Chapter 11
Maya
Forge looks tormented. He’s hiding something from me, and I don’t like it one bit.
“What is it?” I repeat.
“Nothing,” he mumbles.
I wriggle and thrash in his arms until he puts me down. Then I face him, hands on hips. “Am I your mate?” I demand.
He kind of recoils, like he’s surprised by the question. Then an emotion flashes in his eyes. Something soft, unguarded. A week ago, I wouldn’t have believed such an emotion existed beneath that intimidating exterior. But there it is.
“Of course you are, Maya,” he growls. “My one and only.”
I’m trying to be fierce and uncompromising, but I can’t help melting, just a little bit.
Then his gaze drops to my tits, which I’m well aware are jutting out right now, like I’m trying to draw attention to them. I shiver as my nipples harden. Then my pussy, ever the traitor, starts to ache for him.
I will keep looking Forge in the eye. I will not look down and check whether his cock is getting hard.
I’ve got this.
“You don’t keep secrets from your mate,” I say sternly.
I don’t know if that’s true. Maybe Forge thinks it’s A-OK to have the kind of relationship where you don’t know what your mate is doing or thinking.
But I’m not going to stand for it.
And he looks chastened.
“I’ve got to leave for a few days,” he blurts out. “Take care of some business.”
I cock an eyebrow. “What… kind… of…business?” I enunciate.
The corner of his lips tugs up.
I shake my head. “What’s funny?”
He shrugs. “Just impressed at how badass you are, is all.”
“Oh.” I clear my throat. Pretend like I’m not flustered at the compliment.
“You’d better tell me, Forge,” I say in a softer tone. “I need to know I can trust you.”
He blinks. “You’re right. I’m sorry.” He does one of his fierce exhales. One of those ones that I expect to be accompanied by flames. Or at least smoke.
He folds his arms. “My contact has found your brother.”
“No way—!”
He holds his hand up. “He’s gotten himself caught up with another pack.”
He doesn’t look happy about this. At all. Ice shoots down my spine. “He’s in danger, isn’t he?”
He nods. “My contact says he’s way out of his depth. He doesn’t seem to realize how evil they are.”
I stagger backward as I absorb the news. “Can I get a message to him? Tell him he has to leave right now?”
Forge shakes his head. “Not possible. I need to go in and pull him out.”
“You? No. No way.”
A look of surprise crosses his face. “It’s dangerous. There’s no other option.”
“And that’s why I don’t want you to go.” I throw my arms around him. “I don’t want you to put your life on the line for my idiot brother.”
He holds me tight against his chest. “But you want your brother back. And this is the only way.”
I bite down on my lip. All this time, I’ve wanted Demetrius back, more than anything. But not at the cost of my mate. Tears spring to my eyes at the thought of Forge being hurt, or worse.
“No. You’re not going,” I insist.
“The decision’s been made.” He draws back until those fierce eyes of his are locked onto mine. “You’re my mate, Maya, and that means I’ll do anything for you. And that includes returning your brother to your mom.”
Anything.
My heart swells. I know he means it. I see the integrity in those emerald eyes of his. And it’s about the most romantic thing I can imagine.
But it’s also the worst. Totally the worst.
“Then I’m coming with you.”
His eyebrows drop down low. “No way.”
I shrug, faking nonchalance. “Your choice. Either I come with you, or you don’t go at all.”
“I won’t put you in danger like that.”
“And you think I’m going to just stay here instead? Going half-crazy by myself? Wondering what the hell’s going on?”
His face softens and he takes my hands in his. “I won’t be long. I’ll be back before you know it. This is the safest place you can be right now.”
“But what if I need to leave the island for some reason?”
“You can use the boat.”
“And then what? How am I gonna get back to civilization? Haven’t thought this through, have you, huh?”
He frowns. “Guess you could call a taxi?”
I shake my head. We both know that’s not gonna fly. “Or maybe you’ll ride off into the sunset, forget you left some girl here on the island.”
A roar bursts from his lips. “Never! I’ll think about you every second we’re apart.”
“What if something else distracts you?”
Shock passes across his eyes. “I love you, Maya. Nothing would ever distract me from you.”
My breath catches. “D-did you say you love me?”
Forge looks a little shocked and his lips work silently. “I know it’s real early. And it probably sounds crazy. But I’m in love with you, Maya.”
I blink fast, then I shake my head. “It doesn’t sound crazy, because I love you too, Forge.”
He sweeps me up into his arms, and I cling to him, and we kiss hungrily, our mouths wet from the tears that are spilling down my cheeks.
He loves me, my fierce, growly werewolf.
“And that’s why you’re not going without me,” I say into his ear.
He drops me down to the ground. “No, that’s why I’ll do everything I can to protect you.”
My heart lifts again at his words. I wish we didn’t have this to deal with, and we could just spend the rest of the day in bed, loving each other.
“There’s no way Demetrius will just leave with you. You’ll need me to talk some sense into him.”
“You can make a video. I’ll show it to him.”
I shake my head. “Not the same.” I gather myself. “Forge, can you imagine if something happened to you, and you just never came back? Like I never heard from you again? How that would feel for me? Just waiting and wondering and missing you.”
Pain clouds his eyes.
“Exactly,” I say in a softer tone. I can’t stand the thought, but something’s gotta get through to this stubborn wolf. “I’m coming with you.”
“Okay,” he says at last.
When Forge helps me out of the boat at the edge of the lake, I look back at the island and sadness washes over me. So much has happened in that little cabin over the last few days. I feel like we’re leaving a piece of ourselves behind.
“Can we come back here, after?” I ask.
Forge looks pleased. “Of course. Any time you want.”
We ride for what feels like forever. I cling to his back like a limpet, hope and nerves churning through me endlessly.
After a couple of hours, we turn off the highway and pull up at a gas station.
It looks old, deserted. There’s one other motorcycle parked up.
As we approach, a figure in leathers climbs off and lifts a hand, as if in greeting.
Forge lets off a growl louder than the vibration of his Harley. I tense, desperately trying to understand what’s going on.
Forge helps me climb off the bike, and he dismounts too, but he keeps me behind him.
Who’s that?” I demand, but he doesn’t answer.
“Stay back,” he growls instead.
The other biker tugs off his helmet. Then he breaks into a grin. “Long time, bro.”
He steps closer and extends his right hand.
He knows Forge? I’m more confused than ever.
Another growl escapes Forge’s lips. He grabs the hand and shakes it roughly.
The other guy looks from me, then back to Forge knowingly. “You gonna introduce me to the little lady?”
From the way Forge’s fists are twitching, I get the sense he’s more eager to rip the other guy’s head off than introduce us.
“Maya, my mate,” he snarls at last. “Griff.”
“Mate,” Griff repeats. “Well, I never thought—”
“Yup. Keep back.”
Griff raises both hands. “Course.” He dips his head respectfully, but there’s a twinkle in his eye.
I get it now. Forge is getting all growly and possessive of me. My chest warms and my heart gives a silly jump.
“So, you’re the one capable of getting Forge civilized,” Griff says. “It’s great to meet you.”
Forge lets off another growl, but a softer one this time.
I fight back a smile and slide my hand into Forge’s. “Civilized might be a stretch,” I say, but inside, I’m glowing like a lantern. Is it really possible that I’ve changed Forge for the better? I hold onto that thought to digest later.
Forge squeezes my hand. “Let’s go,” he grunts.
We ride for a couple more hours. When it starts to get dark, we stop at a motel for the night. We freshen up, then meet Griff for dinner at a place across the street.
He’s easy-going, but Forge is growly and possessive all evening, and I like it more than I should.
I love the way he has me sit beside him in the booth, and keeps his arm around me all night long, showing the world I’m his.
I love the little kisses he keeps pressing to my temples, and the murmured compliments in my ear that make me tingle all over.
“Are you in Forge’s pack?” I ask Griff, halfway through dinner. But that turns out to be the wrong thing to say, because Forge gets all snarly again, until I expect smoke to start pouring out of his nostrils.
“What is it?” I look from one to the other. But suddenly they’re both busy studying the dessert menu.
I can’t stand it anymore. I slap my hand down on the table.
Two pairs of startled eyes lock onto mine.
I rest my elbows on the table, tent my fingertips together.
“So, there’s probably a bunch of politics I don’t understand here.
But I know Forge is a good guy—because he saved me from his pack before I was even his mate.
And I’m gonna guess you’re a good guy, Griff, since you’re about to ride into a ton of danger to rescue my nitwit brother.
So, what gives? Why d’you all hate each other’s guts? ”
There’s a shocked silence.
And then Forge grunts and knocks back the remainder of his scotch.
“Griff, here—” Forge points at him. “Is my cousin. We were born on the same day, so people used to call us the twins. There was a lot of rivalry and competition between us. Then, when we were teens, Griff uncovered an old pack law that allowed one child per generation to leave the pack. You know what my pack’s like. This was a big deal.
“But this asshole—” He stabs a finger at Griff. “Kept it quiet. And on our sixteenth birthday, he announced that he was leaving. Turned out that whoever made the announcement first got their wish.”
Griff raises his hands, looking guilty. Now I know they’re cousins, I see the family resemblance—the broad jaw and cheekbones.
But where Forge is full of fire, Griff seems to belong to another element.
His blue eyes are calm, not stormy like Forge’s.
Maybe it’s a consequence of having left the pack, I think and I squeeze Forge’s hand as sympathy floods through me.
“I’m sorry. You know I am. But what can I say?” Griff says. “It was me or him. We both wanted out.”
“We could’ve fought, wolf to wolf,” Forge growls.
I raise an eyebrow. “Would that have helped?”
“Yeah. I would’ve flattened his ass.” The bones in Forge’s face are broadening and I see his animal close to the surface.
“So, you were more deserving of freedom, because you were better at fighting?”
Forge gives a snort of disgust.
“Not true,” Griff mutters, also looking kind of feral.
“Seems like either way, one of you had to lose,” I venture, wondering if I’m getting into dangerous territory.
But I feel like this has to be said. I hate that there’s so much animosity between them.
“You could’ve flipped a coin… or anything.
But one of you was going to get your freedom, and the other…
well, the other had a different destiny.
” I lean over and plant a kiss on my mate’s lips.
At first his mouth is unyielding, but gradually he softens, leans into the kiss.
“The problem is with the pack, not you, or you,” I say.
“I’m trying to make it up to you now, bro,” Griff says.
“I know,” Forge replies, staring down at the table. “Guess I would’ve done the same.”
At last, the two werewolves make eye contact. Forge stretches his hand across the table, and Griff takes it.
My heart lifts. And finally, I understand how much it cost Forge to recruit Griff’s services to help me find Demetrius, and I’m even more touched.
“Thank you for tonight,” Forge says as we walk back to our motel room, hand in hand.
“Anyone could see it needed to be done,” I say carelessly, but inside I’m glowing.
“All these years of anger… I hated him so hard.” Forge shakes his head in disbelief. “Just—gone. You’ve healed us,” he says and there’s such a tone of wonder in his voice. “How did you do that?”
“It was easy because I love you,” I tell him.
He puts his arm around me and draws me against him. “And I love you,” he growls.
Butterflies start up in my stomach. These little words are all so new, on my tongue, in my ears, but already I thrill to hear them.
When we get inside the motel room, Forge has barely shut and bolted the door before he turns to me and starts tearing my clothes off.
He’s different tonight. As fierce and passionate as ever, but there’s a new softness there.
And I feel us getting closer, complementing each other.
I sense that he no longer just sees me as someone he needs to protect, but truly as his mate, his equal.
He falls back onto the bed and pulls me on top of him.
For the first time, I sit astride him, bracing my hands on his big chest and riding his cock while he looks up at me adoringly.
I feel his love in every thrust, in every sweet, filthy word he growls in my ears.