Page 8 of Shifting Hearts

EIGHT

Chains in My Blood

Ranger

I slam the cabin door behind us, the sound echoing through the woods, through the hollow in my chest. She flinched when I pushed her against that tree. I can still see it. Still taste the bond sparking between us, screaming at me to take her, to end this torture.

My hands shake as I rake them through my hair, pacing the narrow length of the cabin like a caged animal. The fire pops, and shadows dance, but it’s her scent that fills the space - sweet, sharp, and laced with the salt of her tears.

The bond is merciless tonight. It claws through my veins, dragging my beast to the surface, demanding that I go to her. Demanding that I hold her. Pushing me to bury my face in her throat and sink my teeth into the place fate carved for me.

Mine.

The word roars in my skull, every single breath I take a battle. My chest heaves, my claws pricking at my fingertips, and my body strung tight as a bow ready to snap.

I glance toward the bed.

She’s there, wrapped in quilts, her hair fanned across my pillow, her lashes damp, her lips parted in sleep. So close. Too close.

The beast surges. Take her. Claim her. She wants you. She needs you.

I choke on a curse, slamming my fist into the wall hard enough to rattle the shelves. Pain lances up my arm, grounding me for half a second before the bond howls again.

Not like this. Not when she’s weak, not when she is still healing, and certainly not when she is still carrying the shadow of another man’s rejection. She deserves more than to be claimed out of desperation. She deserves choice. A whole bond, not the shattered half-life I can give her now.

I grip the edge of the table, my knuckles turning white, and my breath ragged. My panther paces inside me, restless, furious, its claws raking along my bones. The urge to shift tears at me, hot and violent, but I hold it back with sheer will.

I’ve lived with this beast my whole life. But this bond? This is worse. Stronger. Every beat of my heart is synced to hers, every inhale of breath tangled in her scent. Even the way she breathes in her sleep makes my cock ache, my body burning to slide between her thighs and never leave.

I squeeze my eyes shut, the war inside me tearing me apart.

I want her. Goddess, I want her so badly I can barely think. But I need her whole.

Because if I claim her now, when she’s still bleeding from Gabriel, still doubting her worth, I’ll steal something from her I can never give back. And I won’t be that man. Not to her.

So I continue to keep my distance. I stand in the shadows, fists clenched, chest heaving, while the bond shreds me from the inside out. And I pray to a Goddess I swore I’d never believe in again that I can survive this night without breaking.

Because if she wakes and whispers my name again… I won’t walk away twice.

By the time dawn breaks and the morning light starts to filter in, I can’t stand the cabin anymore. I need space. Distance. Anything to quiet the constant hum of her in my blood.

So I walk into town. I’ll get some supplies, I tell myself. Food, bandages, soap, and some clothes. Things she’ll need when she’s stronger.

But that doesn’t help either. Even with the noise of the market, the chatter of humans, the scent of strangers pressing in, all I can feel is her. The bond tethers me, stretching thin with the distance I have put between us, a constant ache pulls me back to the cabin. Back to her.

By the time I return, my chest is tight, and my hands are raw from clenching them the whole way. The moment I open the door, I hear it.

Water.

The bathroom door is cracked, steam spilling out in lazy curls. And through it…. her.

Paris.

Her silhouette shimmers behind the frosted glass of the shower. The curves of her body blurred but unmistakable. The arch of her back, the swell of her breasts, the line of her thighs.

I freeze.

The beast inside me surges, claws tearing me from the inside as he fights to gain control, the bond screaming so loud I can barely think. My cock hardens instantly, painfully, straining against my jeans as my breath turns ragged.

I should turn away. I should leave. But I don’t.

Instead, I stumble back against the wall, my fists trembling as I fight the pull.

The sound of water sliding over her skin…. my skin burns just imagining it. Her soft sigh as the spray hits her neck, the way her head tips back. It’s too much for one man to handle.

I break.

My hand shoves into my jeans before I can stop it, gripping my aching cock with a desperate groan.

The strokes of my hand are violent, brutal even.

I pump my fist in quick, punishing strokes, my eyes locked on the shadow of her behind that glass.

My body shakes, sweat slicking my skin, every nerve alight with her.

Her name rips from my throat in a low, strangled growl as I spill hot and fast into my palm, my hips jerking, and my vision blurring at the intense pleasure.

When it’s over, I slump against the wall, my chest heaving, and shame cutting through the haze of lust.

I can still hear her in the stall. Still see her silhouette through the pane of glass. And I still want her like a damn fiend. And I know with every fiber of my being if I stay, I won’t stop at touching myself.

I’ll take her. And that’s something I can’t come back from.

I wipe my hand on my shirt, disgust and hunger tangling until I can barely breathe. Then I turn, shoving out the cabin door before the bond breaks me completely. Better the night devours me than I devour her too soon.