“You’ve taken this beast thing to the extreme,” I said, clinging to the fur of Dante’s massive arms.
I never realized a werewolf could grow so big. He must be close to twelve feet in height. His long legs took us far and fast across the castle grounds. He ran past the pond and toward the forest where I’d taught him how to accept his wolf shape. Once inside the trees, which he struggled to get through, and broke many branches on the way, he found a spot and sat on the ground hugging me and Asher to his chest.
No longer worried I’d fall from a great height,I soothingly patted his arm.
“Dante, you need to come back. We might be able to save Asher.”
His body shuddered like he was holding back tears. I understood he loved his brother. He’d put his brother’s needs before his own all his life for the sake of his family.
“I can give him some of my blood. Vampire blood has healing properties.”
Dante’s massive form shook.
“We can give him some of your blood too. His blood healed you.”
His massive head shook from side to side.
“Have you even checked his pulse? I can hear it. It’s faint.”
His massive eyes found my face. His head tilted to the side then he carefully placed me and Asher on the ground. I kneeled beside Asher and checked the tiny thread of pulse beating in his neck. He had a huge burn mark over his right shoulder and arm. At least the magic ball hadn’t hit him square in the chest. There was some hope. Tiny but it was there. I bit into my wrist and placed it in Asher’s mouth.
Dante growled menacingly.
“It’s your brother. Don’t go all possessive over me with him. I’m trying to help him.”
Dante dropped his head to the ground and lay down. I watched him while my blood dripped into Asher’s mouth and slid down the back of his throat from the tiny puncture wounds on my wrist.
“Look at me. Not Asher.”
His eyes snapped to mine.
“I’m your mate and you need to do what I say.”
Dante whined.
“Good boy,” I said. “Take a deep breath in through your nose and let it out through your mouth.”
His nostrils flared as he breathed in and warm air gusted over me as he breathed out.
“And again. Find the calm center. Let the rage go.”
Dante breathed deeply again. His eyes lost a little of the red flare in the whites of his eyes. I lifted my wrist and swiped my tongue over the puncture wounds until they stopped seeping blood. Dante’s eyes followed the motion of my tongue and his expression turned from angry to aroused. As much as I wanted him in any form, I shook my head.
“Now you need to shift for your mate.”
Dante blew a hot breath out through his nostrils ruffling my hair.
“Come on big boy,” I crooned. “I want you in any form but you might break me in two when you’re this big.”
He swiped his tongue over my face and then shuddered. Slowly his body shifted growing smaller and smaller until he shifted back down to his normal half-shifted state then even more slowly his body shifted to human.
“I knew you’d do it.”
Dante lifted his head from the dirt and stared at me bleakly. “Will he live?”
“I don’t know. His pulse is weak but so was yours. Although a magic injury differs from blood loss. We should take him back to the castle and the infirmary.”
He pushed up onto his hands and knees. Dirt and blood covered his body, but I wouldn’t want him any other way. He’d protected me with his life and if Asher hadn’t dived in front of his brother, then Dante would be dead from a direct hit to the chest. As selfish as it was, I was glad Asher took the hit and not Dante. Maybe I had fallen in love with him.