His gut clenched as he waited for some kind of reaction.
Kate’s mouth opened to speak, but nothing came out. She closed it and tried again. “Like what I experienced last night?” Oh please…please don’t let him say yes. I don’t want to be part of a freak show.
“Well, you know all of this is merely a legend. But the answer would be yes.”
Standing up abruptly, her hands gripped the table edge like a lifeline. Her legs barely contained her weight, and she mumbled, “I gotta leave.” She began gasping. “I need air.”
Outside, Ethan caught up to her and wrapped one arm around her waist. Evidently he noticed her unsteadiness. Great, she thought. Now she had something else to obsess over. His strong, muscular arm made her body tingle and her legs wobbled even more. And his scent, potent, familiar…sent her stomach tumbling. Could it be possible?
She didn’t want to have any weirder conversations tonight. Yet deep inside a thirst for knowledge compelled her to seek more answers. All her life something appeared off, causing her to feel like a freak. And if what Ethan told her was true, instead of myth, she was indeed a freak. Dear God, please don’t let her be a freak—a monster—in the true sense of the word.
“I don’t live far from here. Would you…?” The air stalled within her lungs, and she counted the beats of her heart as it pounded in her ears while she waited. Please take the hint. She didn’t want him to leave, didn’t want to be alone. What he told her scared her to the innermost depths of her soul. No matter how ludicrous it seemed, last night’s events happened for real and she feared them transpiring again.
“I’ll walk you home, and we’ll take it from there,” he replied.
Chapter Three
Once inside Kate’s apartment Ethan’s pulse soared, and his hand shook as he gripped a framed picture of Kate and the renegade leader known as Gray. “Who is this and what is he to you?”
“Gray Campbell. We’re dating.”
Ethan didn’t like this at all and realized she was fortunate to be alive and standing here with him. He assumed the attack last night was a first encounter with Gray. Questions nagged him. Why would Gray date her and not kill her from the start? Did she have secrets hidden away in her mind Gray needed? If so, had Gray gotten what he sought from Kate? Gray obviously wanted to kill Troy’s ancestors off, one-by-one, including him. So why was he toying with them?
“How long?” he queried.
“Three weeks, give or take a day. Why?”
That timeframe coincided damn close to her start at working at the university. More unanswered questions bothered him. Had a connection between Kate and Ethan brought her to Patriot University and inadvertently put her in danger? Did Gray know about her before she arrived? Did Gray also have a connection to her?
Ethan breathed in deeply and expelled loudly. He took Kate’s hand and led her to the sofa. They sat facing one another. He clutched her warm, soft hands in his. Though Ethan hesitated to acknowledge their connection, a hunger roared inside him. A desire to take Kate and mark her as his own, along with a powerful need to curl around her and protect her from the world and from Gray, astounded him. The desire to belong to each other had manifested, and he didn’t know how to react.
The timing sucked. Her life perched precariously in the palm of his hand. He wouldn’t let sexual longing or emotional bonding endanger her life.
“I have things to say which may upset you. They may even cause you to question my sanity. Please listen and keep an open mind. Do I have your word?” he queried.
She held up two fingers. “Scout’s honor.”
He chuckled. “That’ll do.” Unable to help himself, he raised her hands to his mouth and gently placed light kisses on the knuckles of both. She moaned quietly, and his cock revved up ready to go. Fuck. If he planned on getting through this conversation, he needed to keep his hands off her.
“Gray, full name, Grayson, is known in the shape-shifter world as Gray, the alpha leader of a pack of renegade werewolves. He is the oldest werewolf in existence.” He gave her credit for sucking in her breath but keeping silent. “He preys on humans and weaker non-humans. His pack is referred to as ‘The Dark Force.’ He’s hell-bent on hunting down and killing descendants of the werewolf, Troy, who I told you about earlier. As far as I can tell, he attacked you last night and tried to kill you because he believes you come from Troy—his brother.”
Her eyes widened, giving him a peek inside. They radiated confusion. Then horror so deep and profound his stomach clenched in sympathetic pain. She would consider being one of them horrific.
“Where do you fit into this?”
Finally, the question he had been expecting, and one she clearly didn’t want the answer to as her eyes darted around the room, probably looking for an escape. After seeing into her soul, only one action could be taken. He lied. Even knowing it would come back to haunt him later, he did it anyway. Ethan didn’t want her to look at him and see a monster.
“I realize admitting they exist is difficult. I found it hard at first. Once you accept their existence, another world opens up. Gray and Troy have been the subject of many of my private writings.” He paused, took a deep breath, and continued. “This will be hard for you to understand, but you must trust me. Gray is deadly and he is after you.”
Awareness broke in her eyes. He saw she believed him.
Kate asked, “Will I change into…?”
“No. It doesn’t always work that way. Gray and Troy were brothers and both were cursed into being werewolves. You were born into the line, but still, not everyone changes. Also, not everyone changes after being infected by the bite.”
“What about the full moon?” asked Kate.
“If one is a true shape-shifter, they can’t fight the pull of it,” responded Ethan.
Her eyes glanced downward. The words he spoke penetrated her mind. She understood but feared she would always be wondering and waiting until the next full moon. She would need to prepare, just in case. Then she thought, in case of what? This was crazy thinking. What if his information proved wrong? Then again, what if she turned into a wolf? She covered her mouth to stifle a groan and murmured a silent prayer. “Please God, don’t let me be a wolf.” When her nerves calmed down somewhat, she cleared her throat, hoping to find words to explain the confusion inside her.
“Ethan, I don’t know what to think or feel about what you’ve told me. Gray has been nothing but kind and gentle to me, until he attacked me last night.” She hugged herself against a sudden chill. “It’s not like we’re dating exclusively.” She paled. “Oh no. I remember we have a date tomorrow night. I'm cancelling. The bastard tried to kill me.”
“Don’t,” demanded Ethan.
“Don’t what?” she questioned.
“Don’t break it off. Keep your date. I want you to go on as if nothing happened.”
“You’re kidding, right?”
Ethan moved closer to her. Their bodies pressed together, and he rested his large, hand on her thigh and squeezed. Her body exploded inside. A sizzling sensation started at the point of contact and spread throughout her nerve endings—even her fingers vibrated. Warm, comforting heat melted inside her and then turned into an inferno she couldn’t ignore. Her skin itched for his hands, his touch and an overwhelming urge to touch him overtook her. She had experienced nothing like this. She turned to Ethan and wrapped her arms around him. One leg flung over his, she nestled her face into the crook of his neck and breathed his primal scent deep inside her lungs. “What did you do?” she asked, her voice a whisper of contentment.
“I did nothing more than touch you,” he drawled.
“Hmmm…” She kissed his neck and rubbed her leg up and down his thigh. “Seemed like much more.”
Damn, Ethan thought. Considering what she did to his insides how could he keep his hands off her? And honest to God, he’d only touched her. Her knee toyed with his hard, willing, and ready cock. Now he understood what other shape-shifters said about find
ing their one true mate. About how powerful the pull would be.
The timing still sucked. Nothing had literally changed in the last hour. However, a huge question intruded his mind. Could she fight it, not understanding what it was? He reached out with a heavy heart, pulled her arms from around him and held them at bay. Next he shoved her leg aside, the one pleasuring him, which he missed instantly.
“Katie, look at me.” She stared into his eyes, which caused his breath to lodge in his throat. She exhibited the most magnificent eyes when aroused. A mesmerizing mix of human green and animal yellow. Had no one ever told her she displayed unusual eyes during intimate moments? The beast roared inside him. Jealousy was new to him. He didn’t like it, nor did the wolf within.
She blinked, and her eyes transformed to deep green once again. “What?” she asked.
“Never mind. We’ll continue this another time.” He jumped up and headed toward the door. He refused to look back. “Keep your date with Gray and call me with the details. Lock this door and let no one in.”
“What if my dog needs to go out?”
“Put down newspaper.”
Chapter Four
Ethan paced around his spacious great room while the wolf in him protested being caged in. Two of his best guards safeguarded Kate. So why did his skin prickle and itch all over? Never one to ignore his animal instinct, he would not do so now. He grabbed his black leather jacket and headed out the door of his brownstone. The streets loomed unusually quiet at one in the morning on a Friday night. Usually drunk young people and college students spilled out of the bars onto the streets.
As he walked, his boots quietly touched the surface. Every molecule in his body took notice of his surroundings. His hearing, even in human form, was sharp. Everything appeared normal, but he suspected otherwise. He approached the building Kate lived in, keeping to the shadows and careful not to make a sound. He stood, in utter silence, hidden by a dumpster and focused on the sounds and smells around him. Pierre and Chaz remained in place. Ethan wanted his insides to settle down with the knowledge Kate was protected. But his beast refused to settle. It continued to prowl around inside him.
The wind direction changed and the unmistakable stench of a rotten shifter invaded his space. Good ’ole Travis, out and about. Travis was Gray’s second-in-command. Ethan stepped into the open and howled low and deep. Pierre and Chaz slid out of the dark to flank him. “He’s mine,” Ethan ordered. “Stay back. Don’t interfere. If anything happens, take Kate to Colin.” He peeled off his leather jacket and tossed it. “Take care of this.”
Travis responded to the howl and ran toward him. Ethan lashed out. His hand clamped around Travis’s throat and he lifted him off the ground. “Is Gray stupid to think I’d let him have her? So he can torture and kill her.”
Travis’s clothes ripped. His bones cracked and muscles and tendons split as he changed in Ethan’s hand. Travis’s claws swiped at him and drew first blood. Ethan changed, and because of the adrenaline rushing through his veins he didn’t feel the usual pain in his bones and muscles as they ripped and reshaped. He tossed Travis against the dumpster and charged after him but underestimated Travis as he gashed open one of Ethan’s legs. Fuck. It hurt like a bastard. Ethan stumbled and then regained his balance. His eyes darted to his men, warning them to stay out of it. “You think you can really beat me? You fucking, two-bit, sorry-excuse-for-a-lycanthrope,” Ethan snarled.
His sharp talons swiped at Travis’s throat. The move laid him open, and Ethan watched as Travis choked on his blood. The injury would not kill him, he would heal in a matter of hours. But Ethan wasn’t planning on giving him that chance. His sharp teeth went in for the kill.
At the sound of a dog barking, Ethan lifted his long snout dripping with blood. His wolf eyes focused on Kate, standing on her balcony peering into the darkness below. Her eyes rolled back into her head. Pierre, moving with the speed and grace of a wolf in human form, jumped to the balcony and cradled the now unconscious Kate in his arms. He peered at Ethan, one brow raised in silent question.
Naked and back in human form, Ethan took Kate’s unconscious body from his man. “Chaz, torch the carcass and the remaining evidence. Pierre, stand guard. Gray could send more useless fools after her.” He carried Kate inside her sliding glass doors while the small white dog followed.
His heart pounded furiously as his sharp hearing homed in on the sound of Kate’s blood pulsing through her arteries. After he laid her on the sofa, Ethan watched her lungs rise and fall rapidly. He left her side, stepped out on her balcony and picked up his jacket. Thanks to Pierre he still had it and his phone. He fished his cell out of the pocket and speed dialed Pierre.
“I’m leaving. Let nothing human, or otherwise, near her.” He took one last look at Kate. A painful yearning to possess her, body and soul, gripped his insides. He ignored the need that called out to him as he left by the sliders. Would the time ever be right for them to mate?
Changing abruptly was something he hated to do as it left him with nothing but bits of clothing stuck here and there. Usually, when he prowled the streets expecting trouble, he went in wolf form. He should’ve known trouble would come tonight. Standing on her small balcony, he changed to animal form once again. He’d be less noticeable as a wolf than a naked man as he traveled the streets of Boston, even with a leather jacket clenched between his teeth. Most people he encountered thought he was a husky. Some people were too stupid for words.
While towel drying himself off after his shower, Ethan’s cell phone rang. He knew before glancing at the name on the screen, it would be Kate. Ethan forced his voice to sound sleepy. He didn’t need Kate putting two and two together…yet.
“Hello.”
“Hi. It’s Kate. I’m sorry. Did I wake you?”
“Yeah, but that’s okay.”
Loud sobbing resonated through the phone. A strong and powerful grip squeezed his heart, making it difficult to speak. “Katie, sweetheart, what’s wrong?” Guilt ate at him because he knew damn well what was wrong. He detected more crying only slower, weepier, not the heavy sobbing anymore. “Katie, darling, can you hear me?”
“Why the fuck can’t you call me Kate like everybody else?” she yelled.
He pulled the phone away from his ear and shook his head. Wow, a quick change from crying to pissed off. “I’m coming over.”
“Don’t you dare.”
Ethan hung up, and for the second time that evening, he grabbed his leather jacket and headed out into the dead of night. This time he’d take his Harley, but first he’d call Chaz.
“Yo, boss.”
“I’m coming back. Anything happen since I left?”
“Not a thing. Quiet as a church mouse.”
Ethan grinned. Chaz had come to them as a newly turned werewolf around five years ago from somewhere in the deep south. Where in the south nobody knew, and Chaz wasn’t offering the info. He was an ex-marine and knew how to fight with guns, knives, explosives and his rock solid body. Ethan never questioned Chaz’s loyalty as a fighter and pack member. He’d proved himself time and time again.
“Good,” Ethan finally responded.
Chapter Five
Kate didn’t answer her door buzzer. No problem, he thought. He would leap to her balcony. He jimmied open her sliding glass doors. When he stepped inside, something hard whacked against the side of his head. “Ouch, that hurt. What the hell…” he yelled as the hard flat object connected with the crown of his head and he dropped to his knees.
“I told you not to come!” shouted Kate.
Ethan rose to his feet and straightened his long lean body one vertebra at a time. Shook off the pain in his brain and came face-to-face with a Kate he’d never encountered before. Messy-haired, her arms planted on her hips as she stared him down with fire in her eyes. What ruined her badass image were the pink shorts and matching pink lace tank top. He cleared his throat to contain his laughter. She was madder than hell, and he’d better not make it worse.
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br /> “Katie.” He cleared his throat. “Excuse me. I mean, Kate. What’s gotten into you?” Like he didn’t know.
“What’s gotten into me?” she screamed as she swung her hips around and paced the room. All he could do was stare as her ass swayed and her unbound breasts bounced ever so slightly. He closed his eyes and shook his head.
“The past two nights have been a hellish nightmare. First, I’m attacked by a so-called werewolf then saved by some mysterious man. You tell me Gray, whom I’m dating, is a werewolf and he wants me dead.” She paused and breathed deeply. “Then I step out onto my balcony and come across two dogs attacking one another. Only I don’t think they’re dogs. One of the disgusting creatures…” She shivered. “Never mind. I’d think I had a nightmare—only I woke up on the couch with blood on my clothes again. Why is that, Ethan?”
Rendered speechless, which seldom happened. When he found his voice he stuttered, “I umm…what do you want me to say?”
“How about telling me the truth.”
“The truth about what?” he asked, pretending ignorance.
“Stop playing games with me. I’m not some bimbo who uses her boobs for brains,” she yelled. “Maybe that’s the kind of women you usually associate with, but in case you haven’t noticed, I have a brain.”
“I noticed.” Of course, the lovely pair of breasts she referred to had not gone unnoticed either, but he would never admit that to her. Ethan could not blame her for acting this way. She had experienced several shocks in a short time span. And he’d not been forthcoming with the total truth. He moved toward her, his pulse calming when she didn’t back away. However, her lip curled up, ever so slightly, and she sneered at him. Did she realize she resembled a wolf?
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