Her Shadows

6 - Blue is in Charge Now

NATALIA 

My dreams tonight have been surprisingly peaceful albeit short. The pain in my ribs wakes me up each time I shift in bed. I had to beg Aaron not to call mom and dad. He made me promise to never leave without one of the guys with me. I agreed easily if it kept dad from learning what happened. Alex demanded that I stay in bed until my ribs are healed, so I will probably be here for a few days. He said there will be a private trial for Cody with the four of them, Sam who dropped me off, and two trusted but unbiased wolves. 

They both left in slightly better moods after Daniel came by to tell us that Cody is healing well from the beating and is locked in a cell until the trial. 

I'm not sure what woke me up this time. My brain is foggy like I'm still half asleep so I know it isn’t from pain. Pain startles me to full waking. 

I shift around my eyes, my groggy mind registering the thin line of light spilling onto my carpet. Squinting, I think back to whether or not the guys closed the door on the way out. I could have sworn they did. With a muted squeak of the hinges, yellow light floods the area directly inside the door. A large shadow blocks the center of the light, silent as the man who throws it. 

He just stands there, still and silent as the darkness he stares into. Our stares meet somewhere in that darkness. He doesn’t move, only stands and watches. I am not making the first move, though. So, I continue to just watch him watch me. Waiting for him to come fully in or to step out and leave. 

Our gazes are firm and unmoving, emotions hidden in the dark, distance lengthened by the shutters on his heart. Though, the relentless clenching of his fists in my periphery indicates a near outpouring of those emotions. 

He is just a dam waiting to break. 

I don’t count the seconds he stands there, worried the monotonous silence will lull me back to sleep, and all of this will just be a dream come morning. 

Finally, he snaps. His whole body flies towards me, landing on the edge of the bed and ripping the sheets off of my body. I scurry up to the headboard, pulling my bare knees into my chest to hide my peaked n*****s through the thin material of my tank top. But his large hands grip my ankles before I can fully cover up, and he yanks me down underneath him. 

“Mmm, finally,” Ivy purrs. 

I look up at those forest green eyes, taking their time greedily perusing my body from eyes to toes, slowly taking in every inch of me covered or not. Goosebumps raise beneath his gaze, heat pools in my core, and my n*****s pebble to hard points that his eyes latch onto, turning hungrier. I can't help the moan that slips from my lips. 

“Max,” I whisper breathlessly. 

“If you're going to be moaning under me, you should be using my name, beautiful,” He growls, his voice slightly huskier than usual. 

“Blue!” I gasp, excitement ringing through my system. Max rarely lets me hang out with his wolf. I know it's because he worries Blue will do something he doesn’t agree with. Stupid man. I'm sure Blue took over through force, but I will take whatever I can get. 

“That’s right.” He licks a warm trail from my collar bone to the sensitive spot behind my ear. I shiver. Goddess I have waited so long to have his mouth on me. He blows a stream of cool air over the wet flesh, paralyzing me to anything except that feeling. 

And then his lips are on mine. 

Nothing else exists, and holy hell, his lips are magic. They feel perfect pressing against my own. I just focus on this feeling, just want to stay in this moment forever. His chuckle rumbles against my chest. 

“Kiss me back, gorgeous,” he commands, his breath whispering against my lips. Our mouths are fused back together before I get the chance to respond. I move my lips against his, attempting to mimic his movements. His tongue licks the seam of my lips, and I groan at the intense feeling. When I don’t respond, his tongue presses against my closed lips much more forcefully. 

I gasp when I feel it push at my teeth. He seizes that moment to force his tongue into my mouth. On instinct, I lift my own to tangle with his. There is no fight, no attempt at dominance. He owned me from the very first moment. 

His hands rove my body as our mouths detach. Air rushes between the small gap now between us, stinging my swollen lips. 

He nips and kisses across my jaw, moving sensually down neck, stopping periodically to suck on the skin. I melt, my consciousness joining his as he settles on the curve where my neck meets my shoulder. Ivy is panting, waiting impatiently for a bite. I arch into his body, encouraging the wolf to continue. I feel his canines break through, scratching the skin and forcing a shiver to wrack my body. My head falls to the side, opening up the area for Blue to have full access. A contended sigh leaves my lips. 

And that the moment Max slips back through. 

“NO!” he yells, rushing off of me so quickly that he fell off the bed. “No, no, no, no, no! f*****g hell, Blue!” 

His bottle green eyes flash to me, shinning in the dark and flicking over me with anxious concern. 

“Nat, I'm so—” he rakes both hands through his hair. “s**t, Natalia. I'm so sorry.” 

And then he runs from the room. He literally turns and sprints out the door without a second glance back. I stare into the dimly lit hallway with my jaw hanging open. 

“He ran away,” Ivy whimpers, pulling me from my shock. I snap my jaw closed and narrow my eyes at the open door. 

“Yeah. He did. The asshole can't deal,” I spit back. I usually have to be the stronger one of the two of us when it comes to Max. She is a strong alpha wolf, easily able to hold her own in any fight, but against him, she's weak. We both are. 

I can just hide it better. 

I choke back my tears, and pull the covers back over my body. Closing my eyes, I replay the kiss over and over, restarting the reel before Blue’s idiotic human came out and ruined it. I brush a finger across my bottom lip, still tingling from my first kiss that I happily gave to him. No matter the hurt lingering after his running away, the moment was still perfect; something no one can take away from me.