Devil Hills: #2 Luna & Lydia

by Diroll-Nichols, Karen

  “Go to my office, Luna. Please. Our guests are leaving. Then we’ll go get some dinner.” He accepted the nod she offered, his teeth clenched as he watched her stride down the hall with Lexi at her side. “Callie, get Jimmy and Cooper on the radio. Tell them I want them to escort this vehicle from the territory. Also let the patrols know they’re not welcome in the area. Pull photos from the security cameras and circulate them immediately. Period.”

  “Will do, sheriff.”

  “Stay away from Luna, Gaudarville. You’ve done enough damage.”

  “If you persist, we will be filing a complaint with your government,” Scarlet spoke for the first time. “With Luna’s statement as well as her physician’s on her condition and what we suspect was being done to her. I’m going to demand an investigation.”

  “You don’t realize what you’re doing,” Therrin Gaudarville hissed furiously, both hands balled into tight fists. “I will get my daughter back. I created her. She is mine.”

  “You called, boss?” Cooper Ryder knew he could cut the tension in the room with his pocket knife, his gaze going with deceptive ease around the room.

  “Escort these people from the territory, Coop. They’re not welcome here.” Lucas took a step forward, his eyes on the bodyguards. “Don’t make this into a battle. Because you’re on the wrong side.”

  They separated when Gaudarville spun and stormed from the building, the smaller woman barely getting out of the way of being knocked to the ground in his fury.

  “No blood on the floor,” Callie chuckled. “Always a good sign.”

  “Thanks, Lucas…all of you,” Sage moved to the open door and went onto the sidewalk, watching the vehicle carefully. “He’s not finished, Lucas.”

  “No. I got that feeling, too.” Lucas came up behind Scarlet, his hands on her waist and pulling her back against him. “You spoke to our attorney?”

  “I did. A nice long chat. Jess is working up his report to send her,” she let her head fall against his shoulder.

  “I’ve also spoken to Seth Anderson, Lucas,” Jess waited, the tension thickening around Sage when Lucas only nodded. “From what Sage has told me, there’s too much of the story we don’t have.”

  “I think that’s a good idea. We always want things to be simple,” Lucas sighed.

  “We only ever wanted to be,” Scarlet said with a smile, her palm out and slipping easily into that of her mates’.

  “I’ll send Lexi out to you, Eli, thanks,” Sage went to his office, knowing he needed a good long run to vent the fury inside him. He opened the door and smiled at Lexi, perched on his desk until she recognized him.

  “She’s okay, Sage. Tired, I think,” she went to her toes and hugged him. “I’m going to come to your place in the morning and we’re going to do some stuff. See you then.”

  “Thanks, Lexi. Good night,” he closed the door and went to sink into the chair, his head back.

  Chapter Twelve

  She knew they were alone. She felt Lexi leave before she opened the bathroom door and walked into the room. He looked so tired, she realized, her heart aching to remove that from him.

  “I’m sorry,” Luna stood at the edge of his desk, her eyes sad.

  “Why do you want to take responsibility for their behavior? There isn’t anything to be sorry for,” he shoved against the arms of the chair and stood up. “Hungry?”

  “Yes, very. If you show me your kitchen, I can cook,” she laughed at the surprise on his face. “You have the most interesting expressions, Sage. Yes, I can cook, and quite well.”

  “Huh…not sure why that surprises me,” he took her palm and led her into the hall, shutting the lights down. “I think I pictured you decked out in gowns and working a room of diplomats, wearing diamonds and sipping wine.”

  “I’ve done that. It was part of what he wanted from me,” she answered, no animosity in her tone, just matter of fact. “The variety of things I’ve learned through the years is extensive,” she lowered her voice, a hint of humor in it. “And some exceedingly boring. He’s a diplomat,” she shrugged. “He projects a strong image and hides his feelings from those he’s ordered to court.”

  Sage glanced over in time to see a pair of bright green crossed eyes. He laughed at her. “And what’s your favorite, Miss St. Germaine? Of all you’ve learned.”

  “I might have to think on that question.” She paused, very aware of the masculinity in his scent, feeling it weave its way through her, heating her blood beyond what she dreamt possible. “Lexi offered me a place to stay, Sage. Until I can manage on my own.”

  “I see.”

  “That thought angers you.”

  “Is that what you want, Luna?” His body went taut, instant refusal on his lips that he swallowed to keep it inside. He was fighting for calm and it wasn’t something he was good at hiding.

  “I don’t want to impose on anyone. I have to return to Morning Star and make a decision about what to do with the house and find a way to earn a living,” she remembered all the information Lexi had given her, the acute change in his scent confusing her. “Are you alright, Sage? Something…” Her head shook.

  “Eli has a good alarm system,” Sage said carefully. “Are you going to understand if I say I’d like you to stay with me, Luna?”

  “Lexi said you would.”

  “Do you understand why?”

  “You feel responsible for my safety,” she answered, thinking of the kisses they had shared, a flush of heat spreading at the memory. Her feet came to a stop outside the building. “My clothes! I forgot them at the clinic.”

  “Get in the SUV and we’ll stop there on the way home,” he brought out his keys, the soft sound of the alarm releasing reaching them as they came abreast the vehicle.

  Was he so very different than her father? Setting his agenda for her without taking what she wanted into play. He’d thought himself long past the stage in his life where hormones and lack of control were a problem. At least he had believed he was. Then she beamed that smile at him like now and he knew he’d walk through fire to keep her safe.

  “Thank you,” Luna wished she had a list to check. Something to tell her what the scents were she was discovering. Especially when they were together. She wanted to know everything about her mate. She had so much to learn.

  She seemed so calm, so at peace, despite the things she was emerging from. Delicate and beautiful. He left the SUV running and stepped out onto the concrete, his palm up and stopping her.

  “I’ll get them. Be right back,” he promised.

  Luna watched him stride toward the clinic. Strong, broad shouldered and muscled. She shifted to the side and lay her head against the leather seat. It smelled like him, tearing through her and bringing the memory of their kiss again, a surge of emotions rushing into her blood. She knew he liked her. Liked her enough to give up his freedom by marking her.

  She wanted to be important to him. As a woman, not an obligation.

  Sage slid the box into the back seat and climbed behind the wheel. He could smell her arousal. Sweet and hot, it shot through him demandingly. There was a faint tint of color on her cheeks, the shadow of her pale lashes flickering now and then until she realized she wasn’t alone and bolted upright.

  “Sleeping?” He met the wide eyes, her head shaking rapidly from side to side. “Are you alright? You look a little feverish…” his hand was up, palm against her cheek. Then she did that cat thing and he felt his insides clench in hunger. Thick pale lashes drifted closed, her head tilting into his palm and full lips pulling into a taut little bow. “We should go home now,” he said gruffly, reluctantly pulling his hand to the shifter between them.

  “Thank you. It was very kind of them to give me things to wear,” she remembered the things he’d bought earlier and lifted the bag from the floor, reaching behind them to drop it into the box. “He won’t give up, you know.”

  “Do you know what that doctor was giving you?”

  “Jess told me one of the th
ings was strong relaxant, to keep me subdued,” she stared into the darkness that had come with early October. She knew she pushed his question aside. She didn’t want to be there right now. She didn’t want to think of all that her father had taken from her.

  She just wanted now. With him.

  She knew they were climbing the roads behind the town and she saw the old Victorian style home perched on the side of the hill. They were easing carefully along the road and beneath a large overhang. “This is your home? It’s beautiful, Sage.”

  “Do you know what else he was doing to you, Luna?” He pressed, the scent of her fear and the smallest whiff of anger.

  “He was trying to cure me,” she said softly, sighing. “He’s a racist…and a hypocrite. I never knew the bodyguards weren’t humans. The way he speaks about them…the way the doctor always spoke about them,” her gaze lifted from her hands, meeting his gaze. “But I knew some. I knew some of the people I met were different. In different schools once I was in college classes. I knew…some part of me knew but I didn’t have a name for what I knew. Maybe a little part of me knew I was different, too.”

  “I prefer thinking you’re special,” he teased with a crooked grin. “Not different. Unique.”

  “You’re very good at making me talk when I…I just want to start from now. Right now, with just you and me.”

  “I think I’ve seen the stubborn nature and know if you really didn’t want to discuss something right now, you’d dig in your heels, Luna. You have your own will. I’ve seen it the last twenty-four hours.”

  “Jess believes the drugs are practically gone from my system.” She sighed, wincing when her stomach growled and drew both their attention.

  “We can start from now, Luna,” Sage gripped her fingers. “Just as long as you know anything you want to talk about…or rant about…don’t keep it locked inside.”

  “I think I know that, too,” she returned his grin. “I’ll try not to abuse it.”

  “Let’s go find dinner. We might have to do some shopping this weekend,” he pulled the box from the back and crossed in front of the SUV to the side entrance, waiting for her to join him.

  “You have a view of the whole town,” she went immediately inside and then to the patio doors off the kitchen. Fingers fumbled with the latch, shoving the doors wide and stepping back into the cold night air. Lights of all colors sparkled below them, houses, shops and vehicles. “It’s beautiful.”

  “It becomes a little more dramatic as holiday season rolls around,” he carried the box to the hall and set it on the stairs before resetting the alarms and shrugging out of his jacket. He left it hanging on the front doorknob. He returned to the kitchen to find her bending into the fridge and scowling.

  “What do you do for food?” She asked cautiously, closing the door of the large, very clean refrigerator and facing him.

  “I usually eat on the run. I work and come home and go out hunting with the pack or I go for a long run on my own,” he wasn’t sure why he was feeling like a kid caught doing something he shouldn’t have. His palm was up, rubbing the back of his neck while she continued to stare at him. “How about I order a pizza?”

  “Were you going hunting with the pack tonight? Lexi explained that to me. It’s a very important part of the socialization factor of a pack. You have bread and jam,” she turned and opened cabinets, bringing out a canister of tea and a jar of honey, unopened. “I’m alright, Sage. I don’t need you to watch me.”

  “I wanted to go for a run.” He admitted reluctantly.

  “Then join your pack. I’ll be fine here. Show me where I can sleep. I’d like a long shower and some sleep, I think,” she said with a long sigh. “Please. I’ll be fine.”

  “The bedrooms are on the second floor,” he reached for the latch for his holster and her hand at the same time. “I’ll show you. Do you know how to use a gun, Luna?”

  “I don’t need one,” she grinned up at him, holding her free hand up, giggling at the claws that came out just because she thought about it. “See?”

  Sage had to laugh, leading her to the spare room. He gestured across the hall. “Bathroom…bedroom. Luna, are you…”

  “I am positive. Go. Lexi told me the pent up anger from this afternoon has to be run off, especially for males,” Luna tapped the light switch. “I’ll eat quick and come up here.”

  Sage nodded and went to his bedroom. She didn’t need another keeper, he reminded himself. She was discovering wings and had a right to them. They weren’t his to smother or control. That wasn’t part of being a mate.

  He went into the small room he used when he ran, the scent of toast and hot tea following him when he placed the call, asking Lucas where they were meeting up.

  Luna sat at the table staring out over the town that had adopted her. She tapped the light switch, eating in the dark and smiling at all the lights spread below. She cleaned up quietly, fascinated that she didn’t need the light to see as she found the stairs, carrying the box of clothing with her to the bedroom.

  One of his tee shirts hung on the back of the bathroom door, his scent drawing her. It was one of the many things she was trying to grasp and understand. She thought she understood attraction. But much more of it appeared instinct than quantifiable.

  Plus the fact that she realized she had nothing to sleep in. So many changes, she thought, finding a pair of thick socks on the dresser when she prowled around, checking things out. The tee shirt went to the middle of her thighs and since she just hand washed her only set of underwear, it was a good thing.

  She tried sleeping and finally after thirty minutes, sat up in the middle of the bed and realized why. Luna was up and padding quietly down the hall to the master bedroom that stretched over the garage.

  The floor was a nice, gleaming wood and the room smelled like Sage. A fern and pine shrouded wood and mist scent that she’d come to favor. It was large and had very little in it. Two bureaus, a walk-in closet and the large, plain bed a few feet from the window.

  She eased the window up a little, inhaling the rain and smells of night before curling on her side at the bottom of the bed. She wasn’t sure how long she stared at the drops of cold rain caught in the reflections of the lights outside. But she was warm and felt safe.

  Sage thought about how fast she was learning as he ran back toward his house several hours later. They’d had a good fight with an oversized elk near the snow line that had taken every member to bring down. He’d watched as Scarlet and Lucas learned to work together, deciding she was definitely one to have on your side when it came to dealing with their Alpha. Her humor rarely seemed to fade, even when arguing with him.

  He and Lucas had stopped for a quick talk with some of the patrol. The SUV had left the area, heading to a larger town to the west, but they were positive they’d caught the scent of strange wolves on their territory an hour later. Since no alarms had sounded, he knew they would be busy learning the security and location. He changed clothes in the room off the house, carrying his boots. He shielded his palm when entering the code and left his boots in the kitchen.

  Not surprisingly, everything was cleaned and neat, relief filling him as he followed her scent. The uncertainty he felt where Luna was concerned bothered him. He didn’t know if she would run in an effort to spare the town from her father. He wasn’t sure where he stood with her or where he wanted to stand. He thought he was getting a handle on his own nerves.

  Until he found her room empty.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The house was in darkness, but he also knew she was enjoying being able to see in the dark. He stood in the hall and inhaled slowly, continuing down the hall to the open bedroom door.

  He’d never bothered with a headboard, just worked a good solid wooden frame for the bed. And curled against the wall, her face aimed at the slight crack in the window, was Luna. Buried in blankets, only the pale silver-gold head out and the hint of fingers curled around the edges of the blankets and quilts she’d layered o
ver the bed.

  He sunk into the chair next to the closet and stared.

  Was he treating her like a child? He definitely hadn’t thought that when he’d marked her. Her response to his kiss had been the catalyst that almost broke his control.

  Then there was the wolf snarl inside him reminding him he wasn’t a cat person. With Lexi’s voice in the distance informing him, you are now.

  He’d never considered himself mate material. Not that he was that complex to live with. But then he’d had several girlfriends who would claim otherwise. Some of the adjectives played through his mind, wondering how Luna would handle him. He frowned. Is that how he saw his friends and pack mates? Being handled?

  His body tightened, his cock throbbing when she mewed and shifted on the bed, toes peeking out only long enough for him to recognize his socks. Sage found the flannel pants he wore to sleep in, carefully lifting her and laying her in the right direction on the bed before climbing beneath the blankets. He froze when her lashes began flickering.

  ****

  She decided she really liked these new senses. She could smell him, fresh from the outside and pure male. That was the missing word she had in her mind for what his scent brought to her mind, to her body. She shifted closer, her face rubbing against the bare arm before tipping back and blinking, meeting the dark chocolate eyes watching her.

  “Did you have a good run?” There was a hazy, husky sound to her voice that streaked through him like a tornado.

  “It was successful,” he heard the rough depth of his own voice. What had been a flicker of desire was shifting, growing as he took in the sleep filled eyes, soft delicate features and a sweetly feminine scent just beneath the soap she’d used in his shower.

  “I tried sleeping in that other room, Sage, but it didn’t have your smell,” she yawned and moved next to him, unaware of the low, vibrating purr that reached out to him.