Heart of a Wolf: A Wicked Series - Book 2 Read online

  Winter tried to make the arrangement work regardless, simply because she grew sick of the cold lonely nights. Aric chased away the chill if only for a moment, but after time, even he couldn't warm the coldness surrounding her heart or rolling over her skin. When all was said and done, fantasizing about one man, while another touched you, tended to put a strain on any relationship, no matter how liberal.

  She shivered as a frosty draft drifted past her.

  She fought a tear creeping toward the corner of her eye. Crying was a useless waste of energy better used on planning her escape out of this mess. There was only one person able to save her now, and that was her.

  Chapter 2

  "Is our guest comfortable, Kahn?"

  Lex Baxter leaned against the wall as he waited for Kahn, his head enforcer, to answer. Beside Kahn stood one of the vampires turned by his partner a few days ago. Lex ignored the newborn, focusing on his enforcer instead.

  Kahn tilted his head. "You all right, boss? You look like shit."

  Ignoring the concern, he repeated his inquiry. He didn't want to explain his weakness, especially in front of the vamp. "The girl, is she enjoying her accommodations?"

  Kahn's size and demeanor reminded Lex a lot of his half brother Pete, the human half-breed Lex's mother bore a few years before him. A thorn in his side all his life, Lex spent plenty of time and tons of money getting his human sibling out of trouble. In the end, no matter how hard Lex worked to keep him safe, Pete's bad deeds caught up to him.

  Why their mother favored her latent son over him, Lex had no clue. Lex's father had come from a powerful bloodline, passing down his strength and skill to Lex. Yet, she never seemed to care for his pedigree. Instead, the woman gave all her energy to a bastard son no better than a human.

  She even had the nerve to force a witch's promise on Lex forcing him to look out for Pete. She bound her pure blood son's magic to guarantee that her bastard stayed safe or be avenged.

  The second his brother died, the punishment snapped into place, slowly robbing him of his magic and now, his vitality.

  Kahn snickered. "Our sweet little guest is about as comfortable as a bed of nails, Master Lex. We got her in the cellar out back."

  Lex spun. "I told you I wanted her held in the east guest room."

  Kahn glared at the vampire standing beside him and then back at Lex. "But this jerk-off said that Maxwell and you agreed to dump her in there."

  "Who do you take orders from, Kahn?"

  "You, boss." He lowered his head.

  "Have her moved to the guest room on the east side of the house. Do you understand? We do not treat a fellow witch with such neglect."

  "My master is not going to like it." The vampire stepped into Lex's personal space. With a burst of magic from his energy reserve, Lex slammed the vamp in the chest. The man flew back into the wall.

  "I don't give a shit what your master likes. He is not the one in charge here." Lex stalked over to the vamp lying on the floor with blood dripping down his chin. Kahn didn't bother to hide his amusement. "Take care to remember that. Now get the fuck out of my sight." Lex turned his back, refusing to show weakness. He didn't bother to watch the vamp scramble out of the room. "Damn parasites don't know their place anymore."

  The burst of energy he expelled cost him. He managed to get to the couch and sat down with as much grace as he could summon. He casually draped his arm over the back of the couch before glancing up at Kahn, stone-faced.

  Kahn dropped his gaze again. He leaned his shoulder against the wall before clearing his throat. "Are you sure that woman you stole is a witch? She's got the cursed disposition of a shifter." The guard's gaze fell when Lex lifted his brow. He sensed the man had something to add.

  "Spit it out, Kahn."

  "Taz, the big son of a bitch Maxwell turned last week, got a little out of control. He cracked her across the face."

  Lex glared at Kahn. "I specifically said I did not want her damaged." He had to deal with all the vampires his partner, Maxwell, was turning and soon. They were becoming a nuisance.

  "She's already healing. I just checked on her. She is not like the females at the coven. She was…uncooperative."

  Sudden intense pain centered in Lex's chest. No longer was his magic the only thing affected. He barely managed to get up sometimes. He shouldn't have used his magic. He'd feel the effects of his lack of control for days.

  Curse his mother for putting him through this, and for locking him to a vow he had no way of fulfilling. Not when the one you were meant to protect had a death wish.

  Lex fought the pain like a warrior. He offered Kahn a light smile. "Yes, the tradition of a docile female deteriorated the day our kind embraced humanity with our existence."

  The truth was a bitter tang on his tongue. He never agreed with the Goddess's need to reveal their existence. In fact, he despised it. "Females think themselves our equals, especially since adopting the ridiculous human notion of equal rights."

  Lex rolled his eyes. His views may be archaic, but they were true. His father raised him for the most part, instilling old-world values when it came to the opposite sex.

  He frowned. He had to admit he found the witch intriguing in an odd, twisted way. He sort of regretted her fate. He had his faults, but he wasn't one to revel in hurting a woman. Beautiful eyes and a body made to be fucked. Too bad she was a means to an end, her end and that of her wretched murdering family.

  A life for a life.

  It was the witch's code and the one thing that would free him of the agonizing pain ravaging his body. How that would happen, he didn't yet know.

  Once he satisfied the cursed promise, he'd be free of its haunting effects.

  "Yeah, the Goddess screwed us when she brought us out in the open. I can't even take a damn jog anymore without getting nasty looks from those supernatural-hating bastards."

  Funny, when the Goddess and her kin decided to reveal witch kind, Lex lost a large percent of his business. He was exposed, rounded up, and forced to reveal his witch blood to those not fit to lick his boots. He didn't think much of humans. To be honest, he didn't think of them at all before this mass exposure.

  Once humans found out about them, they needed to get their greedy hands on whatever they could. The registry was one of these ways to regulate the supernatural community and legally dip their grimy fingers into his business. When Lex refused to register, he was stripped of his legal businesses until he agreed to the terms orchestrated by humans and supernaturals who bought into it all.

  With reluctance, he signed their damn registry, but he also gained allies, forged unions with those who agreed with his hatred of exposure—a certain vampire being one of them—and to his surprise, one who also had it out for the Leery clan.

  "What are you going to do with her anyway?" Kahn asked for the third time since they snatched the woman.

  "I told you what I do with her is my concern," Lex snapped.

  To be honest, he had no idea what he was going to do with her. He knew what he had to do, but it wasn't a chore he looked forward to at all.

  "Sorry, boss." Kahn chuckled and then shook his head. "You have to admit, she's a vicious one. Can't see why anyone would want to be around her?"

  Lex chuckled. The woman was lively. "Come on, Kahn. Can you not handle a little fire in a woman?"

  "Little? The woman is a cursed inferno."

  Lex hoped the knowledge of his prisoner's surly nature would make his job easier, but it didn't. To be honest, he never hurt a woman in his life and the prospect of it really bothered him.

  But what choice did he have?

  He needed to satisfy the curse his failed promise had set free. Winter Leery was the only one of her clan unprotected by their wards. Winter was a witch on her own, an easy target.

  Lex hoped her abduction would bring the one he really wanted out of his bubble of protection, his brother's killer, Kian Lancaster. The witch was well protected by the powerful Leery clan, hidden behind a unit of a
ncient magic. The forest that surrounded them made the defenses impenetrable. Lex knew, because he tried to dismantle them. No luck. All it did was weaken him.

  If this ploy failed to draw out his main target, he wasn't sure what he'd do.

  "Why do have such a jones for that Leery clan anyway? They're just a bunch of stupid country hags."

  Country…yes. Stupid…not a chance. "You don't need to know my reasons," Lex snapped. Goddess, he was sick of hearing that damn question. Kahn cowered at the shot of power aimed at him. Lex disguised his pain at the release of energy as a snarl. He gritted his teeth. "All you need to do is obey my orders."

  Kahn cleared his throat. "I'm sorry, Master Lex." He lowered his head. "If there's nothing else, I'm…I'm going to move the girl to the guest suite and then head out." He lifted his eyes, but kept his head lowered. "I have a hookup with this witch in an hour. She's, um, got her own kind of wild streak. The only kind I like." Kahn offered a weak chuckle in an attempt at levity.

  "I'll be checking in on the witch, so make sure she's comfortable."

  Kahn lifted a brow as if to say, really. But he kept quiet. So, the man is not as dim-witted as one would think.

  Kahn lowered his eyes and exited the room.

  ***

  A hard series of raps drew Winter's attention to the door of her new cell. She was still shackled to a bed, but the accommodations had improved. An hour ago, two goons had moved her from the dingy cellar to a room in the main house, a very nice room with clean linens and a large window overlooking a garden cast in moonlight.

  What she wouldn't give to run through the paths of flowers and shrubs. Being underground had drained her of her energy and she was sure the ones that took her knew that.

  "Knock. Knock."

  She didn't recognize the voice. She frowned. "Really, I think you can forget formality. You already kidnapped me." Her words echoed in the large empty room.

  Creaks and screeches filled the silence as the large wooden door opened. Light from the hall filtered in for a moment but vanished when the door clicked shut. A light flicked on.

  At the foot of her bed stood a large, well-dressed male wearing a charming smile, if the situation were different, she might think him handsome. His eyes were the color of dark chocolate almost black in appearance. They lit up like spotlights when they landed on her.

  A witch. She knew by the power radiating off him and the sudden iridescent glow now swirling in his eyes. He was fit and attractive as most witches were, but he also had a wicked, darkness to his features as if he'd strike you down at any moment with little provocation.

  He grinned. Not a sweet smile that set her heart a flutter, but a leer that drew a sliver of fear up her spine.

  "My dear grandmother taught me regardless of circumstance, there was always room for formality." His head tilted as he looked at her, reminding her of her neighbor's pit bull. "I think you're the only woman who could look beautiful after being abducted and tied to a bed."

  "Flattery is going to get you nowhere with me. If you want to impress me, try not dragging my limp body six feet under and throwing me in a hole. A girl tends to frown upon such gestures."

  He had the balls to laugh. He drew closer. "It is regretful that we find ourselves in this position." His gaze glowed brighter. "I hope at least the accommodations are better. When I heard they put you in that old storm cellar I was appalled. I had you moved right away to a guest room."

  "Why would you care about my accommodations? You did kidnap me…remember."

  He eyed her again. "You are a beautiful witch."

  "Thank the Goddess I was born with breasts, or I'd still be in that basement. Please, tell me more about my beauty." She hoped her sarcasm wasn't too subtle.

  He threw his head back and laughed. "You are a peach. If circumstances were different, I'd definitely court you."

  She cackled. "Death would be a better alternative then tying myself to a crazy stupid kidnapper like—"

  An invisible hand closed over her mouth, silencing her in an instant. He tsked her. She noticed the light in his eyes fade for a moment. His fists clenched at his sides as he took a deep breath. She sensed pain radiating off him, but it quickly disappeared. "Now let's not be rude and say something we can't take back." He watched her. "Are you going to be nice?"

  She narrowed her eyes but nodded. The invisible gag disappeared. The man sighed as if relieved. A fact she found odd. She stared at his eyes as they slowly returned to their deep-brown shade. He had great power. She sensed it, but she also sensed a strange fluctuation in his magic.

  "What do you want with me?" Winter asked.

  "You are an unfortunate, but necessary casualty." He strolled closer to the bed. Winter might think him quite the catch if he hadn't ordered her drugged and kidnapped. That fact sort of diminished his appeal.

  His sharp angled jaw tensed. If she didn't know better, she'd think he was in pain. He leaned down. His finger gently drew across her cheek.

  "You are exquisite. Why is it you are not mated? A pure blood witch with your talent should be mated and breeding the next generation of powerful witches."

  "You sound like my nana." She scowled.

  "Although, your mouth could use some training in respect. Perhaps, that is why you're still single."

  Winter narrowed her eyes on the male. "And who's to say I'm not mated?"

  He grinned. "Oh, I've been watching you for some time now. I know you are not mated. Although, I wonder why you haven't mated the pure breed witch I always see you hanging out with. What's his name? Oh yes, Aric. Tell me, if you're not mating him, then what is it you're doing with him?"

  She chuckled. Unable to hold back her sarcasm, she blurted, "Did no one explain the birds and bees to you? Aric sure knows."

  His smile vanished. "I doubt his old-world parents would approve anyway. I did some research on Aric. His family is very powerful among our kind. Longtime members of the council. Quite old-fashioned in their views. Although you possess great power, they only accept the best. When your family welcomed that half-breed into your clan, you lost all possibilities of being welcomed into theirs." His words were laced with venom.

  "Well, I'm not looking to be accepted by anyone. I'm only looking for great sex."

  Suddenly, he was on top of her. "Is that right?" With her hands tied to the bed and her magic blocked, she was helpless. "I could show you pleasure." He ground his erection into her, her words no doubt hitting a sore spot.

  "Nothing you could do to me would bring me pleasure." She spit in his face.

  He laughed. He wiped off the moisture. "I have ways to make you enjoy it, sweet. Many, many ways."

  She was sure he did. Powerful witches could make a person enjoy their own deaths.

  "Fuck you." She growled and bucked her hips hoping to knock him off. He didn't budge. She felt a hardness press into the junction of her thighs and her stomach turned.

  "Don't stop. I like the way you move." She fell still. He chuckled. "As much as I'd love to sink in to your tight pussy, I don't take a woman against her will. I have some morals after all. Call me crazy, but I prefer a willing partner."

  "You have no problem kidnapping them, though."

  He shrugged. "As I said, you are an unfortunate casualty." He slid off her, yet remnants of his power remained. His face appeared pale when he turned back to her. His irises bled from brown to silver. She shivered from their sudden coldness. He turned his back to her and started toward the door.

  "My family will come looking for me."

  He stopped. He didn't look at her. "I'm counting on it."

  "They will kill you."

  He laughed as if that's exactly what he wanted. "They can try."

  "You have no idea who you're messing with, asshole."

  He faced her with a wide grin on his face. "Oh, I know exactly who I'm messing with. You are the one in the dark, but not for long. Soon you and your family will suffer my vengeance for what you did to my brother and for what you d
id to me."

  With that he spun, flung open the door, and marched out into the hall. The thick wooden door slammed shut on her freedom with an echoing thud.

  ***

  Tristan MacGlenn sat in his office, staring out over the Pennsylvanian white-tipped mountains in the distance. There were times when he felt as cold as their peaks and as void of life or color as the harsh winter.

  His inner wolf whimpered, crying for the mate they both lost. He hadn't shifted in so long he'd forgotten the freedom of the change. Lost was the joy of letting his animal free to run and hunt in the wilderness. His wolf had no desire to surface, too tired to run without his mate by his side.

  The need to breed rode him hard these last few months. Human women had their biological clocks and male wolves had something much worse, an animalistic drive to procreate. This instinct wreaked havoc on a male, especially when his mate remained unclaimed or out of reach.

  Attempting to fuck away his heat wouldn't help. His wolf would accept no one else. Only his mate would do.

  Knowing his true mate was out there ready and ripe for his bite and seed made him ache to go to her, but he resisted. Dragging her back by his side when she didn't want him would be useless.

  Punished for an act he never committed, he’d stayed away from her hoping she'd come to realize he had never betrayed her. Unfortunately, all these years apart hadn't changed her mind.

  There were times his need for her became so great, he jumped in his truck with plans to drag her back, kicking and screaming, if needed. In fact, a trail had worn from his door to his pickup over the long years.

  He never went through with it. Instead, he'd sit in the driver's seat, staring out at the path she used to stroll down when she came to his pack land. Sometimes his father would have to pull him out and help him back in the house. Other times, he'd sit there for hours, wishing she'd skip down that path, flash him one of her lovely smiles, offer him a wiseass remark, and join him to star gaze as she used to all those years ago.