Deadlocked (The Harry Russo Diaries Book 3) (4 page)

I shifted nervously in my seat and glanced at Nash. We had
left the gun range behind and were back in the truck heading to the outskirts
of the city. I had no clue where we were going and when I asked Nash, he
shrugged and said “you’ll see”. Even though we were nowhere near the old
cement plant where our showdown with Navarre had taken place, the terrain was
similar, making me uncomfortable as my thoughts flew back to our terrifying
escape through the woods. I shifted again. Nash reached over and grabbed my
hand, twining his fingers in mine. He smiled reassuringly.

“Do you trust me?” He gave my hand a squeeze.

“Yes.” I didn’t hesitate. Deep down I knew the answer to
be true.

“Good. Then just try to relax. We’ll be there in a few
minutes. Everything will be all right, I promise.”

“Okay.”

A few minutes later we pulled off the road and onto a gravel
path. In the distance I could see a glowing light. As we drew nearer, forms
began to take shape out of the darkness, cars and trucks parked in a row,
people milling about. The glow became more defined and I saw that it was a
large bonfire. I looked at Nash in confusion as he pulled the truck up and
parked in line with the other vehicles.

“It’s just a few people from the pack paying their respects
to the lost wolves,” he said. “Think of it like a wake. Many of the people we
rescued will be there too. I thought it would do us both some good to get back
out and face our demons, so to speak, and remind ourselves of the good we did.
Besides, there’s something else I want you to see.” He squeezed my hand again
and then hopped out of the truck. I opened my door and slid down from my seat
just as he came around to fetch me. I landed on the ground right in front of
him and our bodies brushed together. His arms wrapped around me, steadying me
on my feet. He dipped his head down to mine, his nostrils flaring. I expected
him to steal another passionate kiss but instead he gave a little growl and then
kissed me on the forehead.

“Come on.” He grabbed my hand and tugged me towards the
bonfire.

As we drew nearer to the clearing and the bonfire, people
began coming up to Nash and greeting him, patting him on the shoulder, shaking
his hand. They all had smiles and nods of greeting for me as well. I
recognized a few of them, but most were strangers. My grip tightened in Nash’s
hand and he gave me a little reassuring squeeze back.

“Harry!” I turned at the familiar voice to see Tess
bounding up, all smiles. She threw herself at me, wrapping me in a hug.
“About time you got here. I was beginning to think Nash had spirited you away
to have wild, kinky sex instead.” The last bit she had stage whispered in my
ear. There were a few chuckles from the onlookers.

“Tess!” I hugged her back and then gave her arm a mock
punch. “Did you know this was his plan the whole time?”

Tess shrugged. She reached down into a nearby cooler and
grabbed a beer. “Here, have a drink.”

I looked over at Nash, who had stepped aside in the face of
Tess’s onslaught. He was already holding a beer. He raised it in salute to me
with a smile. I did a little double take when I saw who he was talking to. It
was Isaac, his arm wrapped across Christina’s shoulders. Christina caught my
eye and tipped her own drink at me. I smiled and then turned back to Tess,
grabbing the offered beer.

“Cheers, sister,” I said, holding out my bottle for Tess to
clink against hers.

“Cheers, sister,” Tess replied, throwing her arm over my
shoulder.

I took a long drink and then looked around at the crowd
milling by the fire. There were about thirty people. They were all talking
and laughing. It wasn’t a raucous party or anything, but it was more animated
than you would expect for a memorial.

Tess and I moved over to join Nash, Christina and Isaac.
Nash pulled me close, putting his arm around my waist. The bonfire crackled
and popped, the heat welcome against the chill in the night air. As the evening
progressed, several people came around and introduced themselves to me, nodding
hello to Nash and the others. It was a little uncomfortable because so many of
them thanked me, their gratitude evident on their faces.

“Thank you for finding my Tyler,” one older woman said,
reaching out to hold my hand and pat it. “I would have always wondered,” she
turned her head, tears filling her eyes. She took a deep breath and then
turned back, looking me in the eye. “You did a good thing, giving our loved
ones justice. Thank you.”

“I’m sorry for your loss,” I said, squeezing her hand. “I’m
glad they were able to recover…” I stopped, biting my lip. “I’m glad that you
have closure.”

The woman smiled and then patted Nash on the shoulder before
moving off. Nash pulled me up against his chest, wrapping his arms around me.
“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good.” I leaned back against him, his body heat
enveloping me. I took a deep breath, enjoying his scent.

“Hey, everyone! I think it’s starting,” Carly, one of the
rescued werewolves that had introduced herself to me, called across the
clearing. The murmur of conversation grew louder as the crowd turned
en
masse
and began to follow Carly away from the clearing and into the dark
woods.

I looked at Nash, wondering what was going on. “Wait here a
second, Harry,” he said, giving my arm a squeeze. I shrugged an ‘okay’ and he
dashed off back towards the truck. I looked across the bonfire and saw Tess.
She caught my eye and then tipped her head at the handsome, young werewolf
holding her hand. She wiggled her eyebrows, shooting me a cheeky grin, and then
followed him away from the fire. I laughed, shaking my head. I guess I didn’t
have to worry about her. I looked around again and found Isaac and Christina.
They too were heading off away from the clearing and into the dark. Where was
everyone going? What was starting?

“Here,” Nash’s voice made me jump as he came up behind me. “Put
this over your shoulders so you don’t get cold away from the fire.” He draped
a blanket over me and then grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the
clearing. “Come on.”

“What’s going on?” I balked, holding my ground.

“You’ll see, but we have to get away from the firelight.
Let your night vision adjust.” Nash looked at me expectantly.

“Lead the way, old wolf.” I gestured with my arm that he
should go first.

I followed Nash through the trees for several minutes. I
could hear the others, talking and laughing as they did the same, but I found
my heart had started to pound. My mind flashed back to running through the
trees, Navarre in pursuit.

“Hey!” Nash stopped and gathered me into his arms. “Hey,
now.” He rubbed my back to comfort me. “It’s okay. You’re safe.” He tipped
my face up to look at him. “You know that, right? You’re safe with me.”

“Yeah, I...” I let out a deep breath trying to slow my
racing heart. “Sorry, I just…it just reminded me of…”

“It’s okay, Harry. I know.” Nash hugged me to him. “I
can’t stop thinking about it either.” He gave me another quick hug and then
pulled me through the trees. The path opened up to another clearing. The
others had spread themselves out in groups of twos and threes. Some were lying
on the ground on their backs. Everyone was looking up at the night sky.

“Ooooo, there’s one.”

“Look! There’s another.”

The shouts and ‘ooos’ and ‘ahhs’ were coming from all around
the clearing. I looked up at the sky. A star suddenly fell from amongst the
billion others, followed closely by another and then another. I gasped in
surprise.

“It’s the Leonid meteor shower,” Nash said, tugging on my
hand again. “Come here.”

He led me to a fallen tree where he stretched out a blanket
on the ground. We settled down on the blanket, our backs against the log.
Nash spread the second blanket over our legs and we watched the show in
comfortable silence, as the meteors streaked through the night sky.

After a while, I shivered despite the blanket. Nash grunted
and then scooped me up before I could protest, depositing me between his legs,
my back pressed against his chest. He settled the blanket around us again,
pulling it up and tucking it under my chin. “Better?” he asked, his face buried
in my hair.

“Better,” I replied, snuggling against him.

The Leonids were putting on quite a show. Several meteors
streaked across the sky every minute. We watched for a while longer and I
listened to the murmur of the others around us.

“I have a confession to make.” Nash’s voice was quiet in my
ear.

“Oh yeah? About what?” I turned in his arms to look at his
face.

His lips thinned and he looked uncomfortable. “I had an
interesting meeting with Salvador this afternoon.”

“Before or after you saw me?” My breath hitched.

“After.”

I turned away not wanting to see his face. “And what did he
tell you?” My voice was a whisper. Did Nash now know that Salvador was my
father? Was he sorry he bound himself to me now that he knew? Was he angry
that I hadn’t told him?

“It’s not so much what he told me, but what he showed me,”
Nash said carefully.

“What?” I turned back to look at him in surprise.

“We made a trade. He said he would show me what happened at
the end with Navarre. I have no memory of it at all.”

“And what did you have to give him in exchange?”

“I let him read me.”

“You what?” I looked at him in shock. Not long ago he had
scolded me for letting that very thing happen. Besides being able to dig
through a person’s memories, Salvador was a Reader. With a single
drop of your blood, he could read your powers and potential. It wasn’t exactly
like seeing the future, more like seeing what was possible in the future.

Nash shrugged. “I needed to know what happened and I
thought I could spare you, so you wouldn’t have to relive it by telling me.”
He kissed the top of my head. “I didn’t want to cause you pain.”

I stilled in his arms, biting my lip. “And what did he show
you?”

“Everything,” Nash’s voice sounded awed. “I saw everything,
like it was through your eyes. I felt everything you felt.”

I swallowed nervously. “Everything?”

“Everything.” He squeezed me tight against his chest. “Oh
god, Harry, I’m so sorry for what you had to go through. What you sacrificed of
yourself in order to save me. I never would have wanted you -”

I twisted in his arms and scowled at him, putting a finger
to his lips. “I didn’t do it for you. I did it for me. I was there too,
wasn’t I? I did it to save the both of us.” I turned my back to him again and
crossed my arms.

“Harry, I know. I know how you felt when you thought all
was lost.” He kissed the top of my head again. “I never want you to have to
feel that way again.” He paused, taking a deep breath. “And I know how you
feel about the mark and I’m sorry for that. Truly I am. If it was really
something I knew you didn’t want I would respect your decision. I would walk
away.”

“You’d walk away from your mate even though you’d never find
another, could never be with another woman?” I looked at him skeptically.

“Yes, I would. I won’t force this on you, Harry. Even
with the mark you could move on, have a relationship with someone else.” He
paused as if to let me ponder the possibility and then tipped my chin up to
look me in the eyes. “But I know you have feelings for me. I
felt
them. I have the same feelings for you.” I began to protest but he hurried on,
putting a finger to my lips. “I know you need time. I’ll give you all the
time you need. Just give me a chance to prove my feelings to you, to prove to
you that they are real and not just because of the wolf.” He studied my face,
a look of concern in his eyes.

“Okay,” I said quietly. My mind was still in turmoil. Did
he know about Salvador or didn’t he?

Nash smiled and kissed me gently on the lips. “Okay,
Harry.”

I turned and settled back in his arms, not really watching
the meteors any longer but enjoying the feeling of peace that came over me.
I’d tell him my secret when the time was right and we’d figure things out, if
we didn’t kill each other first. I smiled to myself and Nash, picking up on my
contentment, gave me a little squeeze. I leaned my head back
against his shoulder, tilting it to the side and he bent his head to nuzzle my
neck, sending a shiver down my spine.

“So, if you don’t put out on a first date,” he whispered in
my ear, his voice full of mischief, “how far do you go?” He pulled me tight and I
could feel his erection against my bottom. He slid his
hands up under my jacket to rest at my waist as his lips nuzzled the back of my
neck, brushing across the mark. I gasped, feeling the sensation right down to
my toes.

“I don’t know, maybe you had better kiss me and find out.” My
voice was soft and breathless. I turned in his arms to look up at his face. Nash’s
eyes took on a wild gleam and he inhaled deeply. Grasping my chin, his lips
descended, latching onto mine. I groaned and leaned into the kiss, turning my
body towards his. He slipped his hands under me, lifting me up and I suddenly
found myself facing him, straddling his legs. His fingers dug into my hips,
pulling me close to grind against him. I gasped and he took the opportunity to
thrust his tongue into my mouth, completely ravishing it with his kiss.