Raber Wolf Pack Book Two (7 page)

“Can we sit and talk?”

He stops abruptly, tugging my arm slightly. “Of course.” He sits down right where we are standing and pulls me down. He plants me in between his legs like I weigh nothing at all.

“I didn’t mean right here. We could have found a bench or something.”

His chest moves in silent laughter. “What do you have on that beautiful mind of yours?”

How in the hell do you say this? I don’t understand this whole thing with you wanting to fuck me for centuries? This has to be one of the weirdest conversations I’ll ever have in my lifetime. I think for a moment.

“I don’t know how to say this, so I’m just blurting it out.” I pause as a spectacular bald eagle soars above us, circling and then disappearing. “I’ve never seen one of those so close.”

“We get them out here all the time. What’s on your mind because I know it’s not eagles.” His arms wrap tight around my body, pulling me closer to him. Contentment and warmth spread through me. I could sit like this for just about forever and let the peacefulness continue.

Playtime is over though. “Mating. Claiming. I need you to explain these things to me.” His chest shakes again. “What is so damn funny?” I try to move but his arms become steel, not allowing me to go anywhere.

“Thought we went over all this?”

He’s kidding, right? Right? “We touched on it, but never really
talked
about it. And I need you to explain it to me because it seems like I don’t have a choice in the matter.” His entire body freezes like I’ve doused him in a flash of ice or slapped him across the face. Shit. What did I say?

“You always have a choice, Kenly. If you don’t want to be with me after the change, then I deal. But you always have a choice.” His tone is harsh, teeth gritted. I really pissed him off. Shit.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m just trying to understand. You said before that you smell me and that is how you know. First, how do you do that, and second, why don’t I?” I’m pretty sure I know the answer to the second, but I need to hear it out loud.

He inhales deeply then tightens around me, his nose in my hair. Yep, kind of like that too. “Wolves have special abilities. We are stronger and faster than any humans. We can also hear, smell, and see things that the human eye cannot. Such as I can see in the dark with no lights. My eyes adjust and allow me to keep going on my way. I can hear things miles away and I can smell quite a ways away also. Wolves release a pheromone.” Like humans when they’re horny? “Kind of like humans.” Answers that one. “But it is a particular kind that only one select wolf of the opposite sex can smell. It is unique, and very special. When I first inhaled your scent, I knew right away.” I lift my arms and sniff under my arms. Not great, but not horrible either. His body shakes again. “Not that smell. That just adds to you. It’s hard to describe and I’ve never had to so I’m at a bit of a loss.”

I have to give the guy a reprieve. “Okay, so it’s something special and unique that only two wolves in the world will smell and when they do, they are mated.”

“Well, that was a lot easier to say.”

“But the doctor said that you smell me because the other wolves bit me. That their DNA is changing me. How do you know that you aren’t smelling one of them? That one of them isn’t your mate.” This has been plaguing me ever since he brought up the smell thing. Then with what the doctor said about the DNA, it didn’t fit.

“Two things,” he says without a thought. “One, I know because the three wolves that attacked you, were all males. Second, because my nose knows. It wouldn’t deceive me like this.”

I ponder his words and strangely, I feel a bit relieved by his answer. “And I can’t smell you because I’m human?”

“Unfortunately, that is correct. With the wolf saliva waking up the change, I smell it plain as day. You will more than likely not until you turn wolf.” My insides clench and a question is on the tip of my tongue and I want to ask it so damn bad, but I’m also afraid of the answer.

We sit quietly for a few long moments, and I will my backbone to straighten. “Max, if I’m your mate, what happens if I die during the transition?”

The tightness in his body returns, only this time, he’s stone and I don’t like it one damn bit. “First, this will be the last time I hear you say that you are going to die. Do you get me?”

At his shocking tone, I answer quickly. “Yes.”

“Second. I don’t want to think about that as an option. So, I’d rather not discuss it.” His words are precise and leave me no room for argument. Shit.

I change the topic quickly. “So, what does mating or mated mean?” It’s sex right? I mean, any dick and pussy can mate. Hell, they can mate if they’re the same sex, just can’t procreate.

Some of the tension in Max releases. “It’s what it sounds like. Sex, babe. But it’s different for wolves. When the mating bond happens something inside of you changes. I don’t know exactly because I haven’t gone through it, but from what others tell me it’s like nothing you’ve ever felt before.” He gives me a soft squeeze. “And I can’t wait to find out with you.”

“But you’ve known me a whole what, less than twenty-four hours? I mean, I could be a raging bitch and I am during my time of the month, mind you. Or I could have a horrible dick of a father who will want to kill you for even coming near his daughter. Or I could really—”

“Lily told you. In our world it’s about smell. That is our tell all. Everything else falls into place like a magic puzzle. Will we fight? Hell yeah. Will we like everything each other does? Hell no. But at the end of the day, we have each other. True, there may not be love at first, but hopefully, as time goes on that last piece of the puzzle will click into place.”

A thousand different scenarios roll through my head. One being this guy is batshit crazy. I mean, yes, I feel attracted to him, but he’s hot, it’s expected. Yes, he comforted me and calmed me when Lily couldn’t. But I don’t know, what about the dating for years and finding out he’s the one, then getting married and doing all that? It’s like we skip right to marriage with no lead up.

I’m not sure I’m okay with that. “So, we’re supposed to get married?” It comes out in a breathy whisper.

“Well, our kind don’t get
married
the way humans do, but we have a mating ceremony that is kind of like it. We vow to each other, but there is no exchanging of rings.” I’m not sure I like that either. I’ve always thought I’d get a beautiful engagement ring that I’d show off to my friends and then a big, white wedding with all the bells and whistles. Looking back, it looks rather petty and too flamboyant and not really me. What would I tell my friends anyway? I’m getting married to a wolf—oh, and by the way, I’m one too.

Like I said knowing and
knowing
are two totally different things.

He turns me around in his arms and lifts my chin with his thumb and index finger. Damn, I like that too. My eyes meet his, full of warmth and compassion. “Kenly, if you want rings, I will be more than happy to do that for you.”

My mouth drops. He would? “You would?”

“Of course. If it will make you happy.”

Wow. Just wow.

“Why don’t you exchange them?” It’s a symbol of one’s commitment to another, I’d think all species would want something like that. Especially ones that turn from human to animal.

“Transferring, or shifting as I sometimes call it,” he answers and he must see the puzzlement on my face. “When we transfer from our human-form to our wolf-form. If I should happen to forget to take off the ring before I shift, it could get caught around my paw and cut off blood circulation.” Oh shit. That’s not good. And he just freaking said paw. Holy hell. “Or even worse, the force of the change can break the metal with ease, which would most likely be the case. You’ll notice that a few wolves will wear a necklace around their necks, but it hangs down quite far as to not choke them when they shift, should they forget.”

Damn. That’s a perfect answer and there is no rebuffing it. I guess I can learn to deal.

“But, like I said. I’ll do it. Even if I wear it on a chain around my neck, I will do it. I’ll do anything for you, Kenly. Please know that.”

And I feel it. Deep in my soul, I feel it, and I trust it. Heaven help me, I believe it. Now, who’s the one that’s batshit crazy? Might as well get me a padded room right now.

Apprehension crosses his eyes, but he tries to cover. “What? Tell me,” I say, not giving him an inch. Knowledge is power and I need knowledge. It’s not like I can Google this shit.

“There is one way that we leave our…” He trails off and I just stare at him in the come-on way. “Marks on each other.” Marks?

“Like a tattoo?” I don’t mind those one bit. I’ve always thought of getting one, but never did it. “Cause I’m fine with that.”

He shakes his head, but he’s trying to stifle a laugh. “No, wolves don’t normally get tattoos.” I look at his tattooed arm then back to him. I distinctly remember Xavier having one too. “This is special. Wolves have a very fast rate of healing, as you learned earlier.” I shiver. Don’t want to think about that, dammit. “So the ink from a human tattoo doesn’t work because our skin rejuvenates quickly. We have a special kind of ink, but it’s more like a brand. It is the only way that we can get them and they stay on us. But that’s not what I’m talking about.”

“What were we talking about? Cause I kinda got stuck on the tattoo on your arm.” It’s hot, seriously hot.

He throws his head back and full-out laughs. I admit that it is one of the most delicious sounds I have ever had grace my ears. I love it and I want to make him do this often. Very, very often. He calms, wiping his eyes. “I’m talking about marking. I really don’t want to tell you this part.” His mood changes and it pisses me off. The laughter is gone and in its place is this solemn, unsure, almost scared man. What the hell?

“Go ahead.” I reach for his hands and squeeze them, hopefully reassuring him, but who knows what he’s thinking.

He lets out a deep exhale. “We mark by biting each other on the neck. I bite you, you bite me.” My insides churn at the memory of how it felt to have those wolves clawing and biting me. I pull my hands out of his and wrap my arms around my body, lifting my knees to my chest. I don’t know if I can do that or let that be done to me. I don’t think I can. It hurts too much. I felt it. I lived it. I can’t. I shake my head.

“Babe.” He pulls my body into his, wrapping me in a blanket of warmth. I sink into him. “That’s why I didn’t want to tell you. What those monsters did to you was for pain, to kill. What this is, is nothing like that. Once you’re a wolf, we’ll cross that bridge. And I want you to talk to Zara. She can answer a lot of the questions that I’m sure you have in that head of yours, but don’t want to ask me.”

Zara seemed pretty nice at our first meeting. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t the greatest either. But it hits me. “What about Lily? I’m comfortable around her.”

He sighs like something is weighing heavy on his shoulders and he’s not quite ready to release the pressure just yet. “Lily can be there, but I’d like you to talk to Zara, please. For me.”

Well, when he says it like that and makes my insides all mushy. “All right. I’ll talk to her and Lily.” Lily feels like a safety net for some reason, but that’s probably because she’s manipulating my emotions that way. Damn.

There’s something else, something I don’t want to ask because I’m sure the answer will do nothing to help me forget the attacks, but it must be asked. “Who attacked me?”

The arms around me tighten, the muscles flexing. He sits quietly for a few moments, before he speaks. “We believe it is a pack that we thought was long gone, but apparently we were wrong. The Lobo pack is their name. We have a history with them.” I suck in a deep breath and wait. “Their alpha killed Xavier’s father, our Alpha at the time. In retaliation, we killed him. His son Donte took over as alpha of that pack. But we stopped hearing about them. They only had a few in their pack and over the years, we thought they’d become extinct.”

“Why were they chasing me though? I’m just a human and know nothing of this pack,” I ask, confused as hell.

“When I spoke with Xavier, while you were with Lily, we banged our heads together to try to come up with an answer. The only thing that connects you to any wolf was the crystal you found. It’s a long shot, but it’s all we have to go on right now.” I let his words rattle in my head, trying to piece the puzzle that has now become my life together. It’s not working so well.

“Do you think the Lobos are coming back for retaliation?” God I hope not. This could get so much worse. I can’t handle what I know already, but I can hack it. I will hack it. I’ll get through all of this. Right?

“We’re not sure yet, but the fact that they are still alive and present, anything is an option.”

As his words seep into my core, I let the sunshine caress my body, sucking in its warmth. Birds fly as the resting of leaves off in the distance catches my ear. It’s beautiful out here.

He rises, pulling me with him. I guess relaxation time is over. “Ready for the rest of the tour?”

Now that a lot of heavy shit is out there I’m an even bigger jumbled mess, but no way am I letting him see that. I plaster on a smile. “Absolutely.”