Moonlight (13 page)

Chapter Twenty-Two

Adam

“What the hell is this?” my brother barked.

I watched Lana walk through the crosswalk and into the hotel. She never looked back.

I shook my head. “It’s complicated.”

“Complicated?” Aren crossed his arms over his chest. “Just because she’s got a nice body and a pretty face doesn’t change the fact that she’s a jaguar in our territory and Gabe is dead. Connect the dots, Adam.”

I’d never wanted to punch my brother as badly in my life. “I have connected them, Aren. I told you I know who killed Gabe, and it’s not Lana. A male jaguar dumped him at the lake to frame Lana for his murder.”

“Did she tell you that story?” Aren shook his head. “She’s a cat. She’ll tell you anything. You know how they operate.”

“She isn’t like that. She didn’t even know what she was when I met her.”

“How long have you known her?” Aren’s brow furrowed, and his arms slid back down to his sides. “I knew you were hiding something, but this is too much.”

“It wasn’t like I planned for any of this to happen.”

“Any of what exactly?”

I glanced over at the hotel. Lana was right—my family would never accept her. But she was also wrong; if they didn’t want her, I wouldn’t want to stay. I’d never be able to forgive them. I clenched my jaw as I faced Aren again.

“Look, I caught the scent of a jaguar on the night of the new moon near the Hot Rod Café. I went inside to deal with it, but the second I met Lana something inside of me…” I shook my head. “I’m not sure how to describe it, but when I touched her I knew. I felt this tug inside, like she was bound to me. I didn’t plan it, and I’ve been trying to deny it, but this feeling won’t go away.”

“What are you saying?”

“I love her, Aren. She’s my mate. My instinct to protect her hit me like a Mack truck. I stayed with her through her change. She was scared and didn’t know what was happening to her. She’s not like the other jaguars who have come through here before.”

Aren was speechless. That didn’t happen very often. My brother always had something to say. I waited, but Aren just kept staring at me.

Finally he took a step back, his voice was low. “This is a mistake. You can’t take a jaguar for your mate, Adam. This will kill Dad. You know it will.”

“You can’t tell Malcolm, or anyone. I haven’t even told Lana yet.”

“The Pack will never accept her.”

I raked my hand back through my hair in frustration and growled. “You think I don’t know that? I’m not stupid, all right? I realize this is hard for you to understand, but Lana is the most amazing woman I’ve ever known.” I sighed and met his eyes again. “She’s gutsy, smart, and beautiful. You’ve already seen that she’s hardheaded enough to take on both of us at once. How many women have you ever met who could do that, huh?”

“So what are you going to do, leave the Pack?”

“I don’t know.” I couldn’t tell my brother that the thought had crossed my mind more than once.

Aren’s eyes widened. “You’re actually thinking about leaving with her?” He shook his head slowly. “You barely know her, Adam.”

“I know it sounds crazy. Malcolm came by the other day telling me that I needed to trust my instincts, and my instincts are screaming to be with her and keep her safe.”

“Your instincts are wrong,” Aren interrupted, raising his voice. “All of this is wrong. She’s playing you. I can’t believe you’re willing to give up your family and your Pack for a hot piece of tail.”

I hit Aren so hard that he fell backward onto the bench. Blood trickled down from his nose. He reached up, tentatively wiped at his face and saw the blood. Aren’s eyes cut back to me, and a heavy mantle of guilt settled on my shoulders. But right then the wolf inside of me was in control and he was pissed.

“Don’t ever talk about Lana like that,” I growled.

Aren stood up and took a step closer, encroaching on my personal space, but I didn’t retreat. For a moment we stood in silence, two immovable walls. So much had suddenly changed between us, but I couldn’t go back to the way things were.

Finally Aren broke the silence. “I won’t tell the Pack about this, but you should find out all you can about this girl before you abandon the people who
really
care about you.”

“I’m going to bring in the jaguar that killed Gabe, and when I do, you’ll owe Lana an apology.”

“She’ll still be a jaguar, Adam. It’s only a matter of time before she betrays you. It’s how they operate. And we can’t have treachery in the Pack. Our strength is being able to count on every member to watch each other’s back. I won’t depend on a jaguar when my life or my brother’s is on the line.”

My fists were clenched, but somehow I forced my voice to stay even. I’d done enough damage to my relationship with my brother today. “I just need some time to figure this out.”

Aren nodded and turned to leave. He stopped and looked back over his shoulder. “You better think long and hard. It almost killed Dad when we lost Mom. We can’t lose you too, Adam.”

Chapter Twenty-Three

Lana

I’m not sure when Adam came up to the room, but when I woke up I found his arm draped over me. I smiled in spite of myself. Through the sheer hotel curtain I could see the sky starting to brighten. Morning. The scattered clouds were painted in stunning orange hues. Through the window it looked like anything was possible.

Too bad reality was setting in.

Closing my eyes, I tried to push it away. I breathed in Adam’s now-familiar scent and relished how good his body felt against mine. Finding myself snuggled in his arms was a much better way to wake up than alone in another new hotel. I could get used to opening my eyes and seeing his smile.

But reality pushed right back, reminding me that I’d have to leave soon. Maybe even sooner than expected if Adam’s brother had his way. Plus, if Sebastian was right and Nero sent someone else to finish his mission, I’d be putting Adam and his family in danger. If I ran, Sebastian would follow me, leaving Reno far behind. The mystery of the Nero Organization, my birth parents, and how I fit into the puzzle could be solved on the road. No need to drag Adam through the mess. He had a life here. I had… A laptop and a duffel bag full of clothes and toiletries.

Yeah, I’m a prize
. I moaned inwardly.

When I started to slide out from under Adam’s arm, he pulled me in closer, nuzzling his chin into my hair.

“Good morning.”

The bed squeaked as I shifted and rolled around to face him. “How come you didn’t tell me about Aren when I was looking at those pictures? You had to know I saw his college graduation photo over there.”

His eyes opened fully and met mine. “You cut right to the chase.”

“I’ve been awake for a little while thinking.”

“I see that.” He kissed my forehead and drew back. “I should have told you.”

“But you didn’t. He’s a huge part of your life. How could you leave out something important like that?”

“I didn’t think you’d ever meet him.” He shrugged a little. “It didn’t seem important.”

I pulled away and sat up. “So all the talk of not wanting me to leave was bullshit.” My heart was breaking inside, so it was all I could do to keep the tears at bay. I hoped some righteous anger might help me stay strong.

“No, it’s not bullshit. I don’t want you to leave. Now you’ve met my brother, and you heard what he said. The Pack is always going to see you as a potential threat because you’re a jaguar. In my head, I didn’t think you would ever meet them, so I didn’t think I needed to tell you about them.”

“You say you don’t want me to leave, but if I stayed you were never going to let me into your life. I thought I could handle being your dark little secret, but you made me feel…” I got up and went over to the window. Staring down at the people holding hands, walking on either side of the street made the ache in my heart pulse. “You made me feel like I deserve more.”

Even though Adam was still in the room, I felt completely alone.

I heard the bed squeak as he got up. I swiped a stray tear from my cheek. I didn’t want him to see me cry.

He stood behind me. The heat of his bare chest teased me through the back of my thin cotton tee. His voice was just above a whisper. “I am so sorry I hurt you, Lana. I know I’m not handling any of this very well.”

I turned on him, dipping into my well of self-pity and anger, and lashed out. “Any of what, Adam? What exactly do we have anyway? I don’t even know why you’re here. We both know there’s an attraction, but we also know I can’t stay. I never should have stayed even a second day. I’m such an idiot.”

He kissed me then, hard. My body betrayed me, pressing against his chest. My fingers slid up into the back of his hair as our tongues tangled with urgent passion. When he finally pulled back, we were breathless and my lips felt hot and sore. He rested his forehead against mine.

“I love you, Lana,” he whispered.

“Is that what you say to all the girls who threaten to walk away before you’re ready to let them?”

A muscle in his cheek jumped, but he didn’t pull back or raise his voice. “I’ve never said those words to another woman.”

I stared into his eyes, searching for any sign of deception, but all I saw was Adam. No masks, no false promises, no defenses. My eyes welled with tears as I reached up to cup his cheek. “How can we ever make this work?”

He turned his head and kissed my palm. “One day at a time.”

“I don’t want to take you away from your family, Adam. I know how horrible it is to go through life without them.”

“Do you love me?” he asked.

My heart screamed yes, but in my head I could hear Sebastian’s voice telling me about the Nero Organization’s experiments with werewolves, how they suffered away from their Pack. I started to look away, but he caught my chin and forced me to look up at him.

“You think too much. Just tell me how you feel.”

He made it sound so simple. But nothing about this was simple.

Panic rose in my throat. My instincts, learned from hard lessons in abandonment, threatened to strangle me. My head was screaming to run while I still could. But I didn’t want to run. I stared into his eyes, this man who knew all the secrets I struggled to hide from the world. He’d never seen me as damaged goods, and when I was around him, for the first time in my life I didn’t feel broken.

“Yes. I love you, too,” I whispered. “But that doesn’t change the fact that we have no future.”

His mouth curved into a sexy, dangerous smile that made my pulse quicken. “We make our own future.”

Adam scooped me up into his arms so fast that I gasped. He kissed me, making his way back to the bed. He laid me down on the cool sheets, and I hummed against his lips, enjoying his slow, lingering kisses. Finally he pulled back.

Without a word, he stood up and unbuttoned his jeans. I watched him take off his pants and wet my lips as he moved to the foot of the bed. Every muscle of his body looked chiseled and strong. A faint shadow covered his jaw, and the intensity in his stare made my skin burn.

He leaned down and kissed just above my knee before looking up at me. I felt his hands stroke along my legs until his thumbs caught the waistband of my lace underwear. I couldn’t take my eyes away from his hungry stare. My hips rose up off the bed slightly as he slid the lace panties down and tossed them aside.

His hands caressed my calves, kneading the muscles, drawing a moan from my lips as he moved his attentions upward. He pressed lingering kisses up my thighs, pushing my legs apart, and I opened myself to his attentions. I reached down with one hand, my fingers getting lost in his hair as he kissed along my inner thigh, his hot breath teasing my yearning skin. When his fingers brushed along my curls, my body writhed with desire. Without taking his eyes off of mine, he slid his finger deep inside of me.

I moaned, working my hips as his fingers teased and stroked until my heart was racing. Adam growled against me, giving my aching core a long, slow lick. I cried out his name as he grasped my hips and pulled me even closer. He brought my legs up over his shoulders, feeding on me until I couldn’t catch my breath. When his tongue moved inside of me, he brought his fingers up to rub insistently at my sensitive nub until my hips rocked against his lips.

I shuddered, gasping his name as my body exploded, every muscle contracting and writhing with pleasure. He lowered my body to the bed and licked his lips as he moved up over me. I could feel the tip of him pressed against me, but he didn’t enter me. My hips tilted, hungering to feel him inside of me.

“I want you,” I moaned.

He leaned down and kissed me long and slow. I could taste myself on his tongue, and the territorial animal in me clawed to the surface as my nails gripped into his back. I never wanted him to touch another woman, and no other man would ever touch me. It was a carnal, primal pledge from a part of me I never knew existed.

Adam growled against my lips. “You’re mine.”

He plunged into me, filling me to the core of my being. His hands kneaded my breasts, teasing my nipples through the thin cotton of my T-shirt until my back arched under him. Adam pushed my shirt up and bent to take my nipple into his mouth. He looked up at me from under his brow as I watched his mouth on my skin. His hips rocked into me harder and faster as he sucked at my breast. Slowly, he drew back, his hand cupping me as he licked slowly across my hardened nipple. My body writhed, and he smiled, claiming my lips with his.

I raked my nails down his back, my heart pounding. Sex had never been this intense for me before, this urgent. I needed him, and he needed me right back. My legs wrapped around his waist as he rose up, pounding himself into me. Adam gripped my hips, slamming me into his pistoning thrusts until I felt him pulsing within my body.

One hand slid between us as Adam growled. “Now, Lana. Now…”

My body obeyed his demands. Every inner muscle clenched tightly around him as he exploded deep inside of me, calling out my name. His fingers dug into my hips as he held me against him until the aftershocks faded. When he laid back over me, his elbows rested on either side of my head as he looked into my eyes.

“I love you.” He kissed me.

I smiled. “I love you, too.”

“There’s something else I need to tell you,” he said.

I shook my head with an exhausted smile. “If it’s going to mess with my afterglow here, then I don’t want to know.”

Adam laughed. God, I loved the sound of his laugh. He rolled to the side, pulling me into his arms. I snuggled against his chest with a happy sigh. He kissed my hair, and his hand ran slowly up and down my back.

“There’s a wolf thing that I need to tell you about.”

I raised my head to look down at him. “Uh oh.”

“It’s not bad,” he reached up to cup my cheek in his hand. “Not to me anyway.” He met my eyes. “Remember how I told you we have to convert women before we can have children?”

I nodded. “Yeah. Only boys carry the wolf gene.”

“Right. Well there’s another part of that I didn’t tell you before because I didn’t want you to run away screaming.”

“I
love
how you’re setting this up so far.”

He shook his head with a grin. “Sorry. It’s just…” He hesitated and my smile faded. “Wolves have an instinct to mate with one female for life. Okay, that’s not even big enough to describe it. It’s like this wolf inside of us comes alive, demanding we protect and love our mate like it’s a physical need. Some of us wait for her to come along, and others just enjoy their freedom without any strings attached.”

“If you’re trying to tell me you’re one of the others, don’t bother. I figured that out a long time ago. You had
player
written all over you.”

He rubbed his face and heaved a sigh before meeting my eyes. “I’m trying to tell you I found my mate.”

I almost choked on my tongue. My brow furrowed. “What?”

“You, Lana. That’s why I can’t let anything happen to you, and if it means we have to leave Reno, then I’m going with you. I just want you to understand. I can’t let you walk out of my life. You
are
my life.”

I collapsed back onto his chest, listening to the sound of his heart beating. “We’re not even the same…species? Race? Whatever.” I lifted my head to look up at him. “How is this even possible? Has anyone else in your Pack had a mate who wasn’t human?”

Adam shook his head. “Not in our Pack. And I haven’t heard of it in any others either.”

“So maybe I’m not really your mate—you just really like me.” My inner foster kid whispered
I told you so
.

Adam brought my hand to his lips and kissed it. “Remember the night we met at the café, when I grabbed your arm to pull you out? It hit me so hard, I almost lost my footing. The wolf knew instantly that you were my other half. My mate. And in the donut shop? When that guy starting flirting with you, I came unglued. I wanted to beat the crap out of him. It was over the top.” He put my hand over his heart. “I thought those stories were Pack legends to try to get us to settle down, but trust me. I’m a believer now. Jaguar or not, you’re my mate.”

I tried to wrap my brain around it. “But we can’t be together here, and I can’t take you away from your Pack.”

“You can’t take me, but I can choose to go.” Adam stroked my hair. “We’re a team, okay? Where you go, I go.”

“No, you don’t understand. When Sebastian told me about the Nero Organization, he mentioned that they tried to train some werewolf subjects to be assassins like the jaguars, but the wolves couldn’t work alone. He said something about their spirits being weakened. They need to live in a Pack. You can’t just leave them, Adam.”

“I wouldn’t trust everything Sebastian tells you.” He held me a little tighter. “He just wants you to stay away from me.”

“We weren’t discussing you when he told me this.”

Adam shook his head. “I don’t want to talk about him anymore.”

I sighed. “He also told me that if he doesn’t bring me back to the organization soon, they’ll send another jaguar after me.”

He held me a little tighter. “I’ll kill him.”

“Killing a bunch of jaguars isn’t the answer here,” I said. “One of them might be my brother.”

“What?” Adam tensed and pulled back enough to look down at me.

“Sebastian didn’t confirm it, but he thinks my mother gave birth and hid me from Nero. They only got the boy.”

His fingers slowly traced my spine before he spoke. “ As far as they knew, you didn’t exist until you got those CAT scans.”

“Exactly.” I kissed along his neck. “I think I need to get down to San Antonio and see if I can get my sealed records. There might be a clue about my parents. I need to put the pieces together to truly know what I am up against.”

“You think they’re hiding from Nero, too?” His fingers stroked through the back of my hair. I closed my eyes, resting my head against his chest and drinking in the comfort.

“Sebastian told me my father is still with Nero…” I wet my lips, pushing down my emotions. “My mother was eliminated.”

“I’m sorry, Lana.” He kissed my hair. “You know she loved you.”

I frowned without lifting my head. “How do you know that?”