Page 19 of Forged Alliances
“Going to take a shower before we go,” he called as he strode to the bathroom. She balled her hands into fists, following him. If the Tribe already waited at her bar, she didn’t have time for him to primp and preen. She had to head out now. Sierra clutched the frame of the bathroom door, taking the first step onto the ceramic tiles.
Only to get an eyeful of Dax stripped to nothing again. He turned on the shower, and the spray hissed out. Water streamed down, and he hopped in, leaving the curtain open. Not like the man gave a damn who saw him, and with a body that fine, she didn’t blame him.
“Instead of standing there gawking at me, you’re welcome to join,” he said while he started scrubbing away.
Sierra sucked in a breath, restraining the urge to deck him. “I’ve got to get to the bar.”
“And I’ll be two seconds,” he responded. “Beaver Tavern won’t burn down without you there. Finn seems capable enough to keep them entertained.”
“Shocking. With the way you were all up in my business the second he called, I thought you hated his guts.” Sierra crossed her arms, refusing to admit how much the sight of Dax in the shower worked for her in a real way right now.
He ducked under the spray to wash the remaining suds off his body before responding. “Can’t help it, babe. You make me burn,” he said, flashing her a grin as he stepped out, leaving puddles on the tile in his wake. Beads of water glistened on his skin, and the urge rose in Sierra to lick them off his chest and keep heading downward. “But also this bond business messes with my head. I’m not normally the jealous type.”
Sierra nodded as she met his gaze. He wasn’t the only one experiencing irrational impulses at the moment. “Fine, toss on some clothes, uncivilized one. Let’s get out of here.” She turned away from him and headed out of the bathroom before she did something stupid. As she glanced back, the feline grin on his face got her blood thumping.
She stepped into the kitchen and poured herself another cup of coffee before slamming the elixir down while Dax rustled in his room to get dressed. Lust didn’t bother her. Sierra had tumbled with guys she’d never keep before, but what annoyed her to no end, what drove her crazy was from what she’d seen of Dax, she actually liked the man she was getting to know. She shouldered the weight of leadership with no complaints, but she had to admit she enjoyed having someone around who didn’t fall under her rule, someone who understood.
Dax emerged from his room. His shorter strands already dried under the brim of his Flyers cap, and his undershirt glued to his shower-damp chest. Even in simple jeans and a T-shirt, he emanated the raw power of an alpha with the dangerous gaze of a mountain lion. “Mind if I hitch a ride?”
Sierra’s brow rose. “This some flimsy ploy to spend more time with me?”
His grin widened. “Or maybe I want the chance to get you back to my place tonight.”
Sierra rolled her eyes as she walked out of his door, the urge to get going returning full force. She loped over to her beat-up car parked off to the side and placed her hand on the door handle. Dax locked up and stood in the center of his driveway, arms crossed and his brow lifted with the question still hanging in the air.
She heaved a sigh and tapped the top of her car. “Stop wasting time and hop in, jackass.”
Dax slipped over faster than she could blink and slunk into the passenger seat as she opened her own door. He wrapped his broad arm around the driver’s seat as he leaned forward. “Hurry up, Sierra,” he teased, his gaze twinkling. “We’ve got somewhere to be.” She plunked into the driver’s seat and gripped the steering wheel so hard she nearly tore it off. As she turned on the car and began to edge out of his driveway, Dax continued, “You’re growling, babe. Might not want to show up to meet the Tribe brimming with aggression.”
Sierra forced a smile as the car rumbled down the gravel, and she emerged past the forest into the sun-splattered asphalt of the highway. “Well, you’ve earned your place as the most singularly annoying individual I’ve ever met.”
“At least I stand out from the crowd,” he replied with a smart grin. As much as he made her skin prickle with irritation, relief spread in her chest at the way he cracked jokes with her, the same charming, teasing man she met a couple of days ago. Yesterday had been the intense sort of day to break anyone, but he’d proved himself man enough to step up to the plate and resilient enough to not let his brother’s crimes destroy him.
Sierra’s car flew across the highway, the tall pines from the neighboring forests flickering by. Fresh air danced through the open windows, the acute aroma of ozone mixing with Dax’s cedar musk. When they first met, the foreign scent of the mountain lion brushed her wolf’s fur the wrong way, but too fast it had become familiar. Now her wolf stirred for him in a different way, the animal side of her able to bond much faster than the human. After all, Sierra might take people on their honor and might give them a chance, but she didn’t trust easily.
The guys she’d bothered trusting always left, so why try? She had the pack by her side, a group of people she could depend on and that filled the void for her. Sierra swallowed, her tongue sticking to the roof of her mouth. At least, it had filled the void. The more time she spent around Dax, the more the ache grew in her chest, the desperate longing for an equal to spend her years with. And that terrified her more than anything, because as soon as she dove in, as soon as she let down her defenses and allowed the vulnerability she protected in a fierce way to poke through, he would leave. They always left.
Dax lapsed into a silence she didn’t trust, his gaze flicking her way like a brand as his fingertips danced along the edge of the rolled-down window. Beaver Tavern stood out at the end of the street, the cream exterior accented by oak and the surrounding trees providing a haven she always took comfort in. Her tires screeched as she braked and pulled into a parking spot. A couple of trucks and SUVs she didn’t recognize took up spots, and this early they were the only other vehicles in the lot, since the bar didn’t open for another hour.
“Ready to go meet the Tribe?” she asked, her hand resting on the gearshift.
Dax ran his hand through his hair as he forced a smile. “What can go wrong? My brother’s already set about torturing and murdering my packmates. In the wake of that, a couple of heavyweights from the Tribe are nothing.”
Sierra shrugged as she stepped out of her car. “Dax?” she said, meeting his eyes as they faced each other on the opposite sides of her car, her arms resting on the top. “You’ve got the high ground on this. You’re the rightful alpha of the Silver Springs, and you will claim your pack.” The ire in her voice reflected the way the injustice he’d experienced affected her.
Sierra lifted her chin and set off in the direction of the tavern. Dax slipped beside her, his palm resting on her shoulder. He dipped forward, his lips brushing her cheek. The touch set her nerves ablaze, the quick burst of a flare inside her.
“Thanks,” he whispered in her ear, the heat of his breath tickling her and making her hyperaware of how close he stood. Sierra bit her lip and nodded before she gave in to the impulse to jump his bones. Her hands balled into fists as she quickened her pace.
The most dangerous shifters on the East Coast didn’t frighten her in the slightest compared to the mountain-lion menace by the name of Dax Williams.