An Everlasting Bite (5 page)

His expression told her something was terribly wrong. With the bond they shared, it was a dead giveaway.

“You okay?” she asked, concern made her voice squeak.

He nodded dully. “I’m all right, love.” He cupped her cheek. “You have questions and I will answer them, but first, let’s run you a bath. It’s been a bit of a rough day and it will be an even longer night with that bunch of wankers.”

The steaming hot water pounded against Rynn’s skin as the jets moved it around in the tub. She sighed, ran her hands through the water. The bathroom here was wide open.

Wood layered the walls halfway, from there it was all glass until it met the wooden roof.

Briggs had relaxation down pat. The room was filled with scented candles and rose petals floated along the water’s surface. Perfect and fluffy clouds peeked through the windows as each one drifted by.

She could have stayed there for hours. Briggs’ objective of the bath worked, she felt calm and settled. Knowing the gathering would happen in less than a few hours, she reluctantly stepped out of the tub and drained the water.

Briggs had left her an organic cotton bathrobe. She wrapped it around her body, reveling in its softness, which she could have stayed in for a lifetime. After she brushed out her wet hair, she opened the bathroom door.

Valor stood, his arms crossed as he leaned against the wall. She jumped, startled.

“Sorry, you scared me.”

He pushed away from the wall and waved his hand to the right. “I just wanted to show you to your room. I apologize if I frightened you.”

“No, no it’s okay,” she waved away his concern and forced her heart to settle. Valor had become a close friend these past weeks. Maybe even a father figure, which was odd since he looked around thirty, but didn’t act it. He seemed much older, especially in his eyes. Nothing about him scared her. He could be tough and powerful, but gentle.

Three doors down, he stopped and turned toward her. She reached for the door handle, but Valor stopped her with a touch on her arm. She glanced at him. “Are you doing all right from the encounter today? Not too upset?”

She shrugged a little, not really sure how she felt about it all. “I’m okay. Confused, but okay.”

“Not to worry, sweetling,” Valor said with a soft smile in a low tender tone. “Briggs will explain the Alphas to you. I just wanted to make sure that the woman, Nera, didn’t worry you.”

Rynn huffed. Oh yeah, Nera worried her all right. “She’s entitled to her opinions I suppose, but if she gives me a look like that again, I’ll smack it off her face.”

Valor’s brows rose, amusement lit his dark eyes. “There might be a little wolf in you after all. You’re not so timid now, are you?”

She laughed at the insinuation. “It’s just she looked at me as if it was my fault. Like this was a choice or something.”

Valor gave shoulder a pat of reassurance. “It is wrong. Her ways of thinking are old and it was a disgusting display. Just keep your head up and stay strong. Understood?”

Rynn nodded.

“Go on then.” He gave her shoulder a squeeze, nodded her toward the door. “You’ll be okay.”

She’d be okay with what? Before she had the chance to ask what he meant, he headed off back down the hall. By the time he vanished from sight, she still hadn’t a clue.

Giving up on her curiosity, gaze on the floor, she opened the bedroom door, then closed it behind her. She turned around to find Briggs beside the bed completely naked.

Rynn wasn’t quite sure what shocked her more. Seeing Briggs’ incredible muscular body, all sleek and defined or the implication of what he was suggesting. Her breath hitched, as she looked him over. He was in every way delicious. Never had she been so attracted to anyone in her life. Just the sight of him like this had her stomach doing somersaults.

But she wasn’t ready for this. Her heart raced and her entire body tensed from the fear of it. It’d only been weeks ago that she had been violated. She couldn’t do it. She didn’t want to have sex again. Her lungs began to close in and the room swayed a little.

Briggs smiled softly when her gaze connected with his. “It’s time.”

“I can’t do this,” she gasped, scared, and deathly worried. Would the memory of that night come back to her? She couldn’t endure it again. She had done a good job at blocking it from her mind and she wanted to keep it that way.

Briggs approached her. She let out a little shriek and slammed herself against the door. He froze, but the softness in him never changed. “Now, Rynn,” he said quietly.

“Trust me when I tell you I do not want to push this. I could spend a lifetime waiting until you are ready, but with Tiago’s interest in you, this is a necessity.”

“Why?” Her voice shook.

He started toward her again, little steps that barely made a sound. “I had hoped that none of the unmated Alphas would show an interest in you.” He let out a frustrated breath. “I am not surprised by the turn of the events, but if we do not mate, I could lose you to him.”

She tightened against the door, her back soon to become a permanent fixture.

“Why?”

He stopped just a few short feet away from her. “First, I look weak because I have not claimed you. Second, the others will think you are not agreeable to being with me.”

Rynn remained glued to the door, her legs shook and the quiver in her stomach had reached the edge of nausea. Maybe if she kept talking, she could find a way out of this.

“But what does that have to do with Tiago?”

Briggs took another step toward her, but at her deep intake of breath he stopped, and let out a deep breath himself. “Alpha mate blood runs in you. That kind of blood does not run in every female wolf. Yes, we are lucky that our souls have found each other, but not all Alphas are so lucky. And it has been known that soul bonds have been forced by magic.”

“How?”

“The moon-bonding ceremony. You felt how it deepened our connection that night, darlin’.”

She nodded, gulped deeply. She had felt it. She hadn’t felt his emotions before then, couldn’t sense him like she could now.

Only love and worry spiraled through her now. He was worried? It didn’t relax her, either. If anything it made it worse. As if he read her mind, his lips firmed, then she felt nothing—no emotions from him—only patience.

He took another slow step toward her then stopped again. “The bond between chosen mates rather than destined is just not as deep. Emotions are still there, but weaker. Do you understand?”

She nodded again. Her breath panted—hardly catching.

He stepped closer, dissolved the distance between them, the warmth of his body against her skin. He reached out slowly and rubbed his fingers across her cheek. “I cannot lose you.” He smiled softly. “Do you trust me?”

She nodded, still glued to the door behind her. Trust with him was strong and steady.

She never thought he’d do anything to mistreat her. It wasn’t him she worried about, but the reminder of the what happened that night. Her first experience with sex was horrible and nothing felt good. The memory of that pain was like a constant knife in her heart. No, she never wanted to feel that again.

His fingers trailed off her face, down her neck and along her arm to grab her hand.

“Come then.” He pulled gently, but she didn’t budge. Fear held her incapacitated. His soft look was meant to console her, but it didn’t.

“We have time. We do not need to rush anything. If at any time it becomes too much and you can’t handle it, I will stop.”

Rynn felt a tumultuous amount of mixed feelings. The attraction to Briggs was unimaginable and seeing him naked stirred arousal within her. She couldn’t deny the scent of him and the look of his glorious body was something she wasn’t sure she could ignore. But the fear within her was stronger.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to be touched by him—she did. At least, part of her did. It was more the fear of what his touch would bring.

Would she know the difference between Briggs and the monster that had violated her? Whose face would she see above her? She wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer.

Briggs pulled a bit stronger this time and her legs decided to work. She willingly followed behind him as he led her to the bed. Even though, a large part of her said to run, her trust in him was the only thing allowing this happen tonight.

As they reached the bed, she caught sight of a bowl on the night table filled with a yellowish silky liquid that smelled of honey and almonds. Her gaze moved away from the liquid as he reached for the belt of her bathrobe, slowly opened it and let it fall open. The world spun. Hot waves of panic made sickness roll through her stomach.

His deep yellow eyes never left hers as he reached out to brush the robe from her shoulders, then lowered her onto the bed. This was good. If he looked at her body, it would’ve been an immediate reminder that she was naked. She couldn’t think of that right now, let alone anything else.

Briggs positioned Rynn on her stomach and no matter how much fear flamed through her, she had enough sense left to wonder what he planned to do with her face down.

Yet fear made it impossible to ask, so she got a grip on her control and just trusted him. He’d never hurt her. It was that thought alone that she kept her from fleeing. She laid her head to the side, watched his every move. Her breath felt forced, the lump in her throat was a second away from coming out as vomit.

Briggs knelt beside the bed, then reached over to the night table, dipped his hand into the bowl and cupped out some of the liquid. He rubbed his hands together, then placed them on her shoulders, rubbed the warmed liquid over her skin. The scent of honey and almonds instantly multiplied.

It was then she knew his intention.

A smidgen of the fear decreased as his hands began to massage the length of her back. It didn’t take long before her body succumbed and all her brain could register was his tender hands along her skin. They seemed to know exactly what to do and felt marvelous across her flesh. He manipulated all knots from every single muscle. Working in deep circles, he applied steady pressure and vanquished the fear in her body with relaxation.

By the time he reached her feet, the fear within her had settled and had brought her to a place of bliss. Her eyes closed with tranquility as he never missed a single spot on her body. The tension that lived deep within her faded away to something else entirely and she liked it.

He continued to run his hands along the length of her body until it was loose and willing, then turned her onto her back. As she moved, she opened her sleepy eyes to see that the relaxation she was experiencing, Briggs was not. His eyes smoldered as his erection stood strong.

For a moment, she was captured by it. She’d seen her fair share of male parts—she never claimed to be a saint—but never one of this caliber. The perfect length to width and the hairlessness of his body didn’t stop at his chest. She’d never seen anything look so good.

When she looked back up, Briggs was reaching back into the bowl to grab more oil.

He dribbled it along her stomach and she tensed all over again. The other way she wasn’t so exposed. She didn’t have to look at him and the areas she was afraid to be touched were right in his line of vision.

“Shhh,” Briggs hummed softly. He ran the liquid along her stomach and made his way down her legs. He hadn’t strayed from his course of mending her body and kept his distance away from areas that might ruin the moment. He reminded her of how nice a touch felt and how much sensitivity came from someone’s hands on her body.

It was almost as if this was the first time she’d been touched. What was once lost was beginning to return. Each knead of his fingers, the tingle of his stroke seemed to caress the pit of her stomach.

His hands glided slow and deep from her feet, up to her legs and hips, then back down again, working the tension that stiffened her limbs.

Wasn’t much of a surprise that eventually her body gave in. Eased and relaxed again to the wonderful sensation of his loving touch against her skin. When she began to sigh in surrender, Briggs hands wavered from their safe course to run along her inner areas.

Close, but not enough to scare her. He rimmed the outside of her warmth so her body grew to accept his touch there and want it.

More than anything, she felt surprised. She hadn’t expected to feel aroused or needy.

She even felt the need to beg him to satisfy her. The more his hands skimmed the side of her warmth, the more she wanted him to touch, tease it until she screamed out for him. In response, she slowly opened her legs, invited his touch closer.

He still didn’t rush. Never dove toward it. With each caress along her legs, he moved closer to the throbbing need.

After a few more long strokes, he reached it and she jumped at the contact. Just as quick as he touched it, he continued with the massage—moved up her body to stimulate her receptiveness to him.

His touch grazed over her breasts, nipples tight with anticipation. When his palms tickled the tight buds, her breath drew in deep as they seemed to be a direct line to her center. The tingle jolted a need for more.

“Mmm…I’ve craved to touch you like this.” He didn’t focus on any one part of her body, but continued with long stroking movements to settle her soul. The arousal within her started to surpass manageable levels. Without a thought in her mind, she began to move beneath his hand, especially when it lingered near her warmth.

He took the hint she provided because he cupped her warmth in his hand. He rubbed the oil along the sensitivity of her heated flesh, teased it until her moans deepened and had nothing to do with relaxation.