The Pit of HellBrinleyI followed Langdon down to the basement....or the pit of hell, as I was coming to think of it.I hadn't known him very well when we began but had a sneaking suspicion he wasn't going to be easy on me, not at all.I had been right.Every day for the past seven days was proof.Langdon would coach me.I would attempt to bring him to his knees.And he would chuckle while knocking me on my ass, every time.Opening the door, Langdon motioned for me to go through first, a sly smirk on his face. I stepped inside and looked at the familiar surroundings. The basement was much larger than I'd first realized. It came complete with weights, exercise equipment, and a sparring ring.Langdon usually fought with his shirt on. Today was an exception. Pulling the garment over his head, he left his broad and toned chest visible to me.I might have only wanted Coal, but I wasn't blind or dead. I could appreciate Langdon's physique. As if I didn't already have enough to contend wit
I rolled my eyes again, almost losing them in my skull. "No, you horny hound dog, just letting me know you were 'intimate' with one of them would have sufficed.""And how should I have started that conversation?" he snorted. "Good morning, Brinley, I fucked someone yesterday. How was your night?"He had a point."I...I don't know," I growled and shook my head.His eyes softened. "You are adorable; truly, I love your innocence."I glowed a tiny bit under his praise, but I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of knowing it. Not now....maybe later.I stood to my feet, and huffed playfully, "Whatever. Now get off your ass and let's continue."Langdon did as ordered and began again, this time giving me instruction on roundhouse kicks, explaining the finer points of technique and also how to defend against it."Let's start with you, watching me do it, and learning the defensive side, and then we'll have you practice the strike."I nodded and positioned my body defensively.But, unfort
Shifting into my wolf, I trotted home. When I reached my stash of clothing, I changed back to my skin, got dressed and continued to Lena's.It was a silly process of changing multiple times in the day since I was just going to get naked again when I returned the borrowed items from Lena, but I didn't want to alert Lena of Darcie's kindness, by providing clothing.When I reached the back porch of Lena's small home, I started to pull my shirt over my head when she stopped me, "Wait."I froze, wondering what she wanted. I kept my hair in my face, trying to cover the massive bruise on my cheek, but she never even looked up at me when she handed me a small list. "Go to the packhouse. Gather these items and return them to me."Oh no. The very last place I wanted to be was the packhouse.But there was no defying her orders. I kept my head down as I walked toward my dreaded destination. I had only made it halfway there when a very large wolf stopped directly in front of me, blocking my path.
Don't Fucking Tell Me to Calm DownBrinleyLangdon quickly extracted his body away from mine and got to his feet, posture tense and defensive, feet apart, hands out and shoulders forward.Coal took a few more steps into the room and then stopped, his eyes darting between Langdon and back down to me on the floor.It seemed as if he was deciding which one of us to address first, and by address, I wasn't sure if that meant to speak or attack. The more likely attack, given his clenched fists and veins bulging in his neck, pulling against skin that looked too tight for his massive frame. A hard shudder went through him, his Wolf demanding to be free.Coal's repositioning allowed enough room for Darcie to slip around him. She stood at Langdon's side, ready to defend her son if Coal attacked.Coal eyed her carefully, assessing if she was a threat to him, and then refocused on me. I got up slowly to my feet, trying not to rattle Coal's Wolf anymore than he already was.Darcie spoke to me but
Too Much DamageCoalI paced a living room I'd never been in before. After I'd seen Brinley's bruised cheek yesterday, I was shocked she thought she could tell me to leave it alone and I would agree. There was no way I was just going to let that go.I had one of the answers the instant I sniffed her. She'd tried to erase his scent, but I was so hyper-aware of her unique smell, that the slightest change or addition was noticeable. And I had caught it. Langdon.What I didn't understand was why.I didn't know that wolf, but from my brief interactions with him, I didn't think he would stoop so low as to cause her physical harm. He seemed more honorable than that. So, I masked my face, not letting her see that I knew. I didn't want her to give me a partial answer. I wanted the complete truth, which meant I would be following her the next morning.I waited in the shadows when she left, and kept a safe distance behind, out of eyesight, just following her scent. When I reached the large home,
Read Between the LinesBrinleyI turned back around to find Coal seated on the couch with his head in his hands. I didn't know what to say. Too much had happened, too much for me to process.Before I could even try to come up with something, Darcie strode through the door with Langdon right behind her, each carrying a tray of food.Coal's head snapped up.Shock coursed through me.His eyes were glistening....were those tears?Darcie's perceptive and sharp eyes glanced at me and then landed on Coal. He blinked a few times and stood to his feet. He maintained eye contact with her, never looking at me, his voice stiff and formal. "Thank you for the offer of lunch, but I have interrupted your day enough. It's time for me to leave."My heart clenched. Every fiber in my body rejected the thought of Coal leaving me. But I still had no idea what to say to him. The hurt was still so fresh and raw.Darcie tilted her head to the side as she stared up at him. Her voice rang with motherly authori
They'd behaved just like she instructed. They clearly didn't like due to facts or just out of instinct, frequently, there is more going on than what you realize."I whispered, "Okay."She wiped the tears from my cheeks and spoke warmly, "Now, dry your tears, little pup. Are you hungry?"I nodded.She'd given me much to think about. We walked back to the living room to find Langdon and Coal finished with their food. They were both sitting stiffly, staring off in stony silence.They'd behaved just like she instructed. They clearly didn't like it, but they had done it. If the situation wasn't so tense, I would have laughed at their expressions. Maybe Darcie did know a thing or two about dealing with dominant males.Coal's head snapped in my direction, his body tense.I gave him a shy smile.He inhaled sharply, eyes opening wide, no doubt startled by my drastic change in mood. I made my way to the trays of food, selected a sandwich and a drink, and then sat down on the couch next to him.
All InCoalThe look of desperation etched in Brinley's eyes, had me on edge.She'd been calm, sitting next to me, talking.And then she wasn't calm anymore...She jumped to her feet, hissing, "No!" Her Wolf near the surface, her outlined blurred, she paced like a wild animal caught in a cage.I tried to speaking soothingly. "I'll be okay...I promise you."She spun to face me, "No! That's not what I'm talking about!"I blinked, confused by her words. I assumed she was worried about my sparring with three Onyx Moon warriors. What else was there? I replayed our conversation in my mind, trying to find the cause of her distress. What had I missed?She didn't wait for me to figure it out. She ranted on, "It doesn't matter if you can beat three, or even more, wolves in a fight because no matter what, the odds are not in your favor! Not when the fight is against your father. I can't let you do this. I won't! You're not going to die because of me!"The irony.It was the same thing I'd said ab