Page 22 of Lycan and Lark
He chuckled at that thought. “Compulsion only works on the weak-willed, so no, I haven’t used compulsion on you.”
She nodded, satisfied with his answer. “Why do you always build a fire? It isn’t winter, and the cabin isn’t cold. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love fires. I’m just curious.” Lark’s heart sank. He hadn’t paid much attention to why he did it. The fire brought him comfort.
“I think it’s because the caves I grew up in were always so dark. Now that I have my own place, I try to keep it bright, and warm,” he said. Aria’s doe eyes gazed up at him. She was sad for him, again. “Don’t feel sorry for me, Aria.”
“You always say that but I can’t help it. The way you grew up makes me want to find Creedin and rip his stupid face off.”Creedin.Lark tried not to let his mind wander to his captor too often. With Aria here in his arms, a new type of panic crept through him. What if Creedin found out about her? What if he tried to take her away when Lark wasn’t around? Fear forced the blood to pump through his heart faster.
A sudden forceful presence surged forward and a feral growl shook the cabin. “Lark?” He could hear the concern in Aria’s voice. His wolf was fighting for their body, ripping toward the surface. He cried out as his knuckles began to split.
The transformation was starting.
“Run.”
“Lark!” Aria dropped down in front of him, gripping his face in both hands. Her eyes were a luminescent blue as her inner animal responded to his threat. “Look at me, and breathe. You are safe. I’m right here, and I’m not going to let anyone hurt you again.” Pain flared through his bones. “Look. At. Me.” Aria’s voice was a clipped growl. She sounded different, powerful, as if her wolf were speaking through her. He set his sight on those sapphire seas. “That’s it, focus on my eyes and come back to me, Lark.”
Her fingers rubbed the edge of his jaw. He felt the shift begin to subside and breath flowed through his lungs again. He scented the air, certain she would be terrified of him now, but found no traces of fear.
“There you are.” Aria reached a hand up to brush through the front of his hair. He snatched her wrist, gripping it hard. A new kind of growl rumbled from him. She inhaled sharply and her arousal filled the air.
He hadn’t shifted and everything about him felt off. His skin was too tight, his rage too contained, his muscles too coiled. He needed relief. He gripped Aria by the throat, spinning her around before slamming her back down on the floor in front of the fireplace. Her pupils blew wide as she peered up at him. He tore at the t-shirt and shorts, needing to see her skin, to ground himself inside her. She responded to his dominance with a flood of wetness between her thighs.
Neither of them spoke as he pulled his cock free from his sweatpants and spread her knees wide in front of him. He thrust into her roughly, filling her until her slick arousal hit his pelvis. She growled at the sudden motion. It fed his feral need and he fucked her in hard, deep thrusts. He gripped her by the hips as he drilled into her over and over. Her eyes continued to glow as she took every inch of him in. He worked through his issues with his cock buried inside of her, allowing every bit of vexation and rage to flow into his movements. She accepted it without complaint and as soon as she cried out his name and came, Lark roared his own release. He grunted as her body welcomed his spend. As the last drops of seed left his body, a rational calmness finally broke through the animal fog.
“Feel better?” she asked. Her mouth quirked up at the corner and one eyebrow lifted.
He slid out of her, sitting back on his feet and panting heavily. “Thank you.”
“For…?” She sat up and assessed her torn clothing.
“All of it. I’m sorry it got out of hand.” His wolf had nearly gotten out. What if it had killed her?
“Stop beating yourself up.” She moved in close to him, setting her chin on his chest. “But we do need to talk about your wolf.”
He groaned. Her thoughts were heading in a direction he did not want to go. “No.”
“No, what?”
“I know what you’re thinking and the answer is no.”
She opened her mouth incredulously. “That is bullshit.”
“My answer is still no.” He tried to stand up and she pulled him back to the ground.
“The pack could help you. Your wolf needs to learn. It needs a hierarchy. You need an Alpha.”
“I’m not allowed in the complex.”
“We will have them change the wards. You can come stay in the complex with me. You can’t keep fighting this alone.”
“I’m not going to live in the complex with the other lycans. Do you think they’ll just forget about everything I’ve done and invite me in for dinner?”
“They will forgive you. They are good people. Gideon has brought wolves into the pack with all kinds of history.”
“No. I’m not going to live somewhere where everyone hates me and is afraid of me.”
“They don’t hate—”
“I can read their minds, Aria. What do you think it’s going to be like for me stuck in a building full of people who don’t trust me? Lycans who don’t see me as one of their own? The Ulric pack will always associate me with Creedin.”
