Talon (Rise of the Pride, Book 1) (17 page)

“No, we fucked,” she said, gritting her
teeth. “If we’d made love, you wouldn’t have been in such a damned
hurry to tuck your tail and get out of…
eek
!”

Before she could finish her sentence, Talon
was on her. Liberty was lifted and pushed against the far wall,
Talon’s body holding her at eye level with him. His eyes were
completely amber, his canines were poking out between his lips, and
in one powerful thrust, he buried his hard cock deep into her
body.

“This is fucking, Liberty,” he roared. His
mouth latched on to her nipple, sucking it deep between his
canines. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she clasped
her hands on the top of his shoulders for leverage. He was pushing
into her so fast and hard that the sound of their bodies writhing
in pleasure echoed off the wall.

“Oh, God,” she panted, feeling another climax
building. His mouth found hers again, his tongue demanding
entrance. This was what she had wanted from him. His wildness
called to her. He was dangerous when in his element, but soft and
caring when it came to her.

“Tell me you are mine,” he growled. “Tell
me.”

“Talon,” she moaned, a denial on her lips,
but she knew. In that moment, Liberty knew that there would be no
one else. Talon brought out feelings from inside her that had laid
dormant since her father had died. She’d pushed away any idea of
finding a partner. Her life was the bar. She didn’t know why, but
she trusted Talon.

“Please,” he whispered, almost so low she
didn’t hear it.

“Yes,” she panted, feeling her sex clamp down
on his. “Yes, Talon, I’m yours. Now, fuck me.”

He did exactly what she’d demanded, thrusting
into her sex, trying to push her over the edge, but she just
couldn’t get there. Something was holding her back.

“Bite me, Talon,” she breathed, turning her
head to the side and exposing her neck. “Mark me so that you never
have to wonder. I want you to do it. I want to be yours.”

He dropped to his knees with a gasp, pulling
his cock free from her body. She scrambled to her knees, dropped to
her forearms, and presented her ass in the air, waiting for him to
make the final mark. She screamed out when he thrust back inside.
Her hair was tangled in his hand and her body was jerked
upright.

“Are you sure?” he growled, his canines
almost obscuring his voice to the point he couldn’t be understood,
but she knew what he was asking.

“Yes, do it,” she replied, sucking in a
breath as he struck.

The bite itself sent her straight into a
climax. The pain was sharp in the side of her neck. Talon thrust
several more times before his own orgasm caused him to release
inside her. The roar that left his human voice rattled the pictures
on the wall, but Liberty was too far gone to make sense of anything
but the peace and darkness that surrounded her.

She curled up against Talon’s chest like a
small cub as soon as he climbed back onto her bed. He ran his hand
over her silky hair, kissing her forehead. He pushed the strands
away, revealing the two beautiful marks on her neck. He’d marked
her, signaling to other shifters that she was an intended mate, and
his chest swelled with pride. Leaning over, he lapped at them,
letting his saliva work its way into the wound, healing it faster
than her human body would.

“Talon,” she murmured, nuzzling into his own
neck. He wanted to feel her bite, too. He wanted to feel her teeth
sinking into his flesh, but he knew that wouldn’t happen…not until
he made her what he was.

“I’m here,” he whispered. “Go to sleep.”

“M‘kay.” She settled down and it didn’t take
long before her breathing evened out. Talon kissed the top of her
head and slid out of the bed, reaching for his pants. He wasn’t
going to leave her, but he had to find Savage and give him orders
for the next few hours. If his pack needed him, he’d be close. He
would stay with Liberty until morning before heading home to find
out what his Guardians had discovered overnight.

He found his shirt downstairs and pulled it
over his head. Outside, he made a
click
sound out of the
corner of his mouth. A panther casually walked out of the woods to
his left. Savage shifted as soon as he reached the porch.

“Everything okay?” Savage asked, the corner
of his lip quirked up into a knowing grin. Talon cringed inwardly,
knowing he’d more than likely heard them.

“Everything is fine,” Talon answered in a
clipped tone. “I’m staying here until sunrise. When Winter gets
home with Nova, I want you two to take off and help where you are
needed. Notify me if anyone has any leads on Evie.”

“Yes, alpha,” Savage replied. He was
distracted by headlights. Nova pulled up in the blue compact car
she shared with Liberty. The thing had seen better days, and Talon
made a mental note to get them something a bit more reliable.

“Well, if you are going to walk around here
like
that
,” Nova hummed as she approached the house. “I
think I’ll need round the clock protection.” She shook her head and
walked past Savage, giving his naked form a once over.

“Come on,” Savage sighed as Winter
approached. “Let’s head out. Boss man is staying here until
morning.”

“You’re staying?” Nova asked, raising a
brow.

“With Liberty,” he told her, pulling the
screen door open so that Nova could enter ahead of him.

“Winter told me what happened,” Nova said,
sobering a bit. “I’m so sorry. If there is anything I can do.”

“Just keep yourself and Liberty safe,” he
sighed, leaning against the frame of the door to the kitchen. Nova
hung her purse on a peg behind the door and walked over to the sink
to wash her hands.

“We carry guns,” she said, plopping down in a
chair at the table.

“A gun will only stop a panther momentarily,”
he said, crossing his arms over his chest. His alpha power surged
and he knew Nova felt it when she sat up straighter in her
seat.

“Doesn’t silver kill your kind?” she
asked.

“No,” he laughed. “We are not
werewolves.”

“Oh,” she blushed, averting her eyes. “Well,
I’m sure if your kind took a bullet to the head, it would stop you
for more than a moment.” She glanced up at Talon and smirked,
knowing she was right.

“Go on to bed,” he said, shaking his head.
“We can talk about other ways to kill me and my people
tomorrow.”

“Okay,” she giggled, flicking off the light
and heading for the stairs.

Talon checked the locks on the old farmhouse,
frowning to himself when he realized they were not sturdy enough to
keep out even the weakest of humans. He’d send Winter over during
the day to put up some more lighting outside and maybe a
state-of-the-art security system.

Chapter Ten

Kye had followed the path the two men had
taken through their property. This was his second search of the
area. They must’ve had a car waiting right at the fence because
Evie’s scent ended abruptly at the road. There were no other signs
of her or the men who’d taken her.

No other scents…nothing.

His panther howled.
Evie, I will find you.
I promise.

They’d known each other their entire lives.
It wasn’t until this past summer when he’d come out of the house
and found her walking away from her cabin in a tight tank top and a
short denim skirt that he’d really noticed her beauty. He didn’t
know if she was his mate or not and the wait was killing him. He
loved her…always had, but fate wouldn’t reveal itself for another
three years. Three very long years before they would know for
sure.

He’d seen it with other members of the pride.
They’d dated during their high school years, but as soon as they
came of age, the mating bond hadn’t been there. It tore those
relationships apart because there was a mate out there for each and
every shifter. Finding that mate was the tricky part. If you were
with someone who you loved, or thought you loved, and met your true
mate, the feeling you had for the other person wouldn’t even
compare. It ripped the hearts out of so many of his kind. Some of
the kids his age didn’t even bother to date. They didn’t want to
hurt themselves or another person that horribly if they ended up
not being their mate.

Evie was different. She was his mate, and he
didn’t give a damn what fate said about any of it. His panther
accepted her as his own. He had this overwhelming urge to keep her
protected, but he’d failed her. Mating instincts and all of that
bullshit his brothers spewed was a load of horse shit as far as he
was concerned.

“Any luck?” Booth, one of his brother’s
Guardians, asked as he approached. Kye was standing next to the
road, staring at the spot where Evie’s scent disappeared.

“No,” he said in despair. “I have to find
her.”

“It’s okay, son,” Booth whispered, clasping
the top of Kye’s shoulder and giving it a reassuring squeeze. “She
will be found.”

“My brother doesn’t feel her,” he growled. “I
don’t know what that means.”

“It means that she is unconscious, and that
is all we are going to take it as,” Booth said. “We have to go,
Kye.”

“Let’s find her,” he said, straightening his
shoulders.

They followed the path back to her family’s
home, slowing down to see if there were any scents or identifying
marks they could gather to give them an idea of who had taken the
young panther.

“Wait!” Kye yelled, stopping when something
caught his eye. Bending down, he touched the gold chain that was
lying in one of the kidnapper’s footprints left in the mud. They’d
already checked some of these prints, knowing that whoever had
taken Evie was in human form. There were no scents to identify if
they were human or shifter.

“Is that Evie’s?” Booth asked, standing to
his full height after leaning over to get a better look.

“Y…yes,” Kye choked, feeling his chest
constrict and his heart gallop. He balled his fist tightly as he
held onto the only part of Evie that he had left.

He made a vow in the middle of the forest, “I
will find her. I will rip whoever took her to shreds and dance on
their souls.”

Kye didn’t hear the Guardian curse behind him
as he took off at a dead run toward the main house and his vehicle.
He
would
find her if it was the last thing he ever did.

Chapter Eleven

Liberty woke to the strangest sound and the
weirdest sensations. Opening her eyes, she smiled at Talon who was
laying snuggled into her naked breasts. The sound was coming from
him. He was purring, the soft vibrations were tickling her
stomach.

“Wake up, kitty,” she giggled, running her
fingers through his hair.

“I’m not a kitty,” he grumbled, nuzzling back
into his spot. She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair
again and chuckled at the reappearance of his rumbling purr.