Twisted (3 page)

Well, that did sound like her. Kind of. “Why did I change my mind?”

He shrugged. “We couldn’t agree about what to do after we mated. I needed to continue hunting on the Bane’s Council, and I wanted you somewhere safe.”

“I didn’t want safety?” That didn’t sound like her. She loved safety.

He sighed. “No. You wanted to train to fight.”

“I can fight.” She’d trained for years while waiting for her memories to return. They had to return so she could move on, so she could start living again.

“Do you like fighting?” Wisdom filled his eyes along with challenge.

“Nobody likes fighting.” She hated hitting people, in fact.

No way did the wolf know her so well.

“You hate fighting.” His hands flexed. “You’re a genius at strategy, and you love people. But you thought you should fight because of your lineage.”

“So I didn’t fit in, even with my own people.” The assassins who were her people, that is. Damn. Maybe she was born to be a misfit.

“Not really.” Terrent’s palms heated her skin. “You fit with me, though.”

Sweet. Very sweet. “I left you.”

“We had a silly fight, you went to cool off, the Kurjans kidnapped you.” His voice lowered to guttural.

“I don’t even remember being taken by the Kurjans,” she said. “We’ve never found records of what exactly they infected me with during that time.” Her mind was an empty, black hole. But, after two inoculations, she was feeling damn good—almost a hundred percent. Her damn memories just had to return.

“I’ve been trying for ten years—trying to get information. To discover why not only the Kurjans but also the demons want you.” He shook his head.

Yeah, the demons were at war with the Realm, and they had a hit out on Maggie, but it had never made any sense. “I don’t think I’ve ever met a demon,” she said.

“You don’t want to.”

Considering they’d hurt her friend, Jase, she wished they’d disappear.

A bird twittered high above. Maggie swallowed. She should probably get off the wolf. Getting all cozy with him seemed wrong, considering she was actually in town to investigate him, and any other wolf who might be tampering with the inoculations for shifters. The inoculations that kept them safe from the Kurjan virus. He wouldn’t mess with the vials, would he?

A breeze whispered through the forest. Life hummed around them with the scents of pine and jasmine.

She couldn’t look away from his hard face.

The anger morphed to something darker in his eyes. Tension wound through the peaceful afternoon. He studied her much like a hawk spotting prey. Tingles sprang to life down her back, and warmth spiraled through her abdomen.

His heated palms pressed down just enough to rub her against his cock.

Her mind blanked.

A low growl rumbled up from his gut, rolling along her breasts. Her nipples sprang to attention. Fire rushed through her so quickly her lungs compressed. She opened her mouth to protest, but nothing came out.

He slowly lifted his head, determination and dare flaring across his rugged cheekbones. Then his mouth captured hers.

Kissing.

Heating.

Taking.

She closed her eyes on a whimper. White-hot mini-explosions rocketed through her brain. Her fingers clutched his thick hair, and her knees dropped to either side of his hips. Her tongue shot into his mouth, and his hands tightened on her waist. For two seconds she controlled the kiss.

Maybe.

The world spun. Her butt landed on the soft pine needles, and a wolf in human form stretched out on top of her. The kiss shot from intriguing to territorial. His elbows bracketed her, his chest flattened hers, and his hard—oh-so-hard—dick pulsed with a demand she could feel through her jeans. Her clit pounded in perfect time with it.

He released her mouth, sliding his lips along her jaw to nip her earlobe. She arched into him. With a chuckle, he wandered down her neck, licking her collarbone, and took one breast in his mouth.

Electricity ripped straight to her sex.

“Shirt—in—way,” he mumbled against the cotton.

A second later, her shirt flew through the forest. Claws shredded her bra.

“Hey! I love that br—”

Moist heat engulfed her nipple. Her protest deepened into a desperate moan.

Oh God.

Levering himself up, he reached for the button on her jeans. And stilled.

His head lifted.

No
.
No
.
No
. “Don’t stop,” she breathed.

He frowned and lifted his nose to the air. “Damn.” Ripping off his shirt, he yanked it over her head and pulled her to stand. Then he shoved her behind him. The bare, very cut muscles in his back vibrated.

A pissed-off wolf was never a good thing. Never.

Maggie smelled the air. “Oh.”

“Yeah,” Terrent growled.

Jase Kayrs strode down the trail, the forest shadows at home on his face.“You two all right?”

“Damn babysitter,” Terrent muttered. “Yes. Go away.”

Jase stopped. A slight grin lifted his lips. “Ah. Okay. See you back at the house.” Whistling a smart-ass tune, he whirled and sauntered out of sight.

Maggie stepped away from Terrent. He turned around, desire on his face, lust in his eyes.

She gulped air. The warm shirt covered her to her knees and smelled like male and power. Her body ached, but her brain had finally stuttered awake. She couldn’t do something like this without remembering who she was. How could she even think of going forward with her mind an empty darkness? “We should, ah, get back.”

His nostrils flared, while his lip quirked in satisfaction.

“Okay. Though you need to know. We had an agreement to mate. Remember it or not . . . you’re fulfilling that promise.”

Two hours after being so rudely interrupted in the forest, Terrent glared at the six-and-a-half-foot-tall vampire sprawled smugly in the guest chair in his home office. Apparently Jase Kayrs was once again feeling amusement and fun. The relief filling Terrent made him smile when he wanted to growl. He pushed away from his mahogany desk, glad the heavy wood stood between them. “You interrupted.”

Jase shrugged a muscled shoulder. “Don’t care.”

So Terrent did growl.

Jase growled right back. “I’m not sure moving Maggie to your home is such a good idea. She should stay in the guest quarters.”

“The Vaile wolves are after Maggie. I can protect her from other wolves.”

“That’s not why you want her here.” Wisdom and an odd sadness filled Jase’s copper eyes.

“No. It’s not.” Damn vampires fought love and eternity—

wolves didn’t. Even furious wolves who couldn’t change the past. “She’s mine and has been for over a decade.”

Jase cracked his knuckles. “A fact you failed to mention to my brother.”

As if on cue, the mounted screen on the wall lit up, and Dage Kayrs came into view. He shoved papers out of the way and cleared his onyx desk. “Sorry about the delay.

What’s going on?”

Terrent leaned back. “Three wolves just came for Maggie.”

“From the island?” Dage frowned.

Terrent started.

Jase chuckled.

“You knew?” Terrent muttered.

“Of course I knew.” Dage glared, and five hundred miles away, it still burned. “I’m the fucking king.”

So he wanted to play that game, did he? Terrent leaned forward. “I appreciate your sending little Maggie my way . . .

such great timing.” Yeah. He knew she was there to uncover the bastard messing with his inoculations. “I can find my own damn traitor.”

The king flashed sharp teeth in what almost passed for a smile. He’d pulled his black hair back and wore sparring clothing. The silver of his eyes shone with a dark wisdom.

“Maggie needs to be with wolves, to see if her memories can be shaken loose—especially since her people are now aware that she’s alive. A mission got her there, didn’t it?”

Jase chuckled again.

Irritation clawed down Terrent’s spine. Was the damn king trying to matchmake? “I don’t need your help with my personal life, Dage.”

“The hell you don’t. It’s been ten years.” Dage didn’t blink.

“I’ve been trying to figure out why the demons are after her . . . or at least, what the Kurjans did to her.” For a decade Terrent had hunted, he’d searched, and he’d failed.

“I know.” Dage clasped his hands together. “We’re still trying to go through all the files from the last raid against the demons, and from when we, ah . . .” His gaze flicked to Jase.

Silver morphed to blue in his eyes, and he quickly blinked, bringing back the silver. “When we found Jase in Scotland.”

When they’d rescued the nearly dead Jase, that is. Jase didn’t move, and his face lost all expression. The eyes of a killer focused out of what had just been a charming face.

Terrent cleared his throat. “Let me know if you find anything in the files.”

Dage nodded. “I will. What happened to the wolves who attacked you?”

“They’re secure, and I’ll
interview
them tomorrow.”

The king nodded at the euphemism. “Let me know what you find out.” He focused on his younger brother. “How long are you staying with Terrent?”

“I’m leaving shortly,” Jase said.

Dage’s jaw firmed. “If you must. Remember you promised to check in once a month.”

“I remember,” Jase said.

The king exhaled. “You have one year to do what you need to do, Jase. At the end of the year, I want you back at Realm headquarters in Oregon.”

“I’ll take as long as I want.” No emotion sat on Jase’s predatory face.

Plenty of emotion filtered across the king’s. “As I’ve said, you have one year. Come home, or we’ll come and get you.”

The screen went black.

Terrent was suddenly very grateful to have been an only child. “Family.”

Jase grinned and rubbed his short brown hair, the charm back in place. “No shit.” He stood and strode toward the door. “If you need me, you know how to reach me.”

The last thing Terrent needed around was a furious, slightly crazy, still-dealing-with-the-hell-he’d-gone-through vampire. “Be safe, Jase.”

Tension escaped the room along with Jase. Seconds later, the entire cabin relaxed. Terrent lifted his head to double-check and then flicked a button on the desk.

Dage Kayrs once again took shape. “Is he gone?”

“Yes.”

“You have plans in place?” the king asked.

“Yes. We have wolves all around the mountain. If he’s in trouble, or if he needs help, we’ll know it.” Terrent leaned back to study the king.

Lines of worry and anger cut into the sharp angles of Dage’s face. Lines he’d hidden from his brother. “Thank you.”

“No problem. Maybe you should talk to him instead of having us watch over him as he lives alone for a while.” Shit.

What did Terrent know? He’d never had family.

Dage grimaced. “He won’t talk. Not to anybody.” Dage scrubbed both hands down his face. “I should never have let him be captured.”

“Maybe that’s part of the problem,” Terrent said softly.

Dage’s dark eyebrows drew down. “Meaning?”

“All of you Kayrs brothers—you blame yourselves for your younger brother being captured. That’s a lot of responsibility and guilt to carry.
For him to carry
.” Terrent shifted his weight. No wonder the poor guy had wanted to get away from family and home.

Dage’s gaze turned thoughtful. “Interesting. I hadn’t thought of it like that.”

“I don’t mean to interfere.” Terrent shook his head. The last thing he wanted was to get involved.

“Actually, I appreciate the insight.” The king leaned back in his chair. “Are you any closer to figuring out who’s messing with the shifter inoculations?”

“No, but I will be.” The idea of any wolf messing with the inoculations that kept their people safe fired rage in Terrent’s blood. Well, at least the situation
should
be firing him into a pissed-off state. He sighed. “I can’t figure it out. The saboteur always strikes here at wolf headquarters before the drugs are sent around the world, and so far, we’ve discovered the faulty vials in time to fix the problem.”

“So no shifter has been given the damaged inoculations?”

Dage asked.

“No.” Terrent leaned toward the camera and rested his elbows on his knees. His people had been safe from Virus ever since the vampires had created the inoculation. “Nobody has been harmed by the damaged drugs. It’s as if this is the worst terrorist we’ve ever met, or—”

“Someone wants you distracted?” Dage rubbed his chin.

“That’s disconcerting.”

“I know. If successful, this plan could be quite the terrorist move, considering shifters need three inoculations spaced three years apart to be permanently immune to the virus. We only have two series completed for most people.” Yet, Terrent couldn’t quite get excited about the matter. Nobody had been harmed. “If this is some sort of trap, I haven’t figured out for whom or why.”

“Need backup?” Dage asked.

“No.” Terrent worked alone. Even as part of the Bane’s Council, he hunted alone. “I’ve got this.”

Dage nodded. “Are you ready for, well, Maggie?”

Talk about a loaded question. “I take it you knew I knew her?”

“Of course.” The king shrugged. “There isn’t much I don’t know.”

Terrent sighed. Now he owed his old friend for keeping the secret. “The lass still doesn’t remember me.” The words cut through him with a familiar pain, and he let the damn brogue slip. It’d been years since he’d trained to speak without it. “A decade to heal, and she’s still a blank slate.”

“She may never remember.” Dage leaned forward. “She loved you once. Maybe she’ll be foolish enough to do so again.” His lips tipped in almost a smile.

What if she didn’t? What if she’d changed enough they’d lost their chance? “I’m sure my charm will work again.” Terrent forced a grin.

Dage tapped a communicator in his ear and listened for a moment. “I have to go. Call me if you need me.”

The screen went dark. For real this time.

Terrent took a deep breath. He needed to visit Realm headquarters more often. The worry and frustration seemed to be getting to the king, and nothing ever got to the king. A creak outside caught Terrent’s attention. Interesting. Little Maggie had found his favorite spot.