Authors: AJ Hampton
Thirty minutes passed before the stone and wood structure of his family home came into view through a clearing of
y
ellow
c
edars. He pulled in front of the garage and killed the engine.
“
Are you coming inside?
”
she asked.
Her words conjured so many images. His cock twitched, the stupid, stubborn bastard. He didn
’
t look at her, couldn
’
t.
“
No.
”
He needed to talk to James, find out everything he could about Grady. The cop wasn
’
t a local boy because Peter never forgot a face. The asshole must have moved into town after Peter had left. A new wave of anger stole through him. Eva had lost her virginity at seventeen, now she had to be at least twenty-five. How many times had the cop fucked his angel?
“
Leave Grady alone,
”
Eva said, her words snapping him out of his fantasy of death and dismemberment.
A noise left his chest, feral and damning. He speared her with hot, furious eyes. Even though it was Peter
’
s seed in her belly, it was Grady she protected. His fist slammed against the dash, plastic splintering.
“
The fuck I will.
”
She clenched her jaw, stared at him brazenly, her lips swollen, her cheeks flushed. Tangled curls fell around her face and a sheen of sweat still clung to her temples. Blood dripped down her neck, disappearing beneath the dress. His dick tightened, ready for round two.
He needed a distraction, anything to keep from shoving her onto her stomach and lifting her ass in the air. Maybe this time he
’
d paddle her rear end until she knew, without a shadow of a doubt, who owned her.
No. He had to think of something besides fucking her. The image of Eva leaving the cabin only an hour before filled him. She should have looked relaxed and sated after their long night together. Instead, her eyes were glassy with tears and the tip of her nose red. She
’
d been crying. Had he hurt her...physically?
“
You were crying when you left this morning.
”
Her eyes narrowed.
“
You were watching me.
”
His only answer was a shrug.
She leaned the side of her head against the window, looked out into the winter wonderland.
“
Have you ever lost a parent?
”
she asked, still not looking at him.
He tore his gaze from her swollen, bruised cheek to stare out the window. He
’
d rather have talked about how harshly he
’
d fucked her up the ass than delve into this emotional shit. The snow-covered trees and rolling mountains mocked him, took him back to a place he
’
d long since left.
“
My mother, when I was five. A hunter shot her in the head. The physical pain leaves but you never forget, not really.
”
The seat dipped, his only warning she
’
d moved close. No. He couldn
’
t, wouldn
’
t, accept her comfort. He leaned across her and threw open the passenger-side door before she could touch him. Gusts of cold air swept through the cab, stealing away their combined scent. He returned to the driver
’
s seat and gripped both hands around the steering wheel.
“
You should go,
”
he said, his voice cold.
“
I
’
ll leave the keys in the ignition.
”
“
Do whatever you want,
”
she snapped and climbed out of the truck. Pausing, her hand tightened on the rim of the door. She turned to him.
“
You were right. I didn
’
t realize just how much I
’
d hate you in the morning.
”
He turned to her. A forced, sardonic smirk pried one corner of his mouth upward. Deliberately cruel, he ran an indifferent eye from her sex-rumpled hair to her black boots. At the sight of her, his heart sped.
“
The morning isn
’
t over yet,
Angel
. Just wait a little bit longer.
”
Just wait until she found out he didn
’
t intend to leave Bellows Falls.
Chapter Seven
Eva stopped at the edge of the tree line, her
gloved hand faltering on the last barren tree limb. In the clearin
g, the Pard waited.
Eleven pairs of eyes turned to stare, each one looking her over from head to toe
. C
ataloguing
. A
ssessing. Judging.
A barrage of emotion slammed into her, changed with each familiar face she boldly locked onto. Disappointment
was clear on
almost every one of their faces.
Her heart sped. This was not the small, private will reading she
’
d expected. This was a firing squad.
She searched the onlookers for a clue, something that might tell her what she
’
d done to deserve this kind of welcome. Sure, she wasn
’
t leopard, wasn
’
t particularly close with any of them, but they
’
d never treated her like this before. When her eyes locked on Mark Grayson, the man Greg had one day wanted her to marry, she learned all she needed to know.
Rage simmered in
his
ice
-
blue eyes, twisted his aristocratic features into a pain
ed
expression of betrayal.
Peter.
Was it rea
lly so obvious she
’
d slept with him
?
She
’
d spent hours in the shower, scrubbing
her skin raw
, desperate to erase his brand, desperate to free herself from wanting him again even after his cruel rejection.
In one day, Peter had made her become addicted to him. She craved his touch like a drug.
The Pard
’
s collective
discontent
electrified the air, add
ing
to the unease
crawling under
her skin. Icy wind whispered across her cheeks, doing
little
to sooth
e
the heat of embarrassment
at the
knowledge of what she
’
d done.
Across from her, Krystal Priddy touched her swollen belly and glanced down at her thin sweater, her only protection against the cold. All a leopard needed. Her husband tugged her close, as if Eva might taint her in some way.
Swallowing,
Eva
held the lapels of her coat tight around her body, the thick wool setting her further apart
from the rest of the Pard.
All eyes stared at her, the outsider. Greg
’
s angel. Even Becca, barely eighteen, glared as if Eva had committed a mortal sin. As she stood
alone in the crowd, her mind spun one sticky, self-deprecating web after another. Maybe she
’
d misunderstood he
r role within the Pard
. Maybe she
’
d been nothing but Greg
’
s pet, the orpha
ned brat, his angel. Maybe they way he
’
d isolated her had been to protect
her from the truth all along.
Emotion welled, prick
ing
the backs of her eyes, and stung her nose. No, damn it.
Lifting her chin,
she stared right back at the semi-circle of people in front of her
who refused to avert their eyes. The Alpha
’
s adopted daughter had once commanded respect. Never before had the Pard openly held her gaze. She refused to look down, refused to be ashamed that her brown eyes did not match the leopards
’
clear, sparkling blues, proof they were true Pard.
Proudly,
Eva
took her spot between her uncle and the empty stone chair, a painful reminder of Greg
’
s absence. James lean
ed
close.
She
braced for his stinging verbal blow, his
“
I tol
d you so.
”
“
I was afraid he killed you,
”
he whispered
with a note of sarcasm
, brush
ing
his shoulder with hers.
“
I
’
m glad to see you
’
re more or less in one piece.
”
Was he glad? He sure as hell didn
’
t seem it. She looked up, his six-foot frame towering over her. The hard edges rimming his face were not a comfort.
“
Big girl, remember?
”
Ice darkened his eyes.
He lifted his hand, touching it to her bruised cheek.
“
Still think you made the right choice acceptin
’
that drink?
”
She pulled away.
“
I
’
m fine with my choice.
”
James
caught her arm, drew her close and
pressed
his cheek against her marred one.
“
Actions have consequences
,
”
he said, coarse whiskers scratching her frozen sk
in. Her senses pricked with apprehension and s
he forced herself to hold steady.
“
If you
’
d refused him, he would have left and things would have fallen into place.
”
He pulled
away, his
cold, accusatory
eyes stabbing into her
injured
heart.
“
I can
’
t protect you, Eva. None of us can.
”
She wouldn
’
t cry, not in front of any of them.
“
Don
’
t bother
,
then. I can protect myself.
”
His gaze narrowed on her face.
“
Can you?
”
Swallowing back the tears, she closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath. She opened her lids,
turned to
meet the gaze of each person in the circle. None of their petty disappointment would detract from why they
’
d come to the clearing.
T
oday, this was her place, her purpose, the one truth she could count on.
She
was responsible for Greg
’
s life now that he was dead. She shoved aside
everything that would detract from that goal—her
place in the Pard, Grady
’
s punishment, even Peter
’
s rejection
—and
clung to the one task her father had asked of her.
She reached into her jacket for the sealed envelope she
’
d brought. This was the reason she was here.
“
If we can shel
ve
the murderous looks for a moment, I
’
d like to carry out my father
’
s last wish.
”
Her uncle
’
s
heavy hand
stilled her
arm
,
kept her
from breaking the seal.
“
You know the rules. We can
’
t start the meeting without the Alpha
’
s permission.
”
Confused, she looked
at him.
Was this a joke? As far as she understood, the death of one Alpha
signaled a new leader to take his place
.
Greg
’
s death should have activated the gene in the next eligible Alpha, James. The oldest and most influential, he
’
d held the Pard together after Greg
’
s murder. None among them would fill her father
’
s shoes better.
“
W
ouldn
’
t that be you?
”
she said.
Heat pricked the back of her neck, her only warning
.
“
Who?
”
she gasped.
A hard, masculine body pressed against her from behind and sent her senses reeling.
“
No,
A
ngel.
”
Peter
’
s deep voice vibrated against her ear, sent a shiver down to the tips of her toes.
“
I
’
m the Alpha.
”
As he turned to stand in front of her, he trailed his finger across her neck, only stopping when he pressed under her chin
and lifted,
forcing her to meet his gaze. In the darkness his hair looked black, his eyes fathomless. Stubble shadowed his muscular jaw, made him look dangerous
ly sexy
.
For an embarrassingly long moment,
she stared. Couldn
’
t breathe. Possession gleamed in
his
dark gaze
, the look sending her heart racing
. Try as she might, she couldn
’
t calm the staccato beat.
Peter strolled past her, confidence and power in every silent stride. H
is eyes
swept the semi
-
circle of leopards, pausing on each person until they reluctantly dropped their gaze to the ground in submission. As if s
atisfied, he turned to address
her. One side of
his wicked mouth curled into a
seductive
smile
, identical to the
one he
’
d used when he
’
d asked her to drink with him.
Ignoring Peter, and his damn smile, she turned to James.
“
Why is he here?
”
Peter
’
s long legs ate up the distance between them in a matter of steps. His smile
dissolved
and
his face took on a punishing
hardness
,
the same look of displeasure he
’
d gotten right before he
’
d thrust inside her virgin ass. Only
this time
, she didn
’
t think she
would
enjoy the punishment.
His voice was a harsh growl.
“
I
’
m here because this
is where I belong, unlike you,
A
ngel.
”
The already frayed threads holding her together unraveled
at the truth of his words, made worse because he was the one who said them.
This was not the
playful, aloof
stranger she remembered from last night or this mornin
g, the one who did everything he could to keep her from liking him
. This one she liked even less. His jaw tensed, one quick bulge of clen
ching muscle before he
face
d
the gathering crowd.
“
For those of you who seemed to have forgotten my existence, I
’
ll refresh you. I
’
m Peter Marx, son of Gregory Marx, great grandson of Timothy Marx,
and
the rightful Alpha of this Pard.
”
Eva made a noise in the back of her throat. One hand covered her mouth, the other pressed against her lower stomach to staunch the ache
within
.
“
Hi, I
’
m Peter. I
’
m a complete and utter asshole.
”
“
What did you say your last name was?
”
“
I didn
’
t.
”
“
You
’
re a helluva fuck - P.M.
”
Her chest tightened under the crushing realization and she couldn
’
t breathe.
What had she done?
Her stranger looked down at her with a calculated gleam of pleasure in his eyes, as if he
’
d been waiting a lifetime for her reaction. He stepped close. His cold words fanned her anger and crushed her heart.
“
That
’
s right. You get it now, don
’
t you?
”