Chapter 7
If I thought things were tense between Percy and me before, it was nothing compared to now. Tension and awkwardness filled the space between us as we trekked through the outlands.
The silence was worse than when we were at each other’s throats. I would give anything for us to just go back to the way things were without these new complications mucking things up. So I decided to do something about it.
“So why did you—?”
“Bianca—”
I clapped my mouth shut and turned to Percy. “Sorry, you go first.”
Percy stepped in closer. I wrapped my arms around my waist and moved a step away from him. He stopped his pursuit, his eyes burning a hole in my face as I looked anywhere but at him.
“Never mind.” He gripped his snout like he was in pain and closed his eyes.
I took that moment to look him over. His fur had dried, and there was no sign that he’d been for all intent and purposes dead a few hours ago. In fact, he looked even larger and more menacing than before. Though that might just be my own hang-ups about what had just happened between us.
Tightening my arms around my middle, I figured that we might as well break this tension quickly like a band-aid rather than let it distract us in the middle of hostile territory. “Look, Percy. What just happened…”
“You don’t have to,” Percy tried to interject, but I cut him off. The space between us felt more and more like a canyon.
“No, I do. Let’s just pretend that we… that that didn’t happen. Alright?” I gave him a pointed look and then glanced off toward the path ahead. “You’ve got your mating heat crap going on, and I… well… There’s no excuse for me. But there’s more important things to worry about now. Right? So just pretend it didn’t happen, and we can go back to the way things were.”
“But Bianca—”
“I said forget it,” I snapped, feeling my power boil inside of me, as if it reveled in my humiliation.
Percy snarled and closed the distance between us, grabbing me by the back of the neck. He angled my face up to meet his piercing gaze. “I don’t want to just forget it.”
“But I do.” My jaw clenched. I tried not to think about the heat pouring off him and how much closer I wanted to be than this.
“We can’t just pretend like nothing happened.” Percy’s hot breath twisted with mine. Arousal spiked through me, and the scent made Percy inhale deeply. “That. See? How can I forget when you keep smelling like that?”
A delicious shiver went down my spine and settled low between my legs. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
The growl Percy let out vibrated through me, and I bit back the groan of pleasure pushing against the back of my teeth.
“Don’t lie to me.” Percy’s tongue dipped out, leaving a long trail of saliva where he licked my neck and half my face. “I can smell you. Like a heady drug that calls to me. You’ve been leaking out since the moment… Since back at the village.”
“You’re mistaken.” I gasped as his claw traced down the side of my breasts, making them feel heavy and achy. “You’re a monster. I could never want something as disgusting and hairy as— Ah!”
Percy’s hand slipped between my legs, cupping me through my pants. “See? You can protest all you want, but you’re soaking wet for me.” His claw swirled around where my clit was until my knees quaked beneath me. “Gods, I can practically taste you.”
“Fuck, Percy.” I grappled with him, holding onto the arm between my legs. “Please.”
The low growl that came from him at that one word made me close my eyes. “I do so love to hear you beg. I wonder if you will beg so prettily when my tongue is between your legs, licking at your cunt as I eat you out.”
His claw shifted until his thumb pressed down, moving faster against me. My hips bucked against him, trying to find the release he so teasingly kept out of reach.
“Please, I need…” I gasped and tightened my hands on his arm, feeling my powers starting to leak from me. “Shit. I can’t.”
Percy hissed as the icy chill of my power burned him. “Hands behind your back.”
The command made me bristle, but the need to cum overrode my desire to fight him on it. Dropping my hands, I shifted to move them behind my back while Percy unbuttoned my pants. The hand on the back of my neck tightened as he jerked my pants down my thighs.
I gasped at the cool air hitting my molten core. “Percy…”
He brushed his cheek against mine and groaned. “I’m going to eat this pussy like it’s my last meal on this plane. You’re going to be begging me to stop before I’m through with y—”
“Well, well, look what we have here.” A growling bark of a laugh jerked my eyes toward half a dozen shifters, all beast mode, licking their jaws like we were their next meal.
I pulled away from Percy, hastily grappling at my pants to pull them back up.
“Please don’t stop on our account,” their leader said. He was an auburn colored beast with red eyes, and the menace in their gaze wasn’t an act. “I knew I smelled something familiar.” He was, by the dick hanging between his legs, far too happy for my comfort as he stared at Percy with a sense of familiarity.
“Braxis.” Percy moved in front of me, blocking my view of the shifters. “What do you want?”
I leaned around Percy, watching the shifter Braxis crack his neck before grinning widely. “What we all want right now. To fuck. Seems like you’re finally getting over your hang-ups if you’re fucking witches now.”
“Hey,” I snapped, not liking the way he said witches. “We’re not fucking.”
Braxis licked his snout. “Could have fooled me.” To Percy, he cocked his head to the side. “I suppose you’d be back in your human form already if you had. But if you’re not fucking her, why don’t you let us have a go at her?”
He flicked his head toward the others who growled and closed in behind him. “It’s mating season and all. You know how it is.”
“Percy.” My fingers burrowed into the fur on Percy’s back, not liking the way they were all eyeing me with lustful intent. I had a feeling they wouldn’t be as gentle about it as Percy would be. The maliciousness in their gaze told me they wanted me to hurt.
He held me close to him while snarling at the shifters. “You’re not fucking touching her.”
“Come now, Percy.” Braxis sang his name out in a mocking tone. “You come into our territory, where you know you’re not welcome, and you don’t even want to share your bitch with us. Now that’s not very nice. We’re well within our rights to kill you right here and now.”
“Don’t call her that.”
“What?” Braxis chuffed, his eyes taking on a wicked glint. “Don’t call her what? A bitch?” His shoulders shook as he laughed, shooting a look at his friends. “That’s what she is. Witches are only good for two things: fucking or feeding.” Braxis narrowed his red eyes on me. “So which is it going to be, Percy? Is she a fuck or food?”
“You know, I’m partial to being fed first before I’m fucked. A good bottle of wine, some cheese, even a meat platter, I’m not particularly picky. However, I’d rather throw myself off the top of Vanila Mountain than let any of you mutts touch me.” I didn’t know if it was the fear talking or if I just had a death wish. Probably both.
Percy shot me a look of disbelief.
Yeah, I was right there with ya buddy. In all accounts, I should be quaking in my boots, keeping my mouth shut, and letting the big scary beasts work it out. But no one ever said I was exactly a sane or smart witch.
I wasn’t even sure Percy would choose me over saving himself. Not that I couldn’t blame him. Percy didn’t like me. Recent events aside, which could be chalked up to mating heat, Percy wanted me dead as much as the mob wanted to kill my grandmother. I wouldn’t put it past him to save himself and hand me over to the pack of shifters.
But if my choice was between being fucked and being food… well… I had to say neither of those were options I wanted to entertain. If they wanted me, I was going to go down fighting.
I drew on my well of power, cursing myself for wasting the majority of it on that fucking mutt. Now I was going to die after getting that train I always dreamed of having, except in my dream, the guys were a lot hotter and muscled and a lot less furry.
“You know, as much fun as this was,” I inched away from Percy and them, putting as much distance between them as I could, “I better go. Places to be and all that. It was nice meeting you all—”
“You’re not going anywhere.” Braxis dropped down to all fours, his friends following suit as they prowled toward me.
Percy glanced at me and then back at them before dropping to all fours himself. “Touch her and die.”
“You think you can take us all by yourself?” Braxis snickered. “You couldn’t even keep Mommy and Daddy alive. I doubt you’re any stronger now, but I’m willing to let you try.”
I blinked at the new information. They’d killed Percy’s parents? Why? I couldn’t take the moment to ask because they were closing in on us, and I hadn’t had time enough to recharge and didn’t have enough magic to protect him and me. [6]
Claws digging into the dirt, Percy pounced on Braxis.
“Run!” he roared over his shoulder.