She shook her head fiercely. “No, don’t be, I’m not.”
Pity tugged at his heart, and as much as he wanted to shield himself from it, his instinct to protect this girl meant emotionally as well as physically. He draped his arm around her shoulders, cursing the cloak and its bulky folds that prevented his skin from actually touching her. He shifted more to the side and pulled her toward him, ignoring her startled gasp as he turned her so that he could fit her back against his chest.
“You’re safe with us, with me. Please don’t ever forget that,” he whispered in her hair, loving the smell of her, his body responding with possessive satisfaction to finally have her cradled against him.
She froze and he tensed, waiting for her to pull away. The bond was in full effect on his end, not so much on hers. For now, he was a stranger—someone she might feel an unexplainable connection to, but nothing at all like he was feeling. At least not until they bonded officially. After a moment, she seemed to melt into him again and he sighed with contentment. He laid his head back and closed his eyes as he listened to her leave a message for her friend—Rach—saying that she was safe and would keep in touch.
It took us eight hours to get to our destination, and during that time, Caleb refused to release his hold on me. He had me locked in a tight grip while he slept like the dead. Strangely, I didn’t mind, even when his hand snaked up to cup my breast and I had to shoo it back to my waist. Still, I wasn’t creeped out.
Okay, maybe I was a little creeped out…but more by the flutter in my stomach at being nestled in his arms. Like he was some romance novel hero and I was a damsel in distress. The man was a walking wet dream and, bizarrely, I felt very much at ease with him.
Why though? It made no sense.
I couldn’t sleep even though I was beyond exhausted. I was way too amped up with everything that had happened. Every time my lids shut, all I could see was Jimmy’s dead eyes staring back at me. So I stayed awake and spent the majority of my time studying the strange tattoo that marked Caleb’s forearm. I couldn’t make out what it was exactly, but the design was Celtic-looking, with thick black bands of ink circling around the sides of his arm.
As the sun slowly rose, Lance turned the truck off the highway and onto a gravel road.
“We’re home,” he sang, startling both Ken and Caleb from their sleep.
Caleb grunted as he brought his head forward, his grip still tight around my waist. He tilted his face to my hair, inhaling deeply once again. It made me feel…owned…and not in a bad way. I shook my head, trying to get my senses back on line when home appeared around a final bend in the road. My eyes wide with awe, I took in the massive—more than massive—colossal century home that stood before me. It was a beautiful old redbrick mansion, lined with large windows, a wraparound porch and at least two wings.
“Holy shit!” I gasped.
“Morgan, this is Wolves’ Bane, home of The Order of the Wolf.” Caleb’s voice was gruff from his sleep. “While you are on the property, you don’t have to wear the cloak. You’re protected here. The perimeter is enchanted. The wolves can’t get past the barrier.”
I nodded as the word enchanted echoed in my mind. I was still too speechless at the grandeur of Wolves’ Bane to utter a sound. This was all too surreal to process.
Lance pulled the truck to a stop in front of the house. “She didn’t sleep the entire drive up,” he said, presumably to Caleb. “You should take her to her room so that she can get some rest.”
Feeling like I had just been ratted out, I flashed a dirty look at Lance, glaring at him in the rearview mirror. He smiled widely at me before giving a teasing wink. I decided I kinda liked him—a brother I never had.
His expression crashed a moment later when Caleb growled at him.
“Well, I wouldn’t have wanted to sleep either with some giant pawing at me,” Lance muttered loud enough for everyone to hear.
My mouth gaped and I could feel a burning blush wash over my entire face. Maybe I didn’t like him after all.
“What the hell are you talking about?” Caleb barked.
Lance winked at me again but didn’t bother answering Caleb. Instead, he and Ken shared a knowing look, then the two of them hopped out of the truck and quickly disappeared into the house.
Caleb shifted behind me and opened his own door, pulling me across the seat and out to stand next to the truck. He placed his hands on my shoulders and stared down at me, a gentle touch to my chin forcing me to look up at him. His face was still lined with exhaustion, his jaw painted with dark stubble. “What was Lance talking about?”