Winter: A time for love and revenge

I could’ve cried in relief when we entered the small town of Shadowhaven Valley. Our packlands were almost a half-hour drive outside town, ensuring the humans living here didn’t accidentally wander into our territory and see something they shouldn’t.

We’d have a meeting with our Alpha tomorrow in the afternoon, but since it was just after midnight and we had to take Selene to her car in town, we decided to wait to drive back to packlands until tomorrow.

“Can I ask you a question?” I asked Selene, leaning forward between the driver and passenger seat to look at Selene, who nodded. “What do you tell your human roommate when you have witch shit to do?”

“Witch shit,” Selene repeated, chuckling at my eloquent phrasing. “If it’s during the day or evening, I usually say school project, maybe a date. And if it’s overnight, I say that I’m hooking up with a guy.”

“Do you invent a fake boyfriend, or is it a bunch of one-night stands?” I was fascinated by how she had to invent stories. It sounded exhausting to me, which was why I never roomed with a human.

“A little of both, but I don’t invent a fake guy. I lie about hanging out with them more than I actually do.”

I let out a low whistle. “That sounds exhausting.”

“Blame your friend,” Selene muttered as Leon pulled into a parking lot.

“Thanks for helping us with those winter bitches,” I said as Selene unbuckled her seatbelt.

“Oh, it was my pleasure. Seriously, if you ever face those bitches again, give me a call. Killing them was the highlight of my month.” Selene climbed out of Leon’s truck, pausing with her hand on the door. “Oh, and tell your friend to mind his own fucking business when it comes to me and my roommates.”

Before any of us could respond, she slammed the door and spun around, strutting toward her car.

Aspen let out a long whistle as I threw my head back and laughed. “Have I mentioned how much I like her?”

“Crazy fucking witches,” Leon muttered under his breath as he pulled out of the parking lot.

“Witches have always been known to be a little crazy. Remember what happened to Darius?”

I didn’t bother to hide my snort, both of disgust and amusement. “Oh no, don’t you dare try to put that on her. That was all his fault.” There was not a single fiber in my body that felt bad for him. He got what he deserved.

Darius was almost five years older than us, and when he was in college, he was dating a witch and was dumb enough to fuck her sister. When the witch found out, she cast a curse on both of them, giving them the worst symptoms of gonorrhea and chlamydia, but on steroids—which had been a big surprise to everyone because those were human diseases and didn’t typically affect supernaturals. She had been relentless in her curses. Whenever they finally got the symptoms cleared up, she’d make sure they’d get it again, making the symptoms worse each time. Her dedication was almost impressive. If it weren’t for their appeals to the council, she probably wouldn’t have stopped for a long time.

“She could’ve done a lot worse or more permanent things,” I added, grinning when they both winced.

“Even so, they’re fucking crazy, and only a moron would put their dick anywhere near one,” Leon finally muttered.

“You might want to tell Cass to ease up, otherwise, not only will Selene curse him, but I’m pretty sure Adalind will snap and attack him.” Adalind may be on the quieter side, but I knew the girl had a bit of a bite to her, remembering how she looked ready to lose it on Cass the other day.

“Maybe if he gets his ass kicked by them, it’ll teach him to mind his own business,” I added when both men snorted.

“Not likely; Cass is thick-headed,” Aspen said as he rested his hand on my upper thigh.

Leon didn’t respond right away as he turned into their neighborhood. Most sophomores still lived on campus—me included—but Leon, Cass, Aspen, and Finn lived in a house together. “Cass is doing what he believes is right. Is he right? Probably not, but it’s his mistake to make. All we can do is support him.”

We didn’t say anything else on the subject, lapsing into silence. The only words spoken between us were good nights when we parted ways on the second floor. All four bedrooms were on the second floor, and Aspen’s room was the one closest to the stairs.

I had just closed the bedroom door when Aspen spun me around and pressed my back against the painted wood, sealing his mouth over mine in a hard kiss. He grabbed my ass, his grip almost painful as he pulled me against him so I could feel every part of his hard body against mine.

“This house isn’t the least bit soundproof,” I whispered once I finally wrenched my lips away from his. For humans, this house would be fine. The walls were thick enough that they’d only be able to hear the loudest of screams, but for werewolves, it wasn’t suitable in the least.

The corner of Aspen’s lips kicked up. “So what?” Aspen trailed kisses along my jaw, speaking between each kiss “Those fuckers have brought home enough noisy women for the rest of us to endure. Be as loud as you want. I encourage it. Let’s see if I can get you screaming loud enough for the neighbors to hear.” His kisses trailed down my neck, pausing to gently bite down on the crux of my neck, making my heart race.

“And how often have you brought screaming girls home?” I knew I shouldn’t have asked, nor should I be jealous of his past, but my wolf and I were possessive bitches. If I smelled another woman on his sheets, I might lose my shit.

Aspen picked me up, and when I wrapped my legs around his waist, his cock pressed against my soaked core, making me moan. “Never. I’ve never liked having women in my personal space—only you.” He ground his hips against mine as he nibbled on my neck again. If he kept this up, he’d get his wish of me screaming.

His words helped ease my irrational jealousy, especially when I thought back to the few times I’d spent the night here and hadn’t noticed the scent of other women. Finn had once mentioned how hard it sometimes was to get women to leave after sex, and Aspen had said he didn’t have that problem—this was why.

I was the one to initiate the kiss this time, tugging on his hair as I shifted my hips against his. He backed away from the door, carrying me to the bed and laying me on the soft comforter. He was efficient in pulling off my clothes, all the while kissing, licking, and biting along my skin.

Aspen let out a low chuckle when I sat up and began tugging at his shirt, then his jeans once he helped me remove his shirt. “So impatient,” Aspen murmured as he lay me back on the bed and crawled on top.

Him being on top didn’t last long, not when I wrapped my legs around his hips and flipped us. A smile tugged at his lips as he brushed my hair from my face and pulled me in for another deep kiss.

My patience was at an all-time low, and I lined up so I could slide down onto his cock, moaning at how full and complete I felt with him inside me. I rolled my hips, enjoying being the one to control the pace for the time being. With Aspen being the dominant type, it didn’t last all too long before he grabbed my hips to pick up the rhythm as he sat up, taking control while still allowing me to remain on top.

I traced kisses down his neck and because I couldn’t help myself, bit him where his neck met his shoulder, stopping just shy of breaking the skin. I wouldn’t do that to him, especially not without a discussion. It was a shitty thing to do.

Aspen’s hold on my hips tightened as he groaned, his pulse picking up as I licked away the sting. He’d been slamming me down on his cock hard and fast, but now he slowed the pace, and I pulled back to look at him in confusion. There was an intensity in his expression that I couldn’t quite understand. He pushed my hair away from my neck before biting me. As I had, he stopped just before breaking the skin. My wolf perked up at this, wishing he’d continue and mark me: mark me as his mate.

After a werewolf couple marked each other as mates, their scents became intertwined, letting everyone know they were taken. Once our wolves claimed a mate, there was no other, and they wanted no one else. It was some serious shit and shouldn’t be fucked with if you weren’t committed.

Aspen pulled back and met my gaze again, and I finally caught onto his meaning—what he was suggesting. My eyes widened as I continued holding his unwavering gaze. “Are you sure?”

He cupped my face, and I leaned into his touch. “I’ve never been more sure about anything else in my entire life. I’ve wanted you—this—since I spent hours worrying if you were safe during the attack on our pack.”

All I could do was stare at him in shock. I thought back to the intensity he’d watched me with these past few days and how every touch between us had felt different—but I’d just assumed it had only been on my part.

As soon as my surprise wore off, I leaned down toward the left side of his neck, pausing with my lips on his neck, giving him one last chance to back out of this. My wolf was going crazy, begging me to follow through and mark him. She’d been waiting months for this moment. When he didn’t stop me, I let my wolf rise to the surface in a partial shift, just enough to sharpen my teeth to allow me to break the skin of his neck. Blood flooded my mouth, which wasn’t the most pleasant experience, but my wolf’s and my excitement over this moment dulled my disgust.

Aspen resumed his pace, thrusting up into me, but as soon as I finished marking him, he flipped us around so he was on top, slamming into me harder and faster than before, quickly bringing me closer to my first release. He didn’t care that blood dripped down his neck from my mark on him, nor did I care that it dripped onto my chest.

My breaths quickened as he buried his face against my neck, and a sharp sting followed as his teeth sank into my skin. Warm tingles ran through my blood, my wolf buzzing with excitement at the connection between us forming. All the while, the combination of his hard thrusts and him marking me pushed me over the edge into an intense release that had my head spinning and my throat aching.

Aspen paused his thrusts once I came down from my orgasm, his cock still hard, having not cum yet. He kissed around the tender skin of my neck as his hands trailed down my sides. “You’re mine now.”

I let out a rough chuckle, my voice momentarily hoarse from all of my screaming. I thought I’d hate hearing someone call me theirs, but when Aspen did it, I loved every second of it. “You realize this means you’re stuck with me now? You can’t ever get rid of me. You’re stuck with my crazy.”

“Good.” Aspen lifted his head and met my stare, a grin tugging at his lips. He pressed a slow, lingering kiss on my lips as he began moving in and out of me, his pace just as hard as before but slower this time. His hand came up to toy with my nipples while continuing to slam into me. My release was quickly approaching, and just before I came and he followed, he whispered words in my ear that I wholeheartedly agreed with. “I never want to be without you.”