by Lia Davis
Reading had always been her outlet of choice. She found satisfaction in knowing the bad guy would be caught in the end.
Brenna giggled from the living room right outside the door, making Christa smile. The kids seemed more relaxed since arriving in Ashwood. Even Bryce was a little less tense than he had been in recent months.
The click of the front opening made Christa’s pulse kick up a couple of beats per second. It wasn’t out of fear. No, it was in anticipation of seeing Hayden again.
She blew out a breath and closed her eyes. Really? She wasn’t a teen anymore. She didn’t have crushes. Hayden was just a man. Well, man and wolf, but still. Christa wasn’t falling for him.
Nope.
It’s just that she hadn’t been with anyone in a while, and Hayden…
Fuck. She was falling. Hard.
However, she was not about to let the wolf know that.
She saw him appear in the doorway out of the corner of her eye, but she didn’t lift her head to greet him. She didn’t want him to see how much he affected her. It was bad enough he could sense it.
“You look rested.”
Out of reflex, she looked up at his statement. The moment their eyes met, a lazy, yet sensual smile curved his lips. Her body heated, and her skin itched for his touch.
Damn man.
“I took a short nap while you were meeting with the Alphas.” She closed the book, stood, and gave him her back as she returned the book to the shelf. “How was it?”
“The male mutant isn’t doing too well,” he whispered, and she knew he did so to try to keep the twins from hearing.
Christa frowned. “They can still hear you.”
He shrugged. “He was their father.”
“Who killed their mother.”
“He didn’t have a choice.”
She turned then jumped as she realized how close he was to her. She quickly recovered and pinned him with a hard stare. “Are you sticking up for a mutant now?”
“Just stating a fact.” He paused, took a breath, and then continued. “Sasha says he has about forty-eight hours, give or take.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Because I think you should speak to him. Find some kind of closure.” She moved to step around him, but he gripped her arm and pulled her into his body. “Give those kids closure.”
Defeat flooded her system, making her sag against him. “I’m not sure I can face him. I almost lost it at Hunter Ridge.”
“You were in shock. Your mind was trying to stop the pain from resurfacing.”
She shook her head. Hayden ran a finger down her cheek to slip under her chin and lift it up so she met his gaze. “I never said you’d have to forgive him. Just talk to him.”
She held his green gaze for several seconds before opening her mouth to speak. The instant she did, Hayden covered it with his. His tongue swept inside, finding hers. Hot liquid desire burned through her. Hayden slid his hand inside her robe, gripped her ass, and lifted her off the ground. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he moved them.
A clatter of things hitting the floor right before her ass touched the edge of the desk. Hayden slid his hands up her sides and inside her robe to cup one breast. He released her lips to travel his down the column of her neck to her shoulder, nipping her lightly along the way.
The sound of Brenna’s annoyed voice froze them in place. “We can hear you. Get a room!”
Hayden lifted his head and peered into her eyes. He smiled, and for the first time since she’d known him, the smile reached his eyes. “I guess I could wait a little longer.”
After a quick kiss, he lifted her off the desk. Slowly lowering her to the ground, he said, “Go get changed. We’re going to dinner.”
Christa bit back a retort even though the need to tease him lay heavy on her mind. He was such an alpha male.
And she liked it.
“Casual or business?”
“Casual.”
She drew her robe closed and stepped around him to go change, ignoring the twins’ smirks on her way.
****
Hayden watched Christa’s profile as she took in the night sky and the forest around them from their table on the back deck of Russell’s Bar. She wore her wavy blond hair down. The ends brushed the tops of her shoulders as the breeze teased the strands. Without thinking, he reached out and brushed a few silken strands from her face. When his fingers touched her skin, she turned to him and smiled.
“What?”
He went to move his hand, but she grabbed it and linked her fingers with his then brought their hands to her mouth. She pressed a kiss to the back of his hand. “I like it when you touch me.”
He felt his lips twitch. “What changed that?”
“You. The way you are with your family and friends. Your strength.” She dropped their connected hands to the table and stared out into the darkening forest. “It’s beautiful here. I could live here forever.”
“You can.”
She snapped her attention back to him. “No, I…”
He pressed a finger to her lips, halting her denial of what was fated. “You are my mate.” He leaned in so their lips were a breath away from each other. “I will win this—win you. You will be mine. No. You are mine.”
She raised her brows. “I’m not sure I like this whole possessive thing.”
“I’m as much yours as you are mine.” He sat back in his chair. “You just have to claim me and accept the mating.”
She fell silent and peered at her beer bottle. He let it go for now. Christa would come around. She had to. If she ran from this, from him, he’d just hunt her down and seduce her into staying.
Their waitress came over and smiled. “Hi. What can I get you two to eat?”
Hayden softened his expression a bit and held out his hand, palm up. She flicked her gaze to Christa, who watched her with interest, then back to his hand before placing her own in his. “How have you been, Cora?”
“Fine.”
She was lying. Hayden could feel her leopard. She was scared, alone, and hurting. He understood the grief, had even felt it himself for a short time after his father died. But the difference between him and Cora was she was a submissive who’d lost her only surviving family member. Her caretaker and brother, Jason, had been attacked and killed by a mutant several months before while on patrol.
Cameron had found him while on a run in human form, something the female did often.
“Have you been to see my mother?”
Cora nodded. “We have lunch twice a week with Cam.”
Good. Sometimes unmated submissive females would go into a deep depression if they were alone for too long, especially after a tragic event like losing their big brother and protector. Spending time with the Alpha and a dominant female or two helped. Yet, Hayden sensed that Cora was not healing like she should.
“When was the last time you shifted?”
Fear lit up her eyes. “I…can’t.”
Hayden set his jaw and took even breaths to make sure he didn’t scare the skittish female any more than she already was. He scooted his chair back and tugged her to sit in his lap so she faced Christa and wrapped his arms around her to keep her from fleeing.
Her wolf whimpered but relaxed a little. He pressed his cheek to hers. “Have you met my mate? This is Christa.”
Christa shifted her gaze from him to Cora, but to his relief, she didn’t react negatively. That made him fall for her only more. She was so open and seemed to understand more about Pack life than he’d realized.
Christa reached over and covered Cora’s hand. “Hello.”
Cora relaxed and actually smiled. It had been months since he’d seen her smile. “Hi.”
“I thought I told you about pawing my waitresses.”
Hayden turned at Jasmine’s teasing tone. She had her curly brown hair pulled up in a high ponytail with a couple of ringlets left out to frame her round face. “Good evening, Jas.”
Cor
a jerked to a stand. “Jasmine. I’m sorry…”
Jasmine opened her arms. “Come here, you.” Cora walked over to the other female and allowed herself to be pulled into a hug. “There is no need to be sorry. I was teasing Hayden.” Jasmine kissed her on the cheek then whispered, “I saw Torin come in a few moments ago.”
Cora’s cheeks turned pink, and she peered back at Hayden and Christa, then Jasmine.
Jasmine gave her a gentle smile. “Go on, I’ll take their orders.”
“Are you sure?”
Taking Cora’s hand and giving it a gentle squeeze, Jasmine nodded. “Yes. Now go.”
Cora’s ducked her head and walked back in the restaurant.
Hayden raised a brow at Jasmine. “Torin?”
Jasmine’s smile widened, and she nodded. “Yep. He’s been trying to court her for several weeks now. At first I thought he was trying to be just another comforting packmate.”
“But now?”
She shrugged. “He’s chasing her.”
Hayden let out a soft growl. “He’s a little aggressive for her.”
“I don’t know. He seems…different with her.”
“I’m still going to have a talk with him.”
Jasmine gave him a hard glare. “Now, Hayden…”
He held up a hand. “I’ll just talk, not threaten him unless I see there is a need to.”
Jasmine didn’t look too convinced, but she dropped it and took their orders and left them alone.
Hayden met Christa’s stare and lifted a brow at her, drawing a smile from her. “Cora’s brother was killed by a mutant a couple of months ago.”
A frown replaced her smile. “That’s awful.”
He agreed. It also pissed him off that Onyx still manage to fuck everyone over and over. “Cora is lost right now, but she is a strong female.”
Christa took his hand. “I see it. She’s hurting, but the love of the Pack helps.”
They fell silent for several minutes, taking in the sounds of nature. Hayden didn’t mind. In fact he loved to just sit in outside and listen to the forest at night. There was something magickal about it.
After a while, Hayden glanced back at Christa. He could see by the way she sat next to him, staring out into the dark with her head slightly tilted as if listening. He lifted his hand and ran the backs of his fingers down her cheek then slid them to cup the back of her head and tug her forward for a kiss. His female was amazing, strong and passionate. “Say yes, Christa. Say you’re mine,” he whispered on her lips.
Before she could respond, Cora arrived with their dinner.
They ate in silence, mostly. Christa had changed the subject of mating to talk about the twins and the challenges of raising a pair of wolf shifters. After dinner, Hayden took Christa for a walk.
The forest was alive with the night animals scurrying about. The full moon cast silver beams of light through the trees, making the forest appear even more magickal than normal.
“Why are you scared of the dark?”
Christa missed a step at his question. He reached to steady her, but she waved him off. “I’m not afraid of the dark.”
He grunted. “Try again.”
“My parents were attacked at night, as was my sister.”
Somehow that seemed like too easy of an answer. If it had been anyone else, he might have believed her. Christa was too strong to let the attack on her parents cripple her. There was something else she was hiding from him.
He gripped her shoulders and turned her to face him. With his preternatural sight, he could see her expression. Under the blank, hard mask she wore in public were shadows of past demons that still haunted her.
“Don’t hide from me. Open up. Let me in.”
She tried to shrug him off, but he held firm. “The mutants…” She yanked free from him and turned away. He let her go and took a step closer to her, but didn’t touch her.
“There were two of them. I had just broken up with my boyfriend. I was between jobs and staying at home. My parents were asleep, and I’d just gotten out of the shower. When I reached my bedroom, it was to find the two beasts going through my stuff.”
She stopped speaking as if she needed to catch her breath. A shiver rippled through her body, making Hayden want to draw her into his arms. “What did you do?”
She let out a bitter laugh. “I screamed. That was when the larger one grabbed me and started ripping at my robe.”
Hayden growled. It echoed through the forest, silencing the creatures around them. The wind even seemed to stop blowing for a moment. “Tell me they didn’t.”
She took a breath. “They didn’t get that far. I managed to get away from them and out to the living room. My intention was to get the creatures out of the house, but my parents came out of their bedroom. My mom freaked, and I shouted at her to run.”
Hayden closed the small distance between and drew her to him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and continued. “I rushed back to my room and grabbed my gun from the nightstand. By the time I got back out there, my mom ran out the front door. A mutant chased her down and killed her. The other had bitten my dad.”
“We’re going to stop the mutants and all the rogues with them.” It was the only thing he could think to say. Too much loss, too much pain surrounded them all.
She lifted her head and stared into his eyes. “I want them all to pay for everything. Vance was right about one thing.”
He lifted a brow.
“The war between shifters is spilling over into the human world. However, it is Onyx and the mutants that are behind it. After being in the den, meeting the few people I have so far, I know now there is no way Ashwood could be responsible for the evil.”
Hope bloomed in his heart. She was on his side, willing to fight with him in this war. Now all he had to do was convince her to be his bonded mate.
Christa threaded her fingers through Hayden’s hair and pulled him down. He let her take control this once.
She kissed him lightly on the lips before saying, “Take me home and make love to me.”
Chapter Sixteen
Hayden kicked the door to his bedroom closed and carried Christa to his bed. Setting her on her feet, he removed her clothes with quick efficiency. When she was completely naked, he stepped back and raked his gaze over her.
She was beautiful and his.
“Get on the bed.” It came out as a husky demand.
Her arousal reached out to him like a lover’s caress, making the wolf within growl with approval.
She crawled up on the bed in a deliberately slow movement, teasing him. He growled and ripped his shirt over his head and let the cotton fall to the floor without a care. His focus was on the female in front of him, displayed on his bed.
“Roll over onto your stomach.”
She hesitated and narrowed her eyes slightly. He felt his lips twitch, but he refused to soften his expression. Christa needed to fully understand what it meant to be a wolf’s mate. “It’s all about trust, Christa. If you can’t do that, then you don’t belong in my bed.”
She crawled to kneel in front him. Hooking a finger in the waistband of his jeans, she tugged him closer so her breasts pressed against his chest. “Trust is a two-way street.”
He let one side of his mouth lift at the corner. “True, but today is about you.” He nipped at her lip. “Now, do as you’re told.”
She lowered herself back on the bed and rolled to lie on her stomach. Leaving his jeans on for now, he crawled on the bed and sat beside her. Her muscles twitched. “Don’t move.”
She let out a sigh of irritation. Good.
He loved it when she was a little on edge.
Leaning down, he pressed a kiss to the middle of her back. She sucked in a breath but didn’t move. Desire and anticipation rolled over her in a sweet and spicy wave. His dick hardened and pressed painfully against the zipper of his jeans.
He let out a soft groan and licked the spot he’d kissed, drawing a moan from Christa.
Moving down her body lightly, he grazed the skin just over her right hip with a fang. She did move then.
She arched her ass up, offering him what he wanted. But he wouldn’t take it, not yet.
He moved his mouth to the curve of one ass cheek and gently bit down. Christa let out a whimper as she squeezed her thighs together.
Smiling in satisfaction, he ran his tongue up her spine to her shoulder, and then he nipped his way to her ear. “You like to be teased.”
“No.” The one word came out on a breath.
“I think you do.”
He took her earlobe between his teeth and gave a gentle tug. “Would you like me to bite you, mark you?”
He felt a shudder ripple through her. “Please.”
“Rise up on your knees,” he whispered.
When she did as he requested, he glided a hand up her side to cup her breast and then rolled the tight nipple between his thumb and forefinger. Christa moved her ass against him, drawing a groan from him. Releasing her breast, he slid his hand down her belly to her pussy. When he dipped his fingers into the slick folds, Christa jerked and let out a small cry of pleasure.
He rubbed her clit in circular motions, slow at first then faster until she came, hard. Her body shuddered against him, pulling the wolf and he closer to the edge. He held her to his chest as he reined in his control.
He was trying to seduce her, pet her, and bring her to orgasm multiple times. There was no doubt that she was his mate. The bond had started, whether she admitted it or not.
Pressing a soft kiss to her shoulder, he bit down gently, not breaking the skin.
She jerked against him then started rubbing her ass against his impossibly hard cock still contained within the damned jeans. He gripped her hips and squeezed. “Don’t move.”
He released her and straightened to unbutton and unzip. His cock sprang free. He fisted the thing and guided it to Christa’s opening. She let out a soft whimper that sounded more like a plea. He smiled.
His mate, so tough and commanding, was enjoying submitting to him. Yet, somehow he knew she’d most likely pay him back later. He looked forward to it.
