Total pages in book: 164
Estimated words: 152666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 763(@200wpm)___ 611(@250wpm)___ 509(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 152666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 763(@200wpm)___ 611(@250wpm)___ 509(@300wpm)
He stiffened. “No doubt, alpha. I wasn’t trying to let her off the hook. I was just trying to understand is all.”
I nodded, needing that reminder myself.
“Were you able to get anything out of her?” Tanix asked before I could turn.
“No. The situation got away from me.”
“I figured.” He looked down at his papers. “I heard about the table and the . . . noise. I could always try, if you had other matters to attend to? We still have some of the truth elixir Queen Finley sent with us.”
Yes was on the tip of my tongue. I wanted nothing more than to shrug her off on someone who was better able to handle her. As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t seem to keep a straight head where she was concerned. But the idea of them possibly getting rough with her, or gods forbid, hurting her, raked down my middle with razor tipped claws. I wouldn’t be able to endure someone else touching her, not for any reason.
“I’ll use the elixir. We’ll have ample time when we get moving. Did someone bring her clothes?”
“Hadriel grabbed something for her at about dawn. He was wearing his castle clothes.”
“I saw.” Yet another fucking hassle. That wolf was wily. He’d picked up too many traits from the dragons. The second you thought you had him in line, he went and threw everything into chaos. If he wasn’t so damned good at information gathering and making the right sort of friends, I’d send him home. As it was, he was a valuable member of the team, just one that constantly tested me.
“Do you want me to send him her way?”
“Don’t bother. I’ll grab them both.”
Nearly an hour later, as the pack was getting ready to tear down the rest of the tents and get moving, I stood outside of my tent with Aurelia’s attire. I’d washed myself off and changed clothes so that the scent of her body wouldn’t linger on my skin. Doing so had cleared my head enough to get my affairs in order and would hopefully keep me steady during this meeting.
She lay on the bed with her wrists bound to the frame, the rope just under the marks she’d caused from last night. Her eyes were closed and the sheets rested just above those luscious breasts. Her pert nipples stuck up through the material. My mouth started to salivate with an overpowering urge to rip off that sheet, take one of those taut nipples into my mouth, and tease a moan out of her.
Struggling for control, I approached the bed. I could just bark wake up at her, but the memory of how she’d been treated in that village still rubbed my heart raw. She might be on the road to her death, but the least I could do was make it a decent journey.
“Hey.” I stopped beside her, shaking her hip gently. “Wake—”
She flipped to her side and a foot came out of nowhere, fluttering the bedsheet and kicking me in the balls.
“Fucking—” I bent and backed up, cupping my dick. “Fuck!”
She adjusted and kicked out again, for my head this time, faster than she should’ve been without the help of her animal.
I dodged, the movement eliciting a fresh stab of agony in my groin.
“I was trying . . . to be . . . fucking nice,” I grit out, standing with effort.
“Tying me to a bed is very nice, yes.” Her sunburst eyes, beautiful with their flare of golden yellows, fiery oranges and soft browns, were brilliant and brimming with violence. “I kicked you in the balls as a thank you. Now we’re both fucking nice.”
“I tied you to the bed to keep you from running off.” I flung the clothes at her face. “You’re a captive, remember?”
She shook her head to get them off. “The epitome of nice, yes.” She quirked an eyebrow at me. “What a gentleman you are.”
I moved around to the frame and untied the rope. “There. Freed. Run and you’ll be punished. I hear you’re familiar with that.”
“Are you going to punish me with your fists or your dick?” She pulled her wrists apart and threw the rope away before yanking the sheet back over her breasts with a glare. Too late. The picture of her nudity was re-burned into my brain. My cock was painfully hard.
“You made it pretty clear last night and into this morning that my dick was not a punishment. Come on, get dressed. They need to pack this tent up and get everything stowed away. We’re due to head out.”
Her eyes flicked back and forth between mine. “You have zero guilt that you are tearing me away from my home, huh?”
My chest tightened but I didn’t show it. I had a lot of guilt, yes, but duty and justice didn’t give a shit about her feelings or mine.