The Falcon Ridge Series Book 4: Art of a Girl

(Chapter song ‘Make Me Mine' by PUBLIC)

BASTIAN

Gardenias. God, I love waking up to that smell. I will forever get drunk off her smell and I hope that this house will smell like her always. It calms me and somehow makes me feel like everything is going to be ok.

I can see the light of the room behind my eyelids. I move my arm to where I left Sam and quickly realize she’s not there. I also realize I hear soft scratching.

I'm lying on my stomach with my arm tucked under my pillow, when I crack an eyelid and blink to adjust to the morning light. Through a slit eye over my bicep, I search out the sound and a smile grows. I stretch a bit to wake up and get quietly scolded.

"Don't move a muscle."

I raise a brow as I watch my beautiful artist curled up in a armchair that she pulled up next to the bed. She’s wearing one of my dress shirts and my thick socks. She had a sketch pad in her lap and a pencil end is floating around in the air.

“Good morning. What are you doing?" I say in a deep, groggy tone.

"I'm drawing." She glances an eye up at me then looks back down to the paper. Her pencil scratches around the paper and she checks me again.

"I can see that. Why can't I move?" My eye floats up and down her bare legs and thoughts of last night have me really waking up.

"Because you'll ruin it." She runs her fingers through her hair and goes back to drawing.

"You're drawing me while I sleep? Before I’ve even had coffee?” I chuckle.

"Yes." She barely makes eye contact. “Stop laughing.” She warns.

"Why?" I question.

“Why what?”

I stretch again. “Why are you drawing me and not in this bed?”

"It's what muses are for. So, we can draw you while you sleep. It’s like an artistic craving." She smirks.

"I'm your muse?" My brow goes up and I smile. This girl is just fantastic. I love it.

She nods, biting her lower lip in concentration. I will never get over how beautiful she looks as art pours out from her hands. It’s the last type of woman I ever thought I’d end up with, but I’d never trade her for anything. She truly is a priceless work of art in my eye.

"We'll that's a first." I chuckle. “I’ve never been called a muse before.”

"Don't move." She scolds. "It's a first for me too. I've never had anyone I've been so inspired to create before. When I woke up this morning, I had to grab a sketch pad and put you to paper. Eventually, you'll go on a canvas.”

“Well, that’s understandable. With features this perfect, I should be made into art” I smirk.

She drops her pad, cocks her head and chews her cheek.

I smile even bigger. “I’m sure you’re more inspired now, because my level of perfection is so rare.” I wink my eye at her and she arches a brow.

In a second, she grabs my pillow, pulls it out from under my head and hits me with it.

“Oof!! Hey! You ruined my musing!” I roll to my back and hold an arm out to her.

She stands with the pillow in one hand and a hand on her hip. “I’m sorry. I had a sudden craving to save us both from your inflated ego.” She throws the pillow at me and I laugh as I catch it.

I throw it aside and grab her arm. She yelps as I bounce her back on the bed and roll on her side. “You know I was joking. Come here.” I kiss her deep and dance my tongue with hers. She will always taste so good and my craving will always be these full, pouty lips.

I break the kiss and kiss the tip of her nose. “I love you.” I whisper as I gaze into her big doe eyes.

“I love you, too.” She kisses my lips then smiles. “You want to see it?"

I roll to my side and prop my head on my hand. "Show me."

She sits up and grabs her pad. She bounces back on the bed and presents the pad to me. "It's not finished, but I can’t wait to paint it.

"Sold!" I grin.

"Stop!" She hits my arm with the pad.

"Hey!" I laugh. "Careful with my artwork!" I snatch the pad from her and roll to my back.

"Give it back." She demands she tries to reach for it, but I keep the pad away.

I hold her back and smirk. "Nope. Not until I get another kiss."

She smiles and tucks her hair behind her ear. She leans down to me and parts her lips for me. I grab the back of her head, pressing her to me. She pulls back. "Now can I have my pad back?"

I look like I'm thinking about it. "Um...no." I pull her on me and she straddles my hips. She sits up and I hand her the pad. I straighten my button-down shirt as she looks over her art. "You look sexy in my shirt."

She looks down at herself. "It smelled like you, so I put it on." She drops the pad to the side and lays down on my chest as she smiles.

"You like my smell?" My brow ticks up.

"Oh, yeah. It’s the sexiest smell ever." The corner of her mouth pulls up.

"I can't argue that.” She hits my chest and I cackle. Driving her nuts with my ego will now be my new favorite past time. I calm down and lock with her eyes. “Well, yours is a drug."

"A drug? You can't be serious." She giggles.

"I'm dead serious. I get hit with your scent, I'm fucking done. I can barely see straight." My brow shoots up.

"Shifters are weird." She chuckles.

"Weird?" I scowl playfully. "I'll give you weird." With a growl, I flip her and she lets out a yelp and a laugh. I place myself between her legs and tickle her with my good hand. "I'm weird huh? How's this for weird?"

She lets out a full, beautiful belly laugh. "Bastian!!... Stop!"

"Still think I'm weird?" I continue my assault on her ribs.

"Bastian!!" She laughing and kicking her legs.

Our play was interrupted by a knock on the door.

I stop and flop my head down.

"What?" I bark.

"Sorry, B. But, Alpha Blake's here."

I sigh at the sound of Nigel’s voice. "Fine. Give me thirty minutes."

I turn back to the stunning vision in my bed. "We have to go." I get up and pull her up. I lean to her lips and smile. "For the record. Humans are weirder."

“What?!” She tries to hit me and I run for the bathroom, snickering the whole way.

I slam the door and I hear her yell, "Get out here!"

"No way!" I yell back and get ready for Blake.

****

I walk down the stairs, dressed in my dress shirt and black suit pants. Sam is wearing a pink, tight, knee-high dress. Looking so fucking foxy with her hair up.

We're giggling to each other as we get to the foyer.

"Blake. Sorry to keep you waiting. We had a long night." I grab his hand and shake it.

His mouth ticks up. "It's fine. Listen, I'm here to tell you, the Alliance has eyes on Chase.”

I scrunch my brows. “Chase is dead. I killed him myself.”

He shakes his head. “He’s not dead, Bastian. In fact, he’s organizing.”

“What? How?” I question.

He hands me satellite photos of Aurora and the activity around the city is clear. “Damn it. I should have ripped his throat out, but I was worried about getting Sammy out.”

She rubs my arm as I rub my nape. “It’s fine. I’m sure the Alliance won't let him get to me. Right?” She turns to River.

“We will. The problem is that this army he has is huge. Larger than ours, but ten thousand may have been a bit of an exaggeration. We don't know exactly what the numbers are, but it doesn't look like anything more than six or seven thousand."

"Can we fight that?" I ask him.

He nods. "I believe so. We've been shoring up our resources, and I think we can. After Torrent's attack, security was number one priority."

"Well, thanks for telling me in person." I hand the photo back and clap his arm.

"I also wanted to check to see if Sam was OK. After the events last night. You must still be freaked." He looks me over.

"Actually, since being home, I feel quite good." She wraps her arms around my bicep, lays her head on my arm, and smiles. I really can’t wait until she’s officially mine.

"Good. I'm glad to hear it." He smiles. "Ok. I guess I'll leave you two alone."

I walk him out and shut the door. I turn to Sam, take in her beauty, and sigh.

"What?" She blinks her big, pink, doe eyes at me

"I want coffee. Do you want coffee?" I walk up to her, place her arm around mine, and escort her to the dining hall. "Nigel! Coffee!" I bark through the house.

I walk her to a table, sit her down, and Nigel drops two cups of coffee on the table as I sit. "Camilla and Wren will be here soon, by the way."

"Perfect." My eyes meet hers. "You ready to get fixed?"

"More than ready." She gives me a gorgeous, toothy grin.

"Bastian." A voice sings from across the room.

I hang my head. "Good morning, Caroline."

She stops at the table and eyes Sam. She smirks and runs her arm across my shoulders. She apparently didn't get the memo that I'm no longer interested, so I quickly remove her arm. "What do you want, Caroline?" I glance at Sam who's looking perturbed by Caroline’s presence. I’ll be taking care of her after im done with my wonderful woman.

"Well, since your ballroom is done, I wanted to know when the party was." She turns and leans on the table beside me.

My eyes flick back to Sam's. She crosses her arms and chews her cheek as she eyes me. I may have to take care of this now before I get in shit.

"I'll let you know. I'm not sure." I shoot a quick smile to Sam, but she doesn't respond.

"I hope it's soon. Since you missed my birthday, I think I deserve a party." Her fingers travel down my buttons.

I think I see steam rising from my angel's head. "Caroline, you remember Samantha."

I point to her. Caroline turns. "Of course, the decorator. I saw the ballroom. It's beautiful. I'll have to hire you for my pool house. You have a good eye."

Sam clears her throat. "Yes, well. I'm very busy, but I'll look over anything you have."

Caroline shoots her a snarky smile and she turns back to me. Her hand starts to caress my arm. "We can meet up later and discuss party ideas." She gives me major fuck me eyes as Sam boils in the seat across from me.

"No, Caroline. Me and Sammy have that covered. We don't need you." I give her a look and hope she gets the message without causing a scene.

She pushes off the table and looks between us. She points a finger at us both. "You two? Seriously?" She looks offended.

"Seriously." Sam squints as her jaw ticks.

She looks Sam over with disdain and turns on a snobby attitude. "Bastian. You know where to find me when you come to your senses." She huffs and stomps out of the room.

Sam leans over the table. "Bastian, who is that woman?" She glares.

"Caroline Wiles. Ex-lover. Don't worry she's not a problem for us." I reassure her as I hold her hand on the table.

"I hope not. She seems very unpleasant." She scowls. “I don’t usually like to be negative about people, but she makes me angry.”

I chuckle. "We don't want that, now, do we?"

"No, we don't." She arches her brow at me.

I lean on the table to her. "Do you want a party?"

"Well, I've never been to a ballroom party before." She says as she gives an innocent look. "But I don't want to trouble you. After everything, I can't really expect much more than you've already given."

"Trust me, I haven't even touched on the amount that I want to give you." I gently rub the tops of her hand with my thumb. "Ok. We’ll have breakfast. You meet with Camilla than meet me in my office after and we'll discuss party time."

"Sounds good." She smiles nervously.

****

"Alpha Cole. So nice to meet you in person." Camilla reaches out her hand and I take it.

Camilla Scott. The Alliance’s best wolf councilor. It's her job to integrate wolves to their human counterparts. Hopefully, she'll be able to help Sammy with her unique problem.

"Camilla. Nice to meet you, too." I flash a charming smile. "I hope your skills can help my Sam. She needs this. I know it's out of your field, but we have to try."

"When you told me her situation, I was intrigued. I can't wait to meet her." She smiles.

I place my hands in my pockets. "Do you mind if I sit in?"

"Not at all. As long as Sam doesn't mind." She nods.

"Great." I wave her in the direction of Sam's office. "She's this way."

We walk down the office hallways to Sam's door. I knock and open the door. "Sammy? Camilla's here."

"Great!" Sam chirps.

I lead the councilor in. "Hi! I'm Camilla." The ladies shake hands. "You have a lovely office." She says as she looks around.

"Thanks." Sam motions for the sitting area and we all sit down.

"Baby, you don't mind I'm here?" I ask.

"It's fine." She smiles, but I can tell she's nervous.

"Ok." Camilla takes out candles and incense plus some powders from her bag. "So, Sam. My job is to get you and your wolf on an understanding of partnership. Your wolf needs to recognize that you exist and that as the human, you need to have complete control for you both to exist. Do you understand?"

She looks at me. "I think so."

Camila chuckles. "Not being exposed properly to this life can be a bit confusing, but once I'm done here, you'll be whole and normal. Ok?" She reassures Sam.

Sam nods as she twists her fingers together.

"Ok. Where's your wolf now. Is she present?" Camilla asks.

Sam shakes her head. "No. I locked her up." Her eyes flick between Camilla and I.

"Sure. Alright. Alpha, can you dim the lights please?" She asks.

I get up and walk to the rooms dimmer switch. I turn down the lights and sit back down.

"Alpha, no matter what happens, I need complete silence. You understand?" She arches a brow at me.

I nod in response.

She lights the candle and the incense. "Sam, close your eyes." She speaks softly.

Sam does as instructed.

"Sam, I need you to let your wolf hear. Open the place you have her. Let her hear my voice." Camilla instructs. She tosses the powder on the candle and a blue smoke surrounds us.

“Take deep breaths in and out. Smell the smoke.” She instructs.

Sam seems to relax with every breath.

"Can She hear us?" Camilla asks.

"Yes." Sam responds almost sleepily.

"Good." Camilla throws another powder on the candle. Red smoke fills the air.

She grabs Sam's hand. "Show her to me."

Camilla closes her eyes. "I see you. Come out, little one."

I look at the two ladies who seem to be in trances. I don't understand what I'm watching.

"You're so angry. You don't need to be. We don't want to harm you." Camilla’s voice is much like the voice of a mother.

"Feel your surroundings, little one. That's it. Feel the trust. Feel the bond." Camilla encourages.

"Camilla? Something’s wrong." Sam says.

"Sam, what's she doing?" Camilla’s tone seems urgent.

My eyes flick nervously between the women.

"Camilla, no! Shut the door!" Sam yells.

"Sam, help me." Camilla’s face scrunches and I feel fear from both of them.

"What's happening?" I look at Camilla.

"I'm trying. She's too strong." Sam clenches her teeth as her brows come together. "We can't let her out!"

"You have to fight her Sam. Fight her!" Camilla yells.

"Camilla!!" Sam screams.

Camilla is shot back in her spot on the couch. Sam slumps to the floor unconscious.

“Sam!” I fall to the floor with her and pick her up in my lap. “Sammy? Baby doll?” I shake her and looks her over. I lean down and feel her breathing. “Sam!”

Camilla sits up, holding her head and wincing.

I turn to Camilla. "What happened?"

Camilla recovers herself. "Her wolf. She's so mentally broken. It's like there's a conflicting force behind her. She's good, but there's an overwhelming evil infecting her. Bastian. I don't think I can fix this."

"Why won't she wake up?" I ask.

"They were fighting when I got kicked out. I can only assume she's fighting to lock the wolf back up. Alpha, what I felt… What I saw. Her wolf is dangerous. Not just to her, but to all of us. Alpha, she wants us all dead." The look of concern in her face scared the hell out of me.

"I can fix it. I know I can. Please not a word to the Alliance. They won't understand." I plead.

"Alpha, containing her will make it worse. I won't say anything, but you may have to understand that one day you may have to make an unfortunate choice." Her face fills care and heartbreak.

"I won't be making that choice anytime soon." I grit.

I pick Sam up and adjust her in my arms. "Thank you for trying. I'm sure you can see yourself out."

I carry Sam up to my room and lay her sleeping body on the bed. I sit beside her stroking her cheek. "I'll fix it. If it's the last thing I ever do."