Healing the Wolf (BBW Paranormal Romance) (Luna Junction) (5 page)

Tess cocked her head to the side.  “Leave? For the whole night.” 

I sighed.  “For the whole of forever.  He told me to take the boys and return to my family in Canada.” 

Tess inhaled sharply.  Javier looked at me with pity in his warm brown eyes.  “Is that what you’re going to do?”

“No,” I said firmly, shaking my head for emphasis.  “No.”

Tess cleared her throat.  “Well, you’re welcome to stay here for the night.  I mean, if you want to.” 

“I don’t,” I told her.  “But thank you.”  I turned to her mate.  “You still have that rope?”

Javier was puzzled.  “Rope?  Well, yeah.”

Tess stared at me.  “What do you need rope for?”

“For your brother.” 

Tess’s jaw dropped but a smile flashed across Javier’s face. 

I jerked my head at Javier.  “Can you show me how to tie a good knot?”

Tess looked from one of us to the other, exasperated.  “What are you going to do?  Tie Talon up?”

I shrugged.  “Yes.”  Her eyes grew wide.  “Only for a little while,” I assured her.  “Just long enough to get his attention.”

Javier had already
moved over to the corner and was fumbling through objects.  He returned with the coil of rope I had seen him carrying that morning.  It was strong.  It would do nicely.  He cut several good sized lengths and dropped them in front of me. 

“Now,” he said.  “This is how you tie a knot that should be hard to get
out of.”

Chapter Six

The weather was becoming more severe yet I parked in the woods, waiting.  If I timed it correctly, Talon would be passed out and insensible.  Which was exactly how I needed him to be for a few minutes. 

The clock on the dashboard ticked closer to midnight. 
It was almost Valentine’s Day.  It was, in the human world, a holiday steeped in tradition, a celebration of love.  And tonight I had every intention of participating.

***

“Love.” 

I could hear the disdain in his voice as he frowned into the darkness, choking on the word as if tasted badly. 

Less than a month earlier I had given him another son.  My body was still sore and tired but it had been a full moon.  Talon couldn’t resist running.  And whenever Talon returned from a run his needs were plain.  I never could refuse him.  No matter how much I was pulled by the demands of rest, by the needs of the babies, I always wanted to open myself to my mate.

He had held back, knowing I couldn’t take the punishment of his full rhythm just yet. 
And he brought me as gently as he could to climax before he took his own pleasure.  The words had just slipped out of my mouth as I came down from the warm afterglow. 

But
Ivanovs didn’t hold with notions of love.  They were wolves.  They mated.  They bred.  They cared for their children as tenderly as any animals cared for their young.  But romantic love?  No. 

Though despite what Talon said, I knew that wasn’t true of all
Ivanovs.  My sister’s mate, Anton, openly adored her. 

Tired and hormonal, I wasn’t about to endure another lecture from Talon about human emotions.  “Yes, love,” I snapped, slugging him lightly on the shoulder.  “I love you, you big jackass.  Although sometimes I swear I don’t know why.” 

I rolled over and touched his face.  If he only said it once, just once. 

“Talon?”

He had closed his eyes.  “What?”

“Tell me.” 

He sighed with irritation and sprung to his feet.  In the cradle several feet away our newborn son began to cry.  Talon peered in to the cradle and ran a gentle finger over the baby’s cheek.  We had named the boy Jacob.  He quieted down under his father’s touch. 

“Where the hell are you going?” I asked, utterly maddened as he headed for the front door. 

Talon didn’t look back.  “The moon calls, Sheree.  I’m going to sleep in the woods tonight.”

Wearily I rested my head on my forearm. I spotted an object nearby and threw it full force against the wall.  It was
an infant rattle, handed down through generations of Chevaliers. It had broken into several pieces.  The baby began to cry again and I heard little John stirring in the next room. 

“Mama?” he called hesitantly. 

I pulled a long shirt over my head and picked up the baby as he rooted eagerly for my breast. 

“I’m here, John.” 

The boy, barely two, toddled into the room and wrapped his little arms around my leg.  I knelt to his level and gathered him up beside his brother. 

“Never
ever turn away from love,” I told my sons, kissing each of them on their tender foreheads.

***

Once the hour passed midnight I started the truck and headed back home. 

I felt relief as I approached the cabin,
sensing that Talon was still inside.  I hadn’t been sure he would be.  I stood at the closed door for a moment, listening, but all I heard was the howl of the wind at my back. 

Inch by inch I opened the door.  The front room was empty.  The smel
l of whiskey permeated the interior and the shattered glass remained on the floor where Talon had dropped the bottle.  Silently I pushed the door closed. 

He was in the bedroom.  The even pace of his deep breathing told me he had already sunke
n into his alcohol-induced slumber.  I dropped the lengths of rope on the floor, taking care to be as silent as possible.  Talon might be drunk and unconscious but he was still a werewolf.  If his acute senses were clued into my presence before I was ready, it would ruin my plan. 

As I peeled off my clothes my heart pounded with adrenaline.  Before I had hastily thrown on a shirt and jeans earlier
, I had pulled on the black nightie first.  I was willing to take all the help I could get.  Though it had been brief, I had caught the flash of lust in Talon’s eyes when he saw me wearing it.  I also remembered the painfully large bulge in his pants.  After all these months of self-denial he was fairly bursting. 

Retrieving the rope once again, I crept lightly into the bedroom
.  My mate was sprawled across the bed. It would make things easier.  I swallowed at the sight of his massive naked body, as broad and sculpted in muscular perfection as ever. I wanted him so much I could taste it. 

Talon’s left hand rested near the bedpost.  Taking a deep breath, I tied the rope around the post in the way Javier had taught me. 
For a brief second I ran my fingers along the varnished wood.  Talon had labored for two days straight to make this bed frame during the intoxicating week of our first mating.  Ivanovs slept in casual pallets on the floor at best.  Otherwise they slept wherever they tired.  The bed was for me.  Because I had asked for it.  When I filtered through the memories of our life together, I understood there were many small ways Talon had shown his love. 

Now, I was going to show
him mine.

One
small inch at a time I wound the rope around his wrist.  Once he flinched and his brow darkened but just as quickly he relaxed.  When I thought the rope had adequately secured him, I skulked around to the other side of the bed. 

Talon’s right arm hung loosely over the bed.  Not since that
dark, insensible time when I had nursed him following the attack had I been so close to the damage.  My heart hurt as I lightly touched the stump which had once ended in a strong hand.  Talon’s right hand had held me, had cradled our children, had shifted into a powerful wolf paw which conquered these northern Arizona woods. 

Such as small piece
of a werewolf, and yet so vital.  I kissed Talon’s arm.  It was time to finish mourning what was.  It was time to move on. 

Talon growled lightly in his sleep, rolling restlessly.  I didn’t have much time. 

I climbed on the bed and bent to Talon’s body.  His large manhood responded instantly to my touch.  He was rigid inside my mouth and as I ran my tongue along his length a low moan sounded in his throat.  I played with the sensitive tip, wanting him fully engorged.  It didn’t take much. 

Talon moaned again and I heard the sound of his muscles pulling against the rope.  As his mind recognized he was tied to the bedpost he woke sharply. “
Sheree!”   

I responded by sucking him deeply into my mouth.  The end of his shaft pushed into my throat and I move
d my head deliberately up and down to stimulate him. 

Talon swore in a ragged breath
but his body disobeyed.  His hips bucked beneath me, urgently seeking the rhythm his swollen organ craved.  When I was sure he was nearly to the precipice I abruptly released him, rising to a straddle. 

His eyes burned in the darkness and he jerked as if to shove me away but I was already guiding him inside my moist center.  Talon threw his head back and cursed again as I b
uried him deeply. 

My body welcomed his massive hardness, opening like a flower.  I rode him fiercely and was quickly consumed by the first shuddering orgasm.  I said his name over and over as the waves of bliss washed over me, raising me to impossible heights and then breaking free in spasms of ecstasy. 

And still I rode him with wild euphoria. 

He shook as he reached his breaking point and there seemed to be more of his hot seed than ever before.  I squeezed him between my legs, coaxing that
last bit of pleasure out and then released him from my body. 

Talon breathed heavily
in the aftermath.  His eyes, which had been closed, opened, peering at me angrily.  His left hand was still tied to the bed post. 

I knelt beside him on the bed and
stroked his face.  “Talon,” I said firmly, touching his rough cheek, “All the grief and despair you’ve been consumed with…it has to come out, baby.  So take it out.  On me.” 

It happened so quickly my mind couldn’t register it all.  My clumsy rope job had never really secured him.  Talon was far too strong for that.  With a mighty snap of his wrist he jerked free, tackling me with a roar.  We fell to the floor together
. I yelped with pain as my shoulder crashed into the hard wood. 

I tried to rise but Talon wouldn’t allow it.  His weight was suffocating and he was
already hard again.  I had demanded no mercy and so Talon would give me none. 

He flip
ped me onto my belly with such abruptness it took my breath away.  As my breasts were crushed into the cold floor, I was still struggling to get my bearings.  Talon’s left arm snaked beneath me and yanked my hips up.  I gritted my teeth as he plunged in with all of his strength. 

Talon said filthy things as he pounded into me.  He was out of his mind and for the first time I began to feel a vague
sense of fear.  But no, this was what I had asked of him.  I raised myself determinately up on my elbows and arched my back, pushing against his assault. 

When I thought he must be nearing the end he withdrew suddenly.  I fell back to the floor but a second later felt
the pain of his hand pulling me up by the hair.  His enormous stiff organ was in my face and Talon forced himself inside my mouth.  I sucked him greedily, tasting our mixed essence. 

After a moment
Talon pulled my head away roughly and threw me back onto the bed.  As I tried to scuttle backwards, he wedged his elbows between my knees and opened my legs, pushing himself into me again. 

His chest rolled over my breasts and with his one
hand he reached up and kneaded them harshly, twisting and crushing.  Wanting to match him hurt for hurt, I sunk my teeth into his shoulder, deep enough to draw blood.  He grunted in surprise but the sting seemed to urge him on even more frantically.

I came w
ith a ragged scream, my knees pushed into my chest, my nails digging into the muscles of his back.  He stiffened as the pulse of his seed filled me again.  And then he fell onto my breasts, breathing heavily. 

Tentatively
I stroked the top of his head, damp with the exertion of these chaotic moments.  I feared he would shake me off but he stayed there for a long time under my gentle touch. 

“Talon,” I whispered. 

He rolled onto his back, staring at the ceiling.  “The drink sends them away.” 

I propped myself on one elbow.  “Who?”

Talon passed a hand tiredly over his face.  “The wolves.” 

The wolves. 
The brutal pack of bitten wolves who had murdered his brother.  Who had robbed Talon Ivanov of his pride when they severed his hand.  He had never spoken of the attack.  All I knew I had heard from Tess.  How they had found him, already broken and bleeding, in the clearing deep in the woods.  How Javier had stood in front of his wounded body when the bitten wolf attacked.  The vicious creature was finally felled by an arrow to the heart by Gideon Casteel’s mate, the huntress Artemis. 

Of the events before that, pieces had leaked out from the other pat
rol members.  The ones who lived.  Hunters and wolves alike comprised the Luna Junction patrol.  That night, the night when Sheriff Michael Casteel had been killed, the patrol entered the woods to clear out the treacherous bitten pack which had been skulking for months, killing intermittently and sinking fear into hearts everywhere. 

It was an ambush.  As several packs joined and descended on the patrol things quickly grew chaotic.  Hunters loaded their deadly silver-tipped arrows and fired at the enemy wolves.  It wasn’t enough.  Anton Ivanov was taken down by three of them.  The Landon alpha, Cade, was wounded.  And as for Talon, he managed to separate several of the bitten and chase them away, through the woods and into a bloody confrontation. 

Talon spoke with quiet dread, lost in that terrible night.  “I killed two of them outright. Just as I finished the second one off the third lunged and sank his jaws around my right paw.  I could have beaten him were it not for the other wolf.” 

I
waited, not daring to interrupt, not even daring to touch him. 

Talon coughed painfully.  “He was a blood wolf,
not a bitten.  And a big bastard, but he was in human form.  He came right out of nowhere, as if I had been led to him.  He smiled at me, Sheree.”  Talon closed his eyes.  “I never want to see that look on another face.  He also held a giant machete in one hand.  ‘Join us,’ he said.  The other wolf still had my paw in between his jaws.  As an answer I sunk my teeth into his back.  And the waiting blood wolf, he lowered the machete with one clean stroke.”  Talon held his right arm up, examining the blunt end.  “Must have been a prayer to the moon that got me out of there.  I could hear his laughter as I ran.  And Sheree, that was the last time I ran.”  He lowered his arm.  “The next thing I remember was Tess.  And…and Javier.”