A Cursed Embrace(53)

I placed Aric’s bottle on the table and tightened my robe. “Yeah, but he’s exhausted.”

Liam leaned over him. “That’s because his beast is working hard to heal him. See?”

Liam stuck his two fingers through the holes in Aric’s shoulder. Aric scrunched his brows but kept his lids shut. Liam pulled back his bloody fingers and wiggled them at me. “Look. No pus. Great job, Celia.”

I didn’t see, so much as feel, myself go white . . . then green. I beat down my gag reflex and choked out my words. “Liam. Please don’t ever do that again.” Or I will beat your ass to death.

“Liam?” Emme stood in the doorway, dressed in one of Liam’s T-shirts. “Is everything all right?”

I gripped the edge of the table, still feeling faint. “Fine. Everything’s fine. Emme, the poison seems to have left Aric’s system. Could you please help him heal?”

Liam blocked Emme’s path when she advanced, shaking his head. “Aric’s wolf could still be on the defense. I don’t want Emme near him just in case.” He patted my back. “Give a holler if you need me. He’ll respond better to me since I’m one of his Warriors.” Seeing how Aric hadn’t bitten Liam’s hand off when he poked through his skin like a skewer, I tended to believe him. Still, I’d rather have called the Catholic schoolgirls.

“Oh, and, Celia?” Liam paused with one foot in the hall. “Aric’s going to wake up very grateful to you for taking care of him—very grateful. He’ll probably want to have sex for a few hours, so be sure to get some shut-eye. Night.”

I nodded, stupidly, though his back was now to me. In his own, boyishly naive, unfiltered, inappropriate way, Liam meant well. Knowing that kept me from launching the water bottle into the back of his skull. I locked the door after them and bandaged Aric’s shoulder, then crawled back into bed with my wolf.





CHAPTER 15





I rubbed my eyes. They remained sore from lack of sleep and from the strange flashes of light that had haunted my dreams again. Aric had woke feeling better, and, as Liam promised, extremely grateful for my care. He’d kissed me when I tried to check his bandages and whisked us into the shower for one hell of a good morning.

I sighed contently. Aric’s dark brown hair curled, still wet from our romp in the shower. It tickled my belly as I lay against the fresh sheets. “You really scared me last night, wolf.”

Aric brought my knuckles to his lips. “And you scare the hell out of me for wanting to take part in the hunt.” He focused on the tiered ceiling painted in alternating tones of deep creams and antique whites. “The Leader of the Bear Clan on the Nevada side is taking over my duties for the next few days.”

I breathed a sigh a relief. “Good. It will give you time to recover.”

“I’m recovered enough.” Aric turned a little to nibble on my belly. “Or didn’t you notice?” A playful grin swept across his face. If his “gratitude” hadn’t worn me out, I might have pounced on him. His palm stretched across my skin to massage my shoulder. “The crisis has kept me from my duties as chancelor of students. The young wolves at the Den are behind on their studies. With my Warriors and me gone all the time, the staff has been stretched thin. Already the term will continue way into the summer.”

I hated Aric searching out the demon lord without me. And I hated the demands his Elders placed on him. At least in returning to teaching duties, he would be safe. My fingers swept over his moist strands. “You miss teaching, don’t you?”

Aric smiled fondly when he thought of his students. “I do, but I won’t be returning to the classroom just yet. I’m to prepare our senior students to assist in tracking the demon lord.”

“They’re so young,” I said quietly, more thinking out loud.

“They are. But they’re also not average students. The predators in them are enlivened by the idea of stalking prey. They’ll travel with seasoned weres. It will give them a taste of their duties without putting them in harm’s way.” Aric’s voice grew distant. “At least that’s what I’m hoping. The demon lord is starting to feast on the men before he abandons their remains.”

My back tensed. This was news, and not the post-lovemaking conversation any gal ever wanted. “Is he taking their blood?”

“No. He craves meat—lots of it. The last set of bodies I’d found had all the muscle stripped from their thighs.”

I grimaced. “And it’s not demon children feasting.”

Aric rubbed his forehead. “No. The bite marks suggest something bigger, with fangs that mimic more an angler fish than werebeast or vampire.”