“No, I’m fine,” Damien said. He walked to the hotel door.
“Are you sure?” Jordan asked.
“Yeah, I had something to eat earlier,” Damien said.
“No, I mean, are you sure about this?” Jordan said. “Staying here. Staying on that property.”
“Yes,” Damien said, and as soon as he answered he knew that it was the right answer.
“And the girl?”
“We’ll figure it out,” Damien said. “Don’t worry.” He closed the door behind him before Jordan could object again.
Damien walked across the parking lot and stood at the edge of the woods, waiting. In the darkness that had enveloped him for the past two years, he could replay the memories of what he’d seen back when he still had sight. Now, he remembered the last night before the fight that had taken his eyes and driven him away from his main pack.
The stars had been bright in the sky, the smell of the forest as sweet and cool as it was now. He remembered the pale white moon, and now as he stood by the trees he lifted his head and held the memory in his mind so that he could almost see the bright circle above him.
A smell brought him back to the present. Katherine, her sweet musk on the air. Damien licked his finger to test the light breeze. They must be upwind of him. He could hear both of them now, their paws crunching the branches and pine needles underneath, their laughter lilting on the wind, carried to his ears.
They stopped well before reaching him, and Damien tensed, thinking that something had happened. The sounds that came to him were of a scuffle, perhaps a fight, but there were no yelps or growls to indicate anything amiss.
Then he heard Katherine’s low whine, the whine of a female in heat desiring the attention of a male. Kyle yipped and whined back, and Damien could almost see in his mind their rough, flirtatious play. He froze, unsure of what to do. A week before, he’d have had to challenge Kyle and fight the young wolf, but now there was a lot more at play.
A lot more. Even though he didn’t want Katherine as a mate, this flirtatious behavior insulted his status as alpha male, even in as straggling a pack as his was. He thought a moment before calling out in their direction.
“Katherine! Kyle!”
He immediately heard their play stop, their voices silenced. He waited. They might run now, leave the pack. It was up to them.
He heard their footsteps growing louder. They slunk out of the trees and shifted back into human form. Damien could hear Katherine’s breath coming fast, and Kyle’s heart pounding.
“Hello, Damien,” Kyle said.
“Hello,” Damien said, too casually. “How was the scouting?”
“We didn’t find anything.”
“No other wolves? No wolf scent?”
“Nothing.” Kyle shifted his weight from one foot to another. Damien could smell the tension coming off of him.
“What about you, Katherine?” Damien asked, his voice rising in a lilting tease. “Did you smell any other wolves out there?”
Katherine was silent for a moment.
“Well?” Damien said. “No other handsome wolves out in the woods?”
“Stop playing games and come out with it,” Katherine said, her voice quavering. “You know what we were doing. Damien—”
“I’ll fight you for her,” Kyle said suddenly.
Damien smiled.
“Is this what you want, Katherine?” he asked.
“I don’t—I don’t want you to fight,” she whispered.
“Katherine, I love you,” Kyle said.
“You could die!” Katherine said. “Either one of you could die!”
“I’ll still fight,” Kyle said. He stepped forward in front of Katherine.
“Brave wolf,” Damien said. He pressed his lips together.
“I’m sorry, Damien,” Katherine said. “I know I’m promised to you. I’m sorry. I’ll leave the pack. I’ll stay. Whatever you want. Just don’t fight him. Please don’t.” She ran and knelt in front of Damien, pressing her face to his knees in a posture of submission. “Please, please.”
A growl came from Kyle’s throat, and Damien raised his hand.
“Don’t, boy,” he said. “Katherine is right. This will only end badly.”
“You can’t have her,” Kyle said, but his voice was uncertain.
Damien reached down and took Katherine’s hand, pulling her to her feet. She stood in front of him bravely, although he could feel her fingers trembling in his hand. He leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the forehead.
“You’re more loyal than he is,” Damien said. “But you feel the Calling too, don’t you?”
Katherine nodded, a sob escaping her throat.
“You both feel it?” The question was directed at Kyle.
“Y-yes,” Kyle said. “Ever since she became ready to mate. I didn’t want to tell you because I know—”
“It’s alright,” Damien said kindly. “I won’t fight you. You’re not ready for that yet. And the past few days have seen too much blood on my hands already.”
“Will we...will we have to leave the pack?” Katherine asked, choking back her tears.
Damien reached out and wiped the tears from her cheek gently.
“No,” he said. “You shouldn’t go.”
“I won’t leave her,” Kyle said.
“You don’t have to,” Damien said, clearing his throat. “Lucky for you, I’ve found my mate as well.”
“Who?” Katherine asked. “Not—the girl at the lake?”
Damien nodded.
“So you’ll let me stay with Katherine?” Kyle asked. All of the fight had gone out of his voice, and he stepped forward meekly.
“You have my blessing,” Damien said, waiting while Katherine threw herself into Kyle’s embrace. Then he spoke louder and more firmly. “But if you disobey me again, fur will fly. Make no mistake.”
“Yes, sir,” Kyle said.
“We have a lot to do in the coming weeks,” Damien said. “I’ve bought a place here and we’ll need to make it livable. You two won’t let your love get in the way of work, I hope.”
“No, of course not,” Katherine said, breathless with happiness. Damien could hear the smile in her voice, and he had to struggle not to grin himself. Young love was wonderful to behold.
“Then take the rest of the night off,” Damien said. “We start settling down tomorrow.”
Before they could say anything else, he turned and walked back toward the hotel parking lot. Tomorrow he would begin his life with Julia. His mate, his one true love. He couldn’t wait.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Julia
The next morning Julia spent an extra ten minutes putting on a dress and tying her hair back, trying to tame the frizz. Granny Dee caught her for breakfast with the guests, and by the time she had extricated herself from the dining room table and gone out to the field, Damien was waiting for her. She didn't see him until she was close, and when she caught the sight of his figure leaning against the tree, she started back with a gasp.
"If this shape frightens you now, I don't know what you'll do when I have to shift," Damien said with a grin, his glasses masking his eyes. Julia ran the few steps to him and threw her arms around his neck. He caught her up in a hug, swinging her around before setting her gently back on the ground. She laughed with happiness, something she hadn't done in a long, long while.
"You'd better be careful," Damien said, pulling back with a wary expression.
"Oh?" Julia said, arching her eyebrow. "Why's that?"
"A beautiful young girl out alone in the middle of the forest..." Damien said. He brought his hands up and cupped her cheeks, framing her face. Julia's lips turned up in a half-smile.
"Dangerous for me to be out here, is it?" she said.
"So far away from grandmother's house?" Damien said, in mock solemnity. "Why, who knows what kinds of creatures you might encounter in the woods?"
He let his hands drop to her waist, and Julia let out a gasp as he pulled her close into a kiss. Her hands came up to his shoulders, but she didn't want to push him away.
"You mean a creature like you?" Julia asked. "I think I can handle that."
"Really?" Damien teased. "You're not afraid of the big bad wolf?"
"Oh my," Julia said, playing along, "what large arms you have!" Her hands smoothed the fabric over his muscles. His skin was emanating heat and her body instinctively drew closer to him.
"All the better to hold you with, my dear," Damien said, pulling her against his chest. He grinned, his teeth gleaming in the light of dawn.
"What great white teeth you have!" Julia said, tilting her head back.
"The better to nibble you with, my dear," Damien said, pretending to snap at her neck. Julia held up her hands in mock surrender, looking up into his face. She reached up and took off his glasses. In the light of day his eyes did not glow nearly as much, but the power and sheer lust in their golden hue still made her shudder in delight.
"What big eyes..." Julia said, her voice fading as he lifted his sightless gaze to her. There was a depth to his eyes that she had never seen in anyone else before, and because he was blind she was unafraid to stare deeply into them.
"I only wish they could see your beautiful face," Damien said, lowering his lips to hers as he spoke. Julia inhaled sharply as he pressed his mouth down, and she felt the tip of his tongue trace its way along her lower lip, sending crackling fires along her body.
"Mmmm," she murmured. Her body was responding to the pressure in a way she hadn't ever experienced. She pulled him towards her, raking her fingers across his back.
"So you've decided not to send me away, then?" Damien said, laughing into the kiss. Julia cupped her hand around his neck and brought him back into the embrace with a ferocity she herself could not explain. It had begun as an innocent attraction, but the lingering traces of her anger and hurt had been turned into something else. Desire ignited into lust, and she felt the flames of it radiating out from the center of her body. Was it his desire or hers, or both of theirs? She could not tell.
He kissed her ferociously, his lips moving down her neck to her collarbone, then her br**sts. He paused when he reached the soft curve of her cl**vage, but she twined her fingers into his hair and pressed him against her, pulling down her dress to give him free access. Her eyes flickered back to the house, but no, they were protected from sight by the trees. She had no intention of stopping. Not now.
His tongue traced the outside edge of her breast, circling closer to her areola. She brushed his dark hair back from his face to see him better, his smooth skin against hers in the fresh light of day.
When she first saw him, she knew he was different from any of the other boys she had seen wandering through the college library. Now, as he lavished his attentions on her, she understood what it was. Where some men would be shy or overly brash, Damien was instead quietly confident. He asked permission and took it with every touch of his fingers on her skin, and she felt possessed completely when his hands cradled her curves and brought her to him.