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CHAPTER SEVENTY-FOUR:Merrick Blake
Last Updated:
2025-03-02 09:46:43
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Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER SEVENTY-FIVE:Hazel Ellis
I’d just finished explaining the plan to Liv when a quiet knock on the door caught my attention.I turned, frowning. “Who the hell knocks at 3 AM?” “Who the hell knocks so politely?” Liv countered.Chandler’s eyes caught Merrick’s. She knew exactly who knocked that politely. “I’m going to go change,” she said quickly, though she was already in her pajamas.Liv crossed the room to open the door. She’d practically lived at my house growing up, so it wasn’t surprising that she already felt like my parents’ new place was her turf.She pulled the door open and revealed her True Mate on the other side.No wonder Chandler had left. I knew Jay had been in love with her since they were kids, and that she’d never felt the same way. Since Liv was his True Mate, I imagined the whole thing was pretty weird for her.“Great, it’s you,” Liv said unenthusiastically. “Go home.” She tried to close the door, but he caught it with both his hand and foot.“Can we talk?” he asked.“Why? So you can reject me
Last Updated : 2025-03-03Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER SEVENTY-SIX:Hazel Ellis
As planned, we started with the primates the next morning. It was too far to run in wolf form if we were going to do anything else that day, so we had to drive. It took me twenty minutes to get myself buckled into the truck, my knees lifted to my chest and my arms wrapped around them in an attempt to feel safer, but I did it. And I felt good about that, even though my whole body was clenched and sweating as I anticipated another crash that I logically knew wasn’t coming.Merrick drove, and he kept glancing over at me with troubled eyes. He hated that I had to push past my issues, but his emotions were soothing, and that helped a little. What would’ve really helped was if I could sit next to him, his scent wrapping around me, tinged with my own.But Liv occupied the seat between us, because we apparently still weren’t allowed to be alone together.Even if we were alone together, we couldn’t touch if we wanted to keep living. And we wanted to keep living, so that was out of the questio
Last Updated : 2025-03-03Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER SEVENTY-SEVEN:Merrick Blake
We stopped at our den for lunch. Liv and Hazel waited outside while I grabbed a few grocery bags and swept all of our food out of the fridge, into the bags. Since we didn’t know how long it would be until we could live together again, Hazel and I figured we’d better get everything out so nothing rotted.It felt like I was moving us out of our damn house, which sucked.“Thanks for doing that.” Hazel’s mind brushed mine as I strode out of the house, locking the door behind me.“I wish I didn’t have to,” I replied.“Me too.” Her voice grew quiet.All three of us ate in the bed of my truck, Liv infuriatingly remaining between me and my mate at all times.I was getting really fucking tired of being treated like we were kids who couldn’t manage to keep ourselves apart for the sake of our own lives. I’d play along for a few more hours, but pretty soon I was going to be ripping apart the person who insisted on sitting right between me and Hazel.We were adults; we could survive looking withou
Last Updated : 2025-03-03Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER SEVENTY-EIGHT:Hazel Ellis
Liv didn’t mention that we smelled like lust—a very un-Liv-like thing to do. She stared out the window quietly all the way to the birds’ land. When we got there, she stayed in the truck again while Merrick and I headed into the wild crowd of shifters.I didn’t expect to run face-first into Darius the dickish griffin, but that’s exactly what happened.“Oomph,” I grunted, bouncing backward. He’d walked right into my path, not even noticing me. My reflexes were sluggish, lack of training showing through, and I hated it.“Shit. Sorry.” Big hands closed around my biceps. “Hands off,” Merrick growled.I elbowed the asshole in the gut when he didn’t release me. His pained grunt was music to my ears, but he still didn’t release me.I noticed the pulling sensation, and the energy moving from him into me. Shit—the curse. He was good and stuck, curse giving him back his griffin form in exchange for his energy.“Damn curse,” Merrick snarled, grabbing the guy by the shirt and yanking him away fro
Last Updated : 2025-03-03Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER SEVENTY-NINE:Hazel Ellis
We couldn’t test my theory the moment we got back to my parents’ place, because it was full of werewolves.Granted, they weren’t random werewolves. They were my family—some by blood, but mostly friends who had chosen to be family.“Hazel!” My aunt Arla swept me into her arms. Before she could lift me up off the ground like I knew she would, she halted.Frozen by the curse, of course.“Hi everyone.” I glanced around the very-full room. It wasn’t exactly what I wanted to go home to after an incredibly long day of not being able to touch my mate, but I could guess why they were there.“We need our wolves back.” London gave me a big smile. Liv must not have told her about being rejected yet—London would be pissed. She was a much more vocal mama bear than my own, and she would sure as hell be having words with Jay if she knew.“You smell like a guy,” Arla drew back, glancing at Merrick with a frown. “But not him.”Merrick growled. “Shower first, then we’ll help everyone.” He gestured towar
Last Updated : 2025-03-03Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER EIGHTY:Merrick Blake
Most of Roman and Henley’s friends left after we gave them back their wolves. From what I heard a few of the women whispering about, they understood that Hazel and I needed privacy. I wanted us to move back to our place, but the privacy wasn’t worth the risk that would come with accidentally touching when no one else was there.Only Arla and Kyler remained—Hazel’s aunt and uncle.“Come on.” Hazel dragged me back to our room, though there was no actual dragging involved.“Okay, put on sweatpants and long sleeves, and tuck them in,” she instructed.I obeyed, changing my clothes while Hazel did the same. She handed me a sweatshirt next, and ordered me to pull up the hood and tighten it so it covered my neck. I obeyed that command, too, then put on the long socks she insisted on. I didn’t have any gloves in her parents’ house, but she dug some out of her drawer for herself and tugged them up to her elbows, over the sweatshirt so there was no way they could wiggle off.“Mom,” Hazel yelled
Last Updated : 2025-03-03Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER EIGHTY ONE:Hazel Ellis
The day went surprisingly smoothly, considering we were meeting with packs and groups on the cats’ side of the river. There were no attacks, and no threats.We went back to my parents’ place afterward. Chandler was still staying in one of their spare rooms, so she and both of the hats she’d managed to make for Noah that day went inside with her.There weren’t any werewolves waiting to get their wolves back that night. My parents were in the kitchen, cooking together with their typical music playing while they talked and hung out.My dad kissed my mom as we walked past, and a surge of jealousy flooded me. It had been forty-eight hours since I’d gotten to touch Merrick at all, and even more since I’d gotten to kiss him.Dammit, I wanted to kiss my mate.“We’ll get this figured out,” Merrick murmured.“I know. I just wish it was already figured out,” I sighed.All I wanted was a damn hug and a kiss on the forehead—was that too much to ask for?My mom poked her head in just before I shut
Last Updated : 2025-03-04Bound by Blood: Last Ruby Wolf and Her Fated Mate CHAPTER EIGHTY TWO:Hazel Ellis
An hour later we were all full of pizza, and everyone was calm. London had grudgingly accepted Jay’s attempt to protect Liv, and everyone there had at least somewhat wrapped their minds around the idea that there was a way for someone to reject their True Mate.Even accepting that True Mates existed at all was hard for them.Eventually, they all trickled out until my parents were walking London and Gunner and their other three kids out.If Merrick and I had been staying at our own place, allowed to be together the way we wanted, we would’ve been home hours earlier, playing Call of Duty, naked, with me sitting on his lap and his arms wrapped around me so he could feel my tits on his forearms.But we couldn’t, so we weren’t.I’d been thinking about how to help Liv and Jay. They weren’t going to get anywhere until Liv actually heard him out and gave him a chance, because he didn’t sound like he was giving up. And I knew her well enough to know she would eventually give him a chance.Gra
Last Updated : 2025-03-04
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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
