by Cathryn Fox
A split second later, the last of my bones reform and as the pain begins to ebb, I gingerly sit back on my haunches and proceed to groom myself as I draw my next breath as a wolf.
Looking through the eyes of the beast, I glance around, fully aware of the boy studying my every movement. With my transformation complete, I watch him in return. Modesty aside, Logan sheds his clothes and his loud howl cuts the twilight as he joins me in primal form.
A few seconds later he stands before me as a beautiful boy trapped in a wolf’s body—a lethal combination of power, muscle and intellect. The cool night wind ruffles the dark fur on his streamlined body as he circles me, coming dangerously close to my undisciplined wolf, and I wonder what he’s going to do next.
His paws sink into the snow, each step tentative, careful. He’d been so confident before my shift, but now that he’s staring at my wolf, wild and hungry beneath the full moon, I can see the caution in his eyes. Is he finally aware of what I’m capable of or is something else making him nervous?
A noise at the base of the mountain cracks the still air. Instincts sharpened, my ears perk up and I listen carefully. From my perch I can hear their voices, their laughter, and take joy in the sound of their blood rushing through their veins. It teases my hunger to the point of distraction. Driven by dark need, I canter to the cliff’s edge and run my tongue over sharp canines.
“Hey,” Logan barks out.
I turn back to him.
“I bet you can’t catch me.” He twists around and with lightning speed bolts through the thick forest.
I scent the air and let loose a yelp, my wolf unable to resist the chase, the thrill of the hunt. Feeling feral, I dig my talon-like nails into the hard ground and with a swish of my tail I take off after him, following his distinct, earthy aroma, one I’ve grown quite fond of over the past few days. As I watch him weave his muscled body in and out of the tall, threadbare trees, I wonder where he’s leading me. I also wonder what will happen when I catch him.
Will my instincts to kill rule my actions? Can I trust that his animal bloodlust won’t take over?
Logan tosses me a glance over one powerful shoulder, and begins to slow to a trot. As I hurry to catch up, I note the way his dark gaze zeroes in on my throat which makes me wonder, does this boy have what it takes to tame me, or will tonight end in total and utter bloodshed for all?
When I stop a few feet away from him, pacing like the wild animal I am, anxious to kill, to feed, I look past his shoulder and notice the small crevice in the rock wall. Logan takes a cautious step backward and when he disappears into the cave, I let loose a deep, guttural howl. The low-pitched sound serrates the quiet night and sends the wildlife scurrying through the forest.
From the cavern I see a flash of pewter and it sends my wolf into chase. Untamed, I pounce inside the small opening. I look from the left to the right, but before I can locate Logan, his low growl punctures the black and he leaps through the air, pinning me belly up beneath him. My wolf howls and I push him off me. He rolls to the side and I climb on top of his powerful body determined to restrain him beneath my paws.
Logan, however, has other ideas. With ease, he flips me back over. He uses his power and strength to restrain me beneath him, and when I feel his sharp fangs cut into my throat, I let loose an agonized yelp.
He holds me down and as blood pours from my neck the smell saturates the tight quarters. As I feel the sting of his fangs, I know in an instant, it’s kill or be killed.
I struggle beneath him, my paws thrashing, yet I’m still unable to gain purchase. With animal bloodlust ruling me, I fight, bite and scratch until I exhaust myself, but Logan still doesn’t waver, still doesn’t let go of my throat.
That’s when it hits me. If he was going to snap my neck, wouldn’t he have done it by now? I stop struggling.
“Are you done?” he asks fiercely.
Confused and breathing hard I don’t answer. Instead I stare at him, and note the warm heat in his eyes as they lock on mine. That flash of heat does something to my wolf. Something primal. Something that settles my bloodlust.
“Are you done, Pride?” he asks again.
“I thought you were going to—” I answer, breathless.
“I know what you thought.”
“It’s…it’s my wolf,” I say apologetically. “She doesn’t know any better.”
With that Logan eases back and releases his hold on me. I take that opportunity to flip onto my feet. Crouching low I watch him, watch the way his streamlined body flexes as he stalks toward the entrance. He uses his shoulder to roll a boulder in front of the small opening, locking himself inside with the dangerous wolf while keeping the rest of the world out.
“What are you doing?” I ask cautiously as my body heals the puncture marks on my throat.
“Protecting you. Like I promised.”
But when he turns back, and I see the hungry way he’s looking at me, needy sensations erupt in my stomach and my caution turns to anticipation.
Because everything inside me tells me his hunger isn’t for my blood.
Energy arcs between us as Logan stalks close. My entire body shivers, my wolf suddenly so completely aware of the alpha it’s all I can do to draw in air.
Then it occurs to me. This is the distraction he’s been planning. A female is programmed to seek an alpha, especially on shift night—a night when a male finds his mate. I don’t miss the significance in what he’s doing, what he’s asking of me.
He circles me, keeping a wide berth. For a longtime neither of us speaks. We square off, a hush coming over us as time slips by, minute by minute, hour by hour, the moon outside riding higher in the sky, then slipping lower as it begins its descent. He finally breaks the quiet and says, “You have to want this.”
As I stare at him heat explodes through me and I know I want this. I know I want Logan even though the idea of mating is foreign, exciting. Terrifying.
He stops moving, the wild glow in his eyes eliciting a shiver from deep within me. He stares at me for a long moment, and I can feel his tension like it’s my own. My body calms as with the approach of twilight, and we both shift back, the moon no longer controlling us.
He holds his hand out to me and says, “Meet me half-way, Pride.”
We exchange another long look, and the second I take a step toward him, he moves swiftly, closing the distance between us. As I absorb his warmth, I can hardly believe what we’re about to do. How much I want to do this.
His hands seek mine and when he finds them trembling, he says, “I won’t do anything to hurt you, Pride,” he whispers.
“I know,” I say as my stomach flutters.
And I do know.
He trails his fingers over my arm, and my skin comes alive as he touches me with soft hands. His muscles bunch, and I can feel heat coloring my cheeks as a shudder races through me. As I lose myself in the sensations, he slides an arm around me and pulls me close. I swallow, and can feel his heart pound erratically against his ribcage.
He brushes his thumb over my mouth, and I instinctively part my lips. A low growl rumbles in his throat as he dips his head and takes full possession, his tongue slipping inside to mate with mine. When I moan, he deepens the kiss, and I shake with an intensity that is both exhilarating and frightening.
“Touch me, Pride,” he murmurs, his voice thinning to a whisper. “Please touch me.”
I put my hands on his shoulders, and he sucks in a tight breath. I lightly trail my nails over his naked flesh, and raw desire sears my inside when I feel the strength of his muscles.
My hands skim his body, then tangle in his hair as I breathe in the scent of his skin and revel in the taste of his mouth.
I begin to shake all over, and when my knees buckle, Logan holds me tighter. He drops to the ground, pulling me with him, and that’s when I notice the blanket.
He carefully lowers me onto it, and climbs over me. Everything in the way he’s touching me, treating me like I could break at a
moment’s notice, makes me feel so beautiful, so special.
Intense eyes full of need meet mine as he pushes my hair from my face and my pulse leaps wildly.
“I want you so much,” he murmurs. When I don’t say anything, he looks at me. “Tell me you want me, Pride. Tell me you need this as much as I do.”
“I want you,” I somehow manage to get out around a tongue gone thick. “I need you, Logan.”
His burning mouth comes down hard, claiming me, branding me with his heat. My stomach soars, heat flooding my veins. As his tongue plays with mine, I can feel the hardness between his legs. A strange strangled cry lodges in my throat.
He abandons my mouth and his lips scorch my skin as he slides lower, pressing hungry kisses to my chin, my neck, my shoulder.
His breath is coming harder now, and when his lips trail lower and find my hard nipple, a tremor rips through me.
“Logan,” I cry out, my hands raking through his hair as it sweeps against my bare flesh.
My skin burns, and my body aches as his hands move over my body and when he reaches between my legs, awareness quivers through me.
He touches my inner thigh, stroking softly as he shifts his body weight to the side.
“Open your legs for me,” he whispers, and I flush at the intimacy in his tone.
I inch my thighs open and when I hear his groan, feel his fingers touching my most private parts, desire twists inside me.
He strokes me gently, his touch creating a new intimacy between us.
His warm breath tickles my skin and my chest rises and falls as he caresses me, prepares me. His mouth goes to my stomach, and he kisses a path back up my body as his fingers slide deeper.
My hips lift, and I pinch my eyes shut as I welcome him into my body.
“Look at me,” he says and when my lids open, I find Logan staring at me, pure desire in his eyes.
Small breasts crush against his chest as he pushes my hair from my face. “Are you ready for this?” he asks, his breath coming in ragged bursts as he settles himself on top of me.
Warmth spreads over my skin and I swallow, because I know nothing could have ever prepared me for this.
For Logan.
I nod, and as I begin to tremble from head to toe, he better positions himself. My hands slide over his back, and his heat scorches me as he pushes deep inside my body, joining us as one.
Pain slices through me and when a cry lodges in my throat he pulls out.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he says, the tenderness in his voice turning me inside out. “Tell me to stop, and I will.”
I touch his face. “I don’t want you to stop.” Pinned beneath him, I start moving, forcing him back inside me, and he grips my hair harder.
“Pride,” he groans.
“Please,” I say
With that he pounds into me, so hard and so fast it steals the breath from my lungs. We hold each other like our lives depend on it, and maybe on some level they do.
Logan buries him mouth in the hollow of my neck and as he pumps, I know he’s seeking more than release.
A whimper escapes my lips as he stirs things inside, touching me in places so deep, a sense of belonging comes over me. Moisture breaks out on our flesh as we both give and take, making love as we ride out the last of the full moon.
Logan thrusts once, twice, then stills inside me. He throws his head back and I hold him tight as he legs go. After a moment he collapses on top of me. As his weight presses down on me, I lay there and bask in the glow of his touch, emotions raging inside me. He lifts his head to see me. “Did I hurt you?”
“No,” I answer.
“You’re not a very good liar,” he says. “Next time will be better for you, Pride. I promise.”
He rolls beside me and pulls me against him. As he gently runs his fingers up and down my arm, I try to shut down my emotions, not wanting to think about tomorrow or what it might bring.
We stay inside the cave until night bleeds into day and the first traces of light are upon us. When the full moon finally sleeps, we continue to touch, continue to acquaint ourselves with each other’s bodies.
A long time later exhaustion pulls at us both and with our arms and legs in a tangled knot we fall into a deep slumber.
I have no idea how long I’ve been asleep but when I hear a noise at the mouth of the cave, I struggle to blink my eyes open. Caught somewhere between sleep and consciousness I try to focus, try to wipe the blur from my brain.
Unclear if I’m dreaming or not, I glance up to see a familiar figure standing over me. My pulse leaps. “Stone!”
I watch the way he’s looking at me, the way he always looks at me. Dark eyes move over my bare body, then slide to naked boy sleeping beside me. Oddly enough when I realize what Stone sees—what he knows—I feel a strange sense of disloyalty.
Without speaking, he turns and makes a move to go.
“Wait,” I say and rush on. “What’s going on, Stone? What are you doing out here? What have you been trying to tell me?” I know I’m rambling but can’t seem to help myself. Rattled, I continue, “Tell me please. Tell me about the number sequence. I don’t understand.”
He twists back around and as his glance falls over me, I can sense his struggle, feel a myriad of emotions tearing him up inside. Despite his turmoil, his words are slow and steady when he says, “The master installed a new state of the art security system. I wanted you to know the code.”
I blink, confused. “Why?”
“To help you escape?”
Escape? Stone wanted to help me escape?
“I don’t understand. How do you know the code?”
“You’re not the only one who has been watching and listening.”
I struggle to make sense of things. “No one’s been able to break out before, so why now, after all these years did he install a new security system?”
“I think the alarm system has more to do with keeping someone or something out, rather than keeping us in. It’s like he’s expecting an army to come for him.” I hear a shudder in his breath and feel his anger when he says, “One way or another I was going to get you out of there, Pride. Before anything happened to you.”
My head spins and I sort through Stone’s chaotic visions, trying to make sense of things, then suddenly the tumblers begin to slide into place. “You were going to fight a handler?”
At first surprise moves over his face, then he answers, “Yes, on shift night.”
“The night we were supposed to mate.”
“The night I was going to break you out.”
“No,” I say shaking my head. “You wanted to break me, not break me out.”
His tone softens. “Don’t you see? I needed the mating as a cover. It was the only way I could get the master to put us in a cell together.”
“Stone,” I choke out. “The handler would have killed you.”
“I would have fought,” he whispers, then I hear a hitch in his voice when he adds, “For you, I would have fought.” He takes a quick look at Logan and the sadness I see on his face rips though me like a silver bullet.
“You would have died!” I scream.
He doesn’t respond, instead he says, “You need to wake up, Pride. Now. You need to get moving.”
With apprehension surging inside me, I jolt upright in the cave and rub the sleep from my eyes. My gaze instantly darts to the spot where I’d seen Stone standing, but when my glance comes up empty my insides churn. I twist to see Logan, still sound asleep beside me and my mind races.
Had I simply dreamt it?
I shoot a glance around the cave and a barrage of emotions tear through me, unsure of what’s happening.
Logan stirs awake beside me. His eyes open and he smiles when our gazes meet, but when he sees my distress, his smile dissolves and panic spreads across his face. He sits upright and reaches for me.
“Pride, what is it? Are you okay?”
“I’m okay,” I lie, not at all certain I’ll ever b
e okay again. “It was just a dream,” I say, more to convince myself than anything else, because I can’t bear to think that Stone was really here, that a wolf who I thought was my sworn enemy—a wolf who was planning to die for me—just had his heart torn out because I’ve given myself to another.
15
August 30th waning moon
* * *
Stark naked after a night in the cave with Logan, we make our way back to our tent. I gather my torn clothes and look them over. With a tuck here and fold there I figure I can still wear them.
As I dress I try not to think about Stone, try not to let the pain on his face haunt me.
Had he been here?
Or was it merely a dream?
Confused, I breathe deep to see if there are any lingering traces of his scent in the air, but when Logan’s familiar aroma fills my nostrils, not Stone’s, I shake my head to clear it, unable to make sense of it all.
Logan tosses the pack over his back and puts his arm around my waist, a gesture that fills me with warmth. “How do you feel?”
He looks so sleepy and rumpled that it has my mind racing to what we did in the cave. Then a grave thought hits me. Was it merely a diversion tactic on his part? Or does he really want me to be his mate?
“Last night, when we, you know, was it because—”
His grin is slow, soft and a smile reaches his eyes as he rakes my hair off my face. “It was because I wanted to, Pride. I’ve wanted to do that with you for a very long time now.”
A surge of warmth floods me. “Then why didn’t you? Why did you wait for so long?”
He gives a soft laugh. “Because whether you realized it or not you were vulnerable, and I wasn’t going to take advantage of that. You needed to come to terms with your own feelings before you could come to terms with mine.”
“So you have feelings for me then?” I ask, my voice rough with emotion.
His brow lifts in amused awareness then he laughs out loud. “For a smart girl—”
My heart tightens and I press my lips to his to stop him before he can finish. When I finally pull away surprise registers on his face.