Forever Mated

by Penelope Wylde

  Muscle. So much hard delicious, mouth-watering muscle. In all her hurry she’d forgotten one thing about Devlin. How incredibly fucking gorgeous he was. Sapphire eyes, black hair, and deeply tanned skin year-round. If she could put words to the man that stood in front of her with the hard glint in his eye, she’d say edgy, capable and dangerous. So very dangerous. To her heart and her body. She’d spent a lot of time examining his body and feeling those strong hands of his on every inch of her body. He was her first and only. She wanted—needed—him before she fell apart and could never be put back together again.

  But her soul too, because a spot in Hades just opened for her right alongside the devil himself with what she was about to do. Only someone evil and wicked could ever hurt this man.

  She smirked. Did that make her the wicked witch?

  Hard eyes leveled on her as he pushed forward in a slow stalk. Oh, goddess. She fought to keep the arousal whipping through her like a hurricane hidden beneath a calm mask of indifference.

  She failed.

  Could he hear her heart beat? Of course, he could. He could scent her instant arousal to seeing him, too.

  Breathe, Eva.

  She cleared her throat and forced her feet to stay put when what she wanted to do was fling herself into his arms and beg for his forgiveness.

  Or run. Run as if the devil was blowing fire up her ass. The old Eva would have. That Eva was weak.

  The new Eva straightened her shoulders and cocked a brow.

  “What the fuck are you doing here, Eva? Don’t you want to run away?”

  A smile tilted a corner of her mouth up.

  Eva gathered the fine dust of her truth charm, moved from the table positioned in the middle of the kitchen and closed the few steps between her and Devlin.

  Before he could figure out her intentions, she raised her palm and dusted the air around them.

  Gold and silver flecks with a touch of crimson sparkled in the dim moonlight. The fine glittery stuff coated them head to toe.

  She quickly dusted the charm over her body and breathed in a heavy dose to make sure they were equal.

  Seconds passed and she watched as her charm dissolved, revealing one very ticked off alpha with a hard icy-blue gaze trained one hundred percent on her.

  Hades to blazes. Devlin frowned. “You’re playing with hellfire tonight, Eva, and this time I won’t let you get away from the flames,” he growled slowly.

  Something clicked inside her and she let a smile pull at her lips.

  She walked the tips of her fingers up his bare chest and rose to her toes to place kisses along his scruffy jawline. Her hard nipples pressed against his chest, causing him to growl low in his throat. She gasped when he suddenly pulled her to him and she felt the insanely hard ridge of his cock pressed against her. Her core tightened and her pulse raced.

  The air thickened with the heat that pulsed between them. So thick she could feel it cocoon around them like a warm blanket shutting out the rest of the world.

  She pulled from his strong arms earning her another growl. This time deeper and more menacing.

  She pinned him with a mischievous look. “If I run, would you catch me this time, Devlin?”

  Chapter Four

  Pure fury lightened his already ethereal eyes. The glow was as beautiful as it was lethal, lethal to others, anyway. She knew, down to the deepest part of her soul, he would never hurt her. Never threaten her or raise a hand to strike her.

  But there was a warning that hid beneath the surface of his bunched muscles and strained expression. If she pushed too hard, he might push back and what he’d demand as payment would be more than she could pay.

  Obviously, he didn’t know her very well. Not anymore. He thought the shy, sweet Eva he fell for years ago had returned.

  Her inner vixen smiled. Oh, bad, bad move, wolfie. No. All illusions of innocence had vanished long ago. What stood in the middle of his cabin was a woman damn determined to give as much truth as she received for both their sakes and she damn sure wasn’t shy on how to go about getting it. She was so over cowering from the higher powers and the bullshit rules of her world.

  Her new motto: Fuck ‘em.

  And if his people had anything to say about her charming a second-in-command alpha shifter to a powerful pack, then they knew where to find her. Until then, she planned to get her life back on track.

  If Devlin wanted to scare her, he’d have to work a helluva lot harder at containing the lusty vibes that rolled off him to stroke a sweet trail of lust along her libido.

  He slammed the cabin’s front door closed behind him. She felt the thud of wood hitting metal all the way to the soles of her feet. He was pissed.

  Too bad.

  “What the hell was that, Eva? What did you do to me?” He scrubbed a hand over his face but it was too late. The second the charm left her palm, it absorbed into the skin and it was balls to the wall from here on out. Let the fun begin.

  She mentally cracked her knuckles. Tingles ran along her skin and her mouth grew dry. Deep and dark, she steeled against the shiver that wanted to rack her body. His voice washed over her like a velvety caress. He could make her come just by talking, she swore.

  She rolled her shoulders. The effects of the charm were starting to kick in, but she managed to skirt the full truth. For now.

  “A charm.”

  Normally, she would have bought some time with an answer of Lust Dust or something equally horny-sounding to make him think she was here only to get into his pants.

  Which currently rode low over his hips, as if he’d dressed in a hurry to get here. She raked her gaze over his bare chest, pebbled nipples from the cold before returning her attention to his face.

  “Ride like the wind to get home, did you? What’s the hurry, wolfie?”

  He hated that nickname and she used it to press a few buttons.

  Without breaking eye contact, Devlin reached into the back of his jeans to produce his phone. With a flip of his thumb, a bright red dot flashed on the screen with an intruder warning in a bubble to the side.

  An alarm. “That’s new.”

  “It is. Had it installed a week after you bailed.”

  “Burn. Why would you want to do that?” She mentally slapped a hand to her forehead. Truth charm, stupid. Don’t ask questions you don’t want answers to.

  “To keep meddling little witches out of my house. For good this time.”

  “Hmm. Might want to get your money back for that cause I strolled right in. No bells or warnings of impending doom.”

  “It worked just fine. I’m here, aren’t I?”

  Wow. He sure as Hades had a way of making a girl feel two inches tall.

  She cringed inwardly but held her ground.

  Devlin edged forward a step, his boots laced halfway. “Why are you here, Eva? Don’t you have some spell to work up or potion to mix?” Or a heart to break? She couldn’t hear the words, but he didn’t need to say them. When a shifter mated, they formed a mental connection that gave both parties the ability to share thoughts and feel each other’s emotions. Kind of handy when one is in wolf form.

  But right now, all she heard was the supernatural equivalent to static on the lines because she couldn’t hear a damn thing.

  She’d have to rely on her spell and ability to read his expressions, which showed he didn’t appreciate her sense of humor right now.

  He brushed past her and headed toward the kitchen and all but skidded to a full stop when he spotted her mischief spread over his dining table.

  She pulled her arms over her chest. “The spell work is done. Now to see the results.” She kept her voice low, calm and a complete contrast to the ire she could see tightening his shoulder blades.

  “I can feel whatever you dosed me with. What have you done, babe?” He turned to face her, his expression tight with worry.

  What was it about him that made her so hot she rivaled the sun?

  She stepped in front of him and placed a palm on
his cheek. “Tell me something, is there someone else who has taken my place? Maybe a packmate you use to take the edge off?” She hadn’t planned to rip off the Band-Aid in one pull, but there you go. Deep down, she didn’t want to know his answer, but couldn’t stop the question from slipping out.

  He shook her hand off. “Don’t, Eva.”

  Warning bells went off in her head for all the wrong reasons. His jaw clenched and unclenched. Was he gritting his mouth closed to keep from answering?

  Lips moving softly as butterfly wings, Eva chanted a line from her spell in a hushed whisper.

  Bring to me truth this night

  With open hearts and secrets revealed

  “Tell me, Devlin. No secrets, no lies. Not tonight. I just want the truth and then I’ll leave.” She forced out the lie. Her charm took a little longer to work on her. Perks of being the casting witch.

  Gorgeous muscles flexed and bunched. She took a step toward him and his eyes flashed in warning. A deep, guttural growl stopped her cold.

  “You can’t fight the lure of the charm, Devlin.”

  He gave a fierce nod. Out of agreement or frustration, she didn’t know. He rolled back on his heels as he crossed his arms over his bare chest. Small droplets of sweat beaded across his brow as the only sign he felt the pull of her charm. Stock-still, he stood there, laser-sharp eyes honed on her. Seconds ticked by before he finally broke the silence.

  “You want the truth?” His chest heaved and he made it sound as though it weighed more than ten boulders. Edgy and dangerous fit the man’s description, but so did patient and cunning. She’d do well to remember that.

  “I’m not the one that left without a word. Remember?” He jutted his chin and lowered his lashes to peer down at her. As if that would intimidate her or keep her from finding out what she wanted to know.

  “Don’t go there, Eva. Don’t use words that mean nothing to you. And sure as hell don’t ask me questions you don’t really want the answers to.”

  What was that flaring to life in his irises? Lust? Desire to touch her the way she craved to touch him? Or was that pure, unfiltered hunger she saw? Could she handle him this lit up? She sure as Hades could try!

  “Do they lessen the ache you feel for me, your mate?” She’d tried taking a lover once after leaving Sleepy Briar, after leaving him if only to break the damn bond. But the thought made her sick and the bond they shared forged a painful ache in her belly until she no longer even thought about wanting anyone else. Was it the same for him?

  “You’re asking the wrong questions. You have no idea what I feel or for who.” Anger rolled off him as he snarled at her. He grabbed her by the hips and bared his teeth. “Break this spell now, little witch, before it’s too late.” He released her and stumbled back.

  She gasped. She was vulnerable from what he made her feel and she had to focus to keep her mind in the game. “No.” She knew better to feign fear— he’d smell that. Surprise or shock, well, not so much. “Tell me what I want to know. Do other women occupy your bed? Do you wish they were me? Do they take the edge off the burn and ache you feel through our bond?” Her voice grew quieter with each question she peppered at him.

  He seized her lips and slid an arm around her waist, taking their kiss deeper. “You are all I fucking want, think about and desire. I want to fuck you until you submit to me, Eva. If I hadn’t left the Cauldron Bubble when I did, I would have sunk my cock and my teeth into you in front of the whole town. Is that what you wanted to know? Happy now?”

  He dropped the truth between them just as she wanted. A bomb loaded with enough explosive power to level both of them where they stood.

  He broke away from her and braced his hands on the back of a kitchen chair. Wide shoulders tapered into a thick waist and long legs that could eat up the distance between them in two strides.

  But he didn’t budge and she didn’t get to test her reflexes at how fast she could strip for him to do what he wanted with her. Instead, he stood there white-knuckling the poor chair as if he wanted to get his fingers around something. Or someone.

  Despite everything, nothing could keep her gaze from zeroing in on his impressive bulge through the wide-spaced wooden slats of the chair.

  Her body flushed with waves of heat. His eyes shined and sweat dampened his brow despite the cold weather and the lack of a fire in the hearth.

  She stilled her nerves and slipped a soft smile in place. “That must be painful. Let me help.”

  “You need to leave.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  He stepped back from her until his back pressed against the tall windows opposite the kitchen table. Moonlight washed over them as she cupped a hand over his thick shaft.

  “God damn it, Eva!”

  The room warmed and it felt like July in the middle of the Sahara.

  On her tiptoes, she leaned in inch by inch until her nipples rested against his bare chest and turned her lips up to his ear. “The moonlight. I love the way you look wearing a curtain of silver.”

  She couldn’t hold back the husky lust that coated her words. She knew he could already sense how she felt about him. Or at the very least smell her desire for him. It coated the thin strip of her panties and the scent tainted the air enough even she could feel it twine around them with a life of its own.

  Devlin sucked back air between clenched teeth and let his head fall back to thud against the pane. “Woman, you have fire in your soul and if I make one false move, I’ll be burned.”

  “Don’t you know, Devlin, my love… fire starts with the smallest of embers?”

  “And ends in ash and destruction,” he added in a gravely pained voice.

  She grimaced at his words. “Touché.” She dropped her gaze to the floor. Ash or not, hopefully, they still had a chance.

  He clamped a hand around hers and tightened his grip until his erection throbbed against her palm. “Now stop with your games. What are you after tonight, because I think you made it clear you want nothing to do with me—or my dick—months ago.” He looked pointedly at their joined hands. She held his a little too snug.

  “I thought I could walk away, Devlin.” She stepped back half a pace to look into his eyes, her hands now resting on his chest.

  Such solid strength. Banked strength. For a man of power, he was careful not to hurt her.

  One kiss. Just one, then she would tell him everything. Collecting a handful of his thick hair in her hand, she angled his mouth close.

  Soft yet firm. Her lips grazed over the full length of his bottom lip, but he didn’t move to kiss her back. He didn’t pull away either.

  Her tongue snaked out to run along the seam of his mouth.

  Cinnamon with a hint of vanilla. And all male. Her male.

  She loved the unique combination of his favored chewing gum and the very essence of what made up Devlin. It was her favorite drug of choice and she couldn’t get enough.

  “Why did you leave me?” He stroked a finger down her cheek.

  Sparks of electricity shot through her and left her breathless the longer she touched him. She pulled back enough to look into his eyes. Her voice pitched low, barely above a whisper. “I thought if I left, I would save you the heartache by keeping the truth from you.”

  “Mates don’t run, Eva.”

  She looked up into his eyes and saw his lips glistened with her kiss. She wouldn’t lie, it hurt that he hadn’t kissed her back, but a sliver of hope shined through the tense atmosphere when she saw him suck the flesh of his bottom lip between his teeth.

  “I have something to tell you, Devlin, and you might hate me for it.” She reached between them and let her fingers trail softly along his jaw. She’d do anything to see him smile her way again. Anything.

  “I want to know what you charmed me with. Now, Eva, and no more dodgy answers.”

  She let out a heavy breath. “A truth spell,” she answered bluntly.

  “What do you want to know? The faster I tell you, the faster you c
an leave.”

  Did he mean that? She was here to mend their differences, and all he wanted was for her to leave and the spell made it impossible for him to lie. She hated the catch twenty-two shit of the law of magic. You can ask for it, but it didn’t mean you would like it once you got what you wanted.

  “You misunderstand. I’ve spelled us both. Neither of us can lie.”

  Her people acted as if she’d done something wrong by loving Devlin in the first place, and it made her heart ache that she’d followed them blindly. Now she saw red and wanted blood in return for her pain and the pain she caused him. If she’d had parents with enough balls to stand up to the Silver Circle, maybe things between her and Devlin would be different.

  No one had that right over her, and in the end, if the price was the magic she was born into, they could have it. “I’m done running. Fearing what might happen for what should have happened. I’ve hidden out, not wanting to bring the wrath of the Council down on you or your pack.” She threw her hands up and waved her fingers. “I know casting a spell on you was so fucking wrong, but you have to see why I did it.”

  His lips lifted in a humorless smile. “Do I?”

  She took another step back and leaned a hip against the table. “You have two choices. Walk me out that door and leave me on the other side or walk over fire with me and let’s burn the rule book. The world, the Silver Circle, the laws and all the controlling factions of my people… Be. Fucking. Damned.” She would have smiled at the complete and utter look of shock on his face, but so much as a twitch would ruin the seriousness of her words.

  His eyes narrowed and his gaze landed on her right hand. He moved, reaching out for her hand. He clasped his larger hand over hers and stroked a thumb over the pack ring she’d slipped on her thumb earlier.

  “The choices are rather simple, don’t you think?”

  “That’s a lot to ask, Eva. You ever stop and think laws are in place for a reason? Or are you bent on breaking them all for the hell of it? Come to think of it, maybe it was a good thing you left. Now that I’ve had a good amount of time to think it over, a witch and a shifter aren’t the best mix. Besides,” Devlin gestured to the ring on her thumb, “…when you sent that back to me I think you were pretty fucking clear about which side of the law you stood on.”