Page 26 of Cursed
They start moving again while Ryland vents to his brother. “I’m walking around with a perpetual hard-on for her. She’s so fucking beautiful, and her scent is making Bade crazy. She’s all I can think about.”
“You know…it was like that with me and Sadie. Honestly, Ry, thoughts of Sadie are still always in my head.”
Ryland stops again, looking at his brother. “Shit. Really?
“Yes, really.”
Ryland stares at his brother for a moment, then says, “This Mate Bond is so powerful that every cell in my body is telling me to bail on this interrogation and run right back to her. The worst part is I actually do have hope for the first time in eighty years.”
Growling angrily, Ryland runs a hand through his hair, looking at the ceiling. “Fucking hope! I have hope that she will accept the Mate Bond, and it’s making me a little crazy. I know she is only using the Bond because she thinks I’ll protect her from whatever trouble she’s running away from, but the Bond makes me want to protect her.”
He hangs his head, sighing. “I cannot imagine that she is as affected as I am. When she ultimately rejects me, it’s going to be the most painful of all the other rejections.”
Zayne puts his hand on Ryland’s shoulder, thinking this is the most his older brother has spoken to him in years.They used to talk all the time before the curse, but ever since then, Ryland has been closed off, distant.
Frowning, Zayne says, “Shit, Ry. You need to get her to tell you the truth. You either need to Claim her and solidify the Bond or get her to reject you.” He pauses and says, “Maybe you should bail on the interrogation after all and handle this whole Mate Bond business.”
Ryland shakes his head. “No.” Then he smirks at his brother. “My blue balls and I need some space from her to clear my head. I think beating the shit out of a Rogue is just the thing I need.”
Zayne grins his best surfer dude grin. “Great! Let’s go beat the shit out of that Rogue!”
They continue their trek to the dungeons, down the main stairs, and out of the castle to the right. When they reach the door that leads down the stairs to the cell area, Zayne says, “Nori, huh? You know her name means ‘light,’ right?”
Ryland rolls his eyes. “Yes, so Bade has happily told me.”
They meet up with Garek at the Guard Station. “You guys ready for this?” Garek asks, grinning. He looks at Ryland, and his grin falters. “You look a bit...unhinged, Ry.”
Ryland grimaces, and Zayne laughs loudly. Teasing his brother, Zayne tells Garek that the new Mate has sent Ryland off the deep end. “That she-wolf has him so wound up, he’s probably going to rip the head off this Rogue.”
While Zayne is still laughing, Garek gives Ryland a look of disapproval. “Dammit Ryland! You are going to have to ignore the Bond and get some answers out of that female! I know you can’t reject her because of the curse, but you need to quit tiptoeing around her.”
Ryland yells, “I know! I know, and I will get answers out of her. You have no idea what Nori’s been through.”
Zayne, still grinning, interrupts Ryland. “Her name means ‘light’; did you know that, Garek?”
Ryland shoves his brother, slightly annoyed by his teasing. “Look, Garek, I don’t know exactly who she’s running from, but I do know they abused her at her last Pack. Nori is skin and bones from not enough food; she has scars on her back from very likely being beaten with something silver.”
Garek sucks in a breath, and Zayne’s whole body goes rigid. “What?”
Garek is shocked when he whispers, “They beat her with silver? What the hell Pack was she at?”
“Yes, they beat her. I don’t know the name of her Pack yet, but she’s so terrified, she chose not to reject a Mate Bond with this,” Ryland says, circling his face.
He pauses, standing straighter, resolved in his decision. “So, yeah. I am taking my time with her. Now, can we get on with this interrogation? I have an idea about how to torture this Rogue. We are going to need to kill a skunk.”
Garek, shocked at Ryland’s compassion for this unusual she-wolf, shakes his head. “OK, Ry. Let’s go hunt down a skunk.”
Norihangs her head, exhausted from the conversation she had with the Prince. “I can’t remember the last time anyone hugged me.”
Aylin sighs. “Well, he’s definitely our Mate, right, Nori? We are going to accept the Bond, right?”
She frowns at how needy her wolf sounds. “This is crazy! First, we had the worst Mate ever. Now, we have a Mate who will be a powerful protector, not to mention he is damned delicious, but he’ll hate us once he finds out we’re from Starfall.”
Trying to convince Nori, Aylin replies, “I think he cares for you, and I know you care for him a little.”
“He doesn’t even know me, and I can’t afford to care for him. We need to be smart about this.” Nori runs a hand through her hair and concedes, “I’ll admit I have some feelings. Hell, it was all I could do not to rip off my clothes when his nose touched my neck.”
Aylin barks out a short laugh. “Slut!”
