SorenI shouldn’t be surprised to find Hilda sitting by the water. She always gravitated to streams and rivers when she was upset.“Mind if I join you?” I break into her reverie. She looks up and smiles and I’m glad to see the strain that’s been present for the past weeks is no longer present. Cerelia told me about their chat, before insisting I use my magical hands on her, after which we did less talking and more fooling around.“Of course not. Where’s Cerelia?” I’m not very happy about my mate’s whereabouts and I know Hilda made the suggestion, so I try to hide my uneasiness when I respond. “She’s gone to talk to Tara. She wants to find out if she knows more magic than Cerelia does. She was with Maelor for longer if her story is true.”Hilda looks at me sympathetically. “I’m sorry. I know how worried you have to be, but Cerelia’s chomping at the bit to advance her studies. At least we’re all here to keep an eye on them.” I shrug, “I know you were only trying to help and it’s the mos
ArloIt’s well past sundown when I get home and I find Hilda sitting in the dark and staring out the window, with a cup of coffee forgotten in front of her. I wanted to get back to her earlier, but I kept being waylaid by one responsibility or another.“Arlo,” she says with a smile when she realizes I’m there. Her eyes look bruised and tired and I just know she’s kept gnawing at the so-called prophecy like a dog with a bone.“Whatever it is you’re about to say, the answer’s no,” I forestall her, pulling out the chair opposite her and sitting down. “We’ve discussed this, there’s nothing more to say. I love you. I won’t give you up. It’s a moot point.”One side of her mouth tilts up slightly, “As simple as that?” she asks. “Hilda, it is as simple as that. I won’t allow you to leave me. If you go, I’m going with you. And Tara is full of shit, I don’t believe she had a real vision!”Hilda sighs softly. “I have a confession to make,” she tells me, picking up her mug and blowing on it befor
CereliaI’m not sure why I allowed Hilda to talk me into this. Her arguments all seemed to make sense at the time, now I’m not so sure. Yes, Tara could probably help me advance my magical abilities. And I’ll be able to get a better sense of whether she’s up to something if I spend more time with her.It grates having to ask a favor from someone I don’t trust and I’m not sure how to even start the conversation. She’s sitting up in bed and looks at me calmly while I approach her.“I’ve been expecting you,” she tells me. “I can help you, if you’re willing to allow it. You don’t have to trust me in order to learn from me.” I bristle at her presumptuousness, even if she is right.“I hope you don’t think this proves anything about your ability to see the future,” I inform her in a low voice. “It’s not exactly a great deductive leap to make. I still think you’re faking and upsetting Hilda for no reason.”Tara looks crestfallen at my words. If she’s only half as good at practicing magic as sh
HildaArlo’s taste is spread all across the inside of my mouth. Coating my inner cheeks and tongue as I work him deeper down my throat. The sound of his moans and growls of desire spread heat from my core to every part of my body.Kneeling in front of him feels so right at this moment. I’m not usually the submissive type, although Arlo’s been able to make me beg right from the start. But tonight I want to revel in serving him.My thoughts have been careening back and forth wildly all day and I’m more than happy to hand control to my mate. My star-crossed lover, who doesn’t seem to feel a shred of the uncertainty I’ve been struggling with.Love him enough to set him free, or fight to stay by his side. It was never only my choice to make. We’ll face this the same way we’ve approached everything else so far. Together.“Hilda, if you keep that up I’m going to drown you in cum,” Arlo grunts, his hips pushing up from the chair, pushing his crown deeper into my throat and bumping against the
ArloHer pussy tries to suck on to my finger and keep it trapped inside, while she makes all the beautiful little noises that never fails to drive me wild. She’s like silk around my digit, her sweet liquor making it feel like I’m dipped into liquid silk.Her ass is still red and glowing. I would have stopped much sooner if she didn’t keep imploring me to continue. If she hadn’t been steadily pumping out moisture from between those slick, swollen pussy lips, I would have stopped regardless, but the proof of her enjoyment was clear to see.“Please Arlo,” she squirms on my lap, trying to force my finger deeper inside her. Pulling it out I go back to stroking her. Gently parting her folds so I could pet the sensitive interior. My index finger tracing circles around the nub of her clit. It’s already engorged and the slightest touch makes her shudder.“You said you want me to be in charge, love,” I tell her placidly, pressing down hard with the pad of my finger for a few seconds, before ret
CereliaTwo weeks of working with Tara has honed my skills far more than I could have ever foreseen. Judging by the expression I’ve caught on her face more than once, my rapid improvement shocked her too.I’m still drained and near collapse every night when I get to crawl into Soren’s arms for some well-deserved rest, but my magic is much stronger than it was before and I’m able to stop Tara’s attacks almost as quickly as she manages to launch them.The hour I spend with Hilda just after sunrise has become almost the only time we get to talk and I look forward to it. I’m not advancing quite so swiftly here. I can lunge away from a direct attack with reasonable speed and throw an almost decent punch. Sword training was a disaster and Hilda proclaimed it to be a waste of energy.“You have magic. That’s where your greatest strength lies. It’s going to take weeks to build up the kind of musculature you’ll need to properly wield a weapon and I’m really hoping we’ll be done with all this by
HildaI’ve never had a close female friend before. I was one of the boys until one day Soren looked at me in a way that set a whole flock of starlings into motion in my stomach. I still fought and trained the way I had before, but suddenly I wanted to look good while doing it.There are other female warriors I’m friendly with, but Cerelia is the first woman I’ve opened up to emotionally. The irony isn’t lost on me. “Look at us, moving past our issues and bonding,” I joke.Cerelia eyes me knowingly. “We did that a while ago, even if we haven’t stated it quite so unequivocally before. What are you avoiding?” she asks astutely. Maybe this is why I hung out with the boys. When it comes to emotions they’re as observant as a tree.“If you apply this kind of perceptiveness to your surroundings nobody will ever get the drop on you,” I inform her. Cerelia crosses her arms and continues to stare at me inquisitively.“I need a potion to keep me from conceiving,” I finally whisper, unable to bear
HildaTalking to Cerelia helps solidify what I want, but Arlo gets to have a say in this too and I’ll discuss it with him when the time is right. For now, I’m taking the potion. If he agrees, and we decide to take the risk, it will be the last time though. Which means I’m more motivated than ever to eradicate the mages.“I have an idea, but the final say has to rest with Cerelia,” I tell the war council that evening. The inner circle consists of Arlo, me, Cerelia, Soren, Percy and Nixie. Soren glances at me heavily, already unhappy with whatever I’m planning to propose.“I’ve seen a glimpse of what Cerelia is capable of now and that brought me the idea.” Turning to face her I say, “If this is going to place you in danger of burning out, or it seems like more than you can handle yet, you say no.”“I won’t know until you tell me what it is,” she responds when I keep staring at her. “I’m serious Cerelia,” I say emphatically. “If you’re not sure, we wait until you’re ready.” She nods, but
AshRedgrave is sprawled across her settee, twirling a glass of whisky in one hand, watching me with that gleam in her eye. The one that says she thinks we’re sharing secrets, building a future, falling deeper into whatever twisted version of love she believes this is.I play my part. “There’s something you need to do,” I say, leaning forward. My voice is low, serious enough to catch her attention without sounding like I’m issuing orders. I’m not that careless. She likes to be consulted, not commanded.“Oh?” she purrs, raising a brow, clearly expecting me to suggest something erotic.“Malcolm will ask you to sign over the money to him soon. He’ll tell you he needs it in order to finalize the logistics. But what it really is, is the last step before he makes his move.”She frowns, sitting up straighter. “What move?” I meet her gaze. “He plans to kill you.” There’s a beat of silence, then she laughs. “Please. Malcolm doesn’t have the spine.”“He doesn’t need spine,” I say softly. “He has
HildaThe water in the creek is cold enough to make me gasp when I slip beneath the surface, but I don’t mind. It’s clean and fresh and I like the way it wakes my skin up. Besides, I’ve got a six-foot-five personal furnace about to follow me in.“You’re making that face,” Arlo says from the edge of the creek, voice low and amused. “What face?”“The smug one. The I know I look like a goddess in the moonlight face.” I swim backward a few strokes and lift my chin, hair slicked back, droplets sliding down my shoulders. “The only reason I believe that is because you keep telling me I do, so it’s all your fault.”He grins wolfishly, slow and appreciative, and steps into the water. It only takes him two strides to reach me. I get a full, brazen look at everything before the water hits his waist, and it’s a very enjoyable view.“You always get smug when you’re naked,” he murmurs, closing the space between us. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”“It’s not.” His hands find my hips beneath the
AshThe moment we’re back in Isadora’s bedroom I close the door behind us and she presses her body against mine.She’s still wearing that flimsy excuse for a nightgown. Blood-red silk barely clinging to her hips, one shoulder falling in a way that’s clearly meant to look accidental. She reaches for my chest, fingertips tracing the edge of a fading bruise, but I step back.“Darling,” she purrs, tilting her head. “Surely you’re not in a rush to leave this room? I thought we could—”“I think we’re running out of time,” I cut in, sharper than I intended. Her pout falters. “We’ve only just been reunited. You don’t want to celebrate?”I force a smile, trying not to let my frustration show. “Believe me, I’d like nothing more than to lie in bed and let you distract me. But something tells me the wolves aren’t going to sit around and wait for us to finish indulging our passions.”She sighs and stalks to the chaise lounge, throwing herself down with the flair of a silent film star. “You’re righ
AshTara won’t look at me. It must sicken her to see me in such a dishevelled state with Isadora. I tried to convince her we should bathe and get dressed first, but I suspect she wants Tara to know what we’ve been up to.I’ve never had any trouble sexually pleasing my partners. I’m an inventive, attentive and insatiable lover under normal circumstances. Last night was the first time since becoming human that I had to close my eyes and pretend.I imagined Tara was the one in bed with me. The one I kissed. The one who sucked my cock with such exuberance. The one I fucked until she was exhausted and passed out in my arms.I didn’t offer Isadora pleasure with my tongue this time. Exceptionally talented as I am at cunnilingus, I know she was hoping I would. I haven’t had the pleasure of tasting Tara, but I know she would burst on my tongue like some exotic fruit. Intoxicating my senses. I couldn’t suckle Isadora’s clit and keep lying to myself about who I was with.“Tell me how to break th
TaraI feel violated and ill when I wake up the following morning. Ash certainly doesn’t have human stamina, based on the information gleaned from the books I’ve read. Human males apparently require a period of recovery between one bout of mating and the next.“Thank you for the books,” I tell the serving girl when she brings my breakfast. She glances at the bedside table and her eyes briefly meet mine before darting to the floor again. “That one’s good, but the other one is better,” she says quietly.So these aren’t from Redgrave at all. “I’ll make sure to hide them when I have visitors,” I promise her quietly. She lowers her head, “I don’t think she’ll know. She doesn’t pay much attention to the house. You can just say you found them in a drawer.”“My name is Tara,” I tell her gently. She looks at me again with a faint smile, “I know. The mistress cursed your name repeatedly when you took Sir Ash from her before.” Right. I wonder how Redgrave believes I managed that. It’s all to t
TaraAsh seems to have accelerated healing abilities like we do. He told me he’s never been sick and he doesn’t think he ages, but he has no idea if that’s pure luck or if he’s not as human as he seems.The black eye took a bit longer to heal than the lacerations from the whipping, but it was still much faster than a human would have mended.I wish I could see him. Just for a minute. Just to be sure he’s in the same shape physically that I am. Logically I know he has to be, but I need to see with my own eyes that he’s fine. Or at least as fine as it’s possible to be while pretending to be enchanted by a completely delusional woman.If Isadora Redgrave hadn’t shown up when she did, I know exactly what would have happened to me next in that cage and I despise having to feel grateful to her, but I can’t deny that I am. I’d rather be beaten for hours on end than sexually violated by Malcolm.I know the only reason I’m being kept in this beautiful room and fed like royalty is because
RedgraveAs much as I despise Tara, seeing her spread-eagled, bloody and whimpering in pain doesn’t bring me any pleasure. I’m not a cat, who needs to play with my food before I deal the final blow.“Do you no longer need her to get you across the border?” I ask with a raised brow. Malcolm frowns as though the question makes no sense. “I do. She’s not dead,” he responds sullenly.“I gather she attacked you?” His jaw clenches, “What are you getting at, Isadora?” he asks irritably. “I’m trying to understand why you’re torturing her. What’s the point?”“She came here to spy on us before. My men only caught her this time because she was chasing down your precious Ash. She may have important information that could impact the mission,” he informs me dryly. Like I’m a silly child asking stupid questions. I wonder whether he knows that the thin layer of ice that he’s standing on has already started to crack.“Have you asked her?” I enquire. I can hear his teeth grinding together before he
MalcolmEither I was incredibly unlucky with the first werewolf I captured, or this one is very weak for some reason. Maybe because she’s linked to the human.I need to know whether most of them are more like Arlo, or like her. It’s going to make a huge difference in the size of the force I need. Arlo bent steel bars and wouldn’t go down until he was peppered with tranquillizer darts.I wouldn’t have stepped into Arlo’s cage for all the money in the world. Not even when he’d just been knocked out. This little female is completely different. One shot puts her down and she hasn’t attempted to shift once.Maybe I don’t even need to keep putting up with Redgrave. I’ve acquired an arsenal of weapons because Arlo refused to bloody die. Something tells me if I shoot this one in the head, she’ll expire immediately.As tempted as I am to test out my theory, I need her to get me into the werewolves’ territory. Her screams are like the most beautiful symphony. Ringing out loudly with each e
TaraArlo’s advice definitely helped. I’ve been drifting in and out of consciousness from the one dart that hit me, but I never fully went under. I’m abruptly pulled from my dreamy state when pain explodes in my head and my left eye starts throbbing.Ash. What are they doing to him? I want to hurl myself at the bars of the cage surrounding me and demand that they set him free, but we have to maintain our cover.“What the hell are you yipping about?” one of the guards stationed around my prison asks. I hadn’t realized I was making small sounds of distress.Based on the sheer volume of armed guards surrounding me, it’s clear King Arlo gave them a lot of trouble. Pride swells in my chest. He truly is a worthy leader for our pack.“Did she just hit herself?” one of the others asked, gaping at what must be significant bruising around my eye.“Crazy bitch,” the first guy mutters. “I’ve been watching her, she didn’t do it to herself. Her head rocked back and then the bruise was there.