Cherished: True Mates Book 5 (BBW Wolf Shifter Romance) (A Craggstone Paranormal Romance) (14 page)

Anyway, I was enjoying the full-frontal
way
too much to even think about moving.

Or breathing.

Men just weren’t
made
like that. Were they?

I couldn’t drag my eyes away from the long length of his cock, thicker than I had ever seen before, even at rest.

No wonder Bert had to kidnap women to keep them.

But was it
too
much? Sex up until I’d met Oliver, well, it had been something I dreaded, something I associated with pain—and that
thing
looked like it might cause pain.

A vision swam into my mind of Oliver crouched over me, his tongue coaxing magic from my skin, his fingers gentle and knowing. His kisses, hot and wet and delicious.

He would never hurt me, and he said we were
true
mates—that we were destined to be together. Shoving my worries out of my mind, I finally managed to drag my eyes back to his face, self-conscious of the fact that I had been staring at his cock for what must have been at least a couple of minutes.

My eyes skipped and bumped their way up his body, reaching his mouth, which was curved in a smirk. Heat flooded my cheeks, nearly as hot as the slow burn that coiled in my belly, his knowing look fanning the already smoldering flames.

“Don’t worry, he’ll be fine,” Kara murmured from where she stood next to James.

I coughed, choking on my reply and wishing I could physically fan myself. It might have not been so bad if Oliver had deigned to give me a little preview instead of a “
Whoa, there you go”
full-on public striptease.

Kara glanced at me in concern, then her expression cleared, her lips widening into a shit-eating grin. “We grow our shifters big out here.”

“Kara!” James growled, but he couldn’t pretend to be mad at the not-so-subtle compliment, his cheeks glowing under his tan.

I managed a garbled response, and Kara winked before turning her attention back to the fight that was about to start.

The two men circled each other, blue eyes sparking with brown, both narrowed as they assessed and weighed their opponent.

There was that ass I had been—

My breath caught in my throat as Bert feinted to the right, doubling back and dodging under Oliver’s guard, swinging a meaty fist to connect directly with Oliver’s ribs.

Oliver didn’t flinch, instead continuing to circle, his jaw clenched, shoulders and arms loose.

Jumping back out of the way, Bert mimicked him, throwing out taunting insults under his breath, dodging in and out, landing punch after punch.

“Why isn’t he doing anything?”

James laid a hand on my shoulder in a move that was meant to reassure, but I could feel his tension, the twitch of his fingers as Bert landed yet another blow. “He will,” James growled over the thwack of flesh and the putrid insults that spewed from Bert’s mouth.

When the next fist connected, I flinched, my side aching as though I could feel Oliver’s pain. Though he obviously couldn’t as he still wasn’t flinching, just moving in a steady arc, his steps light and measured, his gaze tracking Bert’s movements.

I’d been avoiding looking at Bert up until now, not wanting to see him naked, not wanting to be reminded, but I forced myself to look. He was covered in sweat, the dust from the ground sticking to him, streaking as rivulets ran down his back. I kept my eyes above his waist, I had seen enough of
that
to last me a lifetime, thank you very much.

It didn’t stop me from wanting to march over and rip his balls off though.

I flinched as Bert landed another blow, this time his claws extended, raking down Oliver’s chest, leaving a trail of crimson in their wake.

What was Oliver doing?
I bit back the urge to scream at him. He had wanted to fight Bert and for what? So he could let Bert pummel him to death?

“Wait…” James murmured, his eyes glued to the circling men.

Wait for what?

“Do you admit to your crimes?” Oliver’s voice was a low rumble, startling me.

Bert snarled at him, kicking out with his feet. “Fight, damn you!”

“If you take responsibility for your crimes I’ll make it quick. Painless if I have to.”

“I don’t give a
fuck
what you do, you’re going to pay for screwing my mate.”

Oliver appeared to freeze, the fluid motion of his feet stuttering and digging into the dirt.

“Steady…” James whispered.

“Do you take responsibility and ask for forgiveness?”

“Fuck no. I’d do it all again, if I could. Including fucking a baby into your
true
mate. Several times,” Bert added, sneering and landing another punch. “I’m going to win, and if I do then they can’t try me again. I’ll be free. Then I’m going to fuck her all over again, and I think I’ll keep you alive, just so you can watch.”

Run!
The command screamed inside my head, my legs already tensing to obey. I wouldn’t let him take me again, I couldn’t!

The crowd blurred around me, my ragged breathing echoing loud in my ears along with the crunch of dirt as the men circled. My heart thundered, threatening to burst out of my chest.

Then my eyes locked onto Oliver. I could run, or I could trust him to finish this. Trust him to be the man I thought he was, a good one. He wouldn’t fail, not when so much was as stake. I had to believe that.

“Good choice,” James said out of the corner of his mouth. “Now here comes the
real
action.”

At James’ nod, Oliver spun, his limbs flying in a whirl of movement, the glint of claws catching in the moonlight, muscles flexing and twisting…growing?

What the—?

 

 

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Oliver

Power flooded me, racing through my blood as my wolf thrust to the front, eager for the taste of blood. Muscles bunching, I channeled the rage that had been building, the pure fury and helplessness that came from knowing what Bert had done to Ana.
My Ana.

My mate,
my wolf growled, putting on a spurt of speed.

It was time to take this bastard down, but not before making him hurt a little. Okay, maybe a lot.

My lips stretched across my teeth, and I knew my grin was feral, a direct reflection of the darkness coursing through me, eating at me.

This is the last time.

I had made a promise I had every intention of keeping. Even if she didn’t want me after seeing me like this.

Slashing out, I dug my claws into Bert’s chest, my other hand coming up to score his thigh. And again, this time spinning and slashing across his back. He stumbled, quickly regaining his footing, whirling around to face me.


This
is what I’m talking about,” he snarled, pulling his arm back.

I drove my fist into his jaw, sending him sprawling before he even had a chance to let the punch fly.

No, this is what I’m talking about.

Stalking over, I dragged him up off the ground, one hand clamped around his neck, squeezing, tightening inch by inch. I knew exactly how to judge when a man would pass out, exactly how much he could take before teetering on the edge.

Claws scrabbled and slashed at me.

Insignificant.

I tilted my head, leaning closer. The tell was always in the eyes, in that moment when they moved from being angry, to scared, then…a glaze would steal over them, a dimming of their soul as they struggled not to submit.

Bert’s struggling weakened, his mouth lolling open.

I loosened my grip, just a fraction.

He had to suffer what he had done to Ana.

Using a single claw, I sliced it down his chest in a lazy sweep, drawing a jagged line from throat to groin. The fact that he was going to die soon didn’t make a damn bit of difference. He could feel pain now
.

“Ask for forgiveness and I’ll finish it,” I growled in a throaty whisper, leaning in close so I could smell the whiff of panic, the tang of fear.

Please don’t,
my wolf snarled, something I wholeheartedly agreed with, but honor demanded that I offer him the choice. My claw edged closer to his flaccid dick, my intentions clear.

Bert’s eyes rolled in his head, his chest wheezing as he fought to draw breath. “Fuck. You!” he spat out, manic determination hardening his face, his hands closing around my arm, piercing and shredding my skin.

Leaning even closer, I whispered, “Thank you for that.”

Fear flashed across his face and I drank it in, the emotion heady and satisfying.

“Oliver!”

I stiffened, the woman’s cry an intrusion I could do without.

She could wait.

“Oliver! No! Look at me!”

I don’t want to
, my voice merged with my wolf in way that sounded suspiciously like a whine.

But I had to. She had asked, and I would do anything for her. My mate.

Tilting my head a fraction I met her gaze, her brown eyes soft with confusion and…fear?

“Ana?” I wanted to ask her what was wrong, why she was looking at me like that, but the voice that came out of my mouth was husky and guttural, barely intelligible.

“You said your soul was black, that you wanted redemption and that I was
it
for you.”

I did, but—

“We also said that we would let go of the past, move forward.”

Okay, we did, but—

“So let go. Don’t let him blacken your soul, he’s not worth it. You don’t want to be that man anymore. I know you, the real
you
deep inside. You make me laugh and smile and feel good about myself—
that’s
the man I want to spend time with, not this one. Choose to finish him with the compassion and honor I know is in you, not like this.”

I swallowed hard, a lump in my throat. She believed in me, thought I was better than I really was. Even now, seeing the darkness inside me, a darkness I had always welcomed and nurtured because it stunted my ability to feel. My mind stuttered on the thought. For the first time in my life since being rejected as a child I
wanted
to feel, so why was I pushing it away? Why was I seeking revenge when she wanted to move past it?

Because I was angry. So fucking angry that I couldn’t see straight. He had
hurt
her and I couldn’t do anything about it, couldn’t stop it from happening, couldn’t make it better. I was fucking helpless in the face of her pain.

“It hurts, seeing you hurting,” I whispered, trying to put my revelation into words, begging her to understand.

“And it sucks for me too, but this isn’t the way. This isn’t going to make it better.
Love
me better, Oliver. Cherish me, and hold me, and just love me.”

Bert let out a strangled sound, his eyes bulging as he frantically swiped at my chest, tearing into skin.

Ana gasped, her lips quivering as she took in the damage Bert had done.

“It will heal,” I said, mainly to draw her eyes back to my face. I needed to look her in the eyes when I asked my next question. “Does this mean...” Hope soared in my chest, pushing back the blackness I had let crowd in.

She nodded, her face frantic with worry. “Yes! Dammit, I can’t bear to see you getting hurt!”

 

 

***

Ana

I couldn’t stand it! Blood was running down his chest, his skin shredded by Bert’s claws, and he wanted to have a heart-to-heart?

Now?

Not running had been the most stupid and the best thing I had ever done. Somehow this man had wormed his way into my heart, just by being there. By being
him
. While watching the fight I had tried to imagine what my life would be like without Bert in it. How freeing it would be not to worry, or be scared. What Josh and I could do, where we would go. And every time I imagined a scenario,
he
was there too.

Every. Single. Time.

Even something as simple as eating breakfast without having to look over my shoulder, Oliver was there with us.

A family.

And now he was getting ready to ruin it all.

“Please, Oliver. Choose me and finish it,” I whispered, deliberately ignoring the fact that he didn’t look much like the Oliver I knew right at this moment. His body was all kinds of stretched, his muscles like barrels, and his eyes? They were glowing silver, eerily beautiful.

He grinned, pleasure lighting his eyes, and I tried not to flinch at the sight of his teeth which looked suspiciously pointy.

“I choose you,” he growled, and I had a second to close my eyes, a glimpse of his hand slicing through the air embedded behind my eyelids.

A thud vibrated through the ground, traveling up into my feet.

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