by Helen Scott
“Brecken?” he asked as soon as his ex-friend picked up the phone.
“Roman, what’s hap—”
“The cabin’s been compromised.” Roman rushed the words out, and Brecken wisely shut the hell up. “We came back from a run and scented other wolves around it. I don’t know who they were, but we’ve run. We can’t risk going back there, sorry to leave you with all our stuff.”
“You’re not going back? Won’t the wolves leave eventually?” Brecken asked, like he had no idea what was going on.
“We can’t. They’ll probably hang around, and it’s not worth the risk. It’s just stuff, we can always get more. I won’t risk my mate,” Roman said, looking at me on the last bit, letting me know he was completely serious.
It made my dumb heart flutter in my chest. He wouldn’t risk me. He wouldn’t risk our bond. It shouldn’t mean so much that he’d said it, but it did, just as much as when he said he’d fight for me. I wasn’t used to having someone look out for me anymore. It had been years since I’d been able to trust anyone, and now, I had three people. If we weren’t on the run, then the thought would probably bring tears to my eyes.
Now was not the time though, so I swallowed the lump in my throat down while I tried to listen to what Brecken was saying.
“They probably won’t wait. You should be safe to go back and get your stuff in a few hours, right?”
“I don’t know, Brecken, I don’t think it’s worth the risk. We’re on the move now, but I just wanted to let you know so you don’t go there and get yourself killed by accident or something. I’m turning off my phone in case that’s how they are tracking us, but I’ll let you know when we’ve got a new place set up, so if you do happen to get our stuff, you can drop it by.”
“Okay, okay, completely understand.” As soon as Roman had let him know that we’d keep him updated on where we were, the man had calmed down, not seeming quite as desperate to get us back to the cabin anymore.
“Thanks for your help,” Roman said before hanging up.
It was a hard conversation to listen to if I was honest. Watching Roman distort the truth sent warning bells going off in my mind, but I knew, logically, that he would never do that to me. It still burrowed under my skin though, trying to weasel some doubt into my heart, but one touch of the mate bond, and I was able to shut that feeling down.
“So what do we do now?” Micah asked, beating me to it.
“We wait. Eventually, they’re going to realize that Brecken told them the truth and we aren’t coming back. We just have to outlast them. Keep ourselves entertained in the woods.” Roman shrugged.
“And how will we know when they’ve gone?” I asked.
“We’ll go back, carefully, see what we see. I don’t know any other way to do it.”
The adrenaline from the initial scare and run had worn off, and I was tired but punchy. I wanted to hit something, to take my frustrations out on something.
“So what do we want to do? Play eye spy?” Micah joked.
“I want to hit something,” I replied honestly.
“We could spar,” offered Blake.
I nodded sharply.
“Do not get injured.” Roman’s voice was a warning, his tone brooking no argument, not that he’d find one with me. It was never my intention to get injured. And if I did, then I’d deal with it. I’d gone to work with a broken foot before, not to mention all the cuts and bruises I’d had over the years. It also sounded like he had other plans in mind.
“Where are you going?” I asked as he turned to the woods.
“I’m going to make sure we weren’t followed and create a fake scent trail in case they get bored and decide to investigate.”
“Should one of us go with you?” I asked, worry creeping in as he still looked like he was about to set off alone. The idea of him going up against the wolves that had surrounded the cabin was enough to put a rock of dread in my gut.
“More feet means more noise. I’m quieter and sneakier alone. I’ll be okay, angel, I promise.” As though he knew that I couldn’t let him leave without touching him once more, Roman strode over to me, but instead of the small peck on the forehead I expected, he slipped his hands around the back of my neck, thumbs resting on my jaw as he tilted my head up to his and claimed my mouth in a way no one else would ever be able to replicate. His tongue swept in, tangling with my own briefly before he withdrew, nipping at my lower lip.
When he pulled away, my eyes fluttered open. My gaze was pulled to his like it was magnetized, and what I saw there took my breath away. Blazing lust and a tenderness I hadn’t experienced until I met my first mate shone from the depths of his very soul. The moment was one I wanted to capture and remember forever, even when he ruined the seriousness of it by grabbing my butt for a second before smacking it.
I let out a quiet yelp of surprise, and he just grinned and walked away, shifting into his wolf form as he went. The man got me all hot and bothered and just left. Who did that to a woman?
My brain was so focused on him walking away and the throbbing craving in my core that it took me a second to realize that he’d stuffed his phone in my back pocket. I pulled it out and held it in my hand, worried that I would forget about it and sit on it or something, or worse, I’d start sparring with Blake and accidentally smash it into the ground or a tree or something.
Micah came up and took the phone from my hand. “I’m going to make a couple calls, see if I can figure out a place for us to go once we’ve got our stuff. You and Blake stay here and stay alert.” He gave me a quick peck before leaving, his cock, which was somewhat hard, bobbing between his legs.
“You still want to spar?” Blake asked from behind me.
I turned to face my most recent mate and nodded, not voicing aloud that anything that distracted me from the ache of need between my legs would be appreciated in that moment. Instead of thinking about it, I refocused my brain and said, “I haven’t been around wolves in a long time. Haven’t fought a wolf in a while either, and honestly, when I did fight one the other day, I think he almost killed me. I need to be able to fight a wolf as a human and win.”
“We can work on that,” Blake said, nodding slowly to himself.
“I don’t want anyone to have to save me, if that makes sense. I know it’s easy to get hurt as a human fighting a wolf, so I want to make sure I know how to handle myself.”
“I’m one of the toughest fighters in Jax’s pack. Well, for now. If anyone can help teach you how to avoid a wolf attack, it’s going to be me. I’ll warn you, I’m usually brutal. I was holding back when we fought before because I didn’t want to piss Jax off by damaging his woman, or what I thought was his woman at the time.”
“Brutal is fine.” I paced over toward Blake. The green of his eyes looked even more vibrant out in the woods, like they were reflecting the leaves themselves. “I’m used to boxing and kickboxing. Those were my main forms of training when I was alone. I’ve done some martial arts and even a few classes like spin and hot yoga, which are brutal in their own ways, trust me.”
Blake laughed, and I had to fight the urge to join him, so I faked scowl at him.
“I’m serious, they are brutal in those classes. After the spin class, I wasn’t sure my vagina would ever be the same. Have you sat on one of those bikes?” I demanded as I crossed my arms over my chest, trying to keep a straight face.
“Can’t say I have, but you’re welcome to sit on me anytime. We can turn it into a work out if you want.” He winked at me.
I groaned and tipped my head back as though I was asking the gods for support. Suddenly, a ball of fur launched itself at me. Panic ripped through me as I flew through the air, my lungs confused and not expanding like they should, which was only compounded when I hit the ground and all the air rushed out of me again. What the hell had just attacked me?
16
Nina
The moment I could breathe again, I was up on my feet, adrenaline rushing through my system. I looked
around the clearing for Blake but found only a wolf staring back at me. Blake had attacked me?
“Seriously? What happened to giving a girl a heads-up?” I demanded.
Blake shifted, fluidly moving to stand in his human form. “The real world doesn’t give you a heads-up, does it? If it did, I’m sure Brecken would have given Roman a call, letting him know they were on their way. Life isn’t fair. It doesn’t wait until you’re ready. It comes at you hard and fast, and unless you learn how to brace yourself and fight back, it will knock you down and keep kicking until you’re nothing but a stain on the ground. If you need life to play fair, then you’ve already lost, love.”
I had nothing to say to that, since he was right, after all. People and shifters and life, none of it was fair. Not a one.
As Blake shifted into wolf form again, I got a second to look at his coat. His markings were unusual. Most wolves had a variety of colors in their coat, helping them blend with the world around them, but Blake’s coat was a pure gunmetal gray color, no variation, with those green eyes of his looking out at me.
This time when he lunged, I expected it and was able to dive out of the way. He shocked me by twisting mid-air and rotating so he could grab my ankle in his great gaping maw. I knew he was being gentle and that if this had been a real fight, he could bite down on my ankle and almost destroy it with that one move.
When we landed, it jolted us enough that his gentle hold on my ankle was loosened and I kicked out, smacking him in the face with the sole of my shoe. Admittedly, it was just a little ballet flat that I’d slipped on when we made a run for it, but still. I had a moment of regret for not putting my sports bra back on earlier as my boobs jiggled about.
Blake’s head snapped back, and I almost started to apologize until his gaze met mine, full of challenge. I kicked out again, and he snapped at my foot, his teeth just barely missing it. I pulled my leg back and pushed off the ground, running as fast as possible in the other direction to put some distance between us.
When he came close again, which only took him a second because, for the most part, wolves can outrun humans, I lashed out with my other foot, trying to kick him in the ribs as he lunged up at me. I only ended up kicking him in the hips, not the vulnerable stomach that was exposed when he leapt into the air toward me or the delicate ribs I’d been aiming for.
His front paws connected with my shoulders, knocking me back against the tree behind me. I hadn’t actually realized it was so close. Fortunately, it was far enough away that though Blake had been able to knock me into, it he couldn’t pin me to it. I feigned left and threw my body right, landing on the ground and rolling to try and break my fall.
Unfortunately, Blake was right there, on top of me already. His body blocked most chances of movement I had until all I could do was curl up tight into a ball. As soon as he started to let his guard down, started to think I’d given up, I kicked my feet out, thrusting them upward and into his abdomen, possibly breaking one of his spare ribs.
The force of my kick moved him back a little, enough for me to shimmy out while he tried not to throw up, but my freedom was only momentary. This time when he pinned me, it was in a way I hadn’t expected, in his human form.
“I thought you were fighting as a wolf,” I ground out as I tried to push him away from me and prevent him from getting me in a lock or getting to one of my nerve points.
“I’m fighting as a shifter, darling, that means human or wolf can come at you at any point. You have to be ready for both. You have to be prepared to attack as both if possible.” His eyes sparked with excitement.
His words reminded me that I’d yet to tell him I couldn’t shift. I couldn’t handle having that conversation right now, so I kept my mouth shut and tried to headbutt him instead. I was able to catch him in the nose, but not hard enough to do any damage, which was probably good. If I’d broken his nose, I would have felt awful afterward.
“Vicious little wolf when you want to be, aren’t you?” He grinned, and there was some blood staining the front of his upper teeth.
I couldn’t remember hitting him in the mouth, but then, I did kind of get wrapped up in the moment sometimes. The sight of blood on my mate should have sent me into a fury, but knowing that I was the one that put it there, that we were matching each other blow for blow…well, it was kind of hot, if I was being honest.
“I guess I am,” I responded after ogling him for entirely too long.
“You’re also insatiable, aren’t you? Wasn’t having Micah and I this morning enough for you?” He leaned down and flicked his tongue against the tip of my nose, sending a shiver down my spine.
“Apparently not,” I replied as I tilt my hips upward, brushing against the erection I found there.
As though that was the invitation he’d been waiting for, he descended on me. Lips brushing against lips, tongues sliding against tongues, we devoured each other. My hips rocked against his as he ground his erection into me, the heat of it searing my skin, even through my workout clothes.
Blake trailed kisses from the edge of my mouth, along my jaw, and down my neck until he reached that spot by my collarbone that made me go crazy. My breath began coming in shorter, almost pants, as he nuzzled along the edge of my tank top around my neck.
His hands slipped underneath, sliding up my sweat slicked skin until they found my breasts and kneaded them, gently squeezing my nipples between his fingers until they were hard little points poking toward him like my entire body wanted to be closer to him, craved him. His hands pushed the tank top higher, and his mouth found one of my nipples. Even though I’d regretted not putting my sports bra back on earlier, now I was grateful because the idea of him not being able to suck and lick my nipples without me wrestling that thing off first was unacceptable.
I wanted to be naked now, dammit. In a quick movement—well, as quick as I could manage—I pulled my tank top off and tried to push down my leggings. My hands were stilled by Blake putting his hands over my own as he sat back.
“Stand up,” he said as he moved off me, giving me room to get up.
He peeled my leggings down my thighs and left them around my knees. I thought for a moment he was going to lick me to an orgasm again, but instead, he stood, his cock jutting out from him proudly, and this time, I really got a good look at it. The thick mushroom head was already glistening with pre-cum, and my core contracted just from seeing that he wanted me as badly as I wanted him.
As we stood facing each other, he gripped his thick cock with his hand and moved toward me, slowly pumping up and down as though if he didn’t feel that sensation soon, he was going to go insane. I could relate. I needed to feel him inside me, stretching me to the point of pain and holding me there while he brought me the most intense pleasure in the world.
Blake gripped me by the back of my neck and spun me around until I was facing the tree that had been behind me the whole time. His hand slid from my neck down my back and pushed me, bending me over. Naturally, I reached out to the tree for support as I spread my legs as far as they could go, given that I was still encased in my leggings from my knees down.
His cock brushed against my opening, and I could feel my slickness get smeared around not only me, but over his cock as well. When he thrust into me, it was one sharp stroke. Just as I started to cry out, his hand clapped over my mouth in a brutal hold.
“You have to be quiet, darling. No alerting the others to our presence,” he growled out as his hips met my ass.
I wanted to whimper in complaint but I didn’t. Instead, I just nodded against his hand. He released me immediately and grabbed onto my hips, his fingers digging into my skin roughly as he pulled himself out torturously slowly before thrusting back in. A small sound escaped me, but he didn’t seem to notice.
Blake started to speed up until he was pushing against me hard enough that I had to lock my elbows, or I would have been kissing the bark of the tree. Each and every nerve ending felt like it was on fire for him, like my whole body was
attuned to this moment and his actions. One of his hands slipped from my hips to between my legs, finding my clit almost instantly and circling it as rapidly as he was fucking me. His other hand moved up to my chest, where he grabbed one of my breasts, pinching the nipple hard between his fingers and holding.
The more he worked me toward my orgasm, the more trouble I had staying quiet. Finally, his hand that had been holding my nipple released it and clamped down over my mouth. My nose was still free so it wasn’t hard to breathe, but it muffled my moans of pleasure, which only ramped up my excitement with the feeling that we were doing something we weren’t supposed to be.
The fingers playing with my clit stopped as well though, and that was when I got confused. I wiggled back and forth on his cock, trying to find his hand with my body, but he just chuckled behind me.
“I told you that we have to be quiet. If I make you come, you’re going to scream the house down and every wolf in a five-mile radius will come running.”
He released his hand from my mouth, and I said, “I’ll be quiet, I promise. You can’t leave me on the edge though.”
“Fine, but if you get loud again, I’ll finish myself off with my hand,” he replied, a dark chuckle in his voice.
Thankfully, I didn’t have to respond before his hand slipped between my legs and his fingers began playing with my clit. The circles getting ever faster as he sped back up. The steady clap clap clap of his hips on my ass were probably loud enough to draw attention from anyone close by, but I couldn’t think enough to understand why that noise was okay but my screams wouldn’t be.
I needed to come though and I was so close, but I wanted to scream and moan and carry on and I couldn’t. Instead, I started holding my breath, letting it out in great shuddering gasps when it became too much. The rush of blood in my head and the tightness in my chest all contributed to the leg shaking orgasm that rolled over me a few moments later.
My body clenched and bucked around Blake’s cock, and it took everything I had just to stay standing when my legs wanted to give out and let me fall to the ground. It was only when Blake’s fingers clenched around my hips as he grunted his orgasm and his cock jerked and twitched inside me that I realized I wasn’t, in fact, holding myself up. He was holding me up via my hips, and I was just bracing myself against the tree.