Wild Heat (Wilding Pack Wolves 3) - New Adult Paranormal Romance (13 page)

Are you fucking laughing at me, Terra Wilding?
He was actually a little steamed.

She still had her head ducked in the submission position, so she couldn’t quite see his expression, but she could sense his emotions in his thoughts.
No, my love. But I’m yours now. You have to give the command for me to rise and shift, or I’ll be stuck with my rump in the air all day.

Oh. Um. Uh…

There must be some secret alpha handshake that passed these things on. And her alpha had never received his training.

Just tell me to ‘rise,’ my love.
She restrained her laughter because her alpha deserved more compassion than that.

Rise, my love.

She popped up instantly and nuzzled him. Did he really just call her ‘my love?’ It wasn’t necessary to release her, but maybe he thought it was? She didn’t care—she just loved hearing it.

This feeling…
His thoughts were still full of wonder.
Did the submission hurt you? I feel energized, like I must have stolen something from you, maybe some of your magic…

No, my love,
she thought, licking his face. And seriously wanting to lick other parts, but in her human form.
The bond lifts us both. And this is just submission…
Mating would be a hundred times more wondrous and intense. But she didn’t want to talk about that yet.

You have to tell me to shift,
she sent the thought to him.

Shift, my love,
he sent the thought quickly.

She did, and a moment later, she was skin-on-skin with him, enveloped in his arms as he covered her body with his. His erection was back, as she suspected it might be—submission energized more than just a man’s magic—and her deliciously sore nether parts were already quivering in anticipation.

“That was amazing,” he breathed, gazing into her eyes.

Her hands roamed his face. “I can’t believe I’ve found you.” Then she had to stop because she was choking up a bit. “I didn’t know if I ever would.”

His eyes took on a fierce look. “This bond between us… it’s making my wolf
stronger.
”

“That’s the magic of the submission.” She bit her lip. “It enhances… everything.”

“Everything?” he asked, eyes roaming down to her chest.

She could feel his hunger like a hot stroke on her skin. “Oh yes,” she breathed.

He dove in, nipping and tasting her, touching her everywhere. Her wolf leaped for joy.

There was so much he needed to know—about mating, about his white wolf, about
her.

But it could wait just a little longer.

Kaden wasn’t at all sure this was a good idea.

It was morning, and he and Terra were driving back up to the River pack’s mountain estate, the one where he originally picked her up before he brought her into safekeeping. She wanted him to talk to her cousin, Noah, about being a white wolf, but all Kaden could think about was how unsecure the location was… and how little interest he had in talking to any wolves other than her.

“Well, this is a nice scenic drive through to mountains,” he said to Terra in the passenger seat next to him. “How about we return to the safehouse now?”

“Noah’s expecting us. We’re lucky he’s still there with his mate.” She scowled at him, but there was no heat in it… just the glow left over from an entire night of lovemaking. After literally hours of tearing up the sheets, he’d legit needed a rest and a shower—which they both got—but they were both still floating on the magical high of the submission bond and the sex.

Good God,
the sex. He would much rather have stayed in seclusion with nothing but Terra and a bed, than go on this road trip to awkward. He still was coming to grips with the fact that his wolf was fully resurgent after years of suppressing and denying and generally keeping that shit locked up. He was
not
thrilled about discussing the strange nature of his beast with anyone, much less a man he didn’t know.

“Your cousin’s fancy mountain estate isn’t exactly
safe,
Terra,” Kaden complained, not giving up. They would be there in just a few minutes. “The Wolf Hunter knows that location. Hell, everyone with access to the internet does. I’ll pull over here, and we can call him.”

“No.” The scowl was definitely darkening. “You need to shift for him… and him for you. You need to share things. I’m not even going to be in the room.”

“What?”
Kaden’s wolf surged up with that, and he had to grip the steering wheel to keep it under control. When Terra had submitted to him, it had truly brought out his inner alpha… and he was still having trouble keeping it contained. Now that it had been awakened, it was raging under his skin, which also brought out his primal protective side. Anything that smelled like a threat to Terra—including letting her out of his sight at the estate—surged up a huge helping of
fuck no
growling in his chest. “Where do you think you’re going to be?” he asked her.

She threw out her hands like he was hopeless. “I’ll be upstairs in my old room.”

“I don’t like it.” His head was buzzing with growls. He could barely think straight, but then his wolf was a fucking beast… not a man. Kaden sucked in a breath through his teeth. He needed to get this under control.

Terra seemed to sense his need to calm down—she scooted over and leaned her thin frame over the console between them. One hand gripped his bicep and squeezed while the other slid to the back of his neck and played with a short scruff of hair.

It worked. Just having her close ramped down some of the tension.

“I’ll be right upstairs,” she whispered in his ear. “Waiting for you to get done with your business. Then we can explore a few new positions I’ve been thinking about…”

Jesus.
His pants were tightening already. “Unless you want me sporting wood for Noah, you’d better keep those thoughts to yourself.”

She grinned, and he nearly pulled over for a little relief by the side of the road. But they were almost there anyway.

She scooted back to her side of the car. “Take your time with Noah. I’ve got a few things to pack up that got left behind before, and I’d like to call my family.”

“All right,” Kaden said, finally giving up. “But the sooner we’re back at the safehouse, the happier I’ll be.”

She beamed at him. “If there’s one thing I want, it’s to make you happy.”

“Terra,”
he warned. For the love of God. She was beautiful and amazing and perfect for him… but the constant need to
have
her, to be buried inside her, to be making wild love with her, just might kill him.

She giggled, and that did
not
help matters.

Thankfully, she got serious again. “Before you go in, there’s something else you should know.”

“Something more than the fact that your cousin is a strange white wolf like me?” It was still unsettling to him that there was
another
white wolf out there. “Between Noah, me, and Grace Krepky, we could start a White Wolf Club.” Krepky was the first openly-shifter candidate for the House of Representatives. When she came out to the world, that’s what tipped off all this hate-group business. And it freaked him out a little, given he knew his wolf was white as well, even if he hadn’t seen it in years. Kaden knew plenty of wolves in the gangs. He’d grown up around them. He always thought white wolves were legends…

Until he shifted and realized he
was
one.

“Something more strange than that,” Terra said, her voice serious. “When I met with Julius, he wanted to talk to me privately because, apparently, he’s obsessed with white wolves.”

“Really?” Kaden frowned at her as he pulled into the gravel parking area in front of the River estate. “Okay, that’s odd.”

“Yeah,” she said, frowning as well. “I thought at first he somehow knew about the Wilding family secret.”

Kaden put the car in park and turned to her. “Family secret? Other than the fact that you’re all wolves?” Which wasn’t exactly secret anymore. He didn’t say that part.

But she still genuinely seemed distressed.

“Hey.” Kaden reached over and stroked the hair framing her face. “Whatever it is, I’m already tumbling down a steep hill, falling in love with you. So, unless you’re all mafia or something, I’m pretty sure it won’t change anything between us. And probably not even then.”

She gazed at him with those dark, beautiful eyes, and he could feel it again—that unsteady, falling feeling he’d had since he’d first laid eyes on her. “The Wilding pack was broken up by a feud between my grandfather and his brother. Turns out, his brother slept with his mate.”

Kaden ground his teeth. “Sounds like an upstanding guy.”

“It broke up the family,” she said, “but here’s the kicker—the brother was a white wolf.”

Kaden dropped his gaze. “Great. So, pretty much all white wolves are assholes.”

“No.”
The ferocity of her word made him look up. “Noah’s not. Grace isn’t. You’re definitely not! But it did make me wonder. My grandfather’s brother screwed his alpha’s mate. Grace is the halfling product of an affair her mother had with a white wolf. And you…”

Kaden narrowed his eyes. “And my mother was bedded by an asshole white wolf. Who then took off.”

“And Grace is about the same age as you.” She nodded, slowly, like she wasn’t sure how he would take this.
He
wasn’t sure how to take it.

“You think Grace Krepky might be my half-sister?” He blinked and leaned back.
Holy shit.
But then again… it made a weird kind of sense. If his asshole father went around bedding human woman, he probably did it more than once.

“Maybe.” She bit her lip, and he could tell there was more.

“What?” he asked.

“It’s possible it’s the same guy.” She winced. “The same Wilding white wolf who broke up my pack.”

His eyes went wide at that.
“What?
Wait… your grandfather’s brother? That’s… that doesn’t make any sense, Terra. He’d have to be dead by now. Or ancient. Or some shit. Not going around seducing women twenty-one years ago.”

She slowly shook her head. “Except… maybe he did. Maybe he didn’t ever actually get old.”

“What are you saying?”

“There’s one more thing you should know about him.” Her face scrunched up like she was afraid to say it.

“And that is?”

“He’s probably a witch.”

His mouth went dry. “A witch. A male witch. And you think… you think that I might be…” His mind blanked out. He’d dealt with witches on the force—they were often brought in to handle shifters in custody—but they were all women, seductive as hell, and not a single damn one was a guy. But they were all preternaturally beautiful… and didn’t age a bit. “I don’t…
Jesus,
Terra, what are you even saying here?”

Her thin shoulders quivered a little. “I’m saying Noah’s a white wolf. And part witch. And you should probably talk to him about that.” He could tell it was freaking her out just to say those words.

His wolf surged up, demanding that he protect her, soothe her, do
something
to stop that quivering and get rid of the frightened look in her eyes. At least he thought it was his wolf demanding those things… suddenly the world didn’t make any sense at all.

Except that Terra was looking at him like she was afraid and that had to stop
now.

He reached out and pulled her small body from the passenger side, over the gap between their seats, and into his lap. He smoothed back her hair, cupped her cheek with one hand, and kissed her gently.

“Okay, I’ll go talk to your cousin,” he said softly. “And I’ll try to figure out what the hell I am. But I don’t care what happened a million years ago in your family. And I don’t care who my father really is. All I know is that you complete me, Terra Wilding. Nothing else matters to me.”

Her eyes glassed a little, and she buried her head in the crook of his neck, hugging him hard. He held her tight, giving her the strength of his body until the shaking in hers subsided.

When she finally pulled back, she said, “I knew you were strong enough to handle this… whatever it ends up being. You’re nothing like your father, no matter who he is. You’re not the kind to run or cave in when things get tough. Not like my father.” Those last words were so soft, Kaden almost didn’t hear them.

“You’re father?” he probed gently. “I know your mother died a long time ago.” At her surprised look, he just gave a small smile. “I read up on you before I took your case.”

“I see.” She seemed both pleased and perplexed by that.

He pressed on. “But I thought your father was still around.”

“Only in the literal sense.” She sighed, and her fingers moved deliciously at the back of his neck. “When my mother died, he checked out completely. Trent and Cassie and I… we pretty much raised ourselves.”

A growl rumbled deep in his chest. This…
this
was why she needed him. This was the pain he’d sensed in her, that she carried around like a rock tied to her neck. “I’ll always be there for you, Terra. You can count on me.” And that was a promise he had no problem making. Any threat to her felt like it was tearing him apart. That was doubly true now that she had submitted to him. He couldn’t imagine how strong the feeling would be if they were mated. He still wasn’t convinced that was the right thing for her to do, but he was pretty damn sure there would never be anyone else for him, regardless.