Moonlight Kin 4: Tristan (26 page)
Read Moonlight Kin 4: Tristan Online
Authors: Jordan Summers
Tags: #new orleans, #paranormal romance, #wolves, #supernatural, #werewolves, #law enforcement, #contemporary fantasy, #fairytales, #legends myths, #legends and folklore
He grabbed her knees and gently parted her
thighs, then settled between them. If he got any harder, Tristan
was convinced he’d explode.
“Isabel,” he said. “Look at me.”
Her lashes fluttered, then their eyes
met.
“You asked me about the bite earlier,” he
said.
She nodded.
“If I do it again when I take you, it’ll have
a different meaning,” he said. Tristan had her full attention
now.
“What will change?” she asked.
“For starters, it will bind us together,” he
said, knowing he was already bound to her with or without the final
act. “So I need you to be sure, because there’s no going back once
it’s done.”
Isabel bit her lip, and her brow creased.
“What’s the rest of it?”
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“You said for starters, so there has to be
more,” she said. “Tell me everything.”
Tristan hesitated. There was still time for
her to change her mind. Tell him she wasn’t ready for this, for
him, and there’d be nothing he could do about it. The thought of
not being around to raise his child made him ache, but Tristan
would honor her wishes—even if it destroyed him to do so.
“If I bite you again, while we’re making
love, you’ll become like me,” he said, then braced himself for her
rejection.
“I’ll become a wolf?” she asked.
Tristan nodded. Isabel spent her whole life
fearing and running from the monsters in the world. The last thing
she’d want was to become one of them. This was it. He prepared for
the worst.
“Will our child be like you?” she asked
softly.
His gaze speared hers. “Yes.” Tristan
searched for any sign of disgust. There was none. “It’ll also be a
reflection of you...just as I am.”
Her brow furrowed. “What do you mean?” she
asked.
Tristan brushed her cheek with his knuckles.
“You’ve brought out my humanity. Made me want to be more human, so
that there would be a place for me in your world.” He touched her
heart. “And in here.”
Tears pricked her eyes and she kissed him
tenderly. “Then let’s do this,” Isabel said.
“You need to be sure.” Tristan felt his beast
rise. It wanted her, wanted their child, and it didn’t care if she
agreed.
She caressed his cheek. “I am sure. I’ve had
a lot of time to think during the last few weeks. It seems like all
I’ve done is think,” she said. “The one thing that kept coming back
again and again was you.”
“I will give my life for you and our child,”
he murmured. “I will protect you both with my last breath.”
“You already have, Frosty,” she said. “You
nearly died trying to protect us.”
“And I’d gladly do so again.” Tristan kissed
her hard and entered her with one thrust. The feel of her tight
channel surrounding him was like coming home. Isabel was his. And
he was hers. Together they were a family.
Emotion welled inside him. Tristan looked
away before she glimpsed the tears swimming in his eyes. It had
been years since he’d had a family. Years spent wandering the
country alone. Now Tristan had someone to come home to. Soon, he’d
have two.
He placed his hand upon her abdomen and
kissed Isabel lovingly. “Thank you,” he said.
“For what?” she asked, placing her hand over
his.
“For loving me enough to say yes,” he said,
then began to move.
Tristan made love to her, taking her body to
new heights as he bound them together in the way of his people. He
took her blood, savoring it for the gift that it was, then gave
Isabel his in exchange. And when she fell apart in his arms and
cried out in ecstasy, Tristan followed.
He’d follow her from this life into the next
and anywhere else she decided to go. Because this
human—
ex-human
—had stolen this wolf’s heart.
* * * * *
Tristan and Isabel sat in Sticks, waiting for
Mindy and Nic to arrive. The dive bar was hopping. Tables had been
pushed aside to accommodate the dancers. Even with the added space,
they overflowed into the aisles, kicking up sawdust as they moved
to the music.
“If they don’t get here soon,” Isabel said,
“I’m out of here.” There was edginess to her movements as she
scanned the crowd.
Tristan smiled and rubbed her lower back.
“Hungry again?”
“Starving,” she snapped.
Isabel had eaten two hours ago, but her
stomach was already rumbling again. He stroked her rounded belly.
She’d deliver in another month—thanks to Weres’ short gestation
periods. Until then, Tristan would fetch her whatever she wanted,
whenever she wanted it.
“They’ll be here soon,” he said, hoping it
was the truth. If not, then he’d leave a message at the bar to meet
them at the restaurant.
Isabel looked around the crowded barroom and
sighed.
Tristan tensed. “What’s wrong? Is the baby
okay?”
She touched his arm. “The baby’s fine. I was
just thinking about Everly. She’d never hang at Sticks, but she
would’ve gotten a kick out of this place,” she said.
He squeezed her hand. “I wish we could help
her, but there’s only been one wolf who has ever crossed into the
Darkling world and lived to tell about it.”
“Where is he now?” she asked, a hint of hope
in her voice.
Hope that he was about to crush. “He’s dead,”
Tristan said, fighting back impotent rage. He wanted to do
something to help her, something to make the situation better, but
he couldn’t.
Isabel didn’t bother to hide her
disappointment.
“I’m sorry, love,” he said.
“Me too,” she said, then glanced at something
behind him. “Mindy and Nic are here.” Isabel pasted a smile on her
face and wiggled her way off the barstool. She waddled across the
room to hug her sister.
Tristan followed close behind, making sure
none of the wolves jostled her. They gave her a wide berth, once
they caught sight of him.
“Ready to go to dinner?” Mindy asked.
“I was ready an hour ago,” Isabel said.
“Guess that means you don’t want to stay for
a drink,” Mindy said.
“Unless you plan to do a shot, then no,”
Isabel said.
“Lookout! Pregnant cranky lady coming
through,” Mindy shouted.
* * * * *
Nic waved to his friend, Lucien.
The bartender smiled and waved back. His
jovial mask faded the second the couples left the bar. Lucien
overheard Tristan and his bondmate talking about her friend,
Everly. She had been taken into the Darklings’ world. He shuddered
at the thought of a human being trapped there.
Tristan was right. There wasn’t much that
could be done to save her. But he was wrong about one thing. The
wolf that made it out of the Darkling world wasn’t dead. He was
right here, hiding in plain sight.
Lucien knew firsthand the hell that existed
on the other side. He’d barely managed to escape. If he hadn’t
stolen a portal rune stone, he wouldn’t have succeeded.
It had taken months for him to recover his
sanity. Months spent trapped between man and beast, raging against
the darkness trying to envelop him.
He’d kept his past a secret from everyone,
including his best friend, Nic. It had been safer that way—safer
for everyone.
Once he’d recovered, Lucien vowed never to
return. Not just because the Darklings put a price on his head, but
because Lucien knew he wouldn’t be so lucky next time.
He pulled the black stone out of his pocket
and ran his thumb across the runes etched into the surface. Dark
magic snapped at his fingertips, making them tingle. Lucien shoved
the rock back into his pocket. Why had he kept it? He should’ve
gotten rid of the stone long ago.
If what they’d said was true about Everly,
then she was running out of time and he was the only one who could
save her.
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Jordan Summers
Moonlight Kin 1: A Wolf’s Tale
Moonlight Kin 4: Tristan - Coming Soon
Phantom Warriors 2: Saber-tooth
Phantom Warriors 7:
The Dark King
Phantom Warriors Anthology Volume 1
Phantom Warriors Anthology Volume 2
Atlantean’s Quest 1: The Arrival
Atlantean’s Quest 3: Redemption
Atlantean’s Quest 4: The Return
Atlantean’s Quest 5: The Dark King
Atlantean’s Quest Bundle Volume 1
Atlantean’s Quest Bundle Volume 2
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Author
Jordan Summers has thirty-one published books
to her credit and has sold over 150,000 ebooks. She’s a member of
The Horror Writer’s Association, International Thriller Writers,
the Author’s Guild, and Novelist Inc.
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