Page 74 of Taming the Kraken

An instant later, the door busted open, and pieces of ice shattered everywhere. Alexa gaped at Mikah as she raised a towel up. “What are you doing, Mikah?” she hissed.

“I felt a disturbance in here,” Mikah growled as Ken stepped inside with his bag over his head.

“Yeah, just me putting up an ice barrier in case your male urges got the better of you.”

Mikah growled, unconvinced. “Cut the crap, Alexa. Since when have I ever tried to look at you?”

“You just did. Look, I’m trying to help you here. What if you end up taking a mate? I don’t want her body to suffer by comparison. If you see me naked, you may never be able to view her as a real woman.” Ken snickered behind his paper bag while Mikah’s gaze continued to drill into hers.

“I don’t know what your game is, but I know you. You aren’t shaking me off the trail so easily. Tell me what is going on.” Mikah watched as Alexa looked at him like he was crazy.

“You’re about to see a lot more than you bargained for. That’s what’s going on.” Alexa set the towel down and began to lift up her shirt. Mikah immediately turned away while Ken stood there, admiring the view. She slipped out of her clothes and winked at Ken before stepping into the shower.

Mikah growled and shook his head. “You haven’t pulled anything over on me Alexa. Something is going on. I know it.”

“Fine, Mikah, you got me,” Alexa hissed in irritation as the hot water cascaded over her. She had to feed him something. Otherwise, he wasn’t going to give up. And she knew exactly what to say to throw him off the trail. “I haven’t been marked yet and my mate is around. I’m having a power struggle trying to prevent my beasts from going into heat. There. Happy, Mikah? Thank you for making me air this embarrassing moment. Now if you don’t mind … GET OUT!”

Mikah turned completely red and cleared his throat. “Oh. Umm. Shit. Sorry, Lex. I … we’ll just be … yeah.”

Ken stood there as Mikah put pressure on his shoulder, trying to usher him out of the room. Everything inside him raged for him to join his mate in the shower. But his damn face—he was going to need a shower now. An ice cold one. He finally allowed Mikah to push him out, and the door shut behind them.

Alexa sighed out in relief and leaned against the shower wall.

We hit him hard! Yuki panted happily with smug satisfaction. He won’t be able to use that again on us. We severed the mental connection with the glass.

Good. This must be a new trick, or Dad and Ken would have known about it. Alexa sighed as she let the hot water run over her. For now, she had taken care of part of the problem on her own, and she did it without Mikah getting upset over it. She was going to do her best in the future to keep Mikah safe. He was always protecting her, and now she needed to do the same for him.

Erebus held his head in his hands. Blood dripped from his ears, eyes, nose, and mouth onto the stone floor beneath him. He spit out a pool of crimson liquid, some of his blood clinging to his teeth, his breath ragged as he hunched lower to the ground.

He had underestimated her. It was going to take him days to recover from the wave she’d hit him with. He looked down at the blood beneath him and a red smile spread over his lips.

He began to chuckle maniacally, his laughter echoing off of the stone walls. Still cackling, he staggered over to a chair. Looking down at his hands, he played with the sticky liquid between his fingers. She had hurt him. She had made him bleed. His eyes were wide with excitement at the challenge she presented. It was better when they put up a fight. He liked it.

“Yes,” Erebus whispered, snickering to himself. “She is the perfect gem.”

CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

Brian leaned against the cool wall, staring at the door in front of him. He was waiting for Bella to be done with Grandpa Sage. He couldn’t stand not being around her and wanted to see her as soon as she was finished. Finally, when it was late at night, the door creaked open. Bella walked out cautiously, and her gray eyes immediately met the hazel ones across from her.

“Thank you for waiting for me.” Bella stepped out with more confidence after seeing his familiar face. She wasn’t sure why, but she felt better seeing him. She’d only managed to take a couple of steps before Brian reached out and pulled her into his arms. His head came down to rest in the crook of her neck where she could feel his hot breath beating against her skin. Unlike before, this time, her body gave a slight shudder. Her beast stirred uncomfortably, seeking Brian’s heat. Subconsciously, she leaned into his embrace.

“Are you alright? Are you hungry? You must be tired. I’ve been so anxious out here waiting for you.” Brian suddenly felt a calming warmth wash over him and a faint smile spread over his lips. He leaned his head into her shoulder and sighed from her calming comfort. “Thank you for that.”

Bella had her eyes closed as she felt her own beast relax next to Brian. Maybe this was the start of her recognizing the mate pull? Whatever it was, she was enjoying his heat and being close to him. It had been cold where she’d lived before. But it felt like Brian was the perfect temperature for her. She was disappointed when he stepped back, missing the warm cocoon of his embrace.

Bella watched him, keeping her expression neutral. She took in his dark silky hair, his finely sculpted, well-conditioned physique, and his captivating hazel eyes. Eyes she now noticed were studying her curiously. She had been eyeing him openly but didn’t look away guiltily. She held his gaze, knowing her blank expression gave nothing away.

Bella could feel her body reacting oddly. Something deep inside her was responding to the loss of his touch. Like she was a flower twisting and seeking the sunlight. Her slim hands curled into little fists, and she rubbed her thumb over her fingers. She felt a bit scared of the feelings that were building up inside her, and she didn’t understand the sensual excitement that was now making her heart beat faster. She felt like she was struggling for breath as her body trembled.

Brian stood there watching her curiously. Her silver eyes gave away nothing but they were glued to him. She had no idea what she was doing to him. Just her looking his way made his beast squirm and beat against him. He wanted to claim his mate, who was looking so vulnerable in front of him. There was a powerful need to protect her and hold her tight. But he didn’t want to scare her off. These emotions were intense, even for the mate pull, which she wasn’t feeling. He watched as she shivered slightly, and he stepped toward her.

“Are you cold?” He wrapped his arm around her, bringing his body temperature up as he did. He felt her lean into him and heard her small, contented sigh. “There. Is that better?”

Bella closed her eyes as she tried to control her own emotions. The mere sound of his voice was submerging her, drowning her in boiling needs and feelings that she didn’t understand. She felt lost, with no hope of sorting them out. She was told Brian was her mate, but she wasn’t sure what she was sensing. Maybe her mind was playing tricks on her, making her think she felt something. And Brian was an attractive man, so she didn’t trust herself.

With her eyes closed, she felt her insides clench. Her fingers began to tingle, and she bit her inner bottom lip. She’d never admitted this out loud before, but deep down, she was terrified of having a mate. For reasons that had haunted her since she was young.

“Bella?”