The way his thighs looked in the jeans he was wearing didn’t matter. Nor did the way he pushed his hair back, which made her want to slap his hands away and do the same thing.
She breathed deeply through her nose as she walked up the steps. The last time she’d been this hot for a guy had been in her first year of college. The guys looked particularly good then, all bright-eyed and smart.
“Eliza.” She blinked, realizing she was being stared at. “Did you hear what I said?”
She glanced from Malcolm to Agun before she gave a short shake of her head. “I’m sorry, I kind of started day dreaming,” she chided herself; she hadn’t even realized she was now inside the main building.
The corners of his mouth kicked up. Dammit, she’d just told herself not to notice how good he looked. There were rules, and her rule was that she was going to gather her shitty hormones and lock them away. “I was asking if the blue flame you had still burned.”
She opened her right hand, and the bright blue light flared there as ropes of words circled it. “Do you have the map?”
“Right over here,” Agun said, directing them to the map on the table. It showed the McLaren land and the border with the other packs. He smoothed his hands over the map and pointedto the other side. “And here are the human cities who are also within and outside our borders.”
Hearing this, Malcolm glanced at Eliza. “Can you do it?’
She nodded, walking over to Agun's side. “This will show the past of the spell link, but that’s it. Not where the person is currently,” she said before lifting the blue fire in her hands to her lips. She whispered her orders, too, before pursing her lips and blowing.
The fire sputtered in her hand before it turned into a dark purple and flared, shooting from her hands. It hovered over the map before it cracked into two and then three, and with a bright flash that caused all standing around to jerk their hands up, it fell to the map.
Eliza slowly lowered her fingers taking in where the flames fell. As the bright light faded back to the soft blue, she leaned down. Her brow creased and pointed to where the flame remained magenta. “This is the place of the crime scene, the source.” She drew her finger to a spot on the map. “It looks like they came from here.” She read the name, “Clarksville.” She drew her finger from the city to the Veil wall. “And this must be where they last transported to.”
Malcolm looked from the Map to Agun. “It was a smooth transport. They opened it over the kids, moved them to the human world, and seamlessly moved them again. They were prepared,” Malcolm said, brushing his chin as his expression turned thoughtful. “No one would have looked too hard in Clarksville, so even if we tracked them by scent, it would stop there.”
“But to know exactly where they were and what time they’d be there…” Agun trailed off.
“Someone would have had to tell them when and where to open the transport spell,” Eliza finished, “Otherwise, the castor couldn’t have known that exact spot had a hole in the barrier.”
“We’re going to need to speak with the people who did the barrier,” Malcolm said aloud. He looked to Agun. “ Do you know who it was?”
Agun nodded. “They’re a crew of warlocks in the city; they do much of the barrier work for Packs here.” Then he clicked his tongue. “But they’re not easy to deal with. And…” He glanced at his watch. “We’ve missed the open hours.”
“Then we’ll go see them tomorrow,” Malcolm said, settling his hands on his hips before he grinned. “And they don’t need to be easy to deal with; they just need to answer my questions.”
They spent the rest of the time discussing their plan of action. Eliza left them to it; she needed to put some space between herself and Malcolm before she did something she would regret.
The amount of times she’d found herself just looking at him, like he was the most fascinating thing on the planet, was concerning. She felt like a teenager with a crush.
Dream
Hands were touching her. They were rough and greedy as they pressed into her skin. She couldn’t describe the sensation of being coveted so obviously; her body naturally became pliant under the aggressive touches. Mentally, she pleaded for the person to touch her lower.
The sound of the others breathing was heavy only interrupted only by animalistic growls.
With little remorse, she was kneaded and teased until her lips parted in a loud moan. Need burned her from the inside out as she reached for the other, her back being marred by what felt like grass beneath her.
How long had it been since she’d been touched without it leading to pain?
Her dream lover left her nowhere to hide, his onslaught ceaseless until she felt herself completely filled with an intense yearning, her body fully awakened to the possibility of fulfilling an ancient dance. It had been so long since she’d allowed herself to be completely enveloped by another.
The prick of what felt like needles against her sides barely registered, it was only when they started to rake down that she could leave some of the foggy lust to take in curved claws viciously cutting into her skin.
Another pleasure-filled gasp escaped her lips; her eyes opened, and she stared into the round moon above as masculine moans filled her mind.
Her thighs were roughly opened, the merciless shadow positioned himself boldly between them. The large, broad-shouldered figure now hovered over her blocking out the moon above. Dizzy from the barrage of sensation she felt her senses once again being swept away.
In an effort to center herself in the storm of desire, she lifted her arms to touch him, but her brutish lover grabbed her wrist and pinned them down with fearsome dominance. Shaken, she tried to lift her hips to free herself. The ache between her legs grew as she fought against her bounds to touch him. The shadow and light played at his figure, hiding his face but revealing his muscular physique.
She felt like a cat in heat; she wanted him to mount and fuck her until she couldn’t breathe.