Chapter 7

She realized too late that her words had issued a kind of challenge to Decker. He’d most likely heard that she didn’t trust him to keep her safe. He walked towards her, stopping when she raised her hand, waving him off. The buzzing inside her head and pain had intensified and she placed her hand on the windowsill to steady herself.

“They’re dead because O’Shea is a murdering thug,” snarled Decker. Adriana was beginning to realize that she was finding Decker’s snarls somewhat comforting. “I’ll make you a deal,” he continued, “you keep Erin close. Help her heal; keep her safe.” She turned to look at him. “I’ll see that O’Shea dies for all he’s done. I promise you, Eoghan O’Shea will die by my hand in your and Erin’s name.”

Ignoring the pain and determined to stay present in the moment, she turned to face him. “And why would you do that, Decker Rhys-Davis? You are neither Irish, nor a witch. What could possibly make you determined to keep me safe?”

“You are my fated mate, and I protect, defend, and avenge what is mine.”

She pulled down the neck of her sweater to reveal the mark left from Eoghan’s claiming bite. “I have a nasty little reminder that says differently.”

The feral growl that came from deep in his throat was far more arousing than it was frightening. The scar from Eoghan’s claiming bite had not completely healed, and unlike any Adriana had seen before had spidery veins that extended out from the bite itself. This time when he came near, it wasn’t nausea she was fighting. Oh, the nausea was there, but it was heat and desire that were at the forefront of her feelings. Decker reached out, cupping the back of Adriana’s neck to drag her forward and cover her mouth with his, their tongues dancing as if they’d been kissing each other forever.

Adriana had never been comfortable with kissing. It always felt a little awkward and a little messy. She’d never learned exactly what she was supposed to do with her hands or the rest of her body. With Decker that wasn’t an issue. His kiss wasn’t hesitant or questioning. It was possessive, dominant, and incredibly intoxicating. He led and she followed. There was no question about anything.

Arousal surged through her veins, making her feel as though she was being overwhelmed by a tsunami. She should have been frightened, but she wasn’t. Instead, she could feel parts of her body coming alive that she hadn’t even known existed. Decker’s hand slid down her back as he turned her away from the window, making her spine shiver in response.

There was a crash as Decker swept Colby’s desk clean, sending everything scattering onto the floor. He kept his hand on her neck, not allowing her to break the kiss as he lifted her onto the desk. He never once broke the kiss, his tongue tangling with hers. She leaned back on her hands, supporting herself as he rucked her skirt up, ripped off her panties, and moved between her legs.

“No more panties for you,” he growled low.

She knew she should say something; tell him to stop, but no power on earth could have made her say those words.

Leaning on one hand so that their bodies were only inches apart, he slid his hand up her leg, along the inside of her thigh. Adriana hissed and let her head fall back as his fingers slid over her labia.

“So wet,” he rumbled before nipping her lower lip.

She was torn between giving over to what she was feeling when he made deep, primitive noises. There was no need for her to respond to him the way she was doing. Greg, she could understand. He would be a suitable mate. She and Decker had nothing in common, though, but chemistry—and that they had in spades.

He penetrated her core, curling his fingers up and stroking gently as she made a quiet trilling noise. He brought his soaked fingers up to his mouth, sucking them inside and licking them clean. “Damn, you taste even sweeter than I thought you would, and I was damn sure you were going to taste sweeter than any honey ever made.”

“Decker, please,” she sighed, not sure what she was pleading for.

Did she want him to stop, or want him to skip the foreplay and get right to the part where he thrust into her? For the first time in her life, she knew what it was to crave an alpha wolf’s knot. Eoghan had seemed reluctant to do much with her. Certainly, he’d never knotted and tied her to him, for which she was truly grateful.

Through lust glazed eyes, Adriana watched as he stepped back, unbuttoning his fly, freeing his enormous cock. It would appear the captain of the guard had failed to pull on boxers or briefs before getting dressed. Growling low, Decker stepped closer, taking his cock in his hand, guiding it to the entrance of her core and aligning its broad head up, pushing into her in a single pass. She felt her pussy softening and accepting his size as he groaned.

Breathing became difficult, not because it was too large, but because nothing had ever felt as good as Decker Rhys-Davis penetrating her until he was buried up to his balls. God, she was glad she hadn’t damaged them permanently. He leaned down, pressing her back, one hand fisting her hair, tangling it and giving a sharp tug, lighting up not only her scalp but every other cell in her body.

Gripping her hips with both hands, he began to thrust in and out of her—forward and back again and again. Each time he drove forward, he angled down so that he managed to hit her clit and when he pulled back, he managed to drag his cock over that sweet spot deep inside her. Adriana moaned in abject pleasure, not caring if anyone heard or saw.

He moved hard within her, building that sweet pressure until she cried out, her body bowing, her fists grasping his muscled forearms as he drove deep. He pounded into her with a ferocity that should have frightened her, but only served to make her body ramp back up to fly free with his. As he thrust into her repeatedly, her pussy quivered and shook from the intense pleasure he was giving her. Her breath sped up, and the noises she made became more like whimpers than moans or sighs. She could feel a second orgasm approaching even faster than the first. Her body stiffened in anticipation, and she began to pant, reveling in the amount of pleasure he seemed to be able to call forth from her. Without warning, Adriana careened over the edge as Decker gave one hard, ferocious thrust deep inside her. Screaming in ecstasy, her pussy spasmed, clamping down hard, greedily milking his cock as he ground himself against her. She writhed in his hold, savoring every bit of pleasure as he held her in his arms.

For just a moment, his eyes were soft as he traced her jawline with his finger. Before either of them could say something they might regret, the door burst open and a laughing Erin, Brie and Colby entered. Decker pulled out and then brought her skirt down, before turning around to stuff himself back behind his fly, buttoning it up and her panties into his front pocket.

“I knew that was coming, but for the record, the only one entitled to use my office for things like this is me,” quipped Colby.

“You’re okay with this, Adriana?” asked Brie.

Adriana smiled weakly and nodded.

“Adriana knows she is my fated mate. Tell them.”

“I know,” she admitted, the roiling in her stomach returning with a vengeance. She rolled away from Decker, looking for Colby’s trash can. Grasping it, she vomited.

Erin giggled. “Gross.”

The kid wasn’t wrong. Adriana was hideously embarrassed and would have preferred to have had the ground open up and swallow her whole. Instead, Decker swept her up in his arms and began to carry her toward the clinic as she clutched the trash can against her chest.

Brie ran into the powder room attached to Colby’s office, grabbing the trash can in there. “Here, take this one,” Brie said, exchanging the clean trash can for the one into which Adriana had already thrown up.

Decker barged into the medical clinic bellowing for Greg, not paying any attention to who might be there or what might be ailing them.

Greg came into the waiting room. “What the hell is wrong with you? Keep your damn voice down.” He seemed to be furious with Decker. Would he be angry with her as well. “Adriana? What did you do to her?”

“I did nothing to my mate,” growled Decker.

Adriana took some comfort in knowing at least as long as he had her in his arms he couldn’t pummel the dear doctor to death.

“You don’t know that she’s your mate,” snarled Greg.

“Don’t I?” returned Decker.

“Can’t you see you’re adding to her stress?”

“It’s fine, Greg. I’m fine. I haven’t thrown up since Brie and Colby came back in his office.”

Greg arched his eyebrow. “And what were the two of you doing in Colby’s office that made you throw up?”

“It wasn’t anything we did that made her sick. She still bears the mark of another wolf’s claim so she’s experiencing symptoms of nausea and dizziness. Plus, she has a headache.”

“I can speak for myself,” Adriana snarled.

“Shh, sweetheart. Greg will figure it out.”

“We’ll have to all figure it out,” growled Greg.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” she said, flicking her hand towards the door, causing it to slam shut.

“Put her on the examining table and get out,” directed Greg. “I need to examine her.”

Decker set her down gently. “I will stay.”

“She is my patient.”

“She is my mate.”

“That hasn’t been determined yet.”

Adriana lay back, closing her eyes while Decker and Greg argued as the latter tried to perform a routine, preliminary exam. Behind her closed eyes, Adriana began to experience a light as the headache began to subside. Dancing before her eyes there were three snarling wolves. Two were of a similar size, with one being slightly larger. The three were facing off against a much larger fourth wolf.

Instinctively, she knew the identity of all of them. The smallest was her, the one slightly larger was Greg, and the one larger than Greg, was Decker. The largest of the four had to be Eoghan. Why had she never perceived his power? Had it been there all along? Adriana watched as the wolves she knew to be her mates banded together to stay between her and the largest wolf to drive it off. That was the answer; it was so obvious.

Opening her eyes, she watched them argue, getting more heated by the moment. She slid off the examining table and stepped between them. Taking each of their hands in hers, she quieted them along the tentative tether she shared with both. Neither said a word and just stared at her. Murmuring softly, she pulled the magic of revelation to her. Her hands began to glow, and that glow transferred to each of them. Glancing at her and each other, she watched as the knowing overtook their anger.

Greg cleared his throat. “Are you feeling better?”

“A bit. The nausea and dizziness is gone, and I think the more completely you accept what all three of us know, the sooner the headache will be completely gone. It seems my acceptance of the bond I must share with both of you is helping a great deal. I suspect when each of you accepts it completely, it will resolve itself.”

“How the fuck is that going to work?” asked Decker.

“I don’t know. But when I’m with only one of you, the bond with the other corrupts my equilibrium, unless I’m in the throes of passion. But when we’re all together and at peace, the pain is negated as the bonds are no longer having to fight each other.”

“I don’t know that I’m ready to accept that,” grumbled Greg.

“Nor am I,” agreed Decker.

“I don’t think you have a choice any more than I do. But you didn’t see what I saw in my mind’s eye. I saw the two of you standing together, shoulder-to-shoulder, shielding me from a greater threat. A threat that neither of you can defeat alone.”

Decker, ever the warrior, snarled, “What is it we’re shielding you against?”

“Eoghan. I don’t believe he’s the weakling we’ve all believed him to be. I’m not sure we understand his relationship—for lack of a better term—with Strode.”

“Strode is dead,” said Greg.

“He is. I called forth my ancestors and sent his soul to the Shadowlands to wander forever. But Eoghan is still after me. He’s coming for me.”

“Well, he won’t have you,” growled Decker, “not on my watch.”

Decker loosened her hold on Greg, pulling her close and kissed her hard before stalking out of the room, leaving her alone with Greg.