Wild Nights (11 page)

her to elation.

“Aya? Coming?”

Aya spun away from the bed and hurried out of the room.

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Nuzzling would just have to wait.

* * * *

His body felt like a hundred-ton brick as the veil of

unconsciousness began to peel back. He groaned against the

throbbing heaviness that pressed down on his chest and weighted

down his legs. He reached up to knead out an aching knot from his

neck only to realize the source of that knot.

“You fucking prick,” Riley grumbled, voice thick and scratchy

from the drug. He blinked away residual fatigue. A sharp tug at the

thick rope left his flesh raw. “Son of a
bitch
.”

His head lolled against the pillow. The muscles in his neck

protested the weak motion as he observed the small room. Nothing

but the bed and a small nightstand cluttered the space. Transparent

curtains covered the only window in the room, to his right, barely

masking the penetrating darkness beyond. Moonlight seeped into the

room on a shimmering veil, casting a soft, pale luminescence over his

body.

He bucked, the motion jerky. The ropes bit into his wrists. He

grappled for the restraints with his fingers, working the drug out of his

system. With each sharp movement, the haze receded from his mind,

and the potent scent of blood touched his nostrils. Warmth trickled

down his forearm. He looked up. The rope bit into the flesh at his

wrists. Blood crept along his arm until it dripped onto the pillow next

to his face.

Riley sucked in a deep breath, prepared to howl, when the

intoxicating scent of the white wolf infiltrated his body. He sniffed

sharply, turning his head to better follow the delightful scent. There.

Right…

My hair?

Desperate to follow her scent, Riley twisted his hands, grabbed

hold of the rope, and ripped it through the headboard. He worked the

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73

knots loose and cast the bloodied rope aside, still tangled with

splintered wood.

A deep howl penetrated the night. A second call echoed, softer,

threatening.

Riley rolled onto his hands and knees, swaying against the rush of

blood that poured through him. The lasting effects of the drug washed

away. The air stirred, wrapping him in the delicious warmth of that

fucking white’s scent blended with the potent air of sexual heat.

He growled, leaped to his feet, then stilled as he listened through

the house. The inside of the dwelling was silent, all but for the hum of

a kitchen fan. Mouthwatering scents of fresh meat and seasoning

elicited a hunger he had suppressed far too long. Food would have to

wait. He needed to find the white.

He despised the idea of not being able to transform into his wolf

form. He had to be in prime condition when he discovered Lenox. His

old nemesis had outwitted him twice in one day, a sour punch to

Riley’s ego. It was time he turned teeth on him, aiming straight for the

fucking bastard’s throat. He’d like to see Lenox try and save his little

spiritually appointed mate while he lay dying.

The image left a bitter flavor in the back of his throat and a

disturbing thought in his mind.

Could he mutilate the man who saved his furry tail so many times

as young pups? Over a damn woman?

“Riley? Are you here?”

Riley froze at the end of the hallway. Eliza’s voice drifted along

his mind. He held his breath, glancing around a wide-open living

room lined with windows. The tall redwoods of the forest beyond

swayed in an eerie dance beneath the opulent moonlight. Cold bluewhite rays drenched everything, casting haunting shadows across the

yard.

He narrowed his eyes, pressing his back against the wall.

“Riley? We traced you back here. Are you in danger?”

Riley gritted his teeth and remained silent. He didn’t need a

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woman to rescue him. If he received another bruise to his already

perforated ego, he’d snap. The last time he gave himself over to his

wolf, he killed himself a half dozen deer, a bear, and nearly mutilated

one of his pack mates who tried to calm him.

A flash of light darted between the trees outside. Riley lowered

down to his hands and knees and crept along the floor of the house,

keeping the tree line within sight. Another flash. A third. Wolves. His

pack.

“Damnit, Riley. Answer me! Did she do something to you? I see

her sitting outside with that other wolf. I’ll rip her head from her

shoulders. I’ll mutilate that wretched bitch just like her father did to

yours. I’ll kill her for you.”

The hairs along his arms stood on end. A deep, husky growl

resonated at the base of his throat. How dare anyone threaten that

white without his consent.

He slinked through the living room. The cold cast of moonlight

over the polished hardwood floors slowly dissolved into the warm

glow of firelight. He moved through the kitchen and came up short of

the counter. Beyond the glass sliders he pinpointed Lenox first,

settling himself in a chair. As the licking flames of the fire danced, he

caught a glimpse of
her
.

Down the sloping hill off the porch, he caught the stealth

movement of his pack weaving between the trees. His fingers curled

against the wood floor, his joints swelling and popping. His wolf

mewled for release, panting against the inside of his ears. Fur bristled

as it stretched through his skin.

No
.

Riley focused on the pack slinking in the shadows. The breeze

must be blowing downhill if Lenox hadn’t picked up on them yet.

Either that, or the man was so enraptured by the white that he didn’t

care.

The woman leaned over and connected a kiss that shot a shock

wave of protest through him.

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75

Riley pressed to his feet and approached the glass slider.

“Riley.”

The sweet, sultry whisper flowed through his mind like silk in the

breeze. He was transfixed on the very woman he wanted to kill,

watching her kiss his nemesis with intensifying hunger.

The white’s eyes fluttered open. Her startling blue gaze locked

with his. Her hand stretched out toward him. His cock, already at halfmast, swelled with a powerful desire. She called to him. Did Lenox

know? Could he stand to watch Lenox claim her?

Suddenly, a burst of motion from the forest ripped his attention

away from the couple. His wolf howled within him, pawing

relentlessly for release.

Eliza’s icy tone growled,
“She’s a dead wolf.”

* * * *

Nox tore away from Aya’s mouth and pinpointed the source of the

alien noises.

“Shit.” He pulled Aya off the chair and shoved her toward the

house. “Get inside and don’t come out.”

His wolf emerged with a ferocity that reverberated in his ears, his

body twisting and reforming. He leaped onto the wall around the fire

pit and launched his massive form over the edge of the porch. His

sharp nails dug into the soft ground beneath his paws. He crouched

back, ears resting flat against his head. He growled his warning to the

swiftly approaching pack.

A piercing noise shattered the tense air. Aya shrieked. He jerked

his elongated head, spotted her amidst a shower of fiery glass shards,

and—

Years had passed since he last laid eyes on the tawny wolf. Riley

moved with enviable agility, slinking between the chairs—a hunter

straight through to the bone—until he leaped off the porch.

Nox whipped around, his jowls pulled back to bare his razor-sharp

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teeth. He prepared himself for the attack, but the other wolf landed a

half-length in front of him. He crouched back on his haunches and

released a low, dangerous rumble of warning to the approaching pack.

The lead wolf’s head lifted. She paused in her approach. Pointed

ears perked up.

Oh, hell. It can’t be.
Nox sniffed the air and groaned inward,

which expelled a throaty sound.
Wonderful. The bitch lives.

Riley barked again. Nox stepped up to him, keeping shoulder to

shoulder with his old friend. He growled deep in his throat, laying

weight to Riley’s threatening bark. His jowls quivered with each

rumble, the feral need to protect his mate prevalent. One of the

flanking wolves leaped forward.

Nox sprang toward him.

“You fucking moron! Don’t engage him!”

Riley’s scolding blasted his mind, jolting him in midair. He

landed and stumbled sideward, but never once lost sight of the enemy.

The tawny wolf crept low over the ground until he placed himself

between Nox and the pack of curious wolves. Riley snapped his teeth.

The leader of the pack, surely one of Laela’s sisters, yipped. When

Lenox tried to edge by Riley, his old friend kicked back his hind leg

and caught him straight in the ribs. Nox swatted Riley’s leg in

response.

“This is my home, my territory. Don’t you try to hold me back
.
”

Nox arced over Riley and landed in front of him. He tried to connect

telepathically with the threatening pack, but couldn’t latch on to a

useful link. Riley looked over at him, teeth bare and glistening in the

icy moonlight. He snorted his disapproval.

Nox stalked toward the leader of the pack, his growl persistent.

The wolf watched him, silver eyes flashing against the moonlit night.

Her nostrils flared until she spun around and bounded back to the

forest line.

Straightening on his legs, he snorted out the residual scent of the

wolves from his nostrils and turned to face Riley.

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77

A stream of silvery white flew over the ground and landed square

on Riley’s back.

“Aya! What are you doing?”
Nox demanded. He sprinted over to

the warring pair as they rolled down the hillside. Riley snapped at

Aya’s snowy neck. She raked her claws across his snout. The pungent

scent of blood infiltrated the air. Air that grew heavier with tension by

the second.

“Ayasha!”

“He killed my uncle!”

Nox froze in his tracks. Riley killed Charles? He knew his old

friend’s hatred ran deep after his father was murdered, but…
Riley
?

What had the years of separation done to the man?

Nox shook free of his trance and lunged after Riley and Aya. He

caught her scruff between his teeth, hooked a paw around her soft

body, and yanked her off the wolf. He placed himself between the

two, snapping his teeth at Riley when he detected the male’s readiness

to attack.

“Turn, Riley. Now.”

The fur along Riley’s spine bristled as he righted himself on all

fours. Nox stepped back, nudging Aya behind him. When he observed

the first hint of Riley’s transformation, he, too, reined in his wolf and

returned to his human form.

He glanced behind him. Aya’s pure white appearance left his

throat dry with awe, but his body still seethed with anger.

“Sweet, you can turn back,” Nox coaxed quietly. Aya’s fleshcolored nostrils flared. She pulled back her lips enough to flash her

front fangs.

“No. I feel better in my wolf.”

Nox nodded once. Turning back to Riley, he crossed his arms over

his chest. Riley withdrew his bloodied fingers from the three gashes

Aya left across his cheek. His upper lip twitched, his nostrils flared,

and his amber eyes glowed with disgust.

“You killed Charles,” Nox accused, not withholding his own

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displeasure in the disturbing revelation. Riley snorted. “You killed her

uncle.”

“If you’re looking for sympathy, I’ve none,” Riley warned. He

raked a hand through his hair. His eyes lowered to Aya, still poised

behind Nox’s body. “I don’t regret burning that bastard to ashes.”

Aya leaped. Nox grabbed her shoulders and wrestled her back to

the ground.

“Easy,” he whispered against her ear. “Let me handle this.” He

forced Aya behind him again and turned back to Riley. “You’re a

fucking fool, Riley Tormel. You’ve no idea what you’ve done.”

“I murdered the man who helped slaughter my father, all because

of
that
.” Riley jutted out his chin, motioning to Aya. She growled in

response. “Foul creature, you white wolf. Both of you.”

Nox sucked in a deep breath through clenched teeth and pinched

his forehead, then turned his gaze on Riley. He barely clung to sane

grounding.

“All these years you’ve lived believing your father was the target

for murder. Your father, Riley,
slaughtered
the Whites. Ruthlessly

tore them to shreds
while others desecrated countless families, all on

orders from a bunch of insane females. Laela and her sisters wanted

the power and control those families held over the packs—”

“You have no clue what happened that night!” Riley snapped.