Shadows of the Ancients (23 page)

“Yeah, I remember.” I felt the warmth that crept into my cheeks as images of what he had done to me that night danced around in my head.

“Well, I left, with every intention of coming back in the morning. Only when I got home, I had a call from my father to deal with, and he was not happy to hear that was possible bonding myself to a Lesser.”

“I don’t get that.”

“I know. It’s an old way of thinking. It actually stems from the white wolf. If there aren’t any ancients around to produce one, then we will never see her rule again. You have to understand that under the white wolf’s rule, we have known great prosperity. So, our laws were made up to ensure that we would always be guaranteed her return.”

“There hasn’t been one in a long time though. Surely that train of thought has to cease at some point.”

“Yes and no. My father is stubborn in his ways. He doesn’t like interbreeding, for his own reasons. He thinks we’ll be diluting our pure blood if we mingle with the Lesser.”

“And you? Do you think that?”

“I’m here, right now, aren’t I?”

“Yeah, but there’s a chance I might not be Lesser.”

“True, but I liked you before we knew that.” He reached up and gently brushed a stray piece of hair back from my face. “After I spoke with my father, who was none too happy with me, yours showed up. Don’t be mad at him, Jess. He has your best interest at heart, and he was worried about the King coming down on you for daring to be with his son. He was right to worry. Between our two fathers, I started to see things from a different perspective. I had to think about whether or not I was putting you in harm’s way by trying to be with you, no matter how much I wanted to be. I couldn’t be the reason you were hurt, killed, or had to say goodbye to your family when we had to run. It killed me not to talk to you. I worked those poor contractors like slaves in the club to keep my mind off of you, off of everything. It didn’t really work, and then Ashley texted me that I needed to talk to you…” The look that crossed his face was so sad. “I thought if I sent a cold message, you’d think I was just a jerk who took advantage of you and moved on. It would have been safer for you.” He pulled me closer, as if just talking about it now was pushing us too far from each other. “When you drove by with that human, I thought I was going to rip the town apart. I wanted to rip him apart. I tore off after the car the moment you passed by, and I would have caught you had Mikael not tackled me, and tried to talk some sense into me.” He sighed into my hair as he pulled me even closer. “Then you yelled at me, and wouldn’t talk to me anymore, and I knew I had blown everything, and that I couldn’t… I didn’t want to be without you, Jess. I wasn’t sure how to fix the stupid thing I’d done either. I came here, and you still wouldn’t talk to me. I waited until Ashely had a chat with you, I wasn’t sure she would help, but she understood what I had done. So, I was hopeful. Then I came up to try one more time, and you were sleeping. I curled up beside you, because I couldn’t stand never being able to be that close to you again.”

“Evan?”

“Yeah, Jess?”

“Don’t ever do anything that stupid again.”

“I won’t. I promise.”

“Good.” I snuggled into him a little more, and kissed his neck, just under his chin, eliciting a soft moan from him. It made me smile as I inhaled his familiar spicy scent. “I’m so tired,” I said through the middle of a yawn.

“Go to sleep, Jess. We can talk more tomorrow.”

MEETING THE FAMILY

In the morning, I awoke to the smell of bacon cooking downstairs. Bacon and coffee.

“Bless my momma. She’s going to feed us all before we go!” I said as I sat up in the bed and stretched. Evan pulled me back down beside him, wrapping his arms around me, and snuggling his head into my chest. Just that one simple gesture warmed me all over, and in my mind I was suddenly reliving the night that Evan had his hands and mouth all over me.

Evan stiffened beside me, obviously able to scent the shift in my hormones, and in seconds his body was hovering over my own. We were barely touching. He was holding himself just an inch above me and he leaned down, kissing my lips lightly. I reached up, wrapping my arms around his neck to pull him in closer for a deeper kiss, but he took each of my arms in his hands and plastered them down to the bed. “Be still.” His voice was thick, and the look in his eyes said he was hungry for more than just the breakfast we could smell cooking downstairs. He dipped his head back down, kissing me again, and then he let his body drop enough so that I could feel every bit of him against me. I groaned, loudly, and that’s when he hopped up off of me, and was across the room before I knew what happened.

“Evan?”

“I am not going toe to toe with your dad this morning, love. I’m grabbing a cold shower while you get dressed, and then we’re going to have a distance rule until we leave here.” I stalked over to him, backing him up until he couldn’t go any further, thanks to the wall behind him.

My fingers were tracing the line of his pectorals through his shirt, and down the length of his abdomen until I got to the waistband of his sweats. “I could help you out of these, before you go.” I started tugging them down inch by inch when his hands stopped me.

“Jess…” he hissed as he looked down at me through hooded eyes. “I only have so much self-control when it comes to you, please, don’t push me or I will help you break that promise you made your family.”

That did it. He was right, if we continued, we’d be bonded, and have to face the wrath of both of our families. “Uggh,” I grunted out as I turned away from him. “You better go then, and save me some cold water.” He laughed at that.

Jack and Sierra were sitting around the kitchen table when I got downstairs too, along with Ashley, Asriel, my parents, and Evan. He gave me a knowing look when my eyes landed on him, and I turned to grab a cup of coffee before anyone could see me blushing.

“Morning Jess!” Jack had come up behind me, almost causing me to spill my filled to the brim cup of coffee.

“Jesus, Jack. A little personal space!” I set my cup down on the counter, and turned for the hug that I knew was coming. He picked me up in a giant bear hug, and elicited squeals from me.

“He already got me this morning.” Ashley was laughing. “I swear he should have been a bear and not a wolf, with the way he likes to hug everyone. Seriously, it’s a dysfunction, Jack!”

“You know you love it, Ashley.”

“Jack, come sit down, Jess needs her coffee in the morning, otherwise she’s a bitch.”

I turned to look at Sierra, “always a pleasure, Si.”

“I know,” she said to me, and she meant it. Sierra and I had become something akin to friends over the years after what happened the day of my changing, but we were never going to have an easy relationship. I think a huge part of her still blamed me for her getting shot and not being able to have children. Not that it was my fault she followed me to threaten me about Zach, but she didn’t see it that way.

I sat down next to Evan and sipped my coffee while I grabbed a piece of bacon from the pile in the middle of the table. “There are eggs over on the stove, Jess.” My mom said as she turned to grab something out of the refrigerator.

“Thanks mom.” I got ready to get back up, but Evan put his hand on my shoulder to keep me in place and stood instead. He walked over and grabbed a plate, piling some eggs on it for me.

“Isn’t that sweet,” Sierra said. “It’s funny how things turn out, isn’t it, Jess?”

“How so, Sierra?”

“Well, that day in the woods, we were fighting over Zach, and here we are, neither of us with him.”

“We weren’t fighting over Zach. You were telling me he’d be yours, and I was trying not to care while I went through the calling, and my shift for the first time.”

“Yeah, whatever. It’s just funny how things turned out.” She was picking at the food in front of her. “Did he really attack you yesterday?”

I nodded, my hand involuntarily going to my arm just above my elbow where he’d grabbed me.

“I’m sorry, Jess. He used to be a different person way back then. I don’t know what the hell is wrong with him anymore.”

“Yeah, he did.” I took the plate Evan offered me.

“Your new guy is way cuter though,” she offered, staring openly at Evan. When she noticed that Ashley was giving her the stink eye, she added, “what?” Your brother hugs anything with heartbeat, I’m allowed to appreciate the eye candy.” Jack was laughing, and Sierra grabbed his hand and squeezed it. Things may not have turned out the way she had hoped when we were younger, but Jack made her happy. It was probably more than she would have gotten if things had worked out with her and Zach.

“Are you nervous?” I asked her.

“About what?”

“It’s been two years, and this will be the first time you get to meet Jack’s family.”

“Oh, that. No, they can love me or hate me, but Jack’s mine either way.” I had to smile at that, because honestly, his family would probably hate her, and she was at least smart enough to know it. Not only did their son change into a werewolf for her, but he’d never have children either. There was bound to be some residual resentment, especially since Jack had refused to see them for the past two years. Granted, he did so out of fear that he might turn in front of them and get violent involuntarily, but they couldn’t understand that.

“I make no promises for my family,” Jack added. “Which is why you two will be there. I’m worried enough about my own self-control, but Ashley just turned and they don’t know that yet.” He looked at Ashley, “good luck dropping that bomb in person.”

“Yeah, thanks, Jack.” Suddenly Ashley didn’t look like her breakfast was agreeing with her. I reached over and patted her leg.

“It’ll be okay, Ash. I’ll be there, and really they can’t be too surprised. You’ve talked to them about it before.”

“Yeah, now Jeff gets to be their favorite, since he’s the only normal one left.”

“He’s attending an art college, and I think his last girlfriend’s name was Bob. I don’t think mom and dad have a hope in hell at a normal kid.” Jack said with a hint of laughter.

“Oh yeah, they’re going to be pissed. If ever there was a time for Jeff to come out of the closet to them, this would be it. You know, while they’re in shock about another wolf in the family.”

“Don’t forget the fact that you’re already a bonded wolf, and dad didn’t get to walk you down an aisle or anything.”

“Shit!” Ashley said. My parents were standing off to the side, laughing. They’d met Ashley’s parents, and they had always wondered out loud how Jack and Ashley had been a product of that union. Ashley had once told them it was a testament to their rebel nature.

Everyone pretty much quit talking at that point, and finished eating so we could get the trip to do a family reunion over with.

Everyone else already had a bag packed for the night, except me, so I ran upstairs to do that while things were cleaned up in the kitchen. I was grabbing some underwear out of my drawer when Evan walked in my room. “I like those,” he said with a smile.

“I bet you do.” I put them back and pulled out a pair of boy shorts instead.

“I like those too,” he insisted. “I’m pretty much going to like anything I can imagine pulling off of you,” he hesitated as he closed the distance between us, “with my teeth!” I sucked in a breath just as he nipped the back of my neck for effect. Goosebumps immediately broke out all over my body, and his hand snaked up and around me, rubbing his fingers lightly over my now hardened nipples. “I see you like that idea too.”

“You are not making this easy, you know.” I was mentally slapping myself silly, because what I really wanted to do was strip the man naked and have my way with him right here, in a house full of my friends and family. I didn’t really care, but at least my statement had some sort of impact on him, because he backed up a couple steps.

“You’re right. I’m sorry. Sometimes, I just… it’s difficult. Is it really two more weeks until the full moon?”

“Don’t remind me,” I grumbled. “Maybe we can talk my family into doing the bonding ceremony privately, when we get back from Ashley’s family trip?”

“You know why they’re going to want you to wait.”

“Your family.”

“Yes, your dad told me what happened with your Aunt, and why you made them the promise to wait. I understand. I will stop tempting fate.”

I groaned inwardly again, “but I like when you’re tempting fate.”

A low growl rumbled from his chest, and he had to turn around and walk a few more paces away. “I wonder if we have time for me to hit another cold shower.”

Ashley popped her head in the door, “Do I have to separate the two of you so we can get out of here?”

“No, we’re coming.”

“No, you’re not, and that seems to be the problem.” Her double meaning did not pass me by, and I laughed as I threw the rest of my clothes into my bag.

“Fine! I’m done, let’s go.”

“Don’t forget your toothbrush, hon!” Ashley reminded me.

“Thanks.”

We took two vehicles to the cabin. Really, we could have just run through the woods a few miles as wolves and been there quicker, but Ashley insisted we do things the human way so we didn’t upset her family any more than were about to. Sierra and Jack piled in my Jeep with Evan and me. Ashley and Asriel took Evan’s car.

“Does Asriel have a car of his own?” I asked, remembering that I’d never seen him drive anything other than Evan’s vehicle.

“He has a truck. Now that I think about it, I’m not sure why he didn’t bring that. Seems like a better option than a sports car for a visit to a cabin in the woods.”

“You think?” I questioned sarcastically.

“I think he likes driving my car.” I laughed at him.

“Speaking of cars, I can’t believe you still have this big yellow monstrosity.” Sierra’s distaste was evident in her voice.

“She’s too prissy for your wheels, Jess.” Jack laughed.

“She’s always been too prissy,” I added.

“I’m sitting right here, and I just think, this is a man’s vehicle that you threw a sunshiny color on.”

“This is so not a man’s vehicle. It’s perfect. I can take my Jeep anywhere. You drive a cutesy little Jetta when we live in a forest that gets muddy a lot. How many times have you been stuck, Sierra?”