Ascend (Wolf in Exile Part 3): Werewolf Shifter/Vampire Paranormal Romance (4 page)

I
n late fall
, night fell quickly in this part of the region. However, Kalena couldn’t bear to spend another minute shut up in a room, no matter how extravagant the interior and lush the bedding was.

After Tracy had left, Kalena persuaded the maid to walk her outside to witness the splendor of the tall, stone water feature by the pool.

As Kalena sat on the stone edge, she let her fingers glide across the pool’s surface. The water was still and calm and the sound of the cascades reminded her of the beautiful stream Thane had taken her to while they were in Area S2.

“Miss, it’s getting late,” the maid urged quietly, standing beside her. “I have orders to ensure that you’re resting.”

“Yes, I know, Anna,” Kalena said without looking up. “I just want to stay for a little while longer. I’m sitting. That qualifies as resting, doesn’t it?”

The wind whistled in the distance and pushed gently against her back. She wrapped the shawl Anna had given her tighter around her arms. The distant hum of voices flowed toward them, but, of course, Kalena couldn’t make out anything other than the fact that they all belonged to males. The water feature was behind the home, and the voices had come from the front of the property.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what are you, Anna?” Kalena asked, glancing up momentarily at the maid who’d been helping her with getting clothes and food since she’d arrived.

“I’m just like you.”

Anna was short and walked with calm, graceful movements. Her hair was tied loosely in a bun, and she wore a long, simple dress that clung to her body. The woman was also lean and fit. Her skin was youthful and bright. Kalena couldn’t quite tell her age, but whenever the maid was close, she noted the creases on her skin around the outer corner of her eyes.

“Human?” Kalena inquired.

“Yes…and then some.”

With that revelation, Kalena turned her full attention to Anna, forgetting about the water feature. “Does that mean you’ve taken the DNA?”

Anna nodded. “A long time ago when I was a child. My family has been loyal to the shifters for centuries. I used to work in Thane’s father’s home before his murder. After that, I came to the ShadowRock mansion where I knew Thane’s people would accept me.”

“Were you there when it happened?”

“The murders, you mean?”

“Yes,” Kalena said.

“No. None of the housekeepers lived on the property, and the murders happened after hours. But I knew Thane had nothing to do with it. I knew all along.” She spoke in a low voice.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

Anna shrugged. “We were ordered not to because it would ruin Thane’s plans.”

Kalena frowned and narrowed her gaze. “Ordered not to by whom?”

“Thane,” she said. “I don’t like talking about this. It won’t bring them back.”

“I’m sorry. That must have been hard for you.”

“It still is.” Anna lowered her gaze and said nothing else.

Footsteps echoed on the pavement behind them. When the winds blew again, the air brought a scent with it. Kalena recognized it in an instant.

Thane.

Anna must have sensed him too because she turned around to acknowledge him. “Alpha.”

It was late evening, and he was little more than a shadow. Kalena could make out parts of him under the natural beams from the stars.

He was dressed handsomely in ironed black slacks and a dress shirt. He had less hair on his head than she remembered as if it had been recently cut. His jawline was freshly shaved. He was the same, but it looked like he’d taken a great deal of time to look less like someone who had spent months in the wilderness.

Back in Area S2, he’d worn his prison clothes better than most men wore their everyday attire. As he stood before her now, she most definitely sensed an authoritative and dominant edge about him. She was having a hard time figuring out which presentation of Thane she liked better. Then she decided she favored both.

No matter how drastic the change to his appearance, there was no mistaking that the man standing before her was Thane Silex—the same man who she’d mysteriously developed an addiction to.

Kalena didn’t know how many seconds or minutes passed while they assessed each other under the moonlight, but when their gazes finally met, all she could do was smile.

“You’re beautiful,” he whispered and then held his palm up to receive her.

“Thank you.” She hesitated only a second before slipping her hand in his and closing the gap between them. “You took a long time,” she said.

“Anna.” Thane turned to address the maid. “Thanks for your generosity tonight. We’ll see you later tomorrow.”

Anna nodded, and just like that she disappeared, leaving Kalena with the man she’d been waiting to reunite with all day.

“I’m sorry for not coming to you earlier. My Pack hasn’t seen me in months and I—”

“No need to explain.” Kalena interrupted and lifted her hand up to his face to touch his chin with her palm. With his two-day-old stubble gone, his skin was smoother. Even under the moonlight, all of his features were prevalent. “Tracy told me everything.”

He lifted a brow. “Everything?”

She smiled. “Just enough for me to understand why you’ve been so busy.”

“How was the helicopter ride?”

“Bumpy.”

“So was mine. Sounds like those vampires could use a refresher course in piloting.”

Kalena narrowed her gaze. “You know, I thought those guys looked a bit…inhuman. I knew they were different from me, but they smelled different than you.”

“Smelled?” His eyes searched her face. “The changes in your body are coming along quite nicely.”

“Yeah, I think so.” She blushed. “But I don’t want you to think I don’t need any more.”

“Any more of what?” Thane spoke slowly, a grin spreading across his lips.

She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth as her mind raced to their sexual encounter in the hut. “This DNA that makes me feel better, of course.”

He chuckled softly. “I hope that more than my DNA makes you feel better.”

The tension grew as they paused to stare deep into each other’s souls. He closed the gap between them even more, engulfing her with his warmth.

“Thane…”

She felt the growing heat between them and parted from him slightly to view the sigils glowing near his neckline. She remembered how they had appeared on his skin when they’d been alone together in the hut. That was a moment she wanted to experience again, if only for the few more times Tracy had estimated until she was cured.

“Kalena, every time I’m near you you give me purpose,” he whispered against her hair.

“I’m just an ordinary woman,” she replied. “I may have a few clues to help your case, but what can I offer you of real value that you don’t already have?”

“You are extraordinary and more valuable to me than you know. After all of this mess with the company is over, if you decide to leave, I’ll have a hard time keeping my mind off of you. If you leave after you’re completely cured, you’ll walk away with your newly enhanced life, but the more distance you put between us, the more my imprint will fade.”

“I haven’t decided that I’ll leave just yet. I want more time with you. I feel that there is something holding me here, something other than our mission. I meant what I said in the hut—I owe my life to you.”

“That doesn’t mean that I have a right to decide what and who you choose for the rest of your life. What I transferred to you can become an addiction to a human who’s never had it in their system before. It’s possible this is the case for you.”

“Are you trying to tell me that I only want your life-altering DNA?”

“It’s possible,” he said then lowered his gaze from hers.

Kalena gently lifted his chin with a fingertip. “What do you want?”

“
You.
My wolf and I want you,” he declared.

K
alena walked
throughout Thane’s spacious master suite, taking in his tastes in color and style by the contents of the room.

The suite mirrored the one she’d been provided during her stay. The colors were calm and slightly muted. Even the smell was fresh and airy with a muted sandalwood aroma. The walls were painted a dreamy gray-blue. Most of the upholstery was either a creamy yellow or had the same blue tone as the walls. The huge California-King sleigh bed was the central focus, with plush blankets and an abundance of downy pillows. There was a seating area with one love seat and a deep-brown leather barrel chair near the end of the room farthest from the window. Even the window seat looked comfortable and relaxing. There wasn’t much clutter in the room, but Thane had been absent for months. The whole setup was, in every way, reminiscent of a man’s space.

The ShadowRock mansion itself was unlike any apartment or home she’d ever lived in. How he could have given this up to be confined to that place known as Area S2 was beyond her. She would have been fighting day in and day out to get away, to get back to this, but then again, she didn’t have a niece whose life was on the line.

“How do you imprint on someone?” Kalena asked, stopping in front of a tall mirror located on the outside of a walk-in closet door. She loved the outfit she wore. The belted, short, cream-colored sundress fit her perfectly, but that didn’t surprise her. Anna had taken her measurements within an hour of arriving, and less than an hour after that had come back with a totebag full of new clothes. Whoever had gone out of their way to purchase them for her had great taste. The garments weren’t something she’d have chosen for herself on her own because of the high price; she’d seen the price tags before Anna had clipped them off and hung the clothes in the closet.

Thane walked up behind her, placing his hands on her cinched waist. She couldn’t get enough of his touch, and she placed her palm on top of his. Their fingers locked together. They met each other’s gaze in the mirror before he said, “It’s like asking me why I love someone. Imprinting on someone isn’t a forced thing. It happens naturally when you find the right person. You connect on such a deep level that the wolf inside begins to imprint on that person.”

“What if your wolf only imprinted because of our circumstances at the time?”

“I don’t go around imprinting on women. I’m not that type of man, or wolf. I know what I want. The imprint only solidifies my gut feeling that you are, in every way, shape, and form, the perfect mate for me. I’ve never taken one. In all my years, every time a woman was presented to me or came to me, something just didn’t feel right. I understand now what that something was.”

“But I’m not a shifter…”

“No, Kalena…you are not,” he said, his gaze roaming over her.

Kalena thought back to what Tracy had said about how virgin wolf shifter women had been thrown at him when he became Alpha. “You’ve been an Alpha to your Pack a very long time. Tracy told me most Alphas are mated within a year.”

“Ah, yes.” He sighed. “Tracy did tell you, didn’t she?”

“Even about the vampires…” When Thane’s expression turned thoughtful, she added, “I don’t want her to get in trouble. You won’t hurt my feelings or anything, I just want to understand what I’m getting myself into, and what your intentions were before we met.”

“Tracy did what I asked her to do. I sent her to you because I knew you trusted her as a friend even before I was in the picture. I influenced nothing she said because I wanted you to know the truth about us.”

Kalena smiled. “I appreciate that. It was great to see a familiar face. She and Anna have been nothing but nice to me.”

Thane nodded. “Good to hear.”

“With someone of your status and position, wouldn’t you want a mate who is more like you? Didn’t you want someone like that before me?”

“I wanted someone I truly cared about. That’s why I waited so long. I didn’t want to just take any random woman as a mate. My wait paid off…”

“But, I’m hum—”

“There are dozens of accounts of my kind taking humans and even vampires as mates. The more you take of my DNA, the more your life span will lengthen to align with mine. Stop making excuses.” He chuckled and then pressed his lips to her temple. “I won’t rush you into anything you don’t want, but if you’ve decided already, I’ll respect that decision. I just need you to tell me that you don’t want me in your life after you’re fully cured.”

She couldn’t do that and she knew it. She wanted Thane in her life, but his explanation of imprinting and mates led to a huge commitment.

“You know I want you,” she said as her body flared with her own heat and the warmth of Thane’s chest pressed against her back.

“And I need you because you complete me,” he replied. “You asked if the imprinting happened because we were together, virtually alone in Area S2. I can assure you that is not the case.” He lifted a hand and tenderly caressed the front of her neck with his palm.

She gasped and tipped her chin upward, allowing the flames of passion to roll through her body. “How can you be so sure?”

“Do you trust me?” he asked, his lips gliding softly against the back of her neck.

“Yes.”

Thane’s hand left her neck and worked on loosening the buttons holding her dress together at the back. She saw his wolf in the depths of his eyes as he held her gaze while meticulously undoing the small closures. The heat of his stare matched the look he’d given her when he had left her in the hut with David.

He briefly separated from her to unbutton his shirt. She yearned to turn around and close the gap between them again, but she was lost in his stare on her reflection in the mirror. Never had a man looked at her so lasciviously, awakening every carnal nerve in her body. Once he was down to his boxer briefs, he closed the gap again.

Kalena’s breath hitched when his lips landed on her bare shoulder. They were heated against her skin. He made an outward trail and brushed the strap of her dress aside with his nose. It fell into the bend of her elbow. He repeated the same movement on the other side until her breasts were bared to him.

He planted deep, caressing kisses along the back of her neck and spine, and before long, her arms grew lax as she let her weight fall back against him.

The dress fell to the floor in a heap around her ankles.

He glided his fingertips up both sides of her hips until his palms came to rest just under her breasts. “Kalena, you’re gorgeous.”

She turned to witness the rising and emergence of the markings all over his body, covering more than half of his skin and delving deep into every muscle and crevice. He was perfect.

Kalena reached out and smoothed her palm up his chest, over his shoulder, and down one arm, admiring every symbol, every hair, and every hard plane. He was as hot as a fever. Something else was pulsing hot with lust, as well. He was so erect and aroused that his cock pressed against the front of his briefs.

Some invisible force was pushing her to him, urging her to accept that Thane was what she needed. Whether it was his shifter DNA or simply her instincts persuading her, she didn’t care one way or the other. Every since she’d met Thane Silex, her will to go on—even under her dire circumstances—had prevailed.

“When you cause my markings to rise, we connect on a deeper level, allowing the imprint to take root,” he said. “The imprint is semi-permanent. Meaning, if you choose to leave me and not become my mate, it will eventually go away.”

“I’ll be honest and say that I worry more about whether I can be everything that you expect in a mate,” she replied.

He smiled. “You are everything and more, but I’ll be honest too and say that I don’t demand much. Just your time and your smile. Your conversation. Your
body
.”

Thane bent his head gently, but before he could kiss her, she captured his chin.

“My body, huh? I heard about your sex drive, so I expected as much.” Her fingers trailed downward from his chin, along the throbbing veins on his neck, and then down the sculpted muscles on his chest.

He grinned. “Exaggerations. I’ve spent a lot of decades practicing abstinence, plus, we can’t forget my prolonged sentence in Area S2 without indulging at all.”

“So, not once did you relieve yourself?” she asked, knowingly.

“Of course, I did, Kalena. I’m still a man.”

She pressed her hips closer to his, feeling the heat of his arousal. “You need relief now, don’t you?”

He licked his lips. “Even if I wanted to lie to you, I wouldn’t be able to deny that I need relief. Every time I’m around you, I’m burning hot. I had a much better time enjoying relief with you than alone. I want more.”

“Then why do you talk so much?” she teased. “Shut up and kiss me.”

Thane kissed her sensuously, cupping the back of her head and pressing his mouth to hers. They became ravenous and insatiable, increasing the tempo and delving deeper into the kiss.

Without warning, he dropped lower, showering her cleavage and breasts with kisses. He captured her nipples between his lips and sucked each one until they were tight and aching. He propped himself on his knees in front of her and traced the outline of her panties with his tongue. A soft growl erupted from his mouth and vibrated against her sensitive core.

Her knees grew weak and she swayed, but he grabbed her knees and proceeded to slide her panties down with his sharp teeth.

When his mouth touched her again, she began to unravel once more. Considerable attention was given to everything except for the bundle of nerves. He left hot trails across her thighs and stroked his tongue against her folds, intentionally leaving her clit unserviced.

Her hand had nowhere to land but his head, and she wound her fingers through his short, silky hair.

Almost too easily, he pushed two fingers inside and began to stroke her.

“You’re so wet and ready for me. Just the sight of your sweet pussy can turn my dick to stone,” he whispered against her skin.

He rolled his tongue languorously across her clit, sending a jolt of pleasure upward through her where it spread out through her limbs.

She pressed the pads of her fingers to the back of his head, trying not to hurt him. “Thane…I need it. Now,” she begged.

“What do you need?”

“You.”

“You’ve got my fingers and my tongue…” He demonstrated by stroking into her and sucking her sensitive flesh simultaneously. “What else do you need?”

“I need more of you. Inside,” she replied.

“Need more of what and where?” he teased, lifted his gaze to meet hers.

“I want your cock. Now.”

Thane scooped her up and walked swiftly toward the bed where he tossed her onto the covers. He discarded his boxer briefs, revealing a thick and long erection. His dick was so hard, she could see the veins pulsing with life, causing the cockhead to throb with excitement. He lay down with his back on the bed. His arousal rose to the ceiling and he directed her to approach him, his fingers curled in a come-hither motion.

“Take what you need,” he told her.

Kalena crawled up the California king-sized bed and straddled his hips. When she aligned them, an expression of desire and longing washed over his face.

“Do you like that?” She rocked her warm slit against his shaft, only this time, she made sure her clit was getting undivided attention.

He nodded and ground his teeth against his bottom lip. His symbols blazed hotly now, and she could almost feel the burn against her skin as his essence meshed with hers. He slid his hands up her belly and grabbed both breasts, kneading them with more aggression this time.

“Oh, my God, Thane, you feel so good.” She rocked her hips consistently over him.

“Yes,” he urged. “Keep moving, just like that.”

Before long, she had gotten so slick for him that she lured his cock into her entrance. She lifted her hips mere inches to position herself directly above him and sat.

They moaned in unison as she impaled herself on him, taking all of him inside. Placing her palms down on his chest, she moved her hips in slow movements up and down. She reveled in the surreal feeling of being filled completely. Each time she came down on him, his balls tightened against her ass. He felt like warm steel within her heated core, filling her completely.

When waves and waves of pleasure hit her, taking her into a sweet climax, Thane took control. He grabbed her hips and set a more determined tempo. He thrust up into her feverishly, prolonging the orgasm rolling through her. She cried out his name on a hoarse scream. Her inner walls clenched and milked him as she came. The evidence of her excitement coated him, and he glided up into her with ease. She could tell he was near completion as his breathing became labored and short, and his muscles tightened. She kept up the rhythm, even when he faltered, leading him into an orgasm that had his body shuddering against her. His seed coated her insides, sending her into the same euphoric state she’d experienced when they’d first had sex. But she was addicted to more than just how Thane made her feel. She was addicted to Thane, period.

After she’d milked him thoroughly, Kalena joined Thane on the bed and pressed her body into his side. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her hair while she listened to his heartbeat.

“That was perfect, Kalena. You’re perfect for me.”

And only then did Kalena let her fatigue take over. She closed her eyes, held tightly to the man she could not let go, and succumbed to her dreams.