Reclaimed (Shadow Beast Shifters, #2)(25)

His mouth slammed against mine, and an actual rumbling groan spilled from my lips as our tongues tangled together. Shadow took control, angling his head so that he could suck my bottom lip into his mouth, biting against it, as we fought to taste each other.

I was clawing at his back, and it wasn’t until I opened my eyes that I saw his were open as well. Burning gazes clashed as we kissed, and that wasn’t all that burned. Our flames were a raging inferno around us, and no doubt this sort of power and energy was not the incognito approach he’d hoped to take here.

There was one positive of the fire: no one could see us in the midst of the flames coating our skins, which meant I could let my control go for a moment, vulnerability creeping into my gaze as I pulled away from him.

“What am I, Shadow?” I whispered.

He was still staring at me, as he had done when he’d taken control and completely owned my fucking mouth. That unbreakable gaze dissected my very being, breaking me down into whatever energy formed my soul.

“What are these scars from?” he rumbled, and the rapid change of subject took me by surprise. Scars?

It was then that I felt his hand on my back, tracing up my spine, and I was reminded of the day I was held down and branded by Dean Heathcliffe. I’d been fourteen, it had been a few years after my father’s death, and the beta had called me for a meeting to discuss my options of improving my place in the pack.

Looking back, I had a feeling the entire setup had been about Jaxson. Maybe he’d stepped out of line again, or maybe Dean was just a bastard. He’d tortured me for hours in the field. Branding a hot iron down my spine, all the while “interrogating me” for information I didn’t have.

I remembered that day well, from screaming until eventually the pain had been so fucking much, I’d passed out, to regaining consciousness a few hours later, alone and in agony.

It had taken me weeks to heal from the wounds, and when it had all been done, I’d still borne the faded circular scars down my spine.

“Scars of my past,” I breathed, my demons rearing their heads as memories flashed at me. I’d just kissed Shadow, a soul-destroying kiss, and instead of grinding against him like I wanted, all I could see in my head was Dean motherfucking Heathcliffe.

Talk about cockblocking.

Shadow wasn’t satisfied with that response, the fire in his eyes surging to greater heights.

With a sigh, I added a little more to the story. “The beta took his interrogation a little too far, and his branding iron left a mark.”

Shadow’s chest rumbled under my touch, that deep reverberating sound he made when he was truly furious. He’d made it the day he’d killed Alpha Victor, and when he’d faced off against Torin. Both times it had been about me, and no lie, I was into this grouchy, alpha, kill-everything-that-got-in-his-way side of him. Especially when it wasn’t directed toward me.

“I have a lot of scars,” I told him, forcing the words out, their truth burning my throat. “Both inside and out, but they don’t define me.”

He still wasn’t talking, his breathing harsh, same as mine, our scents mixing together. Needing to lighten the mood, or I’d self-destruct, I said the first thing that came to mind.

“I’m pretty sure we’ll get Shadowshine.”

His lips twitched; he hadn’t forgotten the last time I’d said that, either, and thankfully, my reminder had the desired effect.

“Sundow sounds like a pet’s name,” I babbled, saying whatever words entered my head.

I was gently set on my feet, and wanting to keep him in sight, I tilted my head back.

“Shadowshine is exactly how I see us,” he rumbled. “One too dark, the other too light, and nothing but destructive storms between us.”

I swallowed roughly at the tone of his words, almost broken. He didn’t really believe we would ever have a couple name because we’d never truly be a couple. “Storms are my favorite,” I said fiercely. “I always dance in the rain.”

He leaned down, his nose running along my cheek as he scented me. “You forgot the destructive part, little wolf.”

I hadn’t. I just didn’t care.

I shivered as he pulled away, those serious eyes still on me, even as our fires faded to almost nothing. “I won’t let you be swept away in the deluge,” he warned, and then he was gone, walking away from me, leaving me naked and alone.

Once again.





13





Angel helped me pull my shit together, dress, and get the backpack onto my shoulders. By the time I was done, Shadow was just a broad-shouldered speck in the distance.

My friend kept glancing at me as we started after him, and I was sure that the shock on my face was a permanent imprint.

“Are you okay?” she finally asked, no doubt hoping to jolt me from my dark thoughts.

“I have no idea what just happened,” I breathed, blinking about fifty billion times, like that would clear my head. “My aim was to calm him down, but it appears I might have done the opposite.”

Angel shot me a knowing smile. “I’ve never seen anyone rile Shadow like you do. Or, to be more accurate, it’s not the riling that’s odd, it’s the way he doesn’t kill you when it happens. If I know anything about the beast, it’s that he doesn’t like to come undone. He doesn’t want to be out of control.”