Page 59 of Crescent Warrior

Michael cleared his throat, tucking his bag onto the top bunk. “I was,” he said after a while and Alex watched him carefully.

“What happened?” he whispered, knowing that he was pushing, but unable to help himself. There was a bond with Michael that he didn’t understand.

He didn’t even feel as close to people he called friends for years as he did with Michael. There was a protectiveness that rose in him that he only felt about Danielle, who was like a younger sister to him.

“She… found out what I was.”

Alex’s eyes squeezed shut, shaking his head as he reached a hand forward to squeeze Michael’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. Did she see you transform?”

Michael shook his head, pulling away from Alex abruptly, his face contorted with pain as he turned away. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Alright,” Alex said, soothingly. He couldn’t imagine what being separated from someone you loved because of something you couldn’t help would do to a person. “Hey, why don’t we just freshen up and then we can go for a hunt, alright? We’re supposed to cover as much ground as we can before the end of the week. Jason wants us to get a head start on the rest of those assholes.”

Michael hesitated, but nodded, turning to look at him. “If we find other wolves, I know we’re supposed to figure out a way to bring them to our side, but what if they attack?”

Alex shrugged, his hackles rising. He was wondering the same thing. If they encountered another pack of Werewolves, what was to stop them from aggressing?

He and Michael would be two against an entire pack. They were strong, but there was no way they would survive a fight like that.

“Maybe we should be careful when we’re looking,” he offered, knowing to tread lightly when it came to questioning Jason and his orders to Michael. “Make sure we’re not walking into a hostile situation first.”

With a pensive nod, Michael faced him, the constant worry that he carried in full display. He turned to face the door, clearing his throat. “If anything happens, run back here and find Jason.”

Alex was frozen in shock, his jaw slack. “And just leave you there? To be killed?”

Michael shrugged, shaking his head. “Your life’s more valuable than mine. You have to make sure you get Selene and her family back.”

Alex scoffed, walking over to whack him across his back. A startled Michael turned to glare at him.

“I’m not leaving you behind. You’re basically family now. Get over it and get your shit together. No one’s dying here.”

Michael stared at him before dropping his gaze and nodding.

“Now, let’s go,” Alex announced. “Jason’s going to hand us our asses if we don’t find something soon.”

They headed outside, both focusing on the transformation to make them wolves. Alex hated how long it took him to change into his other form. He saw how quickly the others in the Lykourgos pack transformed and he resented that he himself wasn’t able to do the same.

Annoyance flared again at the thought. When he compared Jason’s transformation to that of the others, it was clear to see that he was the slowest of the bunch. How then could he be expected to train Michael and Alex, when he was clearly still learning himself?

Irritated that he was forced to bow down to Jason until he figured out a safe way to get Selene and her family away from all of the madness and back to their home, he watched Michael’s wolf sniff the ground.

In wolf form, they were a matching pair in size and markings. No one else looked like them. Suspicions were bubbling up in his mind, but he pushed them back, snuffling on the ground with Michael, trying to concentrate on their bond. As they ran forward, he sharpened his focus, ready to hunt.

CHAPTER NINE

Hippolyta braced herself against the wall of the shower, a gasp parting her lips as Cole railed into her from behind. They could barely keep their hands off of each other.

She thanked the Gods for their phenomenal healing abilities. Her soreness from their marathon session earlier was gone and all she felt now was pleasure so great her eyes crossed every time he thrust inside.

“My Lyta,” he groaned against her neck, piercing her mark for what felt like the millionth time. He offered his own neck at regular intervals, not pressuring her to mark him but clearly wanting it.

She couldn’t bring herself to do it. She still felt that, deep inside, he might not want her and it was holding her back.

She loved him, but she kept expecting something to happen that would make him reject her again. Meanwhile, she was using his body like she was starved for it.

His touch was soothing her, their years of separation slowly healing. As she felt his bite deepen on her mark, she cried out, bucking against him, her muscles clamping hard around him, making him grunt as he worked his cock into her harder, slamming her against the wall, his hand wrapping around her throat to hold her still.

Her eyes shot open as he squeezed, a whimper leaving her parted lips as she felt herself coming violently around his cock at the restriction.

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