Siren Song (26 page)

“
WHAT?!” Philip nearly fell out of his chair, his eyes widening in disbelief, in shock. “You… slept with her? Wow, Duncan, you don’t do casual sex; you’re practically a monk with the number of women you’ve been with. What’s the number? Four? Five?”

“
There was nothing casual about it,” Duncan huffed out, surprising himself with his frankness. Knowing that Philip hadn’t slept with Lexi left Duncan feeling rather charitable towards his older brother. Of course Philip hadn’t slept with Lexi; he was completely devoted to his wife Stacey. More importantly, he was a happily mated wolf; he couldn’t sleep with Lexi even if he wanted to; and if he wanted to, Duncan was going to…. With a wry smile, he added, “Besides, I’ve learned quality trumps quantity every time. What I lack in numbers I make up for in performance. Even the human I bedded walked away happy.”

Philip threw his head back and laughed, “You are so full of it, Duncan; I’m surprised you allowed yourself to be lured to the dark side. And with a girl that exudes sex.” He let out a low whistle, “Ashley is going to be furious.”

“
I don’t know about that; Ashley adores her.” Seeing the expression of horror on his brother’s face, not quite understanding it, Duncan paused, “Don’t look at me like that.”

“
I can’t believe you would introduce your girlfriend, your prospective mate, to your mistress,” Philip shook his head.

“
Ashley is not nor has she ever been my girlfriend,” Duncan ground out, irritated with his brother’s assumptions, knowing that the entire pack had the same assumptions.

“
But, under the full moon, the two of you….”

“
She was the only one I could tolerate and you know what the wolf is like when the moon is full.” Even if Philip didn't shift, he still felt the driving, animalistic need to fuck beneath the full moon. Duncan didn’t know why he was making excuses; it was his life and Ashley was not his girlfriend. He didn’t owe her or Philip an explanation.

“
Wow, I never thought I’d see the day where you would let your beast take over completely,” he let out a low whistle, leaning back in his chair as he stared at Duncan in awe. “Did you lose your mind, Duncan? Go insane? What?”

“
There may have been some madness involved,” Duncan admitted, downplaying the extent of their combustible attraction. “I don’t know; there’s just something about her.

“
I agree,” Philip said, still a little stunned over his brother’s behavior. A low growl came from the back of Duncan’s throat and Philip held up his hands and chuckled, “Whoa, there, Duncan, I’m just agreeing with you. After all, she got me to announce my plans in a gossip column and she made Duncan Tremain lose his infamous iron-control. What does your wolf think about Lexi?”

“
He won’t shut up about her,” Duncan shook his head; hell, he was jealous of his own bloody wolf. Looking out across the manicured lawns, he admitted something that he had never told another person, “I haven’t bonded with my wolf, Philip; and yet when she’s near me I can feel him straining against the leash to get to her.”

When Philip didn’t say anything, Duncan turned his head and saw that his brother was staring at him with his jaw hanging to his chest, his eyes wide in astonishment. “How is that even possible, Duncan?”

“
I don’t know,” he shook his head as he thought about Lexi’s effect on him and on the wolf. “He wants her as badly as I do….”

“
Not that, you idiot,’ Philip growled, his gray eyes glowing with the wolf that was inside. “How can you be the Alpha of the Prentiss clan, the Alpha prime of ours, and yet you haven’t bonded with your wolf?!”

“
No, I haven’t,” Duncan said through clenched teeth, grateful that the veranda was empty. “You may want to keep your voice down, Philip; I don’t think the country is ready to have a wolf for their next president.”

“
But you run with the wolves on the nights of the full moon,” Philip blurted, still stuck on Duncan’s admission, disregarding the fact that they were in a public place, albeit one completely void of patrons other than themselves. “You rut in your wolf form.”

“
And afterwards I regain control,” Duncan said calmly. “It is a bargain we have, he and I. But that is not the point, he’s struggling to break free and I cannot allow that.”

“
I think you’re problems are much bigger than that,” Philip shook his head in confusion. “You talk to him, you transform into him; how can you not be bonded?”

Duncan sighed, knowing he just didn’t have time to explain his choices to his brother, or how he was able to be the Alpha when, technically, he shouldn’t be. It wasn’t his fault that he was powerful enough to control not one but two clans, at least when his father needed to get away, without being bonded with his wolf. Glancing at his watch, he stood up, “Look, I’ve got to go; I’m meeting Ashley for dinner and….”

“
I thought you said she wasn’t your girlfriend.”

“
She’s not; it’s something to do with the pack.” Throwing some cash down on the table, he faced his brother; “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mention this conversation to anyone; it could make things… problematic.”

“
Of course not,” Philip said quickly as he came to his feet. Holding out his hand, “You’re my brother.”

Duncan accepted the hand and the two men shook. When he met his brother’s eyes, he saw sympathy and concern; there was no condemnation and he appreciated that more than Philip could ever possibly know. “Thank you.”

“
Take care, little brother,” Philip said softly, concern underlying the amusement. “You wouldn’t want your empire taken down by a mere human.”

Duncan smiled slightly, knowing that he was going to have to read Lexi’s work since her e-mails had proven to be vastly entertaining, making him chuckle when he should have been serious. He had been putting it off because he knew he couldn’t afford to see Lexi’s depths; she was already creating havoc in his life and it was tearing him up inside. Any more havoc was damn near going to destroy the hold he had over the wolf and if that happened…. He wasn’t sure what would happen if the wolf got free.

Let’s find out, shall we, Duncan?

*****

At an upscale restaurant that evening, Lexi sat with Cole, across the table from Ashley and Dima, who were so madly in love – at least deeply in lust – it was absurd. Dima and Cole were wearing tight, black leather pants; Dima in a white t-shirt that stretched across his broad shoulders, delineating his muscled chest, and Cole in some sort of artsy-fartsy poet’s shirt. He still looked entirely too-masculine, despite the ruffles. Of course, with the front gaping open, the laces loosely tied, he resembled a model on the front of a romance novel.

Ashley was also sporting a pair of leather pants, pairing them with a cropped t-shirt that showcased her flat stomach and intricate tattoo on her lower back. Her red hair was loose and her makeup minimal but she glowed. Rounding out the group, Lexi wore an almost-Renaissance get-up: a flowing, white shirt beneath a tight, low-cut bodice of black brocade that pushed her breasts up. Of course, she had on the requisite leather pants as well, with stiletto boots. Her elaborate wig was black, the hair piled on her head in braids and curls, almost haphazard in manner, with a few more braids woven throughout; it was very gothic. Any other quartet would have looked ridiculous; together they looked purely amazing.

“
I just want to thank you for coming with us this evening,” Ashley gushed, leaning into Dima’s embrace as her brilliant smile lit the room. “I have been so nervous about this and having the two of you here with us has calmed my nerves so much.”

“
Of course,” Lexi said with a smile, finding Ashley’s enthusiasm contagious despite her confusion over Duncan. Despite her attempts at engaging him with her e-mails, his responses invariably were very polite and distant; he wasn’t biting at any of the lures she was sending out. But whenever she happened to see him at the office he would be watching her with the silver predator eyes of his, devouring her from across the room. Once she made the mistake of turning towards him; he had disappeared faster than ice in the desert and she had chuckled at that.

Glancing at the couple across from her, she couldn’t help but smile; they looked so happy. It was strange to see Dima completely head over heels for a girl but it was good; he deserved all of the happiness in the world. Lexi was just a little concerned that perhaps she had held him back all of these years since he didn’t get serious with Ashley until after she kissed him good-bye. And while it was a good thing that he was moving on with his life, she knew she was going to miss their time together. Of course, she was moving on with her life, as well; she just wasn’t sure in which direction she was moving.

She glanced at Cole out of the corner of her eyes and wondered if he had been held back, too. Neither of them acted like they hated her; in fact, they didn’t act any differently towards her at all. They hugged her and kissed her with abandon, continued to eat breakfast with her, and generally escorted her wherever she wished to go; then why did she feel different?

“
So,” Ashley’s voice interrupted her contemplations and Lexi smiled as Ashley leaned closer, her eyes sparkling with humor and curiosity. “Now that you’ve finally done it, do you mind me asking if Duncan was everything you’d hoped he’d be?”

Both Cole and Dima stilled, staring at her with volatile expressions. Cole’s voice was deadly even as he turned to her and asked, “Would you care to explain to me what she means?”

“
Oops,” Ashley giggled, her face bright red, making her red all over. She also happened to be one of the lucky few who looked really good all in red. “Was I not supposed to say anything?”

“
I wasn’t keeping it a secret,” Lexi protested, even though it was obvious that she had been. With a negligent shrug, she grinned at her roommates, “It simply happened and now I’ve moved on; we’ve both moved on.”

“
Lexi,” Dima’s voice was low in warning. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

“
Because we have all been so busy this past week,” she finally said, making up an excuse on the fly. “When has there been time?”

“
At any point in the morning when I’ve driven you to work?” Cole suggested.

“
In the evenings when I come home from the club for a few hours to have dinner and gear up for the night?” Dima added, his molars grinding together as he stared at her.

“
Oops,” she grinned sheepishly, hoping to diffuse the tension, knowing that they would find some time in the near future to sit her down and have a long, long conversation. “If it makes you feel any better it was only the one time. He has been avoiding me ever since.”

Ashley’s brows pulled together into a frown, “That doesn’t sound like the Duncan I know; he doesn’t sleep around and he doesn’t avoid anything.”

“
Let’s just drop it,” Lexi said, her cheeks hurting from the blinding smile she pasted onto her face. “Why don’t you tell us who we’re meeting?”

Dima flushed as Ashley’s eyes widened, as she looked between Dima and Lexi, “I though you knew; Dima was supposed to tell you.”

“
I thought it would be a nice surprise,” he muttered. “I didn’t know about the other thing or I wouldn’t have done it.”

Lexi’s stomach twisted in on itself, knowing the answer but needing to hear it from Ashley, “Who are we meeting?”

“
Duncan Tremain,” she answered softly, sympathy in her pretty blue eyes.

Lexi stood up abruptly, “I’ve got to go.”

Cole chuckled as he stood up at a more leisurely pace, “It seems Duncan isn’t the only one doing the avoidance thing. Come on, Lexi, I’ll take you home.”

Bending, she gave both Ashley and Dima a hug goodbye at the same time, not bothering to ask why they needed to meet Duncan in the first place. “Have a lovely night, you two; I am so sorry I can’t stay.”

*****

Duncan walked into the restaurant at eight o’clock, as per Ashley’s request as a member of his pack. He wasn’t positive what she wanted but he was fairly certain it had something to do with the bartender she had been banging for the last couple of weeks. The bartender who was Lexi’s best friend and roommate. The bartender Lexi had probably slept with at some point in her life. He was going to kill the bartender.

He came to an abrupt stop when he saw who was sitting with Ashley at their table. Lexi. Taking a step to the side, he hid behind a column, just to observe her, to see if this attraction worked when she wasn’t looking at him. As he looked at her, his muscles tightened and his blood burned within. It took less than half a second to realize that it was just as powerful. God, he’d never get enough of her; a hundred lifetimes wouldn’t be enough.

Almost as if sensing him, Lexi’s head lifted and a slight frown crinkled her precious forehead as she looked around. He held his breath as her gaze slowly moved towards him, as if she could see him behind the stone column where he was hiding. But he wasn’t hiding; he just wanted to watch her, perhaps take a moment to get his body under some semblance of control. Of course, control was in excessively short supply whenever Lexi Darling was around.

Just as he was about to step out from behind the pillar, Lexi and one of her… friends - the artist - stood up and the control Duncan managed to achieve vanished. Her legs were encased in supple leather, her breasts were spilling over the top of some sort of tight vest; her wig was artistically arranged, emphasizing her uniqueness and her femininity. God, she was glorious!