Shain: Immortal Forsaken Series #6 (Paranormal Romance Novella)

by Verika Sloane

  A frown drew his mouth down. “When will you be here?”

  “Tomorrow night.”

  “Fine.”

  “Don’t sound so excited,” Zander joked.

  “I’m a vampire, not an actor.”

  Both men chuckled. The snide remark wasn’t meant to amuse.

  “See you soon, Trevyn,” Marex called before his companion hung up.

  The room was pitch black again when he turned off his phone.

  It was almost ten o’clock; he’d rested longer than intended.

  The house was quiet and dark also, other than the nightlight downstairs.

  Kimber’s door was closed.

  Guilt gnawed at him for how he’d treated her after she’d given him her vein.

  Silent, he walked to her door, almost as if in a trance. Only the gods knew how long he stood there, staring at it, shaking. In pain. His teeth came down slowly.

  What was he doing?

  Then he heard a whimper. He jerked in surprise, but remained.

  Don’t. Leave her alone.

  Another whined groan from the room.

  Gods, it wasn’t fair he couldn’t stay strong. He squeezed his eyes and pressed a hand to the wall and waited. One more sound from her and he was going in.

  Moments of silence stretched. Shain let out the breath he’d been holding, proud of his resistance, his ability to walk away.

  Kimber’s third cry ripped through him.

  It was as if the gods knew his limit and pushed past it, certain he would fold.

  With his hand turning the knob, he struggled with the powerful lust pushing at him to soothe her torment with pleasure, against the hard will to keep his distance. He shouldn’t touch her again until things were resolved, until he could give her his heart, too.

  “Shain,” she called, voice drenched in agony.

  And he was undone.

  Opening the door, he saw Kimber on the bed, asleep but restless, writhing in the sheets.

  The moment he started unzipping his jeans, she woke, and saw him. Holding the sheet to her chest, she sat up, and he waited for her to yell at him to get out.

  He paused in undressing, holding her gaze, silently asking what she wanted him to do. In that moment, he would’ve done anything she asked, even if she demanded he go to his knees and apologize or leave and never touch her again.

  In the end, he wasn’t really in control.

  He knew it and so did she.

  Her eyes glowed, like twin bonfires in a black night. Her lust, like his, an unstoppable force, dismissing bothersome emotions fighting for position.

  “Come here,” she said.

  So he did.

  Six

  A movement in the trees caught Kimber’s eye.

  She perked up from her cozy position on the bay window and leaned closer to the window, a blur of fur passing between the pines.

  Oh god, no. A shifter wolf?

  Her heart thundered.

  Her wolf fought to see, pushing through her sight, wanting to shift, but Kimber forced her back. It was getting harder and harder not to allow her wolf to dominate. Harder not to succumb to her animal form to escape the emotional distress.

  Her excellent hearing caught a bark in the distance, followed by a man’s shout.

  A large mutt emerged from around the brush, sniffing the ground. At his owner’s call, he jerked his head up and ran back.

  Kimber relaxed. Just a pet.

  The bathroom door upstairs opened. Shain came jogging down the stairs, not meeting her eyes as he headed for the coat rack.

  “Marex and Zander are on their way,” he announced.

  She couldn’t believe those were his first words to her.

  Last night he’d once again come to her room, wakening her from a disjointed sleep, crawling toward her like a seductive phantom. The desperation to get through to him had been so strong, she let him in her bed. It’d been her choice. Again, he had said nothing, and again, made love to her and left the room. To her dismay, he was the same as he’d been the first night: skilled, seductive, thorough, but silent, servicing, and detached.

  She hadn’t cried that time, feeling, in a way, that she didn’t deserve Shain’s love after the pain she’d caused.

  Her body and soul ached so much for him, even though he continued to treat her so coldly. Nevertheless, she didn’t deserve the constant back and forth.

  “When will they be here?” she asked wrapping the blanket around her shoulders.

  He shoved his arms in his bomber jacket. “A few hours. We need food.”

  “Is there anything I can do while you’re gone?”

  Pausing with his hand on the doorknob, he said, “Yeah. Don’t go for a run.”

  When the door closed, she growled, picked up a pillow and threw it. Damn him.

  Though the cabin was mostly tidy, she founded a rag and went around dusting surfaces that looked as though they’d never seen a wipe down. It was obvious the furniture, the fixtures, everything was new and barely used. No way did Shain decorate on his own. There were little touches like hand-woven fringe throws, mason jar sconces with artificial hydrangea flowers inside, and scented pillar candles everywhere.

  The place screamed of a woman’s touch.

  After cleaning, she took a shower and checked the time, knowing they’d walk in any minute.

  Well, she couldn’t exactly wear the sweatshirt anymore and there was no time to wash it. She started to go to his closet when she saw a shirt sitting on top of the pile in a hamper. She picked it up and brought the garment to her nose.

  Her wolf whined at the familiar, potent scent while tears gathered in Kimber’s eyes.

  She wished she knew what to do or say to melt some of his frost. What they’d been through—and what she’d put him through—had obviously changed him. Absent was the upbeat, playful, charming Shain she fell in love with, though she knew he still had to be in there somewhere.

  She put on the shirt, a red flannel, which hung down to her knees. She used a long piece of cord to cinch her waist so it didn’t look too ill-fitting.

  When she heard masculine voices enter the house, she strove to give off a more positive vibe, despite the fact one guest was a vampire and would be able to read her energy easily, and the fact the other was an alpha male shifter, who would smell the despair all over her.

  After a few deep breaths, she came down the stairs. Shain approached, a large brown bag in his arms. He looked up her up and down, desire flashing in his eyes before he said, “I got barbeque. Is that okay?”

  She nodded. “Smells good.”

  He brushed past her for the gray, rustic dining table.

  She started to smile when the vampire rebellion leader entered. “Marex. I see you made it out with all limbs intact.”

  “Were you worried about me, shiya?”

  She scrunched her nose and pinched her thumb and forefinger together. “Just a little.”

  He smirked with that classic, seductive, vampire arrogance. Because of the pressure of the situation, she hadn’t gotten a good look at him when they’d first met in the forest. Ruggedly handsome with a five o’clock shadow on a square jaw, hazel-brown eyes, and muscular build, he was less intimidating than she’d imagined and more handsome than rumored.

  “Thank you for your help,” she said sincerely.

  “You’re welcome.” He glanced at Shain. “We took our time getting here, to give you two at least one night to yourselves. We won’t stay beyond tomorrow, I promise.”

  A blush crept to her cheeks. “It’s no problem. Stay as long as you need.”

  Of course he assumed that, now she and Shain had been reunited, they’d want as much privacy as possible. Little did he know Shain had no problem keeping his distance. Except late at night, when she called for him in her sleep.

  The front door opened and another impressively built man with dark hair came in.

  “About time,” Marex remarked with one raised brow. “Itching to run this lan
dscape, aren’t you?”

  Zander Kane wiped his snow-saturated boots on the mat. “Fucking right. I have to go a long way to feel snow under my paws when I’m home.” He closed the door and looked at her, giving her the kind of smile that told her he wasn’t the typical sneering alpha. “You must be Kimber.”

  Her wolf bowed her head in respect at the alpha within him while the woman in her went to embrace. “Without you and that letter, I wouldn’t be here. Thank you.”

  “It was nothing, shiya. How are you doing?”

  Oh god, he already senses my sorrow. “I’m free. And happy. Happy to be free.”

  Before he could possibly read the lie in her eyes about one of those things, she turned away toward the table where Shain was pulling out the takeout boxes. She helped him while Marex and Zander removed their coats and boots.

  “Shit,” Zander muttered. “I just broke my laces.”

  Marex sent his friend a look. “You’re kidding. That’s your third this week.”

  “I’m not kidding.” He held up the evidence.

  “Are you buying ones for children?”

  “Very funny. I’m just too strong, I guess.”

  “No, you’re indelicate. Don’t pull them like teeth and they should last forever, Kane.”

  “Why the fuck would I need to be delicate with boot laces?”

  Kimber’s mouth curved. What a dynamic to witness.

  While they continued to bicker, she looked at Shain, who also seemed amused, albeit begrudgingly, as he set down a few beers on the table.

  Marex and Zander joined them, sitting across from each other, which made her to sit next to the alpha, and Shain next to Marex. After the food was sorted and portioned, a few bites consumed, Shain was the first to initiate conversation.

  “Did the Glaciers suspect you at all, Zander?” he asked.

  “That I don’t know, to be honest. If any alarms were raised by Kimber’s absence, I didn’t see or hear them. They showed me decent hospitality that night. I got Marex’s text he was hiding in some shack, but I waited to assess the situation. I didn’t think it’d be cool to suddenly bail in the middle of the night. If they knew Kimber was gone that morning, they hid it from me. When I left, I noticed a lot of activity, but didn’t stick around. I found Marex, rented a car, and we blew town.”

  Kimber couldn’t believe all they’d been through just for her. “I feel bad we left without you,” she confessed.

  Marex shook his head. “Don’t. That was the plan.”

  “I know, I just…if something had happened to you, it would’ve been strictly because of me.”

  “That, my lady, is false. I chose to come with Kane. Had I been caught or killed, it would’ve been no one’s fault except his.”

  Zander cocked his head, reaching for the hot sauce. “You should be a little insulted she’s inferring you wouldn’t be able to handle yourself.”

  Kimber didn’t mean to imply that whatsoever. Her cheeks flamed. “That’s not at all what I—”

  “Shiya,” Marex said. “He’s joking.”

  Glancing from Marex to Zander, she realized she was being too sensitive. “Oh. Well. Ha, ha, ha.”

  The pair chuckled.

  “So we don’t know if they’ve sent anyone to find me?” she asked hopefully.

  Shain responded first. “Of course they have.”

  Kane agreed. “We might owe the delay to your friend who wrote the letter. Did they help you escape?”

  She dabbed the napkin to her mouth before answering. “Diana? I was alone in the bungalow. I wanted to leave her a note, but that would’ve implicated her. She was supposed to help me get ready for the wedding and would’ve been the first one to see I wasn’t there. The ceremony wouldn’t have been until noon. She could’ve very well kept it a secret until the last minute, claiming she saw me up until then.”

  The shifter nodded. “You owe her, Kimber. That kind of loyalty is hard to find.”

  How she wished she could call Diana and thank her. “I know. I read her letter.”

  Marex twisted off the beer tab, his plate finished. “For all she knew, Kane could’ve sent her note to your alpha and exposed her for her betrayal to the pack. She must be as moved as Nadine and I are about you and Shain’s story, otherwise she never would’ve attempted to send it. It’s remarkable, your connection. To be frank, I wondered if it was nothing more than lust. After all, our kind are slaves to it. But then I witnessed the power of your relationship firsthand, that night we came to find you.”

  “Witnessed it?” Kimber didn’t understand.

  “Didn’t he tell you?” He looked at Shain, who had found a spot off to the side to concentrate on. “I advised Shain to feel for you, to call you with his soul, to believe in his feelings for you. Did I think it would work? I didn’t. But then he stood, closed his eyes, and the next thing I saw was you coming out of your bungalow. Straight. To. Him.”

  With all that had happened, she’d hardly thought about the fact she’d only gone outside that night because she thought she heard him calling her name.

  “Surely you realize how special it is,” Marex added after the strange silence. “Your love for one another despite, well, everything.”

  Kimber briefly closed her eyes. Stop it, please, stop it.

  Shain abruptly got up and picked up the plate.

  Marex and Kane exchanged glances, and she knew they’d given themselves away.

  Unable to finish her meal, Kimber pushed away from the table, forcing a light tone. “I’ll make up the sofa bed.” She found extra blankets and pillows in a closet, set them on the recliner chair, and started to pull the cushions off the pullout bed in the living room.

  She glanced up when Zander appeared at her side.

  “Need a hand?”

  “No, I’m fine,” she said, tucking her hair behind her ear.

  “Then how about I’m looking for an excuse to speak to you privately and helping you make the sofa bed is it?”

  “Speak to me about what?” She handed him a couch cushion.

  “From what Marex told me, and from how Shain reacted when we first came here and told him about you, I pictured the two of you barely able to leave each other’s arms to answer the door let alone sit and have a meal with us.”

  So did she. “If you know why I went back to my pack, then you know I lied to Shain.”

  “I do.”

  They each took hold of the metal bar to pull out the sleeper sofa.

  “Then you also have an idea of what I said to him the day I left him.”

  “Yeah. Like telling him you’d found your destined mate?”

  She flinched, grabbing the bedsheet. “He hasn’t forgotten that part. Or forgiven me. Can you blame him?”

  A short pause settled as he helped spread the sheet over the mattress. “No. But he should forgive you. I see the way you look at him. Have you told him why you had to betray him?”

  Nervous Shain would overhear, she glanced back to see him and Marex in their own conversation. “Of course I did. It wasn’t enough. He insists I could’ve chosen differently.”

  Zander haphazardly tucked the sheet over the corner. “Eventually, he’ll forgive you. But he may never forget. Be prepared to live with that.”

  Her heart dropped to her stomach. “I am.”

  They pulled the sheet over, then the blanket, throwing the pillows on top.

  With a sigh, Kimber went to the fire to warm her chilled hands, afraid she might start crying.

  Zander followed and stood next to her. “Kimber. I wouldn’t be much of an alpha if I didn’t offer you an alternative.”

  “An alternative?”

  “To come with me and join my pack in Louisiana.”

  She shot her gaze to his, and he gave a single nod.

  “You would let me do that?” she asked, incredulous.

  “Of course.”

  She couldn’t possibly… Then again, if Shain didn’t want to be with her anymore, she could possibly.
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  “But, does your pack feel the way you do, regarding my past with a vampire?” She mentally shuddered at the thought of going from one judgmental pack to another, and sensed Zander would be honest with her.

  “While they don’t exactly embrace mixing with vampires on that level, they’ll accept you, Kimber. First and foremost, because I accept you, and second, because we’re more progressive every day with our views on vampires, and third, because you deserve a pack who will respect you.” He crossed his arms, arching a thick black brow. “However, I can’t guarantee you’ll be left alone. Your beauty will attract many. Add to that the fact you’re brave, with a sense of humor, a little famous, and you’d have your pick of mates.” He set his chin down, staring into the flames. “But don’t do it unless you’re sure you and Shain are done.”

  She looked over her shoulder, the thought of leaving him painful. “I can’t thank you enough, Zander, but no. I want to stay. I love him.”

  A pause. “I know you do.”

  But does he love you? was the unspoken question he left hanging. He handed his number on a paper. “Here. My personal cell. In case you need anything. Either of you.”

  She gave him a halfhearted smile of gratitude and put it in the flannel’s breast pocket. “Thanks.”

  “Is there anything we can do for you before we leave tomorrow?”

  How lucky Zander’s pack was to claim him as their leader. “Actually, you could mail a few things for me. The post office is so far.”

  “Sure thing.”

  She grabbed the small bundle Shain had left by the door and handed it to Zander when Marex approached.

  Zander stuffed them in his duffel bag, asking, “What’s up?”

  “I’ll take the sofa, you take the bedroom. You need more sleep than I do right now.”

  “Vampires,” he muttered to Kimber with a wink. “Always disgustingly polite.”

  Shain’s gaze followed Kimber while she climbed the steps to her bedroom.

  Before closing the door, she looked down, their eyes meeting for a moment, before he tore his away.

  Gods. He was so close to caving. So close to saying Okay, you win. All is forgiven.