Destiny Concealed, page 21
He opened up the apartment door before she could knock. Casey marched in like she owned the damn place, making his wolf sit up and pay attention. Grinding his teeth, Saxon shoved the door closed and turned his eyes to the red-head who was slowly turning his world upside down.
Crossing his arms over his chest, he said, “I thought you were leaving.”
She groaned in frustration. “I don’t have time for this. You need to take me to Rhett, like, now.”
Saxon arched a brow at her. “What’s the rush?”
“I knew you’d be a jackass about this,” she huffed. “I just need to get there, get Alex then get the hell of here since we’re both so damn unwelcome.” Crossing her arms, she came to a stop in front of him. “So, are you going to take me, or what?”
She was sexy when she was pissed. Saxon groaned internally, wanting to kick his own ass for getting so side-tracked. Dragging a hand down his face, he said, “Let me get my keys.”
One of Casey’s legs bounced up and down in the footwell as Saxon drove them both out to the pack house. He couldn’t help but glance at her from the corner of his eye every few seconds, trying to assess her mood.
The expression on her face was tight—pinched—like she was sucking on a lemon. Her eyes were fixed on the road ahead of them, her fingers rapping against the knee of her other leg.
Saxon hated the silence. Although he’d only known Casey for a short time, he had become used to her inane commentary and general childishness, which made absolutely no sense at all. He preferred more mature women, but his wolf had eyes only for her.
He cleared his throat hoping to catch her attention. When that didn’t work, he took his hand off the gearshift and touched her bouncing leg. She startled then twisted around to face him; it was almost as if she’d forgotten he was in the car with her.
“You seem a little distracted,” he said.
Casey held his gaze for a moment before turning away.
There was an unbearably long silence.
“Why did you say those things to me before?” Casey said the words to the passenger window, but they were meant for him.
Saxon shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I’m sorry I said that to you, Casey. I was just—”
“Out of line?” she snapped back hotly, cutting him off. “Being a gigantic asshole?”
He glanced at her quickly before fixing his eyes back on the road. “Both those things, I guess.”
“I already knew you were an asshole,” Casey retorted, “but I can’t figure out what I’d done wrong to make you say those things to me.”
Her voice had softened, tugging at Saxon’s heart. He let out a deep breath. “I guess I was just upset that the girl I was talking to last night wasn’t there anymore,” he replied, knowing how stupid it sounded. She was still the same person. “I just thought…”
She turned her whole body toward him. “You thought what?”
Well, he might as well tell her the damned truth. “What I told you last night…I’ve never told anyone those things before.” There, he’d said it. He peered at her to see what she would say, but there was a strange expression on her face. It almost looked as if she was pleased and grateful and surprised all wrapped up in one.
“Not even Saskia?” she eventually asked.
He shook his head. “No, not even Saskia. I couldn’t tell her what being admitted into the Helheim pack had cost me. It didn’t matter anyway. Saskia was all that mattered and I would have taken any deal they’d offered if it meant Saskia would have a safe place to live, and a chance to be mated to an honorable male.”
“You really love her, don’t you?” Casey whispered. Saxon nodded. She then said, “After I went to bed, I thought about whether any of my brothers would do the same thing for me—you know, abandon their lives as enforcers just so I could have the opportunity to live a proper life away from scandal.”
“And what did you come up with?”
Casey picked at some non-existent lint on her pants. “Only Oliver would do that for me.”
“Is he your big brother?”
“One of them.” Casey shifted her body to look out the windshield again. “He’s the second eldest, after Hunter.”
“How many brothers do you have?”
“Four.”
“Can you tell me about them?” he asked, not wanting her to stop talking. He had intentionally missed the turn-off for the pack house so she could stay with him a little longer.
“Hunter is my eldest brother. He’s the pack’s beta. Hunter can be a little stuck-up, but I love him all the same. Oliver has always looked out for me, especially when Hunter was picking on me when we were growing up. Dylan is next and we’ve been confused for twins before. My youngest brother is Riley. He wanted to be like Hunter so bad that he used to be his shadow when he was younger.”
Saxon noticed that Casey’s face lit up when she was talking about her brothers, which in turn made him smile. “What about your parents?”
“My dad might be alpha, but he’s a real teddy bear deep down. He and my mother have been mated for nearly one hundred and twenty years, but…”
Saxon glanced over. “Casey?”
She shook herself a little. “But nothing. They’re still together and happy.”
Saxon could tell she wasn’t giving him the whole truth, but he let it go. It was getting to a point now where he couldn’t hide the fact that they’d been driving for over an hour and hadn’t reached their destination yet. He finally pulled off at their turn-off and drove the rest of the way in silence. Casey had told him a lot about her family, which seemed only fair after he had told her so much about his.
When he pulled into the circular drive, Casey seemed a little tense. Could she be feeling as sick in the stomach as he was about her leaving? He cut the engine, and they both sat there for a moment.
“Casey, I—”
“Don’t say it, Saxon,” she replied without looking at him. She heaved a deep sigh and opened up the door. “Thanks for driving me out here. Have a great life.”
TWENTY-NINE
Alex could smell Saskia, but he could also smell Ezekiel in the sheets they were lying in. The erection he’d been sporting for another round with Saskia suddenly felt so damn wrong, although it was too late for that when he really thought about it.
They had already done what they shouldn’t have, and in Saskia and Zeke’s bed, too. Saskia sighed gently in her sleep and pushed her ass up against Alex’s hips. He was spooning her from behind, marveling at the way her body fit so perfectly into his.
Glancing up, he found the clock on the bedside table glowing patiently. Fuck. He had to go. Their lovemaking had taken longer than he thought it would. Two hours had already passed, and Saskia’s mate would be home soon.
“Saskia,” he whispered, his fingers stroking the sinfully-soft skin on her belly. She sighed again, but didn’t wake up. He tried again. “Saskia, wake up.”
Nothing.
He hadn’t wanted to resort to what he was about to do since she was so uptight about it already. “Ezekiel will be home soon,” he said, pressing a kiss behind her ear.
Saskia jerked up and away from the cage of his arms, the sheet dragging away from her body. Alex’s erection suddenly got another injection of blood at the sight of her gloriously naked breasts.
“Oh my god,” she breathed, glancing between the door to the bedroom and him. “Oh my god,” she repeated, more frantically. Her eyes finally fell down to his waist, taking in the tented sheet hiding his arousal. She blushed and looked away.
“Oh…my,” she said once more, except the urgency was gone this time. She looked back at him with heavy-lidded eyes and smiled.
He felt like beating on his chest like a fucking caveman for that look from her, but Alex stopped her from reaching for him. “Your mate will be home soon.”
Saskia’s eyes widened, her nostrils flared. “Oh!” she jumped from the bed, collecting up her clothes, and throwing Alex’s at him. She got dressed quickly then whirled around at him.
“You have to get out of the bed. I need to change the sheets and get these ones in the wash as soon as possible.”
Alex stepped into his pants and pulled the shirt over his head. “Baby, calm down. There’s still some time.”
“No! There is no time. Alex, if he smells you on the sheets, he’ll know.” She was getting frantic now, her blue eyes darting around the room. Alex was still seated on the edge of the bed, watching her unravel.
He shook his head. Here was the regret that she’d given in and made love to him. He should have known it couldn’t have lasted. He stood up and started stripping the bed slowly.
“Alex, no, you have to go,” Saskia said, still standing on her side of the room. He turned around to look at her. She looked so…afraid. Not wanting to fight, not wanting to ruin what they’d done with each other anymore than it had already been ruined, Alex gave in and turned to leave.
Saskia following him to the door, her anxiety filling his nose with an acrid sting he never wanted to smell on her again. He reached for the handle and stopped. This was it. This was the last time he would see her. He was sure of it this time.
He turned and took her into his arms. She was stiff at first until a sigh shuddered from her mouth and she melted into him. His arms tightened around her back, holding her against him. Burying his nose behind her ear, he inhaled her scent, putting it in a box in the stores of his brain to drag out again when he missed her like crazy.
“I don’t want you to go,” Saskia sobbed. “I’m sorry I’m pushing you out, but if—”
“Shh,” Alex interrupted. “It’s okay,” he cooed. “I get it. I would only cause you more problems. I don’t want that. I want you to have a happy life, Saskia. That’s all I ever wanted for you.”
She clutched at him a little harder, her sobs getting louder. “I’ll miss you,” she managed, her words slightly muffled.
He swallowed past the golf ball-sized lump in his throat. “I’m going to miss you, too.”
“I only just got you back.”
Pulling away from her, he tipped her head up, their eyes meeting. Damn it, he wouldn’t cry like some pussy. Ah, fuck, the tears were coming anyway. He pressed his lips to hers, letting them say the goodbye he could never voice.
Resting his forehead against hers, he let out a deep breath. “I love you,” he murmured. “I’ll love you forever and then for an eternity after that.”
The tears leaked from Saskia’s eyes as she scrunched them up tightly. “I love you, too.”
Alex’s heart stuttered in his chest before resuming the thump-thump-thump routine. Saskia said she loved him. He already knew that she did, but to hear it from her beautiful lips, was enough to make his chest swell with pride.
With great reluctance, Alex stepped away from her, opened up the door and walked away from the woman he loved, because it was the right thing to do. He started down the road, heading back toward town where he could get a drink. Fuck, he felt like he needed to soak in whiskey to make himself feel better.
After a good three quarters of an hour mentally kicking his ass for leaving Saskia with Ezekiel and their happy life together, Alex found a place that was enough of a dive to suit his foul mood. He slumped down at the bar, ordering a whiskey with the least words possible. He had no desire to talk to anyone more than he had to. No. He just wanted to sit there and lick his damn wounds by himself.
Saskia felt numb. Alex hadn’t turned back to look at her, which only cemented the fact that he was finally letting her go. Closing the door softly, she laid her forehead against the cool wood and wept for the loss. Her heart was breaking all over again, shattering into a thousand tiny pieces. Losing him once had broken her. Losing him twice obliterated her. She didn’t know how long she stayed there for, but the urgency with which she pushed Alex from her apartment suddenly caught her attention again.
Zeke would be home soon, and she had so much to do. Pulling herself together, Saskia wiped the tears from her eyes and straightened her spine. She didn’t regret making love to Alex. She was just worried that Zeke would find out, but at least she had the chance to erase every piece of physical evidence that he had even been there.
Walking into the bedroom, she looked at the bed and instantly felt the heat suffuse her body, starting between her thighs and moving up her torso and into her chest.
The way Alex had touched her brought a blush to her cheeks. She had never been caressed like that before. It was almost as if he thought she was the most precious thing in the world to him, and he was determined to be gentle. An involuntary moan escaped her lips, remembering the way his fingers had massaged and applied the slightest and most delicious pressure to different parts of her body. It was more than she had expected of him, and it was perfect.
Snapping out of her sex-haze, Saskia began pulling the quilt cover from the quilt, the sheets from the mattress. Everything had to be washed. All signs of Alex ever having been there had to be removed. Bundling up the linens, she carried them to the laundry, and began shoving them into the machine.
Once the cycle started, she wandered out into the living room and inhaled. Alex’s scent was still lingering in the air. Hastily, she ran into the bedroom and picked up one of the scented candles and brought it back into the living room. She lit it quickly then pulled the vacuum from the hall closet to erase the final traces of Alex’s visit.
When she was done, she had vacuumed the entire house, paying particular attention to the bedroom. She couldn’t afford to have Zeke even suspect that the other male had been there.
Satisfied, Saskia remade the bed, plumping up the pillows and making sure it was just as it had been when her mate had left. She was running through all the places Alex had been when the phone on her bedside table rang.
“Hello?”
“Hello, beautiful,” Zeke said. “I’m leaving the office now.”
“Okay,” Saskia replied steadily. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Before you go, I thought we could go out for dinner to celebrate,” he said. “What do you think?” She could hear him get into his car as he spoke, the engine coming to life.
Celebrate? What could she possibly have to celebrate? She had just let the love of her life slip from her fingers for the second time. “What’s the occasion?” she asked, making sure to keep her voice light.
“Honesty, beautiful. I feel like this is a new start for us.” The directional signal ticked softly in the background. “I want to mark the occasion.”
She bit her lip and looked down at the bed, seeing a flash of her and Alex in her head. “Okay.”
“Great. Traffic is light so I should be home in about ten minutes. I’ll get changed and we can go out straight away. Wear something nice. I’m going to take you to Valentino’s.”
Saskia swallowed hard, hoping her voice would still be steady. “I can’t wait.” She hung up and let out a shaky breath. Ten minutes. She had ten minutes to hop in the shower and wash Alex off her skin. The thought made her sad because once that was gone, she would have only her memories to remember him by.
Undressing quickly, she wandered into the bathroom and shut the door behind her. The shower took a long time to heat up, and she waited impatiently, knowing that Ezekiel would be home soon—knowing she barely had time for a shower let alone washing her hair, too. She would just have to leave it.
When the temperature was right, Saskia stepped under the spray, avoiding getting her hair wet. It would take forever for her to dry if it did. Lathering up the soap, she washed her body, remembering the way Alex had touched each part.
When she couldn’t smell him on her anymore, she stepped out of the cubicle and started towelling off. She heard the door between the garage and the house close, and her heart started to pound. Nervous energy battered her body. Would Ezekiel notice? Would he question why the house was so clean, or why the sheets had been changed after only a few days?
There was only one way to find out.
With one final deep breath, Saskia secured the towel around her body and opened the bathroom door.
THIRTY
Brax was jolted awake as the Hummer’s giant tires rolled over the rutted road, throwing dirt and gravel up in its wake, the engine roaring with the extra torque. Brax looked over at Ulf, seeing the huge grin plastered onto his face.
They’d been driving through the night to get up into Niflheim territory, heading farther and farther north toward the alpha’s house. Mathias had phoned just as they’d left Avon and the Jotenheim wolves behind, informing them that Malcolm, the Niflheim alpha, had arranged for them to meet with two of their Bitten wolves.
Happy fucking days.
“You hungry?” Ulf asked, glancing in Brax’s direction.
“I could eat,” he replied, squinting at the newly rising sun. “Did you sleep?” he added, studying the five o’clock shadow on Ulf’s jaw.
“I pulled over for a couple of hours just before we crossed the border.”
“You should have woken me up. I could have driven,” Brax muttered, rubbing the sleep from his eyes with the back of his hand.
“I tried. You pulled your Beretta on me.”
He had? “Fuck, man. Sorry.”
“It’s fine,” Ulf replied, a steady smile pulling up his lips. “So, I slept for a couple of hours then kept on driving.”
Brax stretched out his slowly cramping back. “Well, at least we made good time. Malcolm isn’t expecting us until mid-afternoon.”
At midday, Ulf brought the Hummer to a stop outside a house which was essentially three or four boxes stacked on, or around one central box. They were up in an area called Holiday Hills where thick stands of pines surrounded the property, giving it the shelter and protection many alphas craved.
Getting out of the car, Brax looked up at the modern building, admiring the honey-colored cedar cladding and the glass wall on one side. That stuff was probably bulletproof and had more security features than a prison.
