Chapter 5
Lambda stood there—jaw slightly slackened, eyes wide—dumbfounded.
He had been on his way to pick up Vallie, take her to their house, feed her a big meal, let her look around the townhouse, and then leave her alone until tomorrow when she’d maybe let him go down on her.
And now that he was in her proximity again, all he wanted to do was go down on her.
She was perfect. Her brown hair was pulled away from her face in a high ponytail. She was only a bit shorter than him, and strong. Vallie looked like going back to Balaur would barely phase her. Now that he was only inches away from her face, he also found green eyes with flecks of gold, plus eight dark freckles decorating her face.
“You’re gorgeous,” Vallie said, taking a step closer to him. “This man?” She put her hand on his chest and looked up at the sky. “Never believed in the Moon Goddess until right this moment. Thank you!” She turned her face back to his. “I mean,” she ran a finger against his jaw. “What a face to get to ride for the rest of my life.”
Lambda felt color rise to his cheeks and tried to stifle a growl in his throat. Vallie grinned.
“So, here’s the deal. You do not have to come with me to Balaur. I know it violates the treaty you have with the dragons. And I would find your loyalty to your people endearing. But, I am going. I can’t abandon my sister there and she deserves everything I’ve been offered in Luven. And I’m not going to fuck you until after Verona is safe inside the hospital here.”
“Verona?”
“That’s my sister’s name. Verona and Vallie. She’s been my only family for…well, for a while. And while I would love to get a look under those clothes,” she pulled a little at his shirt, “I’m not going to be distracted while Verona is still with the dragons.” She took a step back and released him. “What’s it going to be? I’m leaving now.”
“You’re leaving now? No,” Lambda finally found his voice. “You need way more supplies than whatever you’ve got in that ratty pack.” Vallie may look capable, but no one could go into dragon territory unarmed. And unless Vallie was hiding a very powerful shifter scent, there was no way she was prepared.
“Hey! I did a pretty good job scavenging around the hospital and pack housing. I didn’t know I was going to have a mate so I had to make do. I couldn’t exactly tell Hadie that I was looking for supplies to cross the wall. I’m sure she would have told Alpha and I’d be sitting in some sort of prison cell. Again.”
“Well, you have a mate. And your mate isn’t going to let you wander into the pit of dragon territory unprepared.” Lambda grabbed her hand and turned down the street. If she was walking into danger, he’d be walking right beside her. “We’ll leave in one hour, no matter what. Are you good with that?”
“You’re coming?” She sounded elated.
“Of course, I’m coming. I’m not about to let my mate cross the wall without me.” He ignored the pit in his stomach thinking about crossing the wall. It didn’t matter. His mate was going, so he was going and that was that. He would deal with the consequences later.
Vallie slipped her fingers through his, weaving their hands together as she followed him down the street to their house.
“What do you have in there?” He nodded at her pack.
“Water, food, some matches, a knife, a scalpel, an extra pair of socks and pants.”
“No fire in Dragon Territory. They’ll spot us.”
“I know it’s spring, but it gets pretty cold at night. We’ll need it to keep warm.”
Lambda shook his head. “I’ll keep you warm.” He led her up the stairs to the house, then opened the door.
Vallie snorted. “I said no fucking until Verona is in the hospital.”
“I didn’t mean like that. Feel.” He raised his hand to her face and cupped her cheek. “Wolves run very warm. If you sleep next to me, you won’t need a fire. I never need a fire.”
“Oh. Ok, if we’re just sleeping, that’s cool with me. Is this your house?”
“Our house,” he corrected. He dropped her hand and opened the front closet, pulling out a backpack.
“Shit, I can’t believe I’m going to live here. Super nice.” Vallie wandered into the house, her head swiveling around the look at the entire room.
“We’ll use this instead of that pack. It looks like it’s about to fall apart.”
“Hey, I made this out of a hospital shirt. I’m pretty proud of my resourcefulness.”
“You’re very talented, but let’s use the one that won’t fall to pieces in an hour.”
Vallie rolled her eyes but handed him her pack. He dumped the contents on the couch, then picked what to include. He kept the clothes and the apples. “Hide this on your person,” he said, handing her the scalpel. “You’re more likely to stab yourself with this knife than actually use it against a dragon.”
“Do you have any weapons in here? Something that might work better?” Vallie looked around the room.
“No.”
“Should we buy one for you?”
“Vallie,” Lambda began, walking to her. He let his eyes flood black for a moment and his voice drop to a growl. “I am a weapon.” Her eyes flashed and her scent shifted. She’d been interested in him since they locked eyes on the street, but now, she smelled aroused.
Fuck.
Nope. No fucking until her sister, Verona, was safe. The least he could do was follow that simple rule.
“I’m going to run upstairs and get you an extra shirt. Go eat something in the kitchen that doesn’t travel well. I’ve got jerky that’ll be easier to carry than the can and crackers. Plus, I can always catch something for us.” Lambda got away from her as fast as he could.
Once upstairs, he took a deep breath. He could still smell her, but that sharp arousal was fading and replaced with just her.
He had to stay focused. He needed to get them to Balaur, get Verona out, and then get the three of them back to Luven. Safely. Because there was nothing he wouldn’t do for this woman—which was confusing as fuck—and her sister deserved the safety she’d been granted.
He closed his eyes for a moment and pictured what life would look like after getting the three of them back to Luven… Vallie had said something about sitting on his face…
Lambda took a deep breath, grabbed his warmest shirt, and then went back downstairs.
“Vallie?”
“Back here!” she called. Lambda tucked the shirt into the pack, then walked into the kitchen.
“This seemed like something that wouldn’t travel well,” Vallie said, pointing at a piece of cake in front of her. “And it’s fucking delicious.” She slowly raised the fork to her lips, placed the chocolate cake in her mouth, and slid the fork out from her pursed lips.
Lambda’s mouth went dry.
“Oh shit, were you saving this?”
He shook his head. “No, please eat it.” He turned to the cabinet and pulled out some venison jerky. “You eat meat?”
“Yup. Though I’d never had venison before Luven. The lot of you really like deer.”
“Well, we’re the natural predator. Without us, the population would explode and mess up the ecosystem.”
Vallie shrugged. “Makes sense. Not complaining, it’s good enough. You ever have boar?” She took another tantalizingly slow bite of cake.
“I have.”
“That’s my favorite. Expensive though. In Maidenhead I used to have it maybe once a year. Delicious.”
“You’re from Maidenhead? With Tella?”
Vallie shook her head. “We didn’t know each other there. Maidenhead is huge. Safety in numbers and all that. Didn’t stop Tella or Verona and I from being nicked by dragons, though.” She took another bite of cake. “Water is the real issue. Human territory doesn’t have a lot of clean water. We have to get it from stations and if you’re outside the city, you got to figure out how to clean your own water, which can be a real pain in the ass.” She finished her cake. “Ever been on the road before?”
“Not for a long time,” he answered. So long he didn’t have a single memory of it.
“Then, let’s get to it! Faster we get Verona to Luven, faster we can come back here and see if this mating thing is all it’s cracked up to be.”
Lambda swallowed.