“There is no better solution,” Tor says. “They’re up to something, and we need to be there to stop them, which means extra patrols. They can’t sustain this for much longer. They will eventually exhaust themselves.” He sounds and looks confident on this, but that’s Tor all over. It’s what makes him a great leader. He instills confidence in his pack.
I’ve always admired that about him and strive to emulate him when on duty.
And what if they don’t? Rune asks.
It’s the same argument we’ve been having for weeks. The varga are a scourge, a blight, and ever since they found a way out of their prison realm, they’ve been entering ours to feast on humans.
The varga tear holes in the fabric of our reality to get into our world. It takes a huge amount of energy to hold one open, which is why they usually only attack once or twice a month. It’s more like once a week now. And instead of one rift, they’re tearing several with every visit.
They want something, and we need to make sure they don’t get it.
My gaze drops to Rune. “Do you have a suggestion?”
We look for a way to stop them for good.
Tor rolls his eyes. “There is no way to stop the rifts. We’ve been searching for centuries.”
None that we’ve found on this earth, but we have a reaper amongst us, a demon, a Dominus. Maybe he can help.
Tor snorts. “The demons have never cared about our problems before.”
And yet one is here now. They care about Cora. They’ll assist if we ask.
He has a point.
Tor and I exchange glances. There’s hope in his gray eyes because if there’s a way to seal off the varga’s prison for good and stop the rifts, then the enemy we’ve been battling for centuries will be gone. The dire wolf race will finally be free of the scourge that’s kept us chained to this land.
“I’ll speak to Conah,” Tor says. “Leave it with me.”
A thud resounds upstairs, followed by a clang and a string of colorful curses.
Wren comes barreling down the stairs, trips on the last two steps, and rolls across the floor, coming to a halt by the sofa.
“Cora has shampoo in her hair and the water’s stopped.” He looks at us, wide-eyed and expectant.
“Ah fuck.” Tor pulls himself to his feet. “Not again.”
The pipes in the cabin are temperamental, another reason we need to move to the main house asap.
Tor clomps up the stairs and I look down at Rune, both of us thinking the same thing…Tor might be about to see Cora naked.
Chapter Seventeen Cora
There was shampoo in my hair, shower gel all over my body, and the fucking water had gone out. I smacked the stupid pipe with the shampoo bottle again. Come on! This happened once before and hitting the pipes usually worked; no idea why.
My skin pricked and the air in the tub behind me fizzed.
Hell no.
“Bubbles are a good look for you,” Jasper said from behind me.
I spun to face him, not bothering to hide my body. He’d seen it all before anyway. I waited for the rake-over, for him to devour the sight of my nakedness, but he kept his gaze on my face.
Not normal for him. “What is wrong with you?”
“With me?” He arched a brow. “You’re the one attempting to shower without water.”
He was still focused on my face, and my chest heated with… I didn’t even know what, because why the fuck wasn’t he being all lechy. “I’m naked, Jasper. Hoohaa and titties on display.” I held out my arms. “Free for all.”
“You want me to look at you?” He tilted his head and his eyes narrowed. “You think all I care about is your body. All I want is sex?” His gaze scanned my face, as if he was coming to some kind of revelation.
He took a step toward me.
I stepped back. “Don’t.” My pulse pounded in my throat even as my gaze devoured the harsh lines of his face and the hard lines of his mouth. I reveled in the cruel curl of his lips that could be so gentle when they wanted to be. I locked gazes with his emerald eyes, falling into the dark pupils as they expanded to draw me in.
“Jasper… don’t.”
He cupped my face. “Don’t what, Cora?”
Don’t touch me, don’t kiss me, don’t look at me like you care, like you l—
No. Don’t think it.
“This isn’t what it was, Cora,” he said. “It’s changed, and you feel it too. I…” For the first time since I’d known him, there was a vulnerable edge to his tone, confusion and doubt in his eyes. “I don’t understand what I’m feeling.” He dipped his head, one hand dropping to hug my throat, to caress my pulse with his thumb. “Help me understand.”
My heart was a hummingbird trapped in the cage of my ribs, and my lips throbbed and ached for the touch of his.
“Cora…” There was emotional pain in his tone. A need that echoed mine.
“One kiss.”
“Yes…”
The amulet warmed against my skin, recognizing the permission given, and then his mouth was on mine, tentative, questing, savoring me as if I were a fine wine. His hand tangled in my wet hair, diving into the suds to massage my scalp. My chest ached with a cacophony of twisted emotions. I shouldn’t be doing this. It was dangerous, but I wanted it. I wanted him. All of him, the destructive, evil motherfucker. I wanted him. I wrapped my arms around his neck and deepened the kiss, moaning into his mouth and devouring his sweet breath as he pressed my wet body to his. The kiss morphed into something hungry and desperate, as if we were two drowning people fighting to get to the surface of a lake.
He tore his mouth from mine and stared deep into my eyes. “What is this, Cora?”
This was fucked up, that’s what it was. I was
