Page 62 of Auctioned Mate

That was definitely good enough to trust. More than that, it was good enough to defend with my whole heart.

I cupped his cheek, offering him a gentle grin while sending him as much affection through my fingertips as I could muster as a wolf. He closed his eyes and turned his nose into my palm. “Come back to me.”

“I will when you knock down that door.”

“Kiss me, little wolf.”

Willingly, with every ounce of joy to spare in my body, I hooked my arms around his neck and smashed my lips into his. Unfiltered happiness poured from his hands that smoothed over my bottom, my back, my shoulders. He touched everywhere he could at once like he was committing my body to memory. We could have been attacked right then, and I wouldn’t have regretted the distraction.

Butterflies batted the inside of my ribcage, alerting me of the heat increasing between us. We had to stop kissing soon—but I desperately didn’t want to let him go. I wanted to take him with me so we could storm the place. I wanted to burn it to the ground.

But that would just make things worse. We had to be crafty about this, as crafty as Percy had been with that roadside distraction while Izdor and Etta were taken. It no longer mattered whether he had discovered our ruse. He had distracted us with a disgusting amount of success that made me want to personally chop off his balls.

Time slowed when I drifted back from the kiss. I held on as long as I dared while Juriah pressed his forehead to my cheek.

“Trust me,” I whispered. “And barge in when I give you the signal.” I pointed to my temple. “Now that we can communicate, this should be a piece of cake.”

Before he could say anything, I slipped away from him. I walked briskly through the brush, marched up to the edge of the clearing, and glared at the wolves on the porch. Soon, Juriah would drop the cloak. They would notice me—and I would have seconds to convince themnotto shoot.

I just hoped it would work.

Chapter 21 - Juriah

From my vantage point, I counted six wolves in total. One of them sat on the roof with a sniper gun, two circled the yard, and three guarded the porch door. Each one of them wore heavy gear that would stop even the strongest of bullets. I sensed their irritation, their frustration with standing around doing nearly nothing.

Nearly.

As soon as I dropped the cloak on Macy, a red laser pointed directly at her chest. Guns cocked. Voices clamored. She held up her hands and shouted, “Don’t shoot! It’s Macy!”

Shouts floated around the den like disembodied voices. Lights flooded the yard. I ducked behind the bushes even though I still had the cloak surrounding me. While they weren’t able to see me, they could possibly pick up my scent, and I didn’t want to blow Macy’s cover.

“Please,” she called out. “If you don’t believe me, get Percy.”

Boots slammed along the porch as more men struggled to communicate appropriately. Hadn’t Izdor stated they were on the rise with a Mafia group from the north? How was that possible when they were barely able to agree on their next move?

“Hush,” came a familiar gruff voice. “That’s her. That’s Macy. Jesus. I mean, literal fuckingChrist, Macy. What were you thinking coming up to the house like that?”

Peeking through the bushes produced a decent view of what was happening. Percy dropped down from the porch and ran up to Macy. He scrubbed her arms. He kissed her cheeks. Jealousy flared throughout my limbs and nearly caused my wings to spring out.

No, I warned them sharply.We have to save our strength. We have to wait.

Microscopic bursts of anger sprouted up along my arms and chest. It was impossible to ignore, the kind of heat that came from a blazing fire consuming a large building—or perhaps even a town. Seeing her met with affection by the very man who had sold her to me made me sick.

And enraged me further.

He hurried her up the steps and into the house. Moments later, wolves resumed their position, pointing their guns toward the darkness outside the clearing. Waiting behind like this made me feel weak and useless. If Macy had allowed me to go with her, I would have leveled this clearing.

Perhaps that was why she wanted me to stay behind. This particular approach required tact, it seemed, something she was intimately familiar with manipulating. In this case, her association with the Baneridge Hounds would gain her favor even if they took her hostage. It was likely they already had her bound.

I’m inside, Macy told me.Izdor is here. He’s injured. Etta looks…oh goddess, she looks so bad.

I hunched down, preparing to hop out of my position.Tell me when to come in, Macy.

Is Galanthia still flying overhead?she asked.

Without glancing up, I knew my friend was hovering, cloaking herself with Elderling magic to keep the wolves from knowing any better.

I projected to my friend,Galanthia, prepare to alert Raven and the troops.

---