Waking Sarah (8 page)

“Vampire?” Sarah squeaked. “It’s all so overwhelming.”

“I know. But you will be pack and we will all be here for you. For anything.” He wanted her to be okay with what was happening. He wanted her to embrace this part of her life. The wolf could help her if she’d let it. But only if she was willing.

“What if I don’t want the pack? What if I just want you?”

His heart clenched. That was what he wanted too, but there was no guarentee he was a good match for her. Only her wolf could answer that question. “Sarah, I...”

“I know, wolfy soul gets to pick who I spend my semi-immortal new life with. Yay, me.” She stood from the bench and took a few steps. “Is it going to hurt?” The question filtered over her shoulder, but she didn’t look back. She just waited.

“What?” he asked. He knew what she wanted to know, but he didn’t want to confront it. He didn’t want to tell her his brother would bite her. He didn’t want her to feel any more pain. She’d been through so much already.

She turned around and faced him, tears streaming down her cheeks. “The transformation, the spell tonight.”

He nodded. “The spell won’t hurt, but when Chase bites you to bind your wolf to the pack, it will hurt.”

A gasp slipped between her red lips. “No! I don’t want him to
bite
me.”

I don’t either.
“It has to be this way, Sarah. Your wolf will need the link to the pack.”

“Why not you? Why can’t you be the one?”

“He’s the pack alpha,” he answered through gritted teeth. “Only he can bind you to the group.”

She hurried away from him and disappeared through the back door of the inn. His heart slowed with every step.

In only a few hours, her life would change forever.

CHAPTER SIX

She’d grabbed some dinner from the kitchen and hightailed it back to her room before anyone could stop her. Several people knocked on her door throughout the evening, but she’d told them all to leave her be. Her mom tried too, but she’d told her she was fine and just wanted to be alone.

Alone.

That was the last thing she really wanted. What she did want was to be wrapped up in every delicious inch of Chris Michaels. But that pain-in-the-ass wolf wouldn’t allow it, especially after she’d chickened out the first time.

He kept repeating that her wolf would be able to help her find a mate. A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. It was almost as if he was using it as a mantra to keep from jumping her bones. She knew he wanted her. It was obvious in the way he stared, smiled, and ogled her every time they were in close proximity. And damn if he didn’t wrap his big strong arms around her every chance he got.

Fuck the rules. She was quite sure her wolfly persona was just as hooked on Chris as she was. The dreams had been a little murky, but they’d all been about him.

And what was this shit about Chase biting her? She didn’t want anyone biting her, wolf or otherwise. That little detail was bothering her, but Chris had said it was necessary. It bothered him though. She’d seen his fist clench.

She sipped on her glass of iced tea and swiped the page on her reading tablet. She’d finished five books since arriving at this mountain retreat. Interestingly enough, two of them had been paranormal romances.
Who knew it wasn’t all fiction.
She shook her head.

What the hell had she been thrown into the middle of?

A thump at the door broke her stream of thoughts.

“Hello, Sarah.”

It was Kate.

Sarah glanced at the clock on her night table.
11:45 p.m.
It was time. Kate said midnight was the strongest time to connect with the magick. Something about the moon enhancing her powers.

She slid off the bed and slipped her feet into her tennis shoes. “I’m coming. The door is open.”

Kate pushed the bedroom door open and waited patiently.

Sarah reached for her coat, but Kate shook her head. “You can take it, but you won’t need it for long.”

“Why?”

“You will have to undress for the ceremony.”

Naked?
Nerves locked her muscles in place. Nobody had said anything about being naked, though she should have put two and two together. That’s why there were clothes scattered all over the porch of the inn. She’d seen Chris grab those pants in a hurry when he’d changed earlier today.

They were always prepared to be naked.

“I’m not sure I’m okay with that. It’s freezing outside, and what about my mom and dad?”

“They will not be there. It’s not safe. You won’t be cold once the magick is called up. The energy acts like a personal heater...and transforming in clothes is not an option.”

“Explains why y’all walk around dressed like it’s the Fourth of July in Texas every day.”

Kate smiled. “Come on, honey. It’s time.”

“Why didn’t you tell me Chase was going to bite me?” Sarah asked on their way down the staircase. The inn was eeriely quiet. No one was in the main common area.

“I was worried you would overreact.” Kate paused, looking over. “Who told you?”

“Chris.”

“It will hurt, but only for a moment. It’s not necessary for the transformation, but it’s necessary to ground your wolf. She’s been alone for so long. She will need the anchor.”

Sarah followed Kate out the back door onto the deck behind the inn. The air was like ice, and the wind cut through the sweatshirt she was wearing, making her teeth chatter.
Magickal heater, my ass. It’s freezing out here.

Chris stood at the edge of the deck with a flashlight.

“It feels like summer camp, and we are sneaking out after curfew.”

He flashed a white-toothed grin and pulled her close, tucking her body under his arm and against his surprisingly warm chest, especially considering he was wearing only a T-shirt and jeans.

“Sorry it’s so cold.”

“I’m-m-m doing b-better now.”

Chris and Kate both laughed aloud.

“Laugh it up, b-but I d-don’t have a built-in magickal f-force field yet.”

“It’s not a force field,” Chris snorted. “Our bodies are just always warmer.”

I can tell.

They passed through the edge of the treeline and continued down a narrow path. It seemed familiar, but it was very dark, and the trees all looked the same. When they stepped out into a clearing, she knew why the path had been familiar. They’d come to the same clearing where Chris had taken her before.

A large bonfire was burning in the center of the clearing, and everyone was standing in a circle around it –Scott, Margaret, Sam, Chase, Nicole, Tess, Hallie, and Heath. None of the men were wearing shirts, and she couldn’t help but stare. Man-candy galore. How did these women ever get out of their beds? Well, only Margaret and Sam were married, but still...

A slight cough from Chris startled her from the drool-fest, and warmth flooded her cheeks, making the icy wind sting even more.

Her heart pounded behind her ribs. This was really happening.

She grabbed Chris’s arm. “I d-don’t want to l-lose me,” she whispered, tears trailing down her cheeks.

His eyes glowed gold in the firelight. He cupped her face and rubbed the tears away with the pads of his thumbs. “You won’t. I promise.”

She sucked in a breath and nodded, rubbing her frozen fingers together.

“Can you take your clothes off by yourself?”

Oh God, no!
She shook her head, a new wave of tears rising up.

“Shhhhh,” he whispered. “I will do it for you. It’s okay. I’m going to be with you the whole way. I’m going to shift with you too. You won’t be alone. You’ll never be alone, Sarah.”

All she could hear was the soothing rumble of his voice. Her head nodded at his words, but her mind was tuned only to the sensation of his hands touching her body. They’d moved to the hem of her sweatshirt. She flinched as the wind hit her bare stomach. He tugged until her arms straightened, and it came loose over her head. Her bra afforded no warmth, but at least she wasn’t naked yet. How did they expect her to just stand nude in front of them all?

Chris distracted her again, pulling off his own T-shirt. Beautiful abs.
He is so gorgeous.
She reached out to touch the rippling six-pack, but he knelt before she could and untied and romoved her tennis shoes. Then pulled down her sweatpants, holding her steady at the hip so she could step out of them.
Holy crap!
He’d pulled down her panties in the same swipe. His face was mere inches from her mound. She could feel his breath caress her swollen labia.

Somewhere in the back of her mind she could hear Kate’s voice murmuring something. But it was a language she didn’t understand, and the only thing her brain would let her focus on was Chris.

Then something else moved over her body. It was warm and soft like a blanket, but it tickled like hundreds of feathers were criss-crossing over her. Chris leaned forward and kissed her abdomen, sending a shot of desire straight to her already well-heated sex. His fingers deftly unsnapped her bra, and she looked down into his glowing eyes.

“W-what are you—” She started to ask and then realized someone was behind her. Another man. She started to move, but Chris’s arms wrapped around her legs, locking her in place. Her eyes widened, and panic registered in her brain. The warm, fuzzy haze floating around her vanished as every nerve ending in her body tightened.

“You have to get her to relax, Chris.” The rumbling command came from behind her. It was Chase’s voice. “She’s pushing the magick off.”

Chris’s mouth brushed against her hip. She trembled and looked down at him again. The distraction of his lips was working again. The warm blanket of...something...slipped over her again. She wasn’t sure how to describe it, but it felt alive. And it felt good. Comforting.

Chase gripped her shoulders, and he nuzzled her neck, but Chris’s mouth nearing the inside of her thigh had all her focus, and she didn’t feel the bite coming until it was too late. She jerked against both men and screamed. The pain was excruciating. Her head pounded, and she tried to kick, but they were too strong. There was no getting away from either of them.

“No! Make it stop!” Waves of heat flowed through her. It was like standing in front of an open oven. “Please,” she cried, still struggling against both Michaels men.

Then they were gone. The pain from the bite was gone. Her headache ceased, and a rush of nausea overtook her. She retched into the grass, suprised to find it so close to her face when she finally opened her eyes.
When did I get down on my hands and knees?

“You didn’t. You’re in our wolf form.”

Oh shit! Oh shit!
Sarah looked around for the voice, but Chris and Chase stood nearby staring. Neither of them had spoken. Chris was rapidly shedding what was left of his clothing and, in seconds, was on all fours in wolf form nuzzling her.

“You found our mate! Already! I’m free, and you found our mate! This day couldn’t get any better.”

Ours?
Sarah spun around, expecting to see someone talking. No one was there. It was the wolf in her head.
No. No. No. This isn’t real.
She took a few stumbling steps forward before she found her footing as a wolf and took off in a dead run.

“Make it stop! Change me back!”
Everything felt strange. Unnatural. Wrong. The smells of the forest assaulted her senses. Everything was magnified. The pine scent, the sounds of the night, even the dirt smelled strange. How could dirt smell?

You have calm down. Please!

The moonlight illuminated the forest, and she had no trouble navigating. A bark from behind startled her like a trumpet blast. The sound rang in her ears. She dashed sideways, frantic to escape and didn’t see the drop. She slipped and a strangled whine tore from her throat as her front paws clawed at the ground, keeping her from slipping to the sharp rocks below.

I’m gonna die! They’ve turned me into a wolf, and I’m gonna die.

“Sarah!” Chris’s voice cut through the night, and Sarah tried to call back. The only thing that came out was a pathetic half-assed bark. “Sarah.” He called her name again, and then he appeared in front of her, wrapping both hands around her front legs. His touch sent a charge through her body, and she whined.

“Mate. He’s our mate.”

“Change, love. Shift back. You have to help her. Sarah doesn’t know what to do to call back her human form.” His voice was calm. He held her front legs still and lowered his head to meet her gaze, but she couldn’t keep from swinging her head back and forth, glancing at the ravine below.