Chapter 12
liselle
1 barely had time to push myself upright when the sound of rustling leaves and snapping twigs sent my heart racing.
Then, suddenly, Nathaniel burst through the trees like a force of nature, his eyes wide, his breath ragged.
His entire body was tense, his chest heaving as he scanned the area, his gaze landing on me almost immediately. Before I could utter a word, he was on me, his hands gripping my arms, bundling me up like I was something precious and fragile.
“Are you okay?” he rasped, his voice hoarse with panic. “I heard you scream.”
I blinked up at him, stunned. His blue eyes were wild, frantic, scanning me like he was memorizing every inch of me to make sure nothing was missing. His hands brushed over my arms, my waist, my shoulders, searching.
I barely registered the sting in my cheek until his gaze landed there. His entire body went eerily still.
Then, with a gentleness that felt so wrong for someone as brutal as him, he reached up and brushed his thumb against the cut staining my cheek with blood. The softness of it–of him–stole the breath from my lungs.
His brows furrowed, his lips parting slightly like he wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words. I could see it in his eyes–the pain. The raw, bleeding pain of something he would never say out loud.
“Nate?” I whispered, so quietly I wasn’t even sure I had said it at all.
He inhaled sharply, like the sound of my voice physically hurt him.
“I’m sorry,” he muttered, his voice breaking over the words. “I shouldn’t have left you.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat, forcing myself to step back. “It’s fine.”
But he didn’t let go.
His grip tightened, his fingers curling slightly into the material of my leathers. His scent was stronger now, intoxicatingly warm, but sharp–a sign that his wolf was dangerously on edge.
For a split second, I wondered if I should push him away again. If I should remind him that this wasn’t who we were anymore. But then, I thought of his wolf. The poor creature had done nothing to deserve this.
So, I let him hold me. For his wolf’s sake. And for mine. For the first time in two years, she felt… safe. I felt safe.
His breathing slowed, and finally, he pulled back just enough to meet my gaze again. “Are you hurt anywhere else?”
I exhaled “I think I sprained my ankle.”
Nate muttered a curse and immediately dres
Ito his knees in front of me.
I gasped. Nathaniel Morningstar was on his knees. In front of me. Me
Before I could even process it, his hands were on my hips, sending a jolt of heat through my veins. My heart pounded violently in my chest.
He barely nudged me back against the boulder behind me to sit, but the effect of it had my entire body locking up.
When he looked up at ine, his blue eyes weren’t the usual icy, frigid things I had grown accustomed to. They looked like the ocean–vast, soothing, and deep enough to drownin.
I felt my defenses cracking.
“I’m just going to test it, okay?” he murmured.
I nodded wordlessly.
The moment he twisted my ankle, a sharp pain speared through me, and I hissed.
“Yeah,” I bit out. “That’s sprained.”
Nate exhaled roughly, like my pain physically affected him. “It’ll heal in a few hours, but I need to get you off it. I got a claw, so we can go to the
cave-”
1/3
He stopped mid–sentence, his entire body going rigid. His eyes locked onto something in my hand.
A claw of my own. It fitted perfectly in my hand, the cold metal biting into my palm. I didn’t have time to think about when they even had time to make hundreds of metal claws, anyway.
His expression brightened with something unreadable as realization dawned. I had gotten one too.
I knew the question before he asked it.
I rolled my eyes, already irritated by the doubt I saw flicker through his gaze.
“How do you think I sprained my ankle?”
I jerked my chin toward a tree a few feet away, where a rope still dangled from a high branch. Below it, a field of raw wolfsbane.
A death trap. If any wolf fell in that, it would probably burn their skin from their bones.
Nate’s face went pale as he pieced it together.
I smirked. “I had to scale the tree, grab the claw in a backflip, and then land away from the wolfsbane. But my landing was sloppy and I twisted my ankle, which caused me to fall and cut my check,” I explained.
Something like pride flickered in his eyes, though he still looked completely thrown.
“We used to scale trees all the time when we were kids, Nate. Don’t look so surprised.” I tilted my head, my voice dipping into something teasing. “Besides, don’t you remember when you and Ethan used to force me into and through impossible cramped spaces? I’m incredibly flexible.”
His entire body stilled.
A muscle in his jaw flexed, his eyes darkening in a way that made my stomach flip.
Oh.
He wasn’t remembering my flexibility from childhood. He was remembering it at a completely different time.
Heat rushed to my cheeks as I quickly cleared my throat.
“We should get to the cave. It’s almost dark.”
Nate blinked, his grip tightening slightly on my leg before he finally nodded.
“Can I carry you?”
I huffed. “I’d rather not. You can hold my waist and I’ll hop on one foot.”
“Jiselle.” He shot me a flat look. “That’s ridiculous. I’ll move faster carrying you, trust me.”
“Fine. Just… wrap my ankle first,” I sighed.
I dug an extra shirt from my bag and handed it to him. He wordlessly took it, his fingers brushing over mine for just a second too long.
The air grew thick.
He worked quickly, but the moment he tied the last knot, his hands didn’t move.
Slowly, his palms slid up my legs, his arms bracketing me against the boulder.
I sucked in a breath as the space between us vanished.
His chest brushed against mine, his nose almost grazing my check as he dipped his head to the crook of my neck. His breath was hot against my skin, causing me to fight to hold back a shiver.
He was scenting me. For his wolf, maybe, but it did something to me–more than I wanted to acknowledge or admit.
Blue eyes met mine with an intensity that I didn’t dare match, and the need in them was as plain as day, even as the night came in. I could feel the warmth of his breath against my nose, and the uneven rise and fall of his chest against min
No doubt my entire being mirrored his, but….
If he kissed me, I wasn’t sure I would stop him.
2/3
WENENGA
Z
Chapter 12
And maybe he knew that.
I tilted my chin, staring him down, my voice barely a whisper.
“If you kiss me, Nate… that’s it. You have to go all the way. You have to claim me. You have to tell Ethan the truth.”
He exhaled sharply, like he was in physical pain.
Then, finally, he pulled away–only an inch, but I noticed. He squeezed his eyes shut.
“I can’t,” he murmured and I shattered. So much for never letting him hurt me again.
Something inside me snapped. Anger roared through my veins.
“Then don’t kiss me, Nathaniel!” I shoved him back, pushing past him. “I can walk on my own.”
I stormed ahead, ignoring the ache in my ankle and the ache in my
chest.
Then, the bushes rustled.
And then they appeared.
Two men stepped into the clearing, their eyes gleaming with hunger and murderous intent.
