by H. D. March
“Er, thanks for the—” she stumbled to a halt. “Well, you know, for everything.” God, she wished she could tell him exactly what she was thanking him for. How his touch excited her, his charismatic presence that made her ache with a need. The aroma that dripped out of every pore from his skin blasting over her, and God, she hurt.
Jess swallowed down the lump rising in her throat.
“My pleasure.”
Yeah, I bet. She committed his harsh features to memory. He appeared bored, and yet? An icy anger radiated from him, and she couldn’t reason why, and then understood, he wanted her gone, to piss off. To stop loitering and just go.
She pushed at the door which always remained unlocked. The house so remote there was no need. “Goodbye.” Her voice broke and she slammed it behind her.
Jess sent him out of her life forever, her chest fluttered in a rise and she stood with her back to it blinking back her tears.
Damn you to hell, Rune Masters.
§§§
A muscle ticked on his jaw, his fists balled and clenched. He’d heard her, swamped with hurt and pain. Rune debated smashing through the door. Then killed that thought. She had been his temporary sub, nothing more.
He strode on sharp angry strides to his car.
For a moment, he sat inside whilst the chill of the air con blasted over him. Giving a final glance to the house, he turned the engine. Rune scanned the area, seeking out means of places to hide, to watch invisible from a distance. His gaze fell on the large barn and a crop of large trees alongside, huge oaks with a spray of leaves and deep undergrowth that tunnelled beneath.
Tonight, he’d return and watch from there.
It was because of the rogue vamps, that’s the only reason, because she meant nothing to him. She was a means to an end, a clue as to who was leading them. His foot hit the accelerator, and the car lurched forward in a spin of tyres.
So, why the hell did he feel so bad?
Reaching Caprice, Rune spotted LeBron’s red Porsche sitting in the parking bay. He experienced a burning rage again at the image of his lips on Jess. Then shook himself, pushing all thoughts of her away, yet he couldn’t. The sight of her hurting remained, it refused to leave him. In a foul mood, he stomped into the club and headed to the gym. He needed physical release from the quandary shooting around his body.
Slamming the door open, LeBron already lay lifting weights. He turned to him and dropped the dumbbells before rising onto his elbow.
“What the fuck are you looking at?” snarled Rune, stripping out of his clothes without a shred of embarrassment; he shrugged on a pair of joggers from his locker. His torso bare, the bottoms hung snug, rolling about his hips.
“Woman trouble?”
“No, you need one for that.” Moving to the leg curls, his thighs bulged.
“So, you’ve taken her back home?”
“Looks that way, and don’t even think of fucking thanking her again.” The cords in his neck strained with effort.
“I don’t need to. Kitty knows what I am, and she’s Lycan, my mate, my Lupa.”
Rune didn’t miss the smug pride in his voice; yet, instead of feeling pleased for him, it irritated the hell that he had found happiness. Whilst he was in a vortex of despair, unsure which way to turn, or what he even wanted. He paused from the curls. “Does Jessalyn know?” Hell, it hurt saying her name. What spell had she cast on him?
“No, once Kitty explains, I’ll be moving out of my quarters at Caprice.”
Rune nodded. “Where to?”
“In with Kitty and I guess Jess.”
Rune rose, fury blistered across his face. “You touch her, LeBron, and I swear I’ll tear you apart.”
LeBron stood and faced him. “Try it if you think you can take me, but listen, Rune, I don’t want her, I’ve got what I need. And take a piece of advice, if she means that much to you, then go and tell her.”
Rune glared at him. “Listen, LeBron, I don’t need counselling off you. Just because you’ve found your mate, don’t go thinking we’ve all got to get loved up!”
LeBron followed his swift departure from the gym and shook his head in despair.
§§§
It was late when Rune made an appearance in the lounge of Caprice. LeBron studied each stark, sharp action. His temper hadn’t improved. In fact, he resembled a powder keg ready to explode; all he needed was someone to ignite it.
Shouldering his way through the throng, LeBron recognized the signs; he was spoiling for a fight. And one way or the other would get his way.
He watched him take a small glass of amber liquid and neck it back. Then slam it down empty onto the polished bar. That was a bad sign because he rarely drank. LeBron continued to monitor him as Rune stopped by a tall, dark-haired male and recognised him as Kobe Sinclair, the owner of the fitness club Cataya, an expensive suite situated on the edge of town.
Unashamedly, he zeroed in on their conversation; there were many perks to being a Lycan and hearing was one of them. Along with an abnormal strength and the ability to smell up to ten thousand times better than a human.
He groaned. Oh Shit. LeBron knew what would be coming as he listened in.
Kobe raised his glass to Rune and swallowed, then peered behind him. “Where’s your delicious looking sub?”
“Why?” Rune grumbled a long warning growl.
“A tasty piece of ass? Wouldn’t mind a bit of that myself.” His thin lips slid into a semblance of a smile.
“Forget it, the lady has taste.” Rune called for a refill. Taking the drink, he downed the whiskey.
“So, come on, what’s she like in bed, good?”
“None of your God damn business.” The empty glass slammed down on the surface.
LeBron took a step forward; he knew what was coming. And Rune wasn’t just in a fighting mood, he was ready to kill.
“So, she’s finished her time with you?”
“Why? What’s it to you?”
“Well, it’s not often we get to see you with a sub in tow. And a rather beautiful one at that.” He chuckled, a sharp staccato of a laugh. “So, there must be something there, something worthwhile fucking.”
“Sinclair, keep that mouth of yours shut, I’m warning you.”
Kobe Sinclair was oblivious and taunted. “Think I’ll pay the lady a visit, and try her out, test run her pussy, what do you—” He didn’t finish.
With a roar of rage, Rune launched himself at him, and Kobe fell crashing to the floor. Unable to defend himself from the vicious assault, Rune’s fist slammed into him, he punched and pummelled at every part of his body.
LeBron shut his eyes briefly; blood sprayed from Sinclair, and he knew that Rune was intent on sending him to hell. Moving through the crowd that had gathered, he gripped Rune and ducked at the fist that swung through the air.
He whispered in his ear. “Easy, Rune, and for fuck’s sake, stop it before you kill the guy in front of a room full of witnesses.” His arms bounded around the man mountain, Rune was no match for his Lycan strength, no vampire was.
LeBron glanced down to Kobe, who lay curled before him, glaring up, his green eyes resembled shards of glass splintering over him.
“Get the hell out of here,” breathed Rune, “and don’t set foot inside Caprice again, or next time, I will fucking kill you.”
Slowly, Kobe crawled to his feet and swiped at the blood trickling from his cut lip. “This isn’t over, Masters, not by a long shot. I’ll make you so sorry.”
“Yea, bring it on, asshole,” swore Rune.
LeBron watched Kobe leave with relief. Not until he’d disappeared did he release his tenacious grip on Rune.
Warily, he backed away, unsure if Rune would take his frustrated rage out on him.
Instead, he scrubbed a hand through his tousled hair and signalled for yet another drink. He slammed it back and in silence left Caprice.
LeBron watched him leave, debated following him, but knew he was past the fury that had ridden him.
He instinctively realized he needed to be alone.
§§§
Jessalyn sat at the table, a bottle of beer open, her foil packet of pills before her. She tilted her head at the sound of an engine and glimpsed Kitty’s bright purple motor pull up. She’d finished a double shift, her own morning plus the afternoon one that rolled into evening. Jess decided no way could anyone have a better friend than Kitty.
The door slammed shut, followed by the slap of footsteps down the hall.
Kitty stood at the doorway. “Hey, didn’t realize you were home; where’s Betsy?”
“Don’t ask.”
Kitty grinned. “Garage again?” She didn’t elaborate because Betsy spent more time there than on the road.
Jess nodded, unable and unsure how to explain. Heck, she was still trying to come to terms with what she’d seen. Still, she disputed her reasoning, along with that of Rune. Jess continued to cling to that explanation, unwilling to contemplate that it could be true. Then gave herself a mental shake, no way, vampires didn’t exist.
“Did I ever tell you how much I love you?” Kitty opened her arms. Jess rose and, crossing to her, gave a huge hug.
“You and LeBron?”
“Are an item, he loves me Jess.”
“Thank God for that; he was a hard nut to crack. For some unknown reason, he kept going on about who he was.” She leaned back and grinned. “But you two are made for each other.”
Kitty glanced to the beer. “Starting ahead of me?”
Jess nodded. “Yep, needed a crutch.” She sat back down and swigged from it, and then flicked her pills out.
Kitty frowned. “Please don’t say that’s what I think it is?” She switched the percolator on and, dropping to the chair, sat facing her.
Jess swallowed one. “What?”
“You haven’t been taking your contraceptive pill regularly?”
“No, never have, why?” She dropped another one, reading T on the foil, was it Tuesday or Thursday? Oh fuck, Tuesday. And she continued swallowing one at a time, not many more now till she reached today, Monday.
“You’ve had sex? And I imagine with Rune it was nonstop.”
Jess flushed and swallowed Saturday’s. “You could say that.”
“Surely you know that you need to take your pill on a daily basis for it to work?”
Jess frowned. “I don’t see the problem as long as I’ve had my quota.”
Kitty rubbed her head. “Please tell me you didn’t have unprotected sex?”
“Yep, he was satisfied I was clean, it felt a bit of an insult but there you go.”
Kitty covered her eyes. “Oh my God, Jess, with a man as hot as Rune, you do realize you could be pregnant, that his sperm has got to be powerful.”
Jess opened her mouth and then closed it. And went into denial. “No way, some people go for years trying, and I’ve been, what, a weekend?”
“Jess, at times you’re so naïve it’s unbelievable.”
“Trust me, naïve is so not the word I’d use now, not since being educated by Rune. And besides, I’ve always taken the pill like this.”
“Yeah, fine if you’re not in a sexual relationship, not so good if you are.”
“Whatever,” shrugged Jess, pushing her doubts to the back of her mind. Doing what she always did when worried, ignored it and buried her thoughts.
Kitty settled her with what Jess called her mother’s eyes, wanting to know all. “So, come on, tell me how you managed to hook the sexiest, most elusive man on the planet?”
Jess burst out laughing. “Thought LeBron was that.”
It was Kitty’s turn to colour. “We’re going to get married, but first he’ll be moving in here.”
“What?”
She nodded, and her face broke into a wide smile. “Yep, just as soon as I er…”
“As you what, Kit?” Jess recognized the nervous pulse at the edge of her eye, when she was worried about saying something. It looked like a half wink.
Kitty pulled a bottle out of the fridge, ignoring the hiss of the percolator. Jess reasoned it had to be serious and signalled for another. She might need this alcohol boost.
Instead of sitting opposite, Kitty roamed with a restless intensity around the large kitchen. And Jess waited, the more the silence stretched out, the more the nerves clung to her intestines. “Come on, Kit, spit it out, the tension is killing me.”
“How long have we known each other?” She aped Jess, swigging from the bottle, yet didn’t stop her pacing.
“For years, too many to count.”
“And how many secrets do we have from each other?”
“None,” answered Jess without hesitation.
Kitty stopped. “What about the time you ruined my bra in the wash, and didn’t tell me? And the truth only came out when you bought the wrong colour?”
Jess flushed. “Okay, I’ve got a bad memory, but I was only trying to replace it, and didn’t see the point in upsetting you.”
“So, how would you feel if I said I’ve kept something from you, only because I don’t want to scare you?”
“Like what?”
Kitty sucked in a long breath and at last sat down. She took hold of Jess’s hands and held them tight. “I’m not what I appear.”
Jess giggled. “Yeah, whatever.”
“I’m serious, Jess, I’m a Lycan.” Kitty’s green eyes bored into her.
“What the hell is that? Some kind of religion, like a Mormon or something?”
“No, Jess, it’s what I am, think of a werewolf, I’m similar but not the same. We’re not dominated by the cycle of the moon.”
“Whoa, what the frigging hell are you talking about?” Suddenly, a whole new curl of nerves wound around her body, this talk of werewolves brought back the vampire attack she’d seen.
“I’m a Lycan, a species that can shift between wolf and human form, my Ulfric LeBron is the same.”
“What’s an Ulfric?” Jess couldn’t get her thoughts around what Kitty was attempting to say. Wolves for fuck’s sake? She wondered if she’d taken anything, like drugs, was high on something.
“The ultimate ranking, think of him as a wolf-king. He’s my mate, and I’ll be his alpha female. ”
Frigging hell, the woman’s gone nuts. Jess trembled, absorbed by the surreal sweep of green eyes that burned over her. “Kit, is this a joke? Have you banged your head or something?”
Kitty released her hand. “No, now watch.” She changed before her, transforming into a pale golden wolf.
Jess screamed and tipped back off the chair; she collapsed backwards to the floor. “Whoa, this so can’t be real, no way am I seeing this.”
Kitty changed back and helped her to her feet.
Jess took her hand, surreptitiously checking for claw marks and fleas. “But how?”
Kitty shrugged her shoulders. “It’s not something you go around advertising; you can gauge the shock yourself.”
“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”
“Well, you never mentioned my bra getting ruined.”
“Shit, Kit, I think fucking up a bra in the boil wash is just a tad different from you turning out to be the wrong species of human life. Don’t you?”
“I’ll get you another bottle.”
Jess sat at the table, visions of vampires at diners taking away more than a burger, and now her best friend a wolf? Shit, this was some serious stuff. Automatically, she reached out and clasped the chilled beer; it fetched her down to earth.
“So, you’re a wolf?”
Kitty nodded. “Yes and no. I’m a Lycan. We’re not like a werewolf, changing at the lunar signs; we pick and choose. Which is why we are able to live among you so easily.”
“But why haven’t I ever seen you change? Why didn’t you tell me?”
Kitty’s face crumpled. “It’s not exactly the type of over dinner talk people want to hear. And whenever I felt the urge to change, then I’d leave for a day or two.”
Jess continued t
o stare at her. “But I’m your best friend, Kit, and I feel hurt you never shared this with me.”
“I was working on it, and now with LeBron wanting to move in, welI, I guess you needed to know.”
“And if that hadn’t happened, would you have told me?”
Kitty shrugged and swallowed the remains of her beer. “Probably, at some point, but don’t ask me when. I didn’t want to freak you out.”
“So, er, have you had your shots?”
“Jess, just fuck the hell off.”
“Only asking, I know of an excellent all-in-one treatment for worms, ticks, and fleas if you want me to get it for you.”
Kitty rolled her eyes. “And you wonder why I never told you?”
Jess’s laughter cracked around the kitchen. “Fuck me, I don’t believe my best friend is a wolf.”
“Well, I’m glad you find it amusing.”
“Jesus, the thought of you and LeBron going at it doggy style puts a whole new concept on it.” She shrieked with a loud burst of giggles.
“Will you shut the hell up!” Yet a small grin played around her lips. “You’re insane.”
§§§
Rune settled down, the leaves and grass crunched beneath his body. He lay his head between his paws and watched. The hackles of his hair rose; he recognized the tinkle of her laughter that rippled through the night air and gathered she wasn’t missing him.
But hell, he was missing her warm body beneath his. The landscape darkened, the minutes ticked by, and the time moved slowly on. Throwing his head back, a long, lonesome lament echoed across the landscape.
§§§
“Did you hear that?” Jess tilted her head and shivered at the moan of longing that rumbled over the earth. She’d finished her drink and her humour had deserted her. Memories of Rune rose, the deep timbre of his voice, the sexy tattoo that circled his thigh, along with his splintering golden eyes, shit, but she wanted him.
Kitty nodded and frowned. “Yes.”
“It sounded like a howl.”
“Yea, probably a dog on the loose looking for a bitch,” said Kitty.
“Most likely. Look, sorry I’m not the best of company.” Jess stared at her empty drink, debated having another, to drown her sorrows and try and forget Rune. “I think it’s only now hitting me and I still can’t believe that you’re a, well, and that—”
