Glimmer (10 page)

“That’s very presumptuous. And what if I would like to shower and change my clothing first?”

“You can shower at my place. I have a very nice shower with side jets. At least three people can fit inside.”

I really hoped that wasn’t a glimpse of the future, or an innuendo. “I drove my bike to work. I won’t leave it here.”

“Don’t worry about that. I got that covered.”

“Maybe I don’t want to go to your place.”

One of the other nurses gave me a funny look as she walked past. I was sure that my cheeks were on fire. Severin had that effect on my body. Just hearing his sex-dipped voice ignited everything inside me. I licked my lips, remembering the kiss we shared the other night.

“Sure you do. You’re interested in the pack, aren’t you? There’s a gathering at my place and I’d love for you to be there.”

Surprise ran through me. “Why? Why me, I mean?”

“You’re more than the sum of your parts, Nina. You’re more than you can even know.” He paused for a beat, then continued, “Besides that, I want you and I mean to have you.”

Those words had my belly clenching hard. “That simple, hey?” I rubbed a hand over the ache in my chest.

He chuckled. “I’m of the firm mind that nothing will be simple with you. I’ll see you at six.”

Then he was gone, and I held a dead phone, awestruck and dumbstruck. Not until that same nurse banged her clip board against the desk did I finally move. I closed the phone and slid it back into my pocket. Turning, I gave her a little smile then continued on my way—to the waiting room to call the next patient.

By the time six rolled around, I had a raging headache and was running a fever. Strangely enough though, I didn’t feel sick. Not like I had before. Despite that, I didn’t think I’d be much of a date. Something was definitely off with me.

When I walked out the main hospital doors, Severin was there, waiting for me. My heart leapt a little when I noticed him leaning against a really nice motorcycle. As I approached, I laughed. “You sure know how to impress a woman.”

“Yeah, but you’re not just any woman.” He pushed off the bike and swept his arm toward it. “Do you like?”

I ran a finger over the shiny black tank. “Hell yeah, I like. It’s an Interceptor, what’s not to like?” I’d been drooling over one ever since the model was released. I just didn’t have the cash to purchase one. Obviously, Severin did. Who knew an associate professor made so much money?

Giving me one of his sexy grins, he dangled the keys in front of my face. “Want to drive it?”

I made a face, excitement thrumming through me. “Hell yeah, I do. But what about my ride?”

“You drive mine and I’ll drive yours.”

The way he said those simple words made the suggestion sound extremely dirty and naughty. And tempting. This I liked.

I tossed him my keys and motioned down the street. “It’s parked about half a block from here.”

“I’m sure I can find it.” Clutching my keys in his hand, he jogged down the sidewalk to search for my bike.

In the meantime, I marveled at his bike then slid my helmet over my head. Feeling freer than I had in weeks, I swung my leg over the seat. Once I was happily settled in, I stuck the key in the ignition and turned it on. The bike roared to life and I grinned. The engine was rumbling pleasantly between my legs as Severin rolled up next to me. My red bike looked good under him.

He flipped up the dark visor on his helmet and smiled. “Ready?”

“Lead the way. I’m right behind you.”

For the next half hour, we sped through the city streets. Sometimes one after the other, other times side by side. Most of the time, I let him lead because basically I didn’t know where we were going, but the urge to shoot out in front constantly weighed on me.

By the time we slowed, we were out of the city proper and into a picturesque suburb with lots of greenspace and trees. Not surprisingly, Severin pulled the bike into a long driveway that wound its way up to a large two-story with woods at its back. I supposed a werewolf needed his running room.

He came to a stop at the front door and parked. I did the same next to him. He slipped off his helmet, hung it on the handlebar, and gestured to the house. “Welcome to chez Saint Morgan.”

“Impressive.” I took in the two-story colonial, knowing in his market it had to be worth at least a million large. “I didn’t realize lowly university professors could afford such extravagance.”

He held out his hand. I took it and he pulled me towards the front door. “It belongs to the pack in a way.”

“And because you’re the alpha, it belongs to you?”

“Yeah.” He opened the door and led me through.

The front foyer was large, could have easily fit twenty people all jostling to remove their shoes so as not to dirty the gleaming tiled floor. Severin led me down a short corridor past the swooping staircase, to the kitchen. And what a kitchen. The room was enormous and made for cooking, and eating while visiting, which was exactly what was going on when we arrived. But the moment we entered, all talk and movement ceased. All eyes, five sets, were fixed on me instantly. I sensed the curiosity and the animosity of my arrival.

“You can’t be serious bringing her here?” This from a heavy-set woman sitting on one of the stools at the kitchen island. A woman I recognized from the gas station the other night. The one that threatened me.

I stared at her, too stunned to say anything.

Severin squeezed my hand. “Do you question my authority, Roz?”

The woman dropped her gaze, but not the sneer on her lips. “No, not your authority, Alpha. Your dick, maybe.”

That sent a ripple of snickers through the room.

I glanced at Severin to see his reaction, expecting anger. But he seemed unfazed. Amused even.

“My dick is not pack business.” And with that, he pulled me through the kitchen, out the patio doors, and into the backyard.

Several more people visited outside. At least another twelve. They also stopped what they were doing and stared at me.

“Why is everyone looking at me?” I quietly asked Severin.

“Because they see you.”

“Well, yeah, I am standing right here.”

He turned and regarded me with something akin to amusement. “They
see
you, Nina, for who you truly are.”

I didn’t respond to that statement. I wasn’t sure what to say. Could they see the fae in me? Was that a werewolf thing? Did Severin really understand that I wasn’t one hundred percent human? “I’m pretty sure I don’t know what you mean.”

He searched my face, tracing a finger down my cheek to my chin. He smoothed it there for a moment then dropped his hand, giving me a half-smile. “Let’s get you that shower I promised and some food.”

Not entirely sure what just transpired, I followed Severin back into the house. Although I felt like I was somehow on display, that Severin was parading me about in front of his pack, I couldn’t muster enough anger to make a scene. Being around Severin unnerved me but the closeness also had a calming effect. A sense of the familiar. As if my most inner being recognized his and approved of such a pairing.

It didn’t hurt matters either that I was quite eager to see that exquisite naked form of his again. And if I had to be scrutinized by a bunch of werewolves for that to happen, then so be it. I was no wallflower. Intimidation didn’t work on me. If they truly did
see
me, then they’d know I wasn’t a woman to be trifled with.

***

Chapter 11

Severin’s exquisite shower was no boast. The enclosure could easily accommodate three people, and there were water jets coming from every angle. I took full advantage of that luxury. When I finally stepped out of the glass box, my muscles felt like warm moldable clay. I hadn’t been this relaxed and unguarded in a very long time.

He had laid out a soft white terrycloth robe for me, and I slipped it on and padded out of the ensuite and into his enormous bedroom. He was there waiting, full wineglasses in hand.

“I took the liberty of setting the table out on the balcony.” He handed me a glass. “The evening is gorgeous.”

I followed him out onto the balcony where there was an intimate table for two set with what looked like expensive stainless steel cutlery and fine china. He pulled out my seat for me, I sat, and he lifted the lid on my plate to reveal grilled salmon, mushrooms, and a rice pilaf. My stomach rumbled at the sight. “It looks amazing, thank you.”

“One of my pack is a gourmet chef. He works at one of the expensive restaurants downtown.”

“Really? Who else are you hiding in the pack?”

He cut into his steak and blood seeped out across the plate. “Two doctors, a lawyer, a professional hockey player, three actors, and a city official.” He popped the piece of meat into his mouth, smiling around it.

“Doctors, hey? They don’t work at my hospital, do they?”

He shook his head.

“Wow, that’s impressive.” I sipped the wine. “Are they all here tonight?”

“No.” He ate more food.

I leaned back in the chair and took it all in. The food, the house, him. The items were a lot to consider.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say your pack is very much like a mob.” I expected some surprise or shock on his face at my accusation, but there wasn’t any.

He just patted his mouth with the linen napkin and sat back in his chair with his wine and studied me over the rim. “Every member of the pack pays a yearly tribute to the Alpha. In turn, the Alpha provides protection and other benefits, some of them monetary.”

Surprise lifted my brow. “How much is the tribute?”

“Depends on the member’s financial status, but anywhere from a thousand to three thousand a year.”

“And how many in your pack?”

“That I can’t share with you, but let’s say anywhere from thirty to seventy.”

“Wow. And all that money goes to pay for this?” I gestured to the house, the private treed backyard.

“In a way. That money is invested in various ventures. Some of these ventures are very lucrative.”

“So it’s like shares in a company?” I smiled, finding the information all fascinating.

He nodded, and returned my smile. “You could say that, yes.”

I finished the wine and set the glass on the table. “Why are you telling me all of this? It’s obvious other members aren’t happy about my appearance.”

“Because I trust you, Nina.”

“Is it because I’m not human?”

The second the admission was out of my mouth, I knew that I had planned to reveal my true nature to Severin from the very beginning. Something about him was unsettling but at the same time, he instilled a sense of the old and familiar within me. As if we had done this dance before.

He gazed for a long moment, and then said, “That’s part of it.”

I couldn’t sit any longer. I pushed up from the table and stepped back into the room. Severin was there beside me, stopping me from leaving altogether.

“It’s okay, Nina. Your secret is safe here.”

“How long have you known?”

“Since the moment I saw you.”

I rubbed at a spot on my brow between my eyes. The headache was doing its damnedest to make a roaring comeback. I closed my eyes for a second then opened them to regard Severin. “How do you know? Do I look different?”

“You glow, like a firefly.”

“Is it because you’re a werewolf?”

He nodded. “We can see everything. The things that hide in the shadows, and those that hide in the light.”

“Like me.” I sighed.

“Yes, like you.”

I stepped around him to go to the bathroom to collect my clothes. “I have to go.”

He followed me in, and then grabbed my hand to stop it from picking up my shirt. “Stay. Please. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“It’s just that, I’ve never told anyone. For my entire life, my true nature has been kept a secret.”

“I know what that’s like, Nina. To not be your true self. To not share it with anyone. It was like that for us before we came out, so to speak.” He brushed his fingers through my hair. “I know how lonely that can be.”

“I’ve always been cautious when it came to men. I’ve always been afraid to do to them what my mother did to my father.”

His fingers brushed my ears then along my chin as he cupped my cheek in the palm of his hand. “You’ve definitely struck me, Nina. But I won’t grow old and wither to nothing like a human. You can’t hurt me in that way.”

I stared him in the eyes and saw the truth of his words there. For the first time in my life, I felt free to let my guard down and let my fae-ness show.

A smile spread across his face. The gesture was slow and sexy and made my skin tingle pleasantly. “There
you
are. There’s the real Nina.” He turned me toward the large mirror over the sink.

My skin glowed. A bluish light radiated outward from my body like a visible aura. The sight was beautiful. I was beautiful. My hair shone like polished onyx and my eyes like twin full moons. I smiled at my true nature. For the very first time, I wasn’t ashamed.