Page 17 of In The Shadow of The Wolf

“What’s wrong?” Lance sensed the mood change immediately. Ronan shrugged his shoulders and stared at the ground because, really, what could he say? Lance came back around to the passenger side and held Ronan with both hands on his upper arms. “Tell me, I can feel your discomfort.”

“I feel like I’m on a runaway train just holding on while you and Aaron and the pack run my life for me. I am no longer in control of where I go or what I do. I am no longer in control of my life.” Ronan confessed as he raised his eyes to Lance.

“Well, first off, you use way too many railroad analogies.” He grinned. “Second, Aaron, the pack and I are responsible for you and Molly. Since you came to our territory and we accepted you and Molly, we are responsible for you. Also, the fact that you two are our mates makes it a done deal. We can do nothing less than protect you and keep you safe. Until Jordan Randall is dealt with, you will have to accept things the way they are.” He pulled Ronan forward and kissed the top of his head.

“You are safe with me. I can seem a bit heavy-handed sometimes, but everything I do is for your own good. I am not trying to take over your life. I just want you to. . .” Lance trailed off for fear of saying too much and scaring him off.

“To what?” Ronan leaned back and looked up into Lance’s dark gaze.

“I want you to be happy here.” It was close but not the complete truth; actually, he wanted to say, ‘I just want you to want to stay with me. I want you to want me with the same overwhelming desire which I have for you. I want you to ache with need for me like I ache for you.’ But he could say none of these things, not yet. He pulled in a lung full of his mate’s heady scent and then stepped back. “Let me show you around.” He opened the door for Ronan and buckled him in before closing the door and rounding the vehicle.

Ronan looked at Lance as he climbed in the other side of the Jeep and strapped himself in. “You know, I probably could have opened my own door and taken care of my seatbelt too.”

“It’s a mate thing; Roe, just go with it.” Lance turned the key, and the Jeep roared to life, and they were soon on their way down some rather rough, narrow passages. Lance pointed out several cabins and told him the name of the family that resided within and the name and number of their children and other extended family members that lived there. He knew every single person that lived within what he referred to as the Pack lands. Ronan was extremely impressed. It wasn’t often that you met a mayor or leader who knew the name, occupation, address, and other personal things about every person in their jurisdiction.

They drove and talked for hours, it seemed, while Lance got him familiar with the area, the people, and the town. Ronan was at a loss for the reason he was being so thorough in his descriptions and explanations. It wasn’t as if Lance thought he was going to be living here, was it? No. He was flirty and attentive, but long-term, no, couldn’t be.

Around one o’clock, they stopped at a very old and secluded log cabin set very far back in the woods near the foothills. Lance pulled the Jeep up close to the structure and parked. It didn’t look to be occupied.

“Who lives here?” Ronan got out of the Jeep and followed Lance as he walked to the front door.

“This is my personal cabin,” Lance answered as he unlocked the door and stepped in while reaching back and taking Ronan’s hand, bringing him into the large open space of the living room.

“I thought you lived in the big house?” Ronan looked around the room, amazed at the decor. The walls seemed twenty feet high, and the ceiling was held up by tree trunks so big in circumference that he knew his arms would not reach around them. The place was breathtaking in the sense of outdoors being indoors. The furniture looked to be handcrafted by a master hand, and they appeared very old, as if they had been here for a hundred years.

“I live at the Manor, the big house, but this place belongs to me. It belonged to my grandfather, who built it, and to my father, who then passed it to me. The big house belongs to the Pack. As the leader or Alpha of the Lonepine Pack, I must reside in the big house the majority of the time, but this is where I come to relax and to be myself.” Lance pulled Ronan into his arms and held him.

Ronan feeling the moment, wrapped his arms around Lance’s waist and buried his head in his chest, smelling the sexual mixture of musk and man and the light scent of laundry soap in the texture of his cotton shirt. The smell and feel of the man made him relax against him and elicited a muffled groan of pleasure and contentment. Ronan closed his eyes and went with it when Lance leaned down and captured his lips in a soft kiss. After what seemed like forever lost in a dream of taste and touch, Lance pulled back and smiled. “You are mine, Roe. My mate.”

“I’m still not certain what that means,” Ronan said again, feeling ready for the answer and pretty sure it was going to tilt his world one more time.

Lance held him tight with one arm and let his other hand run through his hair over and over, almost petting him as his eyes devoured him. “What you saw last night was me. The wolf, the man, they were both me.”

Ronan looked at him closely, trying to ease his confusion. “What are you saying?” Ronan understood what he was telling him, but his rational mind was furiously attempting to reject it.

“You know, don’t you?” It was more of a statement than a question. Lance’s eyes took on a fire that wasn’t there before. They seem to pierce through Ronan’s soul seeing everything he was, everything he knew.

“How can it be true? It can’t be true. Did we drive into another dimension?” Ronan scrambled, knowing full well what was being discussed. It was outrageous, it was unbelievable, but it was the only explanation; in his heart, he knew it was true.

Lance did not respond but waited for the answers to present themselves one at a time in the expressions that played across Ronan’s face. He was starting to get it but was still struggling to believe. Lance allowed his eyes to completely shift and his claws to present themselves as he ran his fingers through Ronan’s hair, comforting himself as well as Ronan. His wolf needed assurance. It needed to know that its mate understood and accepted.

“You are the wolf; you’re a shifter. The Pack you speak of is a pack of wolves, and you believe that I am your mate, that I’m a wolf’s mate.” Ronan ran the words through his lips as his brain processed them. He glanced up at Lance and saw his eyes and his teeth and then focused on his claws as they touched his scalp.

The truth of it settled, and strangely enough, it didn’t scare him as he thought it should. The thought had crossed his mind more than once over the past day, but until now, he couldn’t express his suspicion for fear of everyone denying or acting like he had lost his mind. “I knew it, but still I can’t . . . believe it. This has got to be a trick or a joke or . . . or. . . I don’t know.”

“You know, Ronan, you know the truth. Just accept it.” Lance said softly as he let his lips caress Ronan’s cheek. He pulled him closer and then took his lips in a tender, loving kiss. “Are you afraid, Ronan? Do I scare you?”

“No, I’m not afraid, although I probably should be,” Ronan confessed as he let Lance continue the ministrations. “It’s true,” Ronan watched as Lance nodded and then ran his tongue across Ronan’s bottom lip, tasting him again. “You’re a wolf. I saw you, and you were . . . beautiful.” Ronan couldn’t lie; Lance was beautiful, and he couldn’t hold back telling him so. It seemed very hard for Ronan to keep much from Lance. The man had a way about him that just made you spill your guts no matter the issue or consequences.

Ronan’s calm declaration of acceptance thrilled Lance, and he began to make love to him in earnest. He took him to the floor in one fluid motion and covered his body with his own. “I know you’ve been hurt, and any physical declarations of love might scare you, but please understand how much I love you and that I would never hurt you. Please, Roe, give me a chance to show you.” Lance pleaded as he peppered Ronan’s face and neck with hot, wet, sucking kisses.

“How do you know that you love me? We only met yesterday. You know very little about me and who I am?” Ronan gasped as Lance took his lips in a deep, devouring kiss. His tongue whipped inside Ronan’s mouth fast and determined, mapping, tasting, and experiencing the excitement of possession and ownership.

“You are my mate. I recognized you the moment I saw you on the street with Aaron and the officers. I’m drawn to you like no other ever before or ever after. Wolves mate for life with one person, and for me, that person is you. You called to me that day in a way no one ever has, and I will never let you go. I know who you are, baby. I saw the determination in your eyes when you ran to protect your sister. I saw your pain when you explained the situation with Jordan Randall.” Lance kissed his cheek and along his jaw.

“I believe the fact that you trusted and looked up to him hurt much more than the actual assault, and that tells me who you are. You are someone who loves deeply with an inner strength that knows no limit, and you are loyal to the end to those you cherish. I’ve waited so many years for you, sweetheart. You are my precious gift.” He continued to whisper to him, and Ronan listened. Lance ground his erection into Ronan’s thigh, eliciting a deep moan from both of them.

Suddenly Ronan reacted, unable to hold back anymore, and wrapped his arms around Lance and pressed himself as close as possible while he took his mouth in a kiss that shocked and aroused. Lance was surprised but pleased with the aggressive nature of Ronan’s embrace. Whatever thoughts or feelings had brought an end to their lovemaking yesterday were not an issue today. Ronan was energized, eager and ready to take what he wanted, and Lance was elated.

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