Lucien remained where he was, expression neutral, even if his eyes hadn’t moved from my face. I wondered if he was letting me take the lead because he didn’t trust his vampire energy not to go berserk, like at the dance. Or maybe he was just forcing me to find my own inner strength, which I was more than willing to try.
Closing my eyes to block out his beautiful and distracting face, I coaxed my beast forward, reminding her that we needed to feed and strengthen ourselves. To get through the selection. She was beyond reluctant, the slow trickle of her energy barely even registering, but she was still there. I wouldn’t give up until I got her moving.
Finally, she stirred, and as she moved through the heat of the vampire energy, I pushed for a partial shift, wanting just my teeth and jaw to change so we could break through the vampire’s skin.
As the shifter magic overtook my body, I cried out and felt the force of a full shift coming over me. No. I attempted to pull her back because there was no time to be stuck in a wolf body when I had a selection to get to.
“No,” I growled out loud this time. “We can’t fully shift.”
My wolf was beyond listening to me, and as I fell forward, Lucien caught me. My skin had been stretching with the wolf, but as soon as his power surged into mine, her fight died off, and with a whimper, she rolled over inside, metaphorically exposing her belly. At first it destroyed me to think she was hurt, weakened by his presence, but as she continued to lay on her back, I searched deeper to find…
She wasn’t hurting at all. She was submitting. She was treating Lucien like he was our—
“Alpha,” I breathed. “She considers you her alpha.”
I tilted my head back to see his breathtaking face, glowing skin near blinding in its intensity. “That’s one of the reasons she’s subdued around you. She’s giving you the lead.”
I’d never felt her like this, even with Alpha Victor in Torma—part of the reason I’d always considered myself packless, except for my bond to Mera.
“I don’t understand why your shifter side is reacting like this,” Lucien said, still holding me close. “Your energy is strong enough to be an alpha yourself.”
A strangled laugh escaped me. “I used to think that too, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to realize something: I’m not alpha. Or even beta. I’m an omega.”
Lucien tilted his head to the side, and I could almost see the gears turning in his brain as he put it all together. “Omegas stand outside of the pack hierarchy, right?”
“Yep,” I said, finally sharing my secret. “It’s the reason I’ve always felt like an outsider in Torma and how I was able to resist an alpha command for a long time. I pretended I was controllable because being an omega is not always the safest position in a pack.”
Lucien didn’t like that, his brows drawing together as he snarled. “You should be the most protected pup of all. Omegas can create peace where there’s violence, bring hope when there is none, and prevent wars.”
My laugh was bitter. “In Torma, they desired none of those things. I was just lucky that my parents kept me somewhat isolated from the alpha. Victor would have killed an omega for sure.”
I’d always hoped that my parents kept me out of shifter life to protect me—that a tiny part of them loved me enough to shield me from the insane alpha. But as I got older, I realized the truth: They didn’t know I was an omega. They were embarrassed that I was a pathetic, submissive wolf, and for that, I was hidden away.
“I bet it’s also the reason you and Mera work so well,” Lucien mused. “She’s beyond alpha, and you would calm her nature.”
“Mera’s strong energy did mask my own,” I agreed. “It got harder when she was gone, but I just acted like I was in mourning and barely left my house. My parents backed me up. Eventually, the leaders of Torma were usurped, and it’s been quiet ever since.”
“You never have to go back to that,” he told me, the rasp of his voice stirring his blood inside. “You will leave Valdor stronger. You will forge your own path and future, and whatever that ends up being, you will be safe.”
His fiercely protective side knocked some of the air from my lungs, making me feel a touch breathless. A moment of peace and clarity followed, and I was able to bring forth my wolf and do a partial shift.
Lucien leaned forward so I could reach the smooth expanse of bare skin at his throat. I felt no hesitation as my newly sharpened teeth sank into him. All rational thought vanished at the first pull of blood into my mouth, and even though I couldn’t remember the other time I’d drunk from him, this memory would stay with me forever.
I’d expected a sharp, metallic flavor, but Lucien was delicious, reminding me of Crimson Heart. His blood was warm and rich with hints of cherry—his scent made perfect sense now. I groaned at the next pull of blood, drinking in more than just the liquid. I consumed his fire and power with each sip, and damn, it was more than a little addictive.
Eventually, Lucien had to cut me off, and as I pulled away, I noticed the slightly ravaged section of his skin was already healing.
My wolf sank inside me, feeling all blissed out, and I was the same.
“Well, fuck,” I murmured.
Lucien laughed, and my eyes focused enough to see he remained strong and glowing, with no sign my greedy drinking had stolen anything from him.
“What happens now,” I asked, head still spinning as his blood literally pounded in my veins, burning through me.
“Now, you let it settle,” he told me. “And I get my turn.”
I blinked at him. “You’re going to feed from me too? Will this form some sort of bond between us if we keep this up?”
Lucien nodded. “It could, if we did so touching the Stone of Katu. But for now, we’re just sharing blood. It should be relatively simple.”
“You hope,” I responded drily. “Since you’ve admitted to being a virgin.”
He barely hid his smile. “Not where it matters, Bee. Not where it matters.”
He stepped closer. I went to push myself up from where I’d half collapsed in my bliss, but he swooped in and wrapped his arm around me before I could move, lifting me up and into his body. My wolf howled, and I did the same, letting the sound ring out through the room. Lucien growled, and despite his words from before, it felt like the animalistic natures inside both of us were bonding.
When his fangs sank into my neck, my howl died off as a low moan escaped. Every part of me came to life, and I rocked against Lucien. He adjusted his hold so my legs could move around his waist, and I cried out as his hard length pressed into my sensitive center.
With his mouth still against my throat and the fire of his blood in my body, I desperately scrambled to get his pants undone, my hands sliding along firm muscles as I fought for more. “Lucien,” I moaned, “I need… to feel… you. Please.”
His rumblings increased, chest rocking as he shifted his lower half so I could get his pants down and free his holy fucking hell. I couldn’t see it, but I could feel that his cock was thick and long, and moisture beaded under my thumb as I ran it across the slit on top.
“Lucien,” I cried again, and with each pull of his mouth against my throat, I felt the same pull at the junction of my thighs.
Somehow, without removing his mouth from my neck, he got my pants undone and his fingers slid through my folds to find me soaking wet. The scent of my arousal spread up between us, and it turned me on even more as I lost myself in the sensation of rocking against Lucien’s hand.
“More, Crimson,” I demanded, and with my hand wrapped around his cock and his buried in my pussy, there was no way either of us could resist. There was also no need to worry about pregnancy, since I wasn’t fertile, which meant there was no reason to stop. At least none I was ready to think about at this point in time.
Lucien pulled away, tongue swiping across my neck to chase the last drops of blood, while the head of his cock entered me. The burn of the first stretch so delicious that I was panting as he slid inch by delicious inch inside me. I was tight, but my arousal soon smoothed the path, as Lucien hit every damn nerve ending I didn’t even know existed.
Pulling out of me slowly, he drew out the pleasure again, and I was screaming when he thrust roughly into me. “Bee,” he groaned. “You’re so fucking tight.”
The fire inside forced me to move against him before I could speak. “I’ve only had sex twice, and you’re huge. Also… don’t ever stop fucking me.”
He stilled, a deep growl escaping as he stared down into my face, and I wondered if that last line had freaked him out. Thankfully, he didn’t stop, because I was almost a hundred per cent certain that if Lucien stopped before I orgasmed, I would combust.
Literally.
