Page 45 of Magic Claimed
Alerick smiled at me, and I couldn’t pull my gaze from him. His smile glowed with a warmth that I felt to the tips of my toes. My heart fluttered and my abdomen gave an excited, stupid kick. My wolf yipped and turned in an excited circle. I cleared my throat, setting the bowl on the couch next to me. “No need to worry about your flooring, Alerick. I’ll keep this down.”
Eike’s rich laugh filled the room, and I looked for the twin dimples I knew would be there when he smiled and my heart tumbled all over again. The bond made me feel things I didn’t want to feel, and I forced my gaze to the floor. The floor was safe.
“Are we ready?” Jarom said, and the warmth bled from my body with the coldness in his voice.
I wasn’t ready at all, but I smoothed the robe and stood. I stepped into the corridor, becoming the focus of several shifters milling inside. Gentle fingers curved about my elbow, keeping me steady. I was about to thank Eike when Jarom’s blazing stare struck me.
Eike guided me past them while Alerick spoke a few quiet words as we passed. We stepped onto the front porch, and I saw that the wide veranda extended to my left and right to disappear around the edge of the building. Lights hung from lanterns hooked into the ceiling, lending a cosy feel to an otherwise chilly night. It was nice. Especially now I wasn’t going out of my mind with fear as I had the first night they’d brought me here.
I hugged my arms against the chill of the night, grateful for the robe and followed Alerick down the steps. His boots crunched against the frost. I was about to step to the ground when my feet were swept out from under me and I was cradled against Jarom’s broad chest.
“Don’t you ever ask before touching?” I asked, to cover up the shiver that stole through my insides. The scent of pine and fresh earth wove around me, penetrating me, mesmerizing me. I inhaled deeply, savouring the fragrance.
“You wouldn’t want to ruin your new slippers, would you?” Jarom said.
I glanced up at him, and then at the flow of black swirls that rose from his collar, up his neck and along his temple. I swallowed around my dry mouth. “You can always give me boots. Anise has some,” I said.
“Anise wore her boots over here when she came to visit you this morning. I will get you boots to wear tomorrow,” Jarom said.
“You could get them tonight and then you wouldn’t have to carry me,” I said.
His golden eyes pinned me as though he could see through me. “You might run away if you had boots, and then I’d have to catch you.” His voice was so low that he purred the words. I clenched my traitorous thighs together as sublime tremors sunk to the bottom of my abdomen.
I knew I should demand that he let me go, but I couldn’t seem to muster the indignation to squirm from his firm embrace. “I’m not prey.”
A slow smile spread across his beautiful mouth. He leaned down to whisper in my ear. “Are you sure?”
I turned my attention to my surroundings, rather than the bulge of biceps and hard muscle that locked me in place.
Alerick spoke quietly to an older man. It was a serious discussion, but the man wasn’t afraid of Alerick. Esoti would be yelling and cursing by this stage.
Alerick clapped the man’s shoulder and then walked along a path between cabins on either side of the path ahead of us. I glimpsed families through the open curtains. People sat by fires, talking with each other; relaxed and laughing.
The path opened to a square with a large log cabin at one end. Smaller cabins framed the other sides of the square, and a road beyond led to hundreds of cabins that dotted a sweeping valley.
The wolf Territory was a huge village filled with happy people. Such a difference to the castle where hopelessness clung to every corner.
A golden line glimmered where we trod and led all the way to the log cabin. Golden bubbles danced along the roof line as though being pulled from the golden line on the ground.
I gasped as we walked towards the cabin, sending a sideways look to Anise. She was already watching me, gauging my reaction. I must have worn an incredulous look on my face, because she smiled and nodded, “These are my rooms.”
I shouldn’t have been jealous. I should be relieved that they had showered an orphan with food, clothing, and a massive building for her use. I tried to rub the sting from my heart, but it didn’t work. I was still jealous as all hells.
Anise opened the door and lanterns along the walls flickered to life. Jarom’s arms hugged my waist, bracketing me against his body as he lowered me to the floor. His hard muscles bunched and moved and there was no hiding his erection in his breeches.
My gaze flew to his face as he locked me against him with his fingers around my elbows. His shaft pulsed with each heartbeat and I wondered why he wasn’t hiding it. Wondered why he’d thickened when he hated me so much.
His golden gaze roamed my face, his expression unyielding. Searching. “When you’ve finished using me as a rubbing pole, would you mind letting me go?”
He released me so quickly I staggered back. I rubbed the imprint of his fingers from my biceps, ignoring the flare of heat in his eyes. I turned my back on him to see Anise bustling about the large room I found myself in.
The room was easily the size of Esoti’s quarters, and I thought that was big. Four large sofas faced each other in the middle, with a low wooden table between them. Overstuffed arm chairs and matching side tables were situated here and there, lending the room a homey feel.
Shelves covered the walls. Neat rows of bottles filled one side. Dried herbs filled another. A workbench was topped with instruments that had looked as though they’d been in use but hadn’t been put away yet. Old books with gilt spines filled an entire wall and corner of the room from floor to ceiling. The smell of dried flowers and a spiced herb flavoured the air, and a sense of familiarity settled over me.
Eike started a fire in the hearth and Alerick strode toward me, his silver eyes flowing with otherworld power. “Do you sense the magic in here, Little Mate?”
The lines of the room from the ceiling to the floor overflowed with golden bubbles, lighting it so brightly I wouldn’t have needed the fire or the lanterns Anise lit to see. “A little.”
