Ever After (31 page)

“Heel?” he said, taking a step toward her. “Did you really just tell me to heel?”

When had he gotten so tall? She craned her neck to look up at him. Clearly she’d crossed a line.

“You’ll pay for that later,” he grated through his teeth.

A shudder crept down her spine. He was alpha all right. Alpha male. But she didn’t feel afraid of him. No. She was turned on. Manliness. Power. Muscle. It made her want to throw a challenge then run, hoping he caught her, pinned her, then had his way with her.

“Fuck you’re hot,” she whispered.

He blinked. Then that familiar hunger grew in his eyes. “You make me crazy!” He grabbed her hair and crushed his mouth to hers, completely oblivious to their audience. He kissed her hard until she ran out of breath and had to push on his chest to get him to stop.

When he pulled away, he gazed down at her fiercely, looking like he might throw her over his shoulder and carry her off to his man cave.

Instead, he stepped back and pointed toward the cabin. “Go. Before I lose control and fuck you right here.”

Shakily, she walked to the cabin where Cristian had directed them. Behind her, Dalton threw his clothes on then followed her. When they entered the cabin, three werewolf men met them with wary glares. Dalton stepped in front of her, keeping his body between them.

Cristian cleared his throat then pointed to two seats around the wooden table that took up most of the room. After Dalton and Eden sat down, the three wolves occupied seats on the other side of the table.

“You wanted to talk,” Cristian said plainly.

“Um,” she started.
Show no fear.
“I’m here representing the shifter colony in Wales.”

“And your partner is?” The alpha gave Dalton an assessing look.

Dalton stared right back. This was going to be interesting. “Dalton,” he answered.

“He’s my partner,” she rushed to add. “He’s not a threat. I promise.”
I promise?
She could’ve kicked herself. Why didn’t she just cross her heart and hope to die while she was at it? She so sucked at this. “I’m sure you’ve heard about the war between the sorcerers and the Underworld.”

“Of course,” one of the other men answered. He had bright blue eyes and dark hair, and his expression didn’t read as friendly as the alpha’s. This one looked brutal and mean.

“Well, the sorcerers have been kidnapping members of our colony and forcing them to fight in their war. Shifters have always been peaceful, and we don’t want anything to do with their war. But they aren’t giving us a choice. We’ve started a rebellion to protect our kind and rescue the ones who’ve been taken, but there’s just not enough of us.”

“What’s that got to do with us?” the mean one asked.

She looked to Cristian. His brows shot up as if mimicking the question.

Deep breath. “You can’t be naïve enough to think this war won’t affect you eventually.” She winced. Had she gone too far?

Cristian snorted but said nothing, so she went on.

“Werewolves have already been coerced to the dark side.” She winced again.
Dark side? What is this, Star Wars
? “Um. I mean, the sorcery counsel has already bribed werewolves to hunt down their targets all across the world. America, too. Have you lost any to them”

They didn’t answer, but Cristian exchanged a glance with his men. She’d take that as a yes.

“They’re pulling supernaturals of all kinds into their fight. Some of the witches have sided with them. The Seelie fae are rumored to join them next. You won’t be able to hide in your woods for long. The sorcerers are demanding allegiance or taking prisoners.”

Cristian didn’t look the least bit impressed.

“The time is coming when you’ll have to choose a side.” She leaned forward, letting her passion take over. “Fight with us. The sorcerers may say they fight for light and truth and all that bullshit, but they don’t. They’re corrupt and selfish and hypocrites. They— ”

“We know this,” Cristian said. “The sorcerers are no friends of ours.”

“So you’ll help us?” Hope filled her voice, and she sat up straighter in her seat.

He chuckled. “That’s not what I said. This is a serious matter. Choosing to fight against an army more than twice our side in a foreign country with a ragtag group of shifters? You can see why I’m not jumping with enthusiasm.”

Sadness leaked in, though he had a point. “Yes, I know how it must look. But we’ve already taken down their prison.”

His brow furrowed, and he sat up in his seat. The two men beside him looked at each other. “You broke into
Marwolaeth Du
?”

Feeling cocky, she smirked. “We didn’t
break in
to
Marwolaeth Du
.” She leaned forward and looked Cristian in the eye. “We burned it down.”

Cristian’s gaze flicked from her to Dalton then back again. He leaned back and smiled. “Now you’ve got my attention.”

Dalton took over, and they launched into a discussion about strategy, including guerilla warfare and a few other terms she knew nothing about. She made a mental note to grill Dalton about it all later, shameful she hadn’t done enough research beforehand.

It seemed as though they’d made a good case for the pack to aid them, but Cristian was hard to read. At least it was clear he didn’t think they were a threat anymore. She started to relax. They even joked about Dalton’s attempt to appear like a werewolf. When she told Cristian about his first try shifting to the wolf, Dalton threw her a nasty look, but they all laughed.

“So what are you doing living in a shifter colony?” Cristian asked her.

Her face flushed as they looked her over. “I…I’m not sure. A woman found me on the shore just outside our colony in Wales. I was alone, and there were no signs of other wolves. So the woman took me to the colony. They decided to keep me, so I’ve been, sort of, adopted I guess.” She shrugged, wishing she had a better story. Or more answers.

Cristian contemplated this for a moment. “Strange. Well, if you’d like to be with your own kind, you’re welcome to stay here as long as you want.”

She looked at Dalton. Did she have any reason to go home? He averted his gaze. Guess not. Her stomach dropped. It was hard to swallow.

Well, why not stay and get to know what being a werewolf was really like? Maybe she’d finally fit in somewhere.

“Do you have someone to go home to?” Cristian asked. Apparently he’d missed the display outside the cabin.

Dalton still didn’t look at her.

“No,” she answered. “I don’t.”

****

A protest fought to get free, but Dalton stamped it down and turned away from the hurt in Eden’s eyes. What was he doing? He was going to let her go? Maybe she was right – he was a chicken. But he didn’t have time for a relationship. He especially didn’t have the desire. Did he? A wife. A family.

No. A burden. He’d always be worrying, afraid for her. Especially with her shitty fighting skills and penchant for trouble. It wasn’t worth it. Then why did it hurt so bad to think of losing her? Leaving her here with these…strangers. She probably deserved to be with her kind. It’d be good for her. Fuck, it was hard to breathe.

Cristian nodded. “Think about it. And we’ll think about your proposition.” With a glance at the gray-haired man to the right, he said, “Get them set up in a cabin.” Then he addressed Eden again. “We’ll reconvene in the morning, yes?”

“Yes,” Dalton answered for her.

“Good. Matthias will take you to your accommodations and get you some food. If you need anything, let him know.” Cristian rose and shook both their hands. “You’ll have to excuse me. I hear my wife calling for me. She probably wants help putting the kids to bed.”

Eden smiled when he mentioned kids. Did she want children? Probably. And what kind of kids would a shifter and a werewolf make? Probably some freaky hybrid. It was dangerous to try. She’d find somebody here to mate with. She was desirable, and there were plenty of options. Maybe if he told himself that over and over, he would start to believe it.

Without a word to each other, Dalton and Eden followed Matthias to a small cabin in the back. The inside was sparse. A bed took up most of the room, and a dresser and a desk sat at each corner. There was a doorway to a bathroom on the right.

“I hope this is okay,” the older man said.

“It’s great,” Eden said with one of her charming smiles. “Thank you.”

He nodded then headed for the door. “I’ll have a hot meal brought in for you. It’s probably safer for you to stay in here for the night. Our people are a suspicious bunch.”

“I understand,” Dalton said.

When he left, she spun on Dalton and grinned. Excitement lit up in her eyes. “That went well, don’t you think? We’re alive. Nobody even threatened to kill us!”

So fucking cute. He smiled back. “You were great.” It wasn’t a lie. She’d been a little ballsy at times, and he’d tensed, waiting for an attack, but Cristian was a levelheaded leader, and Dalton was beginning to respect him. Eden had worked her magic, as he’d known she would. He couldn’t have been prouder.

“I think they’ll say yes.” She placed her bag on the bed and started unpacking. “Do you?”

It was still a long shot, and he could tell the wolves weren’t completely sold on their plan, but he supposed they had a chance. “Maybe.”

“I’m going to the bathroom. Be right back.”

He placed his bag on the bed next to hers then stared at the large mattress covered in a navy quilt. They’d have to share a bed. How was he going to do that without fucking her again? Such a responsive little body even her walk excited him. Gods, he had it bad. What was he going to do with her?

A bang came from the bathroom. What the hell was she doing in there?

The door burst open and Eden shuffled across the threshold into the room, a large man at her back and a knife against her throat. Fear was evident in her eyes. Her nostrils flared, and her lips moved as if pleading with him.

He froze, and he felt the blood rush from his face. Fuck. Panic shot through him. And then a growing rage. His gaze zeroed in on that knife. Light reflected on the edge. Someone dared fuck with what was his? He was going to rip his bloody head off.

“Walk out of the cabin and I won’t kill her,” the man rumbled.

Dalton eyed the door. Two more werewolves stood just outside the screen door, holding weapons and watching him. Seemed like Cristian had some betrayers in his pack. But what did they want with him?

He’d have to find out. He wasn’t going to risk Eden’s life by putting up a fight. “Okay,” he said calmly then put his hands up in a peaceful gesture and walked backward toward the door.

“No!” Eden yelled then yelped when the blade pressed into her skin.

“Shh,” Dalton told her. “I’ll be all right.”
Just let her go. Please fucking let her go.
“I’m going with your friends,” he told the man holding her. “Let her go.”

He nodded at the door. “Out. Then I’ll let your bitch live.”

Slowly, he opened the screen, and as soon as he did, the two men grabbed his arms and wrenched them behind his back. Something clamped down on his upper arm, and he almost let out a shout of pain. It felt like he’d been stuck with hundreds of pins. Then the most terrifying thing happened. He felt his magic fade. Energy. Life. His ability to shift. It was all gone. He’d never felt so empty.

A hood went over his head, and he was forced away. Away from the best thing that had ever entered his life. Away from Eden.

Chapter Five

When Eden woke, it was to a nasty headache and her body hanging halfway off a mattress in an unfamiliar room. With a groan she lifted her head. What the hell? When she peered around the empty cabin, it all came back to her.

Dalton! He’d been taken. The werewolf holding her must’ve hit her in the head before he’d left. Shit. How long ago?

She ran out the door. It was still night, and Dalton’s scent lingered. Couldn’t have been that long ago. Without another thought, she shifted to her wolf form and hunted him. Nose to the ground, she followed his scent, thankful she was so familiar with it. Maybe having sex had paid off in more ways than one.

Careful not to lose the scent, she ran as fast as she could. After a mile, maybe two, she started feeling weary. She couldn’t keep this pace for much longer, especially with the pounding headache. Should she go back and get help? For all she knew, Cristian had orchestrated the whole thing. It was impossible to know who to trust. Was she tiring herself out for a lost cause? Was Dalton gone?

Panic kicked in along with a shot of adrenaline. She kept running. At the river, she heard voices. Slowing her pace, she listened carefully. She recognized one voice—the man who’d held the knife to her throat. And Dalton was there. His scent gave her hope. He was still alive.

The sound of the river made it hard to hear what they were saying. A deep voice said something about a reward. Were the werewolves trading him for a price?

Fuck. If they were trading him to sorcerers, they’d kill him. Or, worse, brainwash him like they’d done to others. She snuck closer, staying hidden in the shadow of the trees. Finally she spotted them. Dalton was slumped over, being held up by two werewolves. A hood covered his head. Why wasn’t he shifting? Had they drugged him?

Two men stood off to the side. Not werewolves. She inhaled the air. They smelled like home—like Wales. But they weren’t shifters. They must have been sorcerers. The man who’d grabbed her spoke with them.

There was no way she could fight them all. She didn’t even know if she could fight one and win. They wouldn’t get out of this clusterfuck without Dalton being able to shift. What was wrong with him anyway?

Something glinted in the moonlight around his arm. A thick gold band. She’d seen something like it before. Someone had shown her a picture of one. Sorcerers used them to keep supernaturals weak and unable to use their magic.

If she could get that off of Dalton’s arm, he could shift and fight. She calculated their chances. Three werewolves, two sorcerers. The werewolves could rip her apart easily, but could they do it before she got the band off Dalton? She was pretty fast. The sorcerers were also a problem. They could produce balls of light that burned through flesh like radioactive light bulbs.