“You’re never getting your hands on them!” he growled, launching himself at Curtis with a bloodthirsty roar. But the Lycan was too strong. Eric engaged him with every fighting tactic he’d ever learned, but Curtis was too well trained to be caught off guard, and the drug seemed to have made him invincible to pain. Eric was taking a brutal beating, worried that he wouldn’t be able to stay on his feet much longer, when help came from one of the last places he’d expected to find it. In a blur of honey-colored fur, Jason Donovan joined the fight, snapping at Curtis with his slathering jaws.
“You bloody little traitor!” Curtis bellowed, rage fueling his strength as he ripped his claws through Jason’s abdomen, blood spraying in a wide arc as the Lycan went down. Leaping over Jason’s body, Curtis started to launch himself at Eric with his claws extended, going in for a kill strike, when suddenly there was a furious, harrowing cry behind the Lycan. In the next instant, Curtis’s body gave a violent shudder as the sound of gunshot tore through the air, and he dropped to his knees on the ground, a gushing hole torn through the center of his chest. Lifting his gaze, Eric was stunned to see Chelsea standing on the roof of Jeremy’s truck, her eyes wide with shock, the smoking gun gripped in her hands.
Holy Christ. She’d saved his life. Had climbed onto the roof of the truck in the middle of a goddamn nightmare, when she should have been catatonic with fear, and fired a bullet for him.
For me... She did it for me.
That stunning thought staggered through his brain. He needed to think it through, decipher its significance, but there was no damn time. Now she was in even greater danger than before, because Curtis’s men were closing in on the truck.
No! Not going to lose her, the wolf snarled inside his head, its gravelly voice brimming with rage. Not today. Not ever!
Determined to do whatever it took to get her to the safety of one of the cabins before they killed him, Eric started running toward her, when he realized something was happening to him. That he was experiencing some kind of change. He could literally taste the air around him as it crackled against his skin. Smell its heat and life. See everything down to the sharpest point of precision, laser focused with high-octane energy, feeling as if he had a goddamn nuclear-powered well-of-purpose building inside him that was just waiting to be unleashed.
For a single searing moment, he looked at Chelsea, seeing everything he’d been too blind to see before, understanding and recognition slamming into him with jarring, heart-stopping force. He staggered under the impact, the revelation so stunning and bright it hurt his eyes. Then he lowered his gaze to the Lycans closing in on her, his nostrils flaring as his muscles coiled with fury, and he let the primal, visceral surge of energy riding beneath his skin break free. Screams echoed in his ears, accompanied by the sound of shattering bones and the rending, tearing rasp of claws and fangs slicing through flesh. His blood raged as he worked to destroy those who had threatened his woman, annihilating everything in his path.
When it was finally over, Eric’s claws and fangs were drenched in blood, and he found himself standing a few feet away from Curtis Donovan’s shredded body, while the bastard’s men lay mangled and broken on the ground around him.
He’d thought he understood the dark, destructive power that he held inside—thought he’d known what it was capable of. But he’d never had a clue. This had been unlike anything he’d ever known. Violent and unstoppable, an endless supply of strength and speed that he could have never imagined, all held in perfect control, used for one specific purpose: to keep Chelsea alive. To keep her safe. Keep her with him.
Forever.
For the first time in his life, his dark wolf had risen up in all its destructive glory, determined to do whatever it took to protect their mate.
Eric had heard it said that a dark wolf could only fully awaken, embracing its total power, once it had found its true life mate. Like so many things in nature, the rule was meant to keep balance, since it was a dark wolf’s need for its mate that was meant to temper its savage, visceral aggression.
However, the rule no longer applied when that aggression was being channeled toward someone who had threatened the wolf’s woman. In that event, all bets were off, and the threat was destroyed by any means necessary. Which was exactly what Eric had done.
Oh, yeah. He got it now. The crazy, stubborn, smart-mouthed little human was his, and he wouldn’t have her any other way.
The only problem was whether or not she’d have him.
The other Runners were eyeing him with expressions that ranged from shock to gratitude, but the only reaction he cared about was Chelsea’s. He could sense her behind him, could feel the power of her gaze as it roamed his massive, beast-shaped body, and tried to work up the courage to turn and face her.
She saved us, the wolf growled, its guttural voice thick with possession.
True. But then, that had been before she’d seen the sort of violence he was truly capable of.
Retaking his human shape, Eric wiped a hand over his mouth and headed toward Jeremy, who was standing beside Jason Donovan’s human body and calling him over. Though Eric hadn’t attacked Jason in his rage, the bleeding wounds that Curtis had inflicted were too severe for Jillian to heal.
As Eric dropped to his knees, Jason opened his eyes. “Curtis wanted...Perry,” he rasped, his lungs working hard as he struggled for breath. “He didn’t want me to take her from the club, but I had to. Been trying to protect her, but I...I didn’t trust him. He was getting Roy on his side, so I told them she escaped today. But Curtis wouldn’t let it go—started putting together a search party to go after her. Said he was going to get good money for her, after he’d used her himself. I couldn’t...couldn’t let that happen, so I told them I’d talked to you. Said that her sister was here. Wanted to...to get him here...so you and the Runners would kill him. Didn’t know Curtis would...give us that drug. Just wanted Perry to be...safe.”
Son of a bitch. The kid had led Curtis right to their doorsteps, counting on Eric and the Runners to destroy him, so that Perry would no longer be in danger. He hadn’t been working with Curtis tonight—he’d been setting him up. Leading him to slaughter. And he’d been willing to risk his own life to see the bastard taken down.
Wishing like hell that Jason had come to him for help before all this shit happened, he asked, “Is Perry your mate, Jason?”
Blood slipped from the corner of his mouth as he gave a pained laugh. “What’s it matter if she was? She’ll be better off without me. Hell, dying is the best thing I could do...for her.” He took a shallow breath, shaking his head as he said, “When we met, I t-told her not to come after me. Knew she’d be in danger, because of what I was mixed up in.” His lips twitched with a strained smile. “Crazy girl did it anyway.”
Eric lifted his head, ready to call for Perry, who was still in the truck—but Jason’s fingers dug into his arm, demanding his attention. “Have to...warn you. Roy’s using those sex shows to make blackmail tapes. He’s gonna...force others to fight on their side. You have to stop them.”
Shit. All this time, they’d thought the Donovans had recruited the Whiteclaw. But they’d been wrong. It was Roy’s crazy ass that was causing all the trouble.
“He wants...war,” Jason growled, just as his last breath rattled past his lips.
Ignoring the aches and pains in his battered body, Eric pushed back to his feet, his thoughts on everything Jason had told him...and the woman still waiting behind him. Wyatt tossed him a clean pair of jeans, which he pulled on, before turning to face Chelsea. He didn’t know what to expect from her now that it was over. Fear? Disgust? Who knew how she would react to what she’d seen him do...to the monster she’d seen him become.
She stood less than a dozen feet away, pale but beautiful, her tear-filled gaze locked tight on his. “Your eyes are still completely amber,” she whispered.
He wasn’t surprised, since he now knew the amber coloring was a mark of the dark wolf.
Taking a
deep breath, Eric parted his lips, praying he could think of the right thing to say. But he didn’t need to.
Before the first word could fall from his lips, Chelsea gave a choked cry and ran straight toward him...right into his blood-covered arms.
* * *
It had taken Eric and the Runners a good hour to deal with the bodies that had been scattered over the Alley. They were all feeling more than a little battered and bruised, but by some miracle of fate, they’d avoided any serious injuries in the group. By the time they were finally done clearing away the casualties, it was near midnight. Chelsea and Perry had headed into his cabin as soon as the cleanup had started, and he figured they were both asleep by now. But, as he walked through the front door, he found Chelsea waiting for him.
God, there was so much he wanted to say to her, he didn’t even know where to begin. So much that he needed to try and make her understand. He had no idea how he was going to convince her to give him a chance—only the driving need to make it happen.
He finally got it now—the reason his wolf had been so intense about her...as well as why it had hidden the truth from him. The animal had been protecting them. Had been willing to deny its own nature until it was sure she could accept them both: the man and the beast. He didn’t even know if it had been a conscious decision on the wolf’s part. But he had no doubt that the animal’s powerful instincts were the reason the truth had been kept from him until tonight, when she’d proven that she was willing to drill a bullet into another living thing to save his life. And at a time when he was more monster than man. Despite the frustration he’d had to endure these past days, Eric knew it had been the right choice, and now he would never doubt the beast again. It might be darker than the man, but they were the same. Two sides of one whole. He’d live better for that understanding. That acceptance.
But they’d never be complete without their woman.
As she rose from her place on the sofa, he said, “I didn’t think you’d still be up.”
With trembling fingers, she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “I didn’t want to go to bed until I had a chance to tell you that I’m sorry. For all the stupid things I said last night.” She took a step closer as she licked her lips, her blue eyes wide and bright. “I know I acted horrible, and that I don’t deserve it, but I’m hoping you’ll give me another chance.”
His fingers flexed at his sides, his relief so acute that it hurt. “With me, Chelse, you can have as many chances as it takes,” he said in a low rumble, aching to claim what was his. What he knew, with every fiber of his being, belonged to him.
He was no longer worried about how she’d fare in his world, because there wasn’t any need. Tonight had shown him just how badly he’d underestimated her. She could handle him and his wolf...and even the whole damn pack, if it came to that. The woman was hell on wheels, and he wanted her so badly he didn’t know what would happen to him if she walked away from him. Yeah, he was worried about how she would take everything he had to unload on her, but he was determined to find a way to make her understand. He’d never walked away from a challenge in his life, and he sure as hell wasn’t about to start now, when it was the most important thing he’d ever had to do.
With his heart beating to a strong, heavy rhythm, Eric closed the distance between them and lifted his hand to her face, his thumb stroking across her lower lip. “Tonight changed everything, sweetheart. Even though it was wrong, I wanted to keep you, to make you mine, whether the wolf accepted you or not. But now that it has, I don’t have to worry that I’ll slip up. It will protect you as fiercely as I will. Forever.”
She blinked. “Forever?”
Taking a deep breath, he dropped his hand and said, “I want to bond with you, Chelsea.”
“Wh-what?” she gasped, her eyes going wide.
“I want to claim you in the way of the wolf. Pierce your neck with my fangs and take your blood.” His voice was low, rough, stripped down to raw, blistering emotion. “I know it probably sounds scary, but it’s meant to be extremely pleasurable for the female.”
Confusion creased her brow. “But wouldn’t that turn me into a werewolf?”
Very carefully, he said, “If you weren’t mine, then, yes. But it doesn’t work that way with mates.”
* * *
Chelsea couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She’d waited up to ask him for a chance to keep seeing each other—not to bind their lives together in a way that could never be undone. “Mates?” she choked out, shaking her head. “I...I don’t understand, Eric. Why are you saying these things to me now, when you’ve never talked about a future between us before?”
“Tonight, I recognized your scent.” He gave her a dark, possessive look, his gray eyes beginning to glow around the edges again with that warm, amber light that they’d had after the fight. “I recognized it as something that belongs to me, Chelsea. It says that you’re mine.”
Needing to put more space between them, Chelsea took an instinctive step back. “But thatthat doesn’t make any sense.” Her emotions were in a chaotic jumble that was heading swiftly toward panic. “You smell something good and poof, just like that you’re ready to take things to the next level?”
“Damn it, you don’t get to make me sound like some juvenile pup who doesn’t know his ass from his elbow,” he growled, the angry thunder of his voice nearly making her jump. “You have no... idea how significant this is.”
Tossing her arms up, she shouted, “That’s right! I don’t. Because you’ve never bothered to explain it to me!”
With a low groan vibrating in the back of his throat, he pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes, looking as if he was trying to get a handle on his frustration. Breathing hard and rough, he said, “What happened tonight means that my wolf completely accepts you as ours. It means I no longer have to fight to maintain full control over myself when we make love.” He lowered his hands, the look in his glittering eyes imploring her to understand. “It means I can finally trust myself with you. That I no longer have to be afraid.”
He’d been that worried? All this time? Though he’d tried to explain the danger to her, she’d never really believed him.
Shivering, she wrapped her arms around her middle, her voice little more than a croak. “And if you had never had this understanding? This...this recognition of my scent? Even if we hadn’t argued last night, you still would have just walked away from me? After what? A day? A week?”
His throat worked as he swallowed. “Walking away from you is the best thing I could have done, because my wolf was only growing more possessive of you. But I don’t know that I would have been strong enough to make it happen.” He sounded as if he was confessing a sin.
Softly, she asked, “And you think our being together now is a given?”
“You can’t change the facts, Chelsea.” He took a quick, sharp breath, every line in his body and face going hard with determination. “No matter how you look at it, you’re mine. Do you understand what I’m telling you?”
Oh, she understood. Understood that he wanted things from her she didn’t think she would ever be able to give him. How could she, when she simply didn’t have the ability to open up and completely put her faith in another person?
Shaking her head, she said, “I’m sorry, Eric. But that isn’t the way that it works. Not for me. We don’t all get the magic answer.”
His eyes narrowed to blazing, piercing chips of gray. “What the hell does that mean?”
“It means I’m still me!” she told him, pressing a hand against the center of her chest. “Still the same woman with the same hang-ups. I’m not ready to submit and give myself to you. Not for forever. I might never be.”
“I can...be patient,” he scraped out, but she knew it was a lie.
“No, you can’t. I can see it in your eyes.” She took another step back, looking to the side, her face hidden by the veil of her hair. All of this...it was too much, and she could feel her defense mechanisms kicking into g
ear, working to bury her confusing feelings beneath layers and layers of cold, glacial ice. “It’s...it’s best to end this now, Eric, before either one of us gets any deeper.”
* * *
“Any deeper?” He gave a hard, bitter laugh, feeling like she’d reached into his chest and ripped out his heart. “Christ, Chelsea. This isn’t something that’s going to just go away for me. I only get one mate, and that’s you. I don’t get any second chances.”
“I’m sorry,” she said, her voice eerily quiet and flat. “But I can’t do this.”
He cursed under his breath, hands braced on his hips, head hanging forward, as he paced the length of the room. The mountain winds howled beyond the night-black windows, mirroring the crushing tension in the air. Finally, he blew out another ragged breath and turned toward her. “I’m not asking you to change who you are. I’m just asking you to start a life with me.”
Bringing her gaze back to his, she asked, “And where would we live?”
Because of his bloodline, his family was going to be at the forefront of danger for months, if not years to come. Though Eric knew she was tough, he also knew that only a madman would take a human female to live with the pack right now, when things were still so volatile and unstable, catastrophe waiting to erupt at any moment. But they could build a life together in the Alley. Despite what had happened tonight, she would be safe here. He and the Runners would see to it.
“Eric?”
He took another deep breath, collecting his thoughts, and said, “We’d live here, in the Alley. It would be perfect, Chelse. You would still have your teaching career. I’m not trying to take that away from you. And you could still devote time to your causes. Hell, the women up in Shadow Peak need your help more than you can even imagine. You could start a shelter for them here, in one of the cabins. Give them counseling and a safe place to go when they need it.”
She looked at him with an expression that was nothing short of stunned. “What do I know about werewolves?”
Dark Wolf Rising (Bloodrunners) Page 24
