“You could never hurt me,” I tell him and capture his lips once more. I feel his resolve crumbling as he kisses me harder, but he slows it down and steps back from the wall, putting me back on my feet and breaking our connection.
“I’d never want to, but there’s a lot about me you don’t know yet, Eden. Just trust me.” He sighs and runs his strong hands through his inky hair. “We should go for that run. It’ll help, and we’ll see if we can’t coax out your animal.”
“Okay, big guy,” I relent. I can see how torn he is about it and I don’t want to make any of this harder on him. “Let me get changed real quick and I’ll be out.”
“Sure, I’ve got my gear in my backpack. I’ll change after you.”
I smile, and reach up, placing a kiss on his cheek before grabbing my workout gear and heading into the bathroom to change. I might’ve been ready to be naked in front of him, but I don’t want to push him any further if he doesn’t want me to.
I change quickly, making sure my necklace and ring are secure and put my hair up so it’s out of the way. I check out my reflection in the mirror and my skin is flushed, the pink staining my chest and cheeks. This bond really does enhance feelings. I’ve never been that girl, but I just can’t seem to stop myself with these guys at the minute. Maybe in my research I’ll find out that its effects dampen, or that I can learn to control the crazy hormones.
I splash my face with cold water and leave the room, coming face to face with Cam, who is sat on my bed, backpack in hand.
“You okay?” I ask him, and he looks at me with a look I just can’t read. I don’t want to use my powers to read his emotions, because that feels like invading his privacy, so I refrain.
“I’ll be fine.” He gives me a small smile, standing and moving past me into the bathroom. “I’ll just be a minute.” The door closes behind him and I hear his sigh. I move away from the door, allowing him the privacy he gave me and grab a bottle of blood from the fridge. If I’m running and shifting, I’m going to need the boost. I chug it down and throw out the bottle as Cam reappears in a black muscle tank and grey sweats. Hot damn, that is a sight I could get used to. Ink I hadn’t realized he had peeks out from under the tank’s side.
“You ready?” He asks, dropping his backpack by the side of my sofa.
“Sure.” I gulp. “Never more ready. This isn’t going to hurt, right? Coaxing out my animal.”
“It shouldn’t. You’ve already shifted once so you should be fine. It’s actually finding your animal in amongst everything else that might be difficult, but we’ll be fine I’m sure,” he reassures me. He opens the main door for me, ushering me out into the hall and down the stairs of House Dragon. Once we’re outside, he bends over, stretching out his body, and fuck me, it’s hard to concentrate on anything but the lines of his body. He catches me staring and grins again, prompting me to do my own stretches. I’ve never run with anyone else so this should be interesting.
“Ready?” He says and I stand and nod. “Okay, we’ll start out at a slower pace for the first lap and pick up on each lap. It’s a good way to make your beast tired before you bring it out to play. Usually you want to be at full capacity, but today, since we’re just trying to coax her out, tired will be good.” Just listening to the sheer amount of laps makes me want to throw up, but I smile and start off, with him matching my pace after a few strides. We run in a comfortable silence until we finish our ninth lap and I’m about to pass out while he still looks fresh as a goddamn daisy. I fling myself to the ground panting, trying to tell him no more but unable to make words. I hold up my hand and just signal for one minute as I gulp down the air. I should be fitter than this but running is on the very long list of forgotten things since things like prophecies came into my world.
“All done?” He says, standing above me while I throw an arm over my eyes and pretend to tap out making him chuckle. “Okay, I guess that means we can start calling out to your animal. Remember, we don’t know anything about this, or what you’ll be, but everything will be fine regardless. We’ll coax her out and then I’ll make sure your shifter powers including shifter speak are in full effect. Then, where we go from there is up to you, okay?” I smile up at him and I feel him sit down beside me.
“Okay with me. So how do we do this?” I ask as I sit up and face him.
“You said you’ve got better control of your powers, right?” I nod at him and he continues. “Okay, so you just need to sort through that mess inside of you until you feel her. She’ll reach out to you, and you just need to accept her.”
“Why do I get the feeling this isn’t going to be as easy as it sounds?” I snark and he barks a laugh.
“Because nothing simple is worth as much as the hard stuff.” He says before twisting so he’s facing me. He takes my hands and smiles at me. “I’ll try to help as much as I can, but for now, you’re going to want to close your eyes for this.” I close my eyes and he squeezes my hands in support, and I take a deep breath. Here goes nothing I guess.
I look inside myself through the vault of power that is now open freely, trying to find her. I notice a string that disappears outside of the vault, which seems strange, so I follow it. I walk out a back door of the room I created and into the woods where the string disappears. That’s when I feel her, nudging my palm. I nod and I feel her come inside of me. That’s when the pain starts and it feels like my skin is melting and my bones are shifting as the clothes tear from my body. The pain isn’t unbearable, but it’s definitely there. Once it’s over, my vision is different; heightened, but different, and smells overwhelm me. I hear myself whine and I look back to Cam who smiles.
“Well, hello there, little wolf.” He chuckles. “A white wolf. I should have known. Of course you’d be the rarest of us all. Now I have a secret for you, little wolf, that nobody else knows.” He stands and sheds his clothing, and I feel my tail wag. Apparently my wolf likes him. I watch as he closes his eyes and his body slowly morphs in front of me into a bear, and then slowly into a giant black wolf.
Holy shit!
“Yes, little wolf. I’m not just a shifter, I’m a shape shifter. Most of my bloodline are. It’s a secret we keep inside our family line, but you are family, and my mate. So, if you are a wolf, I shall be a wolf too. Are you ready to run?” I hear him inside of my head, and the sensations are so much it’s almost overwhelming. I feel my body start to shake.
“Now then, little wolf, let’s say we run off some of this energy of yours, shall we?” He nudges me with his nose and howls, making me howl in response before he takes off at a run and I can’t help but let my instincts take over as I take chase.
We run for what seems like hours until the sun sets and the moon is high in the sky, before we shift back and head to his room which is closer. He gave me his tank, which is more like a dress on me, while he’s in just his sweats. He opens the door and I’m met with dark woods and natural tones and it just screams Cam. “I can’t believe I’ve not been here before,” I say as I pad into the room and gaze around. “I also can’t believe you’re a shapeshifter and you never told anyone!”
He shakes his head at me and walks inside, leaving me staring around the room, which is laid out similarly to mine. I move and sit on his sofa, so I’m not just standing like a weird fan girl in the opening of the room. He comes back out fully dressed and throws me a pair of sweats.
“They’re big, but they have a drawstring. They should be fine until I get you back to your room. As for everything else, my kind was hunted down to almost extinction centuries ago. Some of my ancestors really could shift into anything, including other people. As you can imagine, that was something that was feared by those in power, and so a culling happened. My family escaped, but we’ve only ever been able to shift into other animals, never humans. Our family crest contained the bear, and so that’s the animal we took on for purposes like school. But you can see why I haven’t told anyone.”
“I can, and I swear I won’t tell a soul. I guess we h
ave more in common than I thought.” I remark and he laughs.
“I hadn’t thought of it like that, but yeah, I guess we do, little wolf. Your wolf is beautiful, you know. Just as beautiful as you are.” I blush at his words and I’m glad it’s still dark in here. I swear I never used to blush this much, it’s almost ridiculous.
“Thank you.” I say once I steady my breath. “I should probably be heading back.”
“Let me at least feed you first. Running like that is hungry work.” He winks and turns on a lamp in the kitchen casting a soft glow in the room while he rummages around and sorts out some food. I pull on the sweats and roll them up a dozen times so they’re not hanging off of my legs and get comfortable on the sofa, watching him and the taut muscles of his back as he works.
“I can feel you perving on me, little wolf.” I can hear the smile in his voice even as he stays focused on what he’s doing.
“Don’t know what you mean,” I giggle and continue to watch him. He seems so relaxed here in his own space. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen him so at peace.
He dishes up and brings me over a plate topped with a bacon, mushroom, and cheese omelet; with hash browns and sausage links. “Breakfast food should be the only food eaten,” he says with a wolfish smile, placing it down in front of me. He dashes back and gets his own along with silverware before putting the TV on quietly.
“Eat up, little wolf.” He smiles and starts to eat beside me, and I can’t help but think about how domesticated this all feels, and how I could picture living like this for a long time. The thought settles inside of me and I let out a relaxed sigh, my wolf curling up in my chest happy at the thought too, before I tuck into the feast before me.
I wake up wondering who the hell turned up the heating to near on furnace level. I throw the covers off when I feel the arms wrapped around me in an iron grip.
“Little wolf, why you gotta do that. So cold.” Cam grumbles sleepily.
“I am about to overheat, there is no way you’re cold,” I laugh and stretch out as he releases me from his heated embrace. “I’m sorry I fell asleep on you last night.”
I stand and realize I’m completely naked. “Er, Cam. What happened to my clothes?”
“You got undressed when I tried to carry you to bed, complaining about being too hot then too. I stayed covered, don’t worry.”
“I wasn’t worried,” I smile at him and head into his bathroom. I freshen up and brush my teeth with my finger because my morning breath is real. The temptation to get in his shower is large, so I turn the water on to heat and hear his deep laugh from the bedroom.
“There’s room enough for two,” I call out, biting my lip. I’ve never been so forward, but after everything yesterday, I want to be close to Cam like this. My wolf purrs inside my head happily and I know she’s on board. I just hope that she behaves when I’m with the others. I wait for the water to heat, the room filling with steam before I step underneath. I wash my hair and myself slowly, hoping he joins me. I’m almost done when I hear the shower door slide open and I feel his hands on my hips.
“Little wolf, you are more temptation than a little.” He leans down and kisses my neck, biting just over my artery, and it makes my blood sing and my fangs descend. I can’t help the moan that escapes me as his arms come around me and his fingers stroke my core as he kisses me.
“So fucking wet for me,” he growls and I feel how hard he is as he presses up against me. His fingers work me into a frenzy until I break apart around him. He holds me up, before spinning me and lifting me up against him. I grab onto his shoulders and wrap my legs around him as he kisses me until I can’t breathe.
“Are you sure about this, Eden?” He asks, and I melt a little more, knowing he’s putting me before himself again.
“I’m sure,” I pant before I kiss him again. I feel him line himself up with me before pushing and entering me in one go. He stills, giving me chance to adjust because holy fucking hell there’s a lot of him. He pulls back and peppers kisses down my neck, tilting me back so he can get to my chest. He looks at me and I nod, telling him I’m ready and he starts moving inside of me again while he worships me with his mouth. It’s all I can do to hold on. It’s not long again until I’m on the cusp of seeing stars. He gets rougher, pushing me against the shower wall, and pushing me over the edge. He joins me with a shout, and I feel like my bones are jelly.
“Holy shit,” I pant as he stills, still inside of me, his face buried in the side of my neck. I try to pull away and he growls, and it sounds more animalistic than usual so I still.
“Mine,” he breathes before he pulls back and lets me down. He pulls me back against his chest and we stand under the stream of hot water.
Chapter Sixteen
Eden
“You ready for this?” Z asks me as we swim further out into the lake. The water is freezing, but something about it calls to me.
“I mean, I think so, but I have no idea why we’re out here.”
“Well, obviously, you’re part Mer which means you can breathe underwater. As you’re an elemental, you’ll be able to control it too. Have you ever tried to hold your breath for a really long time underwater?”
“No, not really, I learned to swim from my dad, but I’ve not spent much time in the water since he died.” I explain as we tread water.
“Okay, well just remember, I’ve got you and I’m not going to let anything happen to you.” He holds my hips and smiles at me. “Now, stop paddling.”
I still my body, fighting against the urge to keep myself floating, and sink below the water slowly with Z. He keeps hold of me, and I can see instantly that he’s already breathing underwater which relaxes me a little. I look to his hands and notice they’ve morphed slightly to web together, and so have his feet. My body fights against the lack of oxygen as we sink, but I try to keep my breath held as we go, trusting Z implicitly.
I feel my body start to convulse, and before I can stop myself, I open my mouth and suck in a lungful of air, then freak out a little that I’m breathing underwater.
“What the fuck?” I exclaim and Z starts to laugh.
“It’s weird right?” He says and I realise we’re talking underwater too. Holy fucking shit.
“This is so trippy,” I say as we continue to sink. “How deep is this lake?”
“Deeper than you’re ready to explore. Ready to test your other powers?” He asks with a coy smile.
“What other powers?” I ask, and he laughs. In a blink he disappears before my eyes. I turn myself in the water to try and find him, but I can’t see anything. In a heartbeat he reappears, laughing his ass off.
“What the hell was that?” I exclaim.
“That was water and shadow manipulation. We can do the shadows on land too. You can make yourself disappear without even moving.”
“I can… what? How is that not general knowledge?”
“Can’t give all our secrets away, can we? The Mer people have a lot of secrets the rest of the world doesn’t know about. There’s a whole other world underwater.” He explains when I notice that my hands and feet have morphed like his.
“This is so weird.” I can’t help the words that fall out of my mouth and he just laughs at me.
“For someone who hasn’t grown up with it, I can only imagine. Now then, let’s get topside and get dry, then we can work on the shadows.”
“Sounds good to me.” I agree and he shoots off above us fast as a bullet. I try to mimic his movements and shoot forward a little before stalling and having to just swim to the surface. Cocky little shit.
***
The last few weeks have been full of classes, training, and exam prep, to the point both my body and brain feel exhausted. I just want to climb into my bed and sleep for three weeks. It’s now Friday night again and I’m face down on my bed, praying for oblivion.
My phone pings and I groan. I grumble under my breath as I dig the phone out of my pocket.
Creed: Meeting at Kane’s
in ten. See you there.
You have got to be kidding me. My entire week has been school and training. I’ve barely even got a smile from the guys since I saw Cam last weekend. I smile at the thought, but remember I still need to tell the guys about my wolf. I have no idea if Cam has shared the news because everyone’s been so focused since the assembly we’ve not spoken about anything but training. Getting up to change begrudgingly, I grab a bottle of blood before making my way down to Kane’s room. I know they’re meeting here because it’s easier for me, so I’m trying not to think too bitchy thoughts, but, man, a girl needs some breathing space sometimes. I raise my hand to knock when Ruby and Ava appear beside me.
“Oh, hey guys, I didn’t know you were coming too.”
“Apparently, we all need an update since we’ve barely had chance to speak lately.” Ava jabs at me.
“Yeah, that’s my fault. And I’m sorry. I’m sorry I’ve not seen you guys much. I just...” I let out a breath and Ruby smiles.
“Eden, it’s fine. Your life got way complicated just recently. Ava’s just got a case of bitchitis. You’re fine, and we get it.” I smile back at her and knock at the door which opens instantly as I come face to face with Z.
“The girls are here,” he shouts and lets us in. “The guys are already all here.” He says with an easy smile. I guess I hadn’t realised how close the guys have gotten the last few weeks, but it makes sense. If they’re not with me, or studying, or doing house captain stuff, then they’re together, planning training or trying to work out what’s coming. It’s nice and makes me happier than I expected. It makes things way easier for me and eases some guilt about dating all of them if they’re happy with it and each other. We walk in and Z pulls me back.
“You okay?” He asks, concern etching his features.
“Yeah, just juggling, ya know.” I shrug.
Chosen: A Paranormal Romance Academy Series (Black Water Academy Book 2) Page 11
