Read Online Wolf's Touch by Ambrielle Kirk - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Ambrielle Kirk
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through the tension. “Why would your father promise you to this man?”
“The Zeldano family has a strong presence and a dense history. Arianna and her family are from one of the original branches of human Caedmon. Combine wolf and human of this caliber and the result could be momentous. We thought we’d found this union before in Jayson and Arianna, but nothing came of their relationship. I am still puzzled by this…” He looked at both of them suspiciously and Arianna felt ashamed for her actions. “There have been accounts of a union between these two lines before, but none where both families were considered royalty. And for that matter, there have been no accounts where both families weren’t loyal followers. This could mean…”
“…a potential uprising against us,” Jayson finished.
“Is there nothing that can be done to stop this,” Tamara asked, then turned to Arianna. “You don’t want to do this, right?”
“Absolutely not,” she replied. “I value my right to choice.”
“The business had not been doing well, then?” Devin questioned her.
“Clients have been bailing left and right,” she said. “His debts have piled as high as the mountains.”
“Delivering could mean a big payday for him?” Devin concluded. “I suspect that the consequences for not holding up his end of the bargain with the Zeldanos could be detrimental—to more than just his bank account.”
Arianna frowned. “When it comes to business dealings, Zeldano always wins. No matter what the cost.”
“To my knowledge, this is correct,” Devin said.
Jayson charged toward the door, scooped up his keys from the tall table by the door, and grabbed his jacket. By the time Arianna rose, he was already out of the door.
“Jayson.” She rushed out onto the porch behind him. “Where are you going?”
“Stay here!”
“I asked you a question.” She followed him to his motorcycle.
“I’ll be back.” The look in his eyes told her that he was up to something. His eyes were a stormy grey against the night. It wasn’t a good sign. “You are safe here.”
“What are you going to do?”
Jayson snatched off his leather glove and caressed the side of her face with his palm. “You belong to me, Arianna. Always have…always will.”
“People have been trying to make decisions for me all my life, Jayson. I’ve played dodge ball enough for now. This is just fate’s way of telling me the game is over.”
Jayson kissed her, firmly and slowly. Her lips parted and she tasted the sweet woodsy, aroma of the man who’d been a friend most of her life. He was also the man who’d declared that she was his mate.
He revved up his motorcycle and tugged his glove back on. “This game has only just begun.”
Chapter Eight
The wind picked up like a strong typhoon and dirt whipped at Jayson’s face. He dropped his helmet on the ground and knelt in front of the headstone of his father’s grave. The crisp breeze nearly suffocated him as he lifted his face to the black velvet sky. He took deep, raspy breaths in an attempt to return his raging heartbeat within normal rhythm. After several minutes, he decided it was no use. There was no way he could simply dismiss what he’d just learned.
He lifted a hand out in front of him and traced the words on his father’s headstone.
Edward Truman.
While alive, his father had been everything to him. True friend. Advisor. Teacher. E. Truman had been the man who’d taught him how to live when life threw curveballs.
You knew, didn’t you?
It all made sense why the partnership was left intact. It was possible that his father had known all along what Mr. Klein planned to do with the proceeds. So, instead of ending it before his death as he should have done, he’d signed over the shares to Jayson. In return, Jayson had inherited a mess. Unbeknownst to him, he’d also inherited the solution to keeping an underhanded union between Klein and Zeldano at bay. Unfortunately, that
“The Zeldano family has a strong presence and a dense history. Arianna and her family are from one of the original branches of human Caedmon. Combine wolf and human of this caliber and the result could be momentous. We thought we’d found this union before in Jayson and Arianna, but nothing came of their relationship. I am still puzzled by this…” He looked at both of them suspiciously and Arianna felt ashamed for her actions. “There have been accounts of a union between these two lines before, but none where both families were considered royalty. And for that matter, there have been no accounts where both families weren’t loyal followers. This could mean…”
“…a potential uprising against us,” Jayson finished.
“Is there nothing that can be done to stop this,” Tamara asked, then turned to Arianna. “You don’t want to do this, right?”
“Absolutely not,” she replied. “I value my right to choice.”
“The business had not been doing well, then?” Devin questioned her.
“Clients have been bailing left and right,” she said. “His debts have piled as high as the mountains.”
“Delivering could mean a big payday for him?” Devin concluded. “I suspect that the consequences for not holding up his end of the bargain with the Zeldanos could be detrimental—to more than just his bank account.”
Arianna frowned. “When it comes to business dealings, Zeldano always wins. No matter what the cost.”
“To my knowledge, this is correct,” Devin said.
Jayson charged toward the door, scooped up his keys from the tall table by the door, and grabbed his jacket. By the time Arianna rose, he was already out of the door.
“Jayson.” She rushed out onto the porch behind him. “Where are you going?”
“Stay here!”
“I asked you a question.” She followed him to his motorcycle.
“I’ll be back.” The look in his eyes told her that he was up to something. His eyes were a stormy grey against the night. It wasn’t a good sign. “You are safe here.”
“What are you going to do?”
Jayson snatched off his leather glove and caressed the side of her face with his palm. “You belong to me, Arianna. Always have…always will.”
“People have been trying to make decisions for me all my life, Jayson. I’ve played dodge ball enough for now. This is just fate’s way of telling me the game is over.”
Jayson kissed her, firmly and slowly. Her lips parted and she tasted the sweet woodsy, aroma of the man who’d been a friend most of her life. He was also the man who’d declared that she was his mate.
He revved up his motorcycle and tugged his glove back on. “This game has only just begun.”
Chapter Eight
The wind picked up like a strong typhoon and dirt whipped at Jayson’s face. He dropped his helmet on the ground and knelt in front of the headstone of his father’s grave. The crisp breeze nearly suffocated him as he lifted his face to the black velvet sky. He took deep, raspy breaths in an attempt to return his raging heartbeat within normal rhythm. After several minutes, he decided it was no use. There was no way he could simply dismiss what he’d just learned.
He lifted a hand out in front of him and traced the words on his father’s headstone.
Edward Truman.
While alive, his father had been everything to him. True friend. Advisor. Teacher. E. Truman had been the man who’d taught him how to live when life threw curveballs.
You knew, didn’t you?
It all made sense why the partnership was left intact. It was possible that his father had known all along what Mr. Klein planned to do with the proceeds. So, instead of ending it before his death as he should have done, he’d signed over the shares to Jayson. In return, Jayson had inherited a mess. Unbeknownst to him, he’d also inherited the solution to keeping an underhanded union between Klein and Zeldano at bay. Unfortunately, that
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