Chapter 7 7

"Shit," I hissed. "He's shifted."

"Fuck."

My wolf's head snapped up, and she ran around in confused circles. There was no time to tell if she was happy or horrified, because the white wolf reared up again and swiped at Fenrir with his claws.

"Stand down," Fenrir roared.

Either the wolf couldn't hear him, or he didn't recognize Fenrir's authority as the alpha, and he slashed from side to side, trying to reach for Fenrir's neck.

"Put me down," I said, my voice strained as the wolf continued his attack on Fenrir.

"No," he snarled. "Marchosias is animating that body for a purpose. What if that thing wants to force itself on you?"

I opened my mouth to tell Fenrir that the ritual needed my consent, but it clicked shut. Why would I trust anything Grog had told me? Fenrir was right. I wasn't going to let him get close to my body, no matter what.

"Bring me Grog's head," I said.

Fenrir landed a heavy kick on the wolf's shoulder, making him flinch. With another blow, he cracked bone, and Grog's headless wolf landed on the floor with a thud.

"What did you say?" he asked.

"If Grog's head is operating that body, we need to destroy it."

Fenrir slammed his foot on Grog's ribs, filling my ears with several sickening cracks. Wincing, I clenched my teeth. Broken bones wouldn't slow down an undead shaman powered by a demon like Marchosias.

After stamping on the wolf's hind leg, Fenrir stalked across the room to where he'd thrown Grog's head. It was the same creature I had chased through town. Almost hairless with an elongated snout, indigo-blue eyes, and long ears. He looked like a white version of my wolf.

Bile rose to the back of my throat, and I swallowed. It was no wonder she had gotten so riled by his presence.

Fenrir picked it up by its ears. "I'll tear it into pieces and bury them in different places outside the wards."

A shooting pain raced through my core, making my body go limp. "There's no time," I whispered. "You've got to fuck me."

He frowned. "Lydia."

"It's the heat," I said, voice wavering. "Do you remember how pained I was the night after the battle, when I collapsed?"

"Is it that bad?" he asked.

"Nearly." I shuddered. "Only this time, I'm desperate to mate."

His gaze turned to a headless wolf trying to rise on a leg that had been snapped in half. "Let me get you washed up."

I grabbed his wrist. "Please, make me climax first."

His eyes darkened, his nostrils flared, and his full lips parted. "Are you sure?"

Pain exploded across my belly, setting my every nerve ending alight. With a desperate moan, I clung to his chest and cried, "If you leave me unsatisfied any longer, I'll die."

F

enrir smashed Grog's lifeless head against the wall. I turned around to where he'd left Grog's broken and burned body, two feet away from the daybed. The wolf corpse twitched once before falling still.

A huge breath gusted from my lungs, even though my wolf let out a mournful howl.

"He was going to kill us," I said to her.

She whined with confusion, her ears drooping.

I was about to explain it to her when another spasm hit. This one brought a burst of heat that tore through me like a firestorm. Sweat broke out across every inch of my skin, and every nerve screamed with the need for his touch.

Gasping at the onslaught, I shuddered in Fenrir's arms and clenched my teeth, but it had no effect. It was as though my body knew it was safe, and now wanted Fenrir to take care of my urgent need.

My nails dug into his muscular shoulders, and I stared up into his turquoise eyes. "Please," I whispered. "I need you right now."

Scowling, Fenrir swept his gaze across my body. "Not with that bastard's blood on you." He dropped the lupine head on the floor and slammed his foot into it, crunching several bones at once. "Let him try to rise with so many broken bones."

Fenrir carried me to the bathroom, an all-black space from the floors to the walls to the ceiling. Even the tub was made from black granite and looked large enough to accommodate six. Right now, I wanted it filled with ice water and Fenrir filling me.

"Bath?" I whispered.

He placed me on the cool floor. "That will take too long."

I squeezed my eyes closed, curled into a tight ball, and prayed for release. Cold water cascaded down on my body, soaked through my dress, and cooled the outer layer of my skin.

"That feels so good," I said, my muscles loosening.

Fenrir knelt beside me, already shirtless, his blond curls darkened with the water and framing his handsome face.

My breath hitched.

Water ran down his alabaster skin, gathering in the dip of his collarbones and cascading down the sculpted muscles of his chest. I wasn't sure if it was the shower, the haze of lust coloring my vision, or the fact that Fenrir had saved me from being plundered by Grog, but he looked majestic.