Chapter 6 #2
Aeolus let out a harsh breath, his fists clenching at his sides. “You’re gonna be the death of me.”
Candy grinned. “Yeah, but what a way to go.”
Aeolus groaned and turned back to the stream, splashing cold water on his face.
Candy bit back a laugh, stretching lazily as she watched him suffer.
She knew he wouldn’t touch her yet.
But by tonight?
Oh, she was in trouble.
Luckily, Candy loved trouble.
* * *
The forest had transformed with the fall of night.
What had once been gilded with the golden hues of a late sunset was now cloaked in velvet shadows, the towering redwoods etched black against a midnight sky dusted with stars.
A gentle wind stirred the trees, whispering through the leaves like secrets too old for human tongues.
The air had cooled, laced with pine, damp moss, and the faint trace of smoke curling from the nearby campfire.
The only sound was the steady pop of flame and the soft, rhythmic chirp of crickets.
Candy sat cross-legged on a thick camping blanket, the warmth of the fire kissing her skin.
She cupped a tin mug between her palms, coffee long gone cold, but she didn’t care.
Her body was still deliciously sore from the night before—every stretch a sensual ache, every breath a reminder of how thoroughly Aeolus had claimed her.
And yet, across from her, the man himself looked… distant.
Aeolus leaned back against a fallen tree trunk, legs stretched out in front of him, arms loose but powerful. The firelight danced over his chiseled features, turning the sharp planes of his face into something wild and timeless, like some ancient god carved out of marble and fury.
But his eyes?
His eyes weren’t on her.
They were locked on the fire, flickering blue ice touched with gold. Reflective. Haunted.
And for once, he wasn’t looking at her like he wanted to drag her across the blanket and wreck her again.
No. This wasn’t hunger.
It was history.
Candy narrowed her eyes and took a slow sip of her drink, even though it had gone bitter. “Alright, big guy. Spill it. You’ve been staring into the flames like you’re plotting a war or reliving one.”
Aeolus’s lips twitched. Almost a smile. Almost.
“It’s nothing.”
Candy cocked her head. “See, I might believe that—except you’re built like a Viking berserker and still look like someone kicked your favorite wolf pup.”
He let out a low sound, not quite a laugh. But his gaze didn’t leave the fire.
Too long passed in silence.
Then: “You ever wonder why it’s just the four of us?”
Candy blinked.
That was not what she expected. Her fingers tightened around the tin.
She’d heard whispers. Knew the rumors. The Stavros brothers weren’t just strong—they were survivors. Unbreakable. Dangerous.
But now, the myth sat beside her, bleeding truth.
She didn’t look away. “Yeah. I wondered.”
Aeolus ran a hand through his golden hair, the movement almost agitated. “Our father ruled like a king. Not the way humans do—with crowns and councils. The old way. In the supernatural world, dominance decides your place.”
Candy nodded slowly, listening.
“He was a true Alpha. The strongest. Feared. Respected. Worshipped.” His voice dropped, roughening. “And power like that? It paints a target on your back.”
Of course it did.
Candy knew better than anyone—power came with a price.
“One night,” Aeolus continued, his jaw clenching, “a rival clan came for him. They didn’t just want to beat him. They wanted to destroy every trace of him. Us. Everything he built.”
Candy didn’t move. Barely breathed.
“He fought. Of course he fought. Right up until the end.”
She could see it in her mind. Blood-soaked earth. A man too proud to bow. Wolves screaming. Children watching.
“And your mom?” she asked softly.
Aeolus exhaled, a single muscle ticking in his jaw. His eyes stayed locked on the fire.
“They didn’t kill her.”
Her stomach twisted. “They took her.”
He nodded once. “We were too young. Too weak. They knew it. Took her because they couldn’t take him. We never saw her again.”
The words hung between them like fog.
Not dead.
Stolen.
“After that,” he said, quieter now, “it was just us. The four of us. No pack. No home. Just survival.”
Candy’s throat tightened.
The Stavros brothers hadn’t just risen—they’d clawed their way up from ashes. They weren’t born into power. They built it, bone by bone, through blood and war and a loyalty so fierce it cut.
She set her mug aside and crawled across the blanket without a word, kneeling beside him.
Aeolus glanced at her, expression unreadable.
His wall was up. That stoic, impenetrable mask she’d seen him wear in battle, in silence, in bed.
But she saw past it.
“Hey,” she said gently, laying her hand over his.
He didn’t pull away. His fingers curled around hers, firm and grounding.
“It’s not just the four of you anymore,” she whispered.
His gaze shifted to her—finally, fully—and for a moment, the fire reflected in his eyes looked like it came from inside him.
Something ancient.
Something that had burned too long without warmth.
He didn’t say anything.
Just reached for her.
With a fluid, deliberate motion, he pulled her onto his lap, his arm banding around her waist like steel, anchoring her there. She melted against him, her back to his chest, her head resting on his shoulder.
He held her like he’d been holding grief for years and didn’t know how to let it go.
So she held him back.
The fire crackled beside them, the forest whispering secrets all around. Their breath moved in rhythm. Their bodies aligned.
No words. No promises.
Just this.
For the first time in his life, Aeolus wasn’t alone.
And neither was she.
Not just four anymore.
Never again.
* * *
The shadows grew long as the forest sank into twilight, but Aeolus’s eyes never left Candy. He watched her every move with a predatory hunger, his gaze tracing the curves of her body like a physical caress.
They had feasted earlier on the plump haunch of a deer he had brought down with his bare hands, the rich meat paired with tart wild berries that stained their fingers purple.
Now Candy’s lips were flushed from the juice, her skin glowing with a healthy warmth in the dying light. To Aeolus, she looked utterly edible.
As night crept over the forest, cloaking them in velvety darkness, every sense became heightened. Aeolus could hear Candy’s heart thrumming in her chest, could smell the sweet, musky scent of her arousal. His wolf prowled restlessly within, impatient to claim his mate again.
When Candy rose to bank the fire, the simple movement of her bending over sent a fresh wave of desire searing through Aeolus’s body.
His muscles tensed with the effort of restraining himself from pouncing on her right then.
The thick column of his arousal strained against the confines of his jeans, desperate for her soft, slick heat.
As if sensing his blazing need, Candy turned and fixed him with a smoldering look from beneath her lashes. One corner of her lush mouth curved in a knowing smile before she slowly, deliberately, drew her tongue along her plump lower lip.
A growl rumbled from the depths of Aeolus’s chest. That innocent little temptress had no idea what she did to him. His big hands fisted in the worn fabric of his jeans as he fought against the urge to rip her clothes off and bury himself to the hilt in her sweetness.
Candy held his heated stare, raising one taunting brow as if challenging him to make a move. Then, with a soft laugh, she turned and sauntered deeper into the trees, her hips swaying in a subtle but unmistakable invitation.
Aeolus was on his feet and stalking after her in an instant, his wolf now straining at the fragile leash of his control. When he caught up to her in a small moonlit clearing, he seized her by the hips and crushed her soft curves against his hard planes with a possessive growl.
“You’re playing with fire, little mate,” he rasped against the fragrant skin of her neck, inhaling her addictive scent. “And this wolf has been starving for your sweet taste all night.”
His big hands shamelessly palmed and squeezed the lush swell of her backside as he ground his rigid length against her from behind. Candy gasped and arched against him like a sleek, sensual cat.
“Then take what’s yours.”