sister’s taunts, my mother’s contempt—none if it will touch me again.”
“Easier said than done. We all want our parents to love us.”
“True and while I’ll always feel that lack, at least I now understand the reason behind it.”
Wisely he considered her. “That will only lessen the sting.”
She gave him a smile of such brilliance his chest grew tight. “Yes. But I can live with that.” She considered him, her fingers tracing soft patterns on his skin. “Now, how about you? Do you understand what it is you have to do?”
“Only partly,” he admitted, stretching as he realized he felt better than he had in years. “I’ve been treating my wolf as an enemy.”
“When in fact he’s only one aspect of you. You’ve got to accept yourself—all of yourself.”
Grimacing, he nodded. “I was working my way through that when Chad attacked me.”
They both glanced at the still unconscious man.
“We’ll have to notify my father. I’m going to request a few guards accompany us back to SouthWard. His magic is pretty strong. I don’t want to take a chance of him escaping.”
Later, after King Drem had his guards temporarily quarantine Chad in a locked holding cell, Ruben and Willow found themselves alone in the castle.
Once his adrenaline had subsided, he was in a kind of hell. Even the merest brush of her fingers against his skin made him feel as if his heart was about to leap from his chest.
He wanted her, plain and simple. No, more than that. He needed her, the way his wolf part needed to break free and run.
When the king finally released them to get ready for their journey home, Willow came up to him and wrapped her arms around him. His reaction was swift and violent. It took every ounce of self-control he had to keep from shoving her against the wall and taking her right then and there.
She deserved so much more than that.
“Are you tired?” Her voice broke into his thoughts. Pink stained the creamy perfection of her cheeks.
“Tired?” he repeated, searching her face for signs of exhaustion. “Not particularly. You?”
Instead of answering, she flashed him a wicked grin. Glancing behind them and ahead at the deserted corridors, she turned toward him.
In one forward motion, she molded her curves against him. “Then kiss me,” she ordered, softening it a second later with a “Please.”
He needed no other urging. Desire swept over him as he crushed her to him, claiming her mouth with a kiss. She kissed him back, her mouth moving against his in the kind of kiss that told him she had craved him as badly as he did her.
Right then, with their mouths joined together and passion heating his blood, a vow was made and sealed, at least in his heart.
His, his blood sang. Now and for all time.
Somehow they managed to make it to his room, sharing each other’s breath. She moved her hands, all over him, all trace of shyness gone. Her boldness enabled him to channel his darkness into passion, letting the other part of himself—his wolf—as close to the surface as he could without actually changing.
Pleasure, pure, explosive, arced between them. They were one and the same, skin to skin, heart to heart—two and then three—and, as he entered her, his mate, he almost gave her the words that would let her know she now owned his soul. His mate.
But something held him back, even after, when she curled her body into his and held him, smiling. He had made his choice. He had to allow her time to make hers.
Dawn was a short time away when Willow finally bid him good-night and made her way toward her room. Aching, he watched her go, ignoring the way he wanted to howl at her absence. He punched his pillow, closed his eyes and tried to rest. If he was lucky he could grab a few hours of sleep before they started out in the morning.
Now he would have to try and pretend that nothing had changed. In reality, he knew things would never be the same again.
* * *
Unfortunately, when Willow entered her sleeping chambers, it was to find a disheveled and grumpy Tatiana waiting for her.
“Where have you been?” her sister demanded shrilly. “I’ve been waiting here for hours.”
Willow briefly closed her eyes, gathering her strength. Then she opened them and told Tatiana what had happened.
“I don’t believe you,” Tatiana said when Willow had finished. “Chad isn’t a killer. You’re just trying to frame him because you don’t