Page 20 of Frank's Felon
“I’m blood-bonded to Damien, their alpha.”
“Willingly?” Delilah asked.
Frank’s heart sank at the surprise in Delilah’s voice when she asked the question, and the relief when Tess answered yes. There weren’t many forced blood-bondings these days. The practice had been proven ineffective decades ago and was now viewed as a form of rape. No wonder Delilah seemed so worried after what he had done to her. Frank didn’t have a chance in hell with Delilah.
Chapter Five
DELILAH
Delilah sat on the hillside watching Tess work with the little kids on their latest science project, gathering as many types of leaves as they could find and then sorting them by a common attribute such as shape or color. Her sister was smiling, more than Delilah ever remembered her doing back in Florida. These woods, these shifters had accepted Tess, and she them. Delilah hadn’t even met their alpha, but from everything she saw of the pack and specifically how Tess spoke about him, Delilah knew Tess was safe and happy here. It’s all she could ever want for her sister, and it would make leaving that much easier.
A few more days, that’s all Delilah could chance. She had already been with Tess’s new pack for four days, longer than wise. Reconnecting with Tess, hearing all the tragedies and joy her sister had experienced since their crazy alpha William had sent Tess and several others out on one of his crazy ass missions, was both warming and disheartening. Tess had been through so much, more than Delilah in some way, and certainly enough to convince Delilah that she had to leave soon, before she brought any trouble to her sister.
Fucking William. The anger within Delilah rose every time she thought of him, especially after hearing Tess’s story. Tess hadn’t received the same training as Delilah. If Delilah had been there, William would have sent her, not Tess, and Delilah wouldn’t have gotten caught. Better yet, she would have defied William, or at least tried to. That never worked out well for her in the past. Delilah sighed.
“A book for your thoughts,” a deep voice said from behind.
She didn’t need to turn to see who it was. Frank’s voice thrummed through her body even as his scent washed over her like some aroma therapy she’d read about. More than anything, she wanted to turn around to see those soulful amber eyes of his and tell him everything, but she couldn’t. Like Tess, he was tied to this place.
“Still ignoring me I see,” Frank added, with a slight playfulness to his voice.
“It’s a penny for your thoughts,” she said. The shifter was hard to resist, and that’s what worried her. She seemed to be weak around him, and Delilah Matthews wasn’t weak.
A hand stroked her hair. Her entire body tensed. It was either that or sink into his touch.
He pulled his hand away and she could swear she heard a sigh, a very tired sounding sigh. Her insides knotted even as her wolf nipped her to check on him, to make sure he was okay.
Delilah turned and looked up. The last time she had looked up, as he stood over her, she’d had his cock in her mouth, and he’d had the most peaceful look on his face. For that brief moment with him, she had almost felt at peace. It was like a prize being held just beyond her fingertips. Then her mind had returned to the present, and she remembered who she was. What she was.
“I offered a book because Tess told me you love to read.” He held a book out to her.
Her eyes ran over the cover, seeking out the title, while her mind screamed for her to take the book, regardless of the title or topic. “The Odyssey?” she said, surprised to see him holding a classic. He didn’t strike her as the type to read the epic poem by Homer. “Not exactly light reading.”
“You’ve read it?” he asked as he sat down beside her.
“No. Have you?”
“A dozen or so times.”
“Wow. You must really love it.”
“Hardly, but it’s interesting. I lean toward mysteries. But this book helped me through a tough period of my life.”
She handed it back to him. “Thank you, but I won’t be here long enough.”
He frowned as he took the book and set it down in the grass beside him. “Because of me?”
“You think a lot of yourself, don’t you?” She hated that she was talking down to him, but he needed to stay away from her for his own good.
“We need to talk, Delilah.” His voice was suddenly stern, almost commanding, like the voice he had used in that office, the one that had pushed her to reach beyond her fear, to seek the person she used to be.
“Actually, we don’t. I’m here to see my sister, which has nothing to do with you. Now you know why I was crossing the border. To find Tess. I didn’t realize she was here by choice. So, unless you want to kick me out of your compound for trespassing, Guard, then I suggest you leave me alone.”
“Is that how we’re going to play this, Delilah? You’re going to treat me as some random guard and not the shifter you fucked?”
“There are kids about, you ass.”
“Pot. Kettle.”
