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CHAPTER12
SEAN
He watched her shift and then sail over the balcony railing, landing gracefully on the snow shrouded ground below.We’re really going to have to work on her pillow talk.
With no other thought than to be close to her, Sean called forth his snow leopard and leaped over the railing as well, landing nowhere near as gently as she did. She turned to stare at him, her snow leopard’s eyes reflecting the same intelligence and passion as her human counterpart. She waited for him to do something, but he stepped back, encouraging her to take the lead. This was her land and her home. She knew it better than he ever would.
For the first time since he’d met her, she seemed unsure of herself. Even when he had acted like a bastard, which he would admit to her he had done at Curaidh, and she’d been afraid, she had never lacked for confidence or courage. He stepped forward and she shrank back, although she did not give ground. Purring low in his throat, he rubbed his forehead along her cheek before he nuzzled his way down her side, keeping their bodies in constant contact.
Winter thwacked him in the face with her tail, but then brought it back around to caress him. He wrapped his own tail around her throat before trailing it down the length of one side of her body, as he rubbed along the other. When they were standing evenly again, he waited. This time she didn’t hesitate and bounded off, stopping several yards in front of him to turn and ensure he was following. He gave her no room for doubt.
They began to gallop through the vast hills and valleys of Windsong. Each time he got a chance to see it, it seemed to grow larger. The estate seemed to be completely self-sustaining, with a great deal of acreage devoted to crops and livestock, but there were also beautiful gardens, inviting forests, and a rocky shore that led to the ocean.
Winter ran, covering the miles swiftly—so swiftly, in fact, that it was kind of hard to keep up. But he did. He tried to see this place through her eyes. Was this the first place she’d ever thought of as home? She couldn’t have seen her father’s small holding as anything other than a burden, and he certainly done nothing to convince her that Curaidh was home. But maybe home wasn’t a place, but more a person. For the first time in his life, he could imagine a life somewhere other than Curaidh. Sean knew he could be happy as long as she was at his side.
This was a harsh and rugged land she had come to live in, and it would seem she had thrived here. She had adapted and learned, becoming stronger and acquiring skills she’d never have had if she had remained in Scotland. Reynolds was no fool. If he had named her his beta, he knew all too well the kind of woman she had become. He had been there to not just help mold her, but to support her and be her friend and family.
That she had risen to the status of beta said a great deal about her, and pride welled up within him. He now realized what should have been so obvious. Reynolds’ clowder treated her with the respect that was due the second highest ranking member of a clan. Winter answered to Reynolds alone, and it seemed the lynx-shifter commanded her loyalty and allegiance. It was easy to see that their affection for one another was not all that different than his and Hamish’s for each other.
He wanted to talk to Reynolds. If he was willing to risk Winter, then he must think it was worth it. She had called herself his spymaster. There had always been stories that nothing vibrated the strands of Reynolds’ web that he didn’t know about. It sounded as if she was intricately involved in gathering intelligence for her alpha, and he had to admit that she might well still consider Reynolds her alpha. Sean needed more clarification on Winter’s position in Reynolds network.
Despite what she might think, he wasn’t unaware of the existence of the Shadow League, but from what she’d said, he feared that they might pose more of a risk to their kind and to those beyond than he’d allowed himself to believe. There were conflicting reports not only regarding the League’s existence, but its strength and capability. That Reynolds trusted in her was enough for him. Sean would not be second in his faith in her to Reynolds.
They galloped along the hard-pack sand on the beach before ascending back up the steep rock face and racing back towards the mansion. Winter gathered speed and leapt toward the balcony railing, using her front paws to grasp it and aid her in getting back on the balcony. The legs of a snow leopard were powerful, ensuring that they had tremendous ability to jump.
When he’d joined her in her room, she had already shifted and was headed into the bath. Sean shifted quickly and followed her in, managing to step inside the shower before she could close the door.
“So, now what?” she asked, somewhat defensively.
Although his first inclination was to go all prehistoric beast with her and drag her back to his plane and home to Scotland where he could keep her safe, he knew she would never be happy in anything resembling a traditional role. And truth be told, he was beginning to ask himself if that’s what he actually wanted. Had his soul somehow sensed the warrior that had resided within his fated mate? Was that the reason he had been relentless in his pursuit of her from the time she had escaped him?
Sean knew to follow his instincts would be to play right into what she believed about him—that he didn’t care about her feelings or opinions or her needs and desires. He realized he didn’t even know what most of those were, and wondered if she did. Had she become so consumed in fighting the Shadow League that she had ignored the part of her that longed for her fated mate?
He realized they’d never had a chance before. Even if she had failed to elude him, things would never have been the way they could be now. Fate had given him a second chance, and he had no intention of fucking it up this time, but he did deserve some payback for the hell she had already put him through and for all the hell she was sure to give him in the future.
He quirked an eyebrow at her. “Well, I thought I’d get you all slippery and wet and then have my way with you before dragging you out to the airfield and onto my plane. Then I thought I’d blister your ass and fuck you raw on the way home so that you are thoroughly chastised when our people lay eyes on you again, and they can see their alpha is all powerful and no one leads him on a merry chase who doesn’t pay the price.”
As he expected, her color began to rise, and her fists clenched at her sides. God, she was easy and such fun to bait. He couldn’t help chuckling at her, which made her ball her fist and punch him in the stomach. The fact that she hadn’t used much strength behind it, made him think they were moving in the right direction.
“Be serious,” she said, sounding far more distressed than he wanted her to be.
“Shh, sweetheart. It’ll be all right. In all honesty, I’m not sure what happens next. This and you are not at all what I expected.”
“Disappointed?” she said, challenging him.
“Nay, lass,” he said reaching up to rub her shoulders and massage her neck gently. “I don’t believe you could ever disappoint me. I thought we might finish our shower. Then I’ll place a call toCuraidh and have your father told he is free to go. I do want you to know he has not suffered in your absence, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he wanted to stay, which if it pleases you, he may do so. If it doesn’t, you will never have to see him again.”
“And then what?”
“I don’t know, other than I know I want to be with you. I want to get to know the glorious woman the fates have gifted me with. I want to learn more about the Shadow League and the threat you and Reynolds believe them to be.”
Relaxing beneath the steaming water, she stepped into him, not seeming to mind how his cock had risen up and now throbbed between them.
She wrapped her arms around him, rubbing her body against his. “Anything else? You don’t want to beat me and fuck me raw?” she purred.
“I have no desire to beat you, but I could be very interested in the fucking you raw part.”
The corners of her mouth lifted in a smile. “Hmm, that’s the part I was interested in, as well.”
