***
When I came in from work, Liv was fixing dinner, standing over the stove. She stiffened when she saw me, though this time not because of anything I had done.
“How are things at Town Hall?” she asked. I knew what she was really asking:Was there any news on Azaret?
“We’re still doing research,” I said, answering the unasked question. “We’re trying to figure out contingency plans as well, in case he or the wraith decides to come strolling back into town. Emma and Rachel are rebuilding the wards, just togive us a bit of extra protection. It’ll buy us a bit of time the next time Azaret tries to break through.”
She nodded, her normally sunny demeanor hidden behind her anxious expression. I hadn’t forgotten the concern and worry I had felt through the mating bond during the fight. I had hated knowing she felt that way, even as I had forced myself to continue fighting. The thought that something could make someone so sunny and bright worry sent ripples of rage through me. I hated the idea that she would ever feel that way.
You made her feel that way once,a voice whispered.
I ignored it. Whether that was the truth or not, thinking about it wasn’t going to do anyone any favors. And I had more pressing things that I needed to discuss.
“There was something I wanted to talk to you about, actually,” I muttered.
She raised an eyebrow and waited.
“I wanted to ask if you would rather go somewhere else until all this blows over.”
Liv frowned, brow furrowed as she stared at me like I had corn for ears. “What are you talking about?”
“We’re talking about evacuating the women and children,” I said. “I think it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world if you considered going with them.”
“Like hell.” Liv dropped her book on the table and pushed herself to her feet as she scowled at me. “I’m not going anywhere.”
The conviction and borderline vitriol that reverberated through the words took me by surprise. I blinked, tilting my head as I took in her set jaw, her folded arms, the burning intensity in her eyes.
“Liv, it’s going to be dangerous,” I said. “We don’t know when Azaret or the wraith might strike again.”
“And the last time that demon attacked, I had to sit at home for an hour agonizing whether or not I was going to feel the mating bond cut off. If I have to do that somewhere further away, I’ll feel like I’m going to lose my mind.”
I walked over to stand in front of her. Her scent, something enticing and tropical, wafted toward me as I neared. She looked up at me through her eyelashes, her features set in determination.
“And if I told you that it would put me more at ease?” I asked.
Her lips thinned, and she folded her arms. “Then I would tell you, ‘Tough.’ I’m not leaving you here to deal with this on your own, no matter what.”
Her eyes were like fire, her voice a snarl. It was so easy to see just her typically cheerful demeanor and forget that, at heart, she was a wolf, a member of the pack. I gave a half-snort. Without realizing I was planning on doing it, I stepped forward, closing the gap between us. My hand went to the back of her neck, thumb stroking up and down. She leaned into my touch, pressing against me as she looked up at me through her eyelashes. Her breath hitched a little, the movement pressing her breasts against me for the briefest of moments. She didn’t go motionless, but everything about her body seemed to scream anticipation, as if she was waiting to see what I was going to do next.
“You’re an enigma to me sometimes, you know that?” I muttered.
She cracked a half-smirk that gave her entire face a shrewdness that drove my wolf wild, and I felt that tug toward her deepening, intensifying.
“That’s a good thing, if you ask me,” she said. “Enigmas are far more interesting than knowing exactly what you’re going to get all the time.”
My wolf snarled in want, going out of his mind being this close to Liv. I knew I was treading into dangerous waters, but I was tired of trying to hold myself back around her. I needed her, and I was tired of trying to restrain myself.
Hesitation flickered across her gaze, even as she took another step closer until all it would take was a small shift of one of our bodies for us to touch. She bit her lip, and I could tell she was debating whether to take a step back or lean further into the touch.
My wolf growled, wanting to press her against the wall, to close that gap before she could do anything to stop me and claim her. I wanted her. I was tired of holding that back. At the moment, I couldn’t figure out why I had bothered holding back in the first place.
“You need to tell me to step away right now if you don’t want me to do anything,” I growled. “Because I don’t know how much longer I can hold myself back.”
She swallowed, her breath hitching. I noticed the way it made her breasts heave, and it only made me want her more.
“I’m not stopping you,” she muttered.
That need for her reached a crescendo, and I couldn’t take it anymore. My lips pressed against hers as I succumbed to urges that I had held at bay for years.
