Page 12 of Wolf Claimed
Finally, the truth. She could see it in his face. Tiernan was almost as lost as her. And he was struggling to do what was right.
“Please, don’t shut me out, Tiernan. There’s a lot I don’t know about shifters, but I want to know it all, the good and the bad. And most of all, I want to help you.”
“The blood-bond is a sacred ritual among shifters.”
“Then why hide it from me? Do I have to drink your blood or something disgusting like that?”
“That’s vampires. Fiction. But there is an exchange of blood. We slice open our palms and clasp hands.”
“There has to be more, or you would have told me that before. I’m not squeamish over a simple cut.”
“With shifters, the exchange of blood creates a transfer of abilities. I’m a strong shifter, so blood-bonding a weak shifter would mean potentially losing some of my abilities.”
“And a human?”
“There is no effect on a human, other than a scar on the palm, but those usually heal. You would receive some of my healing ability initially, but it wouldn’t last long.”
He was holding back still. She could tell by how he avoided her eyes.
“If a weak shifter compromises your abilities, what effect does the human have on the shifter when blood-bonding?”
His hand sifted through his hair. “The human saves the shifter from going feral.”
“You’re avoiding the question.”
He cupped her cheeks and flashed that warm smile that said she could trust him. And she did, damn it. She trusted him not to do anything that would hurt her even though it felt as if he was leaving something out. As crazy as it sounded, she might have to do this for him, to keep him from going feral.
* * *
TIERNAN
Puta bag over another woman’s head, fuck her in my place, and you wouldn’t notice the difference. I thought you cared about me, but I was wrong.
Alyssa’s words, the hurt in her voice, repeated in Tiernan’s head over and over. And it physically pained him, even though they hadn’t blood-bonded yet. It was his fault too. As much as he wanted to blame it on Maddox or Rafe for distracting her, enticing her even, he could not blame them for how he’s treated her.
He hadn’t done much to get to know her. He’d pushed her, played on her compassion, trying to get her to accept him and his wolf, tosavehim. Maddox was right; Tiernan hadn’t put her first.
“You’re avoiding the question,” she said, persistent as ever. He actually loved that about her, that she knew how to stand up for herself. He didn’t want his mate to be a pushover.
And he didn’t want to deceive her about blood-bonding.
Tiernan cupped her face in his hands. “Once blood-bonded, a shifter will never go feral. And I do care, very much. About you, about what you’re going through, about not hurting you, but I’ve never been through this before, Alyssa, and I keep forgetting you’re not shifter.”
“That’s a compliment.”
Her words shocked him, and he let his guard down long enough for his wolf to sink his teeth into him, sending a bolt of pain through him. Fucking wolf.
“You really don’t like shifters? Then why sleep with me? As some type of sick conquest to brag about to other humans?”
She bit her lip, which tugged at him. Alyssa was so sexy and adorable, but he didn’t want some pity-fuck from a human. He wanted a mate, a blood-bonded mate who would be his partner in life, his equal.
“I didn’t mean it that way,” she said, her fingers gliding over his cheek as her eyes softened. “I meant that you’re not seeing me as being different from you. Like I’m not just another human.”
Relief poured through him. “I’m sorry. I guess I’m more on edge than I thought. I don’t want any more misunderstandings between us. This is too important. You’re too important.”
“Then just lay it out there, Tiernan. Tell me everything I need to know.”
“The blood-bond is what will stabilize my wolf, Alyssa. Sex, I mean making love to you. . . That was for me, for us. I like you a lot. We didn’t need to. . . you know, but it was. . .Hell, I’m making a mess of this.”
