Mated Girl (Wolf Girl #4)(43)

He shrugged. “Pretty sure.”
That wasn’t good enough for me. I turned to Sawyer. “Trust me?”
He raised one eyebrow. “Yes…”
I nodded. “Good. I’ll be back in a bit. Be ready to roll out when you see me.”
He frowned. “I don’t want you going anywhere alone.”
I looked at the tall vampire covered in tattoos. “I’m not. You’re coming with me.”
Luka looked surprised, and then at Sawyer as if asking for permission. Sawyer pinned his friend with a glare. “Hit on her and die.”
Luka grinned, the points of his teeth extending. “Hey, I look but never touch.” He held up his hands in a gesture of submission.
Sawyer’s eyes flashed yellow. “Look and die.”
Luka chuckled, stepping forward and clapping Sawyer on the back. “You alphas and your possessiveness over women, I’ll never understand it. You have my word, friend. I’ll treat her like she’s my sister.”
That seemed to calm my husband. Sawyer’s eyes flashed back to blue and he gave Luka a curt nod.
Now that the rules had been established, I started to jog out into the forest as Luka zoomed beside me using his vampire speed. “What’s the plan, blondie?”
I shook a finger at him. “No flirting!”
He grasped his chest in mock horror. “I’m commenting on your hair color.”
“No pet names,” I scolded him gently. I wasn’t really mad, but I could smell the testosterone and charm coming off of this guy, and it was thick. He’d probably lured hundreds of women with that shit and I had a man, one I was perfectly happy with.
He just gave me a halfcocked smirk, but nodded, keeping pace with my jog easily. “Demi, alpha of the Paladin, what do you require of me?” he asked formally, which only caused me to snort laugh. When I reached the halfway point between Paladin Village and Wolf City, I stopped, catching my breath.
“I’m going to do something, something I know for sure will lure the queen, and then you bring her the rest of the way into the Dark Woods.”
He raised one eyebrow, clearly intrigued. “And what is that?”
“I’ve done this before.” I pulled out the tiny sterile needle Raven had given me and pricked my finger, letting a fat drop of blood bead at the tip.
Luka swayed, his nostrils flaring as he grasped the tree trunk near him. “Dear God, woman, that smells like cotton candy. You’re so lucky I just fed.”
I just shook my head and reached out, smudging the drop onto the tree trunk Luka held. He leapt backward ten feet, startling me.
“Don’t wave that liquid heroin in my direction,” he growled, his voice predatorial. Maybe I should have thought this through more.
I winced. “Sorry.” Squeezing my finger again, I let one more drop form, and then dripped it onto a leaf that rested on the forest floor.
Luka grabbed his mouth. “Holy hell, my mouth is watering. Can we be done with this?”
I tried not to smile but I couldn’t help it. Sucking my finger into my mouth, I licked the blood drop off and nodded. “All done. She will come now.”
He nodded. “If I don’t lick every red blood cell off of that leaf, she will.”
“Don’t you dare!” I yelled at him.
He rolled his eyes. “I’m kidding. Get out of here. She’s fast. She’ll only be maybe thirty seconds behind me. Get to the Dark Woods.”
He was right. It was time to scram. “Thanks for everything,” I told him.
He just pinched his nose shut and waved me away. Ripping off my cuffs, I used my vampire speed to zoom back into camp, where Sage, Walsh, Sawyer, and the baby were waiting.
“Let’s go!” I told them, slipping the cuffs back on.
Sawyer picked up the pack we’d filled with things for Creek and we set off with Sage and Walsh beside us at a brisk jog.
Sawyer looked sideways at me. ‘Did he flirt?’
I felt the slight spike of jealously and had to keep the grin off my face. ‘He was a perfect gentlemen.’ When he wasn’t lusting after my blood, I wanted to add.
‘That would be a first,’ Sawyer half chuckled into my mind.
We jogged so fast into the Dark Woods you could almost call it a run. I wanted everyone settled in the cabin before the queen and Luka arrived.
The moment we crossed the threshold of the Dark Woods, Sage whimpered. My eyes snapped to hers and then I followed her gaze.
Fuck.
She’d stepped on a nail! There, on the ground, was a piece of wood with a freaking nail poking out. The whimper turned into a wail as she pulled her foot up and the nail yanked out of it.
“Holy hell.” Walsh moved to help her, but she put out her hand.
“I told you the woods were cursed!” she snapped at him. “And I don’t need your help. I’ve done fine on my own this past year.”
Walsh’s face crumpled into pain, but then he nodded. Okay, that was only slightly awkward. These two were going to have to just have their big fight; otherwise they wouldn’t be able to move on.
Sawyer looked down at Creek, who was fast asleep in his little sling on his chest, and placed a kiss on his forehead. Then he pulled the sling over his head, and holding Creek’s butt, passed him off to Sage. “Here, maybe if you hold him, the … curse or whatever won’t hurt you.”
He was right. We’d discovered this over our time here, and it was a nice gesture even though my son was essentially being used as a shield.
She nodded, taking Creek and limping forward. “Let’s go!” she snapped, angrier than she probably should be. Her now bleeding foot, Walsh, being back here in the killer woods … I think it was all getting to her.