A Wolf's Pride (18 page)

“
What’s this?”
Chloe demanded the instant they were inside and the door closed
behind them.

“
This is my
garden. No one is allowed in here without my permission so it
should be alright for us to talk. No one will bother us, not even
Ryan can get in here.”

“
That isn’t
what I meant. It’s fall. These plants should be dead. If I didn’t
know better I’d think it was the middle of summer.”

“
I’m not
exactly normal,” Alex began cryptically. “I sort of happen to be a
witch. My talent lies with plants and wildlife.” Her grip on
Chloe’s wrist tightened as she pulled her to the ground to sit
beside her. The grass beneath her immediately began to grow,
providing her with a cushion from the hard earth. “I wouldn’t worry
about it,” Alex shrugged.

Watching the
unnatural growth of plants around them Chloe forced herself not to
scream. Alex seemed to be her only other ally in this strange place
aside from Ryan and she didn’t want to alienate her in case she was
eventually willing to help her escape. “Right…”

“
Think of it
this way,” Alex began cheerfully. “I’m a lot more effective than
bug spray. I’m not the biggest fan of certain types of insect
either. I understand that they’re natural and help keep my garden
healthy but it doesn’t mean I have to like them.” It was only then
that Chloe noticed that the area they were sitting in was
blissfully insect free and she laughed at Alex’s description of
herself. “Enough about me, I brought you here so we could discuss
the Ryan situation.”

“
Are you going
to help me escape?”

“
No. You’re
staying here, there’s nothing I can or will do about that. I
brought you here so that we could talk about you becoming more
accepting of that fact.”

“
Ryan kidnapped
me, there’s no way I can get comfortable with the
situation.”

“
Tell me, if he
hadn’t done that, if you’d met under normal circumstances, would
you consider a relationship with him?”

Her
treacherous mind instantly brought forth memories of his intense
brown eyes, the feel of his lips against her own, his long warm
fingers stroking the inside of her thighs and Chloe moaned
aloud.

“
I’m going to
take that as a yes then,” Alex laughed.

Forcing her
mind away from the arousing images, Chloe snapped, “That’s beside
the point. He kidnapped me, wishing it was different isn’t going to
change that fact.”

“
Chloe I know
that they’re your family but you have to understand that they’re
out to kill us. If Ryan had stayed and tried to get to know you in
the normal way they would have tried to kill him. He didn’t have
any other choice but to bring you here. I know it’s going to take
some getting used to but you have to understand that the man is
already half in love with you. Being mated is an amazing thing. I
love Tobias more than anything, more than my next breath and he
feels the same way about me. If you’d only give him a chance Ryan
would make you the happiest woman alive. Well the second happiest,”
she chuckled. “I think I’m first.”

“
I’m sorry Alex
but I can’t forget that I’m trapped here. I can’t leave and that
puts a fairly large dampener on my willingness to give him a
chance.”

“
If he knew
that you wouldn’t run away, you’d be free to go wherever you liked.
He’s a little anxious at the moment. Please Chloe, give him a
chance. There’s nothing he wouldn’t do for you.”

“
Aside from
letting me go home and be with my family.”

“
Yes.”

“
And what if
that’s all I want?”

“
Then I’m sure
one day he’ll let you go to them. Maybe once they’ve been persuaded
not to cut his head off. Chloe, the fact of the matter is that Ryan
isn’t going to let you leave here. No one knows where you are so it
isn’t as though you should expect anyone to come looking for you.
From what Sebastian told me, he pretty much arranged it to look
like you had just chosen to move away. You can be happy here; all
you have to do is try. Ryan will never hurt you, he’ll do
everything in his power to make you happy that’s more than some
people ever hope to get.” She stood up, deciding to leave Chloe
alone with her thoughts. She had tried her best all they could do
now was see if Chloe was willing to listen to her words. “I’ll
leave you alone now. You can stay in here as long as you like, I’ll
tell the guards that no one is allowed in. Will you at least
consider what I’ve said?”

Chloe nodded
more confused now than she had been mere moments ago and watched as
Alex left the green space.
Alex is right,
no one is going to come looking for me. My family might not even
notice I’m missing until I don’t show up to cook them breakfast on
Sunday. I’m not going to be able to just walk out of here either.
If things had been different and Ryan had shown an interest in me
before this would I’ve taken him up on it? Without a second
thought.
Her mind answered enthusiastically
leaving her with the question,
Should I
give him a chance? Should I even be considering giving him a chance
after all that he’s done?
Chloe groaned. It
was going to be a long day.

Chapter
Fifteen

Over the
course of his long life Ryan had been called many things; wilful,
stubborn, overly proud just to name a few but as he prowled the
halls only one seemed appropriate. Angry. He had gone beyond mere
annoyance, he was fuming and it showed. His nails were claws, his
teeth fangs, his eyes the feral amber that warned others of the
danger they were in should they approach him. Needless to say the
meeting hadn’t gone well. The support he’d received from each
member of his family had been more than he had expected, even
Sebastian had said that Chloe staying with him was for the best.
His brother’s support meant the most to him and the few words
Sebastian had spoken before leaving to find Erica had warmed his
heart. When he had called the meeting he hadn’t known what to
expect but it certainly wasn’t calls for his mate’s demise. The
instant he had heard Anna suggest that they ‘dispose’ of his mate
his blood had run cold. The urge to cause harm to those clan
leaders that had supported the idea had ridden him hard. He had
displayed remarkable self-restraint considering what had been said.
There were no dead bodies littering the halls, no blood on the
walls, though if they attempted to act on their words he didn’t
doubt that there would be.

His state of
anger had merged his mind with that of his wolf and he found
himself unconsciously seeking the relief that only his mate’s
presence could provide. He scented the air as he walked determined
to find Chloe, hold her close and reassure himself that no harm
would come to her so long as he lived. It wasn’t hard to locate
her, her unique strawberry scent was permanently engraved in his
mind.
I wonder if she tastes as good as
she smells,
he mused, slightly pacified by
the new turn his mind had taken. His mind was flooded with images
of Chloe laying against his sheets as he ran a strawberry up her
exposed thigh, his tongue following the sweet trail in steady
dedication.
She probably tastes even
better,
he decided, moving along the hall
and closing in on his mate. The sight that awaited him when he
finally found her killed his good mood even swifter than it had
come.

The heart
stopping scent of Chloe’s fear filled the hall and how he had
failed to notice it as he had approached he didn’t know. What he
knew now however, was that the man that was trapping his mate
against a wall with his much larger body had all but asked for the
beating he would be receiving. Now that he was aware of the
situation rather being trapped in his own thoughts he could hear
the words that were being spoke and they only served to further
infuriate him.

“
You shouldn’t
be here hunter. I don’t know how you managed to convince Lord Ryan
that you’re his mate but I’ll see to it that he doesn’t have to
worry about your deception anymore.”

“
I didn’t do
anything to encourage him, I swear. If he’d let me, I’d leave right
now. As you don’t want me here, will you help me
escape?”

“
So you can
bring more hunters back to our door? I would see you dead
first.”

Chloe inhaled
sharply and it was the final straw for Ryan. He sped forward and
pulled the man away from her trembling body throwing him carelessly
against a stone wall. “Chloe stays with me,” he snarled turning
towards the man lying against the floor. “You will never come near
her again.” He began approaching the fallen guard, amber filling
his eyes once again as he clenched his fists reflexively uncaring
of the blood that was now pouring from the wounds his claws were
creating in his palms. “I should kill you where you lay. Should?”
he mused turning to take in Chloe’s unnaturally pale face. His eyes
hardened as they took in the stark bruising on her arms. “I’m going
to kill you. You scared my mate, hurt her, you deserve nothing
else.” He knelt at the man’s side, running the sharp edges of his
claws against his throat. Smiling as a thin trail of blood followed
in his claws’ wake, Ryan was surprised to feel Chloe’s warm hands
on him, restraining him from inflicting further damage. “Chloe,
love, what are you doing?”

“
Don’t do this,
please. Let’s just go. I don’t really understand what’s going on
but everyone here seems to have genuine grievances against me. I
saw Erica earlier and she was terrified of me. The man that you’re
threatening said that he just barely escaped, he has a right to his
anger.”

“
He might have
a right to be angry, what he doesn’t have is a right to lay his
hands on you. No one does. You’re my mate Chloe, I can’t let
anything happen to you. I don’t think that I could go on if you
were seriously hurt.”

It was hard
for Chloe to keep looking at him. The words he had spoken were
intense and the expression on his face matched the emotions
exactly. Never had a man exposed himself so completely to her but
here Ryan was, baring his soul for her to see and the gesture
touched her deeply. She leant forward inexplicably drawn to him and
lightly caressed the side of his face. His eyes slid shut as though
to better savour the feel of her skin against his and despite all
reasoning to the contrary, Chloe felt herself begin to soften
towards the man that had brought her to this strange place. “I’m
sure he’s sorry Ryan, there’s no need to kill anyone. Killing
people is wrong. Don’t tell me you brought me here to be mated to a
murderer,” she laughed.

The sound
whispered along his skin and every nerve within him came to life at
the all too brief chortle. His eyes flashed open to take in the
sight and his heart twisted at the sight of her smile, it was just
like her, beautiful.
If only you knew the
things I’m prepared to do for you,
he
mused.
But you don’t need to know. You
don’t need to be exposed to the darker side of my nature,
especially not now when we’re just starting our
relationship.

It isn’t
lying,
his wolf agreed.
More like selective learning. Our mate doesn’t need to be any
more frightened than she already is, if telling her would upset her
then don’t say anything.

There’s no
need to tell me, I already know.
“Because
she’s asked me to, I’ll spare your life for now. I want you to
remember that should you ever get the urge to come near her again.
Tell everyone you know of her kindness. She isn’t a hunter, she’s
my mate and should you try to hurt her again, nothing she says will
save you. Am I clear?” The man nodded and Ryan rose to his feet,
taking Chloe’s hand within his own and walking away from the scene.
Pulling her along the halls, he guided her to a large balcony that
overlooked the vast land that surrounded the estate. As soon as
they stopped he pulled her against him, holding her close and
breathing her scent deeply to reassure himself that she hadn’t in
fact come to any serious harm. He pushed her away to take in the
finger shaped bruises that had formed on her skin.

“
I’m sorry,” he
whispered, his fingers ghosting over the marks. “I shouldn’t have
let you leave me without providing you with trusted
protection.”

“
I don’t think
I could trust any of the werewolves here,” she sighed remembering
the wild look in the guard’s eyes as he had towered over her,
threats pouring from his lips.

“
Does that
include me?”

He sounded
hurt and Chloe didn’t know how to respond to his question. By every
law of reason she shouldn’t trust the man in front of her, he had
kidnapped her and brought her to this dangerous place. Despite that
she couldn’t help but feel inclined to trust what he said, no one
had ever treated her the way he had, as though she was the most
important person in his life. In spite of his high handed methods
she couldn’t help but feel treasured, he had offered to give up his
family for her, defended her at every turn. His willingness to kill
for what amounted to a simple bruise was a bit extreme but she
could appreciate the thought behind the gesture. “I trust you not
to hurt me,” she conceded finally. “Only you.”

He smiled and
she felt a curious shift in the region of her heart, a simple smile
shouldn’t have affected her to such an extent but it did. What she
felt in his presence wasn’t normal but the feelings were undeniable
regardless of the circumstances.