Chapter 9
Six days later…
Sweat trickled down the back of my neck and my muscles screamed from abuse.
But I wasn’t going to back down.
Logan’s wolf circled me, making full use of the impressive gym that was part of the west wing.
We’d taken up today’s training session on the sparring mats. It was impressive how well they held up against Logan’s claws, since he often preferred to spar in wolf form.
If he was in human form, he’d just end up between my legs and he insisted that if I didn’t have my magic, I needed to remember how to use my fists and my wit.
My wings twitched, still useless weight that were only slowing me down. I ignored the subtle desire to take to the sky and give myself the high ground.
I couldn’t rely on supernatural abilities right now. Those were muted and useless.
And even if I felt pathetic without them, I owed it to myself—and my mates—to figure this out.
So I kept my eyes on Logan’s wolf as he circled closer, deepening his movements until I was sure he was about to pounce.
He took his time, giving me a chance to analyze him and the way his muscles coiled. I needed to relearn these small cues that had once come so easily to me.
I tightened my grip on the staff in my hands, ready for when the attack came. Logan often allowed me to pick a weapon, and in this case I was supposed to keep him at a distance to protect my fragile flesh from teeth and claws.
His muscles coiled again and I registered the movement too late. Even though I yelled and swiped with my staff, Logan easily evaded it and lunged, sending us both tumbling onto the soft mats.
His heavy paws pinned me as he leaned in, releasing a low growl of disapproval that made the hairs on my arms stand up in warning.
He bared his teeth at me in challenge, but his eyes glittered with the heat of the fight. His wolf enjoyed toying with me and had the patience for me to get this right.
As I readied myself for another round, Logan growled.
He had something to tell me.
Great, another lecture, I mourned.
He couldn’t talk to me in his wolf form, not while my weakened state prevented the mate-bonds from functioning properly. That included hearing my mates in my head. So he had to communicate with me the old-fashioned way.
His bones popped and cracked, making my jaw clench. I knew it hurt, but I didn’t dare react. Logan didn’t appreciate pity for being what he was.
He was a wolf shifter. He’d said that the shift had been easier after mating me, but I suspected I had been supplying magic that helped ease the struggle. Now that I only took magic rather than provided it, he’d also reverted to the way things used to be.
Which meant a painful shift—one he often had to do just to talk to me.
I patiently waited as his fur gave way to pale skin. His muzzle retracted, forming a sharp jawline that I wanted to kiss. I watched as his arms slowly lengthened, reforming into muscle and long fingers.
His body grew larger until he was fully on top of me in all of his naked human glory.
I thickly swallowed down the lump that had formed in my throat and ignored the fresh throb of need that surged through my body.
The only things that remained the same were his eyes—those crystal blue orbs that always watched me—and his sharp, wolfish teeth that glinted in the light when he gave me a knowing smile.
He knew what he was doing to me being so close in his human form, but he wanted me to listen.
I was all ears.
He stared down at me, searching my face for something.
Not seeming to find whatever it was he was looking for, he growled again. “You have to stay in control,” he chided.
Even though he was in lecture mode, he leaned in and nuzzled my cheek, not seeming to be bothered by my sweat.
His breath puffed against my neck as he continued. “No matter how fast any opponent moves, you should still be able to anticipate their next action. You can do that by reading their body language. Wolf, human, witch. It doesn’t matter. There’s always a tell. Do you understand?”
I could hear the frustration in his voice. I shared it.
“Yes,” I said, feeling something else well up inside of me at the desperate tone in his voice.
He was afraid.
But I felt so safe here underneath his muscular body. Between these four walls in a room where only we existed—even if everything outside was in chaos.
Logan breathed in my scent, then huffed out a breath and moved to press a gentle kiss to my forehead. Before I could lift my chin to where I preferred his mouth, he got off of me and offered me his hand.
Reluctantly, I took it.
He gave me a nod. “We’ll continue, but this time pay attention, little wolf.” He grabbed a pair of pants and stepped into them.
As if that was enough to keep me from being distracted by his incredibly toned body.
I did a poor job of predicting his movements as he drove slow kicks and punches at me, pulling at the last minute to allow me to deflect the blow.
“Is that the best you can do?” he said after half an hour of fruitless training.
I frowned. Even knowing this was just a new tactic he was trying, the words still stung.
Lifting my chin, I met his eyes with determination. “I don’t have my powers, Logan. That’s why we’re training, isn’t it? To help me figure it out.”
He scoffed. “You can’t use supernatural gifts as a crutch. You need to believe in yourself.”
I didn’t like that he was insinuating that I was the one holding myself back.
My wings were heavy weights and my muscles screamed from the constant activity. I didn’t heal like I used to. I was easily worn out. And all of this training was making me hungry, tired, and thirsty.
Plus, Logan was hot as hell and all I wanted to do was curl up with his sweaty body and lick him.
“Remember when my wolf imprinted on you?” he asked as he circled me.
I followed his movements, stepping in a rounded arc to keep my distance as I shoved my fists up to protect my face. I could already feel a bruise growing beneath my left eye despite his pulled punches. “What about it?”
I didn’t like him bringing up the past. His wolf had imprinted on me the moment we had first met and he had waited way too long to tell me about it.
“You know I yearned for you. I watched Orion take you while I stood back.”
Why was he bringing that part up? My chest stung with the memory as if I’d betrayed him, but he hadn’t even told me his real feelings.
“You said you’d make it up to me,” he continued. “If you really meant that, then I need you to focus, Lily. I need you to stop questioning yourself and fight.”
My heart skipped a beat as he lunged at me. I reacted on instinct and went low to the ground, scooping out one leg to catch him off balance.
It worked, sending him off course just enough for me to dodge the blow.
He came at me again, forcing me to work on instinct. He didn’t give me a chance to overthink the situation and our sparring session soon turned into a dance. The patterns of his movements and my reactions became more intricate as I improved at reading his muscular cues.
His human form was much easier to analyze than his wolf one—and it appealed more to me, too.
Things were going well until he changed his style again. His body moved faster than I could anticipate and I screeched when he suddenly had me pinned against the wall.
My heart pounded in my chest as his hard body pressed against mine.
“Do you feel that?” he asked softly, his voice rumbling through me like a thunderstorm. “That’s what faith feels like. You can do this, Lily. I believe in you. Now, you just need to believe in yourself.”
Panting for breath, I stared up at him. Leave it to my wolf to believe in me when I couldn’t.
Even if I couldn’t feel the magic of his belief, my skin still tingled with desire and the gift of his presence.
I instantly became aware of how he still caged me in, as if protecting me, and I felt so small.
I reached up and threaded my fingers through his hair and pulled his face close to mine.
His breath caressed my lips as he smiled.
I looked into his eyes and said the words that felt more natural than anything in the world. “I love you, Logan.”
He ran one hand down to brand my hip. “Goddess, I love you too, Lily.” Something in him seemed to snap as if he finally believed everything was going to be okay.
He crashed his lips against mine in a passionate kiss. His touch ran over me with fresh hunger, pushing away the damp fabric of my clothes until there was nothing but skin between us.
He’d kicked off his loose pants somewhere between our kisses, which worked perfectly for me.
Because that gave me access to all of him.
He didn’t waste any time and hoisted one of my legs over his hip, then thrust his fingers into me. I cried out, only for my scream to be silenced by the lashing of his tongue.
He swallowed my moans as he quickly worked me toward an orgasm.
This was how we always ended our sparring sessions, but today felt special as if we’d crested over a new barrier.
He growled when I tightened around his fingers. I rolled my hips, seeking the right angle he was denying me and whimpered when he pulled out.
“I love you,” he told me again as he took my other leg and hoisted me up so that I wrapped myself around him.
He drove into me and I held onto his neck for dear life as pleasure exploded through my body.
“I fucking love you,” he said, thrusting into me as he pressed me against the wall and didn’t hold back.
My wings strained behind me, but I ignored the protest of my muscles and I rocked myself against him, seeking more friction.
I wanted him to knot me again, but I knew he wouldn’t. Not until he felt like he could trust himself not to lose control.
He cupped my breasts and circled his thumbs around my nipples as he fucked me. The place where he’d bitten me still burned and the mark flared to life as he drove me closer to the orgasm I was chasing.
“Logan,” I said on a desperate breath as I braced myself against him.
He gave into my plea, driving into me and grinding hard against me, punishing my pussy and my clit while he shoved me over the cliff with abandon.
I submitted myself to the overpowering wave of pleasure and the burst of rejuvenating magic that came with it.
It rushed through me, vanishing nearly as quickly as he had given it to me. It took me a minute to realize that the realms of Hell and the Netherworld were greedily taking their due.
A whimper escaped me after the fleeting burst of magic had fled, leaving me empty and hollow.
Logan shushed me as he moved me to the floor. The soft mats absorbed my weight and cushioned my wings. He drew out his thrusts, working me with long, adoring strokes.
He kissed me, then pressed his forehead to mine as he continued to draw out my pleasure. I clenched around him, desperately needing more, but it was never enough.
Not when I was linked to two realms that took any magic that my mates gave me.
“I’ll fuck you as long as you want,” he promised. “I’ll make you come a thousand times, little wolf. I’ll pin you down, right here, until you’re screaming for me to stop.”
I held onto his arms as he upped his pace. My wolf could make good on that promise and my stomach flipped with the knowledge that it was going to be a long, deliriously pleasant night.
“Is that a threat, or a promise?” I asked him with a wry grin. I’d read that line from one of the books in the reading area. I particularly liked that line.
He propped my legs onto his shoulders so that he could drive into me even deeper. I gasped as he shoved in and then kissed me. “Both,” he said.
Then he made me scream.