Bending Steele Read Free Page B

fight. Tribal laws said she had to stay with
him until the Mark faded. After which they could either formalize
the mating or go their separate ways.
    If she reneged on their law and refused to go
with him, she could be exiled. And the tribe was the only family
she had left, the only contact she had with anyone other than
herself. She feared not having that, having nothing to keep her
human.
    “So tell me, Steele, your word. You’ll be
with me until the Mark fades.”
    She laughed, a hard, brittle sound. “It’s
law.”
    “You don’t always follow our laws.” His hands
moved over her jacket, massaging softly through the thick parka. As
if she were a wild animal he could simply soothe.
    “What makes you think my word is any
good?”
    “Because you hesitate to give it.” His voice
dropped lower. “Because you’ve never promised anyone anything that
you didn’t follow through with.”
    Her jaw flexed. Damn. He’d watched her,
closer than she’d even realized.
    Hexe gave her a grim smile, his expression
soft. He gave her arms an insistent squeeze. “Steele.”
    Damn it. Her mother hadn’t raised her to be a
liar. If she made a promise, she kept it. One look in Hexe’s eyes
and he knew it. Two weeks. Steele shivered under his stare. It was
warm, but always alert. Always watching. She tried for a bluff. “I
don’t intend to keep you alive that long.”
    “Steele.”
    “Fine. ‘Til death, or the end of Wintersong,
do us part.”
    Hexe grimaced a little. “That’ll do.”
    One hand released her arm, only to gently
grip her chin. Hexe tilted her lips up to meet his. He ghosted the
faintest brush of his lips over her mouth, despite the way her jaw
clamped shut. “That’ll do.”
    He stepped aside and let her go, backing
towards a nearby ledge. “Let’s go.”
    He turned, his body twisting as he took a
step towards the steep rise of the mountain and in a single,
effortless bound, Hexe shifted from man to cat. The pale white of
his fur was dotted with black rosettes, his green-gold eyes
flashing as he looked back at her. Daring.
    Steele flashed blunt teeth that quickly
morphed to fangs as she landed on the ledge next to him on four
paws. She swatted at him, claws sheathed. Impatient. Lead the
way . Steele tilted her head towards the winding path and Hexe
got the hint. He bounded up the small notches in the cliff, scaling
the mountainside using nothing more than the smallest ledges.
    Steele followed him, watching his lean body
leap from rock to rock, all the while his words resonated in her
head.
    I have my reasons.
    And Steele wanted to know just what those
were.
     
    ***
     
    Hexe led her along the cliffs, through the
forests that skimmed the mountain range, slowly winding his way
towards the log house cabin nestled at the edge of a small valley,
surrounded by a pine forest. Hexe tilted his head back and watched
as she padded after him, head low, ears twitching. Skittish.
    Hexe slipped behind an evergreen and shifted
back to human, clothes still perfectly intact. He listened for her
approach, the steady pad of her coming closer and suddenly he
stepped out, blocking her path. Steele crouched automatically, long
fangs flashing under her lips as she shimmered, suddenly a woman
standing in front of him.
    “You keep trying to scare me.” She reached
out and ran a finger down his zipper. “I can’t imagine why.”
    Hexe caught her hand in his, holding tight as
he closed the distance between them in a single step. In an
instant, her almost relaxed stance turned hard, stiff. He slid a
hand behind her back, pausing for a second to see what she did.
Nothing. She just stared up at him, waiting. Almost daring him to
keep pressing. So Hexe just stood there, letting time melt away
between them.
    Finally, “What were your reasons?”
    Hexe gave his head a slight shake. “No.”
    “Bullshit. Come on. Why me?”
    “I will tell you,” he whispered. “But not
now. You don’t trust me—”
    “I’ll never trust