Chapter 14 - Rand

Her mouth around my dick felt like heaven. I looked down at her. Her bright blue eyes looked back at me, heavy-lidded and filled with lust. My fingers knotted in her hair, pulling tighter. I heard her moan, the sensation reverberating through my cock, and that was all it took.

I groaned as I finished, cock pulsing as I filled her mouth with cum. When I finished, she slowly pulled me from her mouth, tongue swiping around my dick and cleaning the tip. She licked her lips, looking hungrily at me, clearly needing more.

So did I, as I was hardening again already. Something about the woman kneeling in front of me made me insatiable. She'd always had that effect on me. And our time apart seemed to have only made it worse.

Pulling her to her feet, I pressed my lips greedily against hers, my hands roaming her naked body. Just caressing her, letting my fingers run along her skin, was enough to make me fully hard again. I needed her. My wolf needed her. I grabbed her bare ass, loving the way it felt in my hand. I loved everything about her body. I wanted to taste every inch of her, to draw this out for as long as possible. But my wolf had other plans.

I pushed her face-first against the wall, holding her hands above her head as my free hand roamed down her back, tracing her spine and ribs, taking my time as I moved toward her lower back. I squeezed her ass, relishing the way her back arched at the motion.

I could smell her arousal, and when my hand slid between her legs, I could feel how wet she was. Toying, teasing her, I slid two fingers inside her. She sighed, hips shifting in a way that made my wolf growl with pleasure.

I thrust my fingers in and out of her, watching the way she writhed and groaned against the wall, helpless and unable to move as I held her in place. I could feel her muscles tightening as she grew closer, her entire body tensing and coiling like a spring.

Just as she was about to come, I stopped. Her pants didn't stop as she turned back to look at me.

"Jerk," she growled.

I just grinned. "You're too fun to toy with," I whispered in her ear.

I slipped my fingers in my mouth, tasting her. My cock twitched, growing harder than it already was, and my wolf growled in pleasure at the taste. I couldn't wait any longer. I needed her right then, or I might go crazy.

Keeping her pressed against the wall, I thrust into her. She cried out as I impaled her on my cock, her lithe body writhing as I slid in and out of her.

I tangled my fist in her hair, pulling her head away from the wall and claiming her mouth even as I continued pumping in and out of her. She screamed, her hands curling into fists. I could tell she was close, could sense it in the way her hips bucked against me and the way her breathing shallowed, her moans growing higher-pitched.

Finally, she cried out, her muscles contracting around my cock as she came. She continued to moan as I kept pumping, letting her savor the moment and draw it out for as long as possible for you. I could feel my own need building again, and it wasn't long until I finished.

I panted, leaning my forehead against the back of her head, staying inside her for another moment as we both caught our breath, both of us sweaty, the air smelling of sex.

Finally, I pulled out. She sighed and turned around, looking up at me.

"Not the best apology, I know," I said. "But I hope it at least got the point across." My hands went to her waist as she looked up at me. I raised my eyebrows, grinning playfully. "And if I didn't, I'd be more than happy to try and prove my point again."

She snorted, giving me a soft, amused smile. But something flickered in her eyes that I couldn't read. If I hadn't known her any better, I would have said it was guilt.

She reached up on tiptoes and kissed me on the cheek. "I think you've proved your point. For now. But I think I need a shower before anything else. I need to…" She shook her head as if trying to clear it. "I need a shower."

I got the sense that she wanted to be alone for a bit, so I nodded. She brushed past me toward the bathroom, closing it behind her. A moment later, I heard the shower running.

A bit later, after we had both showered, I noticed she still hadn't come out of her room. My mind raced. I had sensed something was bothering her. Up until now, I had just assumed it had been our fight. But the more I thought about it, the more I wondered if there had been something more. Something I'd missed that she wasn't telling me.

I waited, periodically glancing in the direction of the stairs, waiting to hear her footsteps come down.

I couldn't let it sit. I wanted to make sure everything was okay. So, I walked over and knocked on the door.

A long pause followed, and I wondered if she wasn't going to let me in at all.

"It's open," she finally called.

I stepped inside and found Astrid wrapped in a towel, lying down on the bed and staring up at the ceiling.

"Everything all right?" I asked, coming to sit next to her.

She swallowed and rolled over away from me, not answering.

"Astrid?" I asked.

"Sorry," she said, taking a deep breath. "I'm fine."

I frowned, suddenly wondering if maybe I had done something wrong. My mind raced, trying to figure out what it might have been.

"Did I do something?" I asked.

"No… no…" She hesitated. "I'm just processing everything. That's all."

"I suppose that's understandable, considering everything," I said. "I just wish I hadn't been so stupid." I ran my hand up and down her bare back. "We would've had so much more time together."

As if something had flipped a switch, she froze. "Goddamn it, Rand," she said, exasperated. "Why did you have to stop being an asshole?"

I frowned. "I'm… sorry? I don't really know what I did wrong."

"This was supposed to be easy," she muttered, more to herself than to me. She ran her fingers through her hair. Something about the panicked, stricken expression on her face set off alarm bells in my head. "Hell, it should still be easy. Why did it suddenly have to become complicated?"

"I'm confused," I said.

Tears filled her eyes, and her hands trembled as she rubbed her face. "Fuck," she muttered.

"Astrid…" My arm wrapped around her, pulling her against me. "It's all right, baby. You can tell me anything."

She pushed me away, shaking her head. "You don't understand," she murmured.

I stood, frowning. "What? What don't I understand?"

She ran her fingers through her hair, taking deep breaths as she prepared herself for whatever she was about to say. Seeing her like that put me more on edge.

"I'm in trouble," she said. "No… I'm not. Thea is. Thea's in trouble, and it's all my fault."

I gaped at her, trying to wrap my head around what she was saying. I heard the words, but I couldn't process them. Something about them just didn't compute.

"I've been lying to you," she said. "I didn't come here to ask for help. I came here to get information on you and the others. Or at least, that's what I thought, until I found out what was really going on." She looked at me, her face pale, her eyes wide, almost doe-eyed.

"What?" The words didn't make sense. They all swirled in my head, pointing to one impossible answer. One that I couldn't believe.

I took a step back from her, mouth opening as realization slammed into me.

"You're working for the Gray Wolf," I said. "You've been working for him the entire time."

"His name is Ansel," she said. She turned and grabbed my arms as she looked up at me. "He asked me to spy on you, and I said yes because I was still pissed off at you. But then he wanted me to kill you. They're coming tomorrow night—"

"Why the fuck didn't you tell me this before?" I demanded, rage beginning to build and boil. "Were you planning on killing me and suddenly having a change of heart?"

"No. No, Rand." She shook her head. "I was just supposed to get information. I didn't know anything about the next part of his plan until a couple of nights ago—"

"You've known for a couple of days, and you're only now telling me?" I spat.

"I never wanted to kill you," she said, her voice plaintive. "You don't understand. He was trying to make me choose. I didn't know what to do."

"What do you mean ‘choose?'" I asked.

"He took Thea."

The words barely registered. All that mattered were the cold facts right in front of me. Anything else was drowned out.

"You betrayed me," I snarled.

"I know, and I fucked up," she said. "Hate me all you want, but do it later. Please. I've told you the truth and basically condemned Thea to death because of it. I need your help, or she's going to die."

"If you really want to help, you'll come in quietly," I growled. "We'll figure out what to do with you after we take care of the threat that you brought to our doorstep."

She backed up, shaking her head. "I can't," she said. "That's going to be too late. They'll know what I've done, and they'll kill Thea. Please, Rand. You can't—"

"I can't what?" I snapped. "Betray my pack? Run off just because you said so? For all I know, this is all another trick. What's the plan? Lure me into the woods so I can help your sister, then stab me in the back?"

"No, of course not. Rand, I'm telling the truth."

"Do you have any proof?" I demanded.

"My word isn't enough? I wouldn't lie about something like this, Rand."

"I can't believe a word you say anymore," I snarled. "You've been lying to me ever since you came here."

She groaned, running her fingers through her hair as she looked around. "What can I do to make you believe me?"

"I've already told you," I said. "Come with me to Jameson. Tell the others what you've told me. We'll put you somewhere secure, then figure out what to do after we've taken care of the Gray Wolf and the rest of his cronies."

She took a step back, shaking her head, a spark of defiance in her eyes. "I keep telling you, it'll be too late for Thea."

"We're not playing that game," I snarled. "Right now, the only thing I believe coming out of your mouth is that you were working for the Gray Wolf. Everything besides that doesn't matter."

I pushed out the door, knowing she would follow me as I stalked down the steps.

"Rand, please," she begged behind me.

I didn't answer, instead marching toward a cabinet.

"Fucking talk to me!" she cried. "Yell at me. Snap at me. Something. But just help me get Thea. That's all I care about right now."

"And there's only one thing I care about right now." I rummaged through the drawer and pulled out what I was looking for. I turned to Astrid, holding a pair of handcuffs. The type designed to hold shifters even if they turned into a wolf.

She saw the handcuffs and froze, taking a half-step back as her eyes widened with horror.

"I have these in case of emergencies," I said. "I'll give you one last chance to put these on yourself, or I can put them on for you."

Her eyes darted around the room, trying to gauge the distance between me and her, and whether or not she could get away in time. I growled, bristling.

"Don't make this any harder than it has to be," I warned.

"I'm not going with you," she said. "I'm going to save my sister. But the only way I know Thea and I will both get out of this alive is if you're there. Please, don't do this."

I lunged forward, moving fast enough to grab her wrist even as she tried to dart away. She snarled, her eyes blazing as her hand darted toward my face, her fingers lengthening to claws as they raked down my cheek. Her knee drove straight into my crotch.

I thought she would just come willingly; I hadn't been expecting her to fight this much. I probably should have. But she caught me off-guard. I groaned and stumbled backward, loosening my grip on the cuffs. That was all it took.

She jerked them away, and one of the cuffs clicked around my wrist. Before I registered what was happening, the other had clacked around one of the banisters. She stumbled back, panting.

For a moment, I expected her to grab a knife from the kitchen and stab me with it. Instead, she stood still for a minute, as if surprised.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I'm not letting my sister die."

She ran out of the house.

It didn't take long for me to break the wooden banister and tear after her, but it was long enough. By the time I had raced outside, Thea was nowhere in sight. Only her scent lingered.

Snarling, I shifted, planning on going after her. Except, when I did, I realized I'd lost her trail almost immediately. She had covered her tracks.

I ran through the woods, trying to catch a whiff of her scent, but nothing.

She was gone.