“You’ve broken promises before, Conri.” I placed my hands flat on the floorboards, my claws gouging scratch marks as frustration flooded me. I heard her sniffle and smelt salt in the air. She was crying, and that made my soul ache. “I’ve always been on my own. Only counted on me, and then you came into my life and changed that. You now have the power to make me feel everything but destroy me into nothing.” “I will never hurt you, Rieka. I will never make you feel like that. Ever.” “Easier said than done, Conri.” It was quiet for several minutes before I heard rustling under the bed and bones cracking. Seconds later, Rieka crawled out from under the bed, and I had to fight the urge to purr. She looked up at me, her beautiful Grey eyes full of worry and panic. “No purring?” I frowned at her.“I told you before, Rieka, sometimes I can’t help it.” The panic in her eyes darkened, and I exhaled, running a hand through my hair. “But I promise I won’t use it to push you into submission, o
“If she is the Divine Queen, then she wouldn’t need to be a guardian. Her power will come from the Luna Goddess.” Cody said. “Are you headed out? I can take the first shift.” Connor offered. “No. I’m headed back to her.” I turned and walked back down the hallway. “Don’t forget to check her eyes,” Cody called after me. When I opened the door to the bedroom, I saw Rieka standing by the window and staring out across the yard at the trees. I could feel that she wanted to go running down the bond. “You like running, don’t you?” I asked her quietly, and she started at the sound of my voice, spinning around to look at me. She relaxed slightly as I approached her, closing the door behind me. “There’s just something about the wind running through me that makes me feel so…” her voice trailed off in thought. “Alive.” I finished for her, and she nodded, looking back outside as a small smile appeared. I stood behind her and slowly wrapped my arms around her waist. She melted back into
I must have fallen asleep by the fire because hours later, a warm hand was slowly caressing my bare back, coaxing me to wake up. The purring from Conri’s chest reverberated through me, and I sighed in contentment at the sound. I moved my cheek to rub my eyes to feel something firm and solid under my face. I opened my eyes to find I was lying on Conri’s bare chest in the bed. He must have carried me over when I had fallen asleep by the fireplace. For the first time in a long time, I didn’t want to move away from him. I rubbed my cheek deeper into his chest and growled affectionately. I gingerly ran my claws down his chest, inhaling his natural scent deeper. His purring became louder as he gently pushed me onto my back and pressed himself between my legs. He supported his weight on his elbows as his forearms lay on either side of my head, caging me in. Conri lowered his head and dragged the tip of his tongue along the seat of my lips. I involuntarily shuddered at the sensual jolt the
“You look so beautiful when you cum.” Conri whispered to me, which caused my abdomen to tighten once more. He rolled off the bed and headed to the bathroom as I lay there on my back with limp limbs trying to come back down to earth. I must have fallen asleep because it was early evening when I opened my eyes again, and Conri was nowhere in the room—stretching my sleepy muscles and feeling utterly satisfied. I crawled out of bed and brushed my hair before going to the closet to grab some clothes. A sinking hollow feeling began to form in my gut, and something told me that it was because Conri wasn’t near me. Opening the bedroom door, I looked to the right to see Cody standing guard. I was mortified as I prayed to the Luna Goddess that he hadn’t been out here while I screamed Conri’s name. “Please tell me that you weren’t—” I started to say, but Cody’s chuckle cut me off. “No, my queen, but from the smell of you—” He sniffed loudly. “I can tell what you and the king have been do
CONRI’S POV I stared at my mate in disbelief, her words echoing through me. She never once showed interest in being Queen, and now suddenly, she was throwing it up in my face. I was the Alpha King, and she was challenging me. Her steel grey eyes were hard and dark, like a thunderstorm was brewing in them. I could feel her uncertainty down the bond as she tried her best not to cower under pressure, but a part of me admired her sense of bravery for standing up to me. I inhaled deeply to try to stop my temper from boiling over. No matter how much I admired her courage, I did not appreciate her defying me. “Go back to the bedroom, Rieka,” I told her as calmly as possible. “I will discuss this with you later.” I didn’t think her eyes could harden anymore, but they did as she narrowed them at me like she was trying to decide whether to push the matter or not. When I thought she would argue some more, she turned on her heel and stormed out of the study with Cody following her. Once she
I scrambled to the nearest tree, attempting to get off the ground to cover my tracks. My hands were cut and bleeding from falling down a rocky shore moments before, but I kept pushing forward. Each breath was like swallowing glass as I was pretty sure that the Hunters broke most of my ribs on my left side, but I kept going.I had been running for over ten years; I wouldn’t stop now. Gathering the last of my energy, I ran down the branch just as something crashed through the brush nearby, snarling viciously. It was just one Hunter.As I slowly turned around to see glowing red eyes low to the ground. The silhouette of the eyes slowly came out of the bush, revealing a wolf. The grayish wolf gave a slight lunge towards me with a loud snarl. The wolf stalked towards me as I growled once more. More rustling sounded all around, and more wolves emerged into the clearing. All with blood-red eyes and all with their teeth bared. The first wolf had been a distraction so that they could surround
“Please, Alpha King,” I tried to plead to the King, but he stared at me sternly. I was trembling so hard that my aching bones and muscles throbbed with agony. “You may turn your back to me if that will make you more comfortable,” the King growled quietly. More comfortable? Nothing about this situation made me comfortable, but I quickly nodded and turned my back to him before he could see the burning tears forming in my eyes. My lips trembled as I pressed them firmly to keep myself from sobbing. This position that I was forced to be in was embarrassing. I was better off with the Hunters. Slowly, each movement an effort, I slid my arms through my tattered t-shirt. I gritted my teeth to keep myself from crying out as my right side protested from me moving my arm above my shoulder to slide the shirt over my head. I let the ragged piece of fabric fall to the ground, my arms shaking as I felt the King’s stern gaze on my back. I could only imagine what he was seeing. Scars and claw marks fr
After two days of working, I decided that I could not do this. At least three times a day, I climbed up and down four flights of stairs, driving my feet crazy. They were swelling to the point where my shoes were fitting tightly, and the blisters had opened, causing the new skin to become infected. Every time I had to bend over for something, I felt the gash on my back reopen and the cold sensation of blood trickling out. Whenever I had to reach for something above my head, it felt like someone was stabbing me between each rib. At this point, I was sure swallowing shards of glass would have felt better. Despite my injuries, I did not falter with my tasks. Or at least I tried my best not to stutter. Annika had caught me limping on my feet, gasping for air, or grimacing in pain on more than one occasion. She kept harassing me about seeing the pack’s doctor, but I kept ignoring her and returning to my task. I ensured that the King had his meals on time and that his study was cleaned and