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“HELLO, MY SWEET.” SITRI cupped Katarina’s chin and wiped a smattering of blood off her pouty lip. He’d been so pleased when his pretty wolf had found a body almost identical to her last one, with pale creamy skin, blue eyes, and silky blond hair that framed her face like an angelic halo. It was a shame she’d betrayed him. He’d learned early on that his sweet rose had thorns, but that only made her more intriguing, more desirable.
She pulled away from him, her chains rattling as she pressed into the concrete wall. “I’m not your sweet.”
He tried to hide his disappointment. “I’m glad the wolverine didn’t hurt your pretty face. I’d hate to have to find you a new one.” But he would. He’d do almost anything for Katarina, except free her from imprisonment. That he could never do. He reached for her once more, wishing to feel her soft skin under his calloused knuckles.
She snapped at him. “Don’t touch me, you ugly, bloated toad.”
He instinctively pulled back his hand to strike her, then thought better of it when her eyes widened with fear. He hated that she looked at him as if he was a monster. She had worshipped him when they’d been in hell. Had that all been a ruse? Perhaps it was only this ugly human skin that made her act this way. He planned on ditching it soon. He would miss having a male appendage, but having power was more important. In the meantime, he’d use his appendage to find pleasure with Katarina.
“Don’t be like that,” he pleaded, resenting the whine in his voice and her for forcing him to stoop to begging for her favors.
Her eyes welled with tears. “How do you expect me to be when you torture and rape me?”
He fought the urge to wipe a tear from her cheek. “The experiments were necessary, since you’ve been less than honest with me, but I don’t need to torture you anymore, now that I know how to get inside a shifter’s skin.”
He was so pleased when he’d finally discovered a shifter’s vulnerability. It was in the split second that Katarina had shifted from human to wolf that Balban was able to slip inside her body. Unable to shift into a wolf, Balban had then turned back into a human, but Sitri had already abandoned the idea of becoming a shifter. He had a much better plan. He would become a witch, one with the power to cast the shadow wolves into hell.
“This will not end well for you, Sitri. The protectors of my race will tear you to shreds.”
A blade twisted in his heart when she flashed a wicked grin.
He forced himself to harden his soul. He would not let this insignificant shifter bring him to his knees. “They will try.”
Her mouth fell open. “You don’t fear them?”
“I have survived thousands of years in the fiery pits of hell. Nothing frightens me.” Pulling a key out of his pocket, he unlocked her chains, nodding at the threadbare cot at the other end of the cell with iron rails surrounding three sides. “Take off your clothes and pleasure me. Hurry up.” He rubbed his hands together, anticipating a visit to the wolf brothers’ favorite bar. “We’re going hunting tonight.”
* * *
CONSTANTINE GLARED at Dimitri as he shrugged into his coat. You’re going to blow it, brother, he projected. Thank the Ancients that pack brothers could speak telepathically, because Constantine couldn’t risk Tatiana hearing this conversation. Dimitri’s foul mood had probably already set Tatiana on edge.
Dimitri’s heavy sigh resonated in Constantine’s brain. It’s already blown.
He gave Dimitri a warning look while holding open the barn door for Tatiana and his other brothers. Yes, as long as you act like an idiotule.
Dimitri shoved a wool cap on his head. Did you not see the look on her face when she got off the plane? He stormed out the door.
Constantine followed him, grateful that Dejan and Andrei were talking to Tatiana while helping her into the car. She was nervous.
Dimitri jerked open the front passenger door. She was disgusted.
Constantine clutched the keys in his hand, fighting the urge to leap over the hood of the car and pummel his hard-headed brother. Not all women are like our mother.
Dimitri leaned against the hood, ignoring his two younger brothers grumbling at him to shut the door because Tatiana would get cold. Five years she’s made us wait. I’m tired of kissing her ass so she can give us dirty looks.
If you would only give her a chance, Constantine pleaded, though some part of him wondered if his brother was right. What would they do if Tatiana once again refused to complete the bond? How long could they remain bachelors when their instinct was to claim her?
Dimitri must have sensed Constantine’s doubt. Why, when she won’t give us a chance?
I’m done arguing with you. If you care nothing for your future, then do this for your brothers. He jerked open his door. Get in the damn car!
Dimitri got in and snatched the seatbelt across his chest. Constantine couldn’t ignore the seed of doubt Dimitri had planted in his heart. What if he was right? What if Tatiana would not allow the bond?
* * *
TATIANA’S NERVES WERE shot by the time they reached the house. Even though it was only a few blocks away, she felt suffocated in the car and couldn’t wait to get out. Dimitri said nothing to her. She’d been in his company for over six hours and not a kind word. Come to think of it, over the last year or so, he’d spoken to her less often on the phone and not at all the past few months. His brothers had covered for him, saying he was working on the farm, but she realized he’d been avoiding her. Not that she blamed him. She’d been avoiding bonding with them since Katarina was killed. But how could they move forward if Dimitri wouldn’t even look at her?
She was pleasantly surprised when they pulled up to the house. It was by no means as big as her parents’ home, but it was built in the same style as the quaint farmhouses in the area, with a long front porch and a second story.
“Well, what do you think?” Constantine asked her as they got out of the car.
“It’s very nice,” she said, her attention drawn to a nearby pasture full of bleating sheep. Their small town was made up of shifters, and most of them were sheep farmers. Yeah, wolf sheep farmers. The irony wasn’t lost on her.
She followed them up the steps and inside, painfully aware of Dimitri’s stiff back as he walked ahead of everyone. Dejan helped her out of her coat and threw it on the floor with the rest of the jackets and a pile of crusty boots. She tossed her thick wool scarf on top. They would definitely need to invest in a coat rack or standing wardrobe. Her mother and gamma father would probably be appalled if they saw this mess. She wrinkled her nose when she smelled artificial pine air freshener. She wondered if it was meant to mask the smells of a bachelor pad or if Dejan just liked pine.
Though the inside had the same layout as their grandparents’ house, the style was more modern. The walls were bare, and the living room had no furniture other than two computer tables, each with a compact tower, a large monitor, and a padded leather chair. Why hadn’t she known they were gamers? Did only two of them play or did they take turns? Why had nobody ever asked her to play them online? She wasn’t a half-bad gamer and could’ve used familiar friends to play, as her brothers were always busy with their growing family.
Dejan scratched the back of his neck, his cheeks flushing. “We’re sorry it’s so bare. We were hoping you’d add the feminine touches.”
Dimitri sat at the kitchen table, his back to them while he poured liquor into a shot glass.
They went into the kitchen, which was roomy. The cabinets needed to be sanded and painted, but the double-door fridge was much larger than the tiny, ancient one their grandparents had. She thought about unplugging the two pine air fresheners she saw in the outlets but thought better of it. This wasn’t her house yet.
They took her upstairs and showed her their bedroom, which looked cramped with a twin mattress in each corner. The beds had no frames or even sheets, just raggedy, crumpled blankets, and she wondered how she was supposed to sleep with them. Her bed back at home was far bigger. The only bathroom was at the end of the hall, a tight space with a pedestal sink and a shower/tub combo. Back home she enjoyed the privacy of her own bathroom.
Andrei whispered in her ear, “Are you ready for the best part?”
“Sure.” She was painfully aware of Dimitri stealing glances at her from the hallway.
They took her back downstairs, through the dining room, and toward an adjoining room, which she suspected would be a den.
She was pleasantly surprised when she saw the four-poster bed and an antique, feminine dresser with a gilded mirror that covered nearly the entire side wall. Only two or three people would fit in that bed. Was this her private room, or was she expected to share?
When Andrei led her into a spacious bathroom with a clawfoot tub and double sink with a vanity, she heaved a sigh of relief. Perhaps the upstairs room with the twin beds wasn’t meant to be the master bedroom.
“Well?” Andrei whispered in her ear. “Do you like it?”
“It’s very nice,” she whispered back. “Are we all supposed to fit in that bed?”
He and his brothers laughed.
“No,” Constantine answered. “This is your bed.”
“Oh.” Her mother and fathers slept in one large, custom-built bed. Despite having to listen to her fathers snoring all night, her mother loved sleeping with her four wolf mates. Why did her mates wish for her to sleep alone?
“Told you she wouldn’t like it,” Dimitri hissed, hovering in the doorway with his arms crossed.
Her gaze snapped to his, and in that split second when their eyes met, she felt his bone-deep hatred for her. “I like it.” She looked out the window. It was snowing again.
Dimitri spoke through gritted teeth. “It took us four years and a lot of money to build this house.”
Constantine held out a staying hand. “Dimitri, that’s enough.”
Dimitri laughed bitterly.
She didn’t understand why he was projecting so much animosity and could hardly believe this was the same man who’d whispered tender words of love after he’d woken from a coma four years ago. “You didn’t have to go through all that.”
“Then what did we have to do, Tatiana?” He sulkily pushed off the doorframe. “Because clearly our best isn’t good enough.”
“I’m sorry.” She didn’t know if she was more angry with Dimitri or herself for putting off the bond. “I said it was very nice. What else do you expect?”
“You’re right,” he snapped. “It’s not you, it’s us. It’s always us.”
“Easy, Dimitri,” Andrei said through a growl.
Constantine and Dejan growled at their brother, too.
He threw up his hands. “I’ve been easy for five fucking years.”
When Constantine moved aggressively toward him, Dimitri spun around and marched in the other direction. She flinched when the front door slammed, and her heart plummeted when she heard the truck engine starting.
Swearing in Romanian, Constantine stormed after him.
Dejan turned to her hopelessly. “I’m sorry about him.”
“Please don’t be upset by that idiotule, Tatiana,” Andrei pleaded.
“I’m not,” she lied, wrapping her arms around herself, sorely wishing she was back in Alaska. “I’ve had a long flight. I need to rest.” That was also a lie, but she wanted to be alone with her thoughts.
“Okay.” Andrei’s chest deflated. “We’ll bring you back to our grandparents.”
“Thanks.” She fought back tears, afraid she’d pissed them off, too.
Four years ago, a year after discovering they were her fated mates, she’d spent a passionate night in their arms, allowing them to mark her before her parents took her home. She’d promised to return within the year, but after their mother was killed, she continued to put them off. She’d waited too long, and Dimitri would never forgive her. How was she supposed to bond with them now?
* * *
AFTER CONSTANTINE WALKED her to the door, she said a quick goodbye and shut it in his face. She didn’t mean to be so cold, but it was taking all her strength to hold it together. She had to go upstairs before her parents asked her questions she didn’t want to answer. The last thing she wanted was for her fathers to challenge Dimitri.
She heard laughter coming from the kitchen. The brothers’ fathers and stepmom were still visiting. Their house was only a few yards away, so she imagined they visited often. She shrugged off her coat and boots and swore when she realized she’d left her thick scarf behind. No matter. She’d get it in the morning. She gingerly tiptoed to the staircase, praying they didn’t notice her.
“How do you like your new home?” Eilea called as she reached the bottom step.
She paused, back stiff, and refused to turn around. “It’s beautiful.”
“Tatiana, what’s wrong?” her mother asked.
She slowly turned around. “I’m fine, Mom.”
Boris stood. “What did our sons do?”
“Nothing. I’m just tired. If you’ll excuse me.” Without waiting for them to respond, she ran upstairs and went straight to the guestroom.
Great Ancients! She’d failed miserably at concealing her emotions. She sure as heck hoped her parents stayed out of it. If they got involved, they’d only increase the tension between her and Dimitri.
Falling onto the twin bed, she buried her face in a pillow and screamed. She hated her life so much right now. She hated Dimitri for ruining everything today. Most of all, she hated herself for the careless actions that had gotten Katarina killed and for failing to make things right between them.
Sitting up, she hugged the pillow to her chest and wiped away tears of frustration. Footsteps approached her door, and she swore under her breath. She didn’t want company, and she certainly didn’t want to explain what happened today.
She stiffened at a knock on the door.
“Tatiana, may I come in?” Eilea asked.
She wiped her eyes again. “Okay.”
Eilea set a tray down on the antique white dresser beside the bed. “I noticed Dimitri wasn’t with his brothers when they dropped you off.” There was pity in her eyes. “Did he do something to upset you?”
Tatiana’s instinct to protect her potential mate roared to life. “It’s not him, it’s me,” she blurted, hoping she sounded convincing.
Sitting beside her on the bed, Eilea took her hand. “I know how temperamental second alphas can be.”
Tatiana had a hard time thinking of a rebuttal. Second alphas were always the most headstrong and the ones who held grudges the longest. “I don’t want to be here, Eilea, and it shows.”
“You don’t feel drawn to your mates?”
“Every hour of every day.” Guilt threatened to consume her. “They’re all I’ve thought about for five years.”
Eilea arched a brow. “But?”
Tatiana’s chest deflated like a popped balloon. “I’m not worthy of them.”
Resting her hands on her distended belly, Eilea heaved an overly dramatic sigh that made Tatiana cringe. She sensed a lecture coming.
“How many people need to tell you her death wasn’t your fault?” Eilea asked.
“I told her nobody liked her. I punched her in the face.”
“Something she’d been needing for a long while,” she said wryly. “She made the choice to put herself in danger.”
“I know.” Tatiana groaned, as the echo of her mom’s exact words replayed in her mind. “I’ve heard all of this from my parents.”
Eilea’s brow furrowed. “What can we do to help you move past this?”
“I don’t know. I thought I needed time, but my guilt has only grown stronger.”
“Oh, you poor dear girl.” Eilea cupped her cheek. “I don’t like to speak ill of the dead, but that horrible woman is not worth your guilt.”
Eilea was right. If only her conscience would listen. “She was still their mother.”
“She made their lives miserable by manipulating and mistreating them. Think what your life would be like if she was still alive. What all of our lives would be like.” Eilea wouldn’t have been able to bond with her mates if they’d still been tied to Katarina. That meant no happy little family for Eilea.
“My brain knows you’re right. I just wish my soul would listen.”
“They have waited for you for a long time. Listen to their souls. They yearn for you. It’s not fair to you to carry this guilt, and it’s not fair to them. After being raised by a cruel mother, they need a woman’s kind heart and gentle touch. They need your love.”
The power behind Eilea’s words was like a bucket of cold water thrown at her. Tatiana’s chest clenched. “I do love them with all my heart.”
“Then tell them, my dear.” Eilea flashed a motherly smile. “Show them what’s in your heart. Do you wish for the kind of cold, loveless marriage Katarina had with their fathers?”
“Ancients, no.” She shot up in bed. “I need to tell them.”
“You’ve had a long day.” Eilea gently pushed her back against the pillows. “Give Dimitri a chance to cool down and go to them in the morning.” She lifted a steaming cup off the tray. “Drink this.”
Tatiana took the tea and inhaled its rich, flowery aroma. “It’s fragrant.”
“A few herbs to quiet your nerves.”
“It’s not a sleeping tea, is it?” Tatiana took a cautious sip, the warm liquid soothing her parched throat. “The last one Mom made left me groggy.”
“No, it’s not.” Eilea laughed, elbowing her in the ribs. “But if I wanted to make you sleep, you’d be out after the first sip.”
“Oh,” Tatiana breathed, taking another drink. “Guess you’re getting good at spells and potions.”
“You could say that. Marius made you a sandwich.” She nodded toward the tray. “We figured you didn’t want to come down to dinner.”
Tatiana’s nostrils flared as she smelled fresh bread, cheese, and meat. “Thanks,” she said, tummy rumbling. Though she wasn’t sure her nervous stomach would allow her to eat, she couldn’t deny her hunger.
Eilea squeezed her hand and left her alone. Tatiana ate like a starving woman, surprised she was so ravenous. Being treated like shit by a man she loved could sure work up an appetite. After finishing her food, she tiptoed to the bathroom, the laughter from downstairs like thousands of blades piercing her heart. They all got along so well. What she wouldn’t do to share laughter with her mates, too.
She realized the way she thought about them had changed. Before it was “the Lupescus” or “the brothers.” Now she thought of them as her true mates. It gave her a warm feeling and a determination to make things right between them.
After she finished brushing her teeth and cleaning up, she climbed back into bed and turned out the lamp. Closing her eyes, she tried to force herself to go to sleep, but how could she with so many dark thoughts swirling in her mind?