Chapter 11

Clara

Gideon pressed me up against the wall and demanded to know whether I had drugged him.

I shook my head, frantic to deny it. How could I drug him? Why would I ever do such a thing?

I couldn’t sign an explanation. His hands were holding my arms too tightly. His skin was hot against mine.

“What did you do?” he asked, voice softer and rougher than before.

I could only shake my head again. Had something been added to the food? No, he hadn’t eaten anything yet. The wine? Was that why Nora had left that bottle behind? Did she realize something was wrong with it? I should have found her first and asked.

Gideon leaned closer and sniffed at my hair.

“You smell good,” he said. “So good.”

I squirmed in his grip. What was he talking about? He thought I drugged him, now he was saying he liked my smell?

His hand caught my chin, held me still. I looked into his eyes and gasped. The brilliant green I was used to had been replaced by shining gold. Those eyes belonged to his wolf. Gideon was no longer in control; his wolf was.

I stopped struggling. It was dangerous to provoke a wolf. I’d just hold still and wait this out until Gideon took control of himself back.

Gideon sniffed at my hair again and then nuzzled the crook of my neck. He nipped and kissed the delicate skin there. I gasped. The little bites hurt, just a little, but the kisses felt amazing.

Warmth pooled in my gut as Gideon continued to pepper my skin with bites and kisses. Then he growled, slightly, and caught my mouth in a deep, wet kiss.

I let my mouth fall open. His tongue explored my mouth, and I tasted the tart sweetness of the wine he’d drunk, and something else underneath.

Gideon lowered me to the ground, but used his body to hold me in place so that his hands could wander. One hand traced teasing patterns up and down my ribs. The other stroked my throat gently.

My body felt warm, and then hot, as his touch ignited sensations I had no name for. I moaned into another kiss. I didn’t know what this was but I wanted more.

Gideon’s hands wandered lower. The hand that had been on my throat moved to my chest, gently unlacing my dress and stroking the skin beneath until my whole chest burned with pleasure.

The hand stroking my side moved down to my hip, kneading the flesh there before tugging my skirt out of the way. One finger brushed tender flesh and I gasped. I would have moaned if I had any voice.

“Yes,” Gideon’s wolf growled. “Yes, ready.”

Before I could ask what he meant, or ask him to stop or maybe to never stop, he knelt down and scooped me against his chest. He carried me through the rooms until we reached his bed.

The room swam and dipped as we moved. I was dizzy with the heat. It was hard to think straight. There was a reason I needed to think, but I was too hot and dizzy to remember what it was.

Gideon dropped me onto the bed, and climbed up to loom over me. I pressed my hands against his chest, torn between reason which told me to push him away, and the molten heat in my chest and between my thighs that wanted to draw him in even closer.

I reached to my wolf for strength. She responded with warmth and fierce, painful desire. My wolf wanted this as much as Gideon’s. I was swept away under her will and the waves of heat.

Gideon nuzzled between my thighs, and growled as the material of my dress tangled against his face. He tore the dress free in one motion, and his own clothing followed close behind.

I squirmed as Gideon attacked every bit of naked flesh with mouth and tongue and hot, demanding hands. His breath teased my skin. His fingers traced patterns along my flesh and left fire in their wake.

I was going to burn and my wolf howled within me, begging for more.

Gideon caught my mouth in another kiss. I felt hot and dizzy at the sweetness on his tongue. I wrapped my arms around his neck as I felt his body press down against mine.

Pressure built inside me. I writhed and panted as Gideon moved and touched. It was so good but it wasn’t enough. My wolf whined within me but I couldn’t give voice to her frustration. So I begged with my hands, tracing words I knew Gideon was too lost in his wolf to read.

The unbearable heat pooled between my legs. Gideon sniffed the air and growled before kissing me again. I tightened my grip as the heat and pressure consumed me.

If Gideon didn’t do something, I was certain I would die. But I didn’t know what to beg for, and I didn’t have the voice to ask for it.

Somehow, Gideon understood. Or his wolf understood mine. He growled next to my ear, and I felt a new kind of pressure at the apex of my thighs.

The pressure built and built and then released in a rush of incandescent pleasure as Gideon sank into me. He roared and his teeth found my throat. My mouth fell open in a silent scream.

The burning heat faded into a sated warmth as Gideon clutched me close. I curled into his side and blinked up into those golden eyes. His wolf rumbled down at me and lapped at the bite on my neck. I breathed in his scent as sleep claimed me.

The next day, I woke up shivering and naked. I felt around for the warmth I remembered. My eyes opened to find Gideon sitting on the other side of the bed, head in his hands.

I reached out to him. He jerked away from me when my hand touched his back, and turned to glare at me with eyes that were once more green. I was shocked by how cold they were in contrast to the burning heat of the gold before.

“Did you really think this would work?” he asked.

I let my confusion show on my face. What did he mean?

Gideon stood up and turned his back to me so that he wouldn’t be able to see me sign.

“You drugged me with the wine. I have to admit that was clever. I didn’t taste it until it was too late.”

I shook my head in denial, but of course he couldn’t see.

“Whatever it was, it was certainly effective,” Gideon continued. “I barely remember last night. But I know what you did. I can smell it.”

He shuddered like he was revolted. I curled into a ball. What was he talking about? I hadn’t drugged him! Where would I even get such a thing?

“Did you really think you could become my wife? A mute like you?” Gideon sneered.

I flinched at the cruelty in his voice. I didn’t want to be his wife. I didn’t want anything from him!

“Well it won’t work,” Gideon said. “I hope you enjoyed yourself, because that is the last time I will ever touch you.”

I cringed away. I didn’t want him to touch me, ever! Not after this.

Gideon probably had more awful, cruel things to say. But he was interrupted by a knock on the door.

We both jumped at the sound.

“It’s Nora,” Gideon said.

My heart went cold. How could I possibly explain this to her?