Chapter 3 3

"Don't do this," I rasped.

"Why not?" His eyes twinkled. "As soon as you shift, so will I, and your wolf won't be able to resist such a compatible male."

I shook my head, still not quite understanding why a Neutral would go to such desperate lengths to gain the ability to shift. Plucking up my courage and hoping to delay him for a little longer until Fenrir rose, I asked, "That time I chased you through the town wasn't a vision?"

"It may have been incorporeal but Marchosias gifted me with a wolf. It's the counterpart to yours."

He pointed the antlers at me, and the magic pinning my body to the daybed was released.

My hand flew to my chest, and shallow breaths grazed the tops of my lungs. Grog had only set me free to give me the space to shift. If I didn't act now, before he started that enchantment, my wolf and I were finished.

Deep in my soul, my wolf stirred from hibernation, her front leg twitching with the first sign of movement. Dread plummeted through my insides. What if Marchosias had created another bond to trick her into believing Grog was her mate?

If she was awake, then it meant I could draw on her power. If I could draw on her power, then it meant I could fight. It was my wolf who had given me the strength to brawl against a crowd of bullies. Without her, I would never be able to shift body parts, such as turning my fingernails into vicious claws.

"Wait." I staggered to my feet and groaned at a cramp.

"What for?" He curled his lip. "So you can keep me talking until your wolf god recovers from his poisoning?"

I shook my head from side to side. Out of the corner of my eye, Fenrir sat slumped against the wall. The light he'd been leaking dimmed to the barest glow. I didn't dare check on him for fear of confirming that I was trying to stall.

"Answer me." He slammed the butt of his staff onto the stone floor.

"That's not what I'm doing," I lied. "Please, come here. The heat is killing me, and I need you."

All the malice in his features melted into a look of wide-eyed hope. "You're bluffing."

"No." I slipped my hands between my thighs and moaned. "It aches so much."

Grog's staff slipped from his fingers. He lurched forward and caught it, all the while staring at me through wide eyes. The hairy bastard was finally paying attention.

"Really?" he asked, his voice breathy.

I didn't even have to fake my moan because at that moment, the sensation of a hot knife pierced my belly.

Grog jogged to my side but stood on the other edge of the daybed, beyond grabbing range. "You've changed your mind about mating?"

"Let's see how you turn me on." I closed my left eye and opened it in an expression I hoped he would interpret as a saucy wink.

He hesitated, his non-existent lips trembling beneath his beard.

"What's wrong?" I pressed the heel of my hand into my belly.

"It's my..." He cleared his throat. "It's my first time."

If Fenrir wasn't still twitching under the influence of that enchanted crossbow, and I wasn't in the throes of such agony, I might have rolled my eyes, but this moment of vulnerability was an opportunity.

My wolf raised her head and sniffed the air. I clenched my teeth, silently urging her to go back to sleep.

Grog stood at my side, wringing his hands. He bowed his head and stared at me from beneath his lashes, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down with each harried breath.

I cleared my throat and tried to think of something encouraging, and pushed as much magic as I could into the fingers of my right hand. As my wolf's thick claws clicked against each other, my heart soared with triumph.

"Sit next to me." I took a seat on the daybed, and stifled an agonized groan. Tilting my head to the side, I forced a smile, but it felt like a pained grimace.

Grog paused a few moments before wiping his palms on his loincloth and walking around the huge couch. He lowered himself onto the seat at the end farthest away from me and sat as stiffly as a corpse.

My lips tightened. What happened to all that bravado about bending me over? It looked like he was just planning to shift and let his wolf take mine. I shoved that thought aside. His skittishness worked in my favor.

He stared straight ahead, not daring to turn in my direction, and inhaled several deep breaths before saying, "I'm here."

A rope of pain snaked around my middle and yanked. I jerked forward and moaned. How was I supposed to be the deadly seductress while being plagued by this infernal heat?

"This isn't working." Grog shot to his feet and pointed the antlers of his staff in my direction.

A bolt of alarm shot through my heart, and I raised both hands. "Give me a minute!"

"Why?"

"I'm so bloody horny it hurts."

"Oh." He flopped down onto the daybed.

I ground my teeth hard enough to trigger a migraine, and hatred sizzled through my veins, adding to the agony of my heat. My wolf stretched and yawned, sending me waves of curiosity. From her point of view, it looked like I was oscillating between lust and loathing. Grog's presence and his attack on Fenrir had suppressed any urge to mate.

With a deep breath, I continued the plan and patted the cushion next to mine. "Come closer."

Grog finally turned his head in my direction. "For a kiss?"

"Will this be your first time, too?"

He gave me an eager nod.