Shifter Magick (21 page)

“Wait.” He whispered as he wrapped his arms around her so she couldn’t turn away from him. “
You have to trust me. That isn’t the way to go about getting answers.”

Kera stood stiffly in his embrace. “Let go.” She moved a few feet from him when he dropped his arms.

“Kera don’t.” His voice sounded strained. “We’ll figure this out together.”

She nodded. “I get it. Only on your terms.”

“Damn it Kera.” He growled, he narrowed his eyes at her and clinched his jaw. “You don’t get it.”

“Then tell me.” She demanded.

“I already have. You’re not listening.” Maddox turned from her and shifted back into a beautiful white wolf.

Kera wanted to cry
but she decided just then that the last time had been enough. She wasn’t weak so she needed to quit acting so broken
. She looked down at her body which was enveloped in his scent and his clothing. It seemed so right when it was just the two of them holding each other. She felt safe and he seemed content. Now she knew it would never work out between them. His family wanted her dead over something her mother did. He would never truly trust her. She had to get answers. She had to protect herself. Kera followed afte
r him on two feet back to his shop.

She didn’t know what to expect, but what she found wasn’t it.

Maddox was wearing his low slung jeans, his ear was pressed to the phone and on the other end was her father’s voice.

“Sleeping?” He asked Maddox. “She told you this when?”

“Sir, I should have called you last night.” Maddox told her father. “I was just too relieved that she was
okay
to remember to have her call you. She’s right here though. Would you like to talk with her?”

“Yes.”

Maddox
turned only to hand her the phone.

Kera felt a spark on her fingers as she brushed against the palm of his hand. The sensation had come so addictive to her that now she wondered how infrequent it would become that she would have the chance to feel it. Was he so angry that he would send her away?

“Kera?” Her father’s voice drew her away from the thought.

“Hi Dad.”

Sam sighed heavily. “This isn’t right Kera.” He said solemnly. “If you can’t take care of yourself then you need to be smart enough to come home.”

Kera frowned at her father’s words. “I can take care of myself.”

“No, you have a boy taking care of you while you constantly get into trouble. Do you have any idea what you are doing to me? I bet you’re driving that boy insane. Do you have any idea what would happen to his life if this turns out badly? I do. It would ruin his youth. I know because you are shaving years of mine. I am only going to ask this once Kera. Are you on something?”

K
era stared blankly at the floor as her father’s words sunk in. Then she looked at Maddox and knew he agreed with every word her father spoke
. He knew that she wasn’t on anything but she got the picture. He wanted her to do things his way
. She shook her head and spoke to both of them. “
If you have to ask me that, it’s because you don’t know me.
I’m the vulnerable one here and I think I’ve done a damn good job keeping you sane. If you want something to complain about how about you spend a second in my shoes and tell me if you’d be as calm as I am. I don’t have to rely on you. Maybe it was me hoping you would be there for me.” She felt tears in her eyes
but will them away with anger. H
er next words were directed at Maddox
. “I was hoping you cared enough.”

“I do.”

“Kera,” Sam spoke just as Maddox did. “I’m your father of course I care about you.”

“
Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.
Bye dad.” Kera ignored her father’s protest and hung up. Her father called back immediately but she didn’t answer. It was all too much. She hated this sick, worthless
feeling
in the pit of her stomach. She wanted to beg Maddox to hold her but at the same time she wanted to
yell at him for not telling her
everything he knew.

“You think I don’t care?” Maddox growled. He stalked toward her and took the phone from her hand. He tossed it and it landed on the couch behind him.
His arms wrapped around her and pulled her close until his nose was almost touching hers. “What is it you want Kera? I am always here for you. I come when you call me no matter how you treat me and yet you stand there telling your dad and
me
that we don’t care?”
H
e sighed heavily as the tears fell from her cheeks.

“Why do you care?” she asked in a shaky voice. “What am I missing? Be honest Maddox. You want me because I won’t break. Is that why you were so angry earlier? Because the other shifters figured you out?”

“I want you so bad I can hardly refrain from pushing you too quickly Kera. I feel how much you want me back.” He shut his eyes and rested his forehead on hers. “I want you to want me back. It angered me that they even thought of you in that way. You’re beautiful and sexy. When you called me after you were attacked I almost lost my mind. I had just started to think about all of the possibilities of being with a normal human girl. Yo
u made me want that. I took you
and your friend to the hospital then went back to kill whatever hurt you. The scent was long gone. Your blood
in your jeep
drove me near insane. I had to g
et rid of it. I kept praying that some higher power would make sure you lived. I begged on my knees that you would be
okay
. Then I heard you were out of the hospital and I couldn’t find you. You have no idea what it did to me not knowing where you were or if I would ever see you again.

“Yes I was relieved that you were a fast healer. It settled a fear inside of me that had always been there. It doesn’t mean that you being able to heal quickly, or shift into an animal, make me want you. I don’t want you because of those things. Since I met you I’ve been able to breathe again. You’ve made me think about the future. About my future. You have brought me hope Kera. Hope that I didn’t have before.” His eyes flickered between the dark blue that meant he was upset to the ice blue that she loved. The change was fleeting. “You also have caused me to be very hesitant. I may have some hope of
a different life for myself but I also have a health
y
fear of this new world crashing down around me. If something happened to you
,
I would be responsible. I believe that you’re innocent to this world. To my world. You have to trust me Kera. Let me take care of you.”

Kera let his words sink in. Her heart squeezed in her chest, a constant ache. He said everything she wanted to hear but didn’t believe one word. Not because she didn’t trust him, but because she didn’t believe it would ever happen to her. If she accepted his words, she would have to believe there was something more to her than a scared girl who was responsible for her mother’s death. A mother that tried to kill his father. The descendant of a liar and a thief that she couldn’t help but love with all her heart. What kind of person did that make her? A girl that wanted to accept what Maddox said and forget who she really was. But she couldn’t.

Her subconscious screamed her flaws at her as he held her. She angled her head and kissed him
with all of her pent up emotions
.

Maddox tightened his grip on her and
kissed her back. It was explosive.

Kera felt selfish and greedy as she took comfort in the way he held her.
His large hand gripped the back of her neck and his fingers threaded through her hair. His other arm supported the middle of her back just under her shoulder blades. His lips devoured her and she tried her best to please him with what little experience she had. He was very talented. What little she knew about romance and physical pleasure was blown out of the water by what her body craved when he plunged his tongue into her mouth. Heat and electric sensations traveled through her body and tightened the muscles in her stomach. She felt herself pressing against him and the contact supercharged her. Her breasts ached and the harsh fabric against her nipples caused her to squirm.

His hair was so soft under her fingers. She gasped when he pulled gently on her hair and broke contact with her lips. Her chest heaved. She felt his lips trail across her check. Then his teeth nipped at her ear lobe.

“Don’t stop.” Kera whispered before he had a chance t
o say anything.

He sighed and buried his face in her neck. “Kera.”

“Please.” She tried to turn her lips back to his but all he had to do was straighten his back and he was too tall for her reach. “Fine. But just so you know, I don’t need you telling me what I can and can’t have. If you are pulling away because you think I’m going to
o
fast for my
own good then you better kiss my trusting you goodbye. I deserve trust too.”

“I trust you Kera.” Maddox leaned down and kissed her nose. “
No more secrets between us
okay
? We’ll work all this out together, as a team. Then when everything calms down we’ll do this right. I still feel like I
could lose you any moment.”

“So you want commitment first?” She searched his eyes to try and read him. It was horribly stereotypical, where Maddox was anything but a stereotypical male, but she kind of expected him to think of sex as a recreational activity.

Maddox frowned down at her.

“You’re right.” Kera said quickly. “Just because you have the title of being my boy
friend
doesn’t mean I know everything about you. So if you want to get to know each other better before we become more than
friends
,
then I all for it. I’m not going anywhere Maddox. You’re the only one I want.”

He smiled. “Boyfriend huh?”

Kera nodded. “Well
you can change your title if you want. I’m still new to all of this.”

His smile widened. “That’s one of the things I like about you Kera. You’re all mine.”

“And you’re mine.” She declared possessively. Even as embarrassment flushed her cheeks, because arrogance wasn’t her forte, she forced the words out. “Just so we’re clear that I don’t wish to share either.”

His eyes were ice blue and smiling all on their own. “Let’s go get some breakfast woman, your boyfriend is starving. I need energy if we’re going to figure exactly who is threatening you and why.” His mood turned dark again. He began gathering his things and motioned her to the door. “
First I have to refrain from killing my cousin before he answers all of my questions.”

“Not funny.” Kera called out to him as she followed him out of the shop.

“I wasn’t joking.”

The warmth at her back was becoming a necessity, Kera thought. Her small dorm room bed was perfect size for Maddox to curl up behind her and hold her close.
She loved every minute of it. In
the early mornings after she woke, she thought about what it would be like to be with Maddox forever. In secret, she let herself dream. It wasn’t that she didn’t know it had only been a month since she met him but logically she couldn’t think of anyone coming along that would be better for her.

She wanted him. Forever.

The sounds in the dorms didn’t usually wake him up
,
but when a set of footsteps stopped in front of her door, Maddox tensed. A key slid into the lock of her door and twisted. She could hear the metal slide together as the gears moved. He sighed and warm air caressed her cheek.

“
Your roommate’s back.” He murmured.

“Uh huh.” Kera replied softly. Her cheeks flamed when the door creaked open and at Rebecca’s audible gasp.

Maddox loosened his grip on her and turned to the door. Kera peered over his broad shoulder into the room filled with soft morning light.

Rebecca had a few extra bags and
was dressed in a
bright new lime green jump suit. She was open mouthed and frozen as she stared at Maddox with the most star struck expression Kera had ever seen. She blinked out of necessity then fumbled a little with her keys.

“Morning.” Maddox said in a husky morning voice that warmed her stomach.

Rebecca’s cheeks tinted darker.
Morning
. She mouthed soundlessly.

Maddox chuckled and Kera had the urge to hit him. “Are you done?” She ground out.

He turned to her and kissed her nose. “Happy birthday
Kera.” He set his eyes on hers and she melted.

“Thanks.” She offered weakly.

He pulled the covers off of them and Kera wondered if Rebecca was disappointed they were fully clothed. She watched him stretch like he did every morning, practically touching the ceiling with the tips of his fingers before rolling his shoulders. “You doing
okay
?” He asked Rebecca, motioning to her head.

She nodded.