by Emma Roman
“And now?”
“I still think you’re too young for me,” he teased. “But at twenty-one, who am I to make that choice for you?”
I placed a hand against his chest and pushed upward. Eyes the color of the forest regarded me. “Does my age bother you?”
“Not right now,” he murmured with a wicked grin. “Hard to care about anything with you stretched out beneath me.”
“Mathis. If we become mates, that’s permanent. Seeking out that witch was stupid, but I wasn’t thinking clearly. I never would have done it if I’d realized if would affect you too.”
Compassion softened his face. “All you did was force me to acknowledge my feelings for you.”
“But if my age is going to be a problem, then we shouldn’t do this.”
He leaned over me and nipped at my earlobe. “Age is just a number, isn’t that what everyone says?” His breath brushed against my throat. I shivered, my fingers tightening against his sides. “Believe me, it’s not a concern anymore. I want you in my life, Juniper. More than I can say. And losing you is not an option.”
“Mathis—”
“Shh.” He brushed his lips against my mouth and threaded his fingers through my hair. “Juniper, I’ve always been attracted to you. But these past couple of days made me realize how much. When Piper told me you had to choose a mate…I nearly lost it.”
I lifted a brow. Nearly? The hole in his wall told an entirely different story.
“The thought of you becoming someone else’s mate, touching him, loving him…I would have killed him.”
“What?” I squirmed beneath him and met his gaze. “Why?”
“Because you’re mine,” he said in a soft voice. “And I’m yours. Nothing will ever change that.”
D’aww. There went my heart, all melted into a puddle of goo on his floor. “So, what do we need to do to become mates?”
His mouth curved. “You mean other than knockin’ boots?”
I burst out laughing. “Yes, other than that.”
“There’s a ceremony with the pack, but it’s little more than a formality. The most important part is what’s about to happen.”
“And…what’s about to happen?”
“Give ya three guesses.”
Pretty sure I only needed one.
The sensation of his mouth slanting over mine was one I knew I’d never grow tired of. The feel of him above me, his knee sliding between my thighs and his fingers trailing down my body gave life to all my fantasies. This was better than I’d ever imagined.
I curled a leg over his hip and arched against him. The boxers had to go. I wanted to feel every inch of him. They were in the way. Hooking my fingers beneath the band, I shimmied them down over his thighs, then used my feet to push them off. So much better.
I tunneled my fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck and held on for dear life. His every touch set my body on fire. And when his fingers swept up my inner thigh, I rejoiced. I reached down and caressed his length. His hips bucked against mine, his teeth finding the crook of my neck.
I’d grown up among werewolves. I knew that he would sink his teeth into my throat and mark me. I also knew I had to return the favor. But first came the fun parts. His arms wound around me and before I could suck in a breath, he swept me up from the floor and hoisted me up onto his hips. Limbs tangled, he moved toward the stairs, pausing now and then to push me up against the wall and ravish my mouth.
Every inch of me wanted to slide down on top of him, to take that final step. But the torturous wait was half the fun. Finally, we stumbled into his bedroom, and he eased me down onto the mattress.
He took his time, his mouth and fingers driving me insane. With a frustrated growl, I caught his ear between my teeth. “Mathis. Stop teasing. You know what I want.”
He reached into his nightstand and extracted a square packet. After a moment’s pause to cover himself, he caught my hips and thrust into me.
Oh, God. Finally. I threw my head back against the pillows and cried out when he started to move. I almost came undone right then, but I held on, determined to ride the pleasure out.
His fingers threaded through my hair and cupped my cheeks. Then, while holding my gaze, he leaned down and gave me a slow and tender kiss.
“Mathis, please,” I whimpered.
He nodded, then unleashed all restraint. My back bowed off the bed, and I cried out as he picked up speed and strength. The first stirrings warmed my stomach, then spread up through my chest and through my limbs. My whole body tingled with the threat of my release. But I needed to wait. Wanted to wait. Wanted to lose myself with him.
“Juniper,” he grunted. “The mark.”
I nodded, biting down on my bottom lip as I staved off my orgasm. I needed to time it perfectly. Wanted to finish when he sank his teeth into my throat.
He shifted his weight and brushed his lips against my jaw. When I felt the hard press of his teeth against my flesh, I mimicked his position. The first bit of pressure was all it took.
I fell over the edge, colors lighting me up from the inside. Riding it out, I closed my mouth over his throat and bit, my eyes rolling back as I reveled in the sensations he inspired within me. I felt him shudder above me with a low groan that vibrated against my neck.
Slowly, my world pieced itself back together. I opened my eyes and met Mathis’s gaze. I couldn’t help it, I giggled. That was amazing.
He pressed a hand to my cheek, then leaned over and kissed my forehead.
My heart was fit to burst. Especially when I caught sight of my mark against his flushed skin. Though the indent would heal, the magic of the moment would remain. Every werewolf would know him as mine, and me as his.
The perfect end to a perfect night.
With a soft smile, Mathis dropped down next to me and gathered me into his arms.
Pretty sure I’d died tonight. Because this was heaven.
8
Pain jerked me out of a deep sleep.
I gasped and rolled over, my arms curving around my stomach. Something was wrong. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. Oh, God. I tossed back the covers and rolled off the bed, sinking to my knees on the carpeted floor. My hands clutched at my sides, my head bowed as I sucked in a ragged breath. My body twitched, and I toppled over into the nightstand.
“M—Mathis…” I groaned, my voice caught in my throat.
Another wave of agony ripped through me seconds before my bones began to snap. Crying out, I gripped the blanket and pulled myself up. Through the window, I watched as the sun descended behind Whistlers Mountain. No…no… This wasn’t happening!
The witch promised! All I had to do was become Mathis’s mate. I’d fulfilled the spell!
Another crack.
I cried out and fell backward. “Mathis!”
“Juniper?”
Relief brought tears to my eyes. For a moment, I’d feared he wouldn’t wake. Footsteps hurried across the room, and when I blinked open my eyes, I found him kneeling in front of me. Concern lined his face, his eyes wide.
“The witch…” I gasped.
I crawled onto all fours and bowed my head. Muscles shifted beneath my skin, my bones reshaping into a wolf.
“Not supposed to happen…”
His hands fell on my shoulders. “You’re just shifting,” he murmured. “It happens early on.”
No, this was different. The sun was setting. The magic felt different. Forced.
I shook my head, then screamed when my two back legs forced themselves inward. “Not the same.” I panted for air, my brow dotted with sweat. “She lied.” A low growl tore free of my throat. “Sunset.”
A ferocious snarl echoed through the room. He understood.
“Juniper, fight it!”
I almost laughed. Fight it? Fight the magic? Was he kidding? This wasn’t right! We were mates, we wore each other’s marks to prove it.
In a final burst of magic, the shift overcame me. I screamed my way through it
before collapsing on the carpet. My chest heaved as I fought to regain control of my body.
“Juniper?” Gentle fingers threaded through my fur.
I blinked open my eyes and stared up at him. For a moment, everything seemed normal. Until the rage kicked in. My upper lip curled over my fangs, and I leapt to my feet, my teeth snapping next to his fingers.
Mathis jerked his hand back just in time, a stunned expression on his face. “Juniper…”
I shook myself out, then turned with a threatening growl. The witch was dead. She just didn’t know it yet. I didn’t look back. Instead, I bolted out of the room and down the stairs. But I was trapped. He’d locked every window and door after our run. I paced, listening to the sounds of Mathis quickly dressing upstairs.
Screw this.
I took three massive steps backward, then launched myself at the nearest window. The glass shattered around me, the shards slicing through my skin through my fur. Still, I didn’t stop. I had one goal in mind, and I didn’t care how I accomplished it.
Once outside, I turned and bolted through the town. The sun sat low on the horizon. Maybe I still had time. Maybe I could prove to her that we were mates.
Or maybe I’d rip out her throat and choke on her blood.
Both scenarios sounded good to me.
I skidded to a stop and slid on the ice in front of the shop entryway. Sure enough, the lights were on, and somebody was home. Hell, someone had even cracked the door open. Courteous little witch.
I nudged the door with my nose and stalked inside.
There she sat, behind her massive desk, yet another book in her hands.
Head lowered, I released a terrifying growl, a sound unlike anything I’d ever made before.
“Evening Juniper,” she called out. “My, you do make a pretty wolf.”
I snarled, my teeth snapping at the air.
“Now, now. No need for that.”
No need? Oh, I’d show her a need. I’d rip out her throat and leave her mangled corpse for the rest of her coven to find.
“I already told you my death won’t break the spell.”
I startled. Could she hear my thoughts?
“I’m a witch, remember?” she said, tapping her temple.
Good. I showed her the numerous way she would die, taking great pleasure in drawing out her death.
“My dear. None of this is my fault. We had an agreement. You mate with your man, and you remain a werewolf. You fail, well… You knew the consequences.”
But we did!
She lowered her book with a sigh, then turned and stared at me down the bridge of her nose. “If you two were mates, you wouldn’t be in wolf form right now.”
I shook my head, whimpering and snarling as I tried to explain. We are mates. I wear his mark, and he wears mine, and—
“But there wasn’t a ceremony,” the witch said with a sigh.
I froze. The ceremony? But…that was a formality. That had nothing to do—
“It has everything to do with becoming mates, Juniper. The pack must accept you. Wearing each other’s marks is the equivalent of an engagement. But until you complete the ceremony beneath the new moon with the pack in attendance, you are not formally mates.”
A silence fell over the shop.
I fell back a step and shook my head. No. That wasn’t what we’d agreed upon. No one had said anything about a ceremony.
“They aren’t my customs,” the witch said. “I’m not the one in the wrong here. They’re your ways. You should have inquired further before agreeing to the spell.”
I lowered my head and growled.
“Threaten me all you want, little wolf. My death won’t change anything.”
“But your coven leader’s death might,” a deep voice rumbled from the doorway.
I spun around, my head lifting as Mathis stalked into the shop. A dark cloud followed him, his eyes burning amber as he stared the witch down.
“Vesper, is it?” he asked, addressing her wholly.
“And you must be the alpha I’ve heard so much about. Mathis, I believe.”
He strode toward her desk, his fury swirling around him. “End this spell, now.”
“Would if I could, Alpha. But can’t, so I won’t. And before you start going all self-righteous on me, you should know I’m not alone here tonight. I had a feeling this wouldn’t end well.”
The backroom curtain ruffled, and a man and a woman strode toward us. Coven members.
“See, here’s the thing.” The energy around Vesper started to shift. The years melted away, and I watched as she grew into the young woman who’d threatened Piper. “We don’t like your pack.”
My lip curled, and I stepped toward Mathis. The promise of a fight lingered in the air. I could taste the animosity on both sides. And all of it was my fault. If only I’d spoken to Mathis before coming here. Sorted out our feelings for one another. I never would have become a werewolf, but it wasn’t worth risking Mathis’s life.
He pushed back from the counter and strode toward me. From the light in his eyes, I saw that he refused to back down. Wolves against witches. That couldn’t end well. I nudged his hand and shook my head. We’d find another way. Another witch to remove the spell.
“Time is running out,” he told me.
“How true.” Vesper cackled. “When the sun fully sets, she’ll become a beast. She won’t remember you. But you’ll remember her. Poor Alpha. So close only to lose everything now.”
“And this. All because the fae killed your sisters?”
Vesper’s face transformed into something truly hideous. “Alasdair was nothing! He killed our sisters because of your pack! Because of your old alpha! You have no one to blame but yourself.”
“I’m not responsible for his actions.”
“He still lives!” Vesper shrieked. “You’re to blame for that! Rumor still lives, even though she’s an abomination! A mix of animal and fae. We should eradicate your whole pack.”
The two coven members behind her startled. “Vesper…”
“In that case, then I should blame your entire coven for your actions here tonight,” Mathis stated. “Guess it’s a good thing I phoned your coven leader before coming here.”
Vesper blanched.
The door behind me swung open. I whirled around, snarling at the intruder.
“Shh,” Mathis murmured to me. “Be still.”
A dark clad man entered, his rigid jaw and angular face swimming in a black hooded jacket. The power that swirled around him stole my breath.
“Silas,” Mathis greeted him, his voice cold.
“Alpha.” His steel gaze shifted to the counter. “Vesper, Austin, Lydia. I must say, I’m disappointed to find you here.”
“Sir, we—”
“Silence,” he snapped, magic sparking from his fingertips. “You would bring war upon our coven?”
“They bring the war!” Vesper snarled back. “I’ve done nothing wrong. That wolf failed to fulfill the agreement. She brought her end on herself.”
I glanced out the window, my heart skipping a beat at the sight of twilight. Very little time remained. I brushed against Mathis’s leg, then glanced toward the window once more.
“I will hear each side,” Silas said.
“She came in here—”
“Hush.”
Vesper’s voice broke off in a strangled gasp.
The coven leader strode toward me, his icy gaze raking me over. “With your permission, Alpha.”
Mathis shot me a glance, then nodded.
Silas crouched down in front of me and met my gaze. A shiver rippled down my spine, but I refused to cow to him. Instead, I narrowed my eyes and met his stare, my lips curled back over my fangs in a silent warning.
“Peace, wolf,” he muttered. “I want only to see.”
Then he touched my furred cheek.
I swayed against his hand, my vision swirling as images flickered to life in my mind. So many images. My childhood, Rumor’s wedding
, Mathis…memory after memory pouring through my head. It wasn’t until he broke away from me and straightened that I realized what he’d done. I spun around and stared up at Mathis in awe, my heart bursting in my chest.
I remembered him!
Everything.
From my horrible teenage crush to our dance at Rumor’s wedding. Every secret smile we’d shared, every sly glance, every touch, every word, I remembered it all.
Exhilaration and fear warred within me. I couldn’t lose him, not now.
“I’ve returned her memories,” Silas stated.
Relief touched Mathis’s face. The creases at his mouth smoothed, and his eyes brightened. He buried his fingers into my fur and held fast.
“These two are a mated pair,” Silas decreed. “I’ve seen it.”
I ducked my head. Nothing like a complete stranger witnessing your sexual life firsthand.
“They haven’t completed their ceremony,” Vesper argued.
Silas strode past us, power crackling in the air as he moved toward her. “You would dare defy me?”
Vesper lowered her gaze. “No, sir.”
“You will remove the curse.”
Mathis cleared his throat.
“Yes, Alpha. She will remain a true werewolf. That was the agreement, after all.”
“Silas!” Vesper shouted, her eyes snapping with fury. “You would side with them over your own people?”
“I will side with the aggrieved party!” Silas shouted. “You’ve crossed a line, Vesper. Your actions here could have brought our deaths.”
“They’re just wolves,” she snapped.
Silas cocked his head and regarded her. “I never thought you, of all my disciples, would disobey me so entirely. Austin, Lydia, leave.”
The two shared a glance before bowing their heads and scurrying out of the shop.
“Complete the spell,” Silas ordered Vesper. “Juniper will become a full werewolf, no tricks. I’ll know if you try anything.”
Gritting her teeth, Vesper nodded. I felt her will gather around her. I’d never seen someone work true magic before. I knew the fae performed wild magic, but this was something different. The air around her crackled, and then her furious stare turned toward me.
