Page 12 of Marked By Moonlight
Growls shortly follow. I arch my head back, peering over the top of the small ridge I fell between, and see flashes of teeth and fur.
Kael.
Fuck, Kael is going to be hurt.He’s not ready to fight another wolf, especially not one as massive as this one. I’m guessing the midnight black wolf is an alpha, and a strong one at that. He’s far larger than my father, and his howl is louder, deeper, and fiercer.
“Stop!” I shout, my voice cracking, dry, and barely audible.
I scramble up as a high-pitched whining sound cuts through my heart.
Kael—no.
I’m on my feet, running toward the two wolves as if I’m strong enough to stop them. I have to be.
“Stop!” I shout again as the much bigger, black-haired wolf’s bite clamps down around Kael’s neck.
Kael whimpers; there’s no telling how much he’s hurt.
The wolf releases Kael. For a moment, I think Kael is going to run. He needs to get away from this wolf. We can’t both survive, but now that Kael can shift, he has to leave. Maybe now Kael has a chance at stopping the curse.
Kael takes a deep breath through his long snout, breathing in my scent. His head snaps to me, and he growls low and deep. The rumbling courses through me, and my legs freeze to the spot where I’m standing.
He thinks I’m prey.
“Kael, it’s me. It’s Lumi. Stop.”
He doesn’t hesitate. His front legs move toward me, eyes locked on me as he drops low like he’s ready to pounce.
“It’s Lumi. It’s your best friend.”
He leaps, and I squeeze my eyes shut again. I’m tackled to the ground as his incredible weight lands on me. I wait for my head to hit the ground, for the ripping and tearing of my body to begin. But one deep, commanding howl later, there is nothing.
I open my eyes. To my surprise, I’m staring into the same red eyes as before, but this time, they’re attached to a man. I study them closely, watching as the red fades and blackness engulfs them. Deep black hair sweeps across his forehead in long tendrils over flawlessly tanned skin. My eyes trail down his high cheekbones and over the dark five o’clock shadow of his sharp jawline.
He’s incredibly handsome. The way he’s staring at me so intensely makes me squirm beneath him. That’s when I realize how naked he is—so incredibly naked.
“I would stop doing that if I were you,” he says, his voice deep and growly.
I freeze. “Stop doing what? And why?”
“Squirming. You’re rubbing your hot body all over my naked one. I won’t be responsible for my actions if you keep doing that.”
I stop immediately and swallow the hard lump in my throat.Hot? Did he say I was hot?I must have imagined it.
Kael.
What happened to Kael? Where is he?
“Don’t worry, your boyfriend’s safe.”
This man is hot, yes, which causes my heart to do a little flip. But my stomach also grows uneasy with the fact that his naked body is still pressed against me. Something stirs inside my gut that tells me not to trust him. Even if he did save me, there is something off about this man.
“He’s not my boyfriend.”
He raises a cocky eyebrow, and a sinister smirk crosses his lips. “Interesting.”
“What’s interesting?”
“You; both of you.” He drags his eyes down what he can see of my body. It unsettles me, and I squirm, feeling his hardness press against my lower stomach.
