I’m just lucky they don’t have the authority to force my hand.
Remus knocked lightly on the door and then jumped back slightly when it was opened immediately. He started to smile down at Maddie, but quickly changed his expression to a frown. His little mate was obviously in a temper about something.
God, please don’t let her be angry with me about anything.
Deciding to go with his original plan, Remus swept an arm around Maddie’s waist and pulled her close. “Hey there, pretty woman, you’re looking really fine today.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss on her lips. He wasn’t happy when she merely accepted his kiss and didn’t bother to kiss him back.
“Hi, Remus. It’s good to see you.”
Oh, boy, the tone of her voice told him her heart wasn’t into what her mouth was saying. “Okay, what’s wrong?”
She looked up at him and sighed. “It’s nothing, really. Are you ready to go on our picnic?”
Remus tightened his grip as she tried to pull away. “Maddie, what’s wrong?” When he saw the stubborn look on her face he tightened his hold even further. “You might as well tell me because I’m not letting you go until you do.”
He watched as she allowed her head to fall back and then heard her groan.
“Okay, okay. I’m angry at Michael.”
Remus couldn’t help but be relieved that all that anger wasn’t focused in his direction. “What happened?”
“I got my usual call from him this morning.”
“Why would getting a call from your brother upset you so much?”
Maddie pulled against his hold again, and this time Remus let her move away. He watched as she walked across the room. He quickly followed her inside and shut the door.
“I guess I shouldn’t really be upset. It’s not like he hasn’t said the same thing to me time and time again.”
Remus was beginning to get the feeling she wasn’t really talking to him. It was more like she was talking and reasoning with herself. It was making him a little nervous. “Baby, what did he say that got you so upset?”
He almost jumped when she whirled around and leveled an icy stare at him. “He was trying to get me to agree to go in and let Dr. Constantine evaluate my condition. That’s his word, not mine.” She began to pace back and forth in the small cabin. “Where the hell does he get off even talking about my so-called condition? He hasn’t seen me in several weeks, and unless you’re filling his head with tales about my mental condition deteriorating, he doesn’t know a thing about me.” She turned and looked at Remus, and he could see a tear on her cheek. “He’s not gonna be happy until I’m living back at the clinic under the doctor’s control.”
Remus dropped the picnic basket and rushed over to take Maddie into his arms. He pulled her tight and held her head to his chest. “You don’t have to worry about anything because I’ll never let them take you away from here. You have my word on that.”
“Would you really be able to stop them, Remus?” Her voice was low and muffled with her head pressed so tightly against his body.
“Absolutely. I’m not going to let anybody cause you any more pain, Maddie. That’s my solemn vow to you. You’re safe here on the mountain with me, I promise you that.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “What do you say we grab our picnic lunch and take a walk along the river bank. We can find a nice spot, lay out a blanket, and just be lazy for the rest of the afternoon.”
Maddie leaned her head back and smiled up at him. “That sounds like a plan.”
“Good, then let’s get out of here.” He took Maddie’s hand and pulled her toward the back door, stopping to pick up the basket along the way. Together they walked across the field and headed down river.
* * * *
Remus watched as Maddie cleaned up after their picnic. She looked relaxed and happy, and he hated to break her mood, but there was something he wanted to ask her. “Maddie, why do you think your brother wants so badly to put you back in the clinic?” He winced at the look of sadness that came over her face.
God, I’m sorry, baby, but I can’t protect you if I don’t know all the facts.
Maddie sighed and leaned back on the blanket. “Michael loves me. I don’t have any doubt about that. He wants me to be happy, but his guilt drives him to make sure I’m safe.”
“What guilt?” Remus became alarmed when he noticed a lone tear sliding down her cheek. He decided to let her finish telling her story before he took her in his arms. He had a feeling this was something she needed to get out.
“I don’t know how much you know about what happened to me when I was a child.” She looked at Remus as if she was waiting for him to answer.
Remus decided quickly not to let her know just how much Victor shared with him. “I don’t know much at all. Victor only told me you had an accident on the lake that caused a head injury.”
She gave Remus a small smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Yeah, an accident while I was trying to learn to water ski. Michael was driving the boat.” She looked at him like he should already understand where this conversation was going.
“Okay, he was driving the boat. How does that make him feel guilty? He didn’t cause the accident on purpose, did he?”
Maddie looked shocked. “Of course not! When it happened, he dove into the water and tried to find me. The water was so murky, and there were a lot of underwater plants and stuff that made it impossible for him to see. He found me eventually, but it took a lot of time.”
As Remus watched, Maddie got up and walked over to a fallen log that lay nearby. “That still doesn’t explain why he would feel guilt. He must have only been a child himself when it happened.”
“He was seventeen, just a young man. I don’t think he would have ever felt any guilt if he hadn’t overheard my father talking with the doctors. They told my father that if I’d been found sooner I might not have suffered any brain damage and I might not be in a coma.”
Remus whistled long and low. “Boy, that’s some kind of trip to put on a young man.”
“Yeah, and he’s never gotten over it. He feels like it’s his fault that I never got to live the normal life of a girl growing up.”
“Wouldn’t that make him want to help you life your life to the fullest now?”
Maddie laughed, but it wasn’t a pleasant sound. “That’s what you’d think, but you have to add my gift into the equation. When I came out of the coma, I suddenly had the telekinesis to deal with on top of everything else. I was really young and really pissed off about being stuck in that clinic. My emotions were out of control and, unfortunately, emotions make it hard to control my abilities.”
“Okay, I guess I’m just being dense. Exactly what is the root of his guilt that makes him want to lock you away?”
“He’s afraid I’m gonna hurt someone, or myself, one of the times I lose control. They could never give a reason for the telekinesis, never had an actual diagnosis saying what caused it. The theory, which I have my doubts about, is that the head injury caused a chemical imbalance that projects emotion away from my body, almost like an electric charge without the burn.”
“Interesting theory. Did they do any type of testing to back it up?”
“Huh, they tested me in so many different ways I lost count. They never did prove one way or another if they were on the right track. Michael only heard them say that I had the new gift because I was hit in the head during the accident. He feels responsible that I have to go through life being careful not to hurt other people. He’s convinced that if I accidentally hurt someone in a fit of anger I’ll carry guilt around just like he does. He figures I’ll be safe as long as I stay at the clinic.”
Remus snorted and shook his head. “That’s crazy.”
“I’m not saying it’s rational, I just know it’s what he believes. You know what the worst part is?”
“No, what’s that?”
“He’s put his own life on hold. It’s like he thinks he doesn’t de
serve a life of his own if I can’t have one.”
Remus had heard enough. He rose from the blanket and walked over to take Maddie in his arms. He pulled her close to his body and hugged her tight. “I don’t want you to worry about anything. We’re gonna find a way to make him see that you can still have a happy life here on the mountain with me.”
He wasn’t surprised when Maddie pushed away and looked up at him in shock. Before she could make any protests, he leaned down and covered her lips with his. He felt like he’d been given a gift when she immediately relaxed into his hold and kissed him back. Remus tightened his hold around her waist and stood up straight, lifting her up against his chest. Not breaking the kiss, he walked back over to the blanket and carefully lowered her to the ground, following her down with his body.
Remus ran his tongue around the edge of her lips, then buried his face in her neck. He inhaled her scent deeply, then reached out to lick up the side of her neck to her ear. “You’re so beautiful Maddie.”
Remus whispered his words and then covered her lips with his once more, immediately thrusting his tongue into her honeyed warmth. As he ravaged her mouth, he allowed his hand to run lightly up her side from her waist to close over her left breast. His arousal grew when he heard Maddie gasp and felt her grip him tighter instead of pushing him away.
It was all the encouragement he needed to let his hand attack the buttons down the front of her shirt. In no time at all, he parted the material and uncovered her lace bra. Softly, he rubbed his fingers over the tips of her breasts through the lace, watching them push against the fabric of her bra. Hearing her groan, he quickly unfastened the front clasp, baring her perfect breasts to his gaze. Raising his head, he swept his eyes over the small, rose-tipped mounds, noticing the flush that spread from her chest up to her cheeks. Holding her gaze captive, he gently tugged and pinched one of her nipples. Fascinated, Remus watched her eyes close and her head fall back. He lowered his head, took one hardened nipple into his warm mouth, and began to suckle.
As his lips closed over her nipple, Maddie suddenly tried to push him away.
“Remus, we can’t. We’re out where anybody could see us. You have to stop.”
She raised her hands to cover her breasts as he pulled back to look at her.
Remus smelled her anxiety and tried to reassure her. “Shhh, baby, it’s okay. I won’t hurt you or let anybody see you. I just want to look at you and show you how much I want you. You’re so beautiful to me, Maddie. I promise I won’t go further than you want me to. Let me touch you, let me show you how good we can be.”
As Remus continued to reassure her in a gentle tone of voice, Maddie began to relax and allowed him to move her hands back to her sides. Once again, he lowered his mouth to worship her breasts. She closed her eyes and seemed lost in the sensation of the warm, gentle suction of his mouth. She raised her arms to his shoulders and arched her back as if to offer him more of her breast to take into his mouth. When he closed his teeth over one turgid nipple, Maddie groaned deep in her throat and clasped his head with both hands, holding him in place. Chuckling softly, he raised his hand to her other nipple and began to gently pinch and tug the rigid tip, causing Maddie to writhe on the ground beneath him.
“Remus, please. I need…I need.” He knew she didn’t know what she needed or what to ask him for.
Remus continued to suck and bite Maddie’s nipples while his other hand smoothed down over her stomach, past the waistband of her jeans, to cup her heat through the denim. As he pushed down hard on her clit with the heel of his hand, Maddie bucked her hips up and called out his name.
“Remus, oh God, please.”
She reached down and grabbed his wrist, but he wasn’t sure if she wanted to push him away or push his hand tighter against her damp jeans.
“Shhh, it’s okay. I’d never hurt you, Maddie, and I won’t do anything you don’t want me to. I just want to make you feel good. Will you let me do that? Will you let me show you how much I want you?”
As he whispered to Maddie, she gradually loosened her grip on his wrist, grabbing both his arms and digging in her nails.
Remus closed his lips over hers, thrusting his tongue deep in an imitation of what he wanted to do to her body. He moved his hand to the fastening of her jeans, unsnapped the waist, and then slowly lowered her zipper. Not giving her time to panic, he quickly ran his hand down inside her lace panties, combing through the silken curls guarding her entrance, searching for her moist heat. Finding her slit already slick with her juices, he carefully ran his finger up and down, causing her body to tense up.
Maddie trembled and tried to close her legs against his hand. Once again, she raised her hands to push against his chest.
“Remus, stop, what are you doing?” Her voice was thick with passion as she struggled to pull away from his caressing hand.
“Just making you feel good, Maddie. Please, baby, just feel. I won’t hurt you.”
As he whispered to her, Remus buried his face in the hollow of her throat, where he licked her skin several times, then began sucking gently. In his mind, he could picture himself biting her there to claim her as his own. Just thinking about it had his canines dropping. He slowly scraped them across her tender skin and then forced them to retreat so he wouldn’t frighten her.
Gradually, he began to feel Maddie relax her body. Her legs parted slightly, allowing him to continue probing her creamy heat.
“Oh, God, you feel so good to me, so very hot.”
Remus brought his moist finger to the bundle of nerves hidden at the top of her slit. Carefully, he pulled back the protective hood and then rubbed gentle circles around her clit, causing Maddie to arch her hips toward him. As her breathing quickened, Remus took her clit between his thumb and forefinger and tugged, then pinched lightly, causing her to cry out his name.
“Remus, please. I need you.”
Realizing she was close to coming, he began to rub faster and faster. He took her nipple into his mouth and began sucking hard. He smiled when she threw back her head and screamed with her release.
God, when I can get her into my bed, we’re going to set the house on fire.
Remus gradually slowed his fingers buried in her warmth, trying to make her pleasure last as long as possible. As her tremors began to subside, he pulled away his hand and refastened her pants while continuing to kiss her softly.
Opening her eyes, Maddie gazed up at Remus, and he could sense her embarrassment. With her face flaming red, she tried to push away from his body. Ignoring her struggles, Remus pulled her trembling body even closer and buried his face in her silky, fragrant hair, trying to ignore the erection straining to burst free of his jeans.
“Hey, it’s okay. Maddie, we haven’t done anything wrong.”
Waiting for her struggles to cease, Remus sighed before he continued.
“I’m falling in love with you, woman, and I wanted to show you how good we can be together. I’m not going to push you to make love to me, Maddie. I know you aren’t ready for that. But I want you to think about us being together, how good we could be for one another.”
Maddie looked up at him, clearly shocked by his words. “Remus, we’ve only known each other a short time. How can you be talking about love when you don’t know anything about me?”
“I know as much about you as I need to. I know you’re beautiful, kind, and loving.”
“How could you possibly know that about me?”
“I’ve seen you with your brother. I know that despite everything, your loving nature wants him to be happy. You’ve resigned yourself to living here on the mountain alone in an attempt to keep others safe from your gift. Your kindness shines through whenever I look in your eyes. I know I feel better when I’m with you and lonely when we’re apart. I’m not asking for a commitment right now. Just please give it some thought. Can you do that? Can you at least keep an open mind about me? Can you give us, give me, a chance?”
As he talked to her, he ran his fingers
through her hair, looking deeply into her eyes. He was pleased when his touch seemed to calm her.
“I’ll try, Remus, but you have to be patient. I’m just getting used to being on my own, taking care of myself. For so long I’ve had no choices and was forced to do what others wanted me to. I’m just beginning to enjoy my independence, and, well, I’m not sure I’m ready to love anyone or give up any of that independence.”
Before Remus could respond, he heard a wolf howling from the woods. When he jumped up to glance around, Maddie got to her feet and quickly refastened her bra and buttoned her blouse.
“Don’t worry, Remus, it’s probably just my wolf.”
When Remus gave her a puzzled look, she explained. “I have a wolf friend, actually, my best friend.” She sighed and looked resigned. “And, yes, I do know how crazy that sounds. I first met him when I was a little girl. He was friends with my grandfather, and after I moved back here he just showed up one morning. He’s been very friendly with me, just like when I was little. He won’t hurt you, I promise.”
Remus smiled at her and indicated he believed her, but didn’t tell her that he recognized the howl of his brother. Latan was letting him know he needed to talk to Remus and didn’t want to interrupt, so he called to him with his wolf. Remus took Maddie’s hand, and together they began to walk along the riverbank, toward the sound of his brother.
* * * *
Neither of them noticed the lone, female wolf, watching from the cover of the forest.
Chapter 3
Maddie and Remus were strolling hand in hand along the riverbank when they spotted two men coming toward them from the opposite direction. Nervous of strangers, Maddie stopped and began to back away slowly.
Discovering Their Wolfen Heritage Page 6
