Devon wondered if she’d made a mistake in goading Liam. But seriously, a werewolf? Even drunk, she wouldn’t have bought that line. There was definitely some freaky shit going on that she had no logical explanation for, though. And she had a feeling things were about to get freakier still.
“Keep your distance. And don’t make any sudden moves.”
His voice was like gravel scraping against sandpaper. Bright gold sparked in his eyes with an otherworldly light that both frightened Devon and held her transfixed. Maybe she’d been a little too hasty with her mocking attitude.
Liam doubled over with a grunt of pain. As though she had no control over her own actions, she took a lurching step toward him, her own worry congealing in the pit of her stomach until it formed a tight knot.
“No!” His voice was even harsher with the barked command. “I told you to stay back.”
Devon froze. Even her lungs seized up as Liam’s knees buckled and slammed into the concrete floor beneath him. His palms slapped down in front of him and his back arched. Panting breaths grated in his chest and his jaw squared, cutting sharp angles into his finely chiseled features. The severity of pain in his expression made him look wild and the bright gold of his eyes made him appear anything but human.
Ho-ly shit.
Devon’s limbs began to quake and her muscles tensed as she witnessed something right out of a damn movie. Liam didn’t cry out. There were no shouts of pain or anguish. But Devon knew the pain was excruciating. She practically felt the snap and crack of her own bones as she watched Liam’s bones break, shift, and re-form. The speed of her short breaths matched his and silent tears trickled down her cheeks. She’d done this to him. Forced his hand. He’d told her the transition would be difficult but he’d failed to properly convey to her what it would entail. Dear god. There was no way any man could survive this.
But he wasn’t a man. Devon was forced to come to terms with the truth she’d refused to believe. Liam Murphy was a werewolf.
His face began to change. To elongate. Devon drew in a sharp gasp of breath and squeezed her eyes shut to spare herself the gruesome image. Her hands came up over her eyes and she forced her rapid breathing to slow before she started to hyperventilate. She listened to the sounds of Liam’s distress, the scrape of his nails on the concrete floor, the grunts and moans that transformed into low growls and whines.
Devon’s hands dropped from her face. She focused on deep, even breaths as she slowly let her eyes come open. Her heart hammered against her rib cage and her muscles ached from the rush of unspent adrenaline in her system. “Oh my god.” The words were little more than a whisper.
The wolf nearly stood at eye level with her. Bigger even than the timber wolves the Department of Fish and Game had transplanted in the county over the past several years. It was absolutely massive with paws the size of dinner plates and a boxy head that could easily sweep Devon’s whole body aside with nothing more than a nudge. Its hulking shoulders tapered down to a narrow waist and strong haunches. Its dark brown coat shone with veins of copper and its bushy tail swayed back and forth behind it.
“Liam?”
The wolf let out what she assumed was a bark of confirmation. She was having a hard time wrapping her mind around what she’d just witnessed. But unless he’d managed to slip her a hard-core hallucinogen without her knowing it, Devon had to believe.
Wow.
The world as she knew it evaporated around her and another one settled in to take its place. One where imaginary creatures existed and anything was possible. What else was out there? Devon reached out a hand and pulled it back. She wanted to touch his fur, see if it was as silky soft as it looked. But she had no idea what werewolf etiquette was in this sort of situation. Honestly, she wasn’t sure she was ready for it. It felt too intimate.
“I’ll give it to you,” Devon remarked. “You’re not a liar.”
If he’d been telling the truth about being a werewolf, did that mean he’d been honest about everything? Including his inability to lie to her and the reason for it? The implications left her reeling. Seriously! His mate? The way he’d made it sound, Devon had no choice in the matter. She was his and that’s the way it was. Devon had always believed the decisions she made in her life were hers. In a few short minutes, Liam had managed to steal that choice from her.
Devon’s stomach lurched as a wave of panic stole over her. She rushed past the imposing wolf and pushed open the door. The midwinter wind hit her in the face and she took the cold air into her lungs in frantic gasps. It didn’t even register when her knees hit the snow-covered ground. She didn’t feel a thing as the wet and cold soaked into her jeans and chilled her skin. Life wasn’t random. Not even close. Everything that had ever happened to her in her entire life—the months she’d wasted on Nate, their dysfunctional relationship, moving to a tiny town in the middle of nowhere to get away from him—had all led her to this moment. To Liam.
Nothing was in her control. Not a damn thing.
Devon’s teeth began to chatter. She stared at the blank white of the snow and continued to breathe through the panic attack that threatened to take her down. Why even bother moving? If she wasn’t the one in the driver’s seat, why not just stay right here and wait until God, fate, or whatever told her what to do.
Warmth buffeted Devon’s back and the tension in her muscles gave way to relaxation. Liam’s presence behind her formed a wall of protection that she found much too comforting. She should have known last night when she touched Liam and found his skin hot despite the blizzard that raged around him, that there was something decidedly not human about him. His body temperature had to run at least thirty degrees warmer than a human’s. The delicious warmth soaked into her and Devon allowed herself an indulgent moment to revel in that heat.
“I’ll be okay,” she said without turning around. “I just need a minute to process all of this.”
A minute? Try a couple of years.
The wolf let out a low, disconcerted whine. A long, quiet moment passed before his comforting warmth disappeared. The sound of the animal’s footsteps in the snow was almost imperceptible as he left Devon alone to her thoughts. She drew in a steadying breath and let it out in a cloud of steam that rose above her head toward the sky. From this point on, her life would never be the same. She wasn’t sure if that warranted celebration or mourning.
At any rate, sitting in the snow catching hypothermia wasn’t going to solve anything. The cold bit into her fingertips as Devon pushed herself up to stand. She turned toward the building, prepared to face whatever came next.
* * *
Transitioning so quickly from one form to another had depleted Liam’s strength, but he hoped it would be worth the sacrifice. He’d erased any shred of doubt Devon might have had in her mind. Of course, he’d replaced that doubt with a crippling anxiety that Liam felt as though it was his own. His senses were awash with her distress, causing his stomach to tie into an unyielding knot. Human minds were fragile; he could only hope Devon was strong enough to bear the weight of what was to come.
The chill of the concrete floor soaked into Liam’s skin. His arms trembled as he fought to push himself upright. Weakening himself when there was an unknown threat in the area wasn’t a good idea. Especially now that he had Devon’s safety to consider as well. What was done, was done, however, and he had no choice but to suck it up.
Devon’s scent filled the building as the door swung wide and she walked inside. Liam held the sweet scent in his lungs. Her earlier distress seemed to have abated and a wave of relief washed over him. He knew she’d overcome her shock. Devon was the mate of an Alpha. His wolf would have chosen nothing less than their equal.
“Oh my God, Liam.” The door slammed behind her as Devon rushed to his side. “Are you all right? That was—” She went silent as though at a loss for words. “How in the hell did you survive that?”
The transition could be brutal. It must have been a gruesome sight for her to watch. “I’m sorry you had to see it.” Gods, it would have been so much easier had he more time to get her used to the concept of his world. “I’m fine. Just a little weak. It’ll take me a while to recover, but it’s nothing I haven’t dealt with before.”
Her scent soured slightly and Devon drew her bottom lip between her teeth. Indecision marred her beautiful features and Liam shoved his weight against the floor to push himself to his knees. “You never have to be afraid to ask me anything, Devon. What is it?”
“Did you kill that man at Kirkham hot springs last night?”
He knew it would be only a matter of time before she gave voice to her fears. He’d be more than happy to assuage them if his damn wolf wasn’t selfishly guarding their memories of last night. He took a chance, knowing the loophole of his memory loss could allow him to lie to her. “No.”
“But you said you can’t remember what happened last night. How do you know the dead guy isn’t the one who jumped you?”
She had a sharp mind. Liam admired that. “I told you I can’t lie to you. I said the word easily enough. Believe me Devon, if I ever speak a single false word to you, you’ll know it.”
Her expression transformed from worry to that same daring curiosity. She wanted him to prove it to her. She hesitated to ask. Probably because he was kneeling on the floor, barely able to keep himself upright.
“I’ll prove anything you want me to prove,” he said after a moment. “All I ask is that you give me a breather first. I don’t mind a little pain if I’m rewarded for it later, but the past twenty-four hours have kicked my ass.”
Devon caught the innuendo. His mouth hitched in a half smile as her lips twitched with amusement. “I believe you,” she said. You’ve proved enough to me. It’s not fair to make you jump through any more hoops.”
“I’ll jump through anything you want me to, love,” Liam replied. “Later.”
Her mouth went slack at the endearment, as though no one had spoken something affectionate to her in quite some time. Liam wondered what had happened to her. What had driven her to this place, miles from anything and anyone? There would be time enough to learn her secrets. After he made some sense of the tailspin their lives had been thrown into.
“You’re naked again.”
Her voice went low and husky. There wasn’t a bit of anxiety in her scent this time. Instead, it grew richer, sweeter with desire, and Liam’s arms damn near gave out on him again. She wanted him, and that pleased both him and the wolf to no end.
“One of the pitfalls of being a werewolf,” Liam replied.
“Sort of explains your lack of modesty,” Devon said with a laugh.
“Werewolves have no time for modesty,” he said. “Though I have to admit, in situations like this, it can be … problematic.”
Her mouth softened and another bloom of her delicious scent hit his nostrils. “How so?”
“The way you’re looking at me right now, for starters.” Gods, how he wanted to crush his mouth to hers. Taste her, enjoy her, touch her … “It’s not exactly easy to keep my desires discreet.”
Her gaze dropped between his legs. His cock might as well have been a fucking flagpole the way it jutted from his hips. Not exactly subtle. Liam wasn’t embarrassed, though. He had nothing to hide. By all rights, Devon was his. His mate. She was beautiful, intelligent, full of fire, and he wanted her.
Devon’s eyes came up slowly to meet his. “We should go back to my place. We have a lot to talk about and I don’t want to do it here.”
Agreed. If Liam thought he could get her to drive to Stanley tonight he’d ask her. She’d be even better protected there. With the entire pack to watch over her. After they talked, he’d suggest it. And hopefully, she’d agree. “Let’s go. We should probably beat the storm, anyway.”
“Yeah.” Devon cleared her throat. “It’s moving in pretty fast. Wanna get your clothes back on, or were you planning on going commando?”
Liam curled his lip at the discarded sheet, T-shirt, and boots. “Those aren’t clothes by any stretch of the imagination.”
“Hey.” Devon smiled. “Don’t dis the shirt.”
“I’ll wear it,” he replied. “But only because it smells like you. The sheet too.”
The sweet scent of Devon’s desire bloomed around him once again. They needed to get out of here all right. Before he locked the door and took her on the concrete floor.
“I’ll go start the Jeep.” The fire in her hazel eyes told him they were on the same page.
Gods, the mate bond was a beautiful thing.