Kieran made sure of that, and so did the rejected bond that throbs within me every time I take a deep breath and inhalehis scent. Pine and cedarwood with a hint of fresh snow this morning, made much more alluring by the scent of sleep and sweat on his skin.
I swallow the knot in my throat.
“Let’s go,” I tell him, turning away from his gaze just as he turned from mine last night. “We’ve got a long way to travel this time to get to the next pack.”
Pack Ruby. That’s where we’re headed next. It’s not a straight line from Pack Amethyst to Pack Ruby, then Pack Onyx—our ultimate destination—but the info we got from Pack Amethyst indicated that it’s possible the fae threat migrated east, looking for easy prey.
Apparently the small packs like Amethyst and Ruby have shown to be more susceptible to the madness—maybe the fae find it easier to split them up into pieces and spread their foul magic. To what end, and how can we stop them, is the question now.
My motorcycle’s engine hums beneath me as I follow Kieran’s wolf down winding dirt paths and barely paved roads. I’m grateful for the work I did on the bike right before we left. The off-road tires grip the uneven terrain, and with the mileage I’m getting, we’ll barely have to stop for gas.
It almost makes not having a wolf worth it. Almost.
We stop to investigate a few times on the way. Kieran doesn’t bother to shift to his human form. He just flags me down as a wolf, running back and forth near small exits and dirt roads. I follow him on foot and find the signs we’re looking for, mostly of bargains struck and fae camps left in a hurry.
No faerie rings again. At least, not yet. But I feel a strange pull inside my chest.
At first I think it’s the broken bond, but it isn’t painful or inconsistent like the bond. Instead it’s small, and constant, growing stronger by the second. Almost like something hereknowsme and is calling out to me.
What a disturbing thought.
The further into affected territory we get, the darker the landscape grows. Overhead, thick gray clouds gather, dropping a constant, misting rain that makes my hair stick to the back of my neck. An ominous mist clings to the ground near the fae signs we find. Kieran seems quiet, even as a wolf, his tail dragging low and his ears twitching around constantly for signs of pursuit.
When we reach a fork in the road, he stops, and this time when I get off my bike he steps behind a tree to shift. I turn my head too late, catching a glimpse of bronzed thigh and muscular arms. If I had a wolf she would be whining like a bitch in heat.
If I had a wolf she wouldn’t have to whine because Kieran would be my mate.
That thought is bitter in my mouth as he steps out from behind the tree, mist wetting his dark hair, the white T-shirt he’s just pulled over his chest already curving damply against his well-defined muscles. Hatred and desire alike roll in my stomach and rise bitterly to the back of my throat.
Kieran glances up at the darkening sky with a frown, and just says, “It’s getting dark.”
I raise my brows at him, cocking my head to the side. “You don’t say? I hadn’t noticed. It’s only been misting on us constantly for, oh, three or four hours. And I can hardly see the road in front of me, even with my brights on, plus we’re both damp. Not wet, which would almost be a relief, butdamp.”
Is that a smirk curving up Kieran’s plush, full lips? Damn him again. It vanishes in an instant, replaced by his usual irritated scowl, which pulls his scar down slightly.
“I think we should go by foot from here on as much as possible. I scouted out ahead and there’s deep mud. Don’t want your bike to get stuck.”
It goes unsaid that I’m slowing him down, since I don’t have a wolf form like him. No doubt he could just leap nimbly over the puddles of mud and get there in no time.
Stubbornly, I point out, “My bike can make it through a little mud. I just need you to show me the way through the shallow parts so my tires don’t get stuck.”
He eyes me skeptically. “Are you sure about that?”
I bristle at his tone, hating the way he constantly underestimates me. “How about this: if I get stuck, I’ll get myself out. Satisfied?”
Grumbling, he mutters, “I’ll shift back.”
I turn around for this shift, not wanting to see another tantalizing inch of his bare skin. It’s easy enough—no matter how mouthwateringly hot Kieran is, he’s still, well,Kieran.
The man who broke me, refused to put me back together, and now looks at me with disdain for being broken in the first place. As if he had nothing to do with it.
I could never have feelings for him beyond the shallow and the physical. Not again. Burn me once, well… I’ll be too burned to let you close a second time.
We move on, and Kieran goes slower, picking his way carefully through the mud. He wasn’t kidding; the near-constant mist has rendered much of the dirt pathway impassable. But I make it through, and soon we’re pulling into Pack Ruby, its quaint residential houses rising around us, most of them small and one story.
Except they’re all empty.
Every single one.
