Waxing Gibbous

Chapter 14

Soren was lying on the couch listening to the rain while staring into the pitch blackness that filled the room. All the lights in the house were off and it was disturbingly quiet. Tegan didn’t have a TV that he could watch to pass the time. How anyone could live without television, he hadn’t a clue. He was going to have to remedy that situation if he was going to be staying here. A few hours and he was already going crazy.

Bored out of his skull, he got up and went to the kitchen to find something to eat. He opened the door to the refrigerator, spilling light into the darkened room, and peered at the contents. Someone had stocked it full with meat, fruits, and vegetables. He snagged an apple and closed the door plunging himself into darkness once more.

He washed the ruby red fruit in the sink before biting into the sweet, juicy flesh. It wouldn’t appease his boredom any, but it was something to do. He juggled eating the apple and opening cupboards. He found a box of crackers and started nibbling on those as soon as he finished the apple.

After he had eaten all he dared – lest Tegan decided to use her carrots and grapes as missiles and grenades – he slipped his sneakers on and went out to his car. He opened the trunk and found a hooded sweatshirt. Putting that on to protect him from the rain, he closed the trunk and began moving through the soggy woods. Everything was a muddy mess but with a little careful treading, it wasn’t really a problem.

Soren was feeling quite restless this night. Whenever he got this way he always visited his Delilah. Being with her brought a peacefulness and enlightenment that nothing else ever could. He always felt more connected to her when he was alone at her grave. No one usually bothered him there. It was the one private sanctuary on this island that he cherished more than anything. There were even times when it seemed like her spirit was reaching out to him, helping to soothe whatever grief welled up inside of him.

It took a little longer to get to this tiny haven because it was almost on the opposite side of Timber Island. And travelling through the slippery terrain and weaving through newly fallen trees slowed him down even more. By the time Soren arrived at Delilah’s gravestone, he was completely soaked to his skin. He didn’t mind though. His thoughts were only on his sister and how much he missed spending time with her.

How he wished he could go back to a time when both his brother and sister were both in his life…before everything had gone to hell.

Soren crouched down and traced his little sister’s name chiseled in the water slickened stone. Being here, he couldn’t help the barrage of memories that cascaded over him – the good and the bad.

After Kerr had left – claiming he had wanted to see the world before he settled down with a mate and had pups – everything had went to hell. Delilah, fearing that he would also suddenly take off one day, had become attached to Soren. She would follow as close as a shadow when they were at home and always wanted to know where he was going.

It annoyed him but Soren understood why she had acted that way.

Delilah had occasionally asked him if he ever planned to ever leave home like their eldest sibling had. Soren had to reassure her that he had no intention of ever going out and deserting the pack like Kerr. That he would live up to whatever responsibility given to him. She had accepted his answer, but still, that fear of abandonment had been planted inside her.

That morning, Soren had woken up to find his brother had packed half of his things. He threw it all in the back of his pickup. When Soren asked what he was doing, Kerr said not to worry, that he would be back in a few months time. When Kerr finally did decide to darken their doorstep a few months later, it was to say that he was taking off again. And that was the last day that anyone had seen him. It was as if he had dropped from the face of the planet.

Part of Soren had resented Kerr from the very minute he hopped in that truck and drove out of their lives. That piece of him had unknowingly swelled with each day his brother didn’t come home as the pack had succumbed to misfortune. He had locked that part of him up inside, refusing to acknowledge it.

With Kerr’s latest arrival, something within Soren had snapped. Three years of anger, resentment, and anguish had flooded through Soren, overwhelming him. It was something dark and oppressive, something lurking deep within that he was too afraid to examine. If he did, Soren was afraid of what he might find.

“Why did you have to leave me, too, Lilah?” he asked the cold, hard granite.

As always, there was no answer. Just an empty ringing silence drowned out by the pitter-patter of the falling water.

Soren’s sensitive hearing picked up the splashing approach of footsteps coming to join him at the gravesite. He didn’t have to turn around to know Kerr was standing right behind him. Even though it was somewhat weaker than before, he could discern as much from the familial and pack link binding them together.

“Hey, little brother,” he addressed cautiously.

“What do you want?” Soren questioned in a chilly tone. He didn’t want Kerr here with him. This was the one place where he could go to be alone to ease his inner turmoil. This was his santucary. No one ever came here but him. Not even his parents since the funeral. The more territorial side of him reared its head, wanting the other wolf to back off and leave him be.

Kerr must have sensed this because he stayed in the same spot. “I guess I came here entertaining the same idea as you. I wanted to see our sister’s grave. I had wanted to come earlier, but just haven’t worked up the nerve. The stone, it’s nice. Delilah would have liked it.”

Soren was still facing the marker. In the same icy tone he replied, “You know, she called for you, near the end when she still could remember us. She wanted to see you one last time before she went to the spirit world. Delilah knew she was dying before any of us would accept it.

“When she finally did pass on, mom turned into a shadow. She did nothing but lock herself away from the world. Dad spent every waking moment trying to take down Magda. I thought maybe her death would bring you home. Then when you never showed up, I wished to never set eyes on you again. I never wanted you to return. So I made myself forget about you.”

“I meant to come back, Soren. I did. I missed every single one of you more than you can know –”

Soren suddenly jumped to his feet and turned to face him. “You left! When Delilah died I had to deal with everything – everything – by myself! Then you just blow back into town like nothing ever happened. You didn’t say one goddamned word about what had been done to you. Instead, you try to keep it a secret and look what the fuck happened!” Soren screamed pointing at the where Kerr had scratched him. The wound had already healed over by now due to the faster regenerative abilities that werewolves were capable of.

“Soren, you are not the only one that suffered. I tried to come back. I fought so damn hard to. You have no idea how much I wish I could have come home, how much I wanted to be with you all again. You guys were the only thing that kept me from accepting my fate, from curling into a ball and willing myself to die. I knew as soon as this fucking hex was placed on me that I would probably never see any of you again. I knew the danger I would expose everyone to. But when Zelko said I could finally come home…it was something I wanted so badly that I couldn’t turn it down.

“You want to know how I found out about Lilah’s death? One night, Zelko’s sister came to visit. She had bragged about how she had manipulated the entire pack, how she had brought the great Darkwood leader to his knees by killing his little girl.

“My heart stopped, Soren. My fucking heart stopped beating when I heard those words. I went into such a violent rage that I blacked out for an entire week. When I finally came to my senses, I remembered everything thing that witch had said, and I lost it all over again.

“Just because I was gone didn’t mean I didn’t care. I mourned the loss of everyone one of you every day that I was held in that place. I didn’t think I would ever be able to see any of you ever again. I thought I was going to die alone in some cage like an animal, some damned mutant science experiment.”

Kerr paused for a moment. Taking a deep breath in, he tried to purge the overload of emotions churning through him. The air around him started to cloud with something sinister and deadly. He was close to losing himself but he managed to keep it under control.

“I had to endure hours upon hours of him using magick against me just to see how long I could withstand the torture of it before he turned me. He would abuse me to get me angry enough so that I turned. I tried to keep it at bay. The longer I did, the more it hurt when I transformed in and out of my human body. It got to the point where the pain was unbearable and I stopped fighting it. I let him use me for whatever sick purposes he had. But I swear to you, I never agreed to help him in any way. I never tried to betray the pack.” He closed his eyes and swore.

Soren listened to his tale with guilt bleeding into him. In reality, he had no idea what his brother had been through. He hadn’t even been willing to listen to anything Kerr said. All Soren had cared about was his hurt feelings and the wrong that was done to him. His brother hadn’t escaped anything when he had left the island. He played a part in the tragedy just like the rest of them. However bad it had been on here, the pain and destruction had reached out and twisted its fingers in Kerr’s life as well. They had all suffered at the same hands of evil. Hearing it all said aloud cause some of the bubbling fury inside to dissipate.

“I just wanted to be back with my family. At least one last time,” Kerr whispered.

Confusion crossed Soren’s features. “One last time?” he asked, taking a guarded step toward his brother.

Kerr shook his head and looked at the saturated ground in shame. “I don’t think I can live this way anymore, Soren. I don’t want to go on with the rest of my life as a monster. I might hurt or kill someone. Look what I have already done to you. Everyone would be safer if I were dead. I can’t infect anyone else. I can’t let this thing in me – this monster – spread. I will not infect someone else with this curse!”

“Are you saying you are going to kill yourself?”

He shrugged. “It’s either that or dad calls in a mercy killing.”

“Typical Kerr,” Soren muttered disgustedly, his fury rising again and pushing away remorse budding inside him. “You just come back into our lives just so you can make another exit? You kill yourself what do you think it will do to mom and dad? They already lost one child. Could you really be that selfish as to take another one away from them?”

“It’s for the best!” Kerr exclaimed.

“Says who?” Soren demanded.

“What do you want me to do, Soren? I though you of all people would understand.”

Soren pinned him with a penetrating glare. “I only understand one thing. You are a coward, Kerr. You always have been. All you have ever done is run from everything thrown your way. Own up to one thing in your life for once. Isn’t that why you ran away in the first place, because you didn’t want to take responsibility? It was you that was chosen to be next in line, you that was supposed to be the next alpha of the pack. And it got handed down to me just like the rest of your failures. I’m sick of it. So go ahead. Kill yourself and prove to everyone what a chicken-shit you really are.”

“What would you have of me?” Kerr challenged. “What would you do if you were in my shoes?”

“Since I might very well be headed down the same path as you, I’m going to choose to battle against this curse. I do not want to be what you have become. I will fight to with every breath I possess to not to,” he stated vehemently.

Kerr narrowed his eyes at him. “You might not feel that way when you change for the first time, or anytime after that for that matter. How will you handle being shunned by everyone around you because you are so dangerous to them? In this, there is only despair.”

“Maybe I would have thought the same thing a year ago. Hell, I would have thought that a couple months ago. But now I kind of have something to fight for.”

“What?”

His mouth quirked. It was the first time since his brother’s return that he had smiled in his presence even if it was only a half smile. “A smart mouthed witch who doesn’t know what’s good for her.”

“So you and Tegan do have something going on?” his brother asked.

Soren shook his head. “That isn’t the point. The point is that I would fight for the things important to me. What about you? Are you still willing to just lie down and die without even trying to see this through?”

“Would you trust Tegan to save you?”

Without pausing, he answered Kerr. “Yes, I would. She won’t stop until she finds some way to help us because that is the type of person she is.”

“She might very well be our last hope then. I know I have failed all of you, and I know you will probably never forgive me; especially now that I have probably passed this curse on to you. I deserve everything that has happened to me. I only wish I hadn’t dragged you into it,” he murmured regretfully.

“Kerr…”

“I’m sorry, Soren. I have put you in this position and damned you to become what I am. I know this is asking too much, but all I ask is for your forgiveness. Even if you cannot find it in yourself to give it to me right now. All I want is to earn that trust once again. You might not acknowledge it, but you are my brother and I love you.”

“Kerr…I’m sorry, too,” Soren said suddenly, to the other wolf’s surprise. Even Soren was shocked that he dared to utter the words.

“You have nothing to apologize to me for.”

“I do,” Soren insisted. “I’ve treated you like shit from the moment you stepped foot through the door. I hated you for a long, long time. No matter how I tried to justify it, there is this little voice in my head – one that sound vaguely like out resident witch – telling me to put the past behind me, to try to move on with my life.

“I think I can, in time, forgive you. But right now. Not when my heart is still too torn to let you in completely. These emotions have been with me for such a long time. It is hard to let go. But I’ll work on it. I think Lilah would have wanted me to do this, to at least try to forgive you. And Tegan, too. She has been bitching at me to talk to you. I have to admit, I feel a whole hell of a lot better hearing what you had to say.”

“And you believe me?” Kerr asked, hopeful.

“Yes, I will trust your word on this; just don’t make me regret it,” he warned.

“Thanks, Soren. That means more to me than you will ever know. And I will spend the rest of my life trying to regain your full trust, if that is what it takes,” he vowed.

“Yeah, well…uh…it’s raining out here. We are both soaked to the bone. Let’s go back to Tegan’s and get dry,” Soren suggested. The uneasiness he felt from discussing his feeling getting to him.

Before Kerr could turn around, Soren clamped his hand on his shoulder to stop him from walking away.

“I’m going to help you try to beat this thing. We’re both in this together, right?” He stuck out his first in Kerr’s direction.

Kerr looked at the proffered knuckled and then back into his brother’s eyes. Slowly, he reached out and rapped his knuckles against Soren’s.

“Together,” he whispered.

Soren smiled. “Come on, brother.”

~*~

Soren was facing the kitchen, staring out at the obscured wilderness beyond. Though he was drinking liquor, he wasn’t completely sloshed. He seemed to only be slightly inebriated. Tegan watched as he lifted the bottle to his lips and took a healthy swig of its golden liquid.

If he kept that up for much longer, he would be praying to porcelain gods in no time.

She watched him from the doorway, not sure if he knew that she was there or not. She had just come from taking a shower when she found the wolf alone.

Both he and Kerr had been out the entire day, giving Storm and Tegan all day to pour over the scrolls and books and even sneak in practicing a few low range healing spells. She could feel herself getting stronger by the day.

When the Kerr had finally showed his face, Tegan and Storm had preformed a little ritual to remove the subjugation off of his back. It had taken more out of the werewolf than it did her because he had fallen asleep almost immediately afterwards.

Storm had left a little while ago claiming that he wanted to go for a flight. Tegan had been worried about him going off on his own but he had assured her that he would be paying more attention to his surroundings and would constantly scan for anything amiss. She had reluctantly let him go with a final warning to safe.

Soren must have returned while she was busy upstairs.

So now it was just her and Soren that were up and about in the old house.

Soren set down the bottle of Booker’s and grabbed a piece of chocolate from the crystal bowl that was set out on the counter. She walked over to him as he peeled away the thin aluminum covering and popped the sugary sweet treat in his mouth.

“I always liked that taste of chocolate with bourbon,” he said offhandedly, giving her a start because she didn’t think he knew she was there. Tegan eyed him strangely, not knowing what to make of the drunk-ish werewolf.

“Would you like to take a walk with me, Tegan?” His face swung around from the window, his warm brown eyes gazing at her questioningly.

Soren actually asking her was even more shocking than finding him drinking. And he was nice about it, too. If liquor made him a gentleman, she would have to keep the house well stocked with it.

She thought on what he had asked her. The idea of getting out and breathing in some fresh air appealed to her. Tegan had been cooped up for the past few days, mostly due to the rain. Because autumn was unpredictable around this area, it probably wouldn’t be long before the fall more or less resembled winter. After that, any time spent outdoors would be limited by the cold, harsh weather.

“Where to?” she finally asked.

Soren shrugged, snagging another piece of chocolate from the bowl. “Just a walk. There are several paths around here to choose from. Do you want to go back down to the beach? It’s actually quite nice outside now that the rain has tapered off. It may be a little muddy, but it’s not nearly as cold.”

Her reply was simply, “Why not?”

They walked to the front of the house. Tegan slipped her shoes on and away they went. The night was warm and soothing. The sweet scent and dampness of rain still lingered in the breeze.

Soren slid his hands in his pockets then looked up the sky as they strolled down a well-travelled path bracketed by trees and carpeted with their fallen leaves. “It’s the beginning of the waxing gibbous moon. I can already feel the lunar pull on my other half. Have you begun to feel it yet?” he inquired with a sideways glance.

She looked up at the sky; the moon was indeed expanding to its great white fullness. She tried not to think about what would happen in a few days. Every time she entertained the idea of transforming into a wolf she felt close to a panic attack. She hated to think of what she would be like when the day finally came. She’d probably be climbing the walls.

Tegan shook her head before answering. “I don’t think so, nothing worth noticing anyway. Maybe I’m a bit more…excitable.”

He gave her a taunting look. “A bit?”

She sent him a warning glare that told him to shut it. “Yes, a bit. My eating habits are starting to resemble yours, too. I must have gained five pounds in the past few days.”

He smirked. “That’s because your body is storing energy for the change. Your increased appetite will wane after the full moon and you’ll be back to your normal self.”

Tegan stepped on a stick that cracked under her weight and stumbled through the darkness a few paces.

“Your senses should be heightening. But as for your dexterity, I think nothing can help that,” he jeered playfully as he steadied her.

“Yeah, I know. I’ve always been a little clumsy. But it is dark out here and I can’t see very well so cut me some slack.”

“I had a talk with Kerr earlier,” he told her, changing the subject.

She was surprised by that. She hadn’t expected him to ever confront his brother. “Ah, so that’s the reason why you’re drinking.”

He shrugged a shoulder. “Among other things.”

“How did that go?” Neither one of them looked battered or bruised so it hadn’t gotten too out of hand.

“I got a lot of things out that I wanted to say for a long time. You were right, I feel better,” he admitted.

She smiled at him. “I’m glad you talked to him, Soren. I hope you both can patch your relationship back together.”

He sighed. “We’ll see.”

The crashing of waves breaking across the shoreline drew their attention to the beach. The autumn tempest had stirred the water to a violent frenzy. This was a different stretch of sand than the one she had first used magick at. Moonlight cast dark, macabre shadows that extended across the shore.

Their creepy little setting made Tegan think of the earlier attacks and how something could come and get them at anytime. She had to suppress a shiver from seizing her body. Maybe coming out all by themselves was a bad idea. With her luck, vampires were probably real and that would be the next thing to slink up and make her a midnight snack.

Suddenly Soren grabbed Tegan around the waist – startling a yelp out of her because her mind was just on things coming out and getting her – and whirled her around the squishy sand to a tune only he heard. Perhaps he was a wee more drunk then what she originally thought. She looked up at him and he was smiling down at her, his predacious teeth gleaming in the limited illumination.

“What are you doing?” she asked, biting her sore bottom lip and eyeing him as if he had grown two heads.

“Dancing,” he murmured, pulling her along with him. She followed his lead, swinging back and forth in a gentle sway. He was surprisingly light on his feet. He didn’t step on her toes once. She couldn’t say the same. Caught off guard, she nearly tripped and fell on her face a couple of times.

“Just how much have you had to drink tonight, wolf-boy? You’re acting more peculiar than usual,” she said.

“I haven’t had that much to drink.”

She snorted her doubt.

“You know, witch, despite the fact that you have two left feet and that you seem to embrace your freewill to the fullest extent, I quite like you,” he confessed, eyes twinkling in the pale moonlight.

Tegan cocked an eyebrow. “Oh, really? You sure have an unusual way of showing it.”

“Whether you have accepted it or not, you are mine. It’s just a matter of time before you realize it.” He stopped the waltzing and buried his head in her neck, nuzzling the bare skin he discovered.

“I’m not anyone’s whether you like it or not, you pompous jerk,” she replied, her hands clutching his arms.

He ran his cold nose along her jaw line then nipped at her chin, probably not paying any mind to what she was saying at all. Selective hearing was one thing Soren excelled at.

“Hey, hey, hey, wolf-boy. Watch the teeth,” she warned, pulling away from him and waving her finger in his face. “I don’t need you turning me into some psycho werewolf from hell next.”

“I want to taste you again, witch. I want to bury my head between your legs and –” The drink had loosened his tongue as well. He was even more crudely blunt than normal.

She slapped a hand over his mouth and felt his tongue as it rasped against her palm. She shivered at the contact and instantly wanted to pull her hand away from the warm, wet muscle. Her face was flaming hot, her cheeks stinging with blush.

“I don’t want to hear whatever filthy words you were about to say next, you lecher. You might get away with talking like that to all the other hussies you have on the side, but I’m not going to listen to it,” Tegan berated hotly.

He reached up and pulled her hand away. “Hussies? I can assure you I don’t have any hussies.”

“Scared them all away with your reputable charm, have you?” she asked snidely.

He grinned devilishly at her. “Would you be jealous if I said I have a harem of females chasing after me?”

She snorted. “I most certainly would not.”

“So you wouldn’t be angry if I touched another like this?” Soren stared into her eyes as he ran a finger up and down her bare arm. Goose bumps curiously peeked out of their hiding place, roused by his stroking.

“No, I wouldn’t,” Tegan said indignantly.

“Even if I was flush against them like this?” He closed the distance between then, pressing close so that their bodies touched very intimately. He moved his questing digit up to her neck to the frantic pulse on the side.

Tegan gulped, feeling very much like the prey the wolf in front of her stalked. Still, defiance boiled in her veins.

“Not a chance.” Her voice was thin and breathy. Betraying her, letting Soren know he was definitely having an effect on her.

“What if you saw me do this?” His exploring hand slipped to her chin, tilting it up and holding it firm in his grasp so that there would be no escaping what came next. His lips were on hers in an instant.

Soren’s kiss didn’t surprise her. She had expected him to kiss her. His lips moved over hers how she anticipated. He wasn’t gentle. He was almost rough, demanding. He took total control of the kiss, insisting she bend to his will.

What was surprising, however, was that she liked it. No, that wasn’t right. She thoroughly enjoyed it.

But before she could even respond, it was over.

Soren pulled away with a self-satisfied grin. The werewolf was definitely pleased with himself at having caught her off guard.

Tegan immediately looked away, nibbling her lower lip. She was caught and she knew it. But she wouldn’t go down without a fight.

“If you want to make out with the entire female population, you go right on ahead and do it, wolf-boy. But if you ever kiss me again –”

“Shut up,” he whispered and did exactly that.

If one could kiss the devil that was what Tegan was doing. No, Soren wasn’t exactly the epitome of evil. But he was very much a temptation that she didn’t need to entertain. They were so different from each other. They butted heads all the time and rarely agreed on anything. No good would come of this. She had to nip whatever it was growing between them right in the bud.

She was going to pull away, put distance between them. Unfortunately for her mind, her body wasn’t paying any heed. It went its own way, stepping closer to Soren, not intending to back away until it was good and ready. Tegan had intended to push him away. But the hands she rested on his shoulders fisted in his shirt to keep him from going anywhere.

Soren nibbled at her lips then licked and sucked to ease the slight pain from his teeth. His fingers brushed across her cheek as he took possession of her head, cupping the back with his large palm. He tasted of chocolate and bourbon. The taste rolled over her tongue like sweet nectar as his delved past her parting lips.

His fingers fisted in her hair, keeping her in place with her mouth fused to his. He had her submission. He knew it and he was going to take full advantage. His other hand gripped her hip then inched up her waist to the curve of her breast. Tegan moaned as an electric chill sizzled through her body, making things harden and tighten in blissful delight.

He pulled away slowly – way before she was ready to stop – and rested his forehead against hers. He had his eyes closed. Both of their breathing was labored.

“God, you don’t know how bad I want you, witch,” he whispered raggedly.

“Oh, I think I can tell,” she mumbled as she felt the evidence digging into her lower belly. She backed away a little so she didn’t have to be so close to him. Her mind felt clouded being this near to him at the moment.

Licking her lips, the taste of him filled her mouth once more. Tegan looked up at him, tempted to haul him back against her and have a much longer repeat performance.

His eyelids were now lifted and he was looking down at her as if he had the same idea in mind. His normally brown irises were now copperish in color; red was swirling in those amber depths.

“Uh, Soren,” Tegan started, “you eyes…they’re turning red.”

“Shit!” Soren turned away from her, attempting to hide the evidence of his infection.

Tegan reached out and grabbed his shoulder but he stepped away from her touch. “I need you to promise me one thing, Tegan.”

“What, Soren?” she asked softly.

“If I become a serious danger to anyone, I need you to do everything in your power to stop me, even if you have to kill me to do it. I need you to do this for me,” he said.

Any desire still welled up inside her died instantly. “What! I…I can’t do that. Listen to me, Soren. I’m going to do everything in my power to help you beat this thing.”

“I might hurt someone, I might hurt you. My biggest fear is to harm those I hold dear. I never want that to happen. If I ever come after you, I want you to kill me. Make sure that I don’t infect or murder someone innocent. I couldn’t live with myself if that were to happen. Please, Tegan,” he begged. “You have to promise me this.”

“I can’t do that, Soren. I just couldn’t.”

“You might have to. What if I try to kill Storm or one of the other wolves? What if it’s a pup? Do you think that you could allow me to kill a child, Tegan? I am a danger to everyone around me now that I am cursed. If it ever comes to that, someone will have to stop me. If I ever found out that I had harmed someone dear to me…”

She came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his stomach, rested her cheek against his back. The barest hint of tremors shook his body. Tegan tightened her hold.

Please, just promise me,” he whispered.

“I promise, Soren,” she assured. “I promise not to let you hurt anyone. But to kill you…it’s just something I can’t do. I’ll find some way to keep the pack safe from you and keep you safe from yourself. There has to be a way to break this curse or at the very least, stop you from doing harm against yourself and others.”

His hands came up to take hers. He ran his warm fingers over the backs of hers.

“Let’s sit by the shore for a little bit to calm you down.” She broke the embrace and took his hand to lead him down to where the tide chewed away the sand.

Once seated, Tegan looked up at him. “There is something I don’t understand.”

“What?”

“You weren’t mad or anything when you were kissing me and yet your eyes got red. Kerr said that when the change starts with him, he loses control. You didn’t though. What was that about?”

“I guess lust works that same way as aggression, just not as intense. I certainly didn’t feeling like ripping your limbs from you.” He raked a hot stare over her. “I can’t say the same thing about your clothes, though.” He then shook his head to clear away the libidinous thoughts and get back on topic. “I don’t understand anything about it. I just thought the whole berserker curse was a legend twenty-four hours ago.”

“Kiss me again, Soren.” She could feel herself redden at what she was requesting.

“What?” He looked at her with need and confusion on his face.

“Let’s see what it does.”Tegan wanted to test his theory on lust. She wondered if he would lose control, become violent like Kerr had. There was a giddiness that welled up inside at the idea of kissing him again.

So maybe it wasn’t all about just trying out this theory.

“Kiss me again,” she urged.

“You sure?”

“Oh, for heaven sakes!” She grabbed onto the fabric of his tee shirt and yanked so hard he nearly fell on top of her. She kissed him for all she was worth, running her tongue across his lips then capturing the bottom one in her mouth to nibble gently. A low growl reverberated from deep in his chest as his hand framed her face and he took command of the kiss. He drove them both into the moist sand, but all the fire that was igniting between them she couldn’t feel the chill from it against her back.

Soren stretched out on top of her, placing his knee between her legs, keeping them parted. One of his hands slid down her body and under the hem of her dress. His fingertips danced around in circles before moving further up.

Her hands were doing their own exploring. One hand ran through his short blond hair while the other swept the hard plain of his taut stomach.

She curled his fingers in his hair and pulled him away from her. Panting hard, she looked up into his face. His eyes glowed ruby red, but he seemed – for the most part anyway – to be in control of himself.

“Soren,” she moaned as he sunk his fingers into the skin of the inside of her thigh and pushed her legs further apart.

“Tegan,” he breathed, his hot breath caressing her neck with its heat.

“What do you feel like now?” she asked in a murmur.

“What I fell like –” Soren paused, trying to restrain himself “– is ripping every stitch of fabric from our bodies and burying myself deep inside you. I’ve wanted you before, Tegan, but never this strongly. I have to fight myself not act on the impulse. It could be because of the moon. But I don’t think so. I think it’s the curse. I think the beast building inside of me wants you as well. I don’t know if I’d be able to stay in control and I don’t want it hurting you. We must stop.” He rolled off of her to the sand beside. He had flung his arm over his face so that she couldn’t see him.

“Soren,” she said from beside his prone position.

He peeked at her from beneath his elbow. “What?”

“Beast or no, you’re one hell of a kisser.”

He laughed at that, the reddish hue waning from his golden irises, transforming them back into their wolfish color. He nudged her with his knee. “You’re not so bad yourself, witch.”

“Maybe it’s just an overload of certain emotions that make you go all berserk. You weren’t exactly tearing me into smithereens and your eyes had turned the same color that Kerr’s had. You’re not exactly mad are you?” she asked.

“Far from it. Right now, I very much want to drag you back down to the sand and finish what you started.”

“What I started?” she asked incredulously.

“Yeah, you little harlot.” Soren grinned mischievously at her. Raising his voice several octaves to mimic her he said, “oh, Soren, get over here and ravish me, you big sex god, you.”

She threw a handful of sand at him. “Oh, I did not. It was just an experiment to see what would happen.”

“Yeah, sure it was.”

She jumped up to her feet and dusted off all the sand that stuck. “See if I ever try to help you again, wolf-boy.”

“Witch, if that’s how you intend to help me, then feel free to help out anytime,” he said, still smirking wickedly.

Tegan rolled her eyes and made a disgusted noise. “You’re incorrigible!”

He rolled himself up to a standing position. “We should be getting back. It’s starting to get cold and I don’t want you catching a chill.” Soren reached out and took her hand, squeezing lightly.

In the light of the moon, they quietly walked back to the little cottage nestled in the woods, hand in hand.

Author's Note: Been having technical difficulties. Sorry it took so long. Thanks to all the readers and reviewers.