by Amy Pennza
Lizette shot Aiden a look, but his attention was on Jonah. “You can face me,” she told Jonah. Did they really think he was going to Turn and rip all their throats out? She stepped inside, Max on her heels. He positioned himself just inside the door, arms folded over his chest, while Dom and Remy entered after them and took up residence on the other side of the door.
Jonah scooted around on his butt, noticing Max first, and he swallowed with an audible gulp. He lowered his head and curled his shoulders in. If he’d been in wolf form he might have rolled to his back or stuck his tail between his legs.
Someone had given him clothes—sweatpants and an undershirt—but he was barefoot. Aside from the thick white scars bisecting his neck, he bore no obvious injuries. Like Nathan, he had brown eyes and hair, and his face was similar to Nathan’s, too, with regular, even features. Once upon a time, she’d craved that brand of steady, unremarkable appeal.
She glanced at Max, a dark menace in the doorway. “How about now?” asked a little voice in her head.
Jonah’s heartbeat echoed in her ears, pulling her back to the task at hand. He sat cross-legged, one hand splayed on the floor. From the way he leaned on it, he was either dizzy or exhausted. She cleared her throat. “Um…how do you feel?”
“I’ve been better.” His voice rasped, the painful sound like fingernails on an emery board. He darted a glance at her. “My thanks for the Gift, Healer.”
The ritual words dredged up faint edges of memories. There was a specific response to that—something Healers were supposed to say…
Remy’s voice floated into her brain. “It was freely given.”
She took a deep breath. “It was freely given.”
The corners of Jonah’s mouth lifted in a ghost of a smile, and the expression was pure Nathan. Her breath caught. She was nineteen again, laughing as she ran through the forest, surrounded by the heady scents of pine and soil.
Jonah’s smile faded. “Whatever you’re thinking about, it’s making you sad.”
“How can you tell?”
“I can smell it.” He tapped his nose. “I’m a Tracker. It’s my Gift. It runs in the family. For most of us, anyway.”
“What does sadness smell like?”
He seemed to think about it. “The air after a heavy rain.”
She crouched in front of him. Behind her, Max shifted but stayed quiet. “Why did you—” She caught herself before she could say “attack me.” Best not to remind Max about that. “Why did you come here?”
“Because…” He glanced at Max.
“It’s okay, Jonah,” she said.
He swallowed again. “Nathan needs your help.”
Her scalp tingled. She’d known Nathan’s name would come up, but hearing it bounce around the cavern with Max seething at her back was unsettling. What emotion did Jonah smell from her now?
“Is he hurt?” she asked.
Jonah sighed. “Not his body. His mind. He’ll be fine one minute, the next he’s a totally different person. When it started out, he was just irritable. Then he got angrier and…violent. He’s no match for our kind of strength, but he can take on any human. I’m afraid he’ll kill somebody. His wolf has gotten stronger, but he still can’t Turn, and at twenty-six it’s almost certain he never will. If this keeps up, he’ll die…or I’ll have to kill him.” His mouth twisted.
She didn’t need a heightened sense of smell to pick up Jonah’s anguish.
His eyes pleaded with her. “I know you can help him. You’re the only one who can.”
Max stepped beside her. “How do you know that?”
“There have been rumors.”
Lizette looked up at Max. His expression was grim. He’d warned her about this.
He focused on Jonah. “You can smell a lie better than most, so I assume you appreciate the importance of answering my next question honestly. There have been rumors about Lizette’s Gift, I’ll grant you that. But how did you know she’d be at the Lodge?”
“I got an email. I’ll show it to you if you return my phone, but I don’t know how much help it’ll be. It was sent from a throwaway account.”
A chill went down Lizette’s spine. Was someone monitoring her movements? If her Gift was as rare as Max claimed, how long before she was hunted like an animal for what she could do? What if mating Max wasn’t enough? She might draw a war right to his doorstep.
“Please,” Jonah said, and it wasn’t clear if he was talking to Lizette or Max. “I don’t want to bury my brother. You owe—”
A gust of cool air brushed Lizette’s face. There was a thud and a gurgle, and Max had Jonah pinned against the bars. The muscles in his forearm bulged. Jonah’s bare toes brushed the floor.
She scrambled to her feet, but Remy grabbed her arm.
“Don’t,” his voice said in her mind. “He’s barely holding himself in check.”
Max gripped Jonah’s throat. “She doesn’t owe you anything.” With his back to her, Lizette couldn’t see his face, but his voice told her he was close to Turning. The growl was too low to pass for human.
Jonah’s complexion turned a mottled red. He clawed at Max’s arm. His lips moved as he obviously struggled to speak.
“With respect, Alpha,” Dom said, his tone almost bored, “killing Hallerton will have consequences.”
Max lowered Jonah to the ground but didn’t remove his hand.
Jonah sucked in air. “Not…her. You. I meant you.”
“Explain,” Max said.
“You almost killed my brother.” Jonah’s glance flicked to Lizette. “And you robbed him of a possible mate. Do you know how rare it is for a latent to match with a wolf?” Jonah’s voice hardened. “No parents will consider Nathan for their purebred daughters, especially after one rejected him.”
The reality check was like a punch in the gut. That night in the forest turned Lizette’s life upside down, but in five years she’d never considered how it affected Nathan. Of course he was suffering, too. She shook off Remy’s restraining hand.
“You’re wrong about that,” she said. Max’s shoulders tensed. “I didn’t reject him. I just didn’t know what I wanted.” Warmth rushed to her cheeks. The last thing she’d prepared for when she came down here was to confess her confusion about werewolf relationships to a group of men. “I liked Nathan because he was smart and funny…and safe.”
The tension drained from Max’s shoulders. He released Jonah and faced her.
Their eyes met. Time seemed to slow. The others faded into the background, until it was just her and Max. She drew in a trembling breath. “It would have been easy to love Nathan. I could have it all...marriage and companionship—and the ability to walk away whenever I wanted. No unbreakable bonds. No invisible thread connecting my life to his.”
Max’s gaze held hers like a lodestone.
“But I didn’t love him. I tried to. Maybe I even thought I did for a while. But he wasn’t for me.”
Sounds from the cavern intruded. Jonah’s ragged breathing echoed around the cell. On the wall, a torch sputtered, filling the cavern with a burst of light. Lizette looked at Jonah. “You’re wrong about me rejecting Nathan, but you’re right about me owing him. He helped me realize something important, and I owe him for that.” She glanced at Max. “With my Alpha’s permission, I’ll do my best to Turn him.”
“Granted,” Max said without hesitation. She’d chosen to use her Gift. He knew what that meant.
Jonah rubbed his throat. “Thank you.”
Aiden spoke. “Respectfully, Alpha, are you sure this is a good idea?”
Max pinned him with a look. “Why wouldn’t it be?”
“Nathan Hallerton dated Lizette. He spent a lot of time with her.” Aiden darted a look at Lizette. “I imagine they were…intimate.”
Remy groaned.
Max stilled. An icy blast of air rushed through the cell. Power sizzled over Lizette’s skin. She took a deep breath and held it.
In a low, deliberate voice, Max said, “What’s your fuck
ing point?”
Aiden looked down, which proved he wasn’t a total idiot. “Hallerton never managed to Turn. Should we really waste our resources on someone like that?”
What the actual fuck? Lizette folded her arms. “I’m not a resource.”
Aiden looked right at her. “He’s just a latent.”
“He’s a wolf,” Max said. “And no less than any one of us.” He walked up to the bars where Aiden still stood on the outside of the cage. “If I ever hear you insinuate that latent wolves are somehow inferior to so-called purebreds, I’ll banish you. Understand?”
Aiden kept his eyes trained on Max’s throat. “Yes, Alpha.”
“A little louder, so everyone can hear you.”
“I understand, sir.”
“Good.” Max turned to Jonah, then gestured to Remy and Dom. “My Hunters will retrieve your brother and bring him to the Lodge. Aiden, here, will stay behind to make sure your…recovery continues.” His power crackled in the air around him. “You took a risk trespassing in my territory—a foolish risk. You won’t do it again.”
“I won’t, sir.”
Max faced Lizette. As he gestured for her to precede him out of the cell, his expression changed. His gaze held an unmistakable sensual promise. Prepare to be claimed, it told her.
Her belly flipped over.
“After you, petite.”
She stepped through the door, where Aiden waited with the key. On her way out she caught his eye.
Pure hate glared back at her, and she stumbled.
Max caught her elbow. “Are you all right?”
She regained her footing. “Yes…” She looked at Aiden, who now watched her with faint concern, his dark eyebrows pulled together. Had she imagined it? The torches threw rippling, jumping shadows over everything.
Max patted her arm. “Let’s get you upstairs.” He jerked a thumb toward Aiden. “Get Hallerton a blanket and something to eat.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
Lizette barely heard their exchange. She was too busy processing “let’s get you upstairs.” Memories of Max’s hot tongue on her sex flooded her. She’d just told him why she chose Nathan—and why she’d been wrong to do so. He wasn’t likely to forget.
The cell door clanged behind them as he led her to the stone steps. He slid his hand from her elbow to her palm and curled his fingers around hers. Remy and Dom followed.
The climb to the top felt much shorter than the trip down. Her heart fluttered.
As they reached the top, Remy’s laughing voice entered her head, “Bonne chance, cousine.”
Good luck. She couldn’t turn back and glare at him without alerting Max to their private conversation, but she assured herself that she’d get back at Remy later. Besides, he had a point. She was on her way to an Alpha werewolf’s den.
She needed all the luck she could get.
19
The hall outside Max’s suite was empty.
Lizette stopped in front of the double doors and swallowed against the sudden knot in her throat. “No guards?”
He opened the door and held it for her, one long arm stretched along the sturdy walnut. His light blue eyes fastened on hers. He’d stuffed his wolf away somewhere, the essence of what made him Alpha buried under the parts of him that were wholly man. “I don’t think you’ll need them tonight.”
“Oh?” She lowered her gaze to his throat as her heart did its best to beat out of her chest. “Why is that?”
Cloth rustled as he lifted his free hand to her face. He curled a finger under her chin and tipped her head up. “Because I’ll be in your bed.”
Her sex clenched. Arrogant wolf. “I d-didn’t…” She had to swallow before she could continue. “I didn’t say I’d sleep with you.”
His lips curved. “You didn’t have to.” He leaned down and put his mouth next to her ear, and when he spoke his warm breath tickled the fine hairs near her temple. “Your sweet scent is all over me.” He brushed a kiss against the sensitive skin under her ear. “And I can still taste you on my tongue.”
Staying upright was a challenge. Shivers coursed down her arms, across her shoulders, and down her belly. Warmth seeped between her intimate lips, dampening her panties.
Max slid a hand around the back of her neck. The bite mark on his thumb brushed the brand on her nape. Electricity rocketed from her neck to her sex, and a moan escaped her. Almost on their own, her hips bucked toward him. “Please…” The breathless plea emerged before she could stop it.
Was this the lux catena? She wasn’t sure she cared anymore—anything to satisfy the thrumming, persistent ache between her thighs.
“Please, what?” he asked. He held her away from him, their only connection his big hand on the back of her neck. His thumb traced a slow arc around her hairline, sending more shivers rippling down her spine. “What do you need from me, bébé?”
He pressed the fleshy part of his thumb against her nape again. His mark burned against hers. Through the fog of desire, one thought emerged. He’s doing it on purpose. There would be no force this time. No misunderstandings. If she slept with him, there was no going back. The lux catena would be complete. She would belong to him, her life forever tied to his.
He watched her, his power leashed and waiting while his thumb continued its lazy circuit around her brand. It was as if an invisible thread connected the mark to her core. With each rhythmic swirl around the edge, heat shot down her spine to her sex. The muscles there throbbed and clenched.
The memory of his hands on her ass while he sucked her clit burst into her mind. He’d held her open with his thumbs while he devastated her with his tongue. What would he do to her in bed?
“Tell me what you want,” he murmured.
“I…” It was one thing to passively let it happen. Saying it out loud made it real—and far more binding than any human marriage vow. Her mark burned. Her breasts felt heavy and full, her nipples stiff and aching. His hand was light on her neck. She could slip his hold with a single step sideways. That’s all it would take to walk away.
I don’t want to walk away. She drew a ragged breath. “I want…”
He dropped his hand from her neck. Voice gentle, he said, “I’m afraid I need to hear you say it, petite.”
“I want…this. Us.”
Victory flared in his eyes. His voice dropped to a purr. “Do you know what this means?”
She licked her lips. His eyes shot to her mouth, and a low rumble vibrated in his chest. Her heart kicked into overdrive. He seemed to be waiting for a response, so she whispered, “Yes.”
“It means I have to fuck you. Is that what you want?”
Oh, God. Her cheeks were on fire. She nodded.
But he refused to let her off the hook that easily. “Say it, petite,” he coaxed. “Say ‘I want you to fuck me, Maxime.’”
She did. Heaven help her, she did. All thoughts of her Gift, of her parents’ neglect, and the knot of worry she’d carried for so long, fled. The only thing that mattered was right in front of her. She dragged in a breath. “I want you to fuck—”
A blur of movement was her only warning before rough hands seized her. The world spun as he swung her into his arms and strode through the door, slowing just long enough to kick it shut with his heel. Someone had banked the fire, but embers glowed under the ash, filling the room with soft red light.
She clung to his shoulders, her fingers curling in the soft fabric of his shirt. He reached the bed in four strides and followed her down to the mattress, his lips warm against her neck. Shivers chased frantic paths down her limbs as his body pressed against hers—his hard planes and angles pressing into her softer curves. He rained tiny kisses across her collarbone, his tongue trailing a damp caress across her fevered skin.
Hot, restless need built anew at the apex of her thighs. Warmth leaked from her sex.
Max rose to his knees, gripped the sides of his shirt, and pulled. The material parted like tissue paper while buttons flew, pinging against the
hardwood. His bare chest gleamed in the dim light. His eyes never left hers as he unbuttoned his jeans and pushed them down his thighs. He lifted himself over her, his biceps flexing, and kicked the jeans to the floor.
Clad only in a pair of black boxer briefs, he knelt beside her, his palms on his thighs, as if giving her a chance to look her fill.
She looked.
Beast. The word punched into her brain. He was a magnificent, dangerous beast—the sort of looming threat humans wove into their cautionary fairy tales. Beware this creature, they warned. He’s not like us.
In this, at least, the humans had gotten it right. Max was wholly unlike the handful of males Lizette had dated. Those were college boys.
Max was entirely man, and not just because of his size. The Alpha’s power thrummed under his skin, cloaked but hovering at the ready. Taut muscle rippled across his chest and down his arms. The sprinkling of black hair covering his pecs trailed a thin line down the center of his abs and then disappeared into the waistband of his boxer briefs.
She let her fascination wander lower, to his groin…
His erection strained against the cloth, the thick length jutting from his hips. Apprehension tingled through her. He was way bigger than any of her toys.
She looked up at him. “Max, I don’t think—”
“Relax, petite. It’s nothing you can’t handle.” His gentle voice was at odds with his fierce expression.
His power was a living thing. It crackled in the air between them like a snake’s tongue licking over its prey. He took her hand and pulled her up and into his arms. Her breasts brushed his chest, and sweet fire shot from her nipples to her sex. His scent enveloped her, the dark spice blooming around the two of them like exotic flowers in the devil’s garden. With every breath, she drew more into her lungs.
He tugged her shirt over her head and tossed it to the side. His nostrils flared as he focused on her breasts. They seemed to swell under his regard, her nipples unbearably tight. He reached behind her and popped the clasp with a flick of his fingers. The cups fell away, and her breasts sprang forth.
Max cupped them, his thumbs on her nipples. “I could come just looking at these.”