Summer Cursed

Chapter Two

Isaac had come back to check on me on his lunch break. As the owner of the construction company, he could take as long as he wanted. We’d eaten and then moved to the couch to relax and watch TV. It was something we’d done a million times, but with me being in heat and his scent filling the room, I was beginning to think it was a mistake.

I looked down at our legs, trying not to give in to the urge to run my hand up his. I noticed then that my naturally bronzed skin was a couple of shades lighter than his light brown complexion. I’d never noticed it before, and I’m not sure why I even noticed it at all… It was probably just my in-heat-riddled brain trying to latch onto anything other than wondering what it’d be like to ride him right there in my living room.

Skin tone was the only thing that varied in the packs. Otherwise, each pack had their own specific traits. Each member of a pack has the same eye color, no variation. Their hair may vary slightly—and I mean slightly—but it’s always in the same color family. Isaac’s light brown hair and bright blue eyes fit perfectly into the Summer features.

Then there’s me. Unlike anyone in any of the packs, I have dark red hair and two different colored eyes: bright blue for the Summer pack and light brown for the Autumn pack. And of course, there’s the white streak in my hair that starts at my widow’s peak, which is the ‘mark’ of the Curse everyone refers to.

I’d been called ‘red skunk’ more times than I could count, but despite the name-calling, I like the streak. It gives me character and breaks up the sea of red that is my hair.

Isaac moved a little, the motion pulling me from my thoughts. His arm was resting on the back of the couch, and I regretted my choice of top when his fingers moved over the tattoo on my shoulder blade, sending a shiver of desire through me. It wasn’t the traditional Summer pack tattoo, it was mine. I’d never fit in with the pack, so why would I get their mark?

Their usual tattoo is a rainbow with an iris flower at the apex of the arc which represents the summer goddess Iris. Like all pack males, his was on his chest. It was peeking out from the tank top he normally wore under his work shirts. I glanced at it, thinking how pretty it was but also how happy I was I hadn’t gotten it.

Mytattoo is a hawk’s head in front of an amber moon on fire. I’ve always had an affinity for hawks, but the burning moon is my nod to the so-called Curse of Artemis. The tattoo artist had raised her eyebrows, but otherwise hadn’t said a word.

“What did Fraser want?” Isaac asked.

“Um… Nothing really. He said his purpose for the visit changed when I told him about Chris. Then he made a pass at me.”

“He did what?”

I held him down when he tried to get up. “It’s okay. He tried to kiss me, I kneed him, he apologized. He swore he didn’t know what had come over him.”

“And you believe that?”

I glanced at him. “Yeah, I do. I don’t know why, but I do.” When he grunted in response, I straightened my back. “What?”

“Nothing.”

“Stop lying. What is it?”

He sighed. “I just think he’s an asshole who will lie to get his way.”

“And how is that different from any other man?”

“Em, you know what I mean. He showed up here royally pissed. He was ready to kill you, or at the very least, see you behind bars. Then he leaves apologizing? I don’t buy it.”

I nibbled my lip as I thought. Why had Fraser come here? The Alphas usually show up at my hearings to sway the Council into a harsher sentence for me, but they never visit me on their own. Especially not Liam Fraser.

Until his visit, he’d always avoided me like the plague. Except during the quarterly pack summits held at the end of each season, when all the packs gather to discuss various issues and topics. Then he had no choice but to meet with me.

So why had he come? Picturing the look in his eyes before he tried to kiss me had a flash of heat running through me. Why would he look at me that way? He hated me, but he apologized to me. And why did he believe what I’d told him about Chris? He hadn’t even questioned me.

“I don’t know why he came, but I know his apology was sincere.”

“If you say so,” Isaac said, pulling out his phone as it dinged. “Damn. I gotta run, work calls, but text me if you need anything.”

My need was growing as I watched him walk away. I could take care of myself only so much. And with that image of Liam in my head, I knew I’d be doing that sooner rather than later.

Sex with men works best to take the edge off, and it’s understood in pack culture that until you meet your fated mate, you’re free to play, so I’ve had my fair share of fun. I’ve even hooked up with other females in heat to help each other out, but it ended up being more enjoyable than effective.

It always amazed me that even while they feared and hated me, I still found plenty of shifters who wanted to screw me.

After I showered and helped myself out as much as I could, I went to see Liam. A glutton for punishment, I was. But I just couldn’t stop thinking about his visit… Or the almost kiss. He’d come to my house, so I didn’t see why I couldn’t go to his.

“You have got to be kidding me,” I whispered to myself as I pulled up to the Fraser house. Mansion was more like it. Tall stone columns stood on each side of the long driveway with a wrought-iron gate blocking me from entering. A flowering vine covered a stone wall that ran along the front of the house. I could only assume it encircled the entire property.