Wolf in his Heart (Salvation Pack) (20 page)

“Relax.” Reece slapped him on the back. “That means she cares, right?”

Why was he the only one who hadn’t been able to figure that out?

“You’re too close to the situation.” Reece answered Sage’s question without him having voiced it out loud. Just like old times. Some things never changed and, for that, Sage was eternally grateful.

“I want to see her.” Reece didn’t wait for an invitation and prowled into the room. Sage followed him and both of them stood by the side of the bed watching Rina sleep. She was lying on her side. The sheet covered her but dipped to mold slightly to her curves. Her brown and reddish hair flowed over the stark white pillowcase.

“She’s pretty.”

His brother was wrong. She wasn’t pretty, she was magnificent.

Reece winced. “You want to tone it down. I’m getting a boner because you want to slide that sheet off and climb on top of her.”

Sage felt heat climbing up his cheeks. He was blushing, for God’s sake. He’d forgotten just how much they shared, especially when they were in close proximity. “Can’t help it.” He sat on the edge of the bed and Reece stood behind him. “She’s everything.”

“I know.” All teasing gone, his twin dropped his hand on Sage’s shoulder and squeezed. He didn’t have to ask if his brother would support him. Sage knew he would. There was never any doubt.

Rina’s eyelids fluttered and then opened. She blinked and then frowned and blinked again. “Why are there two of you?”

Reece threw back his head and laughed. The rich sound filled the room. Sage smiled at Rina and reached for her hand. “Rina, baby, I want you to meet my twin. This is Reece.”

His brother sat on the bed beside him and reached for her other hand. “Hey, Rina. It’s great to finally meet you.”

She looked from one to the other and back again. “Wow.”

Sage grinned at her reaction. He and Reece were identical in all ways but one. His brother could shift into a wolf while he couldn’t.

Reece frowned, and Sage knew he’d picked up on that moment of insecurity. It was the only discord between them. It was minor, but it still existed. Sage had accepted his limitations, but every now and then the ghost from the past would rise up and poke him.

Rina looked at him and smiled. “He’s pretty, but you’re much better looking.”

Reece laughed again. “I think I’m going to like her.”

“She’s mine,” Sage growled. Then he ignored his laughing brother, leaned down, and kissed her.

Chapter Twenty

It was like looking at a mirror image. Sage had told her he had a twin brother, but seeing them together was an experience. They were both tall, well-built men with dark brown hair, piercing blue eyes, and strong features. But while Sage made every part of her tingle, his brother did nothing for her.

It was strange but true. She’d never mistake one brother for the other. Not even without her enhanced sense of smell, which enabled her to distinguish between them.

“We didn’t mean to wake you.” Sage shot his brother a glare. “How are you feeling?”

That was the question, wasn’t it? Physically, she actually felt pretty good for someone who’d been shot not twenty-four hours ago. If she’d been human, she’d be in a hospital, probably in their ICU. But she was werewolf, and her left shoulder was already itching, which meant the stitches were probably working their way out.

She tried to rub her back against the mattress to give herself a little relief. It didn’t work. “I’m good.” If Reece wasn’t here, she’d let the sheet drop to her waist and present her back to Sage to scratch. No way was she showing off her naked breasts to his brother.

“No, you’re not.” Sage frowned. “What’s wrong?”

She shrugged. “My back is itchy.”

“Probably the stitches. Let me see.” Sage started to tug at the sheet but Rina grabbed it and held it tight.

“Not happening.”

His scowl deepened. “Why the hell not? I need to make sure everything is okay.”

She rolled her eyes and jerked her head toward his brother. Far from seeming offended, Reece seemed to be enjoying himself, if his grin was any indication.

“Bro, the lady doesn’t want to show off her assets.”

Sage smacked his brother on the back of his head. “Idiot, I would have made sure to shield her from view.” The look he gave her was pitiful. “You don’t honestly think I’d let him see you that way, do you?”

He melted her. There was no other way to put it. She’d gone from being irritated with him to wanting to soothe him. The man had a gift. “No, I don’t think you’d do it on purpose, but it could happen with him just sitting there.”

Reece stood and stretched. “That’s my cue to leave. I’m going to hit my room, shower, and get changed. Then if no one else gets ahead of me, I’ll start breakfast when I’m done.” He leaned down and kissed her forehead. “Nice to meet you, Rina.”

“Nice to meet you too.” It was going to take some getting used to seeing the two of them side-by-side. Reece was wearing a plain white cotton shirt with the sleeves rolled back to expose strong forearms and dress pants. Sage, on the other hand, was wearing nothing but a pair of faded jeans and a lot of exposed skin.

Reece leaned down and the two men touched foreheads. The gesture was automatic and one Rina knew they’d done hundreds if not thousands of times before. They didn’t speak, at least not out loud, but she had the sense they were communicating.

It was a little intimidating, to tell the truth. Any woman who got involved with one of the brothers would have to contend with that close bond. Rina wasn’t the least bit threatened by it. If anything, she was glad Sage had someone he was so close to, someone he could depend on.

Reece slipped out the bedroom door, closing it behind him.

“You should have told him my brother is sleeping on the sofa.”

Sage just smiled. “He’ll figure it out.” He tugged at the sheet once again, and this time she let him pull it away. “Now what can I do to help?”

“My back.” She rolled so he could see the injury. “Are the stitches coming out?”

He gently rubbed an area. It hurt a little, but nowhere near the way it had last night. “Some of them are working their way out. Do you want a shower? That might help.”

“God, yes.” She felt grungy and dirty, even though she could smell soap on her skin. “Did you clean me up last night?” She didn’t like the idea of anyone else touching her when she’d been out of it.

“I thought you’d be more comfortable.”

“Thank you.” She shoved the covers back and started to sit. He was right there, lending her his strength but not taking over. He understood that she needed to feel some control over the situation. She didn’t know why it still surprised her that Sage seemed to know exactly what she needed and freely gave it to her. Any other male werewolf would simply take over and handle things however he felt was best. He wouldn’t take into consideration what she wanted.

And that wasn’t being fair. Her brother was different, and from what she’d witnessed, so were the men of this pack. But Sage was in a league all his own.

“Take your time. There’s no rush.” He stood beside the bed with one arm around her waist just holding her upright while she decided if her knees were going to hold.

She took a deep breath and put all her weight on her legs. Shaky, but they should hold. “Let’s do this.” She really wanted to use the bathroom and then shower.

She took one small step and then another. By the time they hit the bathroom door, she was gaining confidence. She was weak from the loss of blood and from the sheer energy it had taken for her body to heal the gunshot wound. Food and rest were needed to build her back up.

She knew that but was impatient. Sage was seeing her at her worst, yet again. She was tired of appearing weak, even though it didn’t seem to matter to him.

“I need a minute on my own.” No way was she letting him through the door while she was making use of the facilities.

“I don’t want to leave you on your own.”

She shook her head. “Not happening.” She decided to be blunt and pointed to the toilet. “You need to wait outside.”

He looked away and his jaw tightened. The devil was trying to keep from laughing. “Yeah, okay. Call if you need me.”

Like that was ever going to happen. She shut the door in his face. His laugher filtered under the door, and she found herself smiling. Shaking her head, she made her way to the toilet. When she was done, she turned so she could see her upper back in the mirror. Her left shoulder was heavily bruised, but the wound looked days old, not hours.

Rina turned away and looked longingly at the shower stall. First, she had to remove her panties, and then she had to walk all the way to the shower, turn it on, and wash. A cold sweat broke out on her skin.

She honestly wasn’t sure she could do it on her own.

Turned out she didn’t have to. Before she could decide if she was going to ask for help, the door was pushed open. Sage went to the shower and started the water running before he turned to her. He went down on one knee in front of her and pulled her panties down to her ankles. “Step out.”

Rina used his shoulders for support as she lifted one foot and then the other. With her panties gone, Sage carefully lifted her into his arms and carried her to the shower.

“I can walk, you know.” She didn’t want him to think she was weak.

He kissed the tip of her nose. “I know you can, but why would you when I can carry you?”

When he put it like that, it made sense. She liked having his arms around her. He set her down and waited until she’d leaned against the tiled wall. Then he stepped back and shucked his jeans before joining her beneath the spray.

“We’re being environmentally conscious by sharing the water.” His tone was serious, but his blue eyes twinkled with humor.

“Not sure my brother would see it that way,” she pointed out.

Sage lathered up a cloth and rubbed it carefully around the edges of her wound. “He’s a big boy. He can deal with it.”

She winced when one of the stitches caught on the cloth. Sage stilled. “I’m sorry if that hurt. Only about half the stitches are ready to come out.”

“It didn’t hurt. Not really. It was more a surprise than anything.” Sage continued to work until the entire area was done, but he wasn’t finished with her. Not by a long shot.

He turned her around so she was leaning against the wall. She put all the pressure on her right shoulder. God, he looked amazing with his hair slicked back from his face and water droplets rolling down his wide chest and taut abs. And lower still where his engorged cock was standing hard and wet.

Rina licked her lips, and he groaned. “Stop that. I’m trying really hard to do the right thing.”

“Oh, you’re hard, all right.” She suddenly wasn’t as tired as she’d been. Seeing Sage all wet and naked had her revved up. It was a sure sign she was feeling much better.

She picked up the bar of soap and rubbed it between her hands until bubbles frothed between her fingers. She tossed the soap back on the ledge and placed her hands on his chest.

“Rina.” There was warning and slight desperation in his voice.

“What?” She let her hands slide over the hard planes of his chest and over his abs. She teased the line of hair arrowing downward and followed it to his erection. She bypassed his shaft, running her fingers alongside it but not touching.

Sage groaned and rested his forehead against hers. It was the same gesture he’d used with his brother. It felt intimate and right. “You’re an evil woman, Rina.”

She ran her index finger over his cock from the base all the way up to the bulbous tip. “Not so evil,” she protested.

“Completely.” He sucked in a breath when she wrapped her hand around him. “But I’m not complaining.”

“Hmm.” She loved the hard, slick feel of him. His shaft was hot and pulsing with life. He was broad and thick and her pussy clutched in response.

He sniffed the air and then growled. She knew he could scent her arousal in spite of the water cascading over them. “Rina, baby, I don’t want you to hurt yourself. You’re still recovering from a serious injury.”

She was finding it harder to stand, even leaning against the wall, but she didn’t want to stop. “Then take me to bed.” That would solve the problem of her having to stand.

His nostrils flared and his pupils dilated. She thought for a second he’d toss her over his shoulder and drag her off to bed. But this was Sage. While he might do that if she was well, he never forgot for one second she’d been injured.

He turned off the water. Several drops dripped from the showerhead before everything went quiet. Sage grabbed a towel and carefully rubbed it over her body. The slight friction of the cotton caressing her nipples made her groan. The tips of her breasts tightened into hard kernels beneath his touch.

Sage worked fast but carefully. He dried her arms and legs, rubbed the towel over her stomach and lower back before tenderly patting the area around the wound.

Then he quickly dragged the damp towel over his body and tossed it aside.

His breathing was harsh but his hands were gentle as he lifted her and carried her back to his bed. “I should change the sheets.”

Rina shook his head. “Just pull up the covers. We don’t need fresh sheets.”

The growl rising up from deep inside him was almost like a purr. It was continuous. He reached down with one hand and yanked the sheet up. Then he deposited her in the center of the bed.

“Are you sure?” Every muscle in his body was taut and his eyes practically glowed. His cock was hard with arousal, and yet he was still more concerned about her.

“I’m very sure.” She might have died. If the gunshot had hit her heart instead of her shoulder, no way could her body have regenerated in time to stop her from bleeding out. She was a werewolf, but she wasn’t immortal. As it was, she’d lost sufficient blood and been injured enough that her attacker might have been able to capture her before she’d recovered enough to fight. Who knows what might have happened after that.

She needed to touch Sage and to be touched by him. To reclaim what was important in her life. To feel cared for and loved. The word scared her, but she wanted him to love her.

She might not be able to return the words yet, but she wanted to show him how much she cared. That much she could do.

Sage knelt on the bottom of the bed. His gaze never left hers as he slid his big hands up her inner thighs and parted her legs. His nostrils flared, and she knew he was scenting her arousal. It was impossible to hide it, and she didn’t want to.

She was alive and with Sage. Nothing else was important at this moment.

“I want to touch you.” He ran his hands up and down her thighs. “Taste you.” He leaned down and lapped his tongue over her labia. She pulled her legs up and moaned. “Smell you.” He inhaled deeply.

He smiled at her then and it turned her heart to mush. “Don’t forget your brother is sleeping on the sofa. You have to be quiet.”

She’d forgotten about that. Yes, there was soundproofing in the walls and Sage’s bedroom was on the opposite side of the house from the living room, but the patio door was open with only the screen in place. She knew most, if not all of the window were open.

“Maybe we—” Before she could finish her thought, that maybe they shouldn’t do this, Sage buried his face between her spread thighs and proceeded to drive every thought out of her head.

He worked her with his lips and tongue, probing her slit before working his way up to her clit. Rina blindly reached out, grabbed a pillow and yanked it over her face to muffle her moans of pleasure.

He curled his tongue over the hard bundle of nerves at the apex of her thighs. He flicked it and lapped at it until she thought she might go mad. She thumped her feet against the mattress, sure she’d lose her mind if she didn’t come soon. She was wound tighter than a spring. Ready to explode.

She stilled and then moaned when Sage inserted two long fingers inside her. She arched up, and not even the twinge in her shoulder bothered her. Her legs shook and she yelled into the pillow as pure sensual sensation blinded her to all else.

Maybe it was because she could have died. Maybe it was because Sage had told her he loved her. Whatever the reason, her orgasm was off the charts.

He kept moving his fingers in and out, mimicking the sex act. All the while, he licked and sucked at her core, making low moans of pleasure. When he finally raised his head, she lowered the pillow enough to watch him lick his lips. She groaned again and slammed the pillow back over her face.

Sage chuckled and tugged it away from her. “You don’t need that. Not anymore.”