“If the horrible moment is something you need me to help you get revenge for, just know, I have no boundaries when it comes to giving people their comeuppance.”The laugh that bubbled out of me felt so freeing. Like shedding a layer of my prior life and finding something new and exciting that offered a bright spot in my future.It was…unexpected, yet something I wouldn’t soon forget.“Thank you,” I said. “I don’t think that will be necessary, but I’ll keep your offer in mind.”She closed her eyes and leaned back against the couch. Her eyelids fluttered, and she took several breaths, then sat straight up. “I need to go.”“What? Why?” Panic rose as I glanced back at the door.Sure, I could kick some serious ass in hand-to-hand combat, but being alone in a house owned by a bunch of wolf shifters who looked like they murdered people for breakfast didn’t seem all that appealing.“Atlas is almost back,” Amy answered as she got up and tightened her ponytail. “I promise, you’ll be okay. I wou
My hand came down firmly over her right cheek, but not enough to leave a bruise. The sound was drowned out by Elena’s gasp. Though, if I was reading the situation right, it wasn’t because of pain. Nowhere near that.“You bastard,” she hissed, but there was a slight moan lacing her words.I spanked her again. “Keep it up. I can do this all day.”“Fuck you,” she spat, moving out of my grasp, and then she was shoving me until I was lying on the bed and her knees pinned my arms down.Her move wasn’t anything that I couldn’t get out of, but given her ass was settled over my hardening cock, I decided to see what this innocent, mouthy woman was going to do next.“Fuck me?” I challenged. “I didn’t think you were being literal.”She took in our compromising position, then raised her hand, but I blocked her attempt to punch me in the jaw.“Uh-uh. I don’t think so,” I said, then I flipped our positions. Violence wasn’t what I was in the mood for.Regardless of the voice in my head telling me tha
As soon as her pants and underwear came off, I finally saw the flash of uncertainty in her face. She nibbled at her lip and slowed her movements, but before the nerves could completely unravel her, I bent forward and captured her mouth with my own.I normally wasn’t one to give a shit about a woman’s feelings, but this wasn’t just any woman. This was Elena. My mate, even though I hadn’t been looking for her. I had to be what she needed, even if she didn’t know what that was.She kissed me back, and her hands began tugging at my shirt, but I pushed them to her sides. “No.”Her brows furrowed as she settled down onto the mattress. “No?”“I won’t leave you how I did back at the circus,” I promised, “but we’re not having sex until I know you understand what that means.”And given I didn’t want to have that conversation with my cock aching and her writhing beneath me, I dropped to my knees before she could respond.My hands pushed her thighs farther apart, meeting no resistance from my lit
“All things considered, yeah. I’ve wanted to find a life beyond Earth and Emerald for years. Sure, I could have gone without being kidnapped, but the end result is going to be the same.” I added a wink, trying to lighten the heaviness around us.“How do you know things will be the same?” he asked with a tilt of his head.“I just do. Something about all of this feels right.” I paused. “Not like Lia’s intuition or anything, but being here doesn’t make me nervous like I’d expected it to after everything I’d heard about this House.”Atlas’s eyes darkened. “What do you know about your parents?”That was a swift change in conversation.“Nothing,” I answered. “Well, besides the fact that there was a woman I assume was my mother who left me at the coven when I was a baby.”He looked away and nodded before turning back to me with a softer look. “About earlier. Do you know much about mates?”I knew enough. Or at least, I had thought so before he’d asked me. Once I’d learned what I’d considered
His face remained unemotional. “Well, then maybe you should stop pulsing with power and I wouldn’t bring them up.”“Power?” I tilted my head. “I’m not a witch, though.” At least that was what I had thought I understood before.“Witches aren’t the only ones with power,” Atlas answered. “Every supernatural has some form of it. Especially ones who rank higher on the food chain. You have a strong wolf inside you and that had to come from someone. Like an alpha people would think twice about fucking with.”My chest tightened and stomach churned. It was easy to pretend my past didn’t exist that I hadn’t been abandoned as a child but when something so specific was pointed out, there was no ignoring that fact.“How do you know?” I asked cautiously.Instead of answering, Atlas leaned closer and our eyes locked. A strength rose up inside of me, and I felt the need to sit up taller.“That right there,” he said without breaking eye contact.I wanted to blink, but something inside me wouldn’t let
“‘Was’?” The word sent a fire down my throat while I turned back to Mark …my brother.Fuck.“He died a few months ago,” he answered with a tightness around his eyes. “If it helps, you probably had a better life than I did, and you didn’t miss anything by not knowing him.”I needed a minute to process this. Hell, I needed hours or even days to wrap my head around all of this. My muscles began to ache from the tension rising within me, and I didn’t know who to turn to.Atlas, the man who was supposed to be my mate.Amy, the new friend I didn’t really know yet.Mark, the half-brother I hadn’t known existed before two minutes ago.All of this was nearly worse than my mate trying to kill me.ATLASSeeing Elena come so unraveled for the first time since knowing her made my insides burn with fury. Watching her walk back to the bedroom without saying a word and closing the door behind her, made me want to bury Markus, regardless of whether this was his fault or not. Him being here was what up
Her face was still tense, but she was breathing evenly. My first instinct was to go to her and pull her into my arms, but I refrained, letting her handle this however she needed to.“I heard what you guys were talking about,” Elena started. “What do you think your mom and brother would say if they knew about me?” she asked Mark, staring him down with the alpha power I’d already been feeling from her.“My brother his name is Tristan, by the way would probably be pretty excited for a sister, and my mother…” Mark grimaced. “Well, she’s pretty broken after everything that’s happened. She doesn’t talk much anymore and hasn’t left the house in months. No offense, but I probably won’t tell her until I think she’s mentally capable of knowing that there’s physical proof walking around this House of her mate’s infidelity. Considering how much worse things are getting here, that might not ever happen. Unless you’ve come to change that.”Fuck.I had a feeling someone was going to ask that once I’d
Mark turned back to meet my darkening gaze. “It’s very relevant. I’m not going to force anyone to do something they don’t want to, but if there’s any hope of saving this House and the good people still left here, this is the time to do something. I don’t imagine, after having his son taken, that jack will continue with his mission for much longer unless he has any reason to hope this mess is almost over.”“If Jack doesn’t want to lead, then why has he been doing this?” I asked. Though I’d also be asking Jack, regardless of how Mark answered.“From what I know, he was just doing his best to protect his family,” he answered. “Not many of the Houses are allowing any of Fire and Fluorite members refuge in case there’s backlash from whoever becomes the new leader. Jack had no choice but to stay here, hiding or fighting back. Clearly, we all know which he chose.”Clearly.A decision I could respect, but what did that mean for Elena, and what did she think about everything Mark had just said