and I swear my skin heats up a degree.
"I'm not hiding anything." I lift my chin, but I'm a little nervous because I don't know if I'm going to win this game. I've never been very good at poker, but my hand looks promising.
"Okay." He deals out the card. "Your turn."
My hands tremble as I reach for my cards and I draw one more, my skin prickles.
Dex's eyes widen as he takes his card, but he keeps a close eye on me as Aspen draws his next.
"I'll see your three and raise you one." Dex's voice is low, almost a growl.
My mouth goes dry.
"What do you say, Jessica
Aspen asks, his voice rough and sends shivers through me.
"Another card." I swallow. This time, a ten is added. Holy shit! It's a royal flush.
"I think we should fold, Aspen." Dex rubs his chin, staring at me.
"Oh? Maybe you're right." Aspen winks and my skin heats. "Show us what you got."
I lay the cards out, feeling like I'm holding my breath like I can't believe
my luck. "A royal flush."
"Fuck!"
"I know, right?" I beam. "Never won anything before."
"Congratulations," Aspen says and Dex bows his head at me. "What is your reward? What would you like us to do?"
I cross my legs, hoping they don't notice my arousal.
"I don't know," I admit, looking between them. "I'm not used to this."
"Whatever you want." Dex nods, his eyes full of promise.
Aspen leans back, his arm brushing mine, making my heart thump even faster.
"Are you okay?" Dex asks, his hand circling my wrist.
"I'm fine. Why?" I swallow hard and look at him, trying to keep my eyes on his.
"Your pulse is racing." His hand moves up my arm before stopping, and my body aches for more. "What do you want from us?"
"Nothing. Really." I stand up, feeling like I might pass out.
"Where are you going?" Aspen asks, standing up, blocking my exit.
He must see something in my face because he continues, "We didn't mean to rush you."
Dex clears his throat. "Hey, it's no big deal. It was just a game. All in fun."
I can't help but look into their eyes and think what it would be like if they both wanted me. How much I want to tell them to take me.
"I'm fine," I say, and squeeze between them, walking out seconds before I push them down on the couch and show them what I want.
The blood is pumping so loudly through my ears that I can barely hear my thoughts as I close the door to the back, empty bedroom Raven told me was mine, my hand pressed against the wood.
"What are you doing, Jessica?" I say in a hushed voice and fall on the bed, staring at the ceiling. "I don't think you can handle these two." Not without getting my heart broken.
Laughter rolls from the kitchen, and my eyes snap open. It's not dawn yet as the sun isn't even over the horizon.
I need to know what time it is and the eagerness to find my mom and
unlock my wolf burns a hole in my chest.
I crawl out of the old bed, then tiptoe to the kitchen, expecting to find the guys in here, but it's empty.
Was I dreaming then about the
voices?
The back door in the kitchen squeaks open, and my heart does the same. I whip my head around to see Aspen peering at me and the image of us kissing floods me. My face burns and I clear my throat.
"What are you doing up?"
"I'm... I'm looking for something to eat." I spot a glimmering apple wedged in a corner and grab at it. But it feels odd in my hand. Like a candle.
"You can't eat that, they're for decoration."
"Why would people have fake food in their home?" I cock my head to the side. Decorations were supposed to be other things like sensible things like leaves or flowers, not tricking someone into thinking they're food.
He laughs and the corners of my mouth twitch. "You really have never left the barrier before, have you?"
"Once" I shrug. If sneaking out
some wild chickens when I was scoping out the property." He opens his hands revealing several, small brown eggs.
"What about the lost ones?" I ask, my stomach growling at the sight of the food.
"Do you mean to eat them?"
"No. Gross." I shudder. "Who would do that? Wouldn't that make them turn feral?"
"Never done it myself." He places the eggs on the stove. "But some have gotten desperate. The poison is in their bite, not their blood."
"How do you know for sure?" I shake my head and lean against the counter, watching him get out the pan with a broken handle.
"They're like snakes. Only poisonous if they inject their venom into the bloodstream. Several other rogue packs were stranded and starved. They cut the heads off dead lost ones and ate their flesh. None of them turned."
"That's horrible and dangerous. They could've died or become feral themselves." I look over my shoulder at the window.
"The lost ones outside are gone." He cracks an egg open and lets the inside drop into the pan. "My guess is they went into wherever it is they hide during the daylight hours."
I let out a shaky sigh. At least that is one thing in our favor.
Aspen fries up a few of the eggs. We eat at the table using a broken spoon and him with a knife to scrape up the cooked goodness.
"What about the others?" I ask between bites.
"Let them sleep." He pushes back from the table taking our empty dishes to the sink. "I'll make them the rest of the eggs when they wake."
"Need any help cleaning up?"
"Nah." He scrubs at the rusty pan and doesn't look at me.
I want to ask him about last night. About our kiss, but I can't get involved with him. Michael is my fated mate until I figure out a way to convince my wolf that he was a total ass to us. Though, I have a bit of comfort knowing I'm not the only one struggling with this. Michael's wolf claimed mine and he'll be pining for me too, no matter what his human side wants. How the idea that someone is struggling as I am
that someone is struggling as I am gives me comfort. Or maybe I'm just twisted.
My mind shifts to Aspen, who hasn't done anything wrong. Yet, last night was a mistake. All the craziness from our encounter with the lost ones made me reckless and I got caught up in the moment. It was a mistake. An accident that won't happen again.
We can't be together, even if I wanted to, without fixing my wolf and breaking the fated mate bond between me and Michael. There's a reason why our wolves chose each other, but usually the human side isn't at odds.
Leaving Aspen in the kitchen, I tiptoe back to the bedroom, but the idea of trying to go back to sleep doesn't appeal to me. I wipe my hands down my jeans. Dried blood is crusted on my nails and I swallow down the revulsion that crawls up my throat.
I need a shower and backtrack to the small bathroom in the hallway. It's empty. I flip the faucet all the way on. The old plumbing of the house creaks and groans as brownish water sputters out of the faucet. There's a slight metallic scent, but nothing