Dawn's Path: Completed Work

"Drew. Please," she moaned. Arching against him, throwing her head back and extending her neck as he lifted her in his arms. Ancient words rarely spoken and seldom heard filled her ears, calling to the depths of her soul. She drifted, clinging to him, floating on the meaning of the words older than time. She felt the heat of his breath and the sharp sting as he gently broke through the skin. The soft, gentle pressure of his mouth and the heated strokes of his tongue sent ripples of pleasure spreading throughout her body as he drank from the wellspring of her life.

The act didn't hurt. In fact it felt good, so good, she wanted to do nothing but lie here in his arms and let him drink every last drop. The unwelcome thought was quickly washed away by the surge of pleasure dragging her under. Her wolf wouldn't allow him to harm her. His wolf, in his fierce protective nature, wouldn't allow his vampire nature to override his need to keep her safe. Her wolf didn't fight him. She reveled in the sweet essence of his wolf. Submitted fully in the offering of her throat to the Alpha holding her in his arms. Tala had to trust. He was her pack master supreme. Her alpha. Her Great White Wolf. Her vampire. And more than that, he was her man.

He and Tala were one through the blood. Her wolf flowed through his veins. Binding her magic to his very cells and intertwining it into his very DNA. The core of who he was. He knew what he had to do. What her wolf and his vampire demanded and without a second thought, he released her neck, slowing the flow of blood to a trickle. This was right. This was the moment that defined him. He bit his wrist and coaxed the flesh between her parted lips. She was woman. She was wolf. And she was in him. And as she drank of his offering, he was in her. Melding them together as he drank from her and she from him.

Her blood was powerful, more potent than a human's, richer and sweeter, filled with life and the wild essence of the wolf. Magic flowed through him. Ancient power surged through his body. Tala gasped, shuddering in his arms from the force of the magic. He rocked his against her. Although his jeans were between them he could feel her heat and moist core through the thick denim. Reeling in the waves of her pleasure that entered his consciousness.

He drank and continued the gentle motion of his groin rubbing against her exposed softness until she writhed beneath him. Climaxing for him again. The surge of magic and male pride, the sharing of her pleasure with him sent him to a place where there was nothing but the two of them. Withdrawing from her neck, ripping her lips from his wrist, he came for the first time in two hundred years. His fly of his jeans soaked with his release. They hadn't bonded in the way that terrified her so. But, they had formed a connection deeper than anything physical could have ever forged. Bonded by blood and in soul. And he knew right then, that if she'd asked he would have given her his body, his very life. Forever.

Tala reveled in the surge of Drew's pleasure. The evidence of how much he'd wanted her and enjoyed what they had done dampened his jeans and was moist and warm against her core. She traced her fingers over his cheek and wished she could give him everything he asked of her. Her blood and her soul weren't enough. He wanted her body, not just for a moment's worth of pleasure but for forever. She didn't have the luxury of offering what was not entirely hers to give. Her loyalty, first and foremost was to the Great White Wolf residing in his skin. And until he could manage to come to terms with that part of himself, anything she wanted would have to wait. Wanting him was risky. But, falling in love with him when that was exactly what she wanted, the only thing she wanted, was dangerous on a number of levels.

Drew stretched out on his side, cradling Tala's head in the crook of his elbow. He'd never been happier or more relaxed. She was the piece that had been missing from his life for so very long. And she made him complete in the way the brothers did not. He sensed her hesitation through their link. And he understood that to love her was a very dangerous thing for the both of them.

He had not fully accepted what he was. The newness of it was more than he could fathom. It was easier to avoid the issue than to address it. Easier to pretend there wasn't a wolf prowling in his head, battling for his skin, a part of his very soul. Magic flowed between Tala and he. So thick, he could taste it on the air. And he wanted, god how he wanted to do what she asked of him. Give himself fully to his wolf and to her. Drew stroked her hair, and they lay together, warming one another's skins with the heat of their bodies. Silently watching the night fading around them as it yielded to the dawn.

Drew reflexively blinked against the warm rays of the sun, shielding his eyes with the back of his hand. Tala shot him a frown of disapproval at his habit. She wiggled out of his embrace. The golden rays danced across her bare skin and his desire flared to life at the beauty of it. His body twisted and contorted. The limbs tightening with spasms as his wolf slipped free of his tight control. Pain unlike anything he'd ever felt seized his body, tearing at his flesh. The wolf was a creature of light and of nature. And his vampire, one of darkness and cold shadows, shunned the light.

Tala dropped to her knees, cupping Drew's face. His skin was burning hot to the touch. His wolf was there, tearing through the fragile wrapper of flesh in a desperate struggle for freedom. His eyes, still so human, were filled with anguish and terror. She was here for him. Here to help him become what he needed to become for the both of them. "Let it happen, Drew. Don't fight it. Trust me as I trusted you. Set him free."

Drew twisted out of Tala's gentle grip and shuddered, scrabbling for control. "I cannot," he rasped in a voice less than human. Stuffing his wolf down into his psyche, he tightened his control. Gasping and shivering on the ground, he raked his fingers across the soft, damp loam beneath him. He sucked in air with desperate lungs. Tala shuffled to her feet and stared down at him in disappointment. In rejecting his wolf, he had done the unthinkable and rejected her. He hadn't meant it. He simply wasn't ready. He couldn't.

Tala shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest wishing she weren't so exposed. They'd come so close. And still had so much farther to go. Her father would arrive shortly. And if Drew hadn't accepted his gift willingly, the pack would suffer. He would suffer. That much magic combined in one place would draw the wolf out. And it would not be a pleasant thing. Wolves despised weakness. They would sense his reluctance to lead them. And they would rather kill him. No matter how great the spirit wolf inside of him. Than follow a master that could not or would not claim them. The pack would be ripe for the picking. And Grant would not hesitate to tear through the weaker ones, including her father, to get what he'd always wanted.

He needed more time. Unfortunately, time was something she did not have. Understanding and patience came at a price she wasn't certain she had the luxury of paying. "Drew, this will happen. Your wolf is a part of who you are. And you can't deny him forever. You're risking the lives of your pack and mine. Drew, is it so terrible? The thought of being a wolf? Am I so disgusting to you? Drew...oh, never mind, it's useless anyway. And to think, I trusted you with my life. And you don't trust me with the same."

Tala stormed off into the woods, naked as the day she was born. Her fury and rage burned through the link. Singing him with its heat. Things weren't as uncomplicated as she believed. It wasn't just as easy as giving his wolf complete control of the body they shared. It was more, much more than that. The brothers would be affected. And what if the wolf took over and he couldn't get his body back? He was terrified of what he was. He didn't understand it. And he was scared to death of her. Of the feelings she'd stirred to life within him. He glared up at the sun and cursed under his breath. Stomping through the underbrush she'd crushed under her feet. He followed after her, bristling with determination to make her understand.

Chapter 68

"You're late," Keene said. His voice laden with disdain as Carter approached. Despite the recent shower, the man's appearance was not its usual polished self. He was disheveled, his designer clothing wrinkled and askew, and his hair clinging damply to his scalp. Not exactly the picture of masculine beauty he so often portrayed and undoubtedly used to score a meal at some willing female's neck. Obviously, his encounter with Eric didn't go so well, at least, not for him. No matter, as long as the message had been sent. Keene didn't particularly care how well Carter's visit went. "Did you make contact?"

Carter raised a brow at Keene's tone. Make contact? Yeah, something like that. Eric's fangs made contact with his throat. The bastard was in his head poking around. Carter could feel it. And what was worse, he could still taste Eric's blood on the tip of his tongue, nauseating and sickening, bitter with power and sweet with promises. "Not everybody is excited about the new change in management," he warned.

"As I expected," Keene replied with a nod.

Carter self-consciously rubbed his neck. Massaging the healed flesh Eric had driven his fangs into. Glaring at Keene who made no move to release the tracker from his ankle, Cater delivered the rest of Eric's demands. "He'll meet you at the River Bridge at midnight tonight, alone." He frowned as Keene nodded in acknowledgment. "You're not that stupid, to go alone, are you?"

Keene was never alone. Not really. The link he shared with his brothers bound them. There were no secrets. If he were in trouble, the brothers know, and they'd come. He had their backs and they had his. But, he wasn't willing to divulge that little bit of information to Carter. The brotherhood's secrets were on more of a need to know basis. And Carter didn't need to know.

"You know Eric plans to kill you." The banks of the river were dark and muddy, a pit where even the lowest of humans refused to go. And they were the perfect place for a murder. But, so be it. If Keene was that stupid, what could he do about it? Eric invited the brothers to step into his trap. And it looked like they were going to do just that. He was back to his policy of non-involvement. Even though, it truly was too late for that now. He was ass in. Eric had his blood. The brothers had a damned tracker strapped to his ankle. And he wasn't getting out of this anytime soon.

"I'm not that easy to kill." Plans were already in the works. Keene's mind worked furiously to solidify them. Timing would be everything. He had to position his brothers close enough to come at a moments notice. But, far enough away to avoid detection and at a safe enough distance that if things truly did go to shit, he could pull them out and face the danger alone. And he was looking at the man who could do just that. Carter was a reluctant leader. He didn't want to get involved. And from Keene's point of view, that made him absolutely perfect for the job.

Carter huffed, turning to leave. The sun was high above and the city teeming with life. People were on the streets and sidewalks, busily going about carrying on the activities of their day completely oblivious to the monsters volleying for control of the city and of their very lives. There was nothing else for Keene and he to discuss. Things had already been set in motion that there were no stopping. He wished he could become one of the 'happy people' and to be as clueless as they were. That wasn't happening either. He shoved his hands in his pockets and melted into the throng of humanity, leaving Keene to do whatever it was he did while they waited for night to fall again. Pretending to be one of the humans instead of one of the monsters, Carter set out to shake the tail the brothers had assigned to him and make a few preparations of his own.

"Friend, where will you go?" Keene called after Carter. He liked the guy. Sensed that somehow this life had been thrust upon him and that beneath the mask of beauty and his fangs, Carter was honest to his core. Not the makings of a very good vampire but of a decent human being. Keene could feel the power in Carter's blood and knew he wasn't a young vampire. But, Carter served no master and didn't want to. Carter didn't answer him but disappeared into the mad dash of early morning commuters. And it didn't matter. Keene could find the man no matter where he tried to run. There was no hiding and no escaping the brotherhood.

Carter lacked direction. He was too focused on keeping out of the way and not getting involved that he had inadvertently done just that and was in the thick of a potential war he wanted no part of. And Keene would love to respect Carter's wishes and just let him go. But, that wasn't going to happen. The city needed him. Angel had been right about him. He was going to lead the rogues. And it didn't matter, nothing he wanted mattered once destiny had put its mark on you.

Carter had been a drifter in his human life. Living under bridges. Sleeping in barns. Scraping by. And after that fateful night when he'd ran for his freedom, he'd drifted from place to place for over three hundred years before settling here. He'd been smart and kept one step ahead of Eric. Avoiding connections, places and people, vampires in particular. Cool aloofness was the game he'd played. Keeping his distance. Nothing had changed. He was still a drifter. Not from place to place, but through life in general.

He had such power, such potential. And he knew it. He could run his own city. Manage things the way he saw fit. Use his gifts and the talents of vampires for good instead of evil. He never picked sides before. Save one, the side that served him best, his own. And maybe, it was time he did get involved. Not only for himself. But, for the countless others like him. A man was defined by his actions more so than his title. And it was time for him to choose. Not a side, but his purpose.

Sometimes Dane hated his job. He scrubbed his hand across his jaw in agitation. And lowered his eyes to meet the pair of glacier blue eyes that stared up at him. Chris, his wife, usually calmed him with her presence. But, this time he was too far gone for her gentle nature to have any effect on him. War was coming. Keene's report left him with a bad feeling about the mission. He should pull his men out and leave the rogues to clean up after their own mess. But, the brothers didn't operate that way. He didn't operate that way. And he saw no other option except to go all in.

Chris stretched out on the plush, mocha colored, leather sofa and stared up at her husband. He was usually so cool and calm. But, today his mood was agitated and restless. "Why don't you take a team and go into the city?" she suggested.

"If the rogues sense our presence, it might make things worse. If a battle isn't brewing, I certainly don't want to start one," Dane huffed. Chris had a way of simplifying things too much. She made the difficult sound so damn easy. It wasn't.

"Look, if you don't go and something happens you won't be able to live with yourself," Chris reasoned. She didn't want her husband to rush into danger. But, if he needed to be with Keene, then that's what he needed to do. The loss of Lucien, even after all the time that had passed, still affected him greatly. He couldn't suffer that kind of loss again. Keene was more than a warrior. He was Dane's friend.

"I won't sacrifice my brother to some damned rogues." Dane pounded his fist on the desk, splintering the wood. "I won't do it again."

"Then don't. Go." Chris sent all her energies to Dane. Willing them to calm her worried husband. She crossed the room and wrapped an arm around his waist.

Dane took a deep breath and filled his lungs with her scent. Lavender. Calm invaded his strained muscles and agitated thoughts. His woman was a miracle. Doing what she did best and keeping him in line. Easing his worry and his agitation with her calming presence. Only she could tame his beast. "You know I love you."

"I know. Now, get packing." Dane's arms encircled her waist and her feet lifted off the floor as he hugged her in a tight embrace.

Chapter 69

Angel rolled her eyes and read through the menu Janine had painstakingly put together. "Why do we need a caterer? None of us can eat. What's the point?" she grumbled. Had Janine lost her mind? Or had she, in asking for her help? Angel should have kept her mouth shut and the wedding a secret. Janine had pulled out all the stops and brought in a box of samples for her to go through. None of this shit made any sense. Menus. Pictures of fancy cakes nobody would eat. Flowers. Champagne flutes. Bubble machines. In sheer frustration over the difficulty in planning such a simple event, Angel slammed the typed menu on the table.

Janine shot a glance over her shoulder and leaned in close to whisper in Angel's ear. She was used to brides throwing temper tantrums of epic proportions. And Angel was having a nice little melt down, abusing the poor, defenseless samples. Tantrums and meltdowns came with the territory of being a bride and planning the perfect wedding. Tala pawed through the fridge in the kitchen and Janine didn't want her to overhear their conversation. Part of her job as wedding planner and social organizer for the brotherhood was the blending of families. "The food is for the werewolves."

Exasperated to her core, Angel asked, "Why in the hell would werewolves want to come to my wedding?"

Tala growled and slammed the refrigerator door shut. "I'm not a werewolf." These vampires and their assumptions, she thought, rolling her eyes. After popping her breakfast in the microwave and setting the timer, she sauntered across the kitchen and snatched up the menu from the dining room table. Scanning through the food offerings, she wanted to burst out in laughter. Escargot? Bite sized cucumber sandwiches and those fancy little weenies wrapped in bacon and served on toothpicks? Who was Janine kidding? A full-grown wolf could eat twice its weight in food. It was going to take a hell of a lot of cocktail weenies and finger sandwiches to feed a pack the size of hers. Meals were a free for all and Tala doubted very much that Janine would approve of their table manners.

"Sounds good," Tala commented, tossing the menu aside. Actually, she hated weddings. She was just stirring the pot and causing a little trouble to get back at Janine for calling her a werewolf and whispering behind her back. "Maybe, you could throw in some of those little meatballs with the grape jelly while you're at it."

"See." Janine beamed triumphantly. At least her efforts to plan the perfect wedding dinner weren't lost on someone. Tucking the menu away before Angel could rip it to shreds, she winked and whispered to Angel as Tala crossed the dining room to the kitchen to check on her meal. "I was going to invite the 'you know whos' as a way to butter them up. I'm thinking about asking some of the males to strip for your bachelorette party."

Tala laughed so hard at the idea of it she almost spilled her breakfast all over the microwave. "Ha!" Strippers, the males in her pack? Hell yeah, they'd do it. But, she didn't think it'd mean the same thing to them as it would to the vampires. Her pack had no problems with nudity whatsoever. And for the chance to flaunt what their mama gave them in front of a bunch of females. They'd be all over that and then some. "That won't be a problem."

"Strippers!" Angel reached her limit and glowered at both Janine and Tala. "There won't be any strippers, caterers, printed doilies, or whatever in the hell all this shit is!" she stammered. Throwing the litter of pastel cups and printed napkins she'd shredded into the air, she jolted to her feet. "Because there isn't going to be a wedding!" She stomped off leaving Janine sitting at the table with her mouth gaping wide.