Howling for My Baby

by Beverly Rae

  “In a way. I made the promise to a very special man in my life.”

  Jealousy twisted his gut and an ache stabbed his heart—he wasn’t sure which was worse. He ignored both pains and kept going on automated mode. “You mean…there’s someone else in your life? Someone you love?” Please let her say no. But he steeled himself for the answer he didn’t want to hear.

  “Yes, I do love him.”

  Even though he’d prepared for such an answer, he nearly doubled over from the kick to his gut. No, she can’t do this to me. To us. We’re meant for each other. Destined as mates.

  She blinked a couple of times, caught onto the troubled ideas coursing through him, and shook her head. “No, Jason, it’s not what you’re thinking. The man I’m talking about is my father.”

  The searing wound ripping through his body stopped in one quick flush of relief only to be replaced by a numbing coldness. “Your father is a hunter?” Part of him wanted to dance around her, acting like a fool, making her admit it was all a joke. The other part of him fought to control his rage. He let go of her arms and stepped back. “Your family’s a bunch of shifter hunters?”

  Now the agony he’d experienced leapt from him into her. He could see it in her eyes and in the way her face fell. “My dad’s a hunter, yes.” She stepped closer and, amazingly, he found he didn’t want to get farther away from her. Not even if she had hunter blood running through her veins. “Mom isn’t one, though. And she’s never hunted.”

  “How about you? Have you killed…?” He couldn’t finish the sentence and didn’t want her to answer, either, but knew she would.

  “No.” She grinned at him, made a pistol with her index finger and thumb, and pointed it at him. “But I came damn close tonight.” She took one look at his face and lost all her humor. “I’ve never wanted to and I never will.”

  He hugged her, pulling her body against his nude one. He held her and tried to stop the questions running wild in his mind. Her father’s a hunter? Can I take a hunter’s daughter for my mate? Yet I already have. But how will I explain this to my family? He cringed, imagining the expression on his father’s face when he introduced him to his mate. “Yo, Pops. Remember when you told me to find my mate? The perfect female to bring home to the pack? Well, it seems ole Fate has a sense of humor.” Would Brandon Cannon, their retiring pack leader, think twice about Jason taking over the Cannon pack? The idea of telling his father about Syd would be almost funny—if it weren’t so serious.

  “I know you wouldn’t.” He sniffed the strawberry fragrance of her hair and committed it to memory. “Don’t worry about anything. We’ll sort it out later.”

  “Uh, Jason?”

  He didn’t care what his family or pack said. He loved her and nothing else mattered. “Yeah?”

  “Do you have your own gun or are you─”

  “Happy to see you?” He leaned away to study her bemused face. “Nope, no gun. As you can guess, I’m not a big fan of guns. And yeah, I am.” Her sparkling eyes met his and any uncertainty was swept away in her deep blue oceans. He’d make their union work and screw anyone who tried to keep them apart.

  “Jason, I’ll bet they’re going to return in a few minutes. My father won’t let them go too far away from me.”

  He whirled from her to gather his clothes, then scrambled to yank on his jeans and fling the shirt over his head. “Then let’s get out of here.” The loud pop of a gunshot brought him up short. He held his breath, waiting to feel warm blood running down his skin. When he realized he was unharmed, he stuck his head through the neck of his shirt and gaped at her. “What’re you shooting at?”

  “You.” She tossed her curly locks, raised the rifle in the air, and squeezed off another shot. The crack sent shivers up his body, but he held his ground. “Skeller’s expecting me to kill the shifter behind the dumpster. So I’ve got to kill you.” She wiggled her eyebrows at him. “Or make it look like I did.”

  He jerked on his running shoes and waited for her to explain. “I hope you’re not expecting me to play dead while your dad tries to skin my hide.”

  “Not exactly.” Syd jogged over to a manhole in the nearby street and pulled on the cover. “I’m going to tell him I mortally wounded you, but you escaped in the sewers.”

  Damn, had he gotten lucky or what? His mate wasn’t merely beautiful, she was also intelligent and tricky. “Syd, darlin’, I like how you think.”

  He strode over to the manhole and slid the rest of it to the side. Rising to face her, he took Syd’s face in his hands and put his lips lightly on top of hers. She fell toward him, clutching him to her with her free hand. He played his tongue along the slight part of her lips, making her moan. Their bodies heated up in seconds and he longed to pull her into the alley and make love to her.

  Make love? When had he ever thought of sex as making love?

  She pulled back less than an inch from his mouth and whispered, “There’s one thing I’d like to know.”

  He breathed in, taking the sweet aroma of her breath into his nose. “Yes, darlin’?”

  She tilted her head and he hoped she would kiss him again. “Why can’t you guys make your clothes disappear into thin air when you change into wolf form? You know, like in the movies? No one ever found Superman’s clothes in the phone booth, you know.”

  Huh? “We’re getting all nice and cozy, and you want to talk wardrobes?”

  Her inquisitive expression had him biting his tongue to keep from laughing. “It’d be a lot more convenient. Besides, once I start going all wolfie I don’t like the idea of dropping my good clothes on the dirty street. You’re supernatural creatures with special powers, right? So why can’t you make your clothes come and go at will? Or is this some kind of wardrobe malfunction?”

  He let loose a loud laugh, not caring if it echoed around the empty street. “I’ll be sure to talk to the pack’s brainiacs about the problem and ask them to come up with some fairy dust or something.”

  “Ooh, I like fairy dust.” She grinned and pretended to toss fairy dust into the air around them before turning serious. “Jason, tell me. When will I…” She trailed off and shrugged. “You know.”

  “Change?” He held her close, sensing the uneasiness in her. “Soon. Give it some time to get into your system.” He lifted her face to gaze into her eyes. “Don’t worry. You’re going to be fine.”

  She opened her mouth to answer, but never got the chance.

  “Sydney!”

  Syd and Jason swiveled together to peer in the direction of the voice.

  “Sydney!”

  Facing each other, he could see the anxiety in her hardened features.

  “It’s Skeller.”

  “You mean your dad?”

  “Yeah, my dad.” She shoved him toward the manhole. “Get going. If I’m going to pull this off, they can’t see you.”

  Jason lurched back to her, grabbed her arms, and gave her a quick kiss. “Okay, good luck. I’ll see you tomorrow.” With a wink, he lowered his body into the hole and half-slid, half-climbed down the ladder.

  The stench of the sewer assaulted his nose and his feet splashed into an inch of filthy water. Beady eyes glared at him before the rats scattered away into the dimly lit tunnel. Cursing under his breath, he swiped at a nearby spider web. He paused for a moment to study the tunnel going in two perpendicular directions. He wanted to call to Syd. But when a different smell hit his nostrils, he closed his mouth and knew it was too late.

  “Sydney, girl, are you all right?”

  The gruff voice drifted down to him and he held his breath in anticipation. Would Syd’s scheme work?

  “I’m fine, Dad.”

  “What happened to the vermin?”

  Vermin? Jason sneered at the unseen man and edged away from the light filtering in from the hole.

  “I shot him. He’s a goner. He was behind the trash container and I shot him.”

  “Then where’s the body?”

  “He managed to crawl over
to this manhole and fall inside, but not before I put another bullet in him. He’s dead or going to die soon, I’m certain.”

  A scuffling noise as someone started to descend the ladder sent Jason into one of the tunnels. “Let’s go down and get him. You gotta have the hide to mount on the wall—providing he died before he could turn back into a man. Everybody mounts their first kill as long as it’s the furry version.” Agreement came from two other voices, a male and female.

  “No!”

  The scuffling sound stopped and the others grew silent.

  “Uh, no. It’s okay. He’s probably long gone by now. I don’t want it anyway.”

  “What? You don’t want the hide?” A low chuckle followed the confused questions. “I see. You’re like your mother, huh? You don’t want animal carcasses on the walls, either, I bet. Well, if you’re sure…”

  “I’m sure.”

  Jason heard the relief in her voice and he hoped her father wouldn’t notice. If he did, he might get suspicious of her story.

  “Have it your way. But I wouldn’t mind hanging it on─”

  “Dad, what happened with the other shifter? Did you…did you kill her?”

  She’s asking about Rachel because she knows I’d want to know. He shifted, allowing his ears to alter and heighten their sensitivity.

  “No, damn it all. Watts screwed up my shot.”

  “I did not. Quit blaming me, Skeller. Can I help it if you can’t hit a grown bitch from ten feet away?”

  “You bumped me and you know it, you shithead. You wanted the kill for yourself. ’Fess up, you jerk. You bumped me to throw off my aim.”

  “Like hell I did. My gun wasn’t even at the ready.”

  “Doesn’t matter. You still didn’t want me to shoot.”

  The men’s voices grew louder, adding curses and more accusations. By the sounds he heard, the two men jostled together and Jason couldn’t help but hope the two would get into a fistfight.

  Syd, however, had other ideas. “Stop. Both of you. Whatever happened is done and over with. Forget about it.”

  Both men grumbled like sulking two-year-old children. Jason held his breath and waited in the brief silence that followed. If only he could see what was going on, he’d feel better about leaving Syd alone with the hunters.

  Feet shuffled and her father’s voice grew fainter, signaling their departure. “It’s official. My little girl’s made her first kill.”

  Cheers sprang up praising Sydney on her victory and Jason tried to imagine the scene of his female getting her hand shaken, being congratulated for shooting him. Oh, sure, a lot of females in his womanizing past would have loved to have shot and skinned him, but the one who’d actually had a chance to do it had saved his sorry butt. He grinned. Jason Cannon head-over-heels in love with a hunter’s daughter. Who’d have believed it?

  He waited a few more minutes until the only sounds came from the night creatures scurrying through the sewer system. Satisfied the hunters were gone, he trotted down the tunnel.

  ƒ

  Syd woke up with a start and sat straight up in her bed. Had she dreamed about hunting Jason? Or had last night really happened? Glancing around her cheerful bedroom with the poppy-covered wallpaper, she could easily believe in the dream explanation and not the reality one—until her eyes fell on the clothes she’d worn last night draped over the chair in the corner. Dirt and grime from the alley covered her T-shirt and jeans, and she could almost smell the gunpowder lingering on them.

  “Jason.” Although she’d said his name out loud, the way it came out made the name sound like more of a call. Could she call him to her? Didn’t real wolves howl to each other? Did werewolves do the same? Yet the big question still remained. If he knew she wanted him, would he come?

  The buzzing doorbell startled her out of her reverie. She jumped up, grabbed her robe from the foot of the bed and strode through the living room to the door. Without checking through the peephole first, she swung the door open, ready to greet the man she sensed stood on the other side.

  “Jason.” This time she said his name with all the love she’d kept safely secreted in her heart her entire life.

  He stood before her with his glorious devil-may-care grin on his face, his hard form tucked into a navy pin-stripe suit. The white silk of his shirt set off his dark tan, bringing her gaze to the V of the collar where a few black hairs teased their way above his shirt. His shoulder-length black hair, made to appear even blacker by the one white streak running down the side, was brushed back from his face to dance around his broad shoulders. With a lopsided grin, he tilted his head to gaze at her in the intense examining way he had. The scar along his jaw, dangerous and erotic, called to her, tempting her to run her finger along its rough line. She inhaled, wanting to take in his scent. Yet it was his eyes, dark and knowing, that grabbed her and kept her bound to him.

  “Syd.” His tone echoed hers and she knew he felt the same way. “I wanted to make sure you were all right.” He studied her face. “I wanted to come last night, but─”

  “Shh. You’re here now.” She reached out and he took her hand. Knowing she didn’t need to say anything, she turned and headed toward her bedroom. Once inside, she dropped her robe to the floor and realized she’d worn her favorite torn and ragged nightshirt to bed. Embarrassed, she started to pick up her robe when Jason’s hand on her wrist stopped her.

  “You’re amazing.”

  His words caught in her heart and she dared meet his eyes with hers. She placed a hand on her chest and tried not to stammer. “T-this thing is hideous. Let me change. I bought some sexy─”

  “No. I don’t care what you wear. You’d make a garbage sack look sexy.” His smile flowed over her and she sighed, comforted by the easiness of his gesture. With a wink, he added, “Besides, you won’t be wearing anything much longer.”

  In one swift motion, he gathered the material in his hand and pulled the nightshirt over her head. She stood, shy again, in her plain cotton panties and let his hot gaze slide over her. In part to cover her shyness, she reached for his jacket and slid it from his shoulders. Before his jacket hit the floor, her anxious hands started working on his shirt buttons.

  He brought her closer. She finished with his shirt and started on his belt buckle while he nuzzled her neck with light kisses. Kicking off his loafers, he allowed her to take care of the rest of his clothes. Nipping her shoulder on the spot where her wound was almost healed, he stepped out of his slacks.

  “Do you always go around butt-ass naked under your clothes?”

  His manhood stood at attention, already pressing against the white material of her panties. Jason growled a lustful moan, then ran his hand down her back and beneath her underwear to grip her round bottom. “It’s one less thing to shed when I go wolf. Maybe you should take a clue from me, huh? Then I’d have one less thing to take off you.”

  “Hmm.” She laid her head back, letting him skim his lips along her collarbone to pause in the hollow of her neck. She’d never known how hot kisses could be until Jason gave her his. “I suppose you’re one of those sexist pigs who likes their women at home, barefoot and naked.”

  His laugh tickled her skin before he moved to lick her pebbled nipple. “Well, I do like the naked part. But I’m no pig. Eat pigs, yes. Am one, no.”

  Her underwear lay on the floor at her feet and she kicked them away. Funny how she hadn’t noticed when he’d slid them off. But she didn’t have time to wonder long. With a low throaty growl, he led her to the bed.

  Watching his powerful and graceful cat-like body crawl over her made her heartbeat double. She stifled a giggle at the thought of comparing a wolf to a cat—which she wasn’t about to tell him—but not before he caught her biting her lip to hold back the giggle.

  “I’m hoping it’s not my body you find amusing. Or are you trying hard not to laugh at something I did?”

  The intensity of his expression made the idea even more humorous and she couldn’t control her mirth.r />
  He straightened his arms on either side of her head and lifted his body away from hers. “Okay, now I’m really getting paranoid. What’s the joke? And be careful. I have a very fragile ego.”

  “Like all men do.” She chuckled again, unable to stop herself. “I’d better not tell you. I’d hate for you to take it the wrong way.”

  He narrowed his eyes at her before glancing around. “Well, if you’re not going to tell me, I guess I’ll have to force it out of you.” In one swift motion, he snatched up the belt hanging over the edge of the headboard, clutched her hands together above her head and wrapped the leather around her wrists.

  “Hey! No fair.” She struggled but he rested his body weight on top of her, pinning her to the bed. “Jason, I’m only funning with you.”

  “Very well, my dear,” he quipped in a German accent that reminded her of a Nazi soldier in an old war movie. “Ve’ll see how long you can keep a secret.” Once he’d finished wrapping the belt around her wrists, he tightened it, keeping her hands powerless. “There. Now you are powerless against my interrogation skills.”

  She had to give him credit, the man was full of surprises. “I’m going to buck you off, you know.” She moved her hips up and down, twisting side to side to try to throw him off. But nothing worked and she didn’t care. She couldn’t help but enjoy how his probe bounced against her abdomen.

  “Oh, ho! Buck, baby, buck. I like it vhen you play rough.” The wicked gleam in his eyes twinkled at her. “Are you ready to tell me?”

  She’d pegged him for a fun guy, yet she hadn’t known how fun he could be. “No. No way. I don’t care how much you torture me.” She stuck out her tongue in false bravado.

  “I think you may change your mind, my pretty one.” He paused for moment, putting his finger to his lips. “Hmm, let’s see. I have two vays of torturing my captives. Which one should I use on you?”