Page 22 of Auctioned Wolf Bride

Finally, he took a step back, and I found my breath again. My mind focused once more. I took a deep breath, trying not to think about how close I had come to giving in to that temptation.

“Either way,” he said as if nothing had happened, though I knew he had felt the same thrum of longing in the air that I had. “The sooner we get back to Brixton, the sooner we can find a solution. And unfortunately, we have a ticking clock. Because the instant the claiming bond snaps fully into place, there’s no going back.”

Something sounded in the distance. Tannen’s head whipped around, a low growl in his throat.

“We can talk about this more once we get to the safe house,” he said. “For now, we have to keep going. I’ve been leaving a trail up until now to get them away from the girls. Now’s the time to start losing them.”

I nodded, heart hammering again. “Let’s get going, then.”

He dipped into the woods, vanishing from sight. A moment later, that great wolf came back. He really was stunning, his body lithe but muscular. He towered over me, his intelligent, wolfish eyes looking at me. My breathing shallowed as I took him in, my mind going blank, filling only with him.

The great wolf walked up to me, nuzzling my neck, giving my cheek a reassuring lick that took me by surprise. Tannen wasn’t the affectionate type, but the gesture wasn’t unappreciated.

Before I could fully process what had happened, he took a step back, then bowed down, allowing me to clamber on.

He stood, turning to check that I was holding tight, and we took off.

Chapter 8 - Tannen

I moved more carefully during the second half of our stint through the woods, trying not to leave traces of my scent as we moved, avoiding trees and brush as much as possible while keeping a steady pace.

All the while, I was painfully aware of Thea on my back. I could smell her scent, distracting me and my wolf. It seemed to drive him wild whenever we smelled it now. Every twitch of her hips or shift of her legs reminded me of precisely where she was. It was as if every inch of me that she touched was burning. Every time her thighs squeezed tight on me as I made a sharp turn made me wonder what else those thighs could do.

I tried not to think about how close I had been to pinning her against that tree in the woods, how close I had been to kissing her. We needed to stay away from one another. The more time we spent together, the stronger the claiming bond would get. The problem was, I wanted to stay as close to her as possible.

Eventually, we came to a small but quaint cabin in the middle of the woods. I dropped down, feeling Thea slide off my back. I hurried behind the trees to shift and change back into my clothes before going to rejoin her.

I reemerged to find Thea pacing back and forth, nibbling at her nails as she stared off into space, lost in thought.

“Are you all right?” I asked.

She jumped, spinning to face me. Her hand twitched to her belt, where I knew her knife rested against her hip. Recognizing me, she relaxed.

“Sorry,” she muttered. She ran her fingers through her hair, her eyes glancing all over the place. “I’m fine. I’m just…”

Color flooded her cheeks as she trailed off, not looking at me. I knew what was bothering her.

“They didn’t follow us,” I promised. “And the others will be safe, too.”

“It’s hard not to imagine them crashing through the brush over there,” she said, her gaze glued on the trees in the direction we’d come. “Especially after everything that’s happened.”

“It’ll be all right,” I said. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

The white dress they had thrown her in for the auction was now tattered, the hem frayed and stained with dirt and mud. Bags hung below her eyes, and she looked dead on her feet. Despite all this, I couldn’t help but admire the way the dress clung to her, accentuating her curves. I’d never exactly been into large breasts, but they worked on her, making her even more appealing than she would have been otherwise. I imagined what she would look like naked, and the image in my mind made my wolf growl with need.

She turned to look at me, then blushed as she realized I’d been staring.

“I know, I look like a mess,” she muttered.

“I wouldn’t say that,” I said, earning me an even deeper blush. I knew it was probably the claiming bond, but I found myself needing her. Wanting to carry her into the bedroom immediately, caution be damned.

A moment later, she smoothed out her features. “So what now?” she asked, even as the faintest traces of pink lingered on her face.

“We should get inside. Come on.” I took her wrist to lead her into the safe house.

She hissed, retracting her arm and cradling it. I froze, then my eyes narrowed. Taking her hand more gently this time, I pushed up her sleeve to see a bandage wrapped tightly around her bicep.

“You’re hurt,” I said.

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