Stolen and Forgiven (Branded Packs #1)(16)

She pulled away, frowning. “So it’s just your wolf? Does this mean the fact I can’t focus on what I need to focus on is because of my wolf? I don’t know how I feel about that.”

He shook his head. “That’s only part of it. For those of us who were born with our wolves, we’ve learned the delicate balance of control.” He ran a hand over his face. “It’s not that my wolf is making me want you; it’s that he chose you for my mate in the sense that he knew you’d be perfect for us. What that means? Well, that will come once you and I learn each other. As for wanting you? That is all man. Yes, my wolf might push at my emotions and make me growl more when it comes to wanting you, but he’s not in control that way.”

Well, that wasn’t at all what she’d expected him to say. “So…I want you, but my wolf is just…enhancing it?”

His lips twitched, and he nodded. “That’s one way to put it.” He played with the ends of her hair, his face set with concentration. “We’re going about this in every wrong way possible, but we’ll figure it out. It’ll take a while for you to find your wolf and shift for the first time. If I remember right, it’ll be on our hunt that you can shift. That won’t be until the full moon.”

She raised her brows. “So you can only shift at the full moon?”

He shook his head. “No, but the pull is stronger then. You’ll feel it, an itch under your skin and a tug between the two sides of you that you’re just now feeling. We can’t go back to the way things were, but we can figure out how to make things work the way they are now. Okay?”

He said the same things she’d been thinking, so it wasn’t a stretch to agree with him. “Okay.”

Holden let out a relieved breath. “Good.” He looked so uncomfortable for a moment, she took pity on him and tried to lead the conversation.

“So what do we do now exactly?”

“We need to finish hiding you fully within the Pack. The SAU doesn’t watch our individual movements as much as they used to. They don’t keep count of us, so honestly, you can blend in as a woman they hadn’t noticed before. Since you have the brand, they’ll ignore you for the most part. You need to keep your collar on at all times and don’t bother the guards when they are around. As long as we keep your true origins secret, that’ll be the easy part.”

She swallowed hard. “And everyone will keep the secret?”

He met her gaze, the torture within his eyes slicing through her. “It would mean our death or something so much worse if the humans found out how we can change others. They’ll keep the secret, though I know a few aren’t too happy I changed you.”

She reached out and put her hand on his chest. His heart beat firmly against her palm, and she sucked in a breath. “They have a right to their anger. I don’t blame them for that.”

“Nor do I, in all honesty. But I need to figure out how to make it right.”

So did she. He’d saved her life, and now, somehow, she would have to prove that she’d been worth it. She might not know where she was going with respect to Holden and his claim, but she couldn’t be weak and useless when it came to the Pack. She’d find a way to prove her worth.

Somehow.

“You will. Once you’re healed, you’ll come with me and I will introduce you to the Pack fully. We’ll find a place for you, Ariel. There are always things to do.”

“I won’t be a burden,” she whispered.

“You could never be,” he said softly, coming closer to her again. So close she could feel the heat of him, the need of him. “You’ve already taken this better than anyone could have thought. You’ll pull your weight and find your place.” She watched the long lines of his throat as he swallowed. “You’ll find your place with the Pack…and with me.”

Her heart raced, and she tilted her head up so she could see his eyes. He licked his lips and her gaze followed the movement.

“I want to kiss you, siren. Will you let me?”

She cleared her suddenly, dry throat. “I thought you were Alpha, yet you’re asking like that.”

He cupped the back of her head and lowered his face so barely an inch sat between them. “I don’t ask anyone else. For you? You, I will always ask, always let have a choice. You’re my mate, Ariel. You’re mine.”

She said the only thing she could say right then; the only thing that made sense in a long line of confusion and pain. “Then kiss me.”

He growled softly, sending shivers down her spine. When he lowered his lips to hers, she broke. The softness, the tender care in which he moved made her shake, made her crave. With one hand still on his chest, she gripped his shirt, pulling him ever so closer. He kept one hand on the back of her head and used the other to cup her face, gently running his lips back and forth over hers. Since she sat on a stool and he stood between her legs, they were the perfect height for this.

She moaned against him, wanting more, and he didn’t let her want more for long. His tongue traced her lips, and she opened for him, letting her tongue brush along his. He growled, deepening the kiss. When he pushed closer, she moved her hand from his chest and wrapped both arms around his waist, pressing her breasts to his body. He kissed her, nibbled at her lips, and sucked on her tongue. Her body shook, her need for him an ache she’d never felt as deeply before with any other man.