Wolf Mate

by Natalie Kristen

  Why couldn't she be an Elemental witch?

  It would be so much better...for everyone.

  If her grandmother and mother found out what she was, they would be...so disappointed, and so ashamed.

  They didn't know what kind of witch she was. She had taken great pains to hide it from them. The truth would no doubt shame and sadden them.

  Elemental witches drew their power from the elements, from the air, fire, water, wind or other forces of nature. These witches were pure and powerful.

  On the other hand, Emotional witches were like leeches, parasites, drawing their power from the turbulent emotions and charged feelings of others.

  Some Emotional witches needed hate or anger to fuel their power. Others needed pain and suffering. To work their magick, the emotion had to be intense, profound, consuming.

  Melynda fed off the ardor and fervor of another.

  It was the reason she dated so much. To have a fresh infusion of excitement and fervor at each date.

  Melynda blew out a breath. If she had taken things further with just one of her dates, and embarked on an exclusive relationship, would that have generated more ardor and passion for her?

  Perhaps. Perhaps...not.

  But Melynda knew that the true answer was no. A loud, resounding no.

  No, there would not be passion and ardor, fire and lightning.

  Not that red hot passion she had experienced with Dax Ferro tonight.

  Melynda gasped, her eyes flying wide open with realization. Fire and lighting.

  She had sparked fire and lightning with Dax. It wasn't just an illusion. He had ignited her magickal powers, filled her and fueled her.

  Dax drew her, pulled her, captivated her. The way he looked at her and touched her made her ache for him. He was the only one who could set every nerve in her body on fire, and ignite an inferno in her soul.

  Melynda groaned and buried her face in her pillow. Why did it have to be him?

  Dax Ferro was aloof, inscrutable, brash and demanding. He wasn't...nice to her. In fact, he was the most unreasonable, unbearable, unapproachable boss around. The other two partners, Matthew Wells and Ian Robertson had much better temperaments. They were both gentlemen, always polite and smiling. Dax snarled a lot more than he smiled.

  He was...so...infuriatingly, irritably hot.

  Melynda piled more pillows over her head. She was hopeless.

  Despite his attitude towards her, her traitorous body still hungered and ached for him.

  He tried to speak to her coldly and curtly, frequently snapping and scowling at her. But she'd seen the yearning and dark desire in his eyes. Dax had always fought his hunger for her. She could see the conflict and struggle in the depths of those silver eyes.

  But tonight, he had lost the fight.

  Dax had never acted on his desire for her, until tonight.

  Tonight, something snapped. His control, his lust, his mind.

  Melynda hugged her pillow to her chest, curling into a ball. He was right. She did go out with Steven, even though he had ordered her to cancel the date, just to spite him. She wanted to get even, and regain some semblance of control over the situation. He had tormented and pleasured her body, driving her out of her mind. She had felt the power surging through her like a bolt of lightning as she came. It had frightened her and confused her. She felt...out of control, out of her depth, and yet, she felt so powerful. She could feel the magick surging through her veins, flowing from her core to every cell. The feeling was so amazing, and so right.

  Melynda squeezed her eyes shut. Her entire body was trembling and she could feel the powerful magick gathering at her fingertips.

  She had never felt like this before.

  Her classmates at Spell School had often gushed about how good it felt to be filled with Elemental magick after a lightning or hail storm. Some water witches immersed themselves in streams and lakes, bathing in the light of the full moon, and emerged fully powered and charged.

  The witches had huddled together to gush about their experiences.

  It feels incredible!

  Like...sex?

  Better than sex! Way better!

  Really? Now this I've got to try!

  Melynda had pretended she knew what they were talking about. She had nodded and tried to twitch a smile when her classmates squealed about how orgasmic it felt to face the sea and the wind, or stand in the middle of a storm and absorb the power of the elements. She envied them. Truly she did.

  She had never felt such power, such pure, wonderful, uplifting power. She just muddled her way through, never drawing on the true source of her magick, numbly casting weak spells that didn't hold. Her hexes had no bite and most of her potions didn't work the way they should.

  She managed to pass, barely, but her grades weren't sterling.

  But she tried, she really did try to take her ardor and magick to the next level.

  On the first few dates, she had allowed those sloppy kisses to lead to something more. But the experience had been less, far less, than satisfactory.

  No ardor. No passion. No pleasure.

  Her dates had been more than happy to get into her pants. Wham, bam, and it was over. In a few minutes.

  She hadn't even been wet. It had been awkward, and painful.

  No more. She decided she would date them, but not bed them. It just wasn't working.

  But tonight, with Dax, she finally understood and experienced what her classmates were raving about. They were right.

  It was...incredible.

  But...better than sex?

  Sex with Dax would be...

  She didn't know how it would feel to make love to Dax, but she knew that it would change her. If she slept with him, she wouldn't be the same.

  Melynda flung her pillow aside and scrambled out of bed. She staggered to the window and threw it wide open, letting the moonlight stream in.

  She had never done this before. But she had to try.

  There was no denying it.

  She was an Emotional witch. The only one in her coven. She had to acknowledge this and own this.

  Melynda snapped her fingers and all the lights in the room flicked off. Slowly, she peeled her clothes off and stood naked in the shaft of pure moonlight. Raising her arms above her head, she tilted her head towards the waxing moon and started to chant a spell softly.

  Emotional witches drew power from emotions, and the stronger and more extreme the emotion, the more power it gave the witch.

  Dax had desired her, desired her with an all consuming, burning passion. She had felt it, and had reveled in it.

  Her voice rose and she began to shiver as her spell took hold. She felt the magick pulsing from every pore, prickling against her skin as her intention manifested before her eyes.

  The beam of moonlight shimmered as a shadowy shape began to form in front of her. She gasped, but continued chanting the summoning and binding spell.

  As her magick leaked from her and flew towards the tall, shadowy figure, the shape became more defined and distinct. She saw his broad shoulders and strong hands, his dark hair and sharp features, his long legs, his loosened tie and tailored suit. Intense, gray eyes stared back at her as the ghostly figure of Dax Ferro stepped out of the moonlight.

  Melynda gulped and took a small step back.

  It had worked.

  He was here. Right here in her bedroom.

  Well, it was not his person, but close enough. It was his overriding emotion towards her, manifested in person.

  Melynda blinked hard, trying not to panic. She was about to find out what he really felt towards her. If he harbored murderous intentions towards her, the ghostly Dax Ferro in her bedroom would be strangling her in a moment. She flexed her fingers, checking if she had enough magick left in her to banish him if he really did try to murder her.

  Yup. She could banish him, but she would have to be fast. Emotions could kill. Literally.

  Dax blinked and with each blink and each breath, his f
orm became sharper and clearer, solidifying into a tangible, hulking form.

  Melynda stared at the angles on Dax's handsome, chiseled face, at his tall, broad body as he started to walk towards her. She felt a sudden surge of lust and pride. Her magick must be really powerful. She had succeeded in summoning his emotion and manifesting it so clearly before her. She had expected to summon just a faint image, a shadow or a mere ghost of his emotion on her first try. But here he was, solid, hard and real.

  This was Dax's emotion, but it was also Dax. His lips curled into a lopsided smile when his eyes found her in the shadows.

  “Melynda,” he whispered. His voice was soft and low, like he was whispering to her in a dream.

  But this wasn't a dream.

  This was magick.

  CHAPTER SIX

  “Dax.” Melynda forced her voice to work.

  He was moving closer to her, his eyes glowing silver in the darkness of her room.

  She almost couldn't breathe, being so close to the dark, brooding form of Dax. So close she could reach out and press her hand against his chest, and feel those toned muscles under her fingers.

  He was staring at her with an intensity that made her shiver. He was a true predator, silent, lethal, determined.

  Slowly, he raised a hand towards her throat.

  Melynda held his gaze unflinchingly. She had to know.

  “Do you...hate me, Dax?” she whispered. “Despise me for what I am?” A parasitic Emotional witch, the worst and weakest of the witches.

  Dax growled long and low. It was the sound of the wolf, not the man. She could feel the wolf, prowling so close to the surface, pacing, growling like a caged animal.

  She had never seen Dax in his wolf form, but she had no doubt that his wolf would be just as impressive, just as handsome as the man.

  Would she get to see his wolf tonight? Did she dare use her magick to trigger a shift?

  No, Dax would never forgive her. Forcing him to reveal his wolf against his will was a breach of trust, an act of violence, on every level. It was dark magick, and many Emotional witches took their first step down the path of darkness because they were unable to resist the temptation.

  It was so tempting, so easy for Emotional witches to access and manipulate someone else's emotions. It was satisfying, was it not, to use your enemies' fear against them, and drive them out of their minds? You could crush their fragile minds in your palm like a boiled egg, leaving them screaming and blubbering like idiots. It really would have been more merciful to kill them, but where was the fun in that? Melynda had secretly logged onto some chat forums for Emotional witches under a fake account. Emotional witches were funny and feisty, and she had laughed as she chatted with them. But they had a vicious, vindictive side. As she read through the various conversation threads, she realized how easy it was to get sucked into their world of vengeance, vengeance without blood, the witches had crowed.

  The Emotional witches' brand of violence and vengeance might be bloodless, but it was far more harrowing and devastating.

  Shattering someone's heart and mind was far worse than breaking his limbs and his bones.

  Was this the type of witch she was?

  Is this how Dax saw her, as a dark, destructive witch?

  His hand was on her throat, his strong fingers closing around her neck. Melynda stared straight into his eyes, tensed but strangely unafraid.

  “Hate you? Despise you?” He let out a mirthless laugh. “I desire you, Melynda. I want you so bad I'm going out of my goddamn mind. Every time I see you, I just want to touch you. I need you, Melynda. I want you...to be mine.”

  She gasped when he grabbed her wrists and pinned her wrists to the wall on either side of her head. His body felt solid, hard, real. So did his mouth, which was upon hers in a heartbeat. His tongue thrust into her mouth and she moaned as her body writhed against his. Whatever emotion Dax felt towards her, it was fierce and demanding.

  She felt his urgency and frustration, as his mouth kissed hungrily down her neck and chest. When he took her mouth again, she arched her back to press her breasts against the broad, hard wall of his chest. She squirmed deliciously against him, but she wanted more. She wanted to feel her skin on his. She wanted them bare and naked together as their bodies joined as one. She groaned as she felt his pulsating heat and his huge erection stabbing into her belly.

  She trailed her hand slowly down his chest to his hip. Running her fingers across the bulge in his pants, she was about to tug his zipper down and take his throbbing cock into her palm when he suddenly swung her up in his arms.

  Turning to her bed, he threw her onto her back and prowled towards her. He held himself up above her, and gazed down at her for a long time.

  “I have dreamed of you like this. Naked and spread beneath me,” he grated.

  He took a nipple between his knuckles and tugged gently. Rolling her aching nipples between his fingers, he bent down and kissed her hard on the mouth.

  His long fingers moved down her body, tracing her curves and drawing languid circles around her breasts and on her tummy. “What are you doing, Dax?” she panted.

  “Making you beg.”

  He kissed and licked between her heavy breasts. “Beg me to make you come, Melynda,” he murmured. “I have to know how much you want this. How much you want...me.”

  She felt his lips curve into a smile against her navel when she whimpered.

  “Dax...stop,” she whispered as his lips trailed down her thigh.

  She arched off the bed when he flicked her throbbing clit with his tongue. “Say it like you mean it.” He slipped a finger inside her.

  She fisted the sheets and gasped as he began to slide two fingers in and out of her body. His tongue spread the moisture around her swollen bud and circled it slowly, deliciously.

  “Dax! Please...”

  He curled his fingers inside her and stroked.

  “No, d-don't stop, don't stop, please don't stop!” She could hardly hear her own incoherent pants as the pleasure crested unstoppably towards its climax.

  Her eyes were squeezed tightly shut, and she felt him withdraw his fingers suddenly. She opened her eyes and saw him unzip his fly and release his erection. God, he was huge! She blinked hard and tensed as he spread her legs wider apart and pushed the head of his cock at her opening.

  “Dax!” she panted. “You feel...”

  She felt his cock inching into her body, stretching her and filling her. She became even wetter, and she felt her juices trickling out of her. It made his penetration painless, and so, so good.

  “You feel so good, so damn good, Dax,” she breathed, letting her head fall back as he buried himself to the hilt inside her.

  He began to thrust into her, fucking her hard and fast. She came with a keening cry, and still he kept fucking her. He wasn't done with her, and it felt like he never would be.

  He wanted her, so badly. She could feel his feral hunger and lust, his need to claim her. He wanted to be inside her forever.

  He surged into her and she came again, and again.

  She lost count of the number of orgasms she had. She lost track of time, and she lost herself—in him.

  Everything was just about his want and her surrender.

  Melynda's head fell back on the pillow, and she forced her eyes open. Her hair was plastered to her face, and her body was drenched in sweat.

  She was in her bed, panting, naked and alone.

  Dax...was gone.

  She pushed herself up shakily, and stared between her legs. She was still wet, and she saw her juices flowing down the inside of her thighs. Shivering, she squeezed her legs together and pulled the covers up to her chin.

  Dax wanted her, with a feral, unrelenting hunger.

  She had seen him, held him, and felt him deep inside her. His emotion was raw and real.

  Pulling her knees up under her chin, she rocked to and fro on her bed. There was no doubt now. She really was an Emotional witch. And a powerful, potent o
ne at that.

  She had done her research. Only very few and very powerful Emotional witches could bind a person's emotion into a solid, tangible form and manifest it clearly. Sometimes the emotion took the form of an animal or an object. A feeling of calm could manifest as a clear pool of water, and angry, raging emotions could appear as lashing flames. She had manifested Dax's desire for her as Dax's person himself. His hunger for her filled his conscious and subconscious thoughts. It consumed him, taunted him, tortured him. He wanted her, but it was clear he didn't want to be naked with her.

  He still refused to bare himself to her. There was something he was shielding from her, a part of himself he wanted clothed and hidden.

  Melynda turned towards the window, staring at the shaft of moonlight cutting into her room.

  The moon would be full tomorrow night, and magick was always at its most powerful during the full moon.

  She sighed, remembering that her grandmother would be holding a full moon ceremony tomorrow night at their house. She had invited witches from other covens to join them.

  Melynda grabbed the huge t-shirt at the foot of her bed and tugged it down over her head. She went to stand by the window, staring up at the moon. It seemed to be sailing away from her, further and further into the sea of clouds.

  Leaning her head against the window frame, she sighed into the night, “Why, Dax? Why...are you keeping yourself from me? Is it because of what I am?”

  She leaned into the cold wind, feeling the chill crawl all over her skin.

  “I...I'm sorry, Dax,” she whispered. “I would never steal and manipulate your emotions. But I just had to know...”

  But I will never know you, will I, Dax?

  You will never bare your body, your heart and soul to me.

  With a wince, Melynda turned away. The knowledge was like a blade through her heart, a blade that was much colder than the night wind blowing and swirling into her room.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Dax awoke with a massive hard on.

  The sheets were tangled around his feet. He flung his arm out, reaching for...her.

  Melynda.

  His hand landed on the pile of pillows and he turned his head sharply. He was alone in his bed. There was no warm, curvy body beside him. Dax shook his head. He had felt her. He had been inside her, and he had made her come. Repeatedly.