Eclipsed Hearts

Sparks

[Ian]

When Keaton and I turned back to the rest of the room, I saw Mari had straightened herself out. The solemn look on her face and the slight blush that came out as we approached made something in me spark. She was beautiful, and it was even harder to resist her now. Everything reminded me of that kiss and how much my body craved for it to be more.

It was like a knife to the heart when she asked why we couldn’t be friends. The mate bond had claimed me. I was weak for her and I knew it would be harder to kill her than it was before. What really surprised me was how she seemed to feel it as well.

Keaton told me the bodies were gone and that his people on the island were ensuring Mari would be safe. Keaton didn’t trust that Mari could just be wandering around, or even in her own room, without being in danger. Of course, with her door being gone now, the room wasn’t an option.

I nodded at Keaton, grateful for his foresight in protecting Mari. But as I looked at her sitting there, the internal struggle within me intensified. How could I keep her safe when I was the one posing a threat to her very existence? The weight of the mate bond pressed down on me, a constant reminder of what I could never have.

Mari’s eyes met mine, searching, questioning. I could see the wariness in them, the fear mingled with a hint of something else… was it longing? It was both a comfort and a torment to consider the possibility that she really was feeling the mate bond at least a little. We heard stories of human mates not feeling it, but I was pretty sure this was making it harder for me to resist the bond.

As we reached the bed, the tension between Mari and me seemed to intensify. Keaton pulled a chair from the little table in the corner, sat in it, and fixed his gaze on me as if he was forbidding me to go past him. I could see the challenge in his eye when I started in that direction.

He looked at Mari pointedly, and I knew he wanted me to sit next to her. Keaton had pushed me to try getting closer to her. Would she really be more of a hero to my pack than their potential downfall?

Mari was looking down at the bedspread, picking at it as if there was lint on it or something. I sat next to her, and she stiffened. I didn’t move closer or try to touch her. All I did was sit and raise my eyebrows at Keaton, as if asking if that was enough for him. He seemed pleased and moved along.

“I have a few people on the island who are from allied packs or allied hunter clans. They helped to get the bodies prepared to be moved. A couple of them have long-distance calling cards. They’re going to call their packs or clans to get assistance moved out.

“As it stands, Mari, you will not be going out alone. You won’t even go to the bathroom alone. Our cover story will still stand with everyone else. Ian is my lover, you’re a relative of his. Now that those aѕѕholes broke down your door, there’s even more reason you’d come sleep in my room,” Keaton explained.

“Why wouldn’t I have just gone to Ian’s room? Since you both had rooms, wouldn’t it be more likely that I’d go stay in his room?” Mari asked.

Keaton laughed. “It’s been a while since you’ve been human, hasn’t it?”

“I am human! What the hell do you mean by that?!” Mari growled.

“You’re not human. A human woman whose hotel room door was broken down by three men wouldn’t think she should stay alone in another room. Not even if she knew those three were dead. She would be terrified. She would want to leave the island because she wouldn’t feel safe. But if we were to say we knew how much you wanted to be at this conference, then it would make sense that you were staying in one room with both of us and why one of us is always with you,” he explained.

It made sense. With what I knew of humans, that was exactly what I would have expected. She spent money on this and even if she could get a r****d, she would have wasted all that time planning, packing, and traveling. A good cousin would offer her protection, even if it seemed like it was safe or would be safer if she left.

Some humans didn’t think things through. I would have gotten her out of there immediately, even knowing the threat of those men was gone. Though, if I didn’t know what I did, I wouldn’t have assumed she was still in danger, either. That didn’t mean I wouldn’t be overprotective of my mate.

“So, what’s the plan then?“ Mari asked, her voice laced with a mix of defiance and resignation.

“We’re going to make sure you two can still get the wolf you’re after. As far as he knows, a challenge was made and accepted.”

“What do you mean? You two just met for the first time. Was him pulling me away some sort of challenge? Why would a hunter taking me from you be a challenge?” Mari pressed.

I locked eyes with Keaton. It was like that smirk was his face at rest with how often he wore it. That’s why I was a little surprised when it melted into an annoyed scowl.

“Don’t play like that, Ms. Walker. You know as well as I do exactly why him taking you from me would be seen as a challenge,” he replied.

Mari glanced at me, then back at him. “So you did say it on purpose.”

“I don’t have time for the bullѕhit. The longer you didn’t know, the harder it would be to protect you. And for all that he’s a grown-ass man, he was acting like a pup. My people have told me that those humans weren’t the only threat and I can’t let you diсk around pretending to be human, Ian,” Keaton answered.

Wait.

What?

Said what? I looked from him to her and back. What the hell? Why was he telling her I was a werewolf?

Mari sat cross-legged on the bed and leaned back. She wasn’t acting as nervous or concerned. Now she seemed almost brazen in her posture. Was she pretending earlier?

“Mari?”

She gave me an apologetic smile. “Keaton said those men didn’t know that they were facing off against two werewolves. Then I saw how you fought. Everything fell into place. It all made sense. You’re a werewolf who’s pretending to be a hunter.”

“No,” Keaton said, cutting me off before I could answer her. “Ian is a werewolf who is also a hunter. He took on the identity of a hunter who was the sole survivor of an attack from my pack. Ian and his family are the sole survivors of a hunter attack.”

“And what happened to the hunter?” Mari asked.

“According to my sources, he was very drunk and ended up getting carjacked. Ian happened to find his credentials and figured out who he was.”

She scoffed. “Bullѕhit.” Mari turned to me. “You want to tell me the truth?”

I shrugged. “I killed him.”

Mari nodded. “Tell me.”

Glancing from Mari to Keaton, I realized this was it. She knew I was a werewolf, and she wasn’t freaking out or trying to kill me or anything. She even knew I killed the hunter, but wasn’t getting angry or violent about it. Mari looked entirely unaffected.

“He was getting drunk and telling everyone about how he was a hunter and there were werewolves in the world. He went on about how werewolves killed his entire hunter clan. I followed him when he left and killed him. Got rid of his car and body, then got a message on his cell phone about a hunt and it was one with a reward. I needed the money.

“My family, the people I care for, are all younger than me. They were all fully dependent on me. I needed money and I wasn’t making everything I needed, but, as you know, some hunts are more lucrative than others. I started taking on those hunts to help support the kids. Some smart investments and hard work got us to a point where no one in our house goes hungry.

“I called the hunt on the werewolf because he’s a threat to my family. He’s a selfish, disgusting asshole. On the boat over here, he tried to blackmail me into giving him one of the young teen girls I take care of as his mate. It was my pack he was hunting. And the wolves who sleep in my room with me aren’t my lovers. They’re my Beta and Gamma,” I admitted, feeling better as I got everything out.

Mari was quiet. She nodded a little as she listened, but didn’t interrupt anything I was saying. Her eyes seemed to scour me all the way into my soul.

After a long while, she looked at Keaton. “See, that’s how you tell the truth. Maybe you should try it.”

“Oh? And why should I take advice on being truthful from someone who hasn’t even told us her real name? This isn’t just a simple job. We need to keep you alive and the two of you need to kill that werewolf. So, now that you know Ian’s truth, isn’t it time to tell yours?” he asked.

She rolled her eyes. “My name is what you’re going to focus on? Really?”

“Absolutely. You’re not a Damson, not really. Your father was more than what they are and you are, too. I can tell.”

“I know I got a lot more from you than I gave, but I won’t do that anymore. I’ll answer everything. Just tell me your real name.”

If I had her name, I could reject her. The only way to ensure I wasn’t still being stopped by the mate bond was to end it before we finished this hunt.

“No. I’m Mari Damson right now. That is who I intend to be for the rest of this hunt. Once it’s over, I’ll be more than happy to share my name.”

Damn it. I couldn’t seem to get her to break. I’d figure it out. There had to be a way out of this bond.