by Terry Spear
He laughed. “Sorry, Elizabeth. I can’t see that you would be too rough on me.”
“You never know.” She didn’t want to be alone. She wanted whatever they could have just this once. No strings. No mating. Just a meeting of the minds. And their bodies, as far as they could take it and still not be mated wolves.
“’Night, Elizabeth.” He waited for her response. A kiss. A hug maybe.
Trying to discourage anything more between them and annoyed with herself for getting so worked up over any man, she kissed him on the cheek. “’Night, Tom.”
She walked into the bedroom and realized she couldn’t take off her clothes without his help. She turned and frowned. He watched her, waiting for her to retire for the night. She wondered if he believed she might try to leave and do something further about the guys who had injured her. But she had no intention of going anywhere else tonight.
“Okay, I really, really hate to ask this because it’s such an imposition, but… could you help me out of my clothes again?”
***
Undressing Elizabeth one more time was way more than an imposition. It killed Tom to see her naked skin and not be able to taste it, to feel it, to smell her sweet scent and want more.
He waited a moment, trying to find the right words, and finally said, “You’re killing me, you know?” He shook his head, smiling, and turned toward his bedroom. “I’ll get one of my shirts for you. It’ll probably be a while before they bring you your bags.”
When he returned with the softest blue-plaid flannel shirt he owned, he found her sitting on the bed, her parka on a chair. He closed the bedroom door. She stretched her arms up to him so that he could remove her sweater.
“If I keep removing your clothes, something more is bound to happen,” he said, hopeful, yet practical.
“So… let it.”
He raised a brow, not sure what she was agreeing to. He pulled the sweater over her head and stared down at her mouthwatering breasts, then shifted his gaze to her face. “If you kiss me again…” He let his words trail off, waiting to hear what she had in mind.
“You’re supposed to kiss me—to make the hurt go away.” She raised her foot. He pulled off one boot and then the other.
He thought she meant more than the physical pain. He wondered what she’d experienced that had made her a loner. He was so used to helping others that he wanted to help her, too. But his feelings went deeper than that.
The cold wind blew against the closed window, but the room was toasty warm. He wasn’t in any hurry to undress her or to help her into his flannel shirt or to leave her. She stood and he removed her jeans. He hesitated to take off her panties, thinking to help her put his shirt on, when she climbed onto the bed and pulled the covers over herself.
He picked up his flannel shirt off the bed. “Didn’t you want me to help you into this?”
“Kiss me,” she said.
“A good-night kiss,” he said. Yet he didn’t think she meant that.
Her smile was wicked.
“If I kiss you the way I want to, it’s bound to go a lot further than that this time.” He had to be honest with her. He wanted a lot more. Not a mating, but something that said he wanted to go further later if they were both agreeable.
“I count on it,” she said, reaching up to tug at his belt loop.
He was out of his clothes in a flash, making her smile. He pulled the covers aside, slid over to her side of the bed, and began kissing her again—cheeks, mouth, throat, shoulders—his hands sliding all over her soft skin. He kept telling himself he wasn’t ready to mate her, but his body said otherwise.
***
Elizabeth knew she was nuts to encourage this. The last man she’d trusted with her heart had stomped all over it and left her, so she hadn’t felt this way toward anyone since. She knew Tom lusted after her because she was someone new and different, and this wasn’t for the long term. Which suited her perfectly.
She thought she could do this—a bit of sexual release and then go about her business, return home, do her job.
She wanted this intimacy between wolves and her coyote half. Wanted to feel loved, if only for a fleeting moment. Wanted to savor the way his pheromones kicked up as he kissed her, touched her, lusted for her, making her own respond in kind. A wolf who would want a woman for a lifetime. Not a human who could ditch her for someone else at the drop of a hat. Not that any of this meant it was for a lifetime.
She kissed him back on the mouth, her hands curling in his hair as he molded a hand to her breast. She realized he observed her, studying her expression, analyzing it, wondering what was going on in her brain. She didn’t want to consider it any further and pulled him down for another kiss.
His hand tightened on her breast as he moved his leg in between hers. He had removed all his clothes, even his boxers, and that had worried her a little. She hoped he didn’t think she wanted a mating.
Still, she had left her panties on, which was a signal she didn’t want to take this all the way. At least in her mind.
When he moved his leg in between hers, prying her open, she felt the exhilaration of sexual tension but also a little apprehension.
Caught up in the heat of passion, she rubbed her leg wickedly on top of his, his mouth not so gentle on hers now. She loved the roughness alternating with tenderness.
His hands moved between holding her face while caressing her cheekbones and sliding down her shoulders and arms in a way that said he loved touching her. Likewise, she felt her way up his toned muscles and enjoyed how they moved beneath her fingertips.
Then he kissed her again. Her mouth, the corners of it, her chin, her throat. Her willingness showed her acceptance of his touch. A wolf would never expose his or her throat to another without completely trusting that individual.
He slid his large hand down her belly. The tips of his fingers paused at the waistband of her bikini panties. She was already wet with need. He could smell her, just as she could smell how aroused he was. His stiff erection brushed her naked belly as they moved against each other, stirring up their hormones, pushing to go further.
She wanted so to slide his hand beneath her panties, to push his fingers deep inside her to make her come, as hot and needy as she was.
He waited a heartbeat. She didn’t stop him. Didn’t place her hand on his and move it out of bounds. She barely breathed, her hands stilled on his arms, his gaze locked onto hers. As if he’d come to a decision, right or wrong, he slipped his fingers beneath her panties. He began to kiss her mouth, licking it, gently nipping her lower lip but not stealing her attention from the way his fingers moved to intercept the knotted bud waiting for his touch.
***
If Elizabeth wanted to live dangerously, Tom was all for it. He had no intention of mating with her, but he wanted to prove to her just how hot she made him. Especially since she was still wearing panties. Not that that would prevent him from giving her pleasure.
She seemed so needy. He slipped his hand beneath her panties, didn’t sense she wanted him to stop, and plowed right ahead—finding the tantalizing bud that made her arch and moan and whimper as he stroked her. He’d never been with any woman who responded so easily to his touch, wanting more, letting him know just how good he was making her feel.
She raised her leg higher on his, spreading herself more for his easy access, and he wanted to yank off her scrap of silk panties and bare her to him. If he was mating with her, he would. He did consider removing her panties anyway, just to show her that he wouldn’t take advantage of her even with them off, as much as he wanted to bury himself in her.
He was a little afraid he might do just that, with both of them losing their heads in the heat of the moment.
Instead, he stroked her, nuzzling her face affectionately at the same time and enjoying the aroused feminine scent of her mixed with his own musky scent, the
heat of their bodies making him even hotter. He rubbed his penis against her soft belly and began kissing her again, so aroused that he wanted to end this now inside her, filling her, taking her.
His thumb stroked her bud, and he felt her come, the tiny ripples of orgasm, the soft mewl of pleasure escaping her lips. He loved bringing her pleasure.
He withdrew his hand from her panties and kissed her again, softly on the mouth this time, a farewell parting for the night. He wanted to go. He wanted to stay. If she wished him to remain here for the night, he couldn’t. Not without craving more.
“I’ll see you in the morning,” he said, stroking her hair.
She looked down at his chest, and he lifted her chin to see tears in her eyes.
“Elizabeth?” he said, his voice low, concerned, shocked.
She gave him a smile, faked to reassure him. “I’ll… see you in the morning.”
“What’s wrong?”
She just shook her head. “Nothing.”
He knew something had upset her, but when it came to figuring out women, more often than not, he and his brothers didn’t have a clue. “Are you hurting?”
She shook her head.
He thought she might be and didn’t want to admit it. That she didn’t want him to believe he was at fault.
He left the bed and threw on his boxers, then went into the bathroom to get her a glass of water.
He gave her the water and waited until she took a sip and seemed to feel a little better. “See you in the morning.” He didn’t think he could go to sleep again, as worried as he was about Elizabeth and the men and why she seemed upset.
The front door slammed shut. “Sounds like Darien.” Tom had planned to grab his clothes and retire to bed, but he dressed instead. “Sleep, Elizabeth. We’ll talk in the morning.” He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead.
He smiled, but the smile she returned wasn’t genuine, and her eyes swam with tears. Not knowing what else to say if she wouldn’t help him out, he said, “See you in the morning.”
He left and closed the door, wanting to kick himself for taking things too far with her. He hurried downstairs and met Darien in the living room. He had brought in Elizabeth’s bags and raised a brow at his younger brother in question.
“She’s gone to bed. I’ll take her bags up to her. They’ve been dusted, right?” Tom asked him.
“Yeah. I can’t figure it out. Why steal her stuff and then leave it there?”
“Maybe they weren’t trying to get away with her stuff. Maybe they hoped that by bringing her stuff to the abandoned hotel, they could lure her there.”
“And then what?” Darien asked. “It certainly wasn’t just to talk. Breaking the window was an act of violence against Elizabeth. They could have jimmied the window open or attempted to pick the lock on the front door. They smashed her window as if they were angry.”
“Because she took pictures of them?” Tom rubbed his whiskery chin. “They stole everything she had to learn who she was, but they don’t want anyone to learn who they are. Her ID and airline tickets were inside the case of her laptop, so without having time to search through her stuff at the B and B, they just took everything. Why else would they need to ID her if she isn’t some sort of mark?”
“Makes sense. But why leave her stuff and run when she showed up?” Darien asked. “Maybe they believed she’d come alone. That no one from our pack would watch over her. They probably didn’t want to get in a fight and just had to cut and run.”
“That’s what I figure. I’ll take her suitcases up to her and then go to bed,” Tom said.
“I’m calling it a night, too. Again.”
When Tom reached the guest room, he saw the light still on underneath the door. He rapped on it. “Elizabeth, are you okay?”
“Yeah,” she said. “You can come in.”
He opened the door and walked inside, setting her bags on the floor. “Remember that Darien wants you to check them over tomorrow to see if anything is missing. Are you really all right?”
“Yeah, I’m okay. Have a good night’s sleep.”
He paused, feeling she wasn’t sincere. He figured he could learn more about whatever was bothering her tomorrow when they were both well rested.
At least, that’s what he planned.
Chapter 14
Later that night, Elizabeth woke feeling much more herself physically, but emotionally she felt bad. She hadn’t realized how quickly she had become attached to Tom, and now she had to leave.
Despite the late hour, she called North to arrange another meeting, hoping he’d answer the phone. She had to get this resolved, get the evidence against her uncle, turn it over to Hrothgar, and return home soon.
Someone picked up, but when he didn’t say hello or anything, she thought North might be half-asleep. She said, “North?”
No response, just someone’s breathing. Her heart pounded, and she quickly hung up. Had someone learned North planned to meet with her to expose her uncle’s secrets? Someone who didn’t want those secrets revealed?
She paced across the guest bedroom’s carpeted floor. She had to leave. She couldn’t get Darien and Lelandi’s pack involved in this. All she wanted to do was resolve this on her own. This was not the Silver pack’s trouble. They already had enough problems with the other wolf strangers prowling around farms in the area.
She dialed another number. “I need the first flight out to Amarillo in the morning.”
***
The next morning, Darien greeted Elizabeth bright and early, but he knew something was amiss. He’d finished feeding the triplets, and a nanny watched them in the den while Lelandi ate eggs and toast before her first client session. She usually had one before this, but the woman had canceled because of the weather. Lelandi might be eating, but Darien knew she was trying to figure out what was wrong with Elizabeth, just as much as he was.
Being an alpha, Elizabeth told him how things would be right away. “I’m so sorry, but I need to leave. Could anyone drive me to the airport, or could I get a cab out here?”
She had three more days to be here, Darien remembered. Something was compelling her to leave this soon.
“Peter can take you. He’s on his way here now anyway.” Darien wasn’t about to wake Tom and ask him. He suspected something was wrong between the two of them or Elizabeth would have asked Tom herself. “How are you feeling?”
“Great. All better. Thanks.”
That was the way she’d spoken since she joined them. Brief. To the point. She wasn’t sharing how she was feeling. The fact she was downstairs so early after having been up half the night made Darien believe she was desperate to leave before Tom woke. He wondered if she’d slept at all.
“You’re not afraid the men will come after you, are you?”
“No,” she said so emphatically that he wasn’t sure he believed her.
Lelandi was so good at psychoanalyzing patients and pack members, including himself and his brothers, that Darien wished she would speak up and get to the bottom of the trouble. She wouldn’t. She just poured herself another cup of coffee while Elizabeth downed a glass of orange juice in a hurry, even though Peter was still on his way to the house.
“You spoke to Jake this morning.”
“Yes.” She looked out the window.
“He was pleased you did an interview of him,” Darien said, trying to draw her out.
“Yeah.”
“Did he manage to fix your camera?”
She shook her head.
“I’m sorry.”
“Yeah.”
He glanced at Lelandi. She raised her brows at him as if to say that the situation was in his court.
When Peter pulled into the driveway, Elizabeth hopped up from her chair—another indication she was physically fine—and hurried to slip into her parka. “Thanks f
or everything. You’ve all been… wonderful.”
Darien heard the hitch in her voice and saw the way she turned away and wouldn’t look at them.
She grabbed her suitcase handles and laptop, then hurried for the door, but Darien quickly snatched the bags from her hands and hauled them for her.
“I left a note for Tom on his computer,” she said, trying to sound businesslike and not entirely succeeding.
Tom would be upset that she had left without saying good-bye face-to-face or allowing him to take her to the airport. Unless they had fought. But what he had smelled on his brother last night wasn’t anger or upset. Worry and sex. That’s what he had smelled.
“You always have a home here with us anytime you want to return,” Darien said.
She offered him a faint smile. “Thanks.”
When she looked away, he got the feeling she wasn’t planning to return. He was disappointed, because he knew how much Tom liked her, and he’d seen the way she’d reacted to his brother in a positive, caring way. For that matter, everyone who had chanced to meet her had liked her. That video capturing Tom and Elizabeth kissing on the slope had totally surprised both Lelandi and him, and he knew more was going on between the two of them than they admitted.
He’d wanted to call Carol and ask if her talk with Elizabeth had revealed anything of her past, but Lelandi said what the two women discussed had been private. If Elizabeth wanted to share, it was her business to do so. It didn’t matter that Darien had mentioned that this could have an impact on the pack. Lelandi had only shaken her head—an emphatic, nonverbal “No, butt out.” He loved his mate, but sometimes, like now, she totally exasperated him.
He opened the door to find Peter standing on the porch, ready to knock. He smiled brightly at Elizabeth.
She hurried past him and headed for his vehicle.
“She’s in a hurry to get to the airport,” Darien said in explanation. “Could you take her?”
“Oh, sure.” Peter took her bags, hurried out to the truck, and stuck them in the backseat of the cab. “See you in a little while.”
