Heatwave

Chapter 39

Five years earlier

The teens from Blood Moon Pack had made plans to spend the warm summer day at the lake. A number of them had slipped and fallen to the ground while making their way to their hidden location on the lake.

Blaine saw Lucia run to assist them. Werewolves mended quickly, so she didn't need to be the Good Samaritan. However, the younger Lorenzo managed to climb down the fall and started to descend swiftly. Out of the few that had fallen, she helped every single one of them.

Blaine had mixed feelings. While what she accomplished could be viewed as great by most, in his opinion, it rendered her a loser. What was the purpose? Miss Goody had to go out and prove that she was better than everyone else, even if they could have gotten up without her assistance, and she learned to be more cautious the next time.

Lucia always seemed to ignore him, despite his eyes being on her for a bit too long. He didn't hold it against her—getting a rise out of her had been his favorite childhood pastime, after all. Even though they were both getting close to adulthood now, it appears that she had not forgotten.

Blaine turned to face Mirabel, whose gaze was already fixed on him. At the time, it seemed like a good idea to pursue Mirabel because his dad had been berating him lately for his "whore-like behavior." She was powerful, resilient, and a little manipulative, but she was also continually trailing him around.

Blaine De Lombardi would never give his heart away, but the fact that she appeared to be just as broken as he was comforted his fears.

He always blamed it on his father's subsequent downward spiral and his mother's horrific death. It never occurred to him that all those years ago, he had left his heart in the hands of a tiny girl. The woman with the large brown eyes did not say anything to him but instead sent him a white rose, his mother's favorite, along with her sympathies. She then transformed into her small wolf and strode off.

Blaine had forgotten when he'd stared into those eyes, that his mother had been ripped apart and that he'd watched helplessly as the attackers had held his tiny body low to the ground.

He would never let someone down like that again if he could avoid it.

*******************************

Lucia Lorenzo's POV

He had escaped. Like Blaine, he avoided the issue rather than dealing with it directly. It was impossible for a man who was feared by many to organize his affairs. Is that possible to believe?

When he looked at me, I could see the yearning in his eyes. When I was attacked by spirits in Italy, I witnessed the terror. Now it's something less terrible than the continual hate that boils around the corners of each of our eyes. It's weird that after swearing to despise him, I suddenly desire him more than anything. All night long, I wanted to screw him, but I also wanted to choke him.

Great, I'm getting confused with my thinking.

I'm trying to work out his agreement, so more ideas are racing through my mind. Was she still his? If that's the case, I must hear it directly from him, as I decline to compete with Mirabel. I wasn't going to shatter what was left of our sisterhood since everyone who has faced her has always lost.

"Hi Lucia! Come on over here! My mother screams from the coast, "Clara gave me the herbs to help your heat." I smell pine as I swim over to her, and my body breaks the surface. I could feel him holding me even if I couldn't see him. Just enough to lessen the agony coursing through my entire body. I could feel the itch of anguish creep up my back now that he was gone.

As soon as I take the herbs, I feel relief.

My mother warned me, "Lucia, be careful; they won't last for long." I return the weakest of smiles.

Rose approaches me and intertwines our digits. I attempted to return her kind grin, but I'm sure it came out as forced. She offers me her warm smile as a consolation. I stare blankly at the ground, wondering how I managed to get here. This is exactly what I hoped would not occur. I prayed to the goddess to delay the arrival of my partner because I was experiencing this same emotion.

I can hardly recall who I am anymore. I want to take out my hair, strand by strand, because all I can think about is Blaine, and my heart beats for him.

Rose said, "I've never seen him like that."

I looked up, my face wearing a bewildered expression.

"Alpha Blaine always seemed to me to be more animal than human. Rose remarks, "He's always been so casual like nothing bothers him, and sometimes I've seen him get upset, but today it felt like he was a different person."

My mother continued, "It's true—I've never seen him look so scared."

"He held you like you were about to disappear," Valerie said to me, amazement evident in her voice.

Yes, it is what you all observed. I saw a man who would not come near me to have sex. Isn't that what heat is all about? When he should be touching me, he won't even get close," I said, pouting. Your partner carries a portion of your soul in their body; therefore, it's difficult to resist them. But defying your partner while they're attracted to you? Even though it was incredibly unlikely, he managed to pull it off.

"Screw him."

I turned to go and remarked, "It doesn't matter; I'm done trying to figure that man out." My mother started to object, but as I withdrew into the trees, I figured Rose and Valerie would support my choice.

I don't care if I pass away during my period; Blaine needs to be willing to talk to me the next time I see him. I'm immersed in my thoughts when I discover the former training facility of the pack. Considering that it's more of a hut with some punching bags that are only a few punches away from death, calling it a facility could be stretching things.

There is no one going to be here because this place is abandoned and somewhat of a shithole. The ancient wooden walls seem as though they could crumble at any moment, and the smell is revolting. I approach one of the bags and begin my customary warm-up, which consists of several punches and kicks. Even though I took the herbs, I could hardly land a punch, so I quickly understood it was a horrible decision.

I dismiss the sound of a door closing as the wind, but then I hear footsteps, so I turn to see who it is.

"Lucia?"

"Anthony ?"

God, this dumb heat is killing all of my senses; I should have been able to smell him a mile away before he arrived.

"What are you doing here?" Anthony asked, breathing heavily and appearing to be in a daze.

"Oh well, I just needed to be somewhere alone, and I thought no one would be here," I informed him. I realize I'm still in my sports bra and spandex, but he's got a jacket and sweatpants. Perhaps this was a horrible choice.

"I'm always here, shit Lucia, get out of here!"

I'm shocked by his abrupt tone shift.

"Pardon me? I told him, "Have some respect; I'm your Luna now." After pacing the floor and mumbling a few expletives, he whips his head at me.

"Lucia, his final few words are a rasp. "I am going crazy. The need to push you up against that wall and fuck until we can't anymore is so strong."

"I took some herbs; they suppress the heat."

"For you! I want it to stop, please, Lucia. He begs, "I do not want to be killed by the alpha."

The heat was an ill fate, making partners come together as one, or having sex was the main goal. All unmarried men, however, can detect the aroma of a fertile woman who has not yet been fully claimed. Not only was the smell powerful and alluring, but it was also very addicting. It was like a narcotic—the constant yearning to smell more and to be absorbed.

"Why don't you just run?" I inquire. He urges me to rush away, even though I can hardly walk.

"Because if I run, I'm going to run after you," he replied. I nodded to him and started to go when I felt a sudden heat wave.

I let out a painful moan as I fell to the ground. There is a sense that defies explanation. My breasts feel like they are going to burst, and it feels like an itch all over my body that is followed by an aching.

I try to say, "It hurts," but my voice is more like a whisper. The sting is the worst thing that comes next. It feels like a thousand needles are being pushed down until they reach my bone from every centimeter of my body.

"Blaine," I murmured.

"Send him a message through your mind link!" Anthony informs me. Now that he's turned away from me, he's clinging to the wooden wall as if it will keep him sufficiently grounded to avoid me.

"I can't; I've been away from the pack for too long!"

It was accurate. My wolf and the others had grown apart due to time and distance; although we could still communicate, I would never be able to mentally connect with Blaine.

"Please," I mumble. Blaine's sanity is in doubt, so he nods his head and does something for me that would get him killed. I would smile if I didn't feel like I was being roasted alive.