Page 36 of Moon Kissed

I took a step closer to the pit entrance, trying to calm myself down. I took a deep breath, preparing myself for what I might find.

Bad move. Pearl’s scent filled my nose and lungs. My control slipped just for a moment, but that was enough for my wolf to push me to the side. I lost my grip and couldn’t get it back before we dropped into the hole.

My knees bent, absorbing the impact. Two things happened a split second later. An oddly glowing white wolf stood opposite me with dark blue eyes. My gaze immediately dropped, unable to meet the other’s. Second was the air shifting like something was hurtling toward my head.

I swung my arm up in time to block a femur bone from cracking my skull open. The white wolf disappeared, making my wolf snarl viscously as the bone shattered against my skin.

Without a moment to recover, the blow was followed by a leg. I managed to block the kick and the punch that came after. Before my attacker could regroup, I stepped forward into the next hit.

A feminine gasp escaped from my attacker at my movement. My human side would have backed up at the sound, but my wolf side did not tolerate bullshit. His patience had run its course with me and our mate. He was going rogue, and there was nothing I could do to stop him.

She aimed a kick at me, but because of my proximity, it didn’t have much power. I easily blocked it and the fist that followed. I took another step forward, inwardly grinning at the grunt she let out.

My right hand found her throat while my body moved closer, caging her in. Her knee jerked upward, but I was so close that it couldn’t connect with its intended target.

I snarled, pressing closer, using my body to stop her attacks. My hand tightened on her throat, claws extending from my skin enough that she was aware that I held her life in my hand.

Finally, my wolf met her russet irises, daring her to submit.

That surprised me. As a dominant wolf, I expected the submission from wolves lower in rank. Pearl wasn’t lower than me, she was my mate, which meant we were even. Challenging her to submit was reverse psychology that I didn’t know my wolf understood.

Pearl met our stare, her jaw set and her lips pressed together. I could see the anger in her eyes, but underneath that, I saw her true feelings. She was determined to do anything she needed to do. She had a mission that I wasn’t privy too, and she’d fight her way out if she had to. She would hurt me.

My lips twitched as my wolf tried to smile, but it felt more like a creepy leer. I mentally facepalmed at my wolf’s poor attempt to control our human side. I tried to push in, but my wolf blocked me, unwilling to give up just yet.

Slowly, with measured movements, my wolf released her throat and moved our hand to the wall beside her head. We were extra aware that she was naked. The temptation to look was almost overwhelming.

Pearl’s jaw jutted forward in defiance that made me want to push her limits. How long would she fight? What limit did she have to reach before she snapped?

The thought of her fighting me, making me work for a place by her side, made my blood surge. My pants grew suddenly tighter, and my first instinct was to suppress my reaction, but my wolf had other ideas.

Instead of retreating, my wolf held his position. We watched Pearl’s eyes grew wider as she felt our arousal. Her eyes darkened, and we caught the faintest whiff from her. She was just as affected by us as we were by her.

I leaned down toward her throat, not expecting her to move. She stayed perfectly still. My chest rumbled appreciatively at her obedience. Once my nose was a millimeter away from the skin behind her ear, I paused. I breathed her in, reveling in the feel of her pressed against me. Her chest heaved as my breath fanned her throat, the smell of her growing stronger by the second.

My mouth started to water as the urge to bite her came over me. I wanted my mark on her neck telling the world that she was mine. For a moment, I wavered between biting her or stopping. I was so tired of waiting, but I knew that when she finally gave in, it would be a sweet victory.

I ground my teeth together, the internal battle one I had been fighting for years. My wolf knew that we couldn’t force our mate, but her resistance was wearing on us both. This needed to stop, and the first step was getting her safely out of here.

My arms dropped while my hands balled into fists. The urge to continue was strong, but I couldn’t allow it. Not yet.

I forced myself to take a step back, then another, our eyes never leaving our mate’s face. She stayed still, her back pressed against the wall, her chest heaving with her breathing. Her breasts rose and fell, threatening to put me into a trance. I mentally shook my head, fighting the hold that she didn’t know she had on me.

My wolf retreated, letting me regain control. I pushed forward, ready to apologize for my wolf’s behavior, but I bit my tongue. It had been a long time to hold a grudge, and it was time to talk so we could move forward.

My mind raced, coming up with so many different plans, but the best one was to simply let her leave. I had to trust that she would be able to get out the same way she got in.

I forced my shoulders to relax, though my instincts were screaming at me to grab her and lock her away somewhere. I swallowed, unsure what I should say or if I should say anything when I noticed the soft glow coming from her arm.

Reaching forward, I grabbed her wrist gently. She didn’t try to pull away, something in her eyes telling me that she wanted—no,neededme to see.

Silvery white swirls were imprinted on her skin, spanning from her wrist to her shoulder. The markings matched the color of her hair, and I just knew that it wasn’t a coincidence. The white wolf from earlier, the one with old eyes and an aura of power…

I didn’t know what any of this meant, but I wasn’t about to let her go without answers.

“Wait five minutes then leave,” I ordered, adding a tiny bit of power to my words so she would know I meant what I said. “I’ll find you later.”

With that final promise, I walked back to where the hole was and jumped out. I needed to find Ledger and Chord and steer them away from this area so Pearl could escape. As soon as this tour was over, I’d seek her out, and if she thought what had happened in the pit was bad, she had no idea what I was willing to do to keep her safe.

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