by Leilani Love
When Chase released her, Warrick couldn’t help but notice the soft blush on her cheeks. Warrick and Chase put on their shoes and walked with her back up the hill. Warrick liked Violca. There was something calming about being in her presence. She was also brave. Hope had told him that it was Violca who had reached out to Lazzaro and began the truce between the dragons and the vampires after he had tried to kidnap her mate Chase.
Warrick had been surprised to hear that the Lazzaro had saved Damien and Hope when his brother Gabriel had tried to have them both killed. The relationship between wolves and vampires was an interesting one. At one point, vampires had tried to enslave them as guards during the day. When that didn’t work, vampires tried to hire them. Some wolf clans had sold themselves easily while others looked down on the proposal.
“I am glad you’re here Warrick. I wanted to check on you and extend an invitation to you and Hope for a small get together next month,” Violca said as she walked with them up the hill.
“I’ll have to check with Hope but I don’t think it’ll be a problem. I just don’t know…” His voice trailed off. He realized he had no idea if she had any plans, nor did he know what she normally did.
Violca gave him a smile. “I’ll text Hope and you the day and time and you can just let me know. I was also going to invite Lazzaro and a few other people. I wanted to keep it small.”
Warrick nodded and when they got to the top of the hill he said goodbye to them both and headed back to his new home. Since he and Hope had imprinted on each other and were mates he realized that everyone seemed to assume that they were a couple. After all they both knew that the Fates had decided they would be together. Unfortunately for them things didn’t go as planned.
Warrick listened to the music on the radio as he drove. He missed the songs from when he was younger, so Damien showed him where the oldies stations were. There were still a great many songs he had never heard of and he definitely preferred classic rock to the music Angyalka and Sari, the youngest two witch sisters, had introduced him to when they were showing him what he’d missed.
When he pulled up in the driveway he saw Hope was already home and felt a yearning for something he couldn’t describe. He needed to take a shower, between sparring with Chase and helping the electrician, he felt dirty. There was something nice about being able to shower and clean himself up whenever he wanted. After getting out of the car, he used the side door entrance.
The delicious smell of food hit him as he walked in and his stomach grumbled in anticipation. When he entered the kitchen, he bit back a moan at seeing Hope bent over, her heart shaped ass up in the air. Warrick’s hand itched to reach out and touch her, make sure this wasn’t one of those dreams that had haunted him over the last few years.
Hope stood up, closing the oven. “I thought I heard you come in.” She looked him over and smiled. “Looks like you had a busy day. Dinner will be done in about ten minutes if you want to go clean up.”
Her smile was contagious and he smiled back at her. “It smells delicious. I promise to be back down before it’s done.”
She nodded at him and he felt like he was supposed to say something more. Not sure what that something was, he gave her a nod and headed upstairs. Determined to be done before dinner was finished, he resisted the urge to enjoy the feel of the hot water cascading over his body. Warrick closed his eyes as he rinsed his hair. The second he did, the image of Hope bent over played before him. For a moment he imagined what it would be like if she was fully his and he could reach out and touch her like he’d dreamt of so many times before.
6
As Hope lay in bed she thought about the events of the day. After getting a list of supplies, Sandra had volunteered to go with her to the store to pick up everything. Once those were dropped off, Hope had to admit Sandra had been helpful with ordering furniture for the families.
They picked up a quick lunch and Hope found herself opening up to Sandra when she asked about how Warrick was settling in. “It must be a little awkward for you two. I mean for a long time you thought he’d betrayed you and he was innocent all along,” Sandra said a look of sympathy on her face.
“It’s not ideal, but I think we can work it out. We just need a bit to get used to each other and things should fall into place,” Hope replied. Even she heard the lack of conviction in her own words. Sandra had given her a look and patted her hand.
“Well if you ever need to talk I’m always around.”
Hope smiled realizing that it was nice having someone to talk to who didn’t know her from before. The rest of the afternoon had passed quickly and when she arrived home she felt better than when she’d left. Since Warrick wasn’t home yet, Hope decided it would be nice for him to come home to a nice home cooked meal. He had seemed appreciative and had told her about his day but they still didn’t have a lot to talk about yet, so most of the dinner was spent in an uncomfortable silence.
Warrick had cleaned the dishes insisting it was his job since she had cooked. Hope had smiled and thanked him. He went to bed early and Hope decided to read in bed since tomorrow was going to be another busy day. With everything ordered for tomorrow, she would help them clean the houses to make sure they were ready to be lived in when everything arrived.
As her eyes finally started to close she thought she heard something outside her room. She frowned in concentration letting her wolf come to the surface, using its hearing to see if she could figure out what the sound was. The house was quiet for a long moment and Hope began to scold herself for being so paranoid when she heard the sound again. Not quite making out the words, she knew they were coming from Warrick’s room and she bit her lip while debating what to do.
Based on last night’s adventure she would need to be careful but couldn’t let him suffer through another nightmare. Hope left her room and slowly opened his door. The light from outside shone on his bared chest and she carefully approached the bed. Warrick moaned, his body sweaty as if he had been running. Hope wracked her brain thinking of the best way to sooth him.
After the fire, Hope used to have bad dreams all the time and her brother had often crawled into bed with her, brushing her hair back until she calmed down. Just him being there had always soothed her and she hoped that she could provide that same comfort for Warrick as she carefully crawled into bed with him.
He turned toward her in his sleep and she heard his moan of pain. Hope made a soothing, “shh” sound as she carefully brought her hand up to his cheek. Warrick leaned into her touch and she let out a breath saying a prayer of thanks that the move didn’t seem to wake him. With a gentle touch, Hope, slowly stroked his hair.
After a few minutes, Warrick’s body started to settle down. He was no longer crying out and instead had leaned into Hope. Turned towards him, she kept stroking his hair, looking down at his head lying against her chest. Very carefully she stroked her hand down the scar that ran the length of his cheek. When they’d first found him, out of all the scars he had, this one had looked the most angry.
Warrick’s wolf was what had kept him alive all those long years. There was no way a human could have survived the torture he had endured. When he nuzzled her breast. She felt his breath through the thin material of the nightshirt she had slipped on. Her nipple hardened to a painful peak and Hope felt her body tighten in response.
They were strangers and her response to him was purely physical. A side effect of the imprinting that had taken place so many years ago. When she was younger she had tried dating. Hope had gone so far as to be kissed by a boy. The second his lips had touched hers, Hope almost lost control of her wolf and she pushed him off her.
The next day at school she heard the kids whispering, ‘Hope, warm on the outside and ice cold on the inside.’ Boys had even started placing bets on who could defrost her. Well at least until her brother had overheard. She had never been as mortified as when she found out he jumped those kids and had gotten expelled. That was when Lazzaro had decided to finish their edu
cation with tutors.
Hope had cried to Lazzaro about how unfair the world was and how she just wanted to kiss a boy. She grinned now thinking about how the big Vampire King everyone was afraid of had let her sit on his lap and just let her cry about how unfair and mean the Fates were. “Life is not fair,” he told her after she’d finished crying. “Il mio piccolo lupo, but one day soon you will understand that if everything came easy, it wouldn’t be worth it.”
Il mio piccolo lupo meant my little wolf in Italian and had always made her feel safe when he called her that when she was young. As she looked down at Warrick she realized how good she had it. She always had her brother and Lazzaro but Warrick had no one. His twin brother had not only betrayed him but had seemed to take perverse pleasure in his torture. How could one come to terms with that?
Hope noticed how still he had become so she bent down and kissed the top of his head vowing that he would never feel that way again. Not just because he was her mate but also because everyone deserved to have someone. No one should feel alone.
She brought her hand to her mouth and yawned. Warrick’s nightmare had passed, so she decided it was a good time to go back to her own bed. As she started to roll away from him she felt his arm tighten around her waist holding her to him. Maybe a few more minutes wouldn’t hurt, she thought as she adjusted herself on his bed. Closing her eyes as she continued to play with his hair, feeling safe and comfortable in his arms.
Hope wasn’t sure what started this dream but she found herself wishing it didn’t end anytime soon. This was not the first time she had dreamt of what it would be like to be kissed but she had to admit this was by far her favorite.
The warm lips brushed across her and her lips parted on a sigh. A low moan escaped her as his tongue slipped in. She wanted nothing more than to focus on that glorious tongue when she felt a hand slide up the bare skin of her stomach and cup her breast.
A part of her mind kept telling her something was different with this dream but she didn’t want to focus on that. For years she had wondered what it would feel like to have someone touch her with desire. Her body shifted and she felt the tongue in her mouth stroke against hers, encouraging her to play. She obediently followed it into a mouth and dueled with it.
No wonder kissing was so popular. Her entire body tingled with awareness and she wanted to never wake up. The hand holding her breast squeezed gently and she let out a moan that sounded odd, even to her own ears. As she arched her back, her breast felt heavier and her nipples hardened as something rubbed against them. When they stiffened to painful peaks her eyes shot open. She let out a squeak, breaking the kiss when someone pinched it.
The sound echoed off the wall as Hope became aware that she was not alone, nor was she dreaming that the hand on her breast stopped moving. It held her nipple between two fingers and she felt her face heat up at the realization that it was not just her heavy breathing that she was hearing. Slowly she opened her eyes and they locked onto Warrick’s.
Neither one of them said a word and Hope realized that she had one leg draped over his and that something was lightly pressing against the juncture between her thighs. A blush spread on her cheeks as she realized exactly what it was.
She felt him slowly pull away and Hope bit her cheek to keep from whimpering at the loss of his touch. “I’m sorry, I didn’t…” Warrick started to say as his eyes searched the room.
“No, it’s my fault,” Hope said adjusting her shirt before getting out of bed. “You were having a bad dream and I must’ve fallen asleep after you calmed down.”
Warrick nodded and she was glad that the sun hadn’t completely risen yet. If the heat on her face was any indication, she wouldn’t be totally surprised if Warrick knew she was blushing. Hope glanced down at the blanket and found she was staring at the way the blanket was tenting below his waist.
“I’m sorry I keep waking you,” Warrick finally said, breaking the silence.
Embarrassed Hope darted her eyes elsewhere, shaking her head. She wondered briefly if he meant from him crying out during his dream last night, or from kissing her awake just a few minutes ago. Even now her body craved his touch and she was a bit disappointed that they had stopped.
“Warrick...” she started to say before closing her mouth. She didn’t want him to apologize for waking her up. She had always depended on others to chase away her nightmares and now for once she was providing that same care for someone else. “Don’t apologize, please.”
When he finally looked at her their eyes locked. She could tell he was fighting the urge to say something. Instead he nodded and she smiled back. “Well since we are both wide awake, I think I am going to make us some breakfast.”
She went into her room to put on a pair of comfortable shorts and regain her composure before going downstairs. As she glanced in the mirror she wondered what he saw when he looked at her. Her nipples were still hard and pressed against the material of her shirt. Every time she moved, the soft fabric rubbed her sensitive skin and sent a small wave of pleasure right to her core. Hope blushed realizing that the material between her thighs was damp in response to his earlier kisses. Her body had been waiting for him for years. Based on the hard-on she’d felt and seen this morning he was responsive to her as well. Did he ache for her like she did for him?
7
When Hope left the room, Warrick leaned back in the bed. He’d dreamed of her so often that he wasn’t even sure when he’d realized he was kissing her. Was she awake when it started? Did she kiss him first?
As he slid his hand up the soft skin of her stomach, he heard her sigh softly and he almost lost it completely. Not sure when he became aware that it wasn’t a dream, he knew the exact moment she became fully awake. That little squeak of surprise brought him back to reality fast. He shouldn’t have tried to seduce her without her permission.
Warrick rubbed the back of his neck as he heard Hope slip from her room to head downstairs. She’d looked breathtaking when her eyes finally met his. Her hair across his pillow, her lips swollen from their kisses. The mental image of her caused his already hard cock to kick in protest at not taking his mate. He got out of bed with a groan to dress and join her downstairs.
Today he was supposed to help the electrician finish the wiring in the morning before painting the outside of the houses so the families could start moving in. The busy work of rebuilding the town felt good. It was also a chance for him to meet members from both pack. Eventually the two packs might split apart but for now they needed to rebuild.
Dressed in a shirt and jeans, he headed downstairs. When he walked into the kitchen Hope had her back to him and was pouring two cups of coffee. He took his black but had noticed she preferred flavored creamers and sugar.
His senses aware of everything about her, he could smell the hint of desire still on the air. When she turned to put her creamer back in the fridge her amber eyes met his and he saw a slight blush on her cheeks. When she finished putting the creamer away he took a step toward her. “I am sorry about this morning. I shouldn’t have.”
“It’s okay,” Hope said cutting him off. “I didn’t mean to fall asleep in your bed.”
Hope turned away from him as he closed the space between them but as he took that last step she looked over her shoulder and their eyes locked. He reached up and pushed a stray hair back behind her ear. “You have every right to fall asleep in my bed. I feel like I should apologize. You haven’t received a good night’s sleep since I moved in.”
He watched as the pulse in her neck picked up speed. The smell of her desire thickened in the air. His wolf was aware of it, aware of her, and it itched beneath the surface. His canine teeth pulsed wanting to finally mark her as his. He started to lean forward on instinct wanting to put his lips to the column of her neck, which was calling to him.
When his eyes finally met hers, he noticed how they had darkened and her lips were parted whether in invitation or to tell him to go he wasn’t sure. Giving in to the temptation to
kiss her was the easiest thing he had ever done and he bent down to capture her lips with his.
For a split second she was stiff under him. He started to pull back when he heard her low moan as her hand came up and slipped around his neck, pulling him closer. Her lips parted and he felt her tongue tentatively brush against his lips. Warrick growled low in the back of his throat as he opened his mouth allowing her tongue entry.
Warrick wrapped an arm around her waist pulling her close. She started to lean into him, her tongue gliding against his. A hard knock on the door caused them both to jump apart. There was something satisfying about seeing Hope breathing as hard as he was.
“Was your brother coming over early?” Warrick asked looking at the clock.
Hope shook her head glancing down at her clothes.
“I’ll get the door.” Warrick volunteered. She smiled brightly at him before heading upstairs. Taking a deep breath, he went to answer the door feeling conflicted about the interruption. He shouldn’t have kissed her but his body was so aware of hers after waking up with her in his arms, he couldn’t help himself.
When he opened the door, he was surprised to see a woman he didn’t know holding a pink box and a container of coffee cups. She looked vaguely familiar but he couldn’t remember her name. Her long dark hair was pulled back in a ponytail and her brown eyes widened in surprise, before she gave him a tentative smile. “Hi. My name is Sandra,” she said looking a little uncomfortable. “I’m working with Hope today and thought I would bring some coffee and breakfast before we get started.”
Warrick noticed how uncomfortable she looked and tried to give her a reassuring smile. “Of course, please come in.”
As he led her to the kitchen area, he couldn’t help but notice that she kept fidgeting and her eyes darted around the place. She was dressed in a pair of faded jeans and a t-shirt. Hope had mentioned that they had almost finished cleaning one of the homes.
