Page 27 of Snow's Charming
I didn’t mean to ask it, but somehow my insecurities formed into actual words. He liked me. Deep down I knew that, but I still wasn’t sure how much. The whole fated-mate thing eluded me. I still thought it was lust dressed in a pretty disguise. I lowered my gaze, too embarrassed by my question, and too frightened to hear his answer.
“Baby,” his voice was sweet and silky, like the center of a chocolate truffle. He raised my chin with his thumb and forefinger so I’d meet his gaze. The dark pool seemed to undress my soul again. I swear, his gaze alone gets my heart racing. “I want you more thananything in this world. But I want you to be my Luna when I make love to you.”
My eyes widened.
“Wait. Didn’t you tell me that being your Luna is like me being married to you?”
“Yes. It is equivalent to a human marriage ceremony. And if you want to get married with bridesmaids, a dress, and all the other works, we can do that, too. But again, princess—you have to want this. I won’t force you into being the pack’s Luna. Though I’m pretty confident that you’ll say yes. Okay, perhaps I’m more like confidently hopeful.” He said with a half-smile as he broke the gaze to reach for my hand. He drew it to his lips and kissed each knuckle as he returned his gaze to me. “I want you, princess. So, so much. You are driving me nuts being so close to me, but I promise to behave all night.”
His hot breath on my skin left goosebumps in its wake, and I almost mewled from the heat alone. Almost. I bit it back because there was no way I wanted him to see the look on my face at just how much he affected me.
“But whichever you prefer—being my Luna, or being my Luna and wife—make no mistake, I will rock your world on the night of our honeymoon, princess. I want you screaming my name as a prayer on your lips and a mantra in your mind because I plan to worship you as the goddess you are, Sesi.”
I sucked in a breath to contain myself, but it was no use. Sylus had me melting. What woman wouldn’tfeel like her world was rocked by just those words alone? Okay, sure, I was barely a woman, but damn it—he made me feel like I’d been one all of my life. Maybe I shouldn’t jinx things.
There’s still a possibility that Sylus is wrong and all this between us is lust rather than lo—nope! Can’t use the L-word yet—I won’t go there with him. I had to keep my wits about me. It wasn’t about trusting him. Because, damn—I think I’d trust him with my life. Every fiber of my core had me believing I could trust Sylus with my entire being. Mind. Body. Soul.
There was just one problem with this mind-blowing and rocking world evening. Sylus was gone! I woke up in the middle of the night after another one of my nightmares of Jackie, and I tried reaching for him. Only Sylus wasn’t in the bed, in the bathroom, or the rest of the penthouse. He’d vanished.
I wasn’t stupid. It wasn’t hard to figure out where he was. He was going after Jackie himself. I’d hoped I’d solved that problem. It was the main reason I’d asked to sleep with him. I didn’t want him storming the castle without the rest of the brigade.
Sadly, I’d spent most of the evening convincing him the brigade was right. It wasn’t a good idea to go in half-cocked. They wanted a friend, a Rom Borro Romani witch named Raine Jacoby Thaler, to accompany them when they attacked Jackie. The plan made sense because the only way werewolves would have half a chance against a coven was by having the first male witch by their side.
Within five minutes I was dressed, out the door, and in search of Sylus. Sure, I probably should have told the brigade what I was doing, but I didn’t want to waste time. I needed to get to Sylus before he got to Jackie. If the brigade was right, Sylus couldn’t kill Jackie because that would be an act of war against the witches, and none of the werewolves wanted to start a war. Not after the recent Civil Were War that almost killed off all shifters. War wasn’t good for any of them. It was the main reason Raine agreed to help.
I wasn’t sure how I was going to track Sylus. However, now that I was a werewolf, I figured I’d have a keen tracking sense, just like any normal wolf. As I set foot outside, Sylus’s bergamot and earthy scent assaulted my nose. It wasn’t as strong as if he were standing next to me, but its intensity meant Sylus wasn’t far from the packhouse. I kept my distance because I didn’t want to spook him. If he’d found out I was following him? Well, I don’t know what he’d do. Hundreds of scenarios ran through my head as I walked through the forest, which seemed to come to life the deeper I hiked through it.
Never did I notice the pure essence of nature emanating from every branch, bloom, or blade of grass. I guess humans really were oblivious to all the magic surrounding them. The snap of a branch rang out in the darkness. Shit! I didn’t mean to step on it, but I got distracted. I rested a palm against a nearby tree to still myself, hoping and praying Sylus didn’t hear me or sense me.
“I know it’s you, princess. Your faded body wash gave you away the moment you left the inn.”
Fuck.
I let out a sigh and a groan in protest.
“We don’t have all night. Catch up with me, princess.”
“I thought you were gonna send me back,” I called out to him. He was 20 meters ahead of me with his arms crossed in front of his chest.
“What’s the point of sending you back? You’d just warn the brigade, and then we wouldn’t have the element of surprise.”
“Don’t kill her, Sylus. She’s?—”
Sylus raised a palm, silencing me.
“I would never do such a thing out of respect for you. If she weren’t your stepmother, I wouldn’t think twice about killing her. Fuck the act of war it might cause. No witch should have allowed Jackie to garner that much power over humans.”
His fists were clenching and unclenching with each word he spat. His aura, which for the first time I was seeing thanks to my own powers, changed from a bright blue to a reddish-purple. Something radiated through me that Sylus’s wolf was coming to the forefront, and I couldn’t have that. Not when we were so close to the Snow estate. I reached out and covered his hand with both of mine. His aura instantly cooled to a deep royal blue. He took a long, steady breath and placed his otherhand over mine.
“You have no idea how well you can calm me, princess.”
“I think I’m starting to. Sylus, we can’t let Jackie get the best of us. She doesn’t know that I’m a werewolf. If she did, she’d harness my power for herself.”
“Fuck,” Sylus said as he gazed deep into the forest. “Yeah, we will wait for y’all to catch up before we storm the castle.”
I knitted my brows.
“Bear just sent me a telepathic text. The rest of the brigade is here in the forest with Raine. Turns out his wife Skye saw that I’d say screw the plan, so Raine took the first flight here.”
