Claiming His Witch (16 page)

My heart sank as my eyes dropped to where my teeth marks would surely be visible if not for the sweater she wore. They smelled me on her—not on her, in her—because my wolf essence now ran through her blood, slowing her aging and working as a homing signal for me to find her.
 

“I’m so sorry.” I wanted to tell her what I’d done, how all of this was my fault, but I couldn’t get the words out. I could blame the betrayal of my family on their own actions, but this one was all me. It was my fault Zuri was hurting the way she was.

“I have no place to go.” Her broken whisper crushed my heart into a lump of sand.

I swallowed hard, buried in guilt and shame. “You’ll stay with me. You can always stay with me.”

She shook her head. “We barely know each other.”

“Then you can stay with Rebel and Charlotte. Or we’ll open up one of the empty cabins for you and Scarlett until we figure out what to do.” I pulled back to look into those beautiful eyes again, fighting to keep my hands from shaking. “You’ll never not have a place to go. We’re mates, threads tied to one another. I’ll always make sure you have a home.”

She stared at me, all wide eyes and rain-slicked face, looking so beautiful even in her pain. Then she nodded.

“Okay.”

“Okay.” I swallowed the bile rising in my throat at the thought of telling her how horribly I’d fucked things up. “Is that ‘Okay, open up a cabin’ or ‘Okay, I’ll stay with you’?”

She smiled for the first time since she walked into camp. “Okay, I’ll stay with you. Though we should probably open a cabin for Scarlett, unless you plan on sharing the room with more than one Weaver sister.”
 

Leaning down, I pulled her close and placed a soft kiss to her lips. “There’s only one Weaver sister I want with me. Scarlett’s on her own.”

“So your parents are still alive?” I walked across the room, drying my hair with a towel. A hot shower and some food in my stomach had done me good; I no longer felt as if my world was ending. Though being around Pup could’ve had something to do with that. The man exuded a calm that I craved.

“Yeah, and they live not too far from here.”

“But you don’t want to go see them.”

He shrugged. “They think I’m dead.”

I froze, towel still wrapped around my hair as I stared at him. “What?”
 

Pup leaned back, finally full after eating almost two large pizzas on his own. “When a human becomes a shifter, their aging slows. I’m ten years into my new life and still look like the kid who supposedly died in a car crash.” He broke my gaze, looking to the floor. “Besides, they wouldn’t want to see me.”

His last sentence hit me as if it were a physical blow, the force knocking me a step back. “What parents wouldn’t want to at least see their kid?”

“The parents who kicked that kid out of the house when he was fifteen.” Pup stood, looking angry for the first time. He took two steps toward me before coming to an abrupt stop and putting both hands in his hair. “Zuri, you have to understand. I didn’t have the Kool-Aid childhood. Neither of my parents were what you’d call involved. And when they decided I was old enough to be on my own, they sent me out on my own. No help, no making sure I had a place to go, nothing. If I hadn’t been working for Beast at the time, I don’t know what I would’ve done. Besides, I’d been out of touch with them for five years before the accident that Beast used to fake my death. I doubt they miss me.”

I waited for him to calm down, not wanting to upset him more than he already was. It didn’t take long. Within a few seconds, he dropped his arms and cracked his neck. Once he took a deep breath and his shoulders relaxed, I once again started pulling the water from my hair.

And I remained silent.

His story and mine had a similarity that made my chest hurt and my eyes burn. Both abandoned by the family we relied on, both struggling with knowing they didn’t want us. But in his case—for that betrayal to have happened so young—it was a devastation I wondered if he’d ever get over. When he was kicked out, he had nothing but Beast. For me, all I had was Scarlett.
 

But now, Pup and I had each other.

I didn’t feel the need to acknowledge his anger; it was a natural reaction to something that must have hurt him so much. Pup had a different opinion, though, because he came over and kissed my forehead as if in apology. When he pulled away, the look on his face screamed regret, but I ignored it. There was nothing to be sorry about.

Reaching out, I offered him the comfort of my touch with a hand on his arm. “So Beast is like a father figure to you.”

“No, not father.” He brought my hand up to his lips, kissing the back and giving me a small smile that made my heart flutter. “Maybe big brother or uncle. He took me in when I had no one. He taught me a trade and made sure I had a roof over my head and a full belly at night. That’s more than my parents did, but he never tried to tell me what to do. He’s always let me make my own mistakes.”

His expression turned guilty, making me wonder what he was about to say next. But he said nothing, just turned to walk back toward the bed. When he settled himself on the mattress, he had that same look on his face as he worried his lip. I hung my towel from the door handle and joined him, almost afraid to know what was on his mind. I sat at the opposite end of the bed and tangled my legs with his.
 

“I’m glad you found Beast and that he was there when you needed him.”

“Me too.” He grabbed my foot and tugged, forcing me closer. With his eyes on mine, he began massaging my foot. Pressing, sliding, running his fingers over my flesh. “My life before wasn’t easy—it’s still not quite sunshine and daisies—but I’m happy. I have my friends in the Feral Breed, I have my bike, and I have a lot of freedom.”

He tugged again, this time directing my legs around his hips and pulling me up to straddle his lap. I stayed pliant, forcing him to work to get me where he wanted. Not that he needed to. I’d happily snuggle into his warm body for the next month if he let me. He was the only thing keeping the pain of the last few hours at bay.
 

Once Pup had me firmly on his lap, he sighed and pulled me into a deep hug. Arms and legs wrapped around each other, hips and chests and stomachs pressed tight. It was the epitome of a cuddle; soft, warm, and blissful. We stayed that way for several minutes, simply enjoying the press of one body against the other.
 

Eventually, our hands stopped being still, sliding underneath the fabric covering us to meet the skin we each seemed to crave. Goose bumps broke out over my body as Pup’s thick fingers pressed into the muscles of my back, and he sighed as I ran my fingers over his shoulders and up into his hair.
 

“I come from nothing,” he whispered. “I’ve always had nothing.” Pup ran his hands up my arms as he nuzzled the length of my nose with his. “But now I have you. I just…I really hope I get to keep you.”
 

I breathed a laugh. “I kind of have nowhere to go. You’re stuck with me, at least for now.”

He stilled, breathing harshly. My heart dropped as doubts and fears crept into my mind. He’d been so back-and-forth all morning, as if happy to see me but regretful about something. Maybe he didn’t want me to stay with him, maybe he wished I would have told him no when he asked.

With a suddenness that made me jump, he gripped my shoulders from behind and pressed his lips to mine, sliding his tongue along the seam until I opened for him. The kiss was deep but gentle, soft and powerful in a way that made my breath catch and my heart explode. The emotions behind it were strong, the need and fear he shared with me obvious. And when he was done, when he’d made me a wobbly mess of girl-flesh in his lap, he pulled back and licked his lips.
 

“Sorry,” he whispered. “I’m so, so sorry.”

Fear. It pulled me under, dragging me into a sea of doubt. “For what? Pup, what’s wrong?”

He shook his head, not meeting my gaze. I arched back to pull myself from his hold, but he tightened his grip, his eyes desperate as they met mine. He whispered my name, once, so quiet it was almost silent. I tilted my head, clinging to him, too afraid to ask him what was wrong a second time. Slow and cautious, he leaned down and recaptured my lips, this time keeping the kiss shallow and soft until he pulled away with a sigh.

“I’m an idiot, for a lot of reasons.” He pulled back, his eyes a fiery green even as his smile looked a little forced. “I’m talking too much. You know all the dark and dirty of my past. Tell me yours.”

His slight frown was irresistible, his lips calling to me even as I formulated words in my mind. Unable to resist his shiny, wet lips, I leaned in to give him a quick kiss. He responded in kind, immediately pulling me close and taking my breath prisoner as his tongue met mine. But then he pulled away just as quickly.

“Nope. No distractions.” He held my face gently, looking into my eyes as if I was the only thing in the world. As if I mattered. As if he truly saw me. “You’re my mate, and yet I know so little about you. Tell me everything. I want to know you, Zuri.”

I sighed and closed my eyes, the warmth his words made me feel at odds with the cold fear caused by his behavior. “You don’t play fair.”

“Never said I did,” he murmured as I huffed and opened my eyes. His nose brushed my cheek, his breath mingling with mine. “Tell me.”

One more kiss, irresistible as it was, and then I sighed and settled back against his thighs.

“As a witchling, a child whose magick hasn’t bloomed yet, my mom was a student of Sarah Bishop, who was the leader of the Parity Coven for many years. From what I understand, when my mom was pregnant with my sisters and me, she had a vision of her own death. She had no family and no one she trusted with us back home, so she moved north to find Sarah.”

“Where was she from, if not Michigan?”

“Florida. There are a lot of independent witches down there—a great mix of magick from different cultures.” I leaned back, placing my arms a bit behind to prop myself up. “She came to Sarah for help, and she delivered my sisters and me shortly after she arrived. But she was strong; she held on for three days after our birth before her heart gave out.”

Pup reached forward, running his fingers up my cheek. “I’m sorry you never got to meet her.”

I looked away as my eyes burned with building tears. “It’s okay. Sarah used to tell us stories about her, as both a child and what she knew of her as an adult. My mom was a research junkie, always digging through the library and making notes in the coven’s grimoire.” I smiled, remembering, voice dropping as I whispered, “I write just like her.”

“Do you have pictures?”

I shook my head. “No pictures, but Sarah says Amber looks a lot like her, just with lighter skin.”

“Amber’s the oldest?”

“Yeah, we’re the Weaver triplets. A great gift to the Parity Coven.” I rolled my eyes. “Even the death of our mother couldn’t calm the coven’s excitement. Apparently my mother’s ancestors were capable of powerful magick.”

“So your witchcraft is hereditary?” His hands ran around my hips and down the sides of my thighs, massaging my ass as they passed.
 

“Yeah.” I groaned as he hit a sore spot in my leg. He reversed his stroke to knead the muscle, which made me sigh and curl my shoulders. “The women of my family and the rest of the Parity families are a powerful bunch. We’ve done some amazing magick together. Or did, I guess.”

My lungs burned under the strain of holding back tears. Speaking of my coven in the past tense was hard, harder than I thought it would be. But I was no longer a part of their group, no matter how much I wanted to be.

Pup’s eyes were on my leg, watching his large hands as they worked the muscle kink. “What about the men?”

“There are no male witches.”

He glanced at me and raised that eyebrow again. “Really? So what about the men in your coven? What are they like?”

“There are no men in my coven.” At his surprised look, I sat up, instantly missing the closeness we’d been enjoying. “There are no boys born to witches, and there are no married or coupled-off witches in our coven. Men are lovely and serve a purpose, but they don’t fit in the coven structure.”

He didn’t move, instead watching me with a look that spoke of wariness. “We don’t…fit.”

The tone of his voice was enough to set alarm bells off in my head. I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him closer.
 

“You’re different. We’re different. I’ve been gifted a true soul mate, someone who’s meant to stand by my side. No one in my coven has found their thread in at least six generations.” I kissed his lips, the corner of his mouth, his chin. “You fit with me. We fit together.”

His hands slid to my hips, gripping me, pulling me against him as my lips returned to his for a passionate kiss. This was no gentle peck. This was a kiss meant to sear our souls, deep and hot and filled with moans as our bodies rocked with the intensity between us.

I could feel him beneath me, hard and long and wanting. I wanted, too. I wanted him to take me, to ravish me, to push me into a state of bliss. I wanted him to take ownership of my body and my heart, but I was too afraid to tell him. Afraid I’d scare him off with my neediness or shock him with how quickly my feelings for him had deepened.
 

Instead of words, I used my body. I pressed against him, writhed in his lap, clung to him as he pulled me into a better spot. And when he had me where he wanted, when his dick pressed firm and strong against my clit with a pressure that made me tremble, I sighed a simple “Yes.” My whispered plea may not have been loud, but it was enough.
 

Without pause or preamble, Pup pulled me down and rocked me over his lap. His head tilted to watch as I moaned and gasped with the pressure, with the need. Pulling me tighter, he growled and spun me underneath him, his weight pressing me down. His eyes met mine, so bright with excitement, but his face was again filled with guilt. An expression that brought back my fear.