Chapter 19

Shemika walked back to her apartment, aware of the eyes following her. She wasn’t surprised. She smelled of Caturix and despite her healing, her body was still marked with scratches.

She tried to keep her chin up, to ignore the penetrating stares, but it was difficult. She knew what they were thinking. She was just another one of Caturix’s conquests. She’d heard he’d had many.

Reaching her hallway, Shemika stopped short. “Oh, uh, Nikandr,” she blurted out.

He was waiting by her door. He straightened as she approached. “I just got here,” he assured her. His warm smile faded as she neared. “You smell like you’ve been with Caturix,” he accused.

A lump formed in her throat. “Uh, yeah. I was,” she admitted, trying to sidestep him to enter her apartment.

He grabbed her arm, pulling her back. “I don’t think I understand.”

“You’re hurting me,” she protested, attempting to free her arm.

He ignored her. “You slept with Caturix and he ~hurt~ you. You came to ~me~ and you slept with ~me~. Why did you go back to him?” he demanded.

His grip was painful, unlike the way Caturix made her feel. The pain from Nikandr wasn’t pleasurable like Caturix’s.

“Yeah, I did sleep with you, but there weren’t any conditions, Nikandr. You wanted it just as much,” she retorted, still struggling against his hold.

“So what,” he spat, “I’m just the guy you go to after you’ve fucked Caturix?” He pulled her close, their faces inches apart.

He looked wild, unlike any time she’d seen him before. He’d always been so kind and warm. Now, he seemed savage and aggressive, more so than Caturix ever was.

“Actually, no,” she retorted, finally freeing her arm. “I’ve started a…relationship with Caturix. Monogamous. So there will be no going to you of any sort,” she said, moving to her door again. She unlocked it and stepped in but paused at the doorway. “Anything else to say, Nikandr?” she challenged.

He was on edge, vibrating with tension. “I told you, you don’t want to mess with him. You’ll break if you stay,” he warned ominously.

She suppressed a shiver. “Still, that’s my decision to make, but thank you ~so much~ for your concern, Nikandr. I feel blessed,” she replied sarcastically.

His fists clenched at his sides as if he wanted to hit her. “I kept my distance from you because Lyosha had already verbally claimed you, little wolf. But I found you. If Lyosha changes his mind, you’re mine,” he declared.

Fear tightened Shemika’s chest. He what now? Had he just claimed her? “I am nobody’s until I choose to be mated,” she said calmly, though her knees nearly gave out.

Nikandr’s lips pulled back in a silent snarl. “I could make that decision for you, any day.”

His words froze her in fear. “You wouldn’t,” she whispered. “That’s against lycan law.”

His lips twitched with amusement, but he turned and stormed off, muttering something under his breath.

Shemika quickly shut and locked the door.

Nikandr had just threatened to claim her, to mark her against her will. He couldn’t. It was against the law. Very few things were against the law for lycans. Not even sexual assault.

Shemika leaned against the door, lost in thought.

She wanted to tell Caturix about what happened, but he had made it clear that he had no plans to claim her and didn’t see her as a partner. He might think she wanted him to claim her or wanted him to be jealous. Wanted something from him that he wasn’t willing to give. It seemed pointless, so Shemika decided to keep quiet about the encounter.

She cleaned herself, hating it. She liked Caturix’s scent, simply because he smelled good. She wanted to smell like him. She wanted people to know they were together.

She stayed in her room for the rest of the day, lounging and watching TV, but her mind was elsewhere.

In her bed, she thought about how much more comfortable Caturix’s sheets were. Hers were cold. They needed to be warmed, and her mind wandered back to Caturix taking her from behind. The heat of their bodies, fused together. The warmth of his touch, his tongue, his seed.

Her thoughts drifted to the strength of his fingers, his torso moving and his muscles rippling, the power behind his thrusts. Her legs tightened with the memory. She thought about the sharpness of his claws and the pleasurable pain they offered, but a twinge of sadness hit her as she thought about the potential pleasure his mouth could give her.

He didn’t trust her with his mouth. In fact, he hadn’t even kissed her, she realized with a blush. They’d fucked like wild animals, but their lips had never met. The thought…made her stomach churn.

Kissing was more intimate to her. While men in Vale had taken her body regularly, especially Dancescu, no one had bothered to kiss her. In fact, Shemika couldn’t remember the last man who’d kissed her. She only remembered sex.

She knew what she wanted the next day. Caturix was expecting her to visit. There might be sex, but she knew for sure that she would be kissing him. If anything were to happen.

She swallowed, her mouth suddenly salivating. It was just the thought of a kiss, why was she so nervous? She rolled onto her side, ignoring the TV, as she drifted off to thoughts of Caturix.