Wolf Me Baby

by KB Winters

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Wolf Me Baby

  By KB Winters and Evie Monroe

  Copyright © 2017 BookBoyfriends Publishing LLC

  Published By: BookBoyfriends Publishing LLC

  Copyright and Disclaimer

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2017 BookBoyfriends Publishing LLC

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of the trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  Contents

  Wolf Me Baby

  Copyright and Disclaimer

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  More from KB Winters and Evie Monroe

  Acknowledgements

  About The Author

  Chapter One

  I stared ahead out of the front window of my car. If I hadn’t promised my best friend, Kayla, that I’d take her up on her offer of personal training, I’d have turned my car right around and high-tailed it out of the parking lot as fast as possible. It wasn’t that I didn’t appreciate her offer—I did. It was that having other people watch me while I huffed and puffed for breath didn’t seem like a good time to me. I was never one of those women who glistened attractively when the temperature got a bit too warm—I was of the sweating buckets variety. Unfortunately, my desire to not upset someone I cared about outweighed my own finely tuned sense of self-preservation. Her blue-eyed gaze combined with her well-practiced pouts always seemed to get me into trouble, and I doubted this situation would be any different.

  “Damn you Kayla,” I whispered to myself as I watched another perfectly trim Barbie look-alike walk towards the building. Seeing her perfectly matching bright pink yoga outfit made me look down at my own loose t-shirt and well-worn yoga pants. Could I have possibly looked any more out of place? I wanted to bolt, but I could hear Kayla’s voice in the back of my head pushing me to just give it a try. If I closed my eyes, I could almost picture her smile as she tried to talk me into it.

  Kayla Smith was the type of girl every man fantasized about. With her sun-spun hair, ocean blue eyes and relatively sweet disposition, she was the quintessential girl next door and it just so happened that she was my neighbor since elementary school. We met thanks to a neighborhood party when we were five and had been damn near inseparable ever since. Unfortunately, having a gorgeous best friend when you were average looking at best didn’t always make for happy childhood memories. Where Kayla was light, I was dark—dark brown hair, brown eyes and a personality that—while not repulsive—didn’t inspire people to throw themselves at my feet and beg for my friendship.

  True story…that actually happened once. I’d always been known as Kayla’s sidekick. Whenever we’d walk down our high school hallway, I’d always hear people whispering about how mismatched she and I were.

  “I really don’t get why Kayla is best friends with her.”

  “I know! River Lambert is so…average in comparison.”

  I tried to never let it bother me when I heard their whispers of disbelief and the one and only time I brought it up to Kayla was the first time I’d ever seen her truly mad. Her smiling blue eyes had turned as hard as ice chips, and I swore my ears were bleeding from the tongue lashing she gave our classmates. After that, I never heard the whispers, but I could still see the thoughts reflected in our classmates’ expressions.

  A few times I’d thought the same things myself. Why, out of everyone, had Kayla chosen to stick beside me? We had many friends that came and went over the years, and even when I thought she’d surely move on to being best friends with one of them, she always stayed by my side. I remember asking her about it once during our junior year of high school. Even now, remembering her firm answer still made me smile.

  “You just get me, River. Everyone has these expectations of who they think I’m supposed to be, but you don’t. I can be me around you. Not some fake Barbie-bitch who gives a fuck about the name on her shoes.”

  Despite how much her answer reassured me, I’d hoped college would be different—and in many ways, it was. Apparently, some college guys had had a thing for my looks and while I wasn’t as popular on my own, I still managed to date more than Kayla, though that was probably because she’d met her boyfriend slash fiancé our sophomore year. Benjamin Broker was everything a girl could ever want. He was smart, sweet and financially set for life. His family had more money than our small university probably made in a year, and they owned luxurious properties all over the world. Being Kayla’s best friend meant I was able to enjoy some of it, and it also meant I got to meet some gorgeous men in similar social and financial standings—including the asshole I dated for five years.

  “No, no, no,” I mumbled to myself. I shook my head as if to shake the thoughts from my mind. “Don’t think about him. He’s the reason you’re in this mess to begin with.”

  I sighed deeply and I looked down at my hands where they rested in my lap. Thinking of my ex meant straying into painful territory, and I was far from ready to do that—especially not while sitting where other people could see. Crying over the asshole who broke my heart was one thing—doing it in public in front of strangers was something entirely different. I already felt crappy enough and I didn’t need to see other people’s looks of pity as well.

  ‘Don’t cry, River. You might start a flood.’

  Kayla and my inside joke fluttered through my mind and I couldn’t help but smile a little. While I’d never been too fond of my plain looks, I’d always been proud of my name and its uniqueness. “You are unique,” I said to myself. I lifted my gaze and again looked out beyond my car’s front window. “You are unique and this is a unique opportunity so you should take it. It’s a month of free personal training and lord knows you need it.”

  It was true. I did need the help to get back into a normal workout routine. It had been months since I last stepped foot inside of a gym, and I had to practically go on safari to the back of my closet in order to find my running shoes. With a job that didn’t require a lot of movement and a daily wardrobe that was able to expand with me, paying attention to my weight had fallen to the back of my thoughts. In college, I’d taken better care of myself in regards to exercising, but that was mostly due to Kayla dragging me with her to the university gym. I did tend to get a lot of creative ideas when I was in motion though, which is how I managed to complete my first novel before graduation.

  With my mind made up, I sighed and reached up to pull my keys from the igni
tion. Before I could second guess myself, I opened the car door and stepped out. “One foot in front of the other,” I murmured closing the door behind me. “Just because all the women here are perfect blonde-haired specimens doesn’t mean there is anything wrong—oh for fuck’s sake.” I paused in locking my car when I saw Kayla walking over towards me from where her car was parked. She had a wide smile on her face and was waving like little kids tended to do when they got overly excited about something. I took a deep breath before I waved back. I forced my feet to stay still as I waited for her to join me beside my car.

  “Great, you came!”

  “I said I would,” I replied trying to keep my lips from scowling too hard. I gave Kayla a once-over noting what had to be a designer dress along with the new Chanel purse Benjamin had gifted her for her birthday last week. “What are you doing here?”

  Kayla stepped over to my side and looped her arm through mine. “I just came to give my best friend a little moral support.”

  I glanced at her with a raised eyebrow. “Uh huh, sure you did. Why don’t you tell me what you’re really here for so I can go ahead and say no?”

  She pouted, but her lips twitched letting me know she really wanted to smile. “I can never put anything past you, can I?”

  “Hmm, you can try, which you always do, and you can fail like you always do. Secretly, I think you enjoy being rejected.”

  “Only by you,” she joked leading me towards the front door of the gym. “Ben is such a pushover that I need to try it with you to stay sharp.”

  I glanced up at the building as we approached it. “Don’t you get enough of that with being a divorce lawyer?”

  She laughed and pulled open the glass door in front of us. “Nah. Then, I always just pretend I didn’t hear what the other person was saying—totally different.”

  I rolled my eyes, but quirked my lips up in a smile. Despite what Kayla said, I knew for a fact she was one of the highest rated divorce lawyers in the city and was known for her fair hand and even head during divorce proceedings. The sound of weights clanging brought my attention back to the matter at hand and with a wince I turned to look around the gym.

  Despite being in the expensive part of town, it wasn’t as over-the-top as I’d expected it to be. The room was wide and long with the weights and cardio areas separated by a tall divider. There were several large flat screens on the walls to my left and right, and the equipment looked either brand new or very well-maintained. Even though the place was nearly full of people, the air didn’t have that stale sweat smell I’d hated at other gyms. It was clean and fresh with a hint of lemon. If not for wishing I didn’t have to come—I might have almost enjoyed it.

  I glanced back over at Kayla. “Do I really have to do this?”

  “Yes, you do,” she insisted with a nod not even bothering to hide her amused grin. “I didn’t have a choice on whether to invite Zack to the wedding or not, but I want him to regret ever breaking your heart.” Her gaze shot over to me. “I know we promised to never mention that name again, but I just want you to know that.”

  The mention of that name made my heart beat faster, but I ignored the feeling. Sadly, I was becoming well practiced in that regard. “Kayla—”

  “I know, I know. You’ve told me not to apologize like twelve times.”

  “So why do you keep doing it?” I asked. “I know you can’t help it and Ben already sent me a bouquet of white roses as an apology. Those smelled amazing by the way.” I looked at her with a smile.

  Kayla smiled back slightly. “I just want to make sure you’re okay with it…but I still want to see his look of surprise when he sees you walk down the aisle so he can see all this beauty he’s missing out on.”

  I laughed. “And this is why we are friends.” I turned my focus back towards the people who were working out. I supposed suffering through a few workouts would be worth it if it meant seeing Zack’s shocked—and regretful—expression at the wedding.

  “I’d never force you to do this, River, I promise.” When I glanced over at Kayla, her gaze wasn’t on me and I turned to see what she was looking at. “But if that’s your trainer, I might have to switch places with you.”

  I rolled my eyes at her words, but keyed in on who she was looking at. My eyes widened as I saw the man who was apparently my new personal drill sergeant. “Oh, hell no.”

  “Oh, hell yes,” she replied moving forward and practically dragging me along with her.

  The guy, my personal trainer, was standing at the doorway of what looked to be the main office. He was wearing a tight black sleeveless tank with the logo of the gym on it and a nametag. I tried to focus on that instead of his perfectly tanned skin and sharp features, but then I found myself staring at his muscled pectorals that led down to a perfectly toned waist and the outline of what seemed to be a twelve pack under the fabric of his shirt. My gaze hovered at his waist as I fought with myself against letting it slip down further. Nope. Didn’t work.

  Damn!

  “This is going to suck,” I whispered to myself as we stepped close enough to speak with him. I risked a glance up and locked gazes with eyes of indescribable color. His expression was amused and knowing and for a moment, I wondered if he had somehow heard what I had just said. I blinked and had to force myself to look away. He couldn’t have heard me though; we’d been too far away and I’d pitched my voice quiet enough so that even Kayla probably hadn’t heard. I glanced over at her and could see her smiling widely at me. I inwardly cursed again. So far this was turning out to be a disaster and it hadn’t even gotten started.

  “Mrs. Lambert?” The man asked. His voice wasn’t as deep as I’d thought it would be, but it was smooth and slightly rough. I looked back at him, expecting is gaze to be firmly planted on Kayla. It was normal for men to be addressing me yet staring at her, and I figured this time would be no different.

  I was so wrong. The man’s gaze was focused on me and that piqued my interest. I coughed softly to clear my throat before answering. “Yes, that’s me.”

  He reached out his hand and I did the same. “Perfect,” he replied with a wide and no doubt practiced smile. “I’m Nicholas Steele and I’ll be your personal trainer for the next month. Can I assume this is your friend who set this up for you?” He nodded towards Kayla.

  When our hands met, I felt a small electric shock, and I couldn’t help the quick inhale of breath I drew in. I’d never felt something like that before. From Nicholas’ expression, it seemed he didn’t share my sentiments. His practiced smile didn’t slip in the slightest, so I forced myself to appear unaffected.

  I glanced over at Kayla with a tight smile. “Yeah. Sure. You can assume anything.” Damn, that sounded snarky.

  “Great,” he continued, dropping my hand. “There are a few forms we need to sign before we can get started as well as billing information that Tina, our accounts manager, will be handling.”

  “Great.” Kayla squeezed my arm with a smile. “Where can I find her? I won’t be sticking around. I just came to make sure my River here didn’t get lost.”

  “Kayla,” I hissed. The sound of Nicholas’ chuckle was more than enough to make me flush scarlet and once again I cursed my fair complexion.

  “No worries.” He turned and pointed at another office door on the other side of the gym. “Tina’s office is over there and I believe she should be in there. Just let her know that you are the one paying for Mrs. Lambert—”

  “River,” I interrupted quickly. “Please, just call me River.”

  “Right, and she’s not a Mrs.,” Kayla added much to my chagrin. “No husband or fiancé to account for. Very single.”

  Nicholas’ smile didn’t wane and I wondered if he got that often in his line of work. Then again, considering his toned body and good looks, there was no doubt that he routinely had women throwing themselves at him. “My apologies. Let Tina know you are paying for River’s month of personal training and she’ll take care of everything while we get started here
.”

  “Perfect,” Kayla enthused. When Nicholas turned around waving for me to follow, I shot her a final look before complying. She gave me a wide smile and a thumbs-up, clearly feeling much more excited about this than I was.

  My feelings of dread cooled when Nicholas waved me into a private room away from the other gym patrons. When I stepped inside, I looked around noting two mirrored walls and one wall with a wooden bar attached.

  “This is where we’ll do the bulk of our personal training.” Nicholas’ voice brought my attention back to him. I turned to him.

  “Really? So I won’t be out there on the machines with everyone else?”

  He walked into the middle of the room. “You will occasionally be out in the open gym, especially if I’m timing you to note your cardio progress, but mostly we’ll be in here.” He paused and gave me a curious look. “Unless there’s something wrong with that?”

  I shook my head quickly. “No, not at all. You’re the trainer after all. I’m just here to make sure Kayla doesn’t pout at me again.” I walked over to him and tried to ignore just how good-looking he was. He moved to sit down and I followed.

  “That doesn’t sound encouraging.”

  “Well, I mean I do need to get back in shape,” I assured him. “After my last…I kind of fell off of eating well and exercising for the past six months after some stuff happened.”

  “Mmhmm,” he hummed. “Major life events have a way of getting people off track—nothing to be ashamed of. I’m assuming you have a deadline for getting back in shape?”

  I paused and thought. “Kind of? I mean, I know there isn’t a quick fix for getting back into shape and I have no plans of starving myself.” I looked down at the floor. “I think I just need a bit of a kick to get me going again…plus there is my bridesmaid dress that I have to fit into.”

  “Ah,” he replied. I looked up at him to find a knowing smile on his face. “How many sizes smaller did you have it ordered in?”

  I flushed at being found out so easily. “Just one. I’m only slightly crazy, not totally insane.”