Page 37 of Country and Clove
The Ulric pack had been life-changing for Aaron. It had probably saved his life. Which is why he was so determined to remain loyal and do what he had to to keep the pack at its safest and most powerful. He knew if he let Clove in too close he would fall under the mate spell just like everyone else. What would happen when everyone started to choose their fated mates over their packmates? It would ruin the Ulric pack. Aaron had worked too hard to make a home there. He wasn’t about to let that happen.
“I know just the thing to break this tension. I’m sure you’ve noticed it’s a full moon tonight.” Davey grinned. He raised his head and howled to the sky. Howls rose from around the circle and were echoed in several locations nearby. The whole group stood as one and began running toward a pond in the distance.
Oh hell no. Aaron’s hand instinctively shot out, gripping Clove firmly.
“What are you doing?” Clove whispered.
“And where the hell are they going?” Graham asked, staring at the group in confusion. This was one part of pack life Aaron definitely remembered. Honestly he’d been a bit surprised when he joined the Ulric pack and realized they didn’t do this sort of thing.
“Full-moon pack orgy,” Aaron said, his fingers tightening on Clove’s arm. She hadn’t made any move to follow them but the idea of her being sexually involved with a huge group of horny full-moon lycans made his blood boil.
“Yer kiddin’ me?” Graham’s mouth gaped. “You mean to say that I transferred into the Ulric pack when I could have joined a pack that had full-moon orgies? How come no one told me?” He stood from his seat, eyeing the direction the wolves disappeared into.
“No,” Aaron commanded, his tone icy. “You are not to participate in that. We’re here for the mission, not so you can throw your dick around. There’s enough infighting in the Ulric pack because of you already.”
“Me? What did I do?” Graham looked genuinely confused.
“You’ve slept with everyone and their sister. The girls started fighting for your attention. It’s gotten ridiculous.” Aaron thought back to the fact that Graham and Clove had spent the night together. His gaze tracked between the two of them.
Clove rolled her mismatched eyes. “I already told you we didn’t sleep together. Now can you please let go of my arm?” She gave him a quizzical look and flicked her gaze down to where his fingers were digging into her skin. Aaron released her, wincing a little when he saw the bruised imprint his hand left on her tanned skin.
“Sorry,” he muttered. Clove crossed her arms, hiding the mark. Her lycan healing would clear the print from her skin in no time, but he still felt shitty. “We’re going back to the cottage. All three of us.” He eyed Graham who was not-so-subtly pouting. “Tawny will want us to prove ourselves which means she’ll have us up at the crack of dawn doing God-knows-what.” He rose and Clove followed. He was silently grateful she hadn’t shown any interest in the orgy. Graham was releasing a string of curses under his breath as he gathered no less than six beers from the cooler and stomped sourly back to their cottage.
“If I’m not allowed to go to the orgy then I better not catch you two going at it tonight.” He gave them each a pointed look as he dropped onto the couch and cracked his first beer.
Aaron glanced at Clove who caught his eye and quickly looked away. She grabbed some clothes and disappeared into the bathroom. Aaron paced in the small space. Being this close to her was already driving him half out of his mind. The bathroom door creaked open and Clove reappeared in a powder-blue cami and matching shorts.
Aaron stopped his pacing, his eyes locking onto her as she reentered the room. His gaze slid along the expanse of exposed skin the small outfit revealed. The heated stare didn’t go unnoticed by Clove. Her nipples pebbled beneath his gaze and he bit back a groan. She folded her arms over her chest and glared at him.
“When I packed this morning, I was expecting to have my own room, or at least my own bed.”
Aaron threw his hands up. “Hey, I didn’t choose the sleeping arrangements.”
“You did, actually.” She raised an eyebrow, daring him to deny it.
Okay, so he did have a little bit of a say in it. “Graham and I would never have fit in the bed together and there’s no way in hell I’m letting you share a bed with him. I trust him not to touch you like I trust Aria not to say something inappropriate in a church.”
Clove released a laugh and the sound lightened some of the heavy load that sat unwavering in the center of his chest. Aaron’s mouth quirked up in a smile as he watched her.
“What?” she asked him, her mouth still hovering in a half grin.
“I like how it sounds when you laugh.”
Clove’s smile dropped and he saw her eyes harden as her defenses solidified back into place. “What happened with your dad?”
Aaron’s throat tightened. He’d made her feel vulnerable and she’d responded by moving away from herself with a defensive twist in their conversation. She was putting him in the position of vulnerability now. The slight flicker of guilt across her beautiful features made him think she instantly regretted the question. She opened her mouth to speak but he stopped her.
“It’s fine.” He gave her a tight smile in the hopes he could ease some of the anxiety he could sense flowing off of her. He’d been more easily able to pick up on her emotions since the mating bond first made itself known. He wondered if it was the same for her. It’s one of the reasons he’d tried to stay away. He’d hurt her and he could feel it each time she was near. It would take time for her to let her guard down fully around him. If she ever did. Even her feisty inner animal had been more than quiet recently.
He frowned for a moment, realizing he couldn’t sense her wolf at all. When was the last time their wolves had tried to claim each other? Days, weeks? He couldn’t remember the last time the animals had reacted to each other as strongly as they had those first few weeks. Was it possible the mate bond was weakening?
Aaron’s spine stiffened at the thought of that. Isn’t it what he’d been wishing for? That if they ignored their feelings long enough, the bond would fade away? He’d been saying it from the start.
Something horribly cold and dark slithered through his veins at the thought that one day Clove may truly be just another face he passed occasionally in the complex. His wolf growled but didn’t lift its head. Several pieces clicked into place and Aaron sucked in a harsh breath.Denying the bond is breaking our wolves.
“Aaron?”
He blinked, finding Clove in front of him, her hand resting lightly on his bicep. Her green and gold eyes glimmered up at him. It was one of those rare moments he saw more than anger and heartbreak in them. He placed his hand on top of hers but she quickly withdrew, putting space between them again. A whimper built in his throat but he swallowed it down.
