When Lightning Strikes (23 page)

I sighed, cuddling into his body. “It’s like a blackout. When I’m around humans, I don’t know what the hell happens. I’m gone. Everything they feel becomes infused into me. It’s like my own personal hell.” He racked his fingers through the strands of my hair, calming the turbulent waters of raging emotions. He didn’t interrupt. He was calmness. My strength and now… my rock. “The crazy thing is I now know this empath thing is powerful. I am powerful.” I paused. “I’m more powerful than my mind can even digest and understand.”

“If you can harness your own power and put it to your own use, well, then there are no limits,” he responded.

“Maybe. I’m not there yet.” Tracing a finger over the intricate gold and black of a sword tattooed on his forearm, I asked, while staring at the sword’s riveted hilt and brass, leaf-shaped blade, “What was it like when the Goddess of Death appeared to you?”

Ryker’s eyes darkened. “I’ve seen a lot in my lifetime, but nothing like her. There weren’t a lot of bullshit words. She pointed at me, said it was my time. Didn’t ask for permission when she slapped this mark on me, making me the bearer of the Sword of Souls.”

“She didn’t ask? It seems like a hell of a lot of responsibility to thrust on someone without even a damn discussion.”

He shrugged. “Goddesses don’t ask. They tell you what to do, like female sexual Dominants.”

I snickered. “It must have been hell for a Dom like you.” He bit my shoulder with a laugh. “Being born into the Alfero bloodline, didn’t you expect to be chosen?”

He kissed my fingers one by one. “No. There was only one other bearer in my family, Tiber, and that was centuries ago. He fucked up his responsibilities so bad the family thought the goddess was done with our bloodline.” His eyes turned bleak. “I wouldn’t have blamed her if she was. Nothing good ever happened to any of the Alphas in my family. That’s why I couldn’t wait to leave when I turned eighteen. I couldn’t live the life my father had created for me. And when my mother was killed, shit got worse. He went feral and, with the help of his brother, it was total chaos.” He sighed. “I held on for as long as I could because I knew my mother would have expected me to stay by his side, at least try to help him, but when he made the alliance with the Jenson pack, assuming I would fall in line and mate with Sophie, I knew I had to leave.”

I kissed his shoulder. “But you came back.”

He sighed heavily. “I had no choice. I came back because the goddess told me my father had been killed by his brother. That’s what she really meant by ‘it was time.’ Time for me to claim the position of Alpha and unite the Others.” He shrugged. “I guess I could have refused to come back, but I knew this pack needed me. So I resigned my position at the hospital and came back.”

I saw the sadness in his eyes and I wanted so badly to take it away. “You mean you came back to chaos.”

He ran a hand along my hip absently while staring into space. “Fighting my uncle for Alpha position was an easy decision. The prick deserved to be taken down. It was taking over as the leader of the Other Council that was hard. No one respected the Alfero name. My father and his brother had single-handedly run the name into the ground. The only thing I had to help me rebuild was the power of the Sword of Souls and the goddess’ edict to unite the Others. So I used it to get them in line, forcing the Others into a temporary truce.”

“But you really need the peace treaty to happen,” I insisted.

“My mission was clear. Unite the Others. Frankly, when she ordered it, I didn’t think it was remotely possible. Still don’t. But I do agree it’s the only thing to keep them from killing each other into extinction.”

I squeezed his arm. “It can still happen. We’ll make this happen.”

He smiled. “My alpha female is ready, huh?”

“Oh, so ready.” But I knew it wouldn’t be easy. “You know, equality among the Others is a myth, and for some reason, everyone accepts the fact women shouldn’t hold as much power as men do. I don’t understand that. Why do we have to take a backseat?” It was a big point of frustration for me. It was one thing for men to be dominant inside the bedroom, which I was all for, but outside of it, we were their equivalent. “Men were given the power to run the show. Power to define the value of an alpha female. It’s ridiculous. I’m going to shake up their world, starting by taking an active role in getting this treaty to happen. First, we need to stop the Shadows.”

He gave me the same sexy smile that always made my toes curl before saying, “We will. With you by my side, there’s nothing we can’t do.”

I smiled. “We, I like that. Most Alphas would be pounding on their chest like a caveman, saying the woman’s place was a meek one.”

He laughed. “Not all. The smart Alphas take an alpha female who can hold her own… like you.”

I smirked. “Good. And don’t think I’m popping out any puppies anytime soon.” I pointed to my soft stomach and curvy hips. “See all this? Between decadent pastries and hours on the couch watching reality shows, it takes a lot of damn work maintaining all this gorgeousness.”

He slapped my ass hard. “The babies can wait. I want us to spend some quality time together first. Anything else?”

I trailed my fingers across his chest. “Yup, first thing in the morning, I must have coffee or I’ll turn into a raving lunatic.”

He laughed. “You’re already a raving lunatic.”

I slapped his chest. “I get worse, believe me. Now you, Wolfie, give me your must haves.”

“Just one. I love to fuck in the morning. So be prepared to assume the position on your knees when you wake up because I’ll be serving a regular dose of hard cock every morning, darling.”

I shivered deliciously. “Shit, I think I just came.” I rolled away from him, stretching suggestively before I got on all fours. “Like this?”

He slid behind me. “Just like that, darling.” He kissed the side of my neck. I moaned.

“And so we’re clear. There will be no other women besides me… ever. So take a good look at this cunt, Ryker, because you’ll be looking at it for a long time.”

He grabbed my hair, pulling me up against his chest. “You are all I’ve ever wanted or need,” he whispered in my ear.

I grunted with satisfaction. “Better be.”

He spun me around to face him. “Now that all the heavy stuff is out of the way, say that you love me, Light.”

“I love you, Ryker Alfero.” I leaned forward, kissing him softly. “I love you,” I whispered against his lips.

His mouth trailed to my neck, biting over his mark of possession. “I love you. I’ll always love you.” He wrapped his arms around my waist and squeezed.

I grabbed his face, biting his lower lip before tracing my tongue along it. “So… can we commence to fucking now? Because your alpha female needs her morning dose of cock.” I squeezed it hard. “Like really bad.”

He kissed me long and hard before saying. “Get on your knees… now.”

I
AWOKE TO THE SUN
streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows and me draped across Ryker like a blanket, completely exhausted from the morning fuck marathon. When he said he loved to make love in the morning, he wasn’t kidding. I was amazed how he kept pulling orgasms out of me when I was absolutely sure I was too tired to continue. Even exhaustion didn’t stop me from screaming out from pleasure when he expertly pushed me over the edge again and again.

I didn’t even have time to kiss him before he pushed into my moist heat, taking me again. I absolutely loved the fuck marathon.


He slapped my ass, rolling me over. “Bath time,” he growled as he kissed me lustfully before jumping up and heading for the bathroom. I listened to the water running, too exhausted to move, when the earthy scent of sandalwood and rosewood wafted into the room. I groaned. Every muscle in my body was blissfully sore. I smiled thinking about him. I had it bad. The man never seemed to get enough; his cock hadn’t gone down for more than a few minutes.

A few minutes later, he came back into the bedroom, hauling me up and over his shoulder.

“Leave me the hell alone,” I groaned, half asleep.

“Nope. We have a busy morning. First, a nice warm bath. Next, I make my mate breakfast, and, third, we’re going to your house for a meeting with Ava and Lia to discuss our new intel.”

“Why can’t we have breakfast in bed and do a video conference?” I grumbled.

I think I nodded off for a second because the next thing I knew, I was being dropped into the oversized, deep soaking tub and him climbing in behind me, pulling me against his chest. I sighed as the combination of the hot water and the heady scent of sandalwood and rosewood bath salts cocooned us.

“You’re a keeper, Wolfie,” I whispered, relaxing against him.

“We’re not staying in long. I want to ease your sore muscles.”

“Uh-huh,” I groaned drowsily. I must have nodded off again, because the next thing I knew I was being pulled out of the water and pushed into a steam shower. I didn’t even attempt to move when he started washing me.

He laughed. “You’re not even going to participate?” he posed while soaping every inch of me thoroughly.

I yawned. “Nope, you got it covered.”

He knelt down to wash my legs and feet and then circled behind me to wash my ass. I couldn’t help myself; I grinned and pushed my ass in his face. He bit it hard.

I pulled back sharply. “Did I just feel your canines on my ass?”

“Quiet. I’m working here,” he grunted while pushing to his feet. He washed my back and hair.

I popped open an eyelid. “Is it my turn?” I reached for the soap.

He sat me down on the boulder rock for seating. “Sit here and be quiet, darling.”

I watched drowsily as he made quick work of soaping himself. Ryker’s body and face was a work of art. The only thing that marred his dark, brooding face was the scar across his left eyebrow.

“How did you get that scar?” I inquired.

“When I was kicking my uncle’s ass, he cut me,” he replied gruffly.

“I thought shifters healed quickly.”

“We do. I think he cut me with a knife laced with dark magic. A fact he vehemently denied, of course.”

I never had the displeasure of meeting his uncle, but I already hated the asshole.

He pulled us both out of the shower, dried us off, and picked me up, marching to his bed. I rolled over, staring at him. “Am I supposed to be this tired?” Granted, we fucked like rabbits, but I felt unusually tired. I reached up and scratched the bite mark on my shoulder. “And my shoulder feels funny.” It was like tiny pins were being inserted into the skin over and over again.

His eyes flashed as he ran his fingers along my shoulder, easing the stinging. “Everything is fine, Light.”

I rolled over, pressing my face into the pillow. “I need a fifteen-minute nap and I’ll be good to go.”

He kissed my back. “Fifteen minutes only. Then I’m coming to get you.”

“Uh-huh,” I responded, practically knocked out when I heard the door close.

I
ROLLED OVER ONTO MY
back, staring at the ceiling. The nap was longer than the promised fifteen minutes, but I needed it. At least Ryker let me sleep. He probably felt sorry about wearing my ass out. I rolled out of bed and padded over to my room to dress. Quickly, I pulled on the mesh bralette, a classic sleeveless racer-back tank, teaming it with denim cigarette jeans and a pair of front-zip lug-sole booties.

Stepping into the bathroom, I washed my face and nearly choked when I saw two angry-looking red swirls marked onto my skin like a tattoo, right over Ryker’s bite. I rubbed it to see if it was an infection. No oozing, just a slight tingle. I stopped to think. I was going to kill him. He saw the marks and didn’t have the decency to tell me. Angrily, I pulled my hair into a high ponytail, leaving the room in a huff.

“Ryker. You have some explaining to do. What the hell is this mark on my shoulder?” I skidded to a stop when I saw the whole pack staring at me.

I pointed to the mark. “Is this normal? Because it sure as hell doesn’t look normal.”

Jackal sniffed the air loudly.

I stared at him. “What?”

He took a step forward and then stopped. “You smell different.”

“I took a shower, guys,” I huffed.

Rip’s head tilted to one side. “No, it’s not that… Your scent’s changed. You smell like…” He sniffed. “A mixture of Ryker’s scent and something else.”

Damn these shifters and their keen sense of smell. “So what you’re really telling me is I stink?”

Soar leaned against the granite kitchen counter. “Quite the opposite. It’s alluring.”

Ryker stroked his beard. “Too alluring.”

I looked at Ryker worriedly. “Alluring? Alluring, as in shifters following me around trying to sniff my ass?” I snapped.


Rip edged closer to me. Ryker’s head snapped in his direction, growling warningly.

Rip looked at him sheepishly, stepping back. “Sorry.”

“Trouble,” Soar noted. He looked over at Ryker. “Maybe it’s some Fae-Witch thing.”

I pushed my T-shirt strap aside. “What about this mark on my shoulder?” My eyes narrowed.