But Trey leads me to the warehouse on the other end. He unlocks the door and I step into… a dance studio?
It is-a perfect dance studio, complete with mirrors and a hardwood floor. Barres on the freshly painted walls.
“Wh-what is this?” I whisper.
Trey doesn’t answer. He just beckons me through the door at the end, which leads to another space.
My mouth drops, fresh tears blur my vision. It’s my performance space. Exactly the way I sketched it. No-better. The stage is up against one wall, and ropes and silks hang from the ceiling for aerial dance. An entire row of black movable flats are lined up against another wall, waiting to shape the space into smaller quadrants.
Someone comes in the door at the other end and freezes.
Oh God. It’s Jared. He looks terrible–haggard and pale. Just seeing him makes a fresh gash across my chest.
“Angelina?” he clears his throat. Looks at Trey quizzically.
He doesn’t know whether I’ve already been wiped. That he would let that happen to me comes as a fresh betrayal and I march right over to him and slap his face. Just like I did the first time he tried to wipe me.
“Angelina.”
“How dare you give up on us, you asshole! You care about me. You did all this-” I throw my arms wide and take another sweep of the incredible space-“for me. But then you’re just going to send me off with your buddy to forget about you? How could you? I loved you, Jared. I. Love. You. Even if you wiped my mind a thousand times, I’ll still love you. My heart knows who it belongs to. So if you’re so fucking stupid you want to give up just because my parents are close-minded assholes, then you’re not the hero I thought you were. You’re-” I splutter off because truly, even as angry as I am, I’m incapable of insulting him. Nothing fits. He’s my everything.
And then I see something that makes my world spin and dumps me on my head.
Jared’s blinking back tears.
My Jared. The strongest man in the history of the world. Crying. Over me.
I throw myself at him, legs around his waist, clinging like a burr. “Please don’t let me go,” I plead, my face wet against his neck.
He drops to his knees. “Never.” His voice is fierce. “I’ll never fucking let you go. I’m sorry-I’m an idiot. My head got wedged. I thought I was doing you a favor. I never want to hurt you, baby. Not ever.”
I pull away and slap him again. Not hard, because he’s too close to get a good swing. It falls like a love-slap. A tenderness between us. “You did hurt me.”
“I know. I’m sorry. I’m so fucking sorry.”
I press my forehead up against his, roll our heads together. “You’d better be.” I’m still crying, but it’s turning into the laughing kind of tears now.
“Baby, you have to know what this means. If I mark you, you’re mine for life. Do you understand? And you become part of the pack-sworn to secrecy under penalty of death.”
I nod, happiness bubbling up like a fountain of goodness. “Yours for life sounds perfect.”
“Are you sure? You’re pretty young to make that-”
I smack him again, definitely a love slap this time. “Don’t you go questioning my life choices too.”
He laughs. “I love you.”
“Ditto.”
“Come on.” He stands up, still holding me wrapped around him. “I need to make you mine right now. Before my chest explodes.”
“Sounds good to me.”
I look around, but Trey has tactfully disappeared. I owe him a huge thank you for bringing me here instead of to the vampire. I mean huge. Like, I should name our first child after him.
“Will we have shifter babies?” I ask as Jared carries me outside to his car.
He laughs, bouncing me higher on his hip.
“Depends. Some halflings can shift, some can’t. Some females do if they get pregnant with a shifter-the baby’s DNA tips the scales.”
“I hope we have baby werewolves.”
“It doesn’t matter to me,” he promises. “I will love them either way.”
“You’d better.” I bite his ear.
Angelina
I’m shaking by the time we get back to my place-not out of fear. Out of desire. Excitement.
Jared’s going to mark me.
I don’t even care if it hurts.
He peels off his shirt the second he walks in my door, then kicks off his boots. I shriek when he throws me over his shoulder and carries me down the hall to my bedroom. He eases me to my feet and pulls my shirt over my head.
“All your clothes off. Now.” He uses a bossy tone that’s new. I’ve heard commanding with a teasing flavor but never this. Now his deep rumble carries dark promise.
Shivers thrill through me as I strip off my clothes and stand naked before him.
His eyes change to yellow. Beautiful, beautiful wolf.
Slowly, he unbuckles his belt, keeping his gaze locked on me.
A hint of fear surfaces, but it only increases my arousal. Is he going to whip me like he promised he’d do if I ever made him jealous?
Oh God. I hope so.
He pulls his belt from the loops and doubles it, slapping it lightly into his palm. I jump a little.
“Go get me your tights. Four pair.”
Four pair of tights? What could-oh. I’m pretty sure I know what he’s going to do with them and the flutters of excitement launch. I fumble with my dresser drawer and pull out a bunch of tights.
He takes them and lifts his chin toward the bed. “On your tummy. Spread eagle.”
Oh God, yes.
I scramble up on the bed and spread my arms and legs wide. Using the tights, he ties my wrists to the headboard, my ankles to the footboard. Then he shoves a pillow up under my hips to raise my ass.
All this time he hasn’t touched me and my every nerve is on edge, my senses heightened. I’m dying for his touch, desperate for it.
“Jared?”