Page 12 of Lycan and Lark
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The tremendous aching in his muscles told Lark the wolf had handed his body over again. He worked to peel his swollen eyelids open. Something coarse pressed up against his cheek and he struggled to lift his head. Coming back from a transformation always made his body feel like someone had poured concrete in his veins. His hands gripped the ground around him in an attempt to gain his bearings. Grass tickled his palm and he grabbed a handful, ripping it up by the roots. He let the fingers of his other hand dig deep into the earth, grounding himself in the present.
He sat up, groans spilling from his lips as he came to a seated position. The sky was dark and the new moon didn’t lend any light to his cause. It was nighttime and he was somewhere deep in the mountains. He took several centering breaths, then stood. The world spun around him and he clutched a nearby tree for support. Several minutes passed before his mind settled and his senses sharpened enough for him to teleport to the cabin. He couldn’t risk going back to the apartment now, not after he had shifted there. Who knew what damage he had left behind.
The cabin’s familiar wooden walls appeared around him and he sighed in relief. He stumbled toward the basin, splashing cold water on his face. He opened his eyes. Dread crept into his bones. Deep brown and red filled the sink as the water washed away the blood caked on his face and arms. He inhaled, searching the blood for any traces of its owner. A quick shot of relief ran through him when he identified the deer scent. That relief was just as quickly replaced by anxiety as he scented the human underneath. Had he killed more humans? Or was this one only wounded? Were they attacked in his apartment? Or had he left them somewhere in the woods?
Lark’s roar of frustration shook the cabin. He slammed his fist into the wall over and over again until his knuckles split. Gazing down at the bloodied fingers, he watched as they slowly healed and his tattoos pieced themselves back together.
Judging by the fruit rotting on his kitchen counter, the wolf had taken control for several days, at least. What if one day Lark shifted into the wolf and never changed back? That thought planted a level of fear inside him that he had never felt before. A shiver snaked down his spine at the idea of his humanity permanently slipping away.
He would be a monster forever. Maybe Creedin should have kept him in that fucking cage. At least then, no one else would get hurt.
* * *
Lark’s visits were unpredictable over the next few days. He lurked outside the complex for a few hours at a time when his wolf wasn’t fighting him for control. When Aria did emerge he would hide his presence or leave the space so there was no chance of her noticing him. She always glanced in his direction, but he was already gone each time. He craved to know what she was thinking, but from this distance her thoughts were fuzzy and hard to hear.
Restlessness and conflicted emotions left him in a constant state of turmoil. He didn’t want his wolf to hurt her, but it was driving him crazy staying away. Time continued to pass and he wondered each day if it would be the day he would taste her lips again. His wolf had a habit of scaring him into hiding. Most recently, it tried to take control when a lycan close to the Alpha had headed into the coffee shop. It was the cowboy-hat-wearing douche and Lark’s wolf was especially irritated by his presence. The man walked by, then stopped as Lark’s wolf openly challenged him. The other lycan whirled around but Lark was already back at the cabin.
This torturous routine went on for days, but he never gave up.
Now, he was leaning against the cafe in his usual spot. It was late at night and he was about to go home when he spotted four figures exiting the complex. Two men and two women strode closely together and a sickening feeling twisted Lark’s gut. Aria trounced down the steps in a short pink halter dress and sparkly gold heels. Her long brown hair was pulled up in a high ponytail, exposing her creamy neck. Goddammit, how he wanted to sink his teeth into that milky skin while he buried himself inside her. She laughed at something her companion said, and then the man put an arm around her shoulders. The other two were holding hands and it occurred to Lark that she was on a date.Not a chance.He stalked behind them, fury building. If that idiot didn’t keep his appendages off of Aria, then Lark would simply remove them for him. Permanently.
He kept his distance, sticking to the shadows as he followed the unsuspecting couples. They headed down the street and into a small bar around the corner. A red and orange neon sign readDaybreak Lounge.It was practically an after-hours club. It’s not where he would have taken Aria on a date. Not that he had any experience with dating. He took a quick trip back to the cabin to change into something more befitting of a night out. He didn’t want to go embarrassing his girl with a t-shirt and jeans. When he was satisfied with his appearance he transported back to the lounge entrance and pushed through its stained-glass doors.
Here goes nothing.
ChapterSeven
Aria fumed into her breakfast. Nearly a week had passed and nothing. No sneaky spying, no back-alley make-out sessions, no texts or phone calls. On second thought, she wasn’t sure Lark even had a phone. Regardless, he could have found some way to contact her. She had loitered outside the complex on more than one occasion waiting for him but he never showed that stupid, perfect face. She stabbed a fork into her pancakes and heard an unsettling crack as the metal prongs broke through the other side of the plate.
“Um…everything okay?” Gigi looked back and forth between Aria and the plate she had just destroyed.
“Everything’s fine. Super fucking fine. Why do you ask?” Aria speared a piece of pancake, carefully brushing off the broken plate pieces before popping it into her mouth.
“Your wolf is giving mine anxiety,” she said under her breath. “And you just obliterated your pancake plate.” She pointed to the porcelain carnage in front of her. Gigi was right. Her wolf was practically begging for a shift so it could tear off the dick of a certain someone who had gotten them all hot and bothered and then ghosted them. She took a few deep breaths, allowing her inner animal to recede to the depths and open space for calming energy in return. “Much better!” Gigi clapped her hands together.
Aria took in the sight of her cheery friend. Gigi was one of the twins. She had strawberry-blonde hair and enviable sun-kissed skin. She and her twin, Clove, shared the same unusual eyes. One was green and the other, gold. The dual-colored eyes made her miss Lark more. But where Clove was broody and dark, Gigi was all positivity and sunshine.
“I’m just so tired of things here.” Aria sat back dramatically. “Sometimes I wish I could go someplace where no one knows that I’m Gideon’s sister.”
“Is this because you haven’t gotten any in a while? I have a lot of hot friends, I can hook you up.” Gigi gave her a playful look.
“Wow, Ginger, you must just be drowning in dick.” Aria used Gigi’s full name and the other woman pouted. She knew Ginger disliked her name and Aria only used it to get under her skin.
“I mean it!” Her eyes suddenly lit up. “Wait a second. Clove was supposed to double date with me and Dane tonight but she bailed. Dane has a lycan friend visiting from another territory which means…” She looked at Aria expectantly. When Aria didn’t indulge her she continued, “Which means he won’t know who you are!”
“No thanks,” Aria said dismissively. She wasn’t interested in being the fourth wheel on a blind date with some random lycan.
Ginger raised an eyebrow. “What’s going on? The Aria I know would never miss the opportunity to go on a date with a hot anonymous lycan. Are you already seeing someone?” Her mismatched gold and green eyes lit up and she gripped Aria’s hands across the table. “Girl, you better tell me if you have a secret boyfriend! Is that why you’ve been so grumpy? Things aren’t going well?”
Aria’s stomach plummeted. Why yes, she was pining over a sworn enemy and a fugitive on the run but she sure as shit wasn’t going to tell her friend that. “Don’t be ridiculous,” she scoffed dismissively.
“Great. Then you’re free for the date tonight?” Ginger’s green and gold gaze was pinned to hers in a challenge.
“Fuck it. I’ll happily break the heart of an out-of-town lycan. Especially if free drinks are involved. Bring. It. On.” She spoke the words confidently but a wave of nervous apprehension had settled in her gut.
“Yay! I’ll come to your apartment and we can get ready together. They’re picking us up at ten!” Ginger cheered.
