80 | TITLES

My nerves are still a mess by the time I’m done making myself coffee, adding in a little more than a fourth-cup of O negative into the dark brew, along with a couple of sin-a-cubes. Cole doesn’t utter a word as he takes the seat at the island that I normally sit in, examining the business card like it’s a jack-in-the-box rather than a piece of paper. I give my huge mug of caffeinated goodness a hearty stir before raising the thing to my mouth and downing half.

“That’s disgusting.” Cole grumbles when he sees me adding the rest of the blood bag to my coffee, the rich aroma becoming tinged with iron.

“Vampire,” I point at myself, not giving two shits what Cole has to say about my blood consumption at the moment. My shaking has stopped, but there’s a residual heaviness in my limbs as my body takes in the nourishment.

“Only half,” Cole grumbles half-heartedly, his shoulder and back slumping over the counter as he rests his head on his arms. I’ve never seen him so relaxed - the few times I’ve actually been around the guy long enough for him to be still, he seemed way more uptight. Now… “Z knows.” He finally sighs, removing his glasses and grinding the heels of his palms into his eyes. I note the there-and-gone flash of scales under the skin of his hands, the joints in the limbs making almost inaudible grinding sounds. Power flares in the room, sending annoying prickles of pressure along my skin.

I set my coffee down on the counter and hesitantly walk over to the slumped-over Wolven. I gently wrap an arm around his shoulders, waiting until his stiff muscles relax against the touch before resting my head against the side of his. The surge of power dies out and the kid drops his hands from his face. My wolf flutters under the surface, wanting to soothe him the way my mom used to with me whenever things got tough.

“I know things between us haven’t been great,” I begin slowly, rubbing his shoulder. “But you can talk to me. We hybrids gotta stick together, right?” I paraphrase something he once said to me. Cole lets out a snort, but doesn’t pull away as I continue to apply a little pressure to his shoulders in the one-armed hug.

“I don’t know what you and Z are waiting for, Scarlett,” He mutters after a moment, making me jerk back in surprise by the sudden topic change. “But you should know most of us already think of you as our Luna.” Cole’s eyes have gone back to their usual slate-grey, watching me analytically. “And no one dislikes you. Not really.”

“Pretty sure Valeria still doesn’t like me.” I counter with a wary smile. Cole’s lips tip up as he considers that.

“Touché.” He replies, just as the front door swings open. I nearly jump out of my skin as yet another person sneaks up on us, but almost instantly relax as I see who it is.

“Cole, out.” Blue growls from the doorway. Cole shrugs and shuffles out of the room, walking to the other end of the house and out the back door. The second the door closes behind the kid, I’m wrapped in my mates arms, his mouth on mine. It’s not the usual sweet kiss I’m used to, but a possessive, all-consuming and slightly rough one.

The muffled sound that escapes my throat is half surprise and half moan as his hands slip under the fabric of my shirt. One into the back of my neckline, the other up the hem to splay over the bare skin of my back. I shiver at the skin-to-skin contact as Blue continues the assault on my mouth- and then it’s over. As quickly as it started.

“You’re too reckless.” Blue groans as he pulls away, pressing out forehead together as his arms tighten around me. I’m still a little lightheaded and can only manage a humming sound that makes my mate smirk. “Still with me, Red?”

“Always.” I mutter when my brain can string out the syllables. “Not that I’m complaining, but…what was that for?” I blurt the question I’d ment to be a silent wondering thought.

“You referred to yourself as Luna.” Blue grins smugly, but his eyes are all dancing warmth. “Couldn’t help myself.” He makes a jerking motion with his shoulders I think is meant to be a shrug, but the way he’s holding me doesn’t allow the full motion.

“Cole’s a tattle-tale.” I grumble under my breath, not bothering to look away as a flush burns my cheeks.

“He didn’t have a choice.” Blue chuckles, skimming one hand down the side of my face while his other arm remains locked around my waist. His fingers keep tracing distracting patterns into the small of my back, dipping low before bouncing up my spine. “As much as I love the thought of you protecting the members of our Pack,” Blue’s hands stop as an icy chill flickers through his eyes, an accompanying fear fluttering from his half of the bond. “Don’t get yourself killed, Red.” It’s more like a begging statement than an order.

“C’mon, I’m a vampire-Wolven hybrid,” I try to make my voice light, though we both know it’s all false bravado. “Even a *draki* can’t kill me off that easily.” *I hope*. The silent addition doesn’t escape Blue’s notice, and my mate’s arms tighten around me as the sweetness from his eyes and expression falls away.

“I’m serious, Scarlett.” Blue says firmly, using my real name for once, rather than my nickname. The air rushes from my lungs, my heart giving a lurch of both longing and understanding as his emotions seep through the bond and punctuate his words. He’s scared of loosing me, terrified beyond belief. That kind of fear makes people desperate, I know, I can feel how hopeless it’s made my mate feel.

“I’ll be more careful.” I reassure him, wrapping my arms around his shoulder to squeeze him against me, pressing my face into his neck. His hold around me tightens as he nuzzles my neck, hot lips grazing against the scarred mark on my skin and sending shivers tingling through me.

That now familiar sense of longing settles low in my core, warming both me and the air between us as the seconds drag by and my body starts to take notice of our closeness. I take in measured breaths, in and out slowly, but it’s not helping. Especially since Blue keeps pressing soft kisses into the sensitive flesh along my mark, throwing my mind into a mute haze and making soft sounds of pleasure hum in my throat.

“Soon,” Blue promises in my ear, pulling away just as my inhibition begin to lower.

“Soon?” I echo, the disappointment obvious in my voice as I search his eyes. Blue’s smirk is smug and confident as he quirks an eyebrow at me.

“There’re a few things I want to straighten out in the Pack before…” His eyes trail down from my eyes to my mouth slowly before dragging back up. The depth of heat in them has my cheeks burning even hotter than before, but the wave of embarrassment is oddly absent. It’s then I realize I’m no longer opposed to our connection. The realization has me gently releasing Blue and taking a step back to rest my hip against the counter as the world spins. Blue watches me as everything rights itself and I we just stare at each other, fresh understanding and tension filling the air.

“What kind of *things*?” I ask, crossing my arms over my chest. I absently study his eyes as they dance, chewing lightly on my bottom lip.

“The Berner Pack’s getting brash.” Blue sighs, his eyes flicking between mine and my mouth as he runs a hand through his thick hair. “We’re going to have a fight on our hands soon if we can’t come to some sort of understanding.”

“I didn’t know it was so serious.” I frown, a little taken aback by this news.

“It wasn’t. Not until we started putting up the wards.” Blue explains, a tired look making him look older than he really is. “They tried encroaching a few hours ago, and we had to chase them from the territory.”

“Kind of bold of them. I thought you guys were in good graces with everyone around here.” I tilt my head, vaguely recalling how distant most of the other Pack in the area had been. As far as I know, there hadn’t been a peep from any of them while the Reiniers were attacking, which would have been the best time to take over Azure lands.

“Things changed when I took over.” Blue sighs and glances out the kitchen window, towards the tree line at the edge of the property. “At first, I thought they were just testing me. But now… I think they sense the discord in the Pack and are going to either try to sway some Wolven to their side…or…”

“Take over.” I finish the thought for him.