Davis, Liz - Under His Spell (Siren Publishing Classic) (8 page)

Expelling a humorless laugh, she replied, “Yeah, right. Somebody
forced
you to leave, right?”

“It wasn’t somebody but
something
.”

“Uh-huh, right. Listen, you’re talking in riddles, so I’d really appreciate it if you’d just stop wasting my time.” Lynn slipped the key into the lock and turned the knob to open the door.

Climbing the steps so that he could stand beside her, Takoda glanced down at her with a pleading expression in his eyes.

“Not until you let me explain. I promise that what I have to say is the complete truth. You just have to give me a chance.”

As she turned around to face him he saw that her eyes were moist with tears. Placing a thumb upon her cheek, he tenderly stroked it as he gazed into her eyes. “The last thing I ever wanted was to hurt you, Lynn. I care for you, can’t you see that? Please let me in so we can talk.”

“No.” Moving away from his touch she continued, “I already know that whatever you have to say to me is a lie, so you can just save your breath.”

She was going to turn around and go inside but the sound of desperation in his voice caused her to halt in place.

“Damn it, Lynn. Just let me come in so I can explain, okay? What I have to tell you is very important.”

“And why is that you can’t tell me out here?”

Releasing a sigh of exasperation, Takoda replied, “Because when I tell you, I really think that you need to be sitting down.”

She could see from the look in his eyes that he was serious, so she relented and opened the door.

“Fine, you have two minutes.” She walked through the door first and held it open for him to enter.

After shutting it behind him, she took a seat on the couch and crossed her arms defensively in front of her chest. Sitting on the couch next to her, Takoda turned his body so that they could make eye contact.

“The reason I left you that night was because I didn’t want you to see me. I transformed into something else, something different from this human form you see before you.”

Lynn remained silent, her brow slightly furrowing as her eyes nervously darted from his face to a point beyond his shoulder.

Takoda didn’t have to turn around and follow her gaze to know that she was glancing at the door, and he realized that the words he spoke to her must have injected her with fear. The last thing he’d wanted was to scare her, but he knew that there really wasn’t any other way to break this news to her.

“What I transformed into was a wolf, Lynn.”

As her eyebrows lifted, her mouth slightly parted. Silence passed between them for a few moments before she finally began to speak.

Releasing a choked laugh, she said, “A wolf? Takoda, are you kidding me?”

He shook his head, giving her a dead serious look. “I’m afraid not. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it’s the truth.”

“So what you’re trying to say is, the clock struck midnight, and you turned into a werewolf. Is that what you’re telling me? You have
got
to be kidding me.” The look she gave him was incredulous.

“No, Lynn, I am not a werewolf. I’m a shape-shifter.”

“A shape-shifter?” Lynn’s eyebrow went up. She didn’t know whether to believe him or not. A part of her wanted to, but then again, it sounded so far-fetched that it just couldn’t be true. This wasn’t a Hollywood movie they were living. It was real life. Things like this just didn’t exist in the real world.

“Yes. This means I can alter my physical appearance at any given moment. Now, usually I have complete and full control over it. But for some reason when I was with you that night, the transformation happened unwillingly. I had absolutely no power over it. I still don’t know why it happened so abruptly, but now you understand why I had to leave. If you’d woken up and seen me like that, you would have freaked. I just couldn’t let that happen.”

Running her fingers through her hair she softly uttered. “I don’t know what to say.”

“I know it’s hard to believe, but now that you’ve heard it I hope you understand.”

Shaking her head she replied, “No, I don’t. I don’t understand why you’re lying to me, and I don’t understand why you left me that night, but you know what, maybe it’s just something I’ll always have to wonder about. What I do know, however, is that what you just told me was completely ridiculous. I’m sorry, but I just can’t take anymore. I want you to go now.” Lynn stood up from the couch and made her way toward the front door.

“All right, Lynn, I’ll go. Before I do though, maybe you’ll want to tell me just where you think that mark on your shoulder came from. Who gave it to you, and why is it in the shape of a claw? If you can tell me all of that, then I’ll leave.”

Stunned into silence, Lynn halted her steps toward the door, turning on her heels to face him once again. Takoda clearly saw the uneasiness in her eyes and could tell she was wondering just how in the hell he’d known that information. The blouse she wore covered her shoulders completely, so there was no way he could have seen it.

Raising her hand up to her shirt, Lynn began to gently stroke the claw mark which was hidden beneath the fabric, “It was you that did this me?”

“Yes, Lynn, I gave you that mark. I didn’t mean to, though. I got carried away when we were having sex and I guess I went too far.”

“When we were having sex?” She shook her head. “No, it couldn’t have been. I would have felt it.”

“I don’t think you did. Whatever pain you felt, if there was any, was probably covered up in pleasure. I think it happened when we came. That orgasm we had together was very powerful. You do remember, don’t you?”

“Of course.” She felt herself grow a bit wet just from the thought of it, then quickly pushed the memory from her mind.” So why did you do it and what exactly does it mean? This will go away, won’t it?” She was still stroking at the hidden scar, her eyes glancing anxiously and fearfully at him.

Lynn walked back over to the couch and took a seat, but he noticed she left more distance between them this time. It stung to know she was afraid of him, and he sensed that her fear of him was very strong. Her butt was planted only halfway on the couch, which meant she was readying herself to leap up in case he decided to launch an attack.

“I did it in the heat of passion, Lynn. I was so caught up in the moment that I lost control.” Takoda gave a nervous swallow and swept a strand of hair from his eyes. “The reason you have that scar on your chest is because I wanted to mark you as mine. You’re my mate now.”

“What!” As the words left his lips, Lynn’s eyes widened in alarm. “Your mate? What does that
mean?
”

“It means I want you as my woman, to be at one with me. Now that you wear my mark, it’s brought you closer to who I am.”

Lynn’s voice began to waver in fear. “So, what you’re trying to tell me is, I’m like you now. You’ve turned me into a shape-shifter, is that right?”

Hoping to quell her fear, Takoda explained. “I can’t turn you into a shifter, Lynn. I inherited this from my parents, so it’s not contagious. You’re still completely human, so there’s nothing for you to worry about.”

“Oh, okay.” Her body visibly relaxed as the words left her mouth. “So what exactly does it mean, then? Does it change me in any way, and will it permanently be there?”

“My mark is a part of your body now, so you’ll wear it for life. And what it means is we’re now inextricably linked. You may have noticed changes already happening. You’ll probably get some strange feelings from time to time, and every emotion that you feel will be experienced in a completely different way. You may begin to have strange dreams, as well. Has any of this begun to happen yet?”

As a pregnant pause filled the air between them, he noticed she was hesitating to answer and wondered what was going on in her head. He strongly sensed she was hiding something from him and began to feel saddened that she was so reluctant to trust him. As he thought more about about it, he realized that her fear was currently in charge, and it was up to him to make her feel at ease again. “No, nothing out of the ordinary has happened yet.”

As the words left her mouth, he noticed that her eyes skirted away from his, and he felt a felt a pang of disappointment. She didn’t trust him. That much was evident from her lack of eye contact.

“Well, you’ll probably notice the changes happening pretty soon. You’ll find that you’re able to sense things about me, things that a human being normally wouldn’t be able to pick up on. Basically it just means you’ll have a keener sense of knowing. Every emotion you experience will be magnified and every time we physically join together, you’ll notice that our connection will grow stronger.”

As he mentioned their physical connection to each other, he noticed that Lynn’s eyes were peering very deeply into his own, and he could feel the sexual heat in her body radiating strongly toward him. Her fear seemed to be slowly dissipating and that was a good thing. He’d much rather have her be turned on than to feel afraid.

After licking her dry lips and clearing her throat, Lynn asked, “So will you be able to read my mind?”

“No, I can’t go that far. I mean sensing something isn’t the same as reading someone’s mind, but if you’re ever in trouble I’ll certainly become aware of it. So you don’t ever have to worry about being left alone, because I’ll always be with you, in one way or another.

Takoda noticed she was fumbling her fingers nervously in her lap, so he reached down to grab her hand, holding it gently within his.

“From the first day we met, I knew you were right for me. I knew there was something different about the connection we had, something special that I wasn’t going to find anywhere else. It’s been a long time since I felt like this.” As his finger stroked the back of her hand, he sensed that her heartbeat was growing faster.

“So basically I’m still the same. Nothing major has changed, right?” Her eyes searched his for reassurance and he nodded.

“You’ll feel things more intensely now, especially when you’re around me, but you’re still a human, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

As he spoke the words to her, he saw her visibly relax.

“Well that’s good to hear, but I still feel worried and I really need to know what’s going on with my body.”

Takoda’s eyebrows dipped into a deep frown. “What do you mean? You’re not sick, are you?”

“I was last night, but that’s not what was worrying me.” Pulling her hand away from his, Lynn undid the top two buttons on her shirt and pulled the top of her blouse aside to show him her mark, “This
thing
was pulsating last night, and it really freaked me out. I mean, what was that all about? It really scared me.”

“I know it did. Everything you went through last night, I felt it too. Your fever, your aches and pains. I knew you were confused and scared, and I’m sorry I wasn’t there to be with you as it happened. I really am.” His eyes expressed the sincerity in his words.

“I tried to be there for you, Lynn. That’s why I kept calling, but you wouldn’t even answer the phone.

“I never wanted you to go through all of this alone. I was hoping to explain things to you before the change began.”

“The change? What
change
? What is this thing doing to me?”

“Please don’t call it a thing. You’re insulting my manhood by saying that. It’s my mating mark, and it means everything in the world to me.”

The bruised expression on his face told Lynn that he was genuinely hurt by her choice of word to describe it.

“All right then, your mating mark. Why was it pulsing?”

“Your body was adjusting to it, and that’s also why you came down with the fever. It just takes awhile for it to become fully acclimated. You’re fine now though, right? It’s not still moving, is it?”

“No, when I woke up this morning everything was back to normal. I’m still upset with you, though. I didn’t have a say in any of this. You didn’t even ask me if I wanted to be mated.”

Takoda lowered his eyes for a moment and then lifted them up to meet her gaze. “You’re right, I didn’t ask your permission, and it was never my intention to force it upon you. I did, however, feel in your heart that you had very strong feelings for me. Much more so than you ever have about any other man.”

“You seem very sure of yourself. So I guess you sensed that about me from the very first moment we met, huh?” The tone in her eyes silently conveyed to him that she felt he’d clearly had the upper hand. She was under the impression that he’d taken advantage of her, and perhaps he had in a way, but it was never his intention to lose control and mark her without her consent.

“Of course I sensed it. As a shape-shifter, I just know these things.”

“You’re just making excuses. You’ve marked me, and now you feel bad about it. I can see it in your eyes.”

“I do feel guilty about it, Lynn. I didn’t ask you if it was okay before I did it, and I do regret that. I just hope you believe me when I say that I never meant to complicate your life. I allowed my wolf to take over, and I unwillingly shape-shifted. It was a mistake and I’m sorry that I did it. But if there’s something I don’t regret, it’s being able to watch over you more closely. You’re my woman now and I don’t like seeing other men hanging around you. Especially not here in this house.”