by Mia Rose
“At least half a million. Just to get started. I already have some other people looking into it as well,” Edmund explained.
“What do you mean you have other people?” Noelle asked. “Other people know about you? About what you do?”
“Not exactly. I just told them I am working on a cure for something, and I mean, technically that’s not a lie. And once I perfect the werewolf elixir, we will all be able to heal faster.”
“Edmund, can I just ask, how do you know this thing will even work? Have you tested it on anyone?”
“Yes,” Edmund replied, “I have.”
Declan was excited after his conversation with Gabriel, but he was also nervous. Had he spoken too soon to his pack about a possible cure? What if Edmund had no intentions of helping them at all?
Declan found himself pacing in his apartment. He had so many different thoughts coursing through his mind about Edmund, and about Noelle, and about Edmund with Noelle. He knew in his heart that she had slept with him just to trap him, but he couldn’t figure out why she would try to have someone else hurt him. Why wouldn’t she just do it herself?
And how did Edmund heal so quickly? Declan was definitely caught off guard by that first strike, but once he turned, he was on point and he knew he made contact. He knew definitively, because he could smell the blood coming from Edmund’s open wound.
None of this made any sense and Declan felt like he was running out of time to figure things out. He would have to call Edmund and face the music, as they say. He pulled his phone out from his pocket and found the number for Edmund. The line rang a few times before sending him to a generic voicemail box.
“Call me,” Declan said. “It’s Declan,” he added as an afterthought.
He closed the phone and pressed it against his forehead, willing it to ring. Declan heard a knock at his door and he put his phone down to see who was knocking at the ungodly hour. It was after two am.
“Hey Declan,” a young woman said, framed with strawberry blonde hair. She stood in front of him.
She had soft blue eyes —not the kind that pierce you, like Noelle’s, but the kind that you realize are blue after a little while. Her red lips met each other and spread across her face in a flirtatious smile.
“April, right?” Declan asked.
“It’s actually Avril,” the girl responded.
“Sorry about that. What can I do for you, Avril?”
“Actually, I was coming to see if there was anything I could do for you? You’ve been so super-stressed lately, and what with Cassidy and Aria gone, I thought perhaps you’d like some company.” She flashed him a wicked grin and Declan could tell that this was headed nowhere, fast.
“Oh, well, thanks for the offer —Avril. But I’m pretty tired tonight and I don’t need anything, anyways. Nice of you to drop by! Goodnight,” Declan said as he closed the door. He could hear her protesting weakly but he was already back at the counter where he’d put his phone.
He switched it on and saw that he had one missed call. From Edmund. Declan hit the call back button, but again he found himself sent to voicemail. Frustrated, he was tempted to throw his phone but then he remembered all the trouble that caused him last time.
Declan went into his bathroom and turned on his shower, allowing the steam to fog the mirror. When he stepped inside, the burning hot water seared his skin, but he welcomed it. He felt like he was becoming overwhelmed with life and everything that it was constantly throwing in his direction. In truth, all he could think of was his fate about knowing Noelle. And that if he had never slept with Noelle and cheated on Cassidy, none of this would have ever happened. But a deeper part of him knew that wasn’t entirely true either, because eventually, the hunters would still have come after them. Actually, knowing Noelle may have saved a lot of his pack in the end.
Edmund sat across from Noelle —a position that was becoming all too common, as he explained more about everything to her.
“Noelle, what I am about to tell you —it’s not easy to say, and it’s even harder to explain, so please, let me do my best and don’t interrupt me.” Noelle was taken by his tone as Edmund was speaking to her using his doctor-patient voice. She could feel the sting of his words as she remembered how far past doctor-patient they had become.
“Okay, I won’t speak,” Noelle said, and Edmund shot her a warning glance as if she had already broken the rules. She mimicked zipping her lips.
Edmund shook his head and he began telling her about how he got into researching werewolves in the first place. He told her about his own parents and how once they had realized how much value his discoveries could have for them as hunters. Then, they pushed him even harder to find out more.
“My parents died while hunting,” Edmund said. “They had run out of the elixir and the wolf attacked them at their weakest moment and killed them both.”
Noelle covered her mouth in horror. She had come close to experiencing that same anguish of losing her family, but at the end of the day, they were all still alive.
“That pushed me even harder to research more and find out as much as I could. I promised myself that I would not stop until I had something that could kill them all. I was so focused on revenge, I can honestly admit that I let my grip on reality slip. I became obsessed and I lost myself.” Edmund was speaking to Noelle, but he was somewhere else, entirely.
Noelle was watching him closely, studying his eyes and his expression as he spoke. She could understand it now. And it made sense as to why he was trying to be so professional about this —if he gave into his emotions now, he might not be able to stop. She thought about how hard it must have been losing both of his parents at one time. She wanted to reach out to him, to console him, but something told her that he wasn’t done.
“So, here is the part that I have not told anyone.” For the first time, Edmund looked straight at Noelle. “But, for whatever reason, I feel safe in sharing this with you.”
Noelle nodded, encouraging him to continue. “Yes,” she said, trying to calm him with her one, definitive word.
“During my final months of research before they closed my lab and cut off all my funding, I was testing a particularly potent formula. It was pure silver and I poured it down the wolf’s throat…”
“Wait a minute, you mean to tell me that you used actual wolves to test on?”
Edmund nodded. Noelle felt sick to her stomach as she thought about it. She knew it was hypocritical seeing as how she was a hunter who killed numerous wolves before, but for some reason, it just seemed overly cruel. There was no honor in strapping an animal to a table with no way to defend itself. At least in a hunt, they both had an opportunity to fight and whoever lost was the lesser of the two. Noelle was at a loss for words. She felt as though there was nothing she could say which would truly captivate her thoughts.
“So, I was testing this new formula and as I turned to get it, the wolf somehow freed itself from its restraints. I turned just as she was transforming into her real form and she bit me, nearly ripping me to shreds. I managed to grab the bottle of silver and threw it on her and it did exactly what I thought —the entire body of the wolf disintegrated into thin air within minutes.”
Noelle stared at Edmund who had stopped talking, with no intention of going any further, and a single question hung in the air between them. Was Edmund a werewolf?
“The irony doesn’t escape.”
Chapter 9
Moving Forward
“He knew that he would never find it in a human woman again.”
Declan couldn’t sleep because every time he closed his eyes, he pictured Noelle’s perfect body. The curves of her hips and the fullness of her breasts. He imagined her bent over in front of him as she grasped onto a tree for support.
Declan opened his eyes and he could still feel the energy buzzing all around him as his body reacted to his memories. He needed to find something to distract him —or rather, someone. He thought of Avril who had basically offered herself t
o him, but he quickly dismissed that idea. She was not his type at all —too much girl, not enough woman. The women he liked needed to be chased, they were not the ones doing the chasing.
He climbed out of his bed and pulled on a pair of black jeans with one of his nice button-down shirts. He remembered the last time he had gotten dressed up and Aria found him and asked him where he was going. Declan felt a small tug when he thought about Aria. Other than the memorial they had for the pack members who were killed in the fight, Declan hadn’t thought too much about her.
He brushed his hand through his hair and made his way to the car. He noticed the sun peeking over the horizon as it made its way into the sky and he stopped in his tracks to appreciate the pinkish-orange hues which decorated the sky.
Declan had spent more time in his life being a werewolf than he had a normal human, but in both lives he held a deep appreciation for nature and the world around him. That’s probably why he fell into the role of Alpha so easily, because even as a human, he was in touch with his natural instincts, taking in and responding to the cues around him.
It had been too long since Declan had done anything just for enjoyment. Even before he met Noelle and his life was turned completely upside down, he had become overly obsessed with work in order to maintain a safe haven for his pack. So much so, that he could never find the time to do things he enjoyed. Before all of that, he and Cassidy would sometimes go for hunts just to stretch their legs and smell the grass. They did it, trusting in nothing but themselves and the world around them. Those were the good days, Declan decided. And all he could do at this point was hope that there were more good days ahead of him.
As Declan drove down the winding roads, he tried to focus in on every curve. He tried to anticipate the obstacles before he could see them —in essence, he was trying to get in touch with his inner wolf. The previous night was a wakeup call for him —not that he had been betrayed by Noelle, but rather that he had no indication of Edmund standing in the woods.
As Alpha, his senses were usually second-to-none, but lately, it seemed as though anything or anyone could get the better of him in a situation. Declan thought back again to the fight with Edmund and the way his body had healed so quickly. There was something much more mysterious going on. Declan was determined to find out exactly what the connection was between Edmund and Noelle, and what exactly Edmund was —because he seemed to be anything but human.
Declan drove to the coast, to a bridge he used to frequent which extended out over the water. He parked his car and walked along the bridge, standing precariously close to the ledge as though testing himself. Any misstep and he would fall into the water far below him.
Once he reached the center of the bridge, he stopped and admired the way that the sun’s rays mixed with the rippling water. He was fascinated by the water and how it never stood still. The water always moved forward despite any storms it might face, and despite what secrets it kept hidden underneath the surface —it was always moving.
He didn’t know how long he stood there, but a voice shook him from his thoughts and brought him back to reality.
“What was that?” Declan asked, turning to face the person who had spoken to him.
“I said, you might not want to stand so close to the edge or people might get the wrong idea.”
It was a woman standing before him that he had never seen, but she was certainly beautiful. She had long auburn hair that fell in waves down her back and she wore a blue blazer that hugged her curves in all the right places. Declan let his eyes roam down the rest of her body and he could sense that the woman was watching him watching her.
“I bet all of the ladies let you do this to them, don’t they?” she asked.
“Do what?” he asked, slightly embarrassed.
“Eat them up with your eyes.” Declan laughed, but he saw that the woman was not finding this humorous at all. He coughed to try and cover it up.
“I’m sorry —it’s just, you’re very beautiful,” Declan admitted. He could feel himself growing excited at the sight of her, although he did notice that the woman was growing more and more uncomfortable.
“Right, well, I’m not interested. Thanks.”
She turned to walk back to her car and just as she was about to step onto the road, a car came zooming in her direction. Declan swooped down and picked her up as quickly as he possibly could.
“Holy shit!” She gasped. “I almost just —you just…” she trailed off, finding herself staring into his perfect eyes. Declan could feel her body relaxing in his arms and he knew without a doubt exactly where this was going.
He walked her safely back to her car and climbed into the passenger seat. Without speaking, he pointed her in the direction of a secluded parking lot beneath the bridge. While the bridge was being constructed, the workers used to park their cars here, but because it had been standing so long, most people had forgotten that the place existed.
As soon as she put the car in park, Declan reached over to her and began kissing her fiercely. There was nothing slow and steady about this, there was no sweetness left for this stranger —this was all about the raw release.
Declan removed the buttons of her blazer so quickly that one popped off. The woman looked a bit frazzled, but he didn’t care, he kept going. He kissed her mouth, her throat, her ears. She was pulling him closer and trying to grab something on him for leverage, but he gave nothing.
“Do you want me to stop?” Declan asked. She shook her head to say a resounding no.
He kissed her once more before removing her t-shirt over her head. He unbuttoned her jeans and slid them awkwardly down her body as the woman tried to adjust herself in her seat.
Once her pants were off, Declan pushed her panties to the side, pushing two of his fingers deep inside of her. The woman gasped out in pleasure as she grinded herself against him. With his free hand, Declan unbuttoned his own pants, releasing himself and he watched her eyes grow wide at the sight of him.
“What’s your name?” she asked as she grabbed his cock with her hand and began rubbing him up and down, making him even harder than he already was.
“Why?” Declan asked.
“So that I know what to call out when you make me come,” the woman said as she breathed into his ear.
Declan smiled, but he didn’t respond. He knew that they were both ready so he reached over her and reclined her seat as far back as it would go. Straddling her, he picked up her hips with one hand and thrust himself inside of her. He waited a few moments as she grew used to him and started rocking her hips against his. Declan wanted nothing more than to finish —but he couldn’t stop thinking about Noelle.
It had been less then twenty-four hours since he had finished, and the very idea that it had been with Noelle sent a surge of fury coursing through him. He began pounding himself against the woman and he felt her grabbing weakly at his hips, trying to keep up. Declan closed his eyes and tried to focus —he needed to erase the night with Noelle from his mind. He looked down at the woman who had her eyes closed and he could feel her pussy clenching itself against him rhythmically. She had finished.
Declan picked up the pace, pumping himself harder and faster and he heard the woman moaning beneath him. Finally, he reached his climax and pulled himself out just in time for it to decorate her stomach.
The woman breathed heavily and looked over at Declan, “That was…” she trailed off.
Declan nodded as he rolled off her. That probably was the best that she’d ever had, but for him —not even close. He didn’t necessarily anticipate that any of this would have happened, but he was glad it did because now he knew for certain that there was actually something special about Noelle. Something that not just any ordinary human girl could fulfill.
Declan pulled his jeans back on and buttoned them up. He reached over for the door handle and the woman touched his arm, “Don’t you want my number?” she asked.
Declan smiled at her and said, “Sure.”
He
handed her his phone and she punched in her number and handed him back the phone. Amanda was her name. He could have deleted it right then and there because he knew that he would never call her. His heart belonged elsewhere.
She offered to drive him back to his car, but he declined saying that he would rather walk. The woman got dressed and drove off quickly and Declan felt guilty for not giving her a chance. But he knew what he wanted now, and he also knew that he would never find it in a human woman. Not ever again.
Edmund did not sleep at all, even though Noelle was pressed tightly against him with her breath tickling his chest. He had told her his biggest secret —something he had never shared with anyone before, and she had not said one thing.
At first, he thought that she was just in shock, but the night continued on and she wasn’t saying anything or acting any differently. Edmund had no idea what to think about it and it had kept him up the entire night.
He got up from her bed and checked his phone seeing that he had one missed call from Declan. Yet another thing he was not looking forward to. He wasn’t sure if Declan had recognized him in the woods, so their first conversation would be like walking on egg shells for Edmund. In reality, he no longer knew what was safe to say and what was not safe.
He did know one thing —he needed to bring Noelle and Declan into the same room together seeing as everyone now had the same goal. The end goal was getting Edmund’s lab back up and running so he could work on procuring those cures. He didn’t have a plan yet as to how he was going to do it —he could only imagine Noelle’s reaction. Her shock when she discovered that she was standing in the same room with the alpha of the pack that her family was now a part of.
Edmund turned around and saw Noelle stirring from her sleep. She slowly opened her eyes and looked at the man standing before her. Edmund waited —he didn’t know if this was the moment he had been waiting for since last night.
“Good morning,” Noelle said, rubbing her palms against her eyes.
