Page 3 of Forbidden Wolf

So why wasn’t I terrified of Levi the way I’d been with those other wolves? Why did sitting here with him bring me comfort? I blamed my confusion on the venom poisoning me.

His chest expanded as he took a deep breath. “I was supposed to join the army this year. Dad said I needed to improve my hunting skills, so I’ve been spending time in the forest alone to hone my abilities.”

He chatted as if we had all the time in the world to talk about life in general.

I tried to join him in the pretence. “I was just exploring the forest as I’ve done for the past few weeks since I arrived here after college finished.”

If I’d been a bookworm like my sister, I would have been curled up in a corner somewhere reading the latest romance book to arrive at the facility. Vampires were built for speed and stealth, but we definitely seemed to be lacking when it came to romantic genes. My friends at college selected their boyfriends on their abilities, not their attraction to them. They had sex because it was expected that we should produce as many offspring as possible. We learnt to supress our emotions from an early age.

In the army, my biggest fear wasn’t dying in battle. My fate loomed ahead of being added to the breeding programme and assigned an anonymous partner depending on each of our abilities. The thought turned my stomach. It was how my parents met. They stayed together because it suited them, but there was no love involved in their marriage. We were rarely all together as a family.

“What’s it like being a wolf?” I asked, my head falling onto his shoulder because it took too much effort to hold it up. I shouldn’t feel this comfortable with a wolf, but for the first time in forever, I felt at peace. Maybe vampires and lycans were friends before the great war started and brought each other comfort.

“At times, my wolf’s quiet, but I always know that he’s there. When he emerges, then everything is so much more vibrant and alive.”

“Sounds weird.”

He chuckled, and it washed over me like smooth chocolate on my tongue. “What’s it like being a vamp?”

I shrugged. “I only have one form. Some of the older vampires have developed gifts over the years depending on their bloodline. I’m nothing special.”

My voice sounded wishful even to my own ears, as if I wanted to be special. All I’d ever wanted was to blend into the background. Vampires who exhibited unusual gifts were taken away from everyone and sent to our coven leader. Mother made sure when I started to show my ability to tune into all the different species around me that I knew never to show it. She taught me to blend in, to become invisible to those around me. To hide in plain sight.

“Why’s your wolf black?”

He slid me a side-eyed look. “Our colour is linked to our abilities. Mine means that people tend to leave me alone.”

My mouth opened in an ‘O’, but I didn’t push my curiosity any further. Maybe he did possess magic and that was why my eyes kept falling to his full sensual lips. Normally I was timid around men, but obviously dying had eradicated those barriers since I snuggled closer to him.

“Levi?”

“Yeah?”

“I don’t want to die.” My mouth was so dry my tongue felt like it would crack, and my head was throbbing with my pulse pounding in my ears. I desperately wanted to cry, but even my tears were no longer working.

“Me neither,” he replied softly, his fingertips finding mine.

None of the boys at college created sensations like this. We were stuck in a cave and dying from each other’s bite, but there was something about Levi that brought safety. I didn’t feel safe even in the facility, going to hunt for scraps of food after everyone had left, jumping out the door as soon as it opened, and staying away until the first rays of sun breached the horizon.

Sitting here, I admitted to myself that I had never really fitted in with the rest of my coven. Mother had been the same way. I often wondered what she really did in that super-secret research facility far from prying eyes. Right now, I needed her here with me.

Another wave of nausea engulfed me, and my vision became so blurred I could barely see the hand I held in front of my face.

“Levi?”

“Yeah?”

“I can’t see, and my arm has gone numb.” Fear gnawed deep inside me like a hungry beast trying to claw its way free.

“Me too, sweetheart.”

My fingers threaded through his because I needed some form of contact right now. Levi was the only one who could provide that. I trembled as another wave of pain and nausea crested over me. He shifted us until I was curled on my side with him wrapped around me, my back to his chest. I clung to his right arm, my head resting on his left arm. He tucked his head into where my right shoulder met my neck, his hair tickling my face.

“In a different world, we could have been friends,” I muttered, all my senses starting to close down until there was nothing left but the two of us in this tiny cave.

“In a different world, we would probably have been lovers,” he replied, pressing a light kiss to my neck.

My first kiss, and just as I was about to trundle off this mortal existence. That was a depressing thought. Chewing the corner of my lip and summoning what was left of my courage, I turned my head toward him.

---