“Return here, and we’ll plan the next move. Russ has the dwelling blocked from me with some sort of magic. We’re going to have to work out a way to destroy the shield so we can get in there and torch the place. I want them all trapped in there and dead. We’re going to have to hit the main residence and all the smaller ones on the land at once, and that’s going to take something powerful. I might have to call on Dmitri.”
Richard shivered at the sound of Dmitri’s name. Something about the man caused the hair on the back of his neck to stand on end. No one really knew the man’s age, but Richard knew he’d been around for centuries. His power surpassed anything Richard could command. Dmitri radiated strength, and it rolled off him, drawing lesser magic users to him.
“I’ll be there shortly, boss.” Richard shut his mobile and headed for home.
Dmitri wasn’t someone to call on lightly. Most of the people on Mr. Donavan’s staff were scared of Richard, but Dmitri petrified them. Dmitri had his own beef with the wolves, and usually, Mr. Donavan wouldn’t think of calling on him. But since his daughter’s conversion and his break with the Ancients, Mr. Donavan had changed, and he expected his entire staff to adapt with him.
The ones who balked lay six feet under, most by Richard’s hand. Richard already had a dark mark on his soul and would follow Mr. Donavan anywhere. He’d been on the verge of death, and Mr. Donavan had saved him, making him into the monster others ran from. Richard didn’t want to disappoint Mr. Donavan, but he had a bad feeling about messing with the pack. The Ancients protected them, and Richard didn’t want to tangle with them, but he would if that was what the boss wanted.
Richard returned to Mr. Donavan.
* * * *
“Bella…wake up, Bella. It’s a dream, just a dream.”
Bella thrashed about like something chased her. Her screaming tapered off as she bolted upright in bed. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
David brushed them away and gathered her into his arms. “Shhh, sweets, it’s okay. I’m here for you, baby. Can you tell me about it?”
She tried to get a hold of herself. Thankfully, David held her. Usually, she only had herself for comfort when the visions hit. She leaned into him and let him hold her for a couple of minutes before telling him about her dream. They all had to know.
“We sat down for dinner. A big group of us, but I only recognised you, Russ and Max. One minute we were eating, the next we were screaming. The cries… Oh God, David. The intensity of the smoke burnt my eyes, and I shrieked. I-I couldn’t stop the fire, and you burned in front of me. I wailed louder, then I felt the flames singe my skin and…then I woke up. David, it feels like that second outcome Russ foresaw is inevitable.”
She rested her head in the crook of his shoulder as he stroked her back. She tried to take deep, calming breaths, but she could still smell the horror from her dream.
“We can beat this. Bella, we will beat this. I want forever with you. A few days isn’t enough, and I’m not letting you go, now. We need to tell Russ about your nightmare, then we’ll figure out what we need to do to stop your dream from becoming real.”
“I know Russ wants us to meet for dinner so he can tell the pack about the threat, but maybe we shouldn’t have the dinners for a while. That could be how we stop the fires.”
“Russ would never agree to that, babe. He wouldn’t want the threat to cause us to change our behaviour, because that would be giving in, and that’s one thing a wolf doesn’t do—give in.”
Bella felt a cramp work its way from her belly down to her legs. She gasped and tightened her hold on David.
“Bella, what is it? You’re not going to faint again, are you?”
She shook her head. The cramp took her breath away. Her legs burnt, fire licking its way up and down, but this didn’t come from her dream. It felt different, something didn’t feel right. She looked wildly towards David.
“What’s happening to me?”
Another cramp stabbed her arms, locking them around David in an odd kind of embrace.
“You’re going to change, aren’t you? It’s time. We need to get you outside. Fast.” He wrapped a blanket around her, pulled his pants on and picked her up. He rushed down the stairs.
Bella gasped in pain. The burning took over her whole body. She ached all over and could feel the cramping sensation in every bone. The pain wouldn’t let up, and she needed to pass out, to seek the oblivion that waited for her on the other side. It couldn’t happen fast enough. She felt the sensation of slipping under, heeding the call of the darkness, when fresh air brushed against her.
David tried to get her attention, but she couldn’t focus. He grabbed her face between his hands, forcing her to look at him. He said her name, but she still couldn’t make out his words.
Suddenly, a feeling of warmth flooded her body. A sense of peace settled over her. The agony existed, but something pushed it to the back of her mind. She stared at David with awe, wondering how he eased her pain with his touch. She closed her eyes for a second to help focus and, when she opened them again, David looked down at her.
“Sweets, you have to listen to me. Can you hear me? Baby…are you listening?”
Bella gave a little nod.
“You can’t fight this. The more you fight, the more you’re going to hurt. I need you to focus on me. Are you focussing? Pay attention, because I’m going to shift, baby, and I need all of your attention on me. Sometimes it helps if you can see how the change goes for someone else.”
A huge wolf slipped into her field of vision, close to the two of them. Bella shrank back, but a thought came into her head.
“It’s me, Bella. It’s Russ. I’m here to help make your first time easier. I know it hurts, but hopefully, we can get you changed quickly. Listen to what David tells you—”
Bella interrupted Russ by gently caressing his mind. She felt like a tiny butterfly asking for entrance.
“But…the pain is almost gone. I feel it, but it’s like it has been pushed back.”
Bella could sense Russ sending a thought to David. She briefly wondered if they knew she could hear them.
“You’re completely connected with her. You need to pull back. You can’t take on her pain. This has never happened before, and we don’t know what the consequences could be for either of you. Pull back, now!”
Russ’ voice echoed in her head, and she wondered if it did the same for David.
“I can’t pull back, Russ, because I don’t know what’s going on. I can feel her in my head, but I’m not doing anything. I’m going to try something and see if it works.”
Bella felt Russ leave her thoughts, and David appeared stronger in her head. She saw the figure of herself and watched as she changed. It looked so easy when David showed it to her, but she had no idea how she could manage it. Focussing on the image David showed her seemed to help. She felt a shift and concentrated harder.
Focus, focus, focus.
She closed her eyes and let herself go. When she next opened them, everything seemed crisp. The pain had disappeared. She went to stand and noticed her form had changed.
Panic surged through her. Whimpering, she backed away from the two wolves in front of her. In her panic, she searched for David, but she couldn’t see him anywhere. She put her muzzle in the air to sniff for him, letting her wolf take over. Her nose led her to the beast in front of her. Confusion raged through her, until she remembered David could shift, too. He must have changed when she did. Calm settled over her. He looked magnificent in his wolf form, huge with black fur and eyes.
Wait…I’m thinking…I’m still me.
Bella heard a chuckle in her head.
“Of course you’re still you, Bella. We may be wolves, but we have human souls. Why don’t we go for a run, and you can test out your new legs.”
Bella went over to nuzzle David, glad they could communicate while in wolf form. She heard a bark and glanced over to see the animal that was Russ. He barked again and ran off. Turning her att
ention back to David, Bella continued to nuzzle him. Her life had changed so much in such a sort time, she had to keep reminding herself this was really happening to her.
“Stop thinking, Bella. Feel. Let’s run.” David raced off into the wood.
Bella chased after him, feeling free for the first time in her life.
* * * *
David led Bella to a creek on the outskirts of the pack property, a beautiful, secluded spot where they could be alone. He stopped and turned, waiting for her to catch up. She looked as beautiful in wolf form as she did in human form, sleek and perfect with fur red like a fox. Nobody could mistake her for an ordinary wolf.
When Bella was close enough to touch, he turned back to human form. She stopped and cocked her head as if asking, ‘what are you doing?’
David ran his hands along her flanks.
“It’s time to try to change back. It won’t be as painful as shifting into your wolf. Picture yourself in your true form. See yourself becoming human.”
“But I feel so free, David. I don’t know if I want to change back.”
David took Bella’s muzzle in his hands, forcing her to look at him.
“Bella, you will always be free with me no matter what form you’re in. Don’t you understand we’re two parts of a whole? Together, we can do anything. I will always be here to protect you.”
Bella transformed as if she had been doing it all her life and lay beside David. Pride at his mate rushed over him as she turned to wrap her arms around him and snuggled close.
“I’d almost lost hope, David. I didn’t think I would ever be close to another human again. Sometimes, I would cry myself to sleep, playing the ‘what if’ game. What if I were normal? What if my parents hadn’t died? What if I could have saved them? What if I never found anyone of my own? What if I could never touch another person again? What if—”
“Shhh, sweets. You don’t have to worry about that any more. We’re your family, now.”
He lifted her face to his own and lightly brushed his lips over hers. She opened to allow him access. He swept his tongue over her mouth before plunging inside, his tongue duelling with hers.
Bella moved her hands down his body, reaching for his hot, throbbing cock. He cupped her breasts, tugging and pinching her rosy red nipples until she moaned. He wanted to thrust inside her more than anything, but he wanted to go slowly.
He released her lips and nibbled at her neck, sucking and licking his way to her breast. He had to taste her. He licked around her nipple before sucking it deep into his mouth. She threw her head back and moaned once again.
A noise from the distance wove its way into David’s play. He stopped to get a better idea of where the sound came from.
“David…wha—”
“Shhh. I heard something,” David whispered as he sat up and placed himself between Bella and the forest.
She pressed herself to his back.
“Change, Bella. Now! Go back to the house. I’ll meet you there as soon as I can.” He rushed into the woods to face the danger head on.
Chapter Six
Bella heard the panic in David’s voice and rushed to change. It went smoother this time with only a twinge or two.
She didn’t want to leave him, but she trusted him with her life and didn’t want to waste any time that could cause him harm. She needed to return and warn Russ--though of what, she didn’t know. She made it back to the compound in record time.
Bella searched for Russ with her mind, but she felt some sort of block. She guessed she would have to get close enough for him to see her, and that might be problematic, considering she couldn’t open the door in wolf form. She really didn’t want to walk into the house wearing nothing, but she didn’t have another option. She focussed like David had taught her and quickly resumed her human form.
She went to open the door when the knob flew out of her hand. Her face flamed red when she saw Max standing there. His eyes roamed over her body, resting on her breasts. Her nipples pebbled, and she didn’t know whether the cold or his stare caused it.
“Where’s Sparky? He shouldn’t leave you outside this way. It’s not safe to roam around here naked. Someone might get hurt.” Max spoke to her chest. Never once did his gaze travel to her eyes.
Bella cleared her throat, hoping to direct his attention to her face. She needed to get over her discomfort so she could help David. “David heard something in the woods. He stayed there to investigate on his own, and I’m worried.”
Max didn’t say a word. He turned around and walked back into the house, taking off his shirt and tossing it back to Bella as he strode towards Russ’ office.
“Put this on, and we’ll go talk to Russ.”
Bella didn’t complain. She put the shirt on as fast as she could.
Max didn’t even bother with knocking on the closed door. He threw it open, and on the other side, Russ stood with a man who looked like an ebony god. They had their heads together and seemed to be in the middle of a serious discussion. Russ glanced up with an annoyed look on his face until his gaze travelled past Max to Bella.
“What’s happened?”
A racket sounded behind Bella, and Max drew her into the office, stepping behind her, putting himself in the path of whatever charged up the hallway. David appeared, and he didn’t look happy as he strode through the house wearing only his pants. He must have found his clothes outside on the way in. Bella breathed a sigh of relief, so happy that David hadn’t been hurt.
Then she heard the growl. At first, she didn’t understand what had him upset, until she saw David throw himself at Max. She started to rush forward, but she felt a hand on her arm.
“You’d best stay out of it. You have Max’s scent from his shirt all over you, and David has to assert his authority. Your getting in the middle is not a good idea. Go upstairs and take a shower. Make sure you leave Max’s shirt behind, or this will only get worse.”
“But…it’s only a shirt. I don’t understand what the big deal is. Would he rather I be standing here naked?”
“He would rather you not be covered in another man’s scent. It’s a wolf thing. You’d better get used to it and make sure you keep some clothes around so this doesn’t happen again.”
“But…I—”
“It will be okay. This is new to you, but you’ll get the hang of it. Now, go upstairs. There is another door over there. I’ll send David up after we’ve had a chat.”
During their conversation, David and Max had continued trading blows back and forth. Bella really didn’t want to leave, but Russ didn’t give her any choice in the matter, so she turned and went up to the room she shared with David.
* * * *
“Enough!”
Both men stopped fighting and turned to their alpha.
“David, explain yourself.”
“He touched her, and he—”
“Stop right there, David. We both know you wouldn’t have wanted Bella standing here naked. You sent her back in a panic, and Max happened on her. He offered his shirt. Do we need to continue this conversation, or are you going to tell us why you sent your mate back here alone?”
David looked at Max, and Max winked. David growled low in his throat and took a step towards him.
“That will be enough, Max. We’ll see you at dinner in half an hour.”
“Next time, you should aim a little lower, Sparky. You hit like a girl.” With a chuckle, Max walked out of the room, leaving a growling David behind.
“David.”
David couldn’t ignore the warning in Russ’ tone. He lowered his head and turned back towards him.
“Now, tell me what happened.”
“Bella and I had stopped by the creek, when I heard someone in the woods. I didn’t like the way it smelled, so I sent her back here and went to investigate. I couldn’t reach the person, but they were there—and then the scent disappeared. I can’t explain it, Russ. Someone or something watched us from the woods.”
“It had
to be one of Bastian’s men or his new friend, Dmitri. Zareb and I were discussing the alliance between the two before this little drama. The only explanation I can come up with for the scent disappearing is Dmitri or one of the men being masked with magic. Zareb is more familiar with Dmitri than I am, but we need to talk about it and come up with a plan. We’re going to have to be more careful and stick close to the house. We’ll have a meeting before we eat. I’ll gather the others in the dining room. Why don’t you go upstairs and calm down? I’ll see you in a few. And David, leave the attitude. I know your mating is new, but we have enough to worry about without you attacking Max every few minutes.”
Russ turned back to Zareb, effectively dismissing David.
When David reached his room, he heard the shower running and saw Max’s shirt on the floor. With a growl, he quickly threw the garment in the trash and went into the bathroom to claim Bella. He needed to finish what they’d started by the creek.
She gasped when he opened the curtain then grinned when she saw him standing there in all his glory, hard and wanting her. She stepped back, allowing him to enter.
He shoved her against the shower wall and grabbed her hips, lifting her. She wrapped her legs around his waist, and he entered her in one swift thrust. She moaned, and he slammed himself into her body, showing her no mercy, chanting, “Mine, mine, mine,” with each thrust. He pounded faster and faster. When he sensed her need to come, he stopped, not allowing her climax.
“Not yet, my pretty.” He leaned his forehead on hers to catch his breath and caressed her cheek.
She whimpered when he allowed himself to slip out of her, but he needed to show his dominance over her. He pushed on her shoulder, forcing her to kneel in the shower. He almost lost it when she blinked up at him, but his wolf demanded this. Another man had touched his woman, no matter how innocent or helpful the gesture had been.
Dreams Page 4
