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As Hector walked away, my heart began to race. The closeness of Grae, alone, in this dark booth made every sense feel heightened. That kiss in the crater was an unfulfilled promise, and now my body craved him like something I’d never known before. All I could smell was his scent. All I could hear were his steady breaths.
I took one more bite of potatoes and pushed the plate away. Leaning back against the hardwood, I folded my arms.
My eyes flitted to his. Just looking at him made me want to combust. In the shadows, his cheeks and jawline were sharper, his features more wolflike. The depths of my yearning made every muscle tense. I gritted my teeth, angry at myself for how all-consuming this feeling was. It was something I’d never done before, but all I could think about was the desperate need for Grae to help me find that release.
“You’re not hungry?” Grae asked.
“Not for food.”
A feral growl boomed from Grae’s chest as he dropped hisspoon and it clanged onto his plate. His hand was back on my knee. That touch alone made my lips part.
“Gods, if you keep looking at me like that, I’m going to take you right here on this table,” he rasped.
His hand slid up my leg and I parted my thighs, arching, so lost in that desperation for his hand to drift higher.
“You’d let me do it, wouldn’t you? You’d let me fuck you right here?” His fingers dug into my fleshy thigh and he let out a deep chuckle. “You want me that badly?”
“Yes,” I breathed, that magical desperate yearning making my eyes flutter closed as he planted a kiss on my neck.
He pulled away and I opened my eyes to find his heated gaze on me, filled with the predatory stillness of a wolf stalking his prey. His hand lifted off my thigh and my skin begged for the warmth of his dominating grip.
“Not here,” he whispered.
I swallowed, ice dousing my flames. Goddess, what was I doing? I was trying to seduce him in the middle of a sordid pub. My eyes glanced to my half-empty glass of wine. I couldn’t blame the drink for my salacious actions. Shame burned my cheeks as I dropped my gaze to my hands. I was such a fool.
“Ugh, I’m sorry,” I murmured, wishing the ground would swallow me whole.
“Hey.” Grae’s fingers gently turned my face back to him. “Don’t think for one second I don’t want you just as desperately. Every ounce of me is fighting the beast inside me that wants to claim you in every way.” His eyes were molten umber, burning into me. “But when I have you, I’m going to make you moan my name so loud even the moon will hear.” My breath hitched as heat pooled in my core. “And then the Goddess will know for certain that she was right for giving me to you.”
His words ignited my soul, a white-hot need devouring me. My mind raced with all the ways he might fulfill that promise. I bit my lip so hard I thought it might bleed, trying to steadymyself. A wicked grin spread across his face as he watched what his words did to me.
I cleared my throat. “Let’s take the long way back,” I muttered. “I think I need the fresh air.”
He chuckled. “Me too.”
The cool twilight helped temper the feverish rush in my veins. That quick-burning fire slowed into something more warm and steady. Grae kept his arm around my shoulders as we strolled across the packed snow. Villagers moved briskly to and fro, hastening back to their houses and out of the cold. No one paused to watch us. No one bowed. Why would they? To them, we were just two humans on an evening stroll.
We passed the town square, where little shrines and rundown temples to the human Gods circled the open space. Dozens of them lined the square. The carvings above the archways denoted the different deities: a sword for the God of War, a coin for the Goddess of Abundance, a paw print for the Wolf Kings. A giant willow tree sat in the center of the square, covered in drooping beads of ice.
“Hengreave is beautiful,” I murmured, watching an old man climb up the icy steps into the Temple of Courage.
“It makes me want to visit more human towns.” Grae’s chest vibrated against my side, our steaming breaths swirling together. “I feel like we’re missing half the world.”
I was going to respond, but Grae froze, his arm around my shoulder tightening and yanking me to a halt. I looked up to see five men standing in front of us. They wore stone gray cloaks, no hoods or masks. Not Rooks then. I narrowed my eyes at the eldest man with the scraggily gray beard and silvery hair. His eyes flickered golden in the darkness and blood drained from my face.
They were Wolves.
“Hemming,” Grae snarled.
“I see you’ve found your mate.” Hemming gave me a smugsmile and I curled my lip at him. “His Majesty has been worried sick about you, my dear. He’s sent me to ensure you have safe passage back to Damrienn.”
“I’m sure he has,” Grae gritted out, dropping his arm and taking a step in front of me.
“This is a pack order, Your Highness.”
The men behind Hemming looked like coiled ebarvens ready to strike. My legs grew jittery as I stared into their reflective moonlit eyes.
“Pack orders,” Grae muttered. It was the thing wolves said to end a conversation. Nothing mattered more than the will of the pack. Pack orders meant “you lose.”
