thankfully, well-lighted, I’d given up my search and was brushing my teeth and wishing Alcuin had known what hair products to purchase. When it came to my copper-streaked tresses, I was picky. Without a hair band, I was stuck with what my mom had referred to as my ultra-big hair.
After several more attempts to smooth the raging ringlets, I gave up. Who cared if my hair was rebelling? I had more concerning things to worry about.
Like Zane.
I trusted that he was somewhere close by, keeping vigil over the house. Despite our current relationship crisis, he was far too protective to leave me unattended.
In lieu of the precarious circumstances, I felt an unexpected wave of heaviness as exhaustion invaded my limbs. I’d been through so much; now I had an opportunity to rest my weary body on a massive bed fit for royalty.
With one final look in the kitchen, I trudged up the stairs connecting to the loft, eager to stretch out on a balanced mattress, firm yet yielding.
I didn’t get the chance.
Reaching the landing, I froze.
The bed looked as inviting as I remembered, but more tempting was Zane, who blended into the shadows like a predator waiting for its quarry. His eyes glowed amber, flecked with hints of red, focused and alert, and trained on me with a look of desire and restrained anger.
He was lounging languidly against the bed’s backboard, pillows propped behind him, his hair flowing around his face like waves of black satin.
“Took you long enough,” he growled, his voice both raspy and sultry.
It appeared that Zane had been concealing a great deal of his commanding, Alpha presence, drastically toning down his feral nature since we’d first met. Tonight it was on full display, sending ripples of fear and tingles of excitement rushing through my entire body.
I took a step back, reaching for the railing, unsure how to handle this new, darker Zane.
He seemed to relish my increasing heart rate, evidenced by his narrowing eyes and mischievous grin. “You’re not scared of me, Princess; are you?” his voice positively purred.
“How did you get here?” I asked dumbly, knowing he had the supernatural capabilities to avoid detection.
“The better question might be, how did you miss me?” He held my gaze, remaining inhumanly still.
Before I could answer, he was in front of me, cupping my face. “You are mine, Chloe. I am The Alpha, and you are my marked mate. You chose me and will learn to abide by my decisions. I am fair and just, and have, since the moment I met you, thought only of your best interests.
Had you walked away in Vegas, you would have broken my heart, and many of the people you now call friends would have died. And, ultimately, so would’ve you.”
I started to respond, but he placed his index finger over my lips.
“And, if you remember, you feared, at one point, that I was a vicious brute, capable of raping a helpless female, one too drunk to remember. You better believe, had we made love, drunk or not, you would remember, and you would have been willing. I would never have taken you without your consent, ever.”
Gasping, suddenly fearful, I attempted to flee, but instead his hands grasped my shoulders, keeping me facing and focused on him. As if I could look anywhere else in light of his powerful presence.
Somewhere in my mind, it occurred to me that I should be flaming mad. The only problem was the harsh truth he’d so clearly articulated, and the way his aggressive wildness was igniting my own animalistic passions.
Dipping his head, he brushed his lips against mine. “Wolf got your tongue, Chloe?” he chuckled deep in his chest, and proceeded to slide both hands around my neck, seizing a mess of my curls in each fist.
I heard myself groan, all anger forgotten, released for good, as he stared into my eyes, his own saying everything I needed to forgive.
Hungrily, his mouth covered mine. I relaxed; my tongue danced in perfect rhythm with his. “By the way, I’m willing,” I whispered huskily into his mouth, my voice filled with expectancy.
In answer, he tightened his grip on my hair and kissed me harder, his tongue swirling.
Without removing his mouth from mine, he lifted me into his arms and carried me to the bed, tenderly placing me in the center, and then stood again to look down at me, his expression sinfully heated as he pulled his t-shirt over his head, revealing the glorious pectoral muscles and flat