SWNOVELS Chapter 18
Chapter 18
*Colette POV
I watch Merikh as he works in his office, his head down and a frown on his lips. He has been like this since the night we kissed in the healing waters. And that was just over two weeks ago.
He snaps at everyone, especially Hayes, the two of them bickering back and forth under their breath as I try to tune them out and not listen. That would be an easy feat, a maid pretending not to hear what they hear, but I’m not a maid like Merikh likes to remind me almost every day. I’m his Luna. So I listen.
“No luck finding the mole yet?” I ask, arching a brow. His eyes snap up, the speck of surprise melting away into an amused smile.
“And here I thought you were so enthralled in your books that you weren’t listening.”
“You enthrall me,” I mutter, chewing the inside of my cheek shyly. He pushes away from his desk, then stands, all the while pinning me with his eyes as he stalks me down like prey. I remain still, like a deer in the forest, unsure of what to do after spotting the wolf.
“I enthrall you, hmm?” He stops at the foot of my comfy chair.
“It’s a fun word, isn’t it?” I smile up at him innocently and I see him fighting back the playfulness he so rarely lets
loose.
“Tell me, what is it about me enthralls you, my little Luna?” he leans forward, his hands coming on either side of my ears, pressing into the back of the chair as his nose dances dangerously close to mine..
It’s already getting harder to breathe in his presence. Just being near him brings me a calm, and a storm rolled into one. The safety net of his aura and the danger of my attraction to him.
I’m falling hard and I have not the damnedest clue how to tell him I am ready for the next step without sounding like a wanton woman. I find myself unable to speak as he closes the distance and brushes his nose over mine.
My mouth runs dry and my eyes flutter closed, begging him to kiss me again like he did when we were in the healing water. Two weeks of pining for that touch, that passion, only to suffocate in this sexual tension that could easily snuff out the sun.
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Chapter 18
“I like you, Merikh.” I rasp out and he tilts his head, surprised.
“You…like me?” he asks.
“I do.” Ladmit.
“You mean you feel safe with me,” He says as I watch him with a critical eye.
“No, I mean, I have feelings for you.” I reiterate, and he seems skeptical.
“It’s been three weeks.” He states, and I roll my eyes.
“And for two of those three weeks you have slept next to me, held me when I had a nightmare and have stuck by my side…” I pause. “I don’t want to leave your side.”
He freezes, blinking at me. “You are sure…?”
“Yes,” I chuckle, reaching up, only hesitating for a split second before I cup his cheek. “I’ve lived more in these past three weeks than I ever did in my first twenty–one years.”
“We will announce you to the pack tomorrow.” He murmurs, a smile on his plump lips as he gently brushes them over mine. I gasp, my mouth tumbling open in hopes of a kiss.
“Tomorrow,” I mutter, lost in the warmth of his breath as it teases over my skin.
“And then I will mark you, and make you mine, officially.” He closes the distance, his mouth covering mine in a gentle kiss, much different from the one before. This one is restrained, much more controlled, and I want more from him. The office door flies open and Hayes rushes in.
“Merikh,” he says, out of breath, his eyes looking from me and then back to Merikh in alarm.
“What is it?” Merikh growls, standing.
Silence falls over them. Hayes is doing a whole lot of talking with his eyes and I realize he is resorting to the mindlink. Gone are the whisperings, replaced with a way to hide things from me. I’m not a fan of being left on the outs, but I trust Merikh. If he feels it’s something I should know, he would tell me.
I can feel the anger rolling off him as his skin goosebumps and he cracks his neck, trying to remain in control. Something terrible must have happened for him to lose control like this. I glance at Hayes, who wears a serious
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Chapter 18
look on his face as he stares down his older brother before he drops his chin.
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“What is wrong?” I ask, standing and reaching out to touch Merikh’s arm. His muscles flex as he works his fist open and closed and then slowly looks down at me.
“Nothing you need to worry about,” he mutters, dropping a kiss on the top of my head. “Why don’t you some dinner with Penny and Percy?” He says, stepping away from me, going cold.
go grab
His change in demeanor has my stomach in knots, as I think of all the possibilities. The only thing I can think of is they figured out who the mole is, and it was someone he trusted and he is feeling betrayed.
“I would rather eat with you…” I admit, watching him nervously. His anger seems to melt a little as he offers me
a soft smile.
“Maybe a walk then, since I haven’t taken you to training and your leg still needs the exercise.”
“Okay,” I say, but in truth, I would rather remain by his side.
“I’ve mind linked Penny. She will meet you on the trail. Percy will be your shadow,” Hayes whispers as I walk past him, and I nod.
“Thank you, Hayes.”
I look over my shoulder once more as I walk out the door, catching Merikh watching me as I leave. He smiles softly when he realizes he has been caught, and it sends a thrill through me. I have no idea how three weeks can make it seem like I have known him all my life, but now that I am here, now that I know him, It feels like maybe this is where I was always meant to be.
hor
The walk through the packhouse is eerily quiet, no one enters the halls or even watches me as I slide out the side door. Not that it is common to be stopped or acknowledged but it’s strange doing these things without Merikh or
my gamma gang.
Thankfully it doesn’t take me long to make it to the trail once I leave the pack house. The walk through the old town makes me smile, knowing that this is all mine, truly mine, as of tomorrow. There is no taking it back or kicking me out once Merikh accepts me.
It also means there is no escape for me, but why would I want to escape when he makes life feel like wanted? What Merikh sees in me I will never understand. I’m just glad he sees more than anyone else ever has.
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Chapter 18
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My excitement swells and I find myself walking faster to get to Penny. I can’t wait to tell her the news. She is going to freak out and want to help me pick out a dress and thank the heavens for that, because I have no fashion sense. Penny, however, loves a cute top and some adorable functional shoes.
I look around, expecting to have come across her by now, but I see nothing. I spin, looking behind me and in the shadows where Lexpect Percy to be, but again I see nothing. A strange feeling falls over me, and my skin prickles
with awareness.
Something is wrong
I can feel the way it creeps up my skin, setting off alarm bells in my head and I whimper, unsure of what the hell to do. Percy is supposed to be with me somewhere hidden, and Penny can’t be too far off. Fuck, I wish I had that mind link up and running right now.
“Percy?” I call out, spinning as I wring my hands together. Where the hell is everyone? My wolf whines, making her presence known while we wait for a response. Percy doesn’t make a peep, and I can feel the dread creeping
in on me.
“Percy!” I hiss into the shadows of the trees, but if he is there, he doesn’t answer me. “It’s fine, it’s probably just because I’m not used to being alone anymore… I try to reassure myself.
Then I see it, a figure moving toward me and I breathe a little easier. Until I realize it’s not the redheaded man who is supposed to be protecting me. Nor is it his twin sister with a spunky personality. I wait for a mere second obvious I am on my own. to see if Percy will step in to stop them, but as the figure grows closer, it becomes ver
“Shit!” I squeal as I turn and sprint up the trail and through the trees, leaping over roots and sidestepping rocks, like I do in my training sessions.
It takes longer than I’d like to admit, but I make it to the clearing at the top of the hill. Twenty more feet. I just need to make it twenty feet further for Merikh to see me on the ledge from his office. That is all it will take for him to know I need help. I lurch forward, falling onto my stomach as weight topples me down.
I try to crawl away, screaming out for Percy or Penny again, hoping they are close enough to hear me. But again, no one comes to aid me. The person on my back wrestles with me as I throw an elbow back and pain radiates up
my arm.
At least I hit the asshole in the face. They groan in pain, falling off me with curse words and I twist, popping up as fast as I can, ready to put up a good damn fight. Then I pause, squinting my eyes to make sure I’m not imagining things.
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Chapter 18
“Grady?” I ask, shocked, eyes wide now as I glance around for anyone who might come after him. If Percy or Penny show up now he is dead man.
“Cole,” he breathes, stumbling forward and cupping my face, a massive smile on his lips like he has never been so happy “I found you,”
“What the hell are you doing here?” I hiss, ushering him as far from the ledge as I can get him..
“I came for you,” he mutters, looking confused as I pull his hand away from my face.
I frown at him, trying to grapple with the fact he is here that he is confessing he came for me. He clings to my fingers in desperation and I let him as I scan him for injury.
“I came to save you from the alpha of death. Colette, I came to claim you as mine.”
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