She’d followed him into the forest, just deep enough that the trees could cover them in the density of the fading light. The small glow from the fire wasn’t so far away that it wasn’t visible. In fact, she could see the orange glow hitting his skin with a sharpness that cut a beautiful image that might have been an angel in the night. Their proximity to their own camp was another reason this made Alessia’s blood race, just a bit. Their friends were so close and so capable of overhearing them, or maybe even seeing them if they got too close. She wasn’t an exhibitionist or anything but she could see the thrill of nearly being caught.
Silently, he’d turned and put his hands on her hips; his skin so incredibly warm, it was almost swelteringly so. He backed her up until she felt the rough surface of tree bark through the fabric of her shirt. She felt the solidness behind her and melted against it, encouraging it to push her back into him as they instantly moved together. She could feel the hardening bulge in his pants already and shamelessly rubbed against it as he kissed her with a hot and eager mouth. She let out breathy moans, grateful that he was there to swallow her sounds before they got too loud and too far away.
She was on unsteady ground with Erik, the last thing she needed was for him to overhear this. Not to mention Lana would never let her hear the end of it. So she tried her best to control her sounds but all that energy went into her body instead. Her nails bit at the skin of his back, trying to be careful of the sensitive flesh where he’d been shot. Everything else was fair game, however, as her hands moved freely, leaving red trails in their wake. When his lips moved to her neck, she bit down and sucked on the flesh of his shoulder and it was his turn to groan. His was a low rumble that sounded not at all unlike the growl of an animal.
It only turned her on more and she’d have to evaluate later if there was some sort of fucked-up bestiality kink of hers hiding beneath the surface of her thoughts. But for right now, he was human and he was strong and he had her pinned to a tree and it was the hottest thing she’d ever done in her life. Her hips continued to move against him and he responded in kind—perhaps with even a bit more force. She was pinned between his strong muscles and the solid tree.
It was incredibly dizzying and she never wanted it to end. Eventually, her hands found their way to the waistband of his pants. Her fingers dared to peek just below the border between pants and skin, feeling the beginning of his boxers there waiting for her as well. She teased at the sensitive skin there, soft and untouched by the hardships of daylight and work. He shuddered and she kept up her ministrations, feeling that hardness push even more as she teased at the sensitive nerve endings that had been so starved of attention recently.
He decided to take matters into his own hands when he licked the button of his pants open and she got the message instantly. Before she had been hesitant and a little bit nervous. Now she wasted no time in diving her hand down into his pants and gripping him. His hips moved with urgent rhythm as her hand worked to meet his thrusts into the air.
One thing, as it does, turned into another. She wasn’t sure how they ended up on the ground, with leaves and grass to their backs, but she wasn’t complaining once he was inside her and moving, and everything in the world that had been so terribly wrong suddenly felt right. She knew it was hormones and the rush of endorphins from orgasm but she felt, in that euphoric moment, like there was nothing to worry about anywhere in the world and everything would be okay.
It was a feeling that wouldn’t last and would go away just as soon as it came. But, as far as she was concerned, it was just incentive to chase that feeling more and more any chance they got.
***
Lana had no way of knowing what they did. They’d been quiet and had been covered by darkness but her narrow eyes and ghost of a sneer told Alessia that she knew exactly what they’d done while they were out together. She ignored her. She didn’t feel like putting up with it and it wasn’t like she needed to explain herself to Lana of all people.
She dropped down to stare into the fire again and remembered the last time she and Drake had been together, he had spent the moments after shifting into that beautiful, shimmering dragon form and flying free like a victory lap. There would be no time or place for that here and it was clearly getting to him. He squirmed where he sat, by the edge of the fire. His shirt was back on but she could see how tense he held himself anyway. His back was ramrod straight and the muscles of his forearms were flexed.
She tried not to smile too much. Maybe she was immature but knowing she had that effect on him was a bit of an ego boost to her, and made her giggle on the inside (and maybe on the outside too). He was a brilliant man, a brooding intelligent person and the kind of guy that would have been built out of some modern Bronte novel. And there he was, frustrated and tense and wanting her just as much as she wanted him.
How would she not get red in the face and smiley about that?
“So how long are we keeping ourselves in this holding pattern?” Erik asked. He didn’t look any more pissed off than normal, which Alessia felt boded well for whether or not he knew what they’d done, but he also refused to meet Alessia’s eye.
“Why? You getting antsy?” Lana asked.
“Yes, actually,” Erik said. “I got roped into trying to find this guy. We found him. I ended up a prisoner for two weeks and now I’m God knows where with a group of people I really wouldn’t consider friends. I’m tired, I’m hungry, I want a shower, and I want my bed.”
“What high aspirations you have, you really must be a catch for your future wife,” Lana said and Erik turned to give her a deathly glare.
“Being captive has a way of changing your priorities,” he said.
She snorted and leaned back onto her elbows, lazily staring up at the sky. “You can do what you want, guy, but I’m waiting for my people. It’s not like we’re really on the same team anyway.”
“Why wouldn’t we be on the same team?” Alessia asked and regretted it. She really didn’t want to get into a full conversation with Lana, but she couldn’t stop herself either.
“Do you need me to spell it out for you?”
“Well, we have the same enemy.”
“Do we?”
Alessia turned to look at Lana then, really look at her. Lana was challenging her with her eyes, with her entire body. She wanted to make a point to Alessia and it was in their physicality. She held herself a specific way, making herself seem bigger. She looked down on Alessia in a way that was different from before. This wasn’t about arrogance and teasing, this was about power. Lana had power in her body that Alessia could never match, she had physicality that could completely rip Alessia to shreds and they both knew it.
But she wouldn’t back down nor would she let herself be afraid of Lana of all people. In this, however, Lana seemed to sense a challenge because she stood up. Her full height in her human form wasn’t exactly towering but the power that seemed ready to ripple from her body was more than a little bit daunting. Alessia held her stare though, from her spot on the ground.
“You and I aren’t alike,” Lana said.
“No, but neither of us are interested in getting caught by Damien Orlando,” Alessia said. “Or James for that matter. So, it wouldn’t hurt for us to actually work together.”
“You’re dead weight,” Lana said. “Tekkin and I are the next stage in human evolution and you’re going to get trampled or get us killed if you try to keep up. I’m cutting you loose the second we have all our pieces back in place.”
“You’re not cutting her anywhere,” Drake said, standing up, not without a grimace.
“Oh please, you could fuck anyone. Let it go, Drake,” Lana said, rolling her eyes and dismissing him with a wave of her hand.
It might have ended there, with Alessia’s beet-red face, Lana’s snarky last word, and Erik looking more uncomfortable than he ever had before. But Drake decided he wouldn’t let that stand. He moved towards Lana with unimaginable speed and took the hand that she had used to have h
im off by the wrist, holding onto it tightly and squeezing; even from where Alessia sat, she could see the white of his knuckles as he exercised his grip.
“Watch yourself,” he said. “Just because we share some outsider DNA doesn’t mean I’m not above tossing you off a cliff.”
“As if you could.”
“You want to test the theory?”
They were at a dangerous stalemate and Alessia wasn’t sure which way any of it would go. She was afraid to breathe too loudly and catch their attention. They were a pair of dangerous predators, staring each other down. She was the piece of meat they fought over, trapped between them. She could turn and run, but she was frozen in her spot where Drake defended her and Lana tried to prove she could swat her like a fly.
Erik was silent, across the fire, the entire time. But his face was tense, his eyes were hard. He watched everything incredibly carefully. He was the tense one now and looked like he might be ready to leap forward and defend her in whatever way she needed defense as well. But he stayed put, just as afraid of disrupting the air, making himself known, making whatever was about to happen any worse.
“You don’t want to get into a fight with me,” Drake said to Lana, inches from her face. “And you know it. So, calm down and back off.”
“I liked you better when you were ripping humans to shreds instead of defending them.”
“I never killed anyone.”
“No, but you certainly came close, didn’t you?”
Alessia gasped before she could stop herself. She clapped her hand over her mouth and tried to look away but Drake’s desperate eyes found hers, asking her to look at him. She swallowed and tried to regain the neutral expression she had moments ago. She took a breath and let it go. She knew he had a past, she knew he was part of things that weren’t exactly kind or good. But the imagery was something abstract.
How many people had he hurt in the past? She brushed it away, but he continued to stare at her with the eyes of a puppy dog that had been kicked. She turned to look at the fire instead.
“We don’t need to be fighting each other,” she said. “We should focus on our next move.”
“That’s the problem,” Lana said. “There is no ‘our.’”
“Until you kick me out of here, there is,” Alessia said. “So, we need to start thinking what’s best for us in the long term.”
With that, Alessia effectively ended the conversation and crossed her arms. She wasn’t interested in any comebacks from Lana or even any comforting words from Drake. She was sick of the fighting and wanted it to stop. She just wanted rest. Everything for the past few weeks had been uncomfortable and miserable and Erik had the right idea: she just wanted home where things made sense. She got wrapped up in something and was continually at the mercy of others.
She was done with that. So, she made herself comfortable and curled up as best she could on the ground. Her posture didn’t invite any comfort from Drake. Minutes ago, they had been skin to skin and now she didn’t even want to look at him. The only person she trusted right now and could tolerate was herself. So for now, she’d keep her own company and let the others deal with their squabbles. She’d escape to dreams for a few hours.
Chapter 13
Ultimately, Lana’s men didn’t show up again. But Diego did. Everyone had managed to fall asleep at a certain point in the night, which Lana later said wasn’t smart in the slightest and was ready to yell at someone for not staying awake to be the lookout but Diego’s appearance cut her angry rants short. He was haggard. As bad as Drake and Erik looked, he was even worse. Alessia hadn’t seen him physically since the day they were captured and the imprisonment had taken a vast and terrifying toll on him.
“Holy shit,” Erik said, coming forward to catch the stumbling mess that was Diego into his arms and bring him over to lie by the fire.
“We don’t have food or water,” Alessia said, thinking aloud. Diego was skinny. He needed nourishment. He needed medicine and food and water and rest. They could only offer one of those and maybe not even that if Lana’s angry rantings had their way.
“Where are the others?” she demanded, coming forward to grab Diego by the fraying collar of his shirt. The others had been allowed to shower and even change clothes, but he still wore the shirt and pants he’d been in when they first met. The rags had begun to smell and rot. They left him alone to die wherever they’d kept him.
“Give him a minute to breathe,” Alessia said, coming forward and putting a hand on Lana’s shoulder that she quickly shrugged off.
“He’s breathing just fine,” Lana said. “I want to know where my friends are.”
“Don’t know,” Diego grunted out, sounding like a feral animal and Alessia’s heart clenched. She hadn’t spoken with him too much before but now he sounded nothing like a human should, let alone what she remembered him sounding like. He had been broken down and hurt badly. She barely knew him but felt terrible for him.
“You better start knowing,” Lana said, coming forward to grab him more forcibly.
Drake was the one to put his hands on her this time and shove her back. “Calm down. Let the kid have a minute.”
“Oh, please,” Lana said. “You were first in line when it came to fucking with the wolf shifters. Don’t blame Mr. Acceptance now because your girlfriend is watching. I want to know what happened to our people.”
“Your people,” Drake corrected with a snap and sharpness.
“They were your people once too.”
“Maybe I forgot that when you locked me up in a cell.”
“Knock it off,” Erik said, coming forward and pushing Lana back to put himself between her and Diego. “Let the guy sit down and take a fucking breath.”
“He’s a—”
“I don’t care. Shut up and give him a chance to take a minute. He’s a person.”
Erik led Diego over to the place he’d carved out as his own and let him sit gently. He kept his hands on Diego’s back and helped him sit upright. Alessia wondered if he felt a little bit responsible for the whole situation since he was the one who first contacted Diego and asked him to get involved. Alessia was responsible too. She got them both involved. She stepped over to give Diego a reassuring squeeze of his shoulder. She couldn’t offer anything else. They didn’t have food or water or medicine. But she could give him a place to rest.
“Lie back,” Alessia said, whispering quietly and close to his ear. “Just lie back and rest for a bit. The sun won’t be up for a while.”
Diego didn’t need telling twice as he lay back and let out the most satisfying sigh ever heard as he let himself melt into the ground. Alessia wondered how long it had been since he truly slept. She wished she could offer him something better than the forest ground but she knew even that was softer and more comforting than the dark concrete room they’d likely kept him in.
His eyes closed and he seemed to fall asleep right then and there. Alessia turned to look at Erik who met her eyes and something passed between them. It was a pact. They wouldn’t leave Diego alone. He nodded. He’d take the first watch, turning to glare at Lana who watched them both with crossed arms and a huffy glare. Alessia nodded and stood. She had business of her own to take care of as she turned to look at Drake.
He waited for her stare and looked like a deer caught in headlights. She sighed. She was tired—no, she was incredibly exhausted. She was frustrated. She felt useless. And now, she’d been at least somewhat lied to, well, she hadn’t been lied to but Drake liked keeping things, didn’t like talking, kept his past in his past and wanted to keep it hidden from view when it came to Alessia. He wanted her to see the parts of him that he wanted in view. Plenty of people were guilty of that when it came to relationships (if this even was a relationship) but other people also didn’t have such harrowing pasts as him.
She glared at him and nodded to the gathering of trees, beginning to walk there without looking back to see if he was following. He would follow after like a puppy about to be re
primanded. Maybe it wasn’t fair to take out all her frustrations on him. But he was also the person she wanted to trust more than anyone else in the world and here she was, unable to do just that.
They walked into the woods, a place that, only hours ago had been the place where they reacquainted themselves with each other and their bodies. Now it was a place where she planned to ream him a new one, depending on how well the conversation went.
“We need to talk,” she said, turning and crossing her arms, facing him.
He had a small, sheepish smile, and for once, she didn’t find a thing about it that was cute or endearing. He had, quite frankly, pissed her off. She took a breath and held tight to her own crossed arms. His smile faded as his eyes found the ground. The man who had commanded a lecture hall when she first met him was gone now. What had replaced him was a man who was nervous and scared and entirely submissive.
“Are you breaking up with me already?” he asked in jest but she didn’t smile.
“We’d have to be together for that to happen, wouldn’t we?” she said sharply, trying to hurt him. She was seconds away from seeing red. Later, she might regret her words but right now, she just wanted to make him hurt as much as she felt betrayed.
He shut up quickly.
“I like you,” she said, honestly, sounding a little more immature than she meant to but she needed to follow her instincts on this. “But you need to be honest with me.”
“Honest with you?”
“You’re cagey,” she said, shrugging. “You don’t want to talk about anything, you don’t want to let me in. Any time Lana even gets close to revealing something about your past, you shut the whole thing down.”
“Well, would you want someone spilling your darkest secrets in the worst way possible?” he asked.
“No, but it would be a different story if you followed up with the truth. You shut conversations down and then that’s that. It certainly gives the feel that you’re not being honest.”
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