Whispers of Hope- Book # 3 (Mated Hearts Series) Complete

Chapter 2 (Zach)

"Whispers of Hope"

2011 Copyright All Rights Reserved

***Edited by MidnightStorm***

Chapter 2  (Zach)
   
Propping myself up on the locker, I winked suggestively at the petite redhead staring up at me.  Cara, Tara, Sara…. Yeah, Sara was her name. She was a tiny little thing but my mama had always told me that big things come in small packages, and by the looks of the chest on Little Miss Sara here, I decided I just might have to agree with her.

She batted her eyelashes and pursed her full lips. I was suddenly having all kinds of crazy ideas about those luscious red lips of hers. Oh man, the images that were flashing in my head were enough to make any red-blooded male feel hot.

“How are you doing, Sara?” I asked her, injecting just the right amount of huskiness into my tone.

She smiled up at me and not so subtly pushed her chest out a bit. She lifted a sparkly pink pen that had a fluffy pompom-thing on the end of it to her mouth before smiling and nibbling on the end of it. More images of how sweet her mouth could be began to run through my head like a myriad of pictures on a movie reel.  

All the girls tended to act that way around me. They all loved me and of course, I loved them. I liked them tall or small, red, brunette or even blond. I liked variety and this hot little number staring up at me in awe would just be my newest flavor of the week: strawberry. Man, I do love strawberry.

“So,” I began, while reaching up and using the back of my hand to stroke her cheek, “you going to Jake’s party on Friday?”

I flashed her my usual charming grin that always made the ladies melt like ice cream on a hot summer’s day. She smiled back at me and that was the point at which I knew I had her.

“Depends” she answered sweetly. “Are you going to be there?”

I chuckled low in my throat. The sound was deep and another certain turn-on for the ladies.

“I’ll be there,” I said, adding a pause for extra effect, “if you’ll be there.”

She giggled like the little school girl she was, and I couldn’t help but notice the extra rise of her chest as her laughter reached my ears.

“Well then, I guess I will definitely be there,” she replied and stood on her toes to give me a simple kiss on the cheek.

She took a step back and I gave her a sly smile. I shook my head, growling lowly in the back of my throat. Simple kisses didn’t fly with me, I needed much more than that.

Reaching out, I grabbed her by the waist and pulled her to me.  

A small squeal escaped her lips, but she wasn’t scared in the slightest. The look on her face told me that she wanted it just as much as I did.  

Slowly, I leaned in to her, offering her every opportunity to pull away if that was what she really wanted. Her eyes said it all. She wasn’t going anywhere without experiencing the magic that my lips could offer. My lips were legendary at this school.

Then we made contact and I worked her over like chocolate chip cookie dough. I took possession of her mouth and felt like I was Conan the Barbarian. Her little moans encouraged me to take all that I wanted. I let my tongue experience every inch of her mouth; greedily taking, purposefully licking. Lifting my head, I saw the dazed look on her face and knew that I had done my job. I am the man.

I was about to send my new little play-friend off when the scent hit me. It was powerful and hit me like a freight train, almost forcing me to the ground. My body stiffened as I instantly recognized the only person who had that sweet scent.

“It can’t be,”  I whispered to myself.

I slowly turned and froze when I saw her. She was the most beautiful girl that I had ever seen, nothing short of a Goddess to me. She was the one girl that three years ago broke my heart and left me alone to pick up the pieces. It was Marissa, my mate.

Our eyes met and the I was instantly flooded with a myriad of emotions. It was as if time had suddenly stopped and there was nobody on the planet except for me and Marissa. The pull to run to her and hold her against my body was strong but I steeled myself. Never again would I let her hurt me the way in the she did so long ago. Never ever again.

As I straightened my stance our eyes met again and I gave Marissa my best smirk. A small smile graced her lips and in return I winked back at her.

I had a plan. Turning to Sara, I pulled her to me again and let her have it. I crashed my lips onto hers and gave the poor girl no room to protest. I took and dominated the kiss like nobody’s business. I had it all under control. I would be damned if Marissa would get to me again. Hell no, she would not break me.

This time when I lifted my head and glanced in the direction where Marissa had been standing, I noticed that she was gone. Good riddance. I didn't need that kind of complication in my life.

"Zach," a small female voice called out.

I glanced down and smiled at the clouded appearance of Sara’s eyes. Her lips were swollen from my kisses. I was pleased with how she looked.

Placing my hands on her shoulders, I turned her around and gave her a little pat on the ass.

“See you Friday, Sara,” I said as I watched her slowly saunter away from me. She turned around twice to look back at me and still held the glow of a woman that had been thoroughly kissed.  

I chuckled as she continued to walk away. Looking down at my watch I saw that I was already late for Chemistry.

“Damn,” I muttered and turned to start jogging down the hall.

The door was already closed when I arrived at my chemistry class. Great, that meant another detention. I shook my head, sucked it up and walked into the class. There was nothing I could do about it now.

“Nice of you to grace us with your presence Mr. Martin.”

I gave a simple nod to Mr. Brewer and headed for my seat. There was no use in saying anything back to him as I knew the drill.

“My class, 4:00 p.m.,” he stated, giving me a stern look over the rim of the glasses that were just barely hanging off his nose. His tone allowed for nothing but strict compliance.

“Of course,” I replied as I took my seat. I heard a snicker from behind me and had no doubts that it was my twin, Amy.

That girl was something else. Mated, pregnant and glowing, she was nothing short of amazing. I admired my sister immensely for everything that she had been through over the last few weeks. She was going to be one helluva Alpha female when the time came.

Mr. Brewer was going over how everything around us was made up of atoms and then moved on to something about protons and neutrons, but I zoned out five minutes into his lecture.

My thoughts drifted back to the tight little body of Marissa. Man, it was hard to miss how much more beautiful she had grown over the last three years. I mean she was pretty before, but now, wowzers. Her body had filled out in perfect proportions and her face with those eyes, those deep, emerald green eyes, still drew me in like nothing else in this world.

Damn, what the hell am I doing? Taking a deep breath I was determined to wipe away all thoughts of Marissa. She was gone to me as of three years ago and I refused to be dragged down that painful path again. Mates be damned. I could deal without having my mate and I’d wager that I would be better off without her too.   

With renewed determination I forced myself to tune back in to the monotonous sound of Mr. Brewer’s lecture and waited impatiently for the bell to ring.

Finally, at the sound of the bell I jumped up from seat. I needed to get out of here. I was feeling a little claustrophobic right about now and my wolf was chomping at the bit to run free.

“Zach,” Amy called out to me just as I made my way into the hall.

Sighing, I turned around and gave her a tight smile. “Yeah?”

She was looking down at her hands rather nervously and I already had a bad feeling about what she was getting ready to say to me.

“Out with it,” I commanded, trying to keep my voice calm. I needed to run and wasn’t sure how much longer I could stand still, rooted in one spot.

“She’s back,” Amy blurted and again averted her eyes.

Reaching out I grabbed her shoulder and gave it a gentle, reassuring squeeze. “I know,” I told her.  

“You do?” she asked and looked up at me with surprise filling her eyes.

“Yeah, I saw her in the hall right before class. That was partially the reason for being late.” I started to shift my weight from one foot to the other as my impatience began to wear thin. My wolf was struggling against being contained in a skin that was way too tight.

A smile grew on Amy’s face as she reached for my hands.  

“Isn’t this great news?” she asked excitedly. “Your mate is back and now you can be whole again.”

With a scowl on my face I looked down at my twin. “No, nothing about her being back is great. She should have stayed wherever the hell she came back from,” I snapped. She flinched in response and I instantly regretted my quick retort.

Amy released my hand and took a step back.

“But she is your mate,” she said weakly.

I held up my hand, palm facing out. “Just stop, Amy. I have no mate, okay? My mate is dead to me,” I stated with firm resolve.

Her face dropped. I hated being so short with her, especially after the hell she had been through, but this topic was no longer up for discussion.

“Look, I’ve got to go. I’ll see you at home,” I told her, and before she could say anything else I turned and headed for the door.

I had to get out of this place, and I needed to do it now. My feet quickened as I headed for the door. My vision was already starting to sharpen and I was well aware that the obsidian black eyes of my wolf were clearly visible.  

Busting through the door, I took off at a dead sprint for the tree line. Just a few more feet and I could let go. Low growls were emanating from my chest and just as I hit the tree line, I accepted the change. My clothes were in tatters around me as I stood on my four pawed feet. Swinging around I took one more glance at the school and my wolf whispered one word: mate.

"No,” I told him. "No mate,” I repeated and received a mocking grunt in response. This wasn’t good.

I know for a fact that the sole reason for the lack of control I had over my wolf was sitting as pretty as she pleased in that school. A goddess with soft auburn hair and the most enticing green eyes I’d ever seen. Her scent reminded me of a mixture of fresh raspberries and summer rain.  Dammit, it looked like I was going to be in a whole heap of trouble where that female was concerned. My life just went zooming downhill in a sideways skid and the steering wheel was conveniently ripped from my hands. Fate had just screwed me again.