Raining Kisses (The Opeth Pack Saga Book 2) (20 page)

The silver in Krystyna’s eyes sparkled brighter than normal. Her lips curved upwards in a sensual bow. Nicholaus licked his lips. He leaned forward and pressed his mouth to hers, softly at first, then with more pressure.

Her hand snaked around his head, fingers tangled in his long hair.

Nicholaus tasted her sweetness and then pulled back from her, keeping his focus on the roundness of her face, of her beautiful ruby red lips. Her eyes filled with so much emotion, both of his lovers, so emotional for when he was unable to be. The thought made his heart smile, warming him.

Katarina leaned forward and placed a kiss on his forehead.

Nicholaus tilted his head. “You don’t desire me too right now, Katarina?”

Katarina giggled. “Like Krys, I always desire you. But if we start, company will have to leave.”

“I’m just not in the mood for an orgy.” Selene smirked.

Nicholaus shot Selene a dirty look.

Coughing, Krystyna patted Nicholaus on the cheek, sliding a tender hand over his skin. “When did this happen, Selene? When did I get Krystyna pregnant?”

She put her hand to her chin, caressing it slowly. “Probably a few days ago when you three first reunited.” She paused, looked down and then back up before taking a sip of port. “You can stay in Albuquerque for another month or so, Nicholaus. But after that, they’ll both have to come back to Hungary. The babies will need nutrients from their homeland and only near the lake can you find the things she and Katarina will need.”

Katarina looked at Selene. “You mentioned me, Selene. What are you hiding?”

“Silly child.” Selene stuck out her tongue. “You know I can’t give out secrets.”

“Right.” Katarina hugged Krystyna tighter.

Staring up at Krystyna and Katarina, Nicholaus sat on his haunches. “Never again will I leave you, either of you. This I promise.”

Both women smiled. Krystyna stretched out her arms.

Nicholaus went into her embrace and felt the warmth of his lovers for the first time in so long. He let it actually blanket him, shield him from the cold emotionless human world. “This is family,” he muttered, and let himself smile. Truly, smile so large it threatened to reach his ears.

Selene put a hand on Józsi’s shoulder. “By the way, Józsi. You’re next.”

Józsi cocked his head. “Ilona or Lukina?”

“They’ll have to tell you. I promised I wouldn’t say a word.”

He snapped his fingers in mock anguish. “
Francba!”
Shit!

Selene laughed. “He has two more days before they come back to the States to meet up with him.”

Katarina looked at him. “Truly though, he is a blessed Alpha.”

“I feel it.” Józsi sipped his port.

Nicholaus shrugged his shoulders. “And you’ll have me as a member of this pack?”

“Of course. I need someone to smoke and drink with.”

“Ahem,” Selene coughed.

“Oh, right.” Józsi frowned. “There’s a bit of pack business we need to attend to. I'm actually helping Lukina go around and find our missing mates and taking an active role in leadership of this mess.”

Nicholaus groaned. His jaw ticked.

“Calm.” Katarina stroked his hand with her fingertips.

Warmth flowed slowly from her to him, rising up his arms and spreading throughout his body, settling the rapidly increasing heartbeat until it slowed to a normal rhythm.

“She’s so amazing,” he smiled, relaxing his shoulders against the chair.

Krystyna shifted her weight and smiled too. “I felt it as well.”

“Your healer is especially powerful, Nicholaus. At least for you two, that much we know. She did incredible work in the villages to the North of Tihany, healing many of the sick and training the newer, younger pack healers.” Selene rocked back against Józsi, the comfort of a pack mate obvious on her face.

Nicholaus wondered just where Selene fit into the hierarchy of the pack in terms of blood. “How is it that you’re a human witch and maintain such a bond with us through blood?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know yet. I’m hoping to find that answer soon.”

“I’m sure it’ll be revealed in time, like everything else.” Józsi sighed. “Nicholaus, I cannot ask you to act as a berserker since we don’t really need a ravenous murderer amongst a pack that’s destined for Heaven,” he scoffed.

“Still don’t believe in it?” Nicholaus settled in his chair, tension flowing from his body into nothingness as he took another drag off his cigar.

“Nope. Not sure any of that crap Kiba told us was real. And obviously we have no elders to ask, either. But after talking with Selene, she thinks it’s a good idea that we show solidarity not just with our mates, but with each other.”

Nicholaus nodded.

Józsi took a long puff off his cigar, blowing smoke straight into the darkening night sky. “I love the mountains out here.”

Nicholaus set his cigar down and reached for a glass of port. Taking a long sip, he set the glass down and retrieved his cigar from the porcelain ashtray. “I do too. It’s part of what drew me out here to Albuquerque. All the openness. The somewhat cleanliness of the air. So what were you going to ask?”

“I need someone to be my right hand man. Lukina is acting as an enforcer of sorts but we’re really focusing on her being the messenger, rounding up strays and mates, concentrating on helping as an ambassador of sorts when we need her for that. She’s very persuasive as I’m sure you know by now. But she's not a fighter. Feisty, spirited, yes. But her place isn’t on the front lines in battle. Nor is it in meting out justice.”

Nicholaus heard Katarina snickering. He turned to glare at her.

Her smile widened.

“So, where do I fit in?” Nicholaus leaned forward, holding the cigar between his teeth.

Józsi wrapped an arm around Selene’s waist. “I’m asking you to be my right hand. Nothing overly heavy at this point, but as you grow back with our pack and fit in to the place you always had, you’ll be able to handle more should there be a need.”

Nicholaus shifted, the chair creaking. “What about your other mate?”

“Ilona has been away from me too long. She and I need to spend more time together so we can get back in sync. As for our relationship, much like yours, she fits in as my emotional check point. It won’t take her long, but then still, she’s one of our healers. You know they’re treasured among wolves.”

Nicholaus nodded. “So you are looking for a show of strength?”

“Yeah. I could really use the show of strength among the males, especially the last few we’re looking for. I understand Kiba did bad things to their heads while I was gone. But it’s important that we find them and continue to grow in order to hold what’s ours.”

“I still…” Nicholaus looked back at Krystyna and then to Katarina. “What about my children?”

“Dude, didn’t you hear? We’ll be raising them together when I figure out which one of my mates is pregnant.” Józsi gave Selene a pinch.

Selene yipped and glared at Józsi.

“Indeed.” Nicholaus closed his eyes and exhaled slowly. This was not the way he wanted to go, but he promised himself, promised his lovers he would. They were not to be turned down again, that much he knew. But pack responsibility on top of raising kids?

He’d have to be man enough to do it. One glance into the eyes of both his lovers, their beautiful faces, both with pretty mouths hanging open in anticipation of his response…both looking so damn sexy as the wind blew their hair to and fro.

“I’ll do it.” Nicholaus felt Krystyna’s arm sling around his waist and Katarina’s hand grip his tighter.

“That’s settled then.” Józsi raised his glass. “To our new beta.”

Selene snickered. “To our beta.” They raised their glasses in toast of Nicholaus.

Laughter flowed through the rest of the evening on the balcony.

Life was good, Nicholaus decided.

T
HE END
.

“
I
don’t understand
, what’s going on?” She turned to the cloaked figure, ran a hand through her hair to peel it off her forehead. The humid weather created an instant pool of sweat on her skin the second they’d…

What had they done?

She knew she wasn’t where they started, couldn’t remember how they’d arrived here or even who she was, but the figure refused to speak.

“You have to tell me what’s going on.” She did a mental check, figured if there had been abuse, her body would be sore. Her head ached, but that was about it.

The cloaked figure pointed straight ahead.

She shook her head. “What?”

“The Opeth Pack,” the voice croaked, “shall not have a second pack witch. You shall remain here for all your days, else prophecy will come true and they will return. We…cannot allow that.”

She quirked a brow. “What?” The words seemed familiar, but she couldn’t quite place the why. Or the how.

Yet the scent in the air, heavy, toxic almost, held little clues to her whereabouts. Nor did they tell her what this hooded figure was. Only that the land was barren where they stood, except for buildings she could see in the distance.

Life.

Life barely pulsed where those buildings stood, and acted like wilting flowers, sad yet resolute in their future death.

Where had that come from?

She scratched her head. “Why?”

Something warmed in her hands. She lifted them to her face, saw the balls of light forming, then realized exactly what the figure was before her.

“You…” She shook, but not with fear. Something inside her radiated anger, protectiveness. “You’re…”

Only the height of the figure gave any indication of physical size, the gray cloak hid everything else from view, including the creature’s face. But she knew what this was, sensed the awesome power flowing from him to her.

“You’re one of them. And you’re betraying your heritage.”

“Silence.” The voice cut through her, chilling her despite the oppressive heat.

She clenched her fists. In her exhausted state, she couldn’t fight back against the Noble, he’d obliterate her in seconds if she’d tried. Slumping her shoulders, she resigned to play this game out.

The Nobles were the race above witches, the wealthy who controlled things like fate, watching the world spin in and out of control, sort of like how humans perceived the Elementals in their witchcraft.

Only the Nobles were way more pompous and fearful. She’d heard the legends, knew they would come for the Opeth Pack one day.

Then memories flashed in her head, slamming into her with such force it made her grip her skull and fall to her knees.

White hot warmth settled around her heart, not from the Noble, the energy felt too strange, too beautiful.

Images showed of a lover, playing, a wolf with silver hair, and blue eyes with silver sparkling irises. Tall, definitely on the muscular side, but she couldn’t remember his name.

Only that he belonged to her.

Who?
She reached for the memory as if it were real.

Then the fog settled around him and she shook her head, still reeling from the pain spiking through her temples. “What are you doing? Stop this shit!”

Her voice sounded foreign to her own ears but the power behind it felt comforting. She stood, angry eyes glaring at the Noble. “You pompous fuck.”

For a split second she swore she felt a frisson of fear from the Noble, but then it dissipated as though it’d never been.

She even swore she saw the whites of his eyes before the hood moved to cover all but his chin.

The fireballs in her hands seeped back into her skin, easing the pain in her head enough that she could focus on the Noble without too much emotional interference. “What was all that?”

“Your past.”

That’s it?

That’s all he would say?

“My past? What do you mean?” She raised the power again, unsure how she did it. This time, it sunk back into her, not of her own volition. “What the fuck just happened?”

She resisted the urge to stalk up to him and punch him. Even in her slightly disoriented state, she knew better than to screw with a Noble, though that power surge earlier…

“You’re not going to tell me anything, are you?”

The figure stopped, pointed at the buildings in the distance. “Your future.”

“No.” She clenched her teeth. “Take me back home.”

The Noble turned. “Do you even know where that is?”

She narrowed her eyes, blinked, then realized no, she had no idea where home was.

“I thought not. So you’re left with my guidance and I’m sending you there.”

“But,” her heart sank at the loss she couldn’t remember. “The pack…”

“The pack is to die off. That is how this shall work. Prophecy.”

“I don’t understand.”

“No, you won’t.”

She blinked, hating the impending doom starting to surround her. The air seemed to waver, flicker with nervous energy before the Noble turned, removing his hood and letting her truly gaze upon him.

“Be aware, no more.”

A hand brushed against her forehead and the last thing she remembered was being caught before she fell to the ground.