Page 48 of Blood and Magic
“I’ve got two pair,” Fenris said. “What about you, Mill?”
“Flush,” he said, smiling like the cat who’d absconded with the cream.
“Wow, you lucky son of a bitch.” Fenris shook his head and gathered the cards, glancing at me with squinted eyes and a smirk. “Can you believe this guy? Death, Texas Hold’em, nothing beats him. Practically fucking Rasputin.”
I sighed and held out a hand for Vermillion to take. “Good game.”
He glanced at it before meeting my gaze again, gingerly taking my palm. “Good game, Maeve.”
I tried to stand, deciding I wanted to join the guys in their sing-along, but Mill held on to my palm, placing his other one on top. He furrowed his brows like something was wrong.
“How are you feeling?”
“Tipsy,” I said. “And rowdy. Now, if you’ll excuse me.” I tugged away from him and grabbed a beer from the fridge before standing next to Poe, who sang the Garth Brooks song at the top of his lungs. My older brothers used to listen to this, so the lyrics came to me from the depths of my subconscious. Our voices were off-tune and our words slurred, but it was the lightest I’d felt in a long time.
Here, in this den of cow shit and testosterone, it didn’t matter what my last name was or where I grew up. It didn’t matter who I’d been the day before or who had run out of my bed in disgust. We had shared a bottle of liquor and alleviated our troubles in each other’s company, and wasn’t that the point? Whether we had friends in low places or no friends at all, we had this one moment, this one night, together.
Poe put his arm over my shoulder, and Columba held me around the waist, and together, in one drunken entourage, we sang our stupid little hearts out to an endless night sky.
CHAPTER 14
Vermillion
“You’ve got a problem,” Fenris said, nodding toward Maeve as she sang and swayed between Columba and Poe.
I nursed my beer. “Oh?”
“Oh’s right.” Fenris blew out a breath. “I could smell it the second I walked into the mansion.”
I cracked my neck and straightened my shoulders, pretending I didn’t know what he was talking about.
“She smells like shifter,” he continued. “She smells like you.”
Fuck.
I knew I released a bonding scent last night in her room, but I didn’t think it would have lasted this long. He, of course, was right. I smelled it from here.
“She’s got something carnal in her eyes.” He shook his head. “She’s close, brother. Real close.”
“I know.” I groaned and pinched the bridge of my nose before rubbing a hand over my face.
“Are you planning to?—”
The glare I gave him shut him up. I’d already promised Kodiak I would, and even if I hadn’t, my wolf wouldn’t let me leave her alone. He wanted to give her the magic in my body and watch her transition into what she was truly meant to be. A small part of me was concerned about this new thirst for her blood, but I prayed the transition magic would keep me in line and prevent me from doing anything stupid.
“If you don’t, you’ve got four other wolves here that will.”
A low growl rumbled from my chest, and my fangs extended, my inner beast surging to the forefront.
Fenris let out a loud, mocking laugh and grabbed my shoulder. “You can’t let her suffer alone. Poe went through the transition by himself. It nearly killed him, and he’s a dominant. A submissive little thing like Maeve?—”
“You think I don’t fucking know that?” I snarled and glared at my buddy, malice radiating from my pores.
Fenris put his hands out to either side in a gesture of peace. “Brother, I’m just saying.” He pointed to Maeve with his beer. “That female is exploding with pheromones. I can practically see it wafting off her. Those young shifters?” He blew out a teasing breath. “They’re very male, and it’s been a long three weeks up here on the ranch. The promise of a few days in a bed with her would make any of them feral.”
The image of Columba, Aquila, and Poe taking turns with her churned through my mind, and my heart pumped erratically, sending raging fury through my veins. Neither I nor my wolf could stand the thought of it. I wouldn’t let them touch her. I wouldn’t let them anywhere near her.
Her sweet floral scent drifted over to me, enchanting and enticing, making my mouth water and my fingers tingle for the feel of her soft delicate skin. Resisting the urge to sweep her up and take her back to her room nearly brought me to my knees.
