Chapter 74 Shielded by Moonfire
Ryder pov
We hit the stairs at a run. Outside, the complex is coming alive with shouts and lights. Wolves pouring from every building.
"There!" Someone spots us. "The Luna! And the Broker!"
Gunfire erupts. I return fire while pulling Jolie behind cover. Gio hunches over his laptop, protecting it like his life depends on it.
"Knox, we need extraction!" I shout into the radio.
"Coming in hot!" Engine roars echo through the complex. "Get ready to run!"
Two motorcycles burst around the corner—Knox and Luna riding hard. They skid to stops beside us.
"Get on!" Knox tosses me spare keys.
I throw Gio over Knox's bike. He yelps in protest but doesn't fight it.
Jolie climbs on behind me, arms wrapped tight around my waist. "Go!"
We tear through the complex with fifty wolves chasing us. Bullets whiz past, close enough to feel the wind.
Then Jolie's moonfire blazes to life around us. A shield of silver light that deflects incoming fire like it's nothing.
"She's protecting us!" Luna's voice carries over the engine noise. "Luna's actually shielding us!"
We hit the forest trails at dangerous speed. Behind us, the pursuit fades as confusion spreads through the enemy ranks. Their Broker is gone. Their target escaped, their entire operation just collapsed.
Ten minutes of hard riding brings us back to Iron Fangs territory.
The compound erupts in cheers when we ride in. Emma rushes forward, throwing herself at Jolie in a grateful hug.
"Thank you." She's crying. "Phoenix told me everything. How you came for me."
"You're pack now." Jolie hugs her back. "We protect pack."
The gathered wolves howl agreement. Doc steps forward to check us over. Mara actually nods respect at Jolie.
And standing in the middle of it all, looking completely out of place, is Gio. Watching his sister be celebrated by rogues and outcasts who love her more than her own blood pack ever did.
"Quite a family you've built." Doc appears at my side, following my gaze.
"She built it." I watch Jolie healing minor injuries with glowing touches, laughing at someone's joke. "I just gave her space to grow."
"You gave her more than that." Doc's smile is gentle. "You gave her value when she thought she was worthless. That's what let her become this."
Jolie spots me and smiles—that same shy, beautiful smile she had when we first met. Power and divinity and all, she's still my Jolie underneath.
She crosses to me, leaving the others behind. "Hey."
"Hey yourself." I pull her close. "Hell of a night."
"It's not over." She glances at Gio, who's being watched closely by Knox and Luna. "We still have to save Father and take down the Council."
"One war at a time." I kiss her forehead. "Tonight, we celebrate rescuing Emma and surviving Gio's trap."
"Is it wrong that I feel sorry for him?" She looks up at me. "After everything he's done, I still see my brother under all that broken empathy."
"It's not wrong." I hold her tighter. "It's what makes you Luna instead of just another violent wolf. You see people. Even the ones who don't deserve it."
She's quiet for a moment, then: "I'm scared, Ryder. The Council is coming. And when they do, people are going to die. Our pack. Maybe me."
"Then we make sure it's not you." I tilt her face up. "We've got advantages they don't expect. We've got a broken alpha who knows their secrets. And we've got Luna's vessel who can make them feel every cruel thing they've ever done."
"And we've got each other." She smiles. "That counts for something, right?"
"Everything." I kiss her, slow and deep. "Now come on. Your pack wants to celebrate their Luna's victory."
"Our pack." She corrects, taking my hand. "And our victory."
The celebration continues around us, but Jolie pulls me aside, away from the crowd.
"I need you." Her voice is low but urgent.
"I'm right here." I'm confused by the sudden intensity.
"No, I mean" She glances around, then pulls me toward our cabin. "I need you. Now.
Heat rushes through me. "Right now? The pack is celebrating."
"They'll survive without us for twenty minutes." She's already dragging me through the door. "Please, Ryder. I can't wait until later."
How can I say no to that?
The second the cabin door slams shut behind us, she's on me. Kissing me desperately, her tongue plunging into my mouth with hungry, frantic strokes. Her hands are everywhere—fisting my shirt, yanking it up to rake her nails down my back. I groan into her mouth, my cock already straining against my jeans as she grinds her hips against mine.
She breaks the kiss just long enough to spin around in my arms, pressing her back to my chest. Her hands reach behind her, sliding up my neck and into my hair, but then she shifts—turning to face me again, her eyes wild with need. She drops to her knees right there on the cabin floor, her fingers fumbling with my belt, popping the button, dragging the zipper down. My cock springs free, hard and throbbing, and she wraps her hand around the base, stroking once, twice, before leaning in to swirl her tongue around the head.
But that's not what she wants right now. She stands up abruptly, her palms sliding up my chest, over my shoulders. She starts rubbing them in slow, deliberate circles, her thumbs digging into the tense muscles there, kneading with a seductive pressure that makes me shiver. Her body presses flush against mine, her breasts crushing into my chest as she massages deeper, her hips rolling subtly against my erection. She's trying to seduce me, to pull me under her spell completely, her breath hot against my ear as she whispers, "Come on, Ryder... give it to me."
I arch a brow, smirking down at her even as my hands grip her waist. "What now, Jolie? You drag me in here like the world's ending, rub my shoulders like you're trying to melt me... you gonna beg for it?"
She moans softly at my teasing, her rubbing turning more insistent, nails scraping lightly over my skin. "Yes... please. Fuck me. Hard."
That's all it takes. I spin her around, pressing her front against the rough wooden wall of the cabin. "Fast?" I growl into her ear, my hand already shoving up under her shirt, palming her breast, pinching her nipple until she arches back against me.
"Fast," she gasps, pushing her ass back into my groin. "Make me lose myself at least for a few minutes."
I yank her pants down in one rough motion, along with her panties, exposing her slick, dripping pussy. She's soaked already, her arousal coating her thighs. I free my cock fully, gripping the base, and line up with her entrance. With one hard thrust, I enter her—burying myself balls-deep in a single, punishing stroke. She cries out, her walls clenching around me like a vice, hot, wet and pulsing.
"Fuck, Jolie," I grunt, pulling back almost all the way out before pounding back in, my hips slamming against her ass with a sharp smack. I set a brutal rhythm, pounding into her relentlessly—deep, forceful thrusts that make her whole body jolt against the wall. Each time I bottom out, my cock stretches her, filling her completely, the head grinding against that spot inside that makes her legs tremble.
She moans loud and unrestrained, the sound raw and desperate, echoing off the cabin walls. "Ryder... oh god, yes... harder!" Her hands brace against the wood, knuckles white, as she pushes back to meet every thrust, her ass rippling with the impact. I reach around, my fingers finding her clit, rubbing it in tight, frantic circles while I pound away, my balls slapping against her with every drive.
Her moans turn into whimpers, then full-throated cries as she comes apart around me—her pussy spasming, milking my cock in rhythmic waves, her juices gushing down her thighs. "Ryder! Fuck... I'm coming... don't stop!" She shudders violently, her body locking up, nails digging into the wall as the orgasm rips through her.
I don't let up, pounding through her climax, chasing my own. A few more brutal thrusts and I'm there—groaning her name like a prayer as I spill inside her, hot ropes of cum flooding her depths, my hips jerking erratically until I'm spent.
Afterward, we straighten our clothes, both breathing hard, the air thick with the scent of sex.
"Better?" I ask, kissing her forehead.
"So much better." She smiles, looking more like herself. "Thank you. I just needed"
"To be Jolie instead of Luna." I finished. "I get it. Anytime you need that reminder, I'm here."
"Good." She takes my hand. "Now let's get back before they send a search party."