Page 43 of Ashes

When Mother appears across the lawn, the moonlight illuminates the scar on her face. She sits down next to me on a cold stone bench and looks back at the house.

“What’s happening in there?” I ask because this is the first time we’ve been alone together since I got here.

“Ragnor is getting ready,” she says quietly.

“Ready for what?” A sickening chill creeps down my spine.

Mother closes her eyes. In a voice that’s barely a whisper, she says, “The beginning of the end.”

21

NOVA

Itry to wait for Kole, but sleep takes over. Tanner is cool against my constantly over-heated body. I curl into him, my back to his chest, my ass cupped by the curve of his hips. His arms are big and strong. Wrapped inside them, I feel safe. Completely safe.

For a while, he strokes me. His hands roam lovingly over my body, like he’s trying to learn every dip and groove. Commit them to memory. He nuzzles into my neck. His breathing changes to a slower rhythm. I lace my fingers between his.

I’m drifting beneath the surface of sleep when Kole finally comes to join us. He slips into bed on the other side of me, hooks his big heavy leg over mine, and kisses my forehead.Are you awake, little star?

Without opening my eyes, I tell him,No. I’m sleeping.

He brushes my lips with his thumb, lightly pinching the spot where I’m trying to fight a smile. I pull him toward me. It’s pitch dark. Unable to see him, my other senses are heightened. I breathe in his scent. My pulse quickens. I can feel it in my neck.

I slide my hands down his body and hum a little as he does the same. His cock is hard, pressing against me. I find his mouth, steal a kiss, pull his hair loose from its elastic, and run my fingers through it.

Will you give yourself to me, little star?

The question sends a lightning bolt of arousal to my core. My entire body pulsates. I reach for him hungrily.

Is it safe?I ask, already tilting my head so my neck is exposed.

It shouldn’t be.Kole draws a line with his finger from my ear to my chest.It should send me wild with hunger, but something has changed. Something is different.

SOMETHING IS COMING.

The voice is loud. It startles us both. I grip Kole’s shoulders, heart beating fast.Did you hear that?

He cups my face in his hands.

SOMETHING IS COMING.

He kisses me. His teeth pull on my lower lip. Then he grabs my hair, leans in, and sinks his teeth into my neck.

* * *

Warmth floods my body. Tidal waves of heat lick my limbs. Ebbing and flowing, sending pulses of desire to tease my skin. I moan and lean into the pain. Something hot trickles down my throat. Kole groans. He’s lapping at me, sucking, pulling me closer.

There are hands on my waist. Two sets of hands. I hear Tanner’s voice but it’s distant. Something is trying to pull me away from Kole, but I hook my arms around his neck and latch on tight. I will not leave him. I’m his. He’s mine. My teeth graze his shoulder. I could taste him too, then we’d have each other. Inside.

FIND THE WOLF.

The voice is louder now. Hissing. Pummeling my skull from the inside out.

FIND THE WOLF.

A muffled cry escapes Kole’s mouth. The pressure on my neck changes. Then it’s no longer darkness I see. There are lights. Bright lights. A woman is screaming, giving birth. A baby, lifted into a father’s arms. The father’s face is blurred, but he has blond hair. Almost white. He turns away from the child. His shoulders shake as he sobs. Then the child is older. A boy. Playing with a girl. Her auburn hair shimmers in the sunlight as he chases her around a large oak tree.

FIND THE WOLF.