Deanna dragged her over to the three men congregating together, making the room appear closet size. Two of them faced her. Both loomed well over six feet—and dressed tastefully in black. One of them had hair as light as the other was dark, reminding her of salt and pepper. The one with his back to Kate stood somewhat shorter but not by much. His sable brown hair curled to his shoulders. Her pulse spiked as a familiar scent bombarded her. Stunned, she almost screamed as Deanna began the introductions.
“Let’s hope I get this right. Colin,” Deanna began, pointing to the blond man, “and Lucas,” she pointed to the dark-haired one, “and Ethan, this is my best friend, Kate.”
Shock ricochet inside her body and she tried to appear calm. Colin stepped forward first and reached for her hand.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Kate.” He winked at her. “I’ve heard a lot about you from…Steven. It’s nice to finally meet you in person.”
“Thank you.” Why had he winked at her? He gave her the impression he knew all her secrets. Damn you, Ethan. “It’s nice to meet you as well, Colin.”
Next she shook Lucas’s hand. “Good to meet you also. I hope you have a nice stay in Boston.”
“Oh, I’m sure I will,” Lucas replied.
Kate noticed the eye contact between Deanna and Lucas. The lust ping-ponging back and forth between them made her blush. The men with Ethan had to be werewolves. She’d bet her life on it. She needed to get Deanna away from them. The last thing Kate wanted was to have Deanna getting sucked into her living, breathing nightmare.
Ethan cleared his throat. She would not squirm. She would not give him the satisfaction and met his gaze straight on. Oh boy, wrong thing to do. Her pulsed jumped and the tingle in her head brought nausea and dizziness with it. It took immense control to make it go away.
“Hi, Kate,” he drawled out her name. “It’s nice to meet you.”
She thrust her hand out, took the one he offered, and shook it for a second. It was long enough. In that one moment, his heat transferred to her and scorched her insides.
“Ethan. It is, Ethan, right?”
His eyes narrowed on hers. “Why yes, it is.”
“So tell me, how is Steven?”
He grinned. “Give me some private time with you, and I’ll tell all.”
“Humph, I don’t think so.” She turned her back on him and walked to the kitchen in search of something strong to drink. An inviting clear glass pitcher of pear martinis, Deanna’s favorite, rested on the counter.
It took several tries to fill the martini glass. Her hands shook which caused more to land on the countertop than in her glass. When there was enough in the glass she downed the clear liquid.
Deanna leaned on the counter close to her and mopped up the spill. “Hey, what’s gotten into you?”
“Whatever do you mean?” asked Kate, feigning ignorance.
“I know you too well. What’s bothering you?”
Kate sighed and poured another drink, barely spilling a drop this time. She sipped the liquid and savored the strong, potent flavor. “Bizarre things have been happening in my life. I’m breaking it off with Gray.”
“What?” Deanna seemed completely taken by surprise.
“I think it’s for the best.” Kate shrugged.
“I thought you said he might be the one.”
Kate twirled the glass in her hand. She stared into the liquid in search of the solution to her problems. “Oh yeah,” she responded. “He’s the one all right.” Her voice sounded tired, disgusted and lost, even to her own ears.
“Speaking of Gray, I hear his voice in the other room,” said Deanna.
Goose bumps spread across her arms, and she clutched the thin stem of the glass so tightly she was surprised it didn’t snap in two. With faked bravado, she straightened her shoulders, walked into the great room, and found Gray in a heated discussion with Ethan and his companions. Their voices weren’t loud enough to overhear their conversation, but their facial expressions and body language spoke volumes. Tension crackled in the air, thick and electric. They knew each other. Well, of course they did. Ethan had explained as much.
“Gentlemen…” Deanna walked right into the fray and curled her arm through Lucas’s. “Is there a problem?”
Several spoke at once. All Kate picked up was, “No. No problem.” However, after one look at Gray and Ethan, she knew otherwise. The hatred for one another glowed from their eyes and cast shadows around the room. And, all the while, Deanna kept speaking and smiling. She had no clue of the danger the men surrounding her posed.
Gray stepped away and swaggered toward her. Her breath stalled in her lungs.
“Kate, darling.” Gray kissed her cheek. It took ultimate control not to pull back in revulsion. “How are you this evening? You look beautiful. Let’s go somewhere quiet and have a nice dinner—just the two of us.”
He couldn’t be serious? Go with him? If she accompanied him, she would possibly be dead by sunrise. “I think I’ll stay here if you don’t mind.”
Feral eyes speared her and she struggled to keep her feet planted. Then, as rapidly as his eyes resembled a wild animal, they turned human again.
“I’m leaving.” He kissed her cheek. “I’ll call you tomorrow.” Gray left and so did nearly everyone else in the room. Obviously they were his men…err…werewolves. All that remained were Ethan, Colin, Lucas, Deanna and Kate. Her fingers toyed with her necklace as she contemplated how to leave without Ethan following her. The vision of him naked in her bed, gorgeous man one minute—part wolf the next—plagued her dreams last night. Seeing him now, only made her relive them, which she didn’t want to do. She struggled to admit the most incredible sex of her life occurred with a werewolf.
Ethan watched Kate’s every move under hooded eyes. He gave her huge points for not losing it. Points had been earned by all of them for controlling the urge to kill one another. Gray had had five of his flunkies with him in the room. When Ethan had asked him if he’d seen Travis, he thought Gray would go for his jugular. Ethan had tried to provoke him. Good thing it didn’t work. Having a battle in a human’s home would have been disastrous.
Cruising toward Kate, his eyes locked with hers as he wrapped his hand around her elbow, so she couldn’t flee. He leaned down and whispered into her ear, “We seriously need to talk.”
“Not happening,” she snapped back and tried to jerk her elbow out of his clutches. Hell if he’d let her go.
“Please, Kate. I need to tell you more about your ancestry and convince you your life is in danger. Gray will see you dead, either by his own hand or by one of his followers.”
“What if I don’t want to talk to you?”
“You seem like a reasonable person. Forget what happened last night. It was a catastrophic mistake. Saving your life isn’t. Let us take you somewhere safe. Colin, Lucas and I can prove to you what you refuse to acknowledge, and we can keep you safe.”
Shit, his pulse jumped because of the confusion, sadness, and fear she projected his way.
He placed his free hand under her chin, raised her face up to meet his, and his heart suspended mid-beat. “Please. I only want to help. Troy himself sent you to me. I don’t believe in coincidences. You were sent so I could save your life. Give me the chance to save you.”
Kate’s wary eyes circled the room as she scrutinized his friends, and the smell of her fear intensified. He could probably talk to her forever and still not convince her she had nothing to fear—from him or any of his associates. But he needed to try. It would be his fault if anything happened to her. His heart would be crushed to smithereens if he lost her. Werewolves embraced one mate during a lifetime. And if Kate died, he’d be alone forever. He could have all the sex he wanted, but he’d never be satisfied or have any children. And hell, he wanted none of that without Kate, anyway.
They took Colin’s Hummer, which was loaded with enough weapons and provisions for several days, and headed to the Berkshires. Ethan owned a safe house at the
end of a long dirt road, which led to a private pond. He’d purchased the property, the pond, and one hundred acres surrounding it, back in the earlier 1900’s. Best damn buy he’d ever made. Against his better judgment, but knowing he had no other alternative, they brought Deanna with them. Being as close to Kate as she was and knowing Gray like he did, he believed her life was in danger as well.
They’d barely gotten out of the city when two black SUVs flanked them. One driven by none other than Gray.
Chapter Eight
Colin jerked the wheel to the right, hitting the side of one vehicle. Kate screamed as she gripped Ethan’s arm to keep her body from being jerked around. Her eyes locked with Deanna’s, wide open in fear. How the hell did Deanna get sucked into her problems? She would never forgive herself if something bad happened to her best friend. Nor would she forgive any other occupants of the vehicle.
Ethan leaned forward between the two front seats and yelled, “The bastards waited for us. Let’s give them something for their trouble.”
The Hummer swerved off the highway and hauled ass down a deserted dirt road before coming to a screeching halt. Without looking behind, Kate knew the SUVs followed them. The sound of dirt and rocks being kicked from their tires assaulted her ears. All she wanted to do was cover them, close her eyes and chant, “There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home.”
Ethan yelled to her and Deanna, “Get down on the floor and don’t get up.” Then he shouted his orders to Colin and Lucas. “Kill the assholes, but Gray’s mine.”
Kate’s body vibrated as she crouched down on the floor. She glanced at Deanna to make sure she obeyed Ethan. The fear she saw in her friend’s eyes stabbed her heart. At least she had some knowledge about what was unfolding around them. Deanna knew nothing. What must be going through her mind?
Not being able to see the events as they transpired stopped the breath in Kate’s lungs. They would soon explode if she couldn’t calm down and breathe normally or as normally as one could breathe when surrounded by werewolves with swords—very big swords. What century were they in? And one of those enormous swords was intended for her. To kill her—quiet, reserved little ’ole her. Sometimes life wasn’t fair.
“Shit.” She clamped her hands over her ears, not wanting to hear the grunting and yelling and the clanking of metal. Sheer panic coursed through her body. What if Gray wins the battle? What if Ethan dies?” Tears streamed down her cheeks, and out of pure frustration, she poked her head up, peered out the side window and gasped. Ethan and Gray battled. Blood covered both men. Gray gripped a huge sword. Her stomach coiled up tight when she saw Ethan’s hands empty. What happened to his sword? How could he fight without a weapon?
Kate dropped back down on the floor. Dear God, don’t let anything happen to Ethan. OhmyGod! She scrambled up onto the seat and peered out the window once again. The explosion nearby rocked the Hummer, and she glimpsed a towering inferno of twisted, black metal. “Ethan!” she screamed at the top of her lungs.
As she fumbled for the door handle, it flung opened and a wave of intense heat scorched her face. “Move over and get your buckle on!” Ethan yelled.
The Hummer barreled down the road, hitting a speed she knew she’d never experienced before. “Hail Mary” kept running through her head over and over.
With one look at Deanna, face pure white, eyes scrunched up tight and lips moving, Kate knew there was no doubt she was in silent prayer as well. Neither of them were practicing Catholics, but that didn’t matter when you came face to face with death. Then she stared at Ethan and her world tilted as bright red blood soaked more of his shirt. Surely nobody could survive an injury of that extent. “Colin, we need to get Ethan help. He’s bleeding.”
Lucas turned around. His face covered in blood. He chuckled. “Ethan’s not dead, is he?”
“Well, no,” she answered.
“Then he’ll be fine.”
Kate didn’t care what Lucas said. She didn’t believe Ethan would be fine. She unbuttoned his shirt and peeled it back from his chest, causing Ethan to arch his back and hiss in pain. And she could see why. Some blood had already dried, and the fabric pulled on his wounds, reopening them. How could he be clotting so soon?
Without a thought to modesty she pulled her top off, folded it, and pressed it against his side where the blood oozed out. There were one—no—three, large gashes on his left side. Questions overwhelmed her mind.
How much blood could he lose before he died?
Had it nicked an organ?
What did Lucas mean he’d be fine?
He didn’t look fine.
Ethan rested back against the seat, his eyes rolled back and then closed, causing her heart to stop. “Ethan!” She grabbed his shoulders and shook as hard as she could. “Ethan, wake up! You can’t die.” Tears streamed down her face and her voice wavered. “Ethan, please, please, please don’t leave me.” She moved her hands to cradle his face and placed her lips on his blueish ones. The taste of her own salty tears shocked her, and she pulled away.
Ethan’s eyes flew open and he gave her a weak smile. “Don’t cry. I’m not dying. I’m slowing my heart rate and pulse to lessen the blood loss.” He reached out with his uninjured arm and stroked her cheek, gently rubbing her tears away with his thumb. She leaned into his hand needing the contact with him. The hell with whether or not he was human. He stirred her heart and soul big time. Nothing else mattered.
“It’ll take more than what happened just now to kill me,” muttered Ethan.
She asked the question she already knew the answer to, but she needed to hear him answer honestly. “Are you a werewolf?”
His eyes moved from hers to Deanna’s and back. “Yes. I’m two hundred and ninety-six years old, and I’m a werewolf of the most compassionate kind. I’m a protector of humans. I don’t kill them, feed on them, or hurt them in any way. I’m the leader of the Saviors of the Night Clan. We protect humans from the likes of Gray and his throat-ripping beasts. The only way I can die is being shot through the heart with a silver bullet, a total decapitation of my head, or having my heart ripped out of my chest…oh…and fire.”
“You really are what you say you are.” Deep down she’d known, but his confirming it, made it super real.
“Among other things, I have a Doctorate in Myth and Culture and Ancient History. I live most of my life in human form, and I change only when it’s necessary. That’s when I’m at my most dangerous. I must admit though, I like sleeping in wolf form better than human form. It’s warmer because I have a built-in blanket and I can curl up into a ball.”
She knew he’d said the last part hoping to get a smile from her. He didn’t.
“When you’re ready to talk about yourself and your part in all this, let me know. Just don’t wait too long.” His voice contained an edge of warning.
For some inexplicable reason, Kate felt compelled to share information with Ethan about herself no one else knew. Perhaps because deep down in her gut she knew her life had changed when she met him. She’d always known something about her seemed different. She was unlike anyone she’d ever known. In fact, she realized early on as a child she possessed various skills. Skills she spent her whole life hiding from the world.
“I fell out of a tree when I was five and broke my arm. When the doctor re-X-rayed it one week later, it had healed.” She swallowed and continued. “When I would cut myself—and I did it on purpose to see what would happen—the next day there would be no sign of anything. Not even a scar.”
“Anything else?” he questioned.
“I smell things no one else does.”
“What about Gray speaking into your mind?” he asked.
“Humph…that’s new. Never happened until the night he attacked me.” She felt as though she’d lived a lifetime since then.
Chapter Nine
“Where am I?” Kate sprang up. Her hand flew to her heart as it exploded against her chest. She breathed in and scanned the room she awoke in
. A small plug-in nightlight gave off enough illumination to show the outline of a large bedroom. Squinting in the dark she could just make out the time. Two forty-five in the morning. Groaning she reclined back down and tried to sleep.
When sleep eluded her, she rolled out of bed, glad to find she was dressed in her jeans and a large T-shirt. Her memory was a little shot, but she remembered using her shirt to stop Ethan from bleeding to death. Silly me. When they arrived at his sprawling log cabin deep in the woods, he had given her a T-shirt from a drawer. Grabbing it now she pulled it up to her nose and inhaled. Yup, it belonged to him. His scent tickled her nose, making her wonder if all werewolves had their own special scent. And if so, how could any of them smell better than him? And it wasn’t just the pleasing scent. It evoked calm, safe, and contentment within her.
Slowly, Kate cracked open the door and peered down the hall where a room glowed with dim light. Everything appeared still, and she tip-toed through the hall and headed to the kitchen area. The largest breakfast island she’d ever encountered separated the kitchen from a massive great room. Eight black, metal stools hovered around the island.
She eyed the large, commercial-grade, stainless steel refrigerator and licked her parched lips. She opened it and found bottled water. Once the fridge door closed, she leaned against the island and twisted off the top. Just as the bottle brushed her lips her hand paused as did her heart.
On the large brown leather sectional sofa sprawled Colin. He stared at her through the muted darkness. Had he been there the whole time? Her focus had been on quenching her thirst, not if she was alone.
Kate didn’t know this man. But she forced herself to walk into the room and sit down on a big, comfy chair opposite him. She raised the bottle up to her mouth for a sip and hoped he didn’t notice her hand quivering.
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