14. Vix

Chapter 14

Vix

S amuel leaned against the sink and crossed his arms over his chest. The way it accentuated his massive pecs was almost enough to distract her from the weight of his jade-green eyes pushing her to remember .

"I'm not going to steal from you," Samuel told her.

She blinked, wondering why he would say that out of nowhere.

"I went looking for you because the witchling told me you were our mate."

Vix eyed him, not trusting this new topic of conversation.

"No other reason," the alpha told her, his eyes unblinking as he stared down at her. "If you don't want us, you're free to leave."

Everything he'd said up to that last sentence had been the truth.

Samuel the man would let her leave, but the tiger would hunt her down to the ends of the earth if he had to. He might even join her in purgatory and Vix felt like he'd fit somehow into her endless winter…

But the other two were summer and autumn.

She couldn't abandon them, not now that she knew they were hers.

Winter killed autumn, and summer murdered winter.

It was an interesting metaphor that made her mind run ahead of itself until concepts flipped by too quickly for her to grasp, clicking and clacking as it tried to make sense of her before and how it fit into her now .

Vix stared into the alpha's eyes and felt entranced. There were no whispers warning her to drop her gaze to keep his tiger placated either.

Jade-green that reminded her of spring. Such a contradiction, her winter tiger.

"Are you asking me to stay?"

"I'd like you to, until you know whether you want us or not," the alpha said carefully. "But I need you to understand it is my job to protect everyone in this house. No killing here."

No killing, but maiming…

Vix smiled slightly and looked down at her black claws. "The raven?"

"She belongs to my witchling. No killing her either."

"What happens if someone tries to kill me?" All the rules of the game needed to be clear so she knew exactly where to bend them and where to give him malicious compliance.

"No one in this house will try to kill you," Samuel promised, his alpha magic leaking into his voice. "If you agree to stay, I'll protect you."

She could take care of herself, but Vix had to admit she liked the sound of that. "Any other rules?"

"No running off without telling anyone where you're going." The alpha opened a cupboard she hadn't even seen thanks to the way it blended into the rock. He pulled out a few things and set them on the clothes. "If you need anything, tell us. We're not mind readers."

Oh, the way he said that was curious. Did that mean there was a mind reader somewhere? Not the raven, so…the witchling? Fascinating .

Now she really wanted to meet her.

"I just want to see if this will work," Samuel admitted, some of his tiger fading away as humanity rose up to take its place. "Spending time together is the only way to do that."

Technically, he wasn't wrong, but it was too simplistic of an idea when all three tigers were steeped in pain and mysteries.

"I'll stay for a bit," Vix acceded. "Staying in this house will be…difficult, but I'll do my best."

"That's all I ask." Samuel turned back around with something in one hand and a brush in the other.

What the heck was that?

A loud noise startled her, and she dropped down, covering her ears to shield them from the horrific sound.

The alpha instantly turned it off, crouching down slowly until he was hovering over her like a giant gargoyle. "I need to dry your hair properly or all that work will be for nothing."

"Do you have to?"

Fascinating the way his jaw clenched. "Yes."

She glanced up at his dark, wavy hair and the way it shone, hands still over her ears. "It's so loud."

"It's enchanted." He pointed to a rune carved into the metal. "Won't be more than five minutes."

The metallic roar produced by electricity hurt her sensitive ears, and Vix didn't think she'd be able to last even five minutes if there wasn't anything else to drown that horrible sound out.

Would he…No, he would. He was an alpha.

Samuel had just said to tell him if she needed something. He would do this even if he didn't want to, because she needed it. The alpha in him would allow nothing less.

"It hurts," she murmured, dropping her hands from her ears. "That sound…I need something else to erase it."

"I can get you some earplugs?—"

"Can I touch you?" The melody of his alpha note intertwining with his tiger would help tie her to that weird silence where she could hear all the notes of the universe woven together and drown out the horrible whine from the metal dryer. "Your sound doesn't hurt and it's strong."

Another clench of his jaw and Vix held her breath as she waited.

"Fine." His hand reached for her and she didn't waste the opportunity.

Sliding into his arms, she wrapped her own around his waist and pressed her ear to his chest, right next to that silver. Samuel ended up falling back on his ass thanks to the force of her hug, but he didn't protest.

For a moment, his whole body surrounded hers, legs on either side of her, and his arm settled over her shoulders after he got over his initial shock.

The alpha rested a hand on the back of her neck to press her even closer to his chest, and a soft rumble escaped her when she felt his strength and warmth all around her. Vix sighed and relaxed into him.

Slowly, she reached out with her magic when his chest started to rumble in harmony with hers. It slid through his veins with the wildness every living thing possessed and the awful roar of the dryer felt far away as she focused on the thumping—pumping of his heart.

It was strong and steady.

Vix focused on the note of his dominant tiger next. It was the deepest bass, harmonizing perfectly with the dark, wild energy of the other two tigers and life finally breathed into this place made of dead wood and rock.

Occasionally wild energy possessed objects or things that weren't alive, but it was a part of what held all this shit together…or just the remnants of something else like the magic in his silver.

The silence finally reached her through the song of his vitality, and Vix realized she felt a little sleepy thanks to the rumble in his chest harmonizing with hers.

"You can call me Vix," she whispered, her hands pressed to his back, careful to keep her fingers from the names written in ink as she tried to blink away the sleepiness.

"That's not your true name though, is it?" His hand stroked her hair and she melted into him.

She tucked her head right under his chin. "No."

"That's okay, you'll find it one day."

How could he be so sure?

Vix felt something silky against her arms.

Looking down, she saw her wild, matted waves were now shiny ink against her deathly pale skin. Vix ran her fingers through it and tried to remember the last time she'd seen it like this. She grabbed a lock and stared at the split ends, deciding it wouldn't be so bad to cut some of it off.

Then she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tight. "It's a beautiful gift, Alpha. Thank you."

Frozen hibiscus, icy red ginger, wild tiger, and alpha curled around her, filling her nose. Vix took a deep breath and sighed like she was just too relieved to hold back. There – something profound that reminded her of rich, dark chocolate with its bittersweet taste.

The alpha was her mate.

He was hers .

Pulling back, she stared into those jade-green eyes and he was just so very pretty. She wanted to taste every inch of him to see if he was as delicious as he looked.

Would he let her?

Could he even feel the same pull she did?

Her heart was pounding in her chest as she dropped her gaze to follow the path of her fingers, watching as she trailed them over his shoulder and then down his chest. Vix stopped before she could pinch a nipple, losing her nerve at the last minute.

She had to be careful or he would shove her away and Vix wasn't sure how she'd react to that. The scent of the bond and the knowledge he was hers could make her lash out, and he was already so reserved with her.

Reaching up instead of down, she kept her eyes on his mouth and wrapped an arm around his neck to pull herself a little bit closer. Every inch of her skin felt flushed as she studied his lips.

His scent surrounded her, and the sweetness of the hibiscus mixed perfectly with the red ginger, but it was the scent of alpha that made her want to push him into claiming her.

Pressing her body against his was the most natural thing in the world. He was made for her. This alpha was her mate and he'd been created to fit against her like perfect pieces with no missing edges.

The picture they'd make together would look as if they'd always been a part of each other. There would be no gaps or missing shards.

Vix slid her fingers through his soft hair and that was the moment he tensed against her.

Her breath caught when she saw his jade-green was now full of glowing gold.

This mate of hers…in that moment, she was positive he was the most beautiful man she'd ever seen even if she didn't remember them all. No one could hold a candle to him.

Not even Gabriel.

Vix had been with a lot of people, always trying to fill up her nothingness, but she'd never felt like this with any of them.

This tiger of winter and ice had been made just for her .

Would he let her taste the ice on his tongue, or would he stop her? It didn't matter. Nothing would keep her from trying.

Rubbing her cheek against his made her chest rumble even louder than before, and Vix felt her muscles melt when his scent marked her, replacing the nothing she'd had before. It mixed beautifully with the oils he'd used and she turned her head slightly, brushing her lips against his cheek.

The alpha seemed to be holding his breath, but he wasn't moving away from her.

Vix let a soft sigh skitter across his mouth, allowing the seconds to slide by just so she could listen to the way the pounding of his heart got louder and louder and louder .

Gently, she brushed her lips over his, sighing contentedly when he didn't shove her away.

That was enough for now. If she pushed any harder, she'd lose her mind, and his scent was so carefully controlled. If she tried to take more, he might hate her.

Pulling back, Vix searched his eyes, trying to find anything that would tell her what he was thinking.

Then those strong hands were on her back, pressing her even harder against him, and the alpha was kissing her.

Uh-oh.

This was dangerous.

But her mate seemed to enjoy her gasp of surprise, because he ate it up and lifted her higher until her legs were on either side of him, the robe falling open so there was nothing but his pants between their skin.

When he pressed her against him, she felt him harden, and every thought in her head vanished until all that was left was the burning need he'd ignited.

Rolling her hips against him, opening her mouth to give him whatever he wanted, she was ready to let him claim her right there on this stone floor.

A small snarl escaped her when his tongue slid inside her mouth to caress her canines. It was too soft. Vix pressed her whole body to his, needing to get closer. It didn't matter that his silver was burning her or that she should be taking this slow because he couldn't scent her…

But she could scent him and it was seductive, slipping through her body and mind to tell her he hungered for her. He might even be starving and only she could give him what he needed.

Her snarl became a soft moan when his hand slid up her back to hold the nape of her neck like he owned her. It was such a possessive touch that she kissed him harder, hoping he'd take what he wanted with teeth and claws.

Could he at least feel how much she wanted him? Could he hear the sound of her heart pounding and her breath catching? Could he feel the heat between her legs, right up against his hardness?

Before she could ask him with human words, the alpha stood without warning and gently set her on her feet. "Let's get you into some clothes, Vix."

What.

The.

Fuck.