Page 69 of The Mating Frenzy
Kieran knelt next to her, pushing a hand through her hair, his touch reassuring and soothing. “That’s my practical Ella. Always questioning. It isreal.”
“But…”
“You are no ordinary Lupine, sweetheart. You’re a werewolf of the Wyld, with powers you can only fathom. Yes, you can talk in wolfform.”
Her voice cracked. “I feel so alone, so empty. There’s no one else like me? I don’t fit in. I feel so lost, so cut off from everything Iknow.”
Nothing would ever be the same again. Her ordinary world had vanished, from the moment she’d seen Kieran standing naked on the grounds of the condominium complex. And yet Kieran seemed the only solid, strong anchor in this topsy-turvy whirlwind that was her lifenow.
Her parents had insisted magick did not exist. She knew otherwise. They’d lied to her. Everything she’d known that had been her anchor in a rock steady world had shattered. But Kieran, with his courage and his fiercely protective nature, was her anchornow.
His arms went around her, holding her close. “Then let me make it bearable for you. You are not lost, Ella-mine. I’m here with you, and I will not abandon you now. I understand what it feels like when everything changes and you’re facing a scary, unknownfuture.”
Ella’s heart thumped harder at his warm, comforting touch. Reassuring, and firing all her senses. She wanted more. “How did you handle it, Kieran? Anyadvice?”
He nuzzled her neck. “Trust yourself, Ella. Trust your instincts. Your wolf will help you. It is a struggle, maintaining a balance between the beast and the human. You will find that balance, learn control. When it feels as if the entire world has betrayed you and you can’t trust anyone, trust yourself. You are a strong, independent woman. You can dothis.”
His absolute confidence in her abilities buoyed her. Maybe this was the adventure and the invitation to a new life she’d needed. “I want to trust you, Kieran. You’re the only one I believe I can trust rightnow.”
“You can,” he said softly. “I will not hurtyou.”
Ella felt as if she could. Kieran was a constant, her newanchor.
“Whatnow?”
He smiled. “Shift again, and run with the moon. It is within you, sweetheart. I will run with you. Trust your wolf. She needs you as much as you needher.”
They shifted, running across the dew-laden grass. Never had she felt so wild and free. Ella surrendered herself to the beast, letting her wolf’s senses take over. She felt wetness beneath her paws, inhaled the sharp scent of loamy earth and dank bark from the forest, the smell of fear from small creatures hiding in the woods, knowing the beasts ranwild.
At the edge of the forest, Kieran stopped,panting.
Ella turned her head, her wolf scenting the smell of musk and sex andmating.
In a little clearing nearby, a couple was mating fast and furiously in Skin form. The man had the woman against a tree, bent over, and thrust deep into her. Her excited cries accompanied his deep grunts as he moved againsther.
The jaguar snarled and turnedaround.
Then they sped off again, stopping as they saw Adrian confronting Darcy. Both in human form. Both naked. Adrian’s penis was quite erect, indicating what hewanted.
The alpha crooked a finger at Darcy. “It’s time to give me what is mine,sweetheart.”
“In your dreams, chum,” Darcy snapped. “We are not havingsex.”
“You would have no complaints. No reason to leave my bed. You’re mine,Darcy.”
Adrian stalked toward Darcy. She snarled at him. “Back off. I’m not yours. Never will be. I’m notstaying.”
But the alpha looked smug. He snapped hisfingers.
The same butler who had greeted them at the door came forward, carrying a leather case Ella recognized as belonging to Darcy. Ella’s heart sank as Adrian removed a round ruby crystal the size of a softball from the bag. “You stole this, Darcy,” he said softly. “Punishment is mine to dispense as Iplease.”
Panic touched Darcy’s expression. “I was merely borrowingit.”
“Withoutpermission.”
Ella had to say something. This was her fault, and she would not allow Darcy to take the blame. “She took the crystal so we could find something, Adrian. I asked her to borrowit.”
The alpha shook his head. “I would have aided her, but since she stole it, and made contact with the crystal with her skin, it’s useless. It gives visions to only the holder - myself. Now the magick is ruined because Darcy touchedit.”
