by Morgan Fox
She continued to pretend his massive body wasn’t eating up a good portion of the room. He was hard to overlook with his legs stretched out in front of him. She literally had to step over him to get from her dresser to the bed and from the bed to the closet. He was tempted to raise his legs and trip her just to get her to stop moving.
“Did you kill him?” Shadow asked sharply, disappearing into her closet.
Gavin swallowed the tightness in his throat. No, but I tried. “I think I owe you a few lamps and maybe a new wall.”
Shadow was carrying several pairs of shoes as she appeared again. She dropped them into the last empty suitcase. “Don’t bother replacing them. I’m leaving this place to Silence. I’m sure she won’t be here enough to care if there’s any working lamps or even a wall standing.”
As she crossed in front of him once more to move toward her dresser, he captured her within his legs and leaned forward to pull her toward him. He clasped his hands onto her arms just above her elbows. “I’m the one who should be angry, Shadow. Not you.”
“But I am angry, Gavin.” Her eyes glistened. “You denounced me in front of my sister and her mates and I deserved it.” She hung her head, her hands coming up to cover her face. “I’m so ashamed.”
Gavin’s heart twisted. He hated watching any woman cry, especially Shadow. He placed his hands over top of hers and gently pulled them away from her face. “I want so badly to stay mad at you.” He brushed away the tears that streamed from her eyes. “You deserve far worse.”
She nodded her head, pressing her quivering lips together. “I do. That’s why I’m leaving.”
He shook his head. “If you really wish to punish yourself then you should stay and watch as I find another woman to love.” Shadow gasped. “Maybe I’ll start with Alexis.”
Shadow trembled in his arms. “Gavin, please don’t make me do that.” Tears overwhelmed her eyes. “I couldn’t bear it.” She dropped to her knees in front of him. “It would kill me.”
He had to erect a wall around his heart, pretend that her emotional misery didn’t bother him. “Then you should know that watching you fall in love with Julian has felt no different for me.”
“I know,” she muttered softly, covering her face again, sobbing harder.
He stared down at her, fists clenched at his sides. Watching her cry at his feet gave him slight satisfaction, but it also crushed him. He didn’t want her hurting as she was. He rubbed a firm hand over his face and closed his eyes, praying that he was doing the right thing.
He lowered himself to kneel in front of her, placing his index finger under her chin. He brought her face up to meet his gaze. The moment he witnessed the pain filling her soul, he knew that no matter what, he was lost to her. He just wasn’t about to tell her that.
“Shadow, I”—he sucked in a sharp breath—“I forbid you from leaving Shadow Meadows.”
She frowned. “Why?”
He stiffened his spine. “As your mate—”
She pushed him back and folded her arms across her chest defiantly. “You denounced me, remember?”
He rose to his full height, forcing her to crane her neck to stare up at him. His balled fists dug into his hips. “It changes nothing between us. You are still mine and you will do as I say.” Fire burned in Gavin’s belly as he continued to be stern with her. He couldn’t let her go and that meant he had no other choice than to command her to do as he desired.
“Wait a minute,” she blurted out, standing before him. “You can’t do this.”
He closed the distance between them, his chest inches from hers. “Oh, I can and I just did.” He turned and closed the window at his back. “You are to stay inside this house until I say otherwise. Better yet, stay in this room.” He tossed a glance over her luggage. “You can start by unpacking. You’re not leaving.”
She scoffed. “Try and stop me.”
In an instant, he was on her, slamming her down onto the floor. His arm came around her to soften the impact. His growl was feral as he hovered over her. His wolf’s need to possess her clouded his mind.
“You think to test me, Shadow?”
His wolf teeth sank into the flesh of her shoulder, piercing through the fabric of her shirt. She hissed and her arms surrounded him, her hands kneading the flesh of his back through his shirt.
“Oh, God,” she cried, spreading her legs wider as he nestled against her core.
As he marked her, her fingers toyed with the hair at the back of his neck. His cock grew hard at the sounds of her breathless moans.
He unclamped his teeth, pulled the fabric of her shirt to the side and licked the puncture marks. A low growl sounded from deep in his throat.
“I should strip you bear and take you in front of the others, let them watch as I discipline my disobedient mate, a mate who has betrayed her alpha.”
“Gavin, please,” she whimpered, her fingers digging deeper into his flesh.
He licked her neck and nestled his face in her hair, breathing in her scent. “I should punish you for what you’ve done.” He pressed his erection firmly against her pussy. Her groan had his eyes closing momentarily. “You are not to be with Julian again.” His lips brushed against her cheek. “I am the only man who will satisfy you from this day forward. If you ever betray me again…” He shrugged himself free of her caress and pushed to his knees. He didn’t want to say aloud the violent thoughts that were saturating his soul. “You really don’t want to know what I’ll do.”
She shifted to rest on her elbows. “I never meant to hurt you,” she said, breathlessly.
Anger raced through Gavin as he eyed her. Then he rose to his feet and leaned forward to grab her by her hand, forcing her to stand. He shoved her up against the nearest wall.
“You are never to speak of your infidelity again,” he said with a snarl.
Her eyes sprung open wide as she nodded. “Whatever you wish,” she muttered.
He unbuttoned her pants and tore them from her body. He raised her legs, wrapping them around his hip, and then pressed a finger inside her warm, welcoming heat.
Her fingernails clawed at his shoulders. “Gavin,” she cried.
He held her in his arms, her body quivering against him. Closing his eyes briefly he battled with himself, unable to do what his wolf was desperate to do. With a fierce growl, he released her and stormed toward her bedroom door, slamming it behind him. He couldn’t face her. Not now. He needed time to sort through his thoughts. He needed time to control his wolf before it savagely ravaged her.
* * * *
“Gavin?” Silence’s voice was softer than usual and he knew the tone well.
She was coming to confront him without appearing to do so, her less brusque approach. Right now, he preferred anyone willing to come at him to do so with both guns blazing. He wasn’t in the mood for subtleties.
“Don’t say anything, Silence.” He cocked his head in her direction. “She’s my mate and I’ll decide what I’m going to do with her.”
She cleared her throat. “I thought you didn’t want her,” she said plainly. “You made that perfectly clear to the rest of us only a short while ago.”
He swallowed, hating that he’d acted so rash. And what exactly am I doing now? “I’ve changed my mind.”
“Very well,” she replied, smiling softly. “I’ll share that with the others.”
Shaking his head, he didn’t care what the others thought about his situation. His wolf was driving his crazy train and he was lost to the desires erupting inside him. He stepped toward the window and pressed his shoulder to the wall, casting his glance outward.
Silence came up behind him and placed a gentle touch on his shoulder. “I know this sucks,” she muttered, lowering her voice so that only the two of them could hear. “But I’m glad you’re fighting for Shadow.”
Surprised, he shifted to face her. “Are you saying that because she’s your sister?”
Silence scoffed. “Hardly,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“I’m actually talking about Julian.”
Gavin ground his teeth at the mere mention of the fae prince’s name. Jealousy flared in his chest and his hands balled into fists. “What about him?”
Silence moved up and pressed her hands to the windowpane. “When Shadow and I were younger, we were inseparable”—she glanced at Gavin—“as twins should be.” Her eyes glistened. “But when Julian started coming around we grew apart. He became her everything and I became the third wheel. I’d never seen anything like the connection they shared.” She shifted her gaze. “Julian had replaced me and that was the start of the feud we shared and still do. It wasn’t until you told me about him that I’d realized what had happened to me and Shadow. I blamed it on so many other things, growing up, different personalities, different wants and desires, the death of our parents. But it really comes down to jealousy. I wanted my sister, but she wanted Julian.”
Silence moved to sit on the arm of the chair, her hands resting on her thighs. “I want you to fight for Shadow. I was too young to know what was happening, but I see it clearly now.”
Gavin pressed his back to the wall facing her. “I don’t understand.”
Silence sighed. “I didn’t fight for the friendship I had with Shadow, and Julian filled my space. Don’t let that happen to you. Julian is a huge part of Shadow’s life. He always has been and most likely always will be. The worst thing you can do is force a wedge between them. She’ll only cling to him more.” She rose to her feet and closed the distance between them, taking Gavin’s hand in hers. “Shadow loves you. I know she does.”
He shifted uncomfortably, wishing that were true. “She doesn’t act like a woman in love.”
“Doesn’t she?” Silence smiled. “She’s running away. She only does that when her emotions are spiraling out of control and she can’t stand the idea of things not being on her terms.”
Gavin arched a brow. “And her running away means she loves me?”
Silence nodded. “It’s typical Shadow. She’s scared of losing the two things in her life that matter most to her. I for one can understand exactly how she feels.”
Gavin chuckled. “What is it with you Foster women and needing more than one dick to satisfy you?”
Silence smacked him playfully on the shoulder. “Ha. Ha.”
Gavin’s smile slowly faded as he thought about sharing Shadow with another man. How would his wolf ever allow it? How could he, as a man, ever feel like he was enough when he clearly wasn’t already?
“I don’t think I can do it, Silence.”
She pushed to her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “Yes, you can.”
Chapter 10
Shadow tiptoed from her bedroom, a place Gavin had restricted her to, and made her way into the kitchen. Gavin hadn’t returned to check on her. His behavior had left her emotionally torn inside. He had every right to be angry with her. Lord knew she was pretty frustrated and confused by everything unfolding around her. She could only imagine how difficult this must be for him.
As she reached inside the refrigerator for a bottle of water, two powerful hands clasped her wrists. The door abruptly slammed shut and she was forced to place her hands flat on the cool metal. A masculine presence wedged up against her, sandwiching her between a wall of strength and the door. Warm breath dipped into her ear and tickled her skin.
The confines of powerful arms and a hard body held her firmly in place. Unable to break free, she let her head fall back, and inhaled the wild, musky scent of her alpha. Her throat went dry as the heat of his mouth pressed over the pounding pulse in her neck. A quiver of excitement teased along her spine and her pussy throbbed with need.
Sighing, she let the weight of her body relax against him and then suddenly screeched as her feet were forced apart and her nightshirt was lifted up over her hips. She was desperate to face him, but he wouldn’t release his hold. She was vulnerable, and truthfully she didn’t care.
Keeping her in place, he released her hands. With the tips of his fingers, he caressed her body from the curve of her hips toward the swell of her buttocks.
“What are you doing?” she murmured, moistening her lips.
His mouth rested above her ear. “What does it feel like I’m doing?” The guttural tone of Gavin’s voice sent wild shudders throughout her.
The rough palm of his hand circled over the globes of her ass, teasing the flesh in tender strokes. Once again he took possession of her hips, arching her back slightly. The moment he reached between her legs and cupped her, the air in her lungs hitched. When his determined finger probed deep into her welcoming heat, her knees almost buckled.
Her nails scraped over the black paint of the refrigerator. “Gavin,” she gasped, briefly closing her eyes.
She pushed onto her tiptoes as he pleasured her body, his fingers plunging deep, and then circling her clit. She hadn’t expected to react so hungrily to his touch, especially when there was so much unresolved between them.
Gavin’s touch was magical. The way he took possession of her had her body, mind, and soul satisfied. But she wanted more, needed more.
On a gasp, she was forced to face him. Gavin’s raw expression had her heart beating so fast she feared it would break through her ribs. He arched a dark eyebrow, studying her.
“You disobeyed me,” he said gruffly.
She swallowed back the lump that had suddenly filled her throat. “I was thirsty,” she told him, stiffening her jaw.
Gavin’s eyes grew darker and his lips curled into a wicked grin. “Take off your nightgown.”
A nervous flutter sank into the pit of her stomach and she licked her dry lips. Holding his intense stare, she did as he asked and undressed. She nervously glanced around the room.
“What if my sister, Walker, or Lance should come in?”
He glared at her. “What about Julian?”
She clenched her teeth as more nerves ate away at her belly. Guilt sat in her chest like a two ton elephant. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t keep her eyes locked on his. There was too much resentment in his lethal gaze.
Shadow hung her head, overcome with regret. “I already told you that I was sorry.” Her words escaped her lips in a hushed whisper.
Gavin moved with supernatural speed, taking hold of her wrist and dragging her to the sofa. “And I told you that I don’t give a shit.” He sat and draped her over his knees, facedown.
“What are you doing?” she asked, panic filling her thoughts.
“I warned you that you’d be punished if you disobeyed me.”
Askance, she saw his hand rise up and an electric jolt teased along the flesh of her body. She bit her lip, waiting for the spanking. But it didn’t come. Instead she felt his fingers caress along the crease of her buttocks.
“Spread your legs,” he ordered. Spreading her cheeks wide, he began massaging her anus. The erotic exploration of her body left her tingling everywhere.
Her body quivered as his words seeped into her mind. He was punishing her with unbridled desires. She hissed as his other hand stroked her pussy, a finger plunging deep. She moaned as his erection pressed into her belly.
“Gavin?”
“I will not ask again, Shadow.”
Her legs parted. Gavin massaged her in all her sensitive areas, heating the skin of her body with each caress and touch. She shuddered as his fingers brushed down her back and over the curve of her ass. His touch was gentle. Her pussy throbbed with a moistening heat as the anticipation built and burned deep. She craved him more now than she ever had.
“Please, touch me,” she begged. She was desperate for his touch, needed his forgiveness more than she’d realized.
He cupped her pussy and teased her clit. Instantly her eyes closed and a raspy moan scraped against her throat. His finger slid inside her, slowly gliding in and out of her tight sheath. He said nothing. She couldn’t even hear his breathing. She could only feel his hands upon her skin. His silence was deafening. Her body trembled as she felt hi
s pain-ravaged heart. She could sense the hurt she caused by sleeping with Julian as if the pain had been her own. She was linked to her mate, and no matter what, she always would be.
Her eyes watered, coming to terms with the fact that the emotional void she felt in her heart and soul would always remain without Gavin and Julian in her life.
Suddenly Gavin’s hands pulled away and a cold chill replaced his warm touch. Emptiness sank into the pit of her stomach. Gavin shifted her off his lap and he moved to stand in front of the back window. Her heart was hollow as he pulled away for a second time.
Kneeling on the floor, she squeezed her eyes to blink away the falling tears. “I don’t know how to make things right between us again,” she told him, reaching for her nightshirt.
“Leave it off,” he growled.
She wasn’t sure why he wished for her to remain naked, but she continued kneeling and placed the shirt on the floor beside her. Gavin sat in the recliner, his elbows resting on his knees, and his hands covered his face.
Watching him, her heart shattered. Her fierce alpha was devastated by her actions. Never in her life had she imagined that anyone would mean as much to her as he did. Gavin was her protector and lover. She knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that her life was better because he was in it.
Her need for him was greater than she’d once thought. The idea of being without him was like a punch to her gut. Her belly rolled as she stared at him. Her heart was heavy, but strangely it wasn’t just guilt she felt that weighted it down. It was love, and had she not been a stubborn ass, she might have figured it out sooner.
She crawled toward him and positioned herself between his legs, running her hands up his shins and thighs, taking his hands in hers. She kissed each knuckle of his strong, uncompromising hands. Their eyes locked.
“I love you,” she whispered, kissing the palm of his hand. “I’ve always loved you.”
He sighed softly, his fingers weaving into her hair. “If you love me, then why did you choose to be with Julian?”
