Page 53 of Racing the Storm

Mikael snapped back to himself almost like he’d been slapped. “Shit. This is exactly what I mean. It’s so easy to let the peace of the moment make you forget everything else.”

I wanted that, desperately, but I knew the only place we could let those moments happen was Corland—surrounded by those who wanted to protect us.

“We should eat,” I told him. “And drink. A lot.”

He laughed softly, then dragged his hand away like it caused him physical pain to do it. “Best idea I’ve heard in weeks.”

I gathered the wine, the bread, some of the fruit, and some cheese from under a little dome on the counter, then followed Mikael down the short hallway and into what had to be a guest bedroom. It was a little bit too put together and unlived in, and the smells there were of human, but muddled. I felt less terrible about what we were taking as we settled in there, Mikael drawing back the blankets.

It was something like heaven to sink against the sheets, and he let out a chest-deep groan as he laid his head on the pillow and stretched. “Would you think less of me if I soaked in the bath before we left?”

I laughed quietly as I used a claw to dig into the cork of the first bottle of wine. “Maybe, but I’ll also be thinking less of myself.”

The cork came out with a quiet pop, and then I looked at him. The smile on his face was sweet and indulgent—a side of the Alpha I hadn’t seen, even in heat. The possessive, needy way he’d taken me all those years ago had been a side of him I wanted to see again, but this new softness, it was something I wanted to cradle between my hands and protect it from harm.

I didn’t think he let his guard down like this often, and I was a little afraid to shatter the moment between us.

“Why is this three-day old bread the best thing I’ve ever eaten?” he asked, tearing off a piece and dragging it through the soft cheese. He let out a small groan that was almost pornographic—going straight to my cock—and I could see it in his eyes when he noticed my scent change.

“How long were you on the road?” I asked.

He cocked his head to the side. “Not long. Kor ordered me to wait two fucking weeks before going after you. I hit the road as soon as I could, and I found Nadya in Mexico.”

“It feels…” I didn’t finish my sentence, but I didn’t need to.

“I know,” he said quietly. He reached past me for a peach, then bit into the soft flesh. Juice dribbled down his chin, and I fought the urge to lean over and clean it up with my tongue. “Before we leave Paris, I want to find a way to contact Francisco or Theo. I need them to know we’re on the road. If Kor sends someone looking for us…”

“Do you really think we should risk it?” I asked. “Talia and Zane will both know that I’m not dead or in distress. We’re too far away for me to send them anything specific, but they can feel me. They have to know I’m with someone I trust.”

He looked at me a while, then shrugged. “I don’t know if it’ll matter, once we’re over the border. Kasher’s disappearance wasn’t reported on anything I could find online, which proves some faction of Wolves have him.”

My brows dipped. “How’s that?”

Mikael shrugged. “Because if he was free and any of those under his captivity escaped, he’d have made a public statement by now. Alexei has done a few rallies over the last couple of days and hasn’t mentioned his father once.”

It made sense. They were trying to distance themselves from Kasher’s compound and everything going on inside it. If and when captured Wolves came forward, Alexei could plead ignorance—assuming Nadya didn’t have something on him. But I had no idea what sort of information had been released since my capture.

“It’s going to get ugly again, isn’t it?” I asked, then punctuated my sentence with a long drink from the bottle. The wine burned going down in the best way, and I only stopped when Mikael gently pried it from my hands.

Instead of taking a drink, he set it on the floor, pushed the remaining food aside, then gathered me against him. I didn’t want to like it—to crave it—as much as I did, but there was no point in denying it.

At any second, we could be found. At any second, we might have to run. Or worse. I tried not to think of what those men could do to Mikael if they got their hands on him.

“Kiss me,” I said.

Mikael stiffened, but instead of pushing me away, he held me tighter against him. “You don’t want that.”

I wriggled back enough to look up at his face and made sure he could read my tone and see my eyes. “Yes, I do. I’ve wanted it since you looked at me like I was a stranger. I have wanted it every gods damned day since I woke up from my heat alone. I’m angry, but that hasn’t changed how much I…”

Need you. Want you. Crave you.

His fingers were trembling slightly as he touched my cheek—just a bare graze of skin against skin, then he pressed his palm hard and leaned in. At first, there was only breath—hot, sweet from the fruit, a rapid in and out dancing across my face. And then the distance was gone, and in place of it, were his soft lips and warm tongue as it pushed alongside mine.

I gave into him instantly. There wasn’t a single atom of my body that didn’t want this. If we only had a short time—if the threat was as big as we feared, it was stupid to waste what little chance we got to be together.

I might never have him in a heat again, but I had him like this, and it would have to be enough.

Rolling over onto my back, I took Mikael with me, letting him pin me to the bed as he devoured my mouth. But just before I lost all control, I stiffened, and he pulled away.

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