“What did you hear?” Holly asked.
Keller frowned. “I don’t understand.”
“Never mind,” Holly said quickly. “Whiskey brain. Go on.”
“I might have found a way to become better, to become smarter, and stronger.”
“You don’t need to do any of those things.” Holly reached out and squeezed his arm.
“Yes, I do. I have to because there still isn’t a King, you’re not pregnant, and dark shifters are still a threat. Now, it looks like there’s something else in the mix too. The better I become, the easier it will be for me to solve those problems.”
Holly reached up and placed her hand on Keller’s cheek. “Johnny mentioned you haven’t been acting like yourself,” she said. “Is everything all right?”
“What does that moron know?” Keller scoffed. “I’ve been keeping to myself more than usual, I’ll admit. The stress of the battle, the deaths, and your abrupt departure changed me.”
“I’m sorry.” Holly bit her bottom lip.
“I’m not!” A wide smile split across his face. “I’ve learned so much in the time you’ve been gone. I’m so excited to keep learning now that you’re back. We can learn together!”
“What have you been learning?” Holly’s brain felt slow and sluggish, especially when she saw how energized Keller was.
“So much,” he repeated. “I can’t wait to share it with you.”
Holly couldn’t take in any more new information today. She made a mental note to ask him specifics tomorrow and filed it away. Hopefully, the whiskey wouldn’t wash it down the drain.
Instead, she decided to be happy. Keller was excited about something. He wasn’t planning battles. He wasn’t grieving over lost soldiers. He wasn’t angrily shouting at the others to get their shit together. It was the closest thing to what Holly wanted the night to be, and she wasn’t going to stop it.
“Great!” She lifted her arms above her head. “That’s great, Keller. I’m glad you’re excited about something.” Vague, but nice.
“You have no idea.” He was practically vibrating with excitement. “Can I tell you something?”
“Why not?” She shrugged.
“I’m going to be your king,” he said. “I’m going to fix all of this. Everything will be in balance once more because of what you and I are going to accomplish together.”
“Are you sure you didn’t overhear my conversation with Lucien?” Holly asked.
“I didn’t. I’d never eavesdrop on a personal conversation. You know me better than that.”
“You’re right. I do. I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have to be sorry. You won’t have to be sorry for anything ever again, soon.”
Before Holly could say anything else, Keller wrapped his arms around her middle and lifted her off the ground.
“You and I are going to be the king and queen of all we see!” He laughed.
Holly had never seen this side of Keller before. She wasn’t sure what to make of it. The whiskey told her she loved it. Wasn’t this exactly what she wanted?
If Keller came through for her as her true partner, she wouldn’t have to worry about Trevor anymore. Like he said, she was falling in love with him, but he didn’t say a damn thing about falling in love with her. Why would she want to sign up for a partnership if the participants weren’t on equal footing?
She loved Keller. She was pretty sure Keller loved her. He sounded like he had figured out a way to take control of the situation. What more could she ask for?
“Kiss me!” She grinned down at him. She felt dizzy. Was he spinning her, or was that just the whiskey taking its toll? Either way, it felt fan-fucking-tastic.
Keller lowered her so that she could reach his lips. He kissed her harder than she was expecting to be kissed, but she quickly matched his pace and intensity. The harder she kissed him, the less she thought about Trevor.
“I haven’t had you since the spring,” Keller murmured against her mouth. “I’ve wanted you every day since. I think about you every night.” He took one of her hands and pressed it against the hard bulge in his jeans.
Heat streaked through her veins. “Are they still in the living room?” she asked.
Keller tore his lips away to look over his shoulder.
“I don’t see anyone. The lights are off.”
“Perfect,” Holly moaned. “Take me now.”
“I knew you were like me,” he growled in her ear. “You don’t want to wait. You want to take what you want when you want it.”
Oh, she really loved this new side of Keller. “Yes, I do. Right now, you’re what I want.”
“Whatever my queen commands.”
He moved toward the railing and rested her ass on the banister. Holly looked over her shoulder. The drop into the forest didn’t frighten her. It excited her.
Keller wasn’t going to let her go. She could trust him.
She held fast to his shirt while he unzipped his pants and pulled out his throbbing cock.
She needed this. She needed to fuck over and over again until all traces of Trevor were washed from her mind.
He said other things were more important than her. That right there should’ve told her he wasn’t going to be the one to father her child. No one was supposed to be more important than her, right? She was the goddamned Maiden. She should’ve been the top priority, dammit. Wasn’t that the deal? Wasn’t that the only upside of this whole chicken shit operation?
She tugged clumsily at the waistband of her leggings. She couldn’t get them off fast enough.
Keller shifted just enough for his claws to appear. With a few flicks of his wrists, her leggings were shredded.
“I’ll replace them.” He grinned. “And your panties.”
Holly looked down. Sure enough, he’d shredded right through her underwear.
He pushed her legs apart and closed the small distance between them. Holly reached
