman satisfied. Is that a promise?”

  “Of a lifetime,” he said, as he bent to take her mouth once more.

  *

  If you liked this story, don’t miss these other red-hot paranormal romances by author Bonnie Vanak, available now wherever ebooks are sold…

  The Ancients Series:

  Harlequin Nocturne Cravings

  Bitten by the Vampire

  Mated to the Wolf

  Hunted by the Jaguar

  Seduced by the Wolf

  Harlequin Nocturne Bites

  Broken Souls

  Darkness of the Wolf

  Courage of the Wolf

  Harlequin Nocturne

  The Empath

  Enemy Lover

  Immortal Wolf

  Holiday with a Vampire III: “Unwrapped”

  The Shadow Wolf

  The Covert Wolf

  Don’t miss the other sensual, paranormal reads from Harlequin Nocturne Cravings, available at www.ebooks.eharlequin.com and wherever ebooks are sold. Titles include: Reawakened Passions by Megan Hart

  Moonspun by Michele Hauf

  Dark Hunter’s Touch by Jessa Slade

  Forbidden by Fate by Kristin Miller

  The Darkling’s Surrender by Lauren Hawkeye

  Night of the Cougar by Caridad Piñeiro

  Seduced by the Vampire King by Laura Kaye

  Claimed by Desire by Kristin Miller

  Hot Demon Nights by Elle James Looking for more paranormal romance? The sizzling and spine-chilling books of Harlequin Nocturne are available at www.Harlequin.com or your local bookstore.

  *

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  ISBN: 978-14592-4229-6

  Incubus Wolf

  Copyright © 2012 by Bonnie Vanak

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