With her head just above the misty surface of the pool, Bliss remained silent, appearing lost in a meditative state. Lindsey preferred the silence over any conversations to do with Bliss and Smoke. Even though she barely knew Bliss, she already had deep feelings for her, not simply as a rescuer or of passionate lust, but empathy for the life Bliss had led as a child, one where she didn’t fit in.
Lindsey thought of the entries in Smoke’s journal, and realized he, too, had led a life where he didn’t really fit in. Maybe on some deep level Bliss and Smoke recognized that part in each other.
With her strong arms, Bliss lifted her body out of the pool. “Come.” She grasped Lindsey’s hand. “Let’s go rest before Smoke comes back.”
“I don’t really want to be here when he returns.” Again Lindsey followed, but with trepidation. “Bliss, remember I wanted away from him. You helped me escape.”
“You’re right, I did help you escape. But at that moment it was for my own gain, to use you as bait and bring the monster to justice that harmed or even killed my father.” Bliss gave Lindsey a tender look, which went against the statement she’d just made. “I will assure you, you’ll never be abused by Smoke again, Lindsey. Ever. I promise you.”
“So, I’ll still be trapped here, with him and you?” Lindsey shoved Bliss away. “Thanks, but no thanks. I’d rather die.” Lindsey quickly dressed, suddenly not comfortable being naked with bare-skinned Bliss.
“Clothing will help you stay warm,
but
you will lay with me and rest until Smoke returns.” Bliss glared, an impatient kind of stare, and it made Lindsey feel imprisoned by its implication of power held over her. “Then we’ll see what happens after that.”
Bliss snuggled close behind and wrapped her arms around Lindsey.
“I want to go home, Bliss. Wherever that may be now, I don’t know, but I do know it will never be with Smoke.” With that Lindsey closed her eyes and opened her mind to thoughts of Trevor.
* * * *
Lindsey woke disorientated. Moans, pants, and grunts came from near the pool. Dim light filtered in. Lindsey looked toward the cave opening and realized the sun had lowered dramatically. She sat up, more or less to see if anyone would notice her. Smoke’s naked backside thrust forward and back in a slow rolling rhythm over Bliss, both lost in the thralls of lust.
Thank God for Bliss. Lindsey watched the two of them, and what she saw looked like deep passion, a strong case of caring about pleasing the other. The same way they had gazed at each other for those silent intense moments when they first saw each other. The way Bliss responded to Smokes kink with her own, and above all, the way they both appeared to enjoy it without being drugged. It all looked so real, so surreal, Lindsey had to believe Smoke might be more than deeply smitten with Bliss, easy enough to do.
Lindsey moved slowly toward the cave opening, knowing Smoke would hear her escape if it weren’t for Bliss’s thick throaty moans. Again she silently thanked Bliss as Lindsey plowed through the snow after she’d cleared a few yards away from the cave. The snowfall subsided a little, but the wind whipped furiously as if it raced through a tunnel. Any sunlight totally disappeared, giving her an idea of how long they’d been inside the water cave. She’d be in total darkness soon if the clouds didn’t break open for the rising full moon.
Bliss had pointed out a couple other caves she’d used at different times while she and Lindsey trudged to the sauna pool earlier, and Lindsey made up her mind in an instant which one she’d use for shelter.
She circled around, climbing higher, hoping it might hide her scent a little more. Time stretched, as did the white rocky ground. How far away was it? How long had she been hiking? Her breath froze to her lips and her eyes watered, freezing her eyelashes. She couldn’t feel her toes or fingers. It might have been hours or minutes of hiking, she became unsure of her direction and slowed.
Her boot clipped a slippery rock and her foot shot out from under her. She tumbled over the snow like a hamster in a wheel, grabbing at anything, but met with only snow and boulders. Finally, she stopped. Snow packed her face, coat, and boots. She’d lost a glove. Her hand hurt like hell, frozen and bruised. She swiped it across her face, and it came away sticky with blood.
“Oh God, no.” Lindsey patted her face with her glove to determine where the blood originated, her face so numb, no pain directed her. She licked her lips, gathering the metallic flavor over her taste buds. Maybe she’d bitten her tongue, but realized the stream of red flowed from her nose when she swiped her fingers beneath her nostrils. She pinched her nose to quell it.
A rumbling sound from above drew her attention, the ground trembled and darkness took hold completely as snow blustered out in a raging blast, snuffing out any beginnings of moonlight. Thick icy snow seized her like a giant hand, gripping her, covering her body, and carrying it downward. No time to scream or breathe as she rode within the freezing tidal wave, spiraling down into her own darkness.
Trevor
Once far enough away from the cave of Smoke’s captives, Chance slowed and jerked his snout to each of them, giving Dir and Damen a direction to search opposite of Trevor and Chance. Again, Trevor wanted to kick up his heels at the fact he’d be protecting his Alpha over the other two. It mattered. And it mattered that Chance chose to remain with Trevor in their search for Lindsey.
They ran until darkness stole the light and a rumble shook the ground beneath them. Chance slowed to a stop, as if getting his bearings. Trevor didn’t know what it meant, a stampede of something huge or worse…an avalanche.
Chance’s head rose at the same time Trevor caught the scent. Lindsey. His heart beat like a pump jack. Blood. Both wolves drove a path toward the rumble, working to stay atop the ever shifting snow. Another wolf slid past them, carried downward with the flow. Trevor didn’t recognize it; only that it was female. Trevor and Chance stayed on Lindsey’s scent, digging through the fluctuating, writhing white.
Lindsey lay beneath them, buried in the snow. Trevor sensed her there.
Finally, the white chaos came to an end. The fragile layers of icy crystals behaved. Trevor dug with all of his strength, knowing she’d smother to death if he didn’t set her free. Chance took one side and Trevor the other. The female wolf raced toward them. She immediately joined in digging like her life depended on it. They formed into a rescue force, claws exposed, kicking snow out and away. It only took minutes to reach Lindsey.
They all shifted at once. Trevor pulled Lindsey out of the snow and quickly went to work on clearing the snow from her nose, mouth, and eyes. He laid his head over her heart. It beat a slow rhythm; he heard its faint pulse and his blood ran rampant, sizzling through his veins. He couldn’t stop himself from kissing her forehead, eyelids, tip of her nose, and settling over her lips. His eyes welled, which put him off, but he couldn’t seem to stop it.
“She needs warmth. I suggest we all give it to her or we’ll lose her,” the unknown female spoke. “You’re Trevor, I presume.” Her eyes glowed at Trevor.
“And you are?” Trevor protectively wrapped his arms around Lindsey, drawing her face into his chest. Chance closed in behind Lindsey, folding his body around both her and Trevor. The Alpha pressing his naked body against Lindsey in such an intimate way brought a quick stab of understanding. Chance reacted to Trevor like a wolf gone mad when Olivia gave Trevor’s naked human form a thank-you-hug not so long ago. The feeling of alarm passed quickly, like a jealous little fit. He knew how much Chance loved Olivia and recognized the fact that Chance also knew how much Trevor loved Lindsey. Chance wouldn’t want Trevor to lose his mate any more than Trevor would want his Alpha to lose Olivia.
The female shuffled around Trevor and pressed herself into his back, legs and arms pulling Chance and Lindsey even harder into Trevor’s chest, before she answered, “I’m Bliss.”
“Are you part of Smoke’s pack?” Chance moved his hands to the top of Trevor’s shoulders, straining them into a cocoon around Lindsey. Their heated bodies enveloped her.
“No. I’m the daughter of Lander Edwards, Alpha of the Westlyn pack. I lived abroad for a number of years, heard there was a violent take-over, and came to find out for myself.”
“Who leaves their pack, especially the daughter of the Alpha?” Trevor noticed Bliss stroking the outside of Lindsey’s thighs. He folded Lindsey’s legs, bending her knees and pressing them into his chest so her private feminine parts settled over his as they all sat together, connected by a weaving of arms and legs.
“Let’s just say at the time I had my reasons.”
A deep intake of breath and a flutter of lashes drew his complete focus onto Lindsey. She shoved him, pummeling him with punches. Chance broke away, as did Bliss. Trevor grappled Lindsey to the ground, wrists in a vice hold over her head, and he straddled her thighs to keep her from kicking.
“Darlin’, it’s Trevor.” He watched her unseeing eyes attempting to focus in the dark on him as she continued to struggle. “Trust me. I’m here to rescue my primal-mate…if she’ll still have me.” She stopped fighting against his hold.
“Trevor?” her meek voice came across as a whispered squeak. “Am I dead? Is this a dream… Heaven?”
Bliss chuckled, so did Chance.
Trevor whipped her off the ground, swinging her into his arms in one fluid motion as he stood. “Do you want to be rescued, Lindsey?”
“Holy fucking shit.” Tears rolled down her cheeks, big puffs of moist air shot into Trevor’s face as Lindsey coughed and gulped. “Think about what you’re asking of me…Smoke will have you killed. He’ll have Olivia killed. Trevor, that bastard marked me. I’m no good to you now.” She continued to stare at him, eyes glazed with unshed tears and unseeing in the darkness.
A strong shiver of adrenaline shot through Trevor. His muscles went tense. Yes, he knew the prick had marked her, and now he knew Smoke hadn’t also stolen her heart. He needed to brand her, consummate their primal-mating before she began to shift, if she was going to shift. As soon as light from the full moon touched her, it would start.
“Did Smoke or any of his pack exchange blood with you, Lindsey?” Chance spoke, echoing the very words firing through Trevor’s brain.
Lindsey ignored Chance. “Trevor, you didn’t answer me. Did you know I wear Smoke’s mark?” her voice trembled.
“Darlin’, I need to place my own mark on you. We gotta consummate. You came at me so upset before, thinkin’ I’d do it without permission, but we have to do it right away if you’re going to stay with me.” He’d deal with Smoke soon enough. Lindsey needed Trevor’s mark before she went and did something stupid, like run back to Smoke, thinking she was saving his and Olivia’s asses.
“Put me down.”
Trevor’s throat constricted and his knees buckled. But maybe she didn’t want him after all. His heart pounded and his wolf clawed the inside of his skin, wanting out. It needed to mate with Lindsey before she ran away, and if his human form didn’t handle the deed, his wolf would pounce on her once she shifted.
A sound behind, charging toward them, had him turning in ready stance for an attack. Damen and Dir rushed up in wolf form, shifted, and stood before them, staring at Bliss.
“She part of Smoke’s pack?” Damen looked daggers at her and it made Trevor chuckle, for whatever reason. “Well?”
“No, she’s not. This is Bliss, daughter of the Westlyn pack Alpha,” Chance replied.
Bliss stood unmoving, as if ready to defend herself.
“You boys showed up at the perfect time. Trevor and Lindsey need to consummate and we need to be ready to do the ritual, even though we’re a few pack members short,” Chance stated.
Everyone swung their attention toward Lindsey, who had took off running, if one could call it that. Her legs sunk knee deep in her effort to break free of them. It took only seconds for Trevor to stop her, pressing her back to his chest.
“Don’t run, Lindsey,” he whispered in her ear. “We can make this work. Smoke will never bother you again. I promise you, he’ll never hurt anyone after today.”
She turned toward him and he embraced her, wrapping his arms tightly around her slender waist. Even through her heavy coat, his arms went easily around her. His lips met hers in a branding, heated kiss. She responded by sliding her arms over his shoulders, hands at the back of his neck.
“If you love me, Lindsey, don’t leave,” his words blended with his breath against the warmth of her moist lips.
“Trevor, it was my memory of our love that sustained me all these weeks…and my excellent acting ability.” She chuckled, but it caught in her throat. Lindsey broke away from his lips and looked over at Chance. “In answer to your question, no, there was never any blood exchange with me…from anyone in Smoke’s pack, including him.”
Trevor realized her nervousness because his body burned with it, especially his thickening erection, but a huge part of him relaxed knowing Lindsey wouldn’t shift tonight.
“Trevor, do it, you can’t wait. Moon is out, beneath those clouds, and Smoke’s pack is close. We need to get back to the cave of women that will be going through the shift,” Dir urged.
Trevor dropped to his knees pulling Lindsey down with him. He gently laid her back, tugging off her jeans, noticing no panties, and quickly settled between Lindsey’s thighs. “Darlin’, I apologize for this time. Gotta hurry.” He shoved her shirt up to see the luscious curve of her breasts, her narrow waist, and her shapely thighs. It turned him rock hard, and her glistening feminine folds made his cock throb in anticipation. She raised her hips higher, opening her thighs even more. It reminded him of the night he had come so close to consummating with her weeks ago, when his urgent summons from Chance came through telepathically. The same kind of urgency ran rampant in the air tonight, maybe even more so than that night, but now Lindsey would be his.
“Take me, Trevor. I want you inside me.” Lindsey’s fingers stroked his forearms; each stationed beside her hips, and the gentleness of her touch about undid Trevor. He grabbed her hips and plunged into her dripping center, burying himself into her slick, tight passage. It stopped him, suspended, her skewered by his erection. Her softness enfolded, and then she rocked her hips, moaning his name. He came in an explosion. The walls of her sex squeezed and rippled, sucking his semen deep inside her.