Chapter 25

25

O ver the next few weeks, we all kept busy on set. This June morning, I lay curled in Kade's arms in his cabin reading the book. Summer had finally arrived, but unfortunately so had the mosquitos. They should be the state bird. And the black flies were awful, too.

I was only halfway through the book because we didn't have a lot of free time, and I was exhausted. Still, I picked it up whenever I had a chance because no one could understand what it felt like to have a single book in the world that I could understand fully. It also demonstrated how out of sequence we were filming everything. We'd already filmed the end scenes, but not the climatic one. Kade still wouldn't share with me the name of the actor who'd been cast to play Cozhul, only that he'd be arriving soon.

Kade snorted and I looked up from my book. "Something funny?"

He held his phone. "I think you're right about something being weird about Jiz. I mean, weirder than normal."

I sat up. "Do you hear the sound of hooves when he walks now?"

Lots of crew were complaining about seeing things now—creatures that weren't there, odd bunches of flowers that appeared and disappeared, structures that winked in an out of sight, unexplained noises. I was more convinced than ever that Jiz was tied into this in some way, I just didn't see how. He was a taskmaster on the set, and a drunkard off it. That hadn't changed. But every now and then I'd get a glimpse of him from the corner of my eye, and something was different. Non-human. By the time I looked head on, he was just Jisi Jabril, pain-in-the-ass director extraordinaire.

Kade shook his head. "No, but he's sent the entire cast and crew an email that claims he's experimenting with new special effects and that we shouldn't be alarmed if we see creatures or other things that look like they belong in the film. He says they're illusions and he plans to take home an Oscar for best special effects, so we need to just roll with his grand plan."

"Uh-huh. That's not suspicious at all."

He tapped out something on his phone and waited a few minutes.

"Ali, Poppy, and Rory are on the same page. He knows something. Rory doesn't think you should be alone with him. I agree."

"You all won't let me go anywhere by myself anyway." They hadn't since I'd told them everything that day in the yurt. I didn't mind, and the one positive to having a glorified babysitter was the lack of ravens. Especially when Ali or Kade were around. And the coin had been suspiciously quiet, too.

"Alistair has volunteered to follow him around after hours."

"Do you or Ali smell anything different about him?" Both Kade and Ali had mentioned that I smelled really good when they'd met me, though neither had thought I was anything other than human. But that could be because they'd only known to think of someone as human, wolf, or vampire, and I smelled most like a human.

"He always reeks of alcohol. It overpowers any other smell. But I can ask Ali." Some more tapping. "He says the same thing."

"I wonder if that's purposeful?"

"Possible." Kade set his phone down, and gave me a heated stare. I'd become very familiar with that look in the last few weeks and it meant I was about to have at least one orgasm before we left for the set today.

I laid my book down and stretched up for a kiss. The moment our mouths collided, everything else fell away. I'd once thought I'd loved Matt, but those feelings paled in comparison to what grew daily between Kade and me. It wasn't only physical, though our bond grew in strength the more we touched. And Kade being a wolf was very tactile. At first, he'd tried to hold back, fearing I'd feel smothered. I didn't. It just made me realize how starved I'd been for attention and how I'd settled for scraps in the past. But now, every time our emotions carried across the bond, every time we touched, my spirit sang. A full blown concert. He'd always been direct with me, but sensing his feelings through our bond, too, let me know just how genuine he felt and strengthened my confidence that I was the most important person in his world. He was in mine.

He kissed me like this was our last one, and when he gently twisted a nipple ring, I moaned into his mouth, my cock already aching for him. When he released my ring, I rolled over so we were chest-to-chest. He rumbled in approval and threw back the sheet, and grabbed the lube. He poured a healthy dollop into his palm and reached between our bodies, taking our cocks in hand. The feeling of our shafts sliding together as his hand worked us over was pure bliss.

"Damn, alpha , that feels so amazing." While Kade wasn't much for blustering out of bed and took the idea of our partnership seriously, he did love to be called alpha when we had sex. Always made him a little feral—just the way I liked him. His hand tightened and he sped up. My balls pulled tight, but I clenched my ass to hold out a little longer.

"Love when you're so close. Want you to spill all over my cock, sweetheart. Then I'm going to paint you with my come, rub it into your skin so everyone will know you're mine."

Aaand that did it. I convulsed, my orgasm rocketing through me. A few more strokes and he followed me over the edge. He wasn't kidding about painting me. Wolves seemed to produce more semen than humans, so he coated both our cocks, and his hand before he was through.

He flipped me to my back and rubbed the come into my skin, his tongue following a trail after his tongue. I floated and luxuriated in his attentions. If I had my way, this would only be our first orgasms of the day, but definitely not our last.

We grudgingly climbed out of bed and showered together and prepared to head to the set.

Stepping out of the cabin, I nodded to a lynx that lounged on the porch. Yesterday it had been several coyotes, and the day before that a couple of hawks. Kade didn't react aggressively to the animals anymore, and seemed to accept their presence with a kind of camaraderie that may have had something to do with his wolf side.

A truck rumbled past us piled high with timber. They were building a prop battlements for the final showdown. No wonder this film was so overbudget, Jabril insisted the battlements be forty feet tall and four hundred feet long at the base of Smudge Hill. They even turned one of the ski lift pylons into an impressive tower fortification. No way they were paying the prop guys enough.

As we walked toward the set, Rory strolled up, whistling, and in full costume. He grinned when he saw us.

I squinted at him. "You're awfully cheerful for so early in the morning."

"Just had another interview with Matt. The guy can never admit he doesn't know something. He's always pretended he's read The Elves' Cursed Coin , but I knew he was a big fat liar. So, today I put him to the test. Every time he asked me a question about the film, I threw back one about the book. Only, I might have changed it up a little and thrown in some misleading statements that were based on The Wheel of Time series. He obviously hasn't read that one, either, and let's just say when those clips air, he's going to look like and absolute ass."

I chuckled. "I heard Ali fucked with him the other day, too. The vodka in the water bottle trick."

"Poppy showed up with a bottle of red wine to split with him while he interviewed her. She "accidentally" spilled her glass on him in the middle of their interview. He had to play it off like it was no big deal and just continue on with wine soaking his lap," Kade said.

Ooh, he would hate that. My girl was pure evil and I loved her for it.

I'd done my best to avoid Matt and since the day at the yurt, but we'd done one very stilted interview at the beginning of the week. Kade had accompanied me, and it only lasted a few minutes. He'd opened by calling me "T," but I'd shut that shit down quick, asking him to please refer to me by "Teremie."

After the awkward introductions, he'd led with, "I hear you have an Only Fae account—"

"Ooh, are you a fan?" I batted my eyelashes. Truth was, I hadn't done a jack off session since I'd mated with Kade and I wasn't sure I would do any more. I'd become greedy and enjoyed sharing my orgasms with him too much to think about putting on a solo performance for others. But I had time to decide, and in the meantime, I shared funny on set stories.

"No, my boyfriend wouldn't approve."

"Hmmm." I shrugged. "Each to their own."

"Do the producers have any issue with you being a porn star?" he tried again.

I'd chuckled. "Funny thing about Hollywood, publicity is king. You never know what doors you'll open when you put yourself on the public's radar—or someone does it for you."

That really pissed him off. He'd followed up by trying another tactic to get under my skin.

"You seem very committed to this project," he'd said.

I grinned, keeping my posture deceptively relaxed. "I am. It's a great script and any actor would be lucky to have a part in what's sure to be the next big blockbuster. Thanks for helping promote it, by the way. It's so great to connect with our audience in all sorts of ways."

His jaw clenched and his smiled through gritted teeth. "Always happy to help."

Then to be a total asshole, he'd pulled out a packet of papers that he claimed was part of the script.

"The fans would love to see what you can do. Will you read a few lines for us?"

Kade looked like he would rip Matt's spine from his body (not that Matt actually had one of those), but I'd smiled and said, "Oh, I don't need a script. Throw out a scene and I'll happily do a couple of lines."

I'd proved it, too, and knocked it out of the park. He really didn't like that. He'd pretended to look at this expensive douchey watch that his new boyfriend had bought him.

"Damn, I forgot I have another appointment scheduled, but I hope we can pick this stimulating conversation up later."

Leo, still under Matt's thrall, shot daggers at me the whole time. As if I'd want him back. I'd be annoyed, except I'd been Leo once. Poor guy didn't know the rough ride he was in for. I hoped he had more sense than I had, but Matt, like any good narcissist, could smell an easy target from miles away.

That short interview bought me a reprieve, and I could tell Jabril honestly, that, yes, I'd met with him. And Matt had gone out of his way to avoid me. Win-win.

Rory, Kade, and I stopped into the cantina and grabbed a quick breakfast. Poppy and Alistair joined us as we were almost finished, but they'd eaten earlier. I grabbed a cup of tea for Bradley before leaving. We all walked toward makeup and hair together, ignoring the band of marauding goblins that passed through us and disappeared. We'd almost reached the tent when Matt stepped out from another tent.

"Teremie! Do you have a minute?" He turned his smile up full wattage.

I thought about saying no, but he was like a dog with a bone. Better to get it over with and move on.

"Sure." I approached. My protective posse came with me. I almost laughed. "Guys, I've got this. I'll see you inside. Let Bradley know I'm coming." I handed Rory the tea. When they'd grudgingly—very grudgingly—left me with Matt, I crossed my arms. "What's up?"

"What's up?" Matt pressed a hand to his temple. "Who are you and what did you do with Teremie? He used to be so sweet and considerate—"

I held up a hand. "He still is. To his friends . But the guy who used to think the sun circled your orbit died when you lied about him cheating on you for a ratings boost. Oh, and cheated with your new boyfriend."

"You're taking things the wrong way. I would never—"

"Save it for someone who buys what you're selling." That wasn't me. Not anymore.

"I just thought that we could—"

"No."

"You don't even know what I was going to ask." His lip turned down into a pout that used to make me feel so guilty.

Didn't feel anything now except disgust. What a fucking man-child.

"Don't care. As far as I'm concerned, there is no ‘we'. Not in any capacity."

"That's really harsh. You're hurting my feelings." He brushed a finger down my bicep. I slapped it away.

"It's always about you, huh? Look, you've got your rich, powerful boyfriend, and your sweet, na?ve boy toy, so why the hell are bothering me? I'm not that guy anymore. I've moved on. So should you."

"You can't just walk away from everything we shared. Besides, I don't care about Leo, I care about you."

"Wow, I didn't think you could sink any lower. Looks like rock bottom has a basement."

He opened his mouth to spew some other bullshit, but I cut him off.

"Unless you're interviewing me for this project, I don't want to talk to you. But before I go, I do want to thank you."

He crossed his arms and frowned. "For helping you launch your career?"

"No, you're the one who always cared about fame. I just wanted to be a good partner, have a family, and run a little streaming channel that brought cosplaying gamers like me joy."

His eyes narrowed. "You always had such small dreams."

"Maybe. But they were mine. And you made me feel like they weren't worthy. Now, I know they were. So that's why I want to thank you. If you hadn't broken up with me in epic fashion, I would have come crawling back, always trying to make you happy, do what you wanted, and helping you live your dreams at the expense of my own. I would have kept that false group of friends, and let you keep eroding my self-worth until I'd made myself as small as possible so as not to overshadow your need for the spotlight. Now, I don't have to. So, thanks, and have a good life. I intend to."

"You wouldn't be here without me!" He called after me. He called me some nasty names, but I didn't bother to listen. Nothing he said interested me anymore. I couldn't resist. I shook out my sleeve and the coin appeared in my palm. I tossed it in the air, then caught it. Dragon.

I grinned. Yeah, that's what I thought.

When I ducked through the door of the makeup tent, Rory, Poppy, Ali, Kade, and Bradley stood at the door shamelessly eavesdropping with a few of the other stylists. They burst into applause and started hugging me. The pride Kade felt radiated through our link and warmed me in places I didn't even know needed warming. While I knew I'd been working toward that resolution with Matt anyway, having a rock solid found family and a mate destiny had put in my path, made that work a little lighter. Not done, but further along than I could have imagined a few months ago.

And while I basked in the hugs and laughter, a mop of blond hair caught my eye in the background. Leo. Shit. Had he heard everything? By the heartbroken expression in his eyes, I'd say that was a resounding ‘yes'.

I untangled myself from the group and approached him. "I'm sorry you heard that."

"Why? So you can gloat?" His voice broke.

"I'm the last person to do that. I was with the asshole for eight years. You deserve better."

He wrapped himself in his arms, stared at the ground. "I don't. I took those pictures. Hyde and Matt asked me too, and I thought you were a cheater, and that I was helping . . ."

"He can be very convincing." I placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, prepared for him to knock it away. "Just don't let him make you as small as he made me. If you want my forgiveness, you have it. You just need to forgive yourself. And if you need someone to talk to, my cabin door's always open."

He shook his head. "No, I'm leaving. Think I'll go visit my older sister for a while. Get my head on straight."

"Sounds like a plan."

He looked up at me through thick lashes, and a tear ran down his cheek. "Thanks."

"For what?"

"Not trying to make me feel worse."

Before I could say anything else, he fled the tent. I hoped he followed through and didn't let Matt talk him around. Kade came up beside me and threw his arm around my shoulders. "I'm a very lucky wolf to have a mate as compassionate as you."

My lips turned up in a hint of a smile. "I'm a very lucky man to have a wolf who supports me when I need it, and let's me fight my own battles when I need it."

He leaned in and said against my mouth, "Teremie Michael Summers, I love you, and I'm so proud to call you my mate."

"I love you, too, my big strong wolf. So, so much."

"Get a room you two," Ali called to hoots and hollers from the stylists.

Awww, hell, guess the cat, er, wolf was out of the bag. Kade's amusement traveled along our link and that was all I needed to pull him down into a smokin' hot kiss.