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CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE:Merrick Blake
Last Updated:
2025-02-25 15:58:01
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Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER FORTY-SIX:Hazel Ellis
Riding my bike without Merrick in front of me or behind me was fun, but it was a different kind of fun. There was more adrenaline, less comfort and thrill. That probably doesn't even make sense, but I don't know any other way to put it.When I rode on my own, it was more about the rush. The excitement of me and my bike leaning together, flying down the highway at ridiculous speeds.But when I rode with Merrick, it was different. When he drove, it was a chance to let our bodies move as one, riding together. When he sat behind me, it was more of a challenge. I had to work harder to keep the bike up and had to be more careful with every movement.And I liked that better.We rode side by side, but it just wasn't the same. The adrenaline felt cheap compared to the comforting thrill of riding with my body plastered to my grizzly's.When we headed back, neither of us reached out mentally to each other. We were both aware of the danger of driving distracted, and didn't want to crash.When we
Last Updated : 2025-02-25Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN:Merrick Blake
I slammed the door of my truck harder than necessary, the impact vibrating through my hand as I settled into the seat, letting out a long, frustrated sigh. The weight of the situation sat heavily in my chest, squeezing the air out of my lungs. My knuckles ached from gripping the steering wheel too tightly, but it didn't matter. I was used to that feeling—the constant pressure of wanting to fix everything, even when I had no idea how to.I reached into my pocket, yanking out my phone, and punched in the familiar number. Blake was my only real source of advice these days. Sure, I had other friends, but when it came to matters of the heart—well, Blake was the one who seemed to know how to make sense of my mess. The phone rang twice before she picked up."Hey, Blake. Is everything okay?" Her voice was clear and sharp, not muffled by sleep like I expected it to be. She was a schoolteacher, after all, and normally crashed before 10 PM to get up for her early morning classes."No," I replied
Last Updated : 2025-02-25Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT:Hazel Ellis
I didn't hear from Merrick the next day, spending my time meeting tons of shifters, breaking up fights among the asshole werewolves who had already migrated to Shifter City, and talking with the city's council about boring shit.He was giving me space—the opposite of what I actually wanted—and I hated it. His apology note pissed me off. And the key to his house? We both knew he never locked the damn door. He should've followed me home to fight with me until we figured out a solution that made us both happy… and I shouldn't have left in the first place.But what had happened, happened, and it was too late to go back in time.So, after a day of radio silence, I decided to do something about it the next morning.Liv and I crept around the side of his house, wearing backpacks, bikinis, and nose plugs, while doused in enough vinegar to hide our scents from even Merrick. He'd know it was me when he read the note I was leaving him, but I didn't want to give him the privilege of smelling me i
Last Updated : 2025-02-25Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER FORTY-NINE:Hazel Ellis
I laughed at another of Liv's stupid jokes as I slid out of her car, glancing down at the backpack in my hand to adjust my grip on it."Good luck," Liv yelled after me as she pulled out.I waved over my shoulder, finally looking at the motel room door I was headed to. My eyebrows lifted when I saw Merrick sitting on his ass on the pavement in front of it, his back leaned up against the door like he'd been that first night we met. I braced myself for a fight and kept walking.He'd probably smell my excitement at seeing him, because dammit, I’d missed the big grizzly."Please tell me that's lingerie, and you're planning to use it to lure me into your bed," Merrick called out as I approached.I refused to let myself grin. "It's not." It wasn't even all that sexy, considering what I usually wore. Just a simple black bikini: high waisted bottoms, and a top with an under-wire."Nope." I stopped in front of him, putting a hand on my hip. "What are you doing here?"Merrick lazily lifted his h
Last Updated : 2025-02-25Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER FIFTY:Hazel Ellis
"Skunk." My dad grunted. "I thought they were using vinegar.""I'm sure the skunk was unintentional," mom said. "We have twenty minutes until we need to be at the house. Want to go for a run?"My dad agreed, and they rustled around, getting ready."Told you." Merrick's voice was teasing, but not cruel. I finally met his gaze again, and was surprised by what he saw.Lines under his eyes, dark and heavy.I inhaled a little deeper and found out he was tired. Really, really tired."Have you been sleeping?" I asked."My bed doesn't smell like you," he said."That's not an answer.""No, I haven't been sleeping." He finally told me the truth, and it sucked. Mostly because I knew my absence was the reason. And no, it wasn’t my fault, but I was the idiot who ran away instead of staying to talk to him that night.Which I wasn’t going to do again, I decided."You should've told me.""I was giving you space. That’s how I was trying for you, Ellis. I left that note telling you to come back to me w
Last Updated : 2025-02-25Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE:Merrick Blake
After a quick lunch and an afternoon full of meetings about land, Alphas, and other government shit, I drove Hazel back to our place. She was talking about colors—for our walls, and furniture and stuff, and kept showing me pictures to ask what I thought.Most of what she showed me, I liked just fine… when I didn't look at the price tags.But Hazel made enough to buy whatever the hell she wanted, so I forced myself not to worry about the cost and just focus on making us a place my mate would feel comfortable in. Our den needed to feel homey for her too, and I could get used to the expensive furniture and insane number of zeros in her bank account.I'd learn how to move past my manly pride eventually. If that's what it took to keep Hazel, I'd figure it out."You don't seem really invested in this." Hazel gestured to her phone. "What if I get us a really big TV?"Well, that caught my attention. "How big?""As big as we can fit on our living room wall. If we're going to get really into Ca
Last Updated : 2025-02-26Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO:Hazel Ellis
Chandler picked up me and Liv, since Liv's car reeked of vinegar and mine just reeked. Merrick hadn't asked where we were going, and I doubted he'd be on board with us going to a wings place in the Amphibian area, so I hadn't told him.Probably not a good step toward the total trust I wanted between us, but we would get there.We jammed out to Liv's pop music in the car, since Chandler was into that stuff too, and parked in front of the restaurant. It was a place where you could sit down inside, but you ordered at the register in the front of the room rather than having waiters or waitresses coming around to serve you.We ordered a shit-ton of food, then piled into a booth made for two. Liv claimed the one side, so me and Chandler squished into the other.Liv and Chandler told me all about their massages, which had also turned into mani-pedis and facials, while we waited, and Chandler was glowing.She'd probably never been pampered like that. As a first-grade teacher, she deserved tha
Last Updated : 2025-02-26Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE:Hazel Ellis
I fell asleep cradled against Merrick's chest on the way back to his den, only cracking my eyes open when he carried me inside.I wrestled my eyelids open when I heard the shower start, followed by the sound of the sink turning on and off. When he didn't come to bed, I sat up and slid out from under the blankets. Between the healing, the food, and the little sleep I'd gotten in Merrick's arms, I was feeling a lot better, but not one hundred percent."Grizzly?" I pushed the bathroom door open, peeking inside. I found Merrick sitting on the floor of his shower, his arms on his knees as his head was lifted toward the ceiling. He turned to look at me when I stepped inside, my arms wrapping around my middle as I leaned up against the sink. I still had on the comfortable spare clothes from earlier. "Why aren't you in bed with me?""I wasn't sure if you wanted me there." Merrick's voice was rough, his expression grim.I sniffed the air, but the water hid the smell of whatever he was feeling.
Last Updated : 2025-02-27
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Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND ONE:Merrick Blake
“I don’t know if I can do it.” Hazel stared at the gorgeous machine.“You don’t have to. We can always call your parents and invite them into our sex-den, and ask them to take her,” I offered with a grin.Hazel’s nose wrinkled. “That’s off the table.”“I’m sure we can think of another way around it. I can always go, drop her off, and come back.” I didn’t want Hazel to feel like she had no other choice. Feeling trapped would do nothing to help her become comfortable on the bike again.Shooting me an exasperated look, Hazel slung her leg over the seat and sat down. She made no move to turn the bike on, and instead, simply sat there.Our bond was wide open, the way it had been since she took down her walls in the truck on our way to the cabin, and I felt her surprise.“I don’t feel any panic.” She said, her voice a bit amazed.“Good. That’s a good thing.” I slid my hands in my pockets. We’d be riding our own bikes back to Shifter City, which was a bummer. I loved riding with my woman.“I
Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED:Hazel Ellis
The days began to blur into each other, and before we knew it, a month had passed. My body was growing stronger, my mind sharper, and my heart happier.A knock on the door interrupted our morning though, and ended our honeymoon.“Hazel!” Liv hollered from the front of my house. She knocked again, harder. “Haze! I can smell you in there; I know you’re here.”Merrick and I exchanged uh-oh glances across the table. We’d been keeping in contact with our friends and family, but an unplanned Liv visit wasn’t usually a good sign.We were working at the kitchen table, so I got up and crossed through the living room to open the front door. Pushing it open, my eyes landed on a dirty, determined-smelling Liv.“I need your keys.” She held her hands out. “Why?” I put a hand on my hip.“I told Jay I’d mate with him if he could catch me, and then took off. I’m fast, but he’s no couch potato.” She jiggled her hand, glancing over her shoulder. “Hurry. He’s going to be here any minute.”“He won’t be ab
Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER NINETY NINE:Hazel Ellis
I drummed my fingers on my knee. “I've never ran away from my problems before.”“We’re running away to deal with shit, not to pretend it doesn’t exist,” Merrick countered.“Still, it feels selfish.”“Sometimes you need to put yourself first, Ellis. You may not have noticed, but you’re not in a great place mentally right now.” Merrick squeezed my thigh, where his fingers were already wrapped around a good chunk of my leg.“Thanks,” I drawled.“Hey, you’re the one who locked me out of your mind. If that’s not a warning sign, what else is? We’ve been completely open for weeks.”“I’m f—”He interrupted. “You’re fucking beautiful, but you’re not fine, so quit saying that.”“You’re infuriating.” I sighed, leaning my head up against the window. I’d texted my parents to let them know we were taking off. They’d ended up calling, of course, and then had insisted on talking to Merrick. When I tried to hang up, he grabbed the phone and talked them down. He’d explained that we needed time to figu
Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER NINETY EIGHT:Merrick Blake
“Alright, get furry.” I ran my hand down Hazel’s dark hair. She was beautiful—so damn beautiful.And by some miracle, she was mine.After a few more rounds of our distraction game, all of which ended in far more than one climax, I’d finally lost one without taking Hazel over the edge with me. It was a low blow, but I more than made it up to her with my mouth and fingers afterward.She hadn’t stopped grinning since she won, and I was glad I could give her that win. Even if it meant a bare-back ride through the forest at lunch time.“Don’t pet me while I’m in human form,” she complained, still grinning.I petted her boob, and she smacked my hand away. “You like it,” I told her.“And you like to bug me.” She shifted forms, shaking out her fur as she landed on four paws. It was odd to see her as a dark-haired wolf now that she wasn’t a ruby shifter, but in a good way.“You’re fun to bug.” I scratched her head. She leaned into my hands, and I scratched harder. “If I’m too heavy, you drop m
Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER NINETY SEVEN:Hazel Ellis
Merrick scooped me up and carried both me and my plate to our couch. He somehow grabbed a blanket too on the way. Sitting down, he settled me on his lap and wrapped his arms around my middle after settling the fuzzy blanket over our lower halves.His erection pressed into my ass, but he turned the TV on like his dick wasn’t hard and aching. One of his hands wrapped around my front, his fingers slowly stroking my stomach as we waited for the TVs and consoles to turn on.“Maybe we should play a different game,” he murmured, his teeth catching my earlobe and dragging over it gently. I bit back a groan, and when I moved against his erection, he pressed me against him to trap me. “For the sake of distraction, of course.”“Of course,” I agreed.“You try to focus on the round.” He hit a few buttons, setting the game up. “And I’ll try to get you off before it ends.”Shit.That sounded like hellish heaven. It was the game we’d played the night we mated, and it sounded like the perfect way to w
Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER NINETY SIX:Hazel Ellis
Hauling me to the bed, he pulled his boxers on and finally put me down on the edge of the bed. His knees knocked mine as he tugged my shirt over my head, and he groaned when he saw that I wasn’t wearing a bra.His hands cupped my breasts, and then I was flat on my back with his mouth on my nipple. His chest idled as he sucked me, and I arched upward, my legs wrapping around his hips so I could press myself into his hardness.He moved to the other nipple, and then his hands slid into my shorts His finger stroked the most sensitive part of me, and I gasped.Fuck, his fingers felt good.Merrick paused, stopping his movement on my nipple and clit. He groaned again. “Shit. I wasn’t supposed to do that.”“Says who?” I shot back, moving my hips so his fingers rubbed against me.“Says me,” he grunted, withdrawing his hand.“No.” I grabbed his arm, holding it in place. “You can’t start this and not finish it.” My eyes bore into his.“You’re hurting, Ellis.” His eyes darkened. “So much that you
Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER NINETY FIVE:Hazel Ellis
I slept in, then stayed in bed replying to emails and trying to catch up on work I’d been slacking on for weeks. Hell, months. There were responses to emails I hadn’t sent in my inbox, and scrolling through, it looked like one of my parents had tried to take care of stuff for me.That meant a lot.My mom peeked in around noon, and I could smell food with her. I wasn’t hungry, but I also wasn’t in the mood to argue about food.“Hey, cutie.” My mom stepped inside, closing the door behind herself without asking if it was okay. I wasn’t going to turn her down anyway, so it didn’t matter.“Hey. Were you answering emails for me?” I asked.“Yeah. I tried, but you know how I am with business stuff.” She shrugged, and I smiled. My dad was the business mind out of the two of them.“Thanks.” I gave her the biggest smile I could muster—a tiny one.She sat on the edge of the bed, a plate of steak and mashed potatoes and veggies in her hands. She knew about my love affair with steak, and was trying
Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER NINETY FOUR:Merrick Blake
I sat down at one of the picnic tables, legs sprawled in front of me as I turned my mind inward. The Alpha power in my chest had shrunk by a hell of a lot, but it was still there. Pulling it to the surface, I focused on those it connected me to, and pulled. The ruby itself had called all the wolves to the city, so I assumed it was something the power could do.I felt a pull against me, like the shifters were fighting my power, so I tugged harder. Their will gave out, and I felt the agreement flow from them to me.Then, it was just a matter of waiting.My arms rested on the table, my thoughts drifting back to the female who would always have a hold on me the way I had a hold on those shifters. There was still a wall between us, and the state of it said she was still sleeping.Hazel was hurting. She’d been ignoring her trauma since that time the teenage snake nearly killed her. But the thing about trauma was that you could only ignore it for so long.I’d been a damn idiot, taking her to
Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER NINETY THREE:Merrick Blake
I followed Hazel to our room. Her parents asked her how the fight went as we passed them, and she answered with the same infuriating word she’d already repeated a dozen times or more.“Fine.”Shutting the bedroom door behind us, I locked it and followed her to the bathroom. She tried to shut that door in my face—to block me out. I caught it, and she spun to face me.“Talk to me, Ellis. Don’t shut me out,” I growled.“There’s nothing to say.” She let go of the door. “I need space.” “If there’s nothing to say, why do you need space?”“Back off, Grizzly.” She turned around, abandoning the door and walking into the shower in her bra and shorts.For the first time since I got her back, I let her go.Continuing to reach out to her, I tried to figure out how to help her.I wouldn’t walk away—I’d made that mistake once. The last time she’d asked for space, she hadn’t actually wanted it. But this time was different. This time, she was hurting. Not because of something I’d done, but because of
