I think a lot of you guys will like this chapter! It's...interesting for sure! :)
Enjoy!
Daniel had ran around Jessica's house three times before being sure he hadn't missed Draven's sent in some way.
The Mutt hadn't been here, and had never actually met Jessica in person, so it was probable that he wouldn't be hunting her down tonight.
However, knowing that rationally did nothing to appease the anxiety in his chest at the thought of her alone all night.
He threw himself into the Change as quickly as he could, walking back up to Jess's door a few minutes later.
He knocked once as an announcement, then opened the thing.
Jessica was right where he'd left her, standing with her arms crossed in the small foyer.
"Daniel, what's going on?" she asked again, her mess of curls pulled on top of her head in a messy way.
He took her hand and pulled her toward the living room.
"You're sure we are completely alone?" he verified.
"Yes. I told you, my dad is at a dinner party for work and he usually crashes at the hotel with his nightly pick," she rolled her eyes, "Now, are you going to tell me what's got you so freaked out?"
Daniel sighed and took a seat on the sofa, pulling on her hand so that Jessica would sit down next to him.
The only light in the room was a small lamp off in the corner, and the faded yellow illumination turned the look of her caramel skin to silky perfection.
"I love you," he told her, squeezing her fingers, "And I never wanted to get you mixed up in all this Pack shit, you know that...but something happened…"
"Tell me," she urged, tucking one of her legs beneath her on the couch, "You said your dad knew? How did that happen?"
Daniel bit his lip.
He'd promised her total transparency, but admitting the full truth was so much harder than he thought, especially after having to be careful for so long.
"Okay," he exhaled, facing her straight on, "You remember last week, when I told you we went to Tennessee?"
She nodded, "Yeah. Some Pack thing."
"Right," he nodded, "Well, that thing was another werewolf. At first, we thought he might just be some Mutt, but-"
"Wait," she cut him off, "A Mutt?"
Daniel backtracked, "Mutt was a Pack term for rogue wolves. Before my father became Alpha, there were quite a few of them out there. Wolves that didn't obey Pack law and sometimes even hunted humans. However, my father had them eradicated years ago. So now, the wolf gets in line with the Pack, or…" Daniel paused, before lamely finishing, "Or the problem is eliminated."
Jessica's eyes hadn't waivered, though they were a little wider than before.
"You mean...kill them?" she clarified.
Daniel shrugged, "Sometimes. But most of them were smart enough to make the right choice."
Her head shook a little, "Okay...so what does that have to do with Tennessee?"
"Right," he redirected his point, "So basically there was this young werewolf that our Tennessee pack came across. No one had heard of him, but he's only a little bit older than me and Skylar, so there's a good chance that one of the Mutts had impregnated a woman before being wiped out. So, Dad sent my Aunt Bonnie, I've told you about her-"
"She's a witch, right?" Jessica clarified.
Daniel nodded, "Yeah, a really good one. She was supposed to go meet with this new wolf and find out which Mutt bloodline he belonged to, but what she actually found was a lot worse. It turns out the Mutt is a Salvatore."
Jessica frowned, "He's related to you?"
"Not exactly," Daniel sighed, then continued to explain to her exactly who Giuseppe Salvatore was, and what it meant to have his bastard son come to the Salvatore Manor.
Her expression remained neutrally curious, until Daniel got to the part about what Draven had done.
"Are you serious?" she moved, crossing her legs in front of her, "He told all of them about us? How did he even know for sure? And biting your sister...why would he do that?!"
"We don't know," Daniel admitted, "But it's obvious that he's trying to hurt us; cause problems...I had to come here and make sure you were safe."
"You think he'd come here?"
"Probably not," he said, reaching out to her.
Jess relaxed and let him pull her across the couch, into his arms, "But I'm paranoid and I don't want to take chances."
She chuckled a little, "Well at least in all this crazy, you haven't changed."
He smiled softly down at her, "Yeah. At least there's that."
She tucked her head into his neck, "Your family is going to find him though, right? They'll make sure he can't hurt us."
"Absolutely," Daniel nodded, "My parents are pissed about what he's done. They're going to figure out what's going on."
Jessica laced their fingers together, "And when they do...when it's all over? What then? What does that mean for us?"
Daniel sighed, and kissed her head, "I don't know yet. But I did talk to my Dad a little bit...and I think it's going to be okay...somehow. I think he understands. But he'll want to meet you. They all will."
She nodded, "Everything's going to change, isn't it?"
"Yeah," he answered honestly as she sat up to meet his gaze, "It probably will. But maybe this will be a good thing...we won't have to hide anymore, I can show you Pack land, and I'll have a reason to be honest with my Dad about school...but the Pack will watch you, Jess. They'll want to be sure that you aren't going to tell anyone about us."
She smirked a little at him, "I think I can handle a little scrutiny. Besides, I've already told you, your secret is safe with me….and the entire cheer squad...and the band geeks, and I think there was that one kid at lunch who-"
Daniel kissed her, cutting her off mid sentence, until she pulled away.
"You aren't funny," he teased her and she smiled, "I beg to differ."
Then she was pulling him back into her, warm lips crashing sweetly into his, making everything else suddenly seem less important.
God, he couldn't believe how amazing this girl was.
He'd basically told her that he was a monster, that his family had been forced to kill in the past, and that an entire species' hierarchy was going to be analyzing her every move...yet here she was, still with him; still loving him.
How had he gotten so lucky?
It was black in Michael's room, save for the little bit of moonlight that had managed to peek through the curtains in front of his window.
He stared at the small streak of light on the ceiling above his head, watching it flicker slightly with wind movements, wondering if sleep was even going to be possible, with everything going on inside his head.
Part of him wished he could be out with the others, actively doing something about that asshole who had hurt Skylar.
Another part of him wanted to Change and sleep at the foot of her bed, just in case, but he knew she wouldn't appreciate the insult to her abilities.
But she would probably forgive him for that, right?
And as long as he knew she was safe, what did it matter?
He'd just about made up his mind to at least camp outside of her bedroom door, when his own creaked open.
He sat up in bed quickly, thankful that his wolf vision let him see the intruder perfectly.
"Skylar?" his brows pulled together.
It was definitely her; the moon making the skin not covered by her overly large sleep shirt appear to glow,"What are you-"
"I couldn't sleep," she admitted, slinking over to his bed and nudging the blankets aside, "Make room."
He moved over so that she could easily fit, and didn't miss the sigh that left her as she snuggled into his good pillow.
"This is better," she smiled a little, her eyes closing.
Michael stared at her; at the loosely wild waves of dark hair that fell all around her shoulders and down her back, at the long lashed that curled atop her high cheekbones, at the plump pinkness that was her lips, drawing down to the long column of her neck.
The Mutt's bite mark had faded, the cream of her skin no longer marred, but he'd bet that the incident was still fresh in her mind.
"Are you okay?" he asked her, his voice barely above a whisper, "I mean, really okay?"
She was silent for a moment, unchanging.
Then she rolled, slowly, until she was on her side, facing him, and her eyelashes fluttered open.
That multi-colored gaze landed on his, causing his heart to race, as usual.
"No," she whispered back, "I don't think I am...I still feel it, Kael, every time I close my eyes."
Michael reached for her, shifting through the covers until she was in his arms, her body molding against his.
"I'm sorry," he breathed against her forehead, where his lips pressed gently against her skin.
Skylar shook her head, "Don't be. It's not your fault."
"No," he allowed, "But it's not yours either. You know that, right?"
She nodded, "I do. But I still feel rattled, I guess...like I've lost control."
"You haven't," he promised, "And you're going to pull through this and kick that Mutt's ass. Once the rest of us are finished with him, anyway."
Skylar looked up into Michael's burning silver blue eyes.
The confidence he felt it her was unwavering; his gaze full of love and compassion.
His arms felt safe around her, and whatever anxiety had been twisting in her chest had eased.
"Thank you," she told him, "For still being here...for always being here."
Her voice cracked a little as she spoke and Michael's arms tightened around her.
"Always," he reassured her, "I told you; I love you, Sky. There's nothing I wouldn't do for you."
The devotion he promised no longer sounded scary or sparked a need in her gut to run away as fast as possible.
Instead, it was a calm reassurance, after everything else had processed through her mind.
Laying in bed alone had given her time to think, time to come to grips with where her emotions were at with all that the past week had thrown at them.
And there was nowhere she wanted to be more than here; exactly where she was.
"I'm still all in," she decided, loud enough for Michael to hear her, "What I told you, about us, about what we're doing…"
She swallowed thickly, but held his stare with her own, "I love you, Kael. Maybe not as much as you love me...but I love you enough."
His eyes widened, as if surprised by her words, and she brought her hand up to his cheek, "I kept thinking about everything that's happened over the last few days, and at least I can be sure of this. It's enough to know that this is where I'm happy; with you. I love you enough that the thought of kissing anyone else doesn't feel right; I try to see myself with anyone else in the future...and I can't. So whatever it means, whatever this is...I'm in, Kael."
His blue eyes bore into her.
"Sky," he breathed, almost carefully, as if not to scare her, "Are you sure?"
She smiled a little, pushing a strand of his loose blond hair behind his ear, "I'm sure."
His head shook slowly, "Skylar...no. You've never wanted anything exclusive or serious. I don't want this thing with Draven to make you think that you suddenly have to-"
She kissed him, cutting him off mid-sentence.
Michael moaned a little against her mouth, but pulled away, "Sky-"
"This has nothing to do with Draven," she assured him, "Or what he did. This is about us, about how we feel...and how I feel when I'm with you. You're home, Kael. You're safe, and good, and warm, and everything that I need to feel right now. So please...just kiss me; let me feel this."
She waited for what felt like eons as different emotions flashed across Michael's face, but then his hands were in her hair, pulling her into him until he was everything she could sense.
His blue eyes drowned hers, his touch the only physical connection she had with the world, his scent overwhelming in her nose, no matter if their lips were pressed hard together, or if her face was buried in his hair as he kissed down her neck.
She could feel all of him, his body, his clothes as she pulled them from him, his sheets, his bed, his art supply corner, the endless sketches taped to the open wall spaces across the room.
He was in everything around her, and it was exactly the familiarity and comfort that she needed.
Her nails pierced his sides as he ran his tongue over the spot Draven had bitten her.
The pain, like the mark itself, had disappeared, and now Michael was erasing the Mutt's scent from her skin for good; replacing it with his own.
She rolled them with her hips, so that she was straddling him, and when she sat up, she reveled in the way his eyes ran over every inch of her.
He knew every little thing about her; every quirk, every temperament, every fault; and still looked up at her as if she hung the moon itself.
It made her feel beautiful; powerful...in control.
She reached down and grabbed the bottom of the shirt she was wearing and pulled it over her head.
And even though Michael had seen her naked about a million times by now, his expression was always the same; filled with love and desire.
Though, to his credit, he didn't move.
She could tell he wanted to; could feel it in his arousal growing beneath her and the clench of the muscles that he was restraining...yet he stayed exactly where he was, and would until she asked him otherwise.
He really was too good to her.
"Touch me," she almost pleaded, and as soon as the permission was given, Michael sat up, crushing her to his well toned chest, dragging her lips back to his in a hungry pull.
A new warmth churned in her stomach, and she knew that this time, there would be no hesitation, no stopping, no interruption.
Tonight, he would be hers, and she would be his, and she found that she was more than okay with that.
Michael flipped them again, settling his weight into the curve of her hips as his were grinding against her covered core.
She lifted her feet to push down the remainder of his clothes and as soon as he was naked, he returned the favor, kissing his way down her stomach and onto her thighs before he slowly dragged her panties down her legs, discarding them to the floor with the rest of their clothes.
Then he was back on top of her, his lips pressing to hers softly, a mere brush…
"You're sure this is what you want?" he asked again, his voice thick with his want for her.
Skylar nodded, "I'm absolutely sure. I want this."
"I want this. I want you," Daniel breathed against Jessica's neck, raking his teeth across the skin there, but being careful not to break it.
She had kissed him on the couch, and he had been unable to stop kissing her.
A burning warmth in his chest driving him to have her closer, to need more of her, to know that she was safe against him, in his arms...he wanted to crawl inside of her body and let the rest of reality fade away.
"But...last time," Jessica panted, her fingers digging into his hair, "You said it was too...dangerous."
Daniel reclaimed her mouth, his tongue brushing against hers desperately, "I know. But I won't lose control now...I can feel it. And I want this...with you. I need to be with you."
Jessica lost any concern she may have had in their next kiss, and he maneuvered so that they were able to lay long ways on the couch, and he fell into the space between her thighs, her legs wrapping around him, so much darker against his pale skin.
His heartbeat sped up as her fingers clung to the back of his neck, her lips devouring his.
"Wait," she breathed, pushing him back a little.
Daniel took the hint and paused, "What's wrong?"
"Upstairs," she rushed out, and the look in her eyes was all he needed to understand.
With a motion too fast for her human eyes, he jumped up and scooped her into his arms, throwing her over his shoulder before heading toward the staircase that led up to her bedroom.
Jessica laughed as he carried her.
"You're crazy," she teased when he finally put her down in her bedroom, and he could only grin, "For you."
Before she could chide him for the cheesy comment, Daniel grabbed her face and reconnected their lips.
They stumbled through the room until his calves found the edge of the bed and he sat down, pulling her into his lap.
Jessica settled herself against him easily, grinding her hips down on his erection as he pulled her shirt from her body, pleased to find her bare beneath it.
The beautiful caramel tones of her skin required every bit of his attention as it was revealed, and his mouth fell to the newly exposed flesh, his tongue darting across the swell of her chest.
God, she tasted like heaven.
Jessica exhaled sharply, then pulled him back up to her, kissing him soundly as she manevered them.
Her back hit the mattress first, and her firm grip led the way for him to cover her body with his own as she pulled his shirt off of his back.
Her shorts followed, his pants, then the rest, as their lips made a mess of the kiss they were trying not to break as they drew shallow breaths between them.
Jessica's curls fawned out around her head, and the trust in her expression as he pulled away was enough to cripple.
"I won't hurt you," he promised her, his voice so gravelly with desire, the words came out rougher than intended.
"I know," she smiled up at him, then she lifted her torso, kissing him again, and he swore he could die happy in that moment.
Everything in his life...the Pack, his grades, the future...nothing made him feel the way he felt in the arms of this girl.
And when she bit down on his lip, just enough to tease, he growled and rolled them once more, looking up as she straddled him, her mess of spiral curls cascading down around her beautiful breast.
"You on top," he decided breathlessly, "I want to see you."
"I want to see you," Skylar demanded, and Michael grinned down at her.
"I thought you liked being the one in charge," he teased.
She punched his side and he chuckled, before leaning down to take her mouth once more.
Their bodies, no longer hindered by clothes molded together so perfectly, and she could feel every inch of the male above her.
The strength that the wolf had brought to his muscles, the hardened lines from the hours of training with Daniel and her father...he was perfection.
Toned and golden and purely good.
An angel sent to balance her chaotic heart.
She lost her fingers in his aureate mane, clenching the tendrils in her hands, as if the more tightly she held, the harder it would be for him to ever pull away.
Michael's tongue danced against her own in slow strokes, stoking the fire in her stomach to a new level, then to infernos as he slipped a hand between them.
God, she was ready for him, and the groan that left his mouth as he found the source of that fire was drowned out by her own.
His fingers moved against her, small circles, long strokes, gliding, stretching, curling.
Taking her to new heights as his mouth worshiped hers in mimicing motions.
It was almost too much...building too fast.
Then his lips were gone, being placed on her neck instead, swirling down to her breast where his tongue flicked sensitive flesh before making a trail to her navel.
She couldn't tear her eyes away, knowing where he was heading, knowing the heaven of having him there.
Yet, when his mouth finally came against her, her head fell back and her teeth dug into her lips to keep from crying out.
"Kael, oh my god."
"Oh my god, Jess," Daniel panted as his girlfriend took him into her mouth, swirling her tongue around his tip then taking him whole once more.
Again and again, she repeated the motion, building his pleasure until he couldn't take it anymore.
"Wait," he touched her arm, "Not like that, baby...I want all of you."
"And that's exactly what you'll have," Michael promised, crawling back up her body, "Any part of me you want, Sky. Every part of me. Whatever way you want. I'm yours."
Their foreheads pressed together as his tip aligned with her entrance.
They were so close now; so close to the point of no return, to her finally giving in to what had been right in front of her for months.
The truth that she'd tried to deny, staring at her through the compassion in Michael's gaze.
"Any time you want to stop," he breathed, "We can. Just say the word."
She was dimly aware of her head shaking, "I don't want to stop. I want to do this. With you."
He held her stare for a moment, the air suspended thickly between them as he gained whatever confirmation he was looking for in her eyes.
Then slowly, god, so slowly, he was moving, pressing against her, sliding inside, filling her inch by inch.
She never closed her eyes.
A pinch of pain, minimal compared to others she'd experienced in her life, was washed away with the next thrust, stealing her breath as a new pleasure lit every nerve in her body.
It was Michael's eyes that fell shut first, his forehead pulling away from hers as his mouth trailed against her cheek, kissing her as he slowly moved, building, adjusting, feeling.
Kisses on her temple, her neck, her shoulder; she lost herself in the sensations, relaxing against the pillows as Michael drove her body higher and higher, the moonlight catching his hair, making it glow against his golden skin.
She kissed his shoulder, nuzzled his neck...and for the first time, felt her wolf scream a word she'd always told herself to fear.
Bite.
Bite.
Daniel tensed against the demand of his body, the instinct so strong, yet his will was stronger.
Jessica moved on top of him, riding him; the delicate motions of her body as she squeezed around him nearly had him coming undone.
But this wasn't about him.
This was about Jess, about loving her and being with her in the way he'd wanted to for so long.
He would not let the wolf take that from him.
However, the more she moved, the stronger the desire to pierce her flesh became.
The more he build, the more he wanted to see her claimed with his mark.
Needed it.
He squeezed his eyes shut as he felt his gums contract, the canines of the wolf slipping free.
The need to mark was so strong, Skylar felt the wolf respond; her fangs forcing themselves from her mouth, driving her to do what was needed.
What instinct demanded.
Michael's pulse point was a calling card as his neck laid open, so exposed for her, so ready for the taking.
"Kael," she choked, "I…I can't...control-," she trailed off as he lifted, their eyes meeting and something about the sight of her made him look hungry.
He lifted his hand to his hair, pushing it to one side and turned his head.
"Any part of me you want," he reminded her, "I'm already yours."
The invitation was too much, too inviting.
He was hers.
Hers.
She struck him fast, teeth breaking through golden skin as she made her mark and fell apart at the same time.
Blood filled Daniel's mouth as his canines pierced through his bottom lip, but Jessica's gasp had his eyes flying open.
Her movement slowed, hesitant.
"No," he assured her, his hands tightening against her waist, "It's okay. I'm okay."
But her expression was not afraid.
She was awed.
"Your teeth...and your eyes," she whispered, "They're blue."
Because the wolf wanted her just as badly as he did.
Daniel turned them quickly, falling back inside Jess's slick warmth as soon as her back touched the bed, and he drove the wolf back by driving into her, over and over, until she was moaning out, his name a mantra on her lips, cries of pleasure as she clenched around him in climax.
Then suddenly...blessedly, the urge to mark left him, something inside his chest feeling sedated, satisfied.
Enough that his body followed, and with another thrust, he fell apart.
Michael could hardly believe that he wasn't dreaming.
Skylar was curled up against him, her fingers trailing his arm lazily as she zoned out to some state of peace.
He was spent, completely and utterly incapable of moving or doing anything other than stare at this girl; this beautiful creature.
His neck twinged still, the pain a delicious reminder of what they'd shared, and every time Sky looked up at him, the satisfied expression on her face made him feel ten feet tall.
He had made love to her. She had made love to him.
She had claimed him, heart and body; forever.
"I love you enough," he told her, and her stroking paused as her eyes once more flickered up to his.
She smiled softly, tiredly, understandingly, and answered back, "I love you enough, too, Kael. More than enough."
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