Page 2 of Savage Claim

Fane jerked his head toward the looming iron gate that led into Head Alpha Barric’s compound in downtown Savannah. “Let’s go. Your little escape interrupted my sleep, as if your nightmares don’t do that enough.”

“Go to hell.” I flipped him off and planted my combat boots to the sidewalk. “Like I said, I’m going on a walk.”

The demon shifter’s brows slammed together, his jaw ticking. “And like I said, it’s too dangerous. Now get your ass back through the gate, or I’ll throw you over my shoulder and carry you back. The choice is yours.”

A sharp, humorless laugh exploded out of my mouth. “What choice? I haven’t had a choice in anything since the night we collided and fought over the Infernal Sol.” I’d always thought my life splintered when the demon amulet sank inside, but I was beginning to think my fate was irrevocably altered the moment Fane and I locked eyes across Wrath & Ruin.

“And you think I’ve had a choice?” His question burst between gritted teeth. “I’m stuck in a bond with you, the woman who killed my brother.”

My eyes narrowed, and it took all my strength not to slap him. “Stop bringing that up. I’ve already explained what happened to Warin, and you admitted that you don’t blame me. I was a scared kid and did what I had to.” I shoved his chest, but the massive beast didn’t budge an inch. “Don’t use his death as an excuse to keep hating me.”

Fire crackled in his mismatched irises, one demon blue and the other luminescent gold, and he shortened the distance between us, his addictive scent filling my nostrils again. “I have plenty of reasons to hate you. My current one is the inconvenience you’re causing me by sneaking out. Again.”

“I don’t need a babysitter, Maverick. I can take care of myself.” I pushed him, but this time, he caught my wrists and backed me up until I hit the icy brick wall.

Dark hair fell across his forehead, making me itch to run my fingers through the silken strands. The scar on his left cheekbone stood out beneath the glow of the gas streetlight a few feet away. “If it were up to me, you’d be locked in a cell.”

Fury rushed through my veins, and his flinch made it clear he felt it. “I’m already a prisoner. I’ve been one for years.” I blinked back the hot tears trying to brim over. “First when you sold me to Ruin, then in Heldrok, then with Venna, and now with Barric. I’m tired of it.”

“And I’m tired of fighting the urge to kill you.” Fane’s long, calloused fingers coiled around my throat, his thumb stroking the center and applying the tiniest bit of pressure. “It would be so easy to squeeze the life out of you.”

Electricity crackled over the swirling tattoo on my neck, and tiny embers burned in my core. My breaths quickened, blowing puffs of steam that mingled with the ones Fane produced. His nostrils flared as he sensed the change in me.

He licked his lips while his pupils thinned. “You never react like you should, Teague. When I threaten to kill you, it turns you on.” His body pressed into mine, so hot I was surprised steam didn’t curl from him.

I rolled my hips into his, rubbing the hard bulge between his legs. “I’m not the only one. Violence and brutality have always been our love language.” He didn’t remember, but the bond between us sure as hell did.

Fane’s savage grin had my legs trembling and heart pounding. His head dipped forward, his lips running over my jaw, the warm metal of his piercing making me tremble. “Sometimes I don’t know if I want to kill you or fuck you.”

Moisture pooled between my legs. “Right now? I’d say the latter.” We hadn’t had sex since that hot session in the bathroom at the healer house in Mohan Wilds. We’d been toying with each other ever since, though.

He dragged his hot, wet tongue over my neck, and I released a low groan. His growl of satisfaction rumbled against my throat. “Come back inside with me, and I might be inclined to test the durability of our bed. The dresser too. And maybe the bathroom counter. You liked that before.”

Once his words sank in, I shoved him off. He allowed it and took a tiny step back, but still crowded over me.

“You are such a prick. You really think you can lure me into compliance with sex?” I slipped under his arm and marched down the sidewalk. “You’ll have to do better than that, Maverick.”

He was at my side with a few long strides. “It was a risk I was willing to take.” He adjusted his jeans, his erection trying to burst through the material.

My stomach fluttered again. At least he really did want me, and it wasn’t all a game.

“Thirty minutes, Teague.” Fane dragged his fingers through his hair, further messing up the wayward strands. “And then we’re going back.”

My lips pursed as I studied him out of the corner of my eye. “You don’t need to come. I’m fine all on my own.”

“It’s nonnegotiable.” He gave me a narrow glare. “Either I’m coming on your little walk or tossing you over my shoulder and hauling you back to the pack house.”

“Whatever,” I mumbled, knowing it was futile to argue. At least I could experience a bit of freedom, even if it was only thirty minutes and with the guy who owned my heart and soul. The same one who wanted to kill me.

Silence stretched between us as we ambled through the empty streets of downtown Savannah. Well, not entirely empty. Nightworlders roamed the area, some hidden in the shadows and others out in the open like us. Most of the humans remained in their cozy homes on nights as frigid as this one.

Without realizing it, my feet had carried me through Forsyth Park, and pangs instantly slashed at my heart as I thought of my former best friend. Hawk and I had spent plenty of time hanging out under the giant oaks, fantasizing about our future as ravens. I’d fallen hard for his charming smile and boyish enthusiasm. His innocence had drawn me in like a moth to a flame.

When he finally admitted his feelings for me, I should have been ecstatic, but the demon shifter had already burrowed under my skin. And then Hawk discovered I was no longer human, and he wanted nothing to do with me.

Maybe I never really was human, not entirely.

“Why are you frowning at that tree?” Fane asked as we stood in front of the same oak Hawk and I had taken a picture under the night he told me we were connected forever.

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