by Kym Grosso
Wynter left Gillian’s side to address another pack member when a stranger sidled up to her at the bar. She hardly noticed him as all eyes fell to an attractive woman entering the ballroom, who appeared to glide across the floor, her hair tied up in intricate braids. Her silver mask sparkled underneath the black light, illuminating her ice-blue eyes.
Amazement turned to jealousy as Gillian watched Dimitri turn his focus to the beautiful woman. Her tiger hissed as he embraced the blue-haired beauty. Dimitri took her by the hand, leading her to a secluded corner of the room. Gillian’s eyes flared in anger, her heart pounding blood through her veins. Did he have a mate? Was everything he’d told her, the way he’d made her feel, all a lie? Was it all part of their hoax? Rage coursed through her. She went to cross the room to confront him, when the stranger spoke to her.
“You’re new here,” he commented. “Can I get you a drink?”
“Yeah,” she responded mindlessly, unable to take her eyes off of Dimitri.
“My name’s Alex. I’m visiting my friend, Seth, for Mardi Gras. I live in Chicago,” he explained, extending his hand.
Gillian smiled, attempting to be polite.
“You wanna dance?” he asked.
“You’re human?” she asked, her thoughts distracted.
“Yeah, pretty crazy, right? The Alpha said it was okay, since I was in town on business. Seth and I go way back. You a wolf, too?”
“Yes.” Who Seth was she had no idea and wasn’t about to ask. Gillian found it difficult to concentrate on his questions.
“You wanna dance?” he asked again.
What Gillian really wanted was to forget, to run away. The woman stroked her hand over Dimitri’s forearm, and Gillian thought she’d be sick. She’d never been a jealous person before, but she could hardly contain the green-eyed monster that threatened to throttle the woman touching her man.
“Um, what did you say?” she asked.
“Let’s dance,” he said, taking her hand.
Gillian glared at Dimitri, but he didn’t even notice as Alex led her out onto the dance floor. He was preoccupied, infatuated with another woman, someone who was possibly his mate. She glanced at the human, reasoning that he couldn’t hurt her. Dimitri didn’t seem to even care. It was just one dance.
But as the stranger wrapped his hand around her waist to lead her in a waltz, she felt nauseous and attempted to pull away. Alex held tight, yanking her flush against his arousal and her head grew dizzy at his touch. Before she knew what was happening, he’d spun her around, making her lose sight of her wolf. The stranger’s hand fell to her bottom and her tiger roared, warning the stranger to free her. She lost control, and her claws emerged.
“You’re looking well,” Ilsbeth noted, the corners of her lips curled upward.
“Ilsbeth, cut the crap. Have you found a cure?” Dimitri said, taking her by the hand, leading her into a corner. He restrained the anger that had bubbled to the surface soon after she’d purposefully hugged him as if they were still dating.
“Did you finally realize that you need to come stay with me?” Ilsbeth tilted her head. She darted her tongue out of her mouth, seductively dragging its tip along the rim of her martini glass, and smiled.
“Jesus Christ, witch. Not tonight, okay? Did you find it or not?”
“Something’s different about you,” she observed. Ilsbeth reached for his arm, gliding her thin fingers over his inner wrist until she reached the crook of his elbow.
“Ilsbeth. Please.” Dimitri cringed as the words came out as if he was begging.
“What is it? You feel different, too. Your energy is running hot,” she noted.
“No, don’t,” he snapped at her. Across the room, Gillian glared at him, her rage emanating like a laser at having another woman touch her mate. “I’m here with someone.”
“Who?” Ilsbeth asked. She retreated somewhat but still kept her hand on his skin. As a server passed, she set her glass on the tray. Taking his hands, she closed her eyes, concentrating on his aura.
“Ilsbeth, I’m sorry. I told you this would happen. This is why I couldn’t commit to you,” Dimitri answered.
Ilsbeth slowly opened her eyes. Her lips compressed into a fine line as awareness of the situation took hold.
“I’ve found her.”
“No,” she whispered, withdrawing her hands.
“You knew this was my fate,” Dimitri stated, shaking his head. He hadn’t meant to hurt her, but he’d grown tired of asking for forgiveness for something that was beyond his control. It had been months since they’d stopped seeing each other, and he was done apologizing.
“Yes, I did.” Ilsbeth took a deep breath. “But that didn’t mean I wanted it to happen.”
Dimitri smiled but then his face dropped as he saw Gillian talking to a stranger at the bar. Jerking his attention back to the witch, he sought to speak his piece.
“I need your help. This thing with my wolf. Do you have any news?”
“A sorcerer from Miami is arriving tomorrow. He’s quite powerful and has promised to engage convocation with our coven. It is at that time I expect an answer. I apologize that it has taken even this long. My offer to stay at my house remains.”
“I appreciate that but I can’t…” Dimitri’s words trailed off as he watched his mate take the hand of another man. He growled as she was swept up into an embrace not his own.
Ilsbeth followed Dimitri’s line of vision until she saw the woman who had stolen his heart.
“This is the female who commands your soul?”
“Yes,” he spat out.
“She goes with another…interesting.”
“She’s hybrid…she doesn’t know.”
“How do you expect this to work?” Ilsbeth honed in on Gillian’s eyes, which met hers. “A tiger?”
“Yes.”
“The mating is uncertain.”
“You’re wrong,” he vowed. “I’ve never been more certain of anything in my entire life.”
Dimitri’s canines dropped as he sensed Gillian’s fear and in response, he tore across the dance floor. The scent of human blood permeated the room. The sound of Gillian slapping the man’s face rang in his ears.
“What the hell? This fuckin’ bitch just scratched me!” the stranger screamed.
Dimitri roared, shoving him across the room into the wall. Gillian, stunned and embarrassed, retracted her claws and fisted her hands. Logan ran over to Dimitri, prying his hands off the man’s neck. He held his beta around the chest, while Jake and Léopold dragged the bleeding man out the door.
“It was just a matter of time,” Logan quipped, patting his friend on the back. “Take a break, D. Let’s get back to the party. Leo will take care of him. Can I let you go now?”
Dimitri nodded, panting as his Alpha released him. Feral, he turned to Gillian, who’d begun to retreat from the dance floor. The room went quiet as his eyes pinned on hers. Stalking his prey, he advanced on Gillian, who shook her head, wiping the blood on her dress.
“It’s a lie,” she said under her breath, recalling how she’d seen him with another woman. Her voice shook in anger. “I’m not your…”
“You’re my mate,” he asserted, loud enough so that everyone in the room could hear him.
“But you…you…and her.” Gillian’s eyes darted to the nearest exit.
“Acadian wolves,” Dimitri called to his pack. It’d never be enough for the rumor to spread on its own. No, his wolf demanded a public claiming of his mate. He’d lay it on the line. She may ultimately reject him, but he’d be damned if he’d go one more second lying to her. “This female, she’s mine. We’ll be mated soon.”
Gillian stared at Dimitri as if he’d lost his mind. She’d expected they’d stick to their original plan of letting the news of their mating slowly permeate the pack through the grapevine. A public announcement was over the top. Neither one of them would ever recover from the lie.
“What are you saying?” she croaked as Dimitri t
ook her in his arms.
“You. Are. My. Mate. And as proud as I am that you just tore into that asshole with your claws, no other male puts his hands on you until we’re mated,” he warned. “Understood?”
“This can’t be,” she whispered into his ear. The scent of him calmed her, despite the fact that she’d been angry. Every last man and woman watched them intently as if they were on a stage, putting on a play.
“Oh, it be, cher. Choose me or not, you’re mine.”
Shocked, Gillian blinked. Her heart raced at his declaration. The animal inside of her rejoiced in quiet celebration. Oh Goddess, how had she missed the fact that Dimitri was hers? She hadn’t wanted to acknowledge that the desire she’d been feeling could be true. Choose me or not. Gillian didn’t want to admit it to Dimitri but she’d already made the choice. Her great cat would sacrifice anything to have the wolf who laid claim to her.
Panic set in and she began to hyperventilate. She sucked air, unable to breathe. Her eyes teared, gasping for air.
“Gilly.” She heard him call her name, but the circle of black began to close in on her.
“Gilly,” he growled, his tone firmer, commanding her.
“I…I can’t breathe,” she mouthed.
“Feel me, breathe with me…now.” Dimitri unbuttoned his shirt and slid her hands underneath the fabric.
“Dimitri…”
“Breathe, Gilly. In and out. Do it with me. You’re going to be just fine, kitten,” he told her, his voice calm and steady.
“No, I can’t…”
“Yes you can. In and out…concentrate on my voice, the feel of my skin on yours.” He plowed his fingers into her hair and locked his eyes on hers. “See? You’re okay now. This is real and happening. We’re mates. You’ll be okay. That’s it.”
Gillian focused on Dimitri, obeying his command. So wrong to submit, yet it felt natural. As her breathing returned to normal, the heat between them combusted.
Dimitri is my mate. Her eyes fell to his lips and within seconds, he’d captured her mouth, drawing her into his embrace. Digging her fingers into his skin, she moaned into his mouth, wild with desire. With the realization that they were still on the dance floor, she nodded as he tore his lips away from hers and followed him blindly as he led her outside.
By the time they’d reached the open courtyard, she was on fire with lust for her mate. She moaned as he took her again, his tongue plunging into her mouth. Returning his savage kiss, she clutched at him, giving in to the passion she’d held back for the past two days. Stumbling back against the trellis, she gasped as he hiked up her thigh and wrapped it around his waist.
“I’m sorry,” she breathed. “I shouldn’t have gone with him…”
“Stop talking,” he ordered, pressing his lips to her collarbone.
“But we’re at…ah,” she moaned as he tugged at the front of her dress, exposing her breast. Her ripe peak hit the cool night air, puckering in arousal.
“I’m claiming you tonight. I will have you…now,” he stated. His mouth latched onto her firm nipple, and he twirled his tongue over it, sucking and nipping at her flesh.
“Oh God, yes…” Gillian couldn’t believe she was agreeing to making love, without regard to over a hundred people who partied inside the hall.
As Dimitri shuffled backwards toward the brick wall, he swore. Goddamn it, I should have done this earlier where there was a bed. They didn’t seem to have a good track record when it came to actually making love in one. No, public displays of affection were more their style.
Laving at her breast, he cupped her ass, driving his rock-hard erection up into her belly. Dimitri bunched the fabric of her skirt and hooked a claw under her panties. The shredded panty fell to the ground and he reached between them, unbuckling his pants. Gillian tore open his shirt, scratching and biting at his chest. His pants dropped around his ankles, and she threw her hands around his neck. Hoisting herself upward, she wrapped both her legs around his waist. Dimitri stroked his hard arousal once, before driving himself up into her hot core.
His canines descended, and he dragged his teeth from the hollow behind her ear down to her chest. Using the only semblance of control he could summon, he turned his head so that he didn’t risk nicking her with his teeth. Resolved, he’d already decided that when he marked her as his, she’d submit to him, welcoming his bite. Tonight, claiming her within the shroud of honesty, his mind and animal would be satisfied with the knowledge she was his.
Gillian screamed with each pump of his hips. She breathed into his kiss, biting at his lips. She was barely aware that her own fangs had dropped, her tiger celebrating in a ravenous frenzy. She tilted her pelvis, building a pulsing rhythm against her clitoris.
“Harder, yes, fuck me,” she groaned into his mouth.
“You’re mine. Do you hear me, Gilly?” Dimitri plunged his cock into her, accentuating every word he said.
“Yes, yes…please. Oh God, yes,” she cried.
“Mate. Say it,” he commanded, thrusting. His orgasm threatened, but he held back. He needed to hear her own their relationship.
“Please.” Gillian bit her own lip as her tight channel quivered around him. “I’m coming.”
“Not yet. Say it, cher. I swear to God, I’ll stop right now,” he warned. “You know it to be true.”
“I don’t know how…”
“Mate.”
“Yes, oh my God. You’re my mate,” she cried out, her forehead falling against his chest. At her admission, a spasm of ecstasy rippled through her.
“Yes, Gilly, yes,” he grunted, his fiery release pulsing deep inside his mate. Holding her tightly, he nuzzled into her shoulder. A small chuckle broke from his lips.
“What’s so funny?” she asked, slipping gently down off his softening erection.
“Easy, darlin’. You’re going to break something if you move too fast,” he warned with a smile.
“Come on, what’s so funny?”
“I’ve got a feeling I’m going to need to see a doctor tomorrow on account of my ass being pressed against these bricks.”
“I feel like a teenager.” She laughed.
“You did this as a teenager?”
“Um, no…but the feeling…like I can’t get enough of you. God, I can’t believe we just had sex out here.”
“No worries. Besides, no one saw us,” he assured her. They all probably heard us.
Dimitri was unconcerned about public sex. That was commonplace in some of the clubs he’d frequented. Even in the wild, on a full moon, wolves were known to make love outdoors, with little regard for others. But Dimitri was worried at how feral he’d become. Never in his life had he lost control like he’d just done. It was the way he’d taken her on the dance floor, forcing her to admit the feelings she had for him, that gave him pause.
“We’ve got to talk, Dimitri,” she began.
Dimitri sighed, knowing this discussion would need to be held. He settled her onto her feet, and yanked up his pants. After zippering up, he took her back into his arms, uncomfortable with the loss of her warmth, and spoke into her hair.
“Listen, Gil. I’m not sure how this is going to work out, and you’re right, we need to talk. But tonight, seeing you with that jerk, and shit, even before that…I’m not the kind of guy who lies to anyone, let alone his mate. I’m sorry I even waited this long to tell you.”
“Yesterday and last night were the hardest hours of my life. I was just worried…that my feelings for you were getting too strong. I don’t want to get hurt. That woman…”
“Ilsbeth. We’ll talk about her tomorrow,” he promised. Dimitri had been with many women over the past century, but explaining his complicated relationship with the witch to his mate wasn’t a conversation he was looking to have tonight.
As Gillian lay her head against his chest, his heart grew heavy with awareness of the consequences of mating. Even though he’d just publicly announced her as his, she remained unmarked. No choice had been made yet, b
ut it would be soon. If Gillian chose him as her mate, her tiger would die.
Chapter Thirteen
Dimitri ushered Gillian into the limo, thankful that Logan and Jake had kept their mouths shut about what had happened at the ball. Despite the missing buttons on his shirt and the tear in the backside of his pants, they’d walked back into the party as if they hadn’t just had hot animal sex during the fancy event. Not that a soul in attendance had expected a quiet night anyhow. With Mardi Gras in full swing, everyone tended to be a little more rambunctious. Making love in the courtyard had added a pleasurable amount of crazy to the evening, Dimitri thought. Even Léopold had simply laughed, aware that his friend had taken his mate right there against the wall. Dimitri supposed had he cared what people thought, he’d be apologetic, perhaps embarrassed. But as Gillian gave him a sexy smile on their way out, nothing but desire for her played in his mind. Even the reality of their problems wasn’t enough to deter him from enjoying her.
As he settled her against his chest, he considered his trip to the west coast had been one of the worst and best vacations he’d ever taken. Almost getting killed was a snag he hadn’t expected. But finding his mate was turning out to be one of his most exciting adventures to date. He knew soon enough, he’d have to settle back down, working for Logan in security in his investment firm and assisting with pack matters.
The only regret he supposed he had was losing one of his favorite bikes. He’d reconditioned the thirty-year-old Harley, and wished it hadn’t been trashed on some California beach. But like every other material possession he’d acquired over the years, he’d never gotten too attached. Things could be replaced. Although wolves rarely died, he’d watched as human friends had submitted to the aging process. On their deathbeds, they never wished for more trinkets.
Gillian’s caress to his arm brought him out of his reverie. He noticed that she’d gone quiet and grew concerned.
