Wicked Cravings (The Phoenix Pack Series - By Suzanne Wright Page 0,40

A shifter and his or her wolf should act as a unit, as one…not as two completely separate beings who warred with each other. He had no idea how Jaime was sane. He so admired and respected her for that. “How long has it been since you last shifted?” The gentleness in his voice made her eyes fill up. “Four years,” she whispered shakily.

“Oh, baby, come here.” Dante gathered her and placed her on his lap. He held her while she cried silently, hating that he couldn’t help. His wolf, too, hated the feeling of helplessness.

“Don’t worry,” she said as she wiped her tears with the back of her hand a minute later. “I’ll get my stuff together and I’ll be gone within the hour.” She tried to stand, but he tightened his hold.

“Like hell you will.”

“You want me to leave right this second?”

“Do you really think I’d let you go?”

Totally baffled, she shook her head slightly. “You heard what I just told you, right? You saw what happened last night?”

“What I saw was someone fighting—and fighting hard— to stop her wolf from surfacing. Even though your wolf was in that state, you managed to retain some control over her, or you’d have fully shifted.”

“‘Some’ being the key word.”

“I’m not letting you go.”

“I’m not yours to keep. Look, Dante, I understand that this is part of who you are, but you can’t protect me from this. Sooner or later—though I’m pretty sure it’ll be sooner—my wolf will be strong enough to take over. If she turns rogue, there’s only one choice. Trey will know that, and he’ll agree that I need to get my ass out of here.” A hint of smugness glinted in his eyes. “What?”

“I’ve already spoken to Trey. I explained your situation. He’s not thrilled about it, but he’s agreed to let you stay.”

“Then he’s more unstable than I thought. I have to leave here. Even if Trey’s okay with it, the others won’t be.”

“And what about your brother, huh? You’re going to leave him just like that?” The very idea of it made her chest ache, but she didn’t see any other avenue. “Gabe will understand. He knew this would happen at some point. He’s settled here, just like I wanted, like I hoped. He’ll be fine.”

“Physically, he will be,” allowed Dante, rubbing her back in a circular motion. “But emotionally? I’d say he’s going to be a wreck. You’re both very close, and you’re all he has left.”

“He’ll be fine.”

“So you’re just going to give up?”

Her eyes flared. “Excuse me?”

Good, she was angry. Anger was a good source of fuel, and she sure needed that right now.

“You’re giving up. Never had you down as a quitter, Jaime.” She tried to wrestle out of his hold, but he didn’t even seem to notice. “Giving up? If I was a quitter, I’d have bowed down to my wolf years ago. How dare you judge me! You have no idea what it’s like to live like this.”

“I can understand if you’re tired of fighting, if you’re tempted to stop fighting what you think is inevitable—”

“Think is inevitable? It is inevitable.”

He pursed his lips. “Maybe not.”

“What does that mean?”

“What I said. I want you to come with me somewhere.” Placing her on her feet, he gestured to a plastic bag beside his bed. “I had Shaya get some clothes together for you. Go in the bathroom and get dressed. Or you can dress right here if you prefer. I’m totally fine with that.” His devilish, cocky grin did something interesting to her insides. She snatched the bag from the floor and went into in the bathroom. Ten minutes later, she came out feeling refreshed and dressed in a long-sleeved T-shirt and jeans—both of which were skintight. How typical of Shaya, who was not only very fashion conscious but extremely fond of clothes that highlighted every curve.

As usual, Dante’s cock throbbed at the sight of her. He shackled her wrist with his hand.

“Come with me.”

Sighing, she allowed him to lead her through the network of tunnels, down the stairs of the cliff face, and over to the river where the patio table and chairs were set up. “What are we doing out here?” she asked the second he released her.

Dante slowly began to circle her. “Your biggest problem now is that your wolf is getting stronger, right?”

“Right,” she confirmed, confused as to where he was going with this.

“Then it stands to reason that in order to keep fighting her, you