Page 38 of Moonlit Alexandrite

I watched the hair on her neck prickle as I gently snuffed against her ear, teasing the lobe with my teeth. Her scent intensified, and from my vantage point, I could see her nipples harden. I needed to get her out of the apartment before Newt had a front-row view of exactly what happened when one lost their virginity.

Perhaps sensing this, Ren glowered for a moment before growling, “Go on then, just check in if you’re going to be late.”

Downstairs, we had barely stepped through the doorway when I doubled back, flattening Lex between my body and the wall as something exploded at head height where she would have been.

“We’re under attack,” I growled, thinking quickly. Another explosion erupted near our heads, and the scent of vinegar and fish oil hung in the air.

“What do we do?” Lex asked, her eyes alight with excitement as she squirmed in my grip. Taking a breath, I stuck my head around the corner. Cars lined the narrow street and appeared to be providing shelter for an unknown number of enemy forces. We were pinned down in our current position. We could retreat into the building and risk being followed, or...

“Do you have your cell?” I asked. She fished it from her pocket, and I called in an SOS.

“I’m not getting involved in your bloody war, Tase,” Ren insisted after I had laid out the basics.

“Fine. Give Dion the phone then. It’s your fault if his blond ass gets bombed, though.”

Dion, possibly because his mood had significantly improved following his afternoon activities, agreed to ambush our attackers and draw fire.

“Give me three minutes,” he promised before the call disconnected.

“I don’t know why I’m still so surprised that you take this war so seriously.”

“Babe. You watch Animal Planet all the time. Are you really telling me you don’t understand how territorial beasts can be?”

Her face lit up the moment she made the connection, and I knew she finally got it. A grin spread over my face as she hooked a hand behind my neck to pull me into a punishing kiss.

“Ride or die, baby.”

Fuck, I loved this girl.

The sound of a motorbike interrupted our moment.

“Get ready to jump on my back.”

“You going to try to eat me?”

Fuck. Me.

“Soon, baby girl, I’m going to be eating you real soon.”

The lascivious grin on her face did not match her level of experience. Shit. If she kept this up, I’d be too hard to shift. The rumble of the bike’s engine grew louder as it closed in on our position.

3... 2... “Now.”

Lex leaped onto my back as I transitioned from man to horse, and we were halfway down the street before the selkies realized the ruse.

While the local population were often casualties in our war, the agreement with Stone was to avoid direct hits if possible. Thus, an innocent bike rider would call for a momentary ceasefire.

Suckers.

The shouts of outrage faded behind us, and Lex let out a whoop as we sped toward the loch, headed for the Deep-Sea Fish store. They would follow, and they would walk straight into our own ambush. If I were in human form, I would have allowed myself a wicked laugh. As it was, I whinnied and put on more speed for the pure joy of the gallop.

We slowed outside of the store just as Dion dismounted his bike and pushed it out of sight. Lex slid from my back, and I tried to ignore the press of her breasts against my ribs as she found her feet. The second she stepped away, I shifted and led her inside.

We wove our way between fish tanks and supplies until we reached a counter behind which a silver-haired man lounged, reading a book.

“Levi, we need the supplies.”

He continued to read. Damn it, how long did it take to finish a page? Without looking up, he pointed to a shelf underneath a nearby fish tank, licked his thumb, carefully flipped the page over, and continued to ignore us. Following his direction, I found the cooler we had left with him, full-to-overflowing with water balloons full of vinegar, glitter, and honey. Lex grinned. “I take it glitter has always been a favorite weapon.”

---