***
Goosebumps prickled across her body. The slight sheen of sweat that had accumulated was now cold under the fan of the living room.
Amazing.
That was the only word even close to describing what she'd just experienced.
Luke slipped an arm beneath her back and another beneath her legs, standing and lifting her in one movement. He cradled her against his chest like she was something precious. She could never be afraid of him. Even though the werewolf thing was a little unsettling, being something more than human wasn't what defined him as a person. As a man. As someone she could see herself falling in love with.
The feelings were there. It wasn't just a rebound from having her heart broken over Vincent. There was a deeper connection between Luke and herself, something more than she'd ever felt with Vincent. Maybe it was the bond Luke talked about. Even if it was, she liked it. Selfishly, it gave her something to cling to in a world that had ceased to have purpose.
She buried her face against his chest and listened to the steady thump of Luke's heart. He was her new constant.
They were moving through the house now. Her toes brushed the wall as he carried her down the hallway. He turned into her bedroom and set her gently in the center of her bed. Then pulled her comforter up to cover her shivering body.
Kara opened her eyes and gazed up at him in the dimming light filtering through the half-closed drapes. "Stay. Please."
He nodded, sinking to his knees on the floor next to her bed.
She grabbed the edge of her comforter and pulled it back, putting her naked form into his direct line of sight. She liked the little hitch in his breath and the way his eyes drank her in like she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. She couldn't remember Vincent ever looking at her that way. How could she have let that go as long as she did?
Didn't matter now. It was over. She didn't want to ever think about or see Vincent Harris again.
Luke stripped down to his boxers and slid into the bed with her, drawing her into his arms and covering them both with her comforter. She drank in his spicy male scent and nuzzled his chest, settling into the comfortable crook of his shoulder. Sleep came easily to her contented body.
CHAPTER NINE
The trill of an alarm spurred her from a deep sleep. Her bed was unnaturally warm, and her leg was draped over... another leg. She popped her eyes open and pushed up. Luke's blue eyes stared up at her and a smile curved his lips.
"Morning." His deep voice dripped with affection and his scruffy face was sexy as hell. He reached over to the nightstand and tapped the face of the wailing phone. The annoying alarm stopped instantly.
"Morning," she answered.
A second later she was on her back, and he was leaning over her with a wolfish grin. He pressed a soft kiss to her lips and then another on each of her bare breasts, sucking on one nipple and then the other until they stood erect. His gaze traveled up from her breasts to her face again. "Your nipples were feeling a little neglected. I couldn't have that."
She snorted through a laugh.
His smile widened even further, and his blue eyes sparkled. He kissed her again, sweeping his tongue into her mouth and nibbling on her bottom lip.
Damn. Her core clenched, and moisture pooled between her legs. God, she wanted nothing more than his cock buried deep inside her. But then she remembered what came tethered to that choice, and decided she could wait a little longer. It wasn't going to be easy, though.
"It's good to hear you laugh, Kara. I'll have to be sure I say hello to your gorgeous breasts every morning."
She couldn't help it. A grin spread across her face and she laughed again.
"I can keep saying hello," he added. "There's more of you to say hi to." He dropped his head and began trailing his tongue down her stomach.
"No!" She grabbed his arms and twisted underneath him and tried to crawl to the edge of the bed. "I have to get dressed. I refuse to be late on the first day of school."
He moaned and flopped to the side, releasing her from the weight of his body. She scrambled off the bed and ducked into her bathroom. The cold tile made her shiver and wish she was back underneath Luke.
She started the shower and stood with just the tip of her fingers under the stream of water until it heated to a bearable level. Then she stepped in and sighed, closing the glass door. The hot water sluiced over her body, between her breasts, and down to her feet. The shower steamed up quickly, and she took a deep cleansing breath.
"Is there room for me in there?"
She squeaked, his presence in the bathroom taking her by surprise. "You can have the shower when I'm done," she protested, her voice slowing with each word. He'd stripped naked and had opened the shower door. Her gaze traversed up and down his lean muscular body and heat swirled inside hers. He was all muscle. All man. And very erect. No! I can't do this. Not right now.
"Are you going to invite me in?"
"Apparently you aren't a vampire and are going to do exactly as you please without my permission." She grabbed his arm and pulled him inside the shower, closing the door to capture what little steam was left. "Quit letting out the warm air."
His laughter echoed in the tiled shower. He hugged her from behind, his erection prodding her backside teasingly. His lips pressed to her neck and she let her head loll to the side, giving him better access. "I'm definitely not a vampire, but your neck is very tempting."
She pulled away in a start and whirled to face him. "Are vampires real, too?"
"Not that I know of." He fondled her breasts, and she leaned back, moaning low in her throat as the tension in her body slipped away. At least she didn't have to worry about vampires jumping out of the shadows at her. Just wolves.
He turned her around and claimed her mouth, plunging his tongue in and sweeping it against hers. She gripped his shoulders and pulled herself closer. It was as if their bodies had minds of their own. The thought of letting go of him was nearly unbearable. How was she ever going to get to school today?
"This shower is not progressing very productively," she said against his mouth. It didn't come out very clearly, but he got the gist.
"Sorry." He dropped his hands to his sides and took a step back.
The absence of his touch nearly brought tears to her eyes. But the choice had been discussed and decided. They weren't going to complete the bond... not yet. He'd said she wasn't ready. Maybe he wasn't ready either. Feeling each other's emotions sounded like a huge step. It probably was. She didn't really understand what was going on, but she did know she needed some space or she was going to go crazy. It was like she was on a drug that made her hornier than a sixteen-year-old boy.
She hurriedly washed and rinsed her hair and body, willing herself not to look at Luke. It was so hard. Even with her eyes closed she could feel his gaze on her. Her skin warmed, not from the water, and nerves tingled throughout her body.
"It's all yours." She stepped out of the shower and closed the glass door before he could speak.
Grabbing a towel from the rack on the wall, she tip toed out of the bathroom and pulled on the baggiest clothes she could find. An old pair of sweatpants and an oversized Taylor Swift t-shirt should do the trick. It might be the first day of school, but she needed to feel as unsexy as possible. She wound her wet hair up into a twisted bun and wrapped a few hairbands around it to keep it in place.
The water turned off in the bathroom and she scurried out of the bedroom, not trusting what she might do if she saw his bare skin again. It was all so overwhelming, and the idea that there was more to the bond, that it would get stronger, was starting to freak her out. There's no way she could live day in and day out like this.
***
Holy shit. What the hell am I going to do? Luke toweled off and poked his head out of the bathroom. Kara's room was empty. She'd already fled.
That's what she'd done. He'd seen the panic in her eyes when she got out of the shower. The bond was pulling at them both, and it had
only gotten stronger after they slept next to each other last night. His parents said it would tug at each of their consciousness, but this was beyond a little tug. This was more like a magnetic field pulling them together until they couldn't help themselves any longer. They were an unfinished song. A half cooked meal.
A force of nature that would not be checked.
He had to give her space. Time to make this choice on her own.
After putting his suit back on from last night, he ventured out her bedroom door and saw her going through a stack of books on the kitchen table. Her gorgeous blonde hair was drawn back into a severe bun that looked painful, and her curves were expertly hidden by baggy pants and a t-shirt four times too large for her. The smallest bit of her shoulder peeked out from the neck of the shirt when she leaned to the side and his mouth watered.
Damn. This is bad.
"Kara." His voice sounded worse than a bullfrog's.
She squealed in surprise and whirled to face him. Her cheeks flushed red and he could hear her heartbeat racing. But it was her scent that nearly knocked him on his ass. He could smell her arousal as plainly as if they'd never left her bed. Honey-sweet and more tempting than anything he'd ever tasted in his whole life.
"You can't come in here." She gathered up an armful of books and shoved them into a backpack. "I don't know what is going on with my brain or my body. But I can't touch you or be near you for a while. Maybe in a few hours I'll be able to think straight."
He took a step forward and she raised her hand, motioning clearly for him to stop. His feet obeyed, but his mind didn't want to. "It’s the bond." It was the only explanation he could offer her. He didn't think it would fade, though, even if they did avoid each other.
She threw the backpack over her shoulder and grabbed her purse from the seat of one of the kitchen chairs. "I'm going to class." She gave him a wide birth as she crossed the living room and disappeared out the front door.
He released the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and then walked into the kitchen. Pulling his cell phone from his pocket, he dialed his brother and waited.
"What's up?" Noah's voice growled on the other end of the line. "I don't do early classes. Why you calling me?"
"I need you to pick me up. I'd walk, but I'm wearing dress clothes. And I have a nine o'clock class." Luke rubbed his chin, scratching at the stubble. It was too hot in August to go much longer than a couple of days, but all his stuff was at the AKO house, and he hadn't been able to find any disposable razors in Kara's bathroom. Not that he'd really wanted to use her vanilla scented shaving cream on his face either. Noah would never have let him live that down.
"Okay, fine. I'll be there in a few." He heard the rustle of sheets and his brother extricating himself from them. "What about Kara? Does she want a ride to school?"
"No. She already left."
"Why didn't she bring you to campus?" Noah asked.
"She thinks we need space between us."
"I take it you explained what would happen if y'all got busy, huh?" Noah snorted through a laugh.
Luke growled. "I don't need this from you right now. Just get over here and pick me up."
"Fine. Fine. I'm coming."
CHAPTER TEN
Kara glanced up at the clock on the classroom wall. 8:29. Time was moving slower than snail slime, and this first class was one of her core music theory classes. She needed to pay attention to Professor Hickson. She'd had him last year for Music Theory 101, and he was no joke. Her mind just wouldn't cooperate. Even her body refused to relax.
Instead, she could still feel Luke's lips on her neck; his hands on her breasts. Warmth pooled between her legs, and she squirmed in her chair, desperate for the class to end so she could disappear into her math class and hide at the top of the lecture hall. There were only thirty students in Music Theory 201. Nowhere to hide, and unless she was imagining it, they all seemed to be staring at her.
God! They were!
"Kara?" It was Professor Hickson's voice. "Kara, are you okay?"
She snapped her gaze to the lanky middle-aged professor. His black-rimmed glasses sat low on his long nose and his grey eyes were narrow, but filled with concern. He was a nice man, but he didn't appreciate his students being inattentive.
"Sorry, Professor Hickson. I'm just not feeling well."
"Very well, but I don't want to see you in my class later today asking about the syllabus we just went over."
"No sir, of course not," she answered, shaking her head. She hadn't heard a word he'd said, but she'd get Amy or Trish to fill her in on what she missed while spaced out. She glanced at her friends sitting to her right. Both girls smiled encouragingly.
***
"You know, if you would just tell him what happened, Hickson would understand," Trish offered softly as they crossed campus from Treynor Arts Center to the BD Lewis Math Building.
"No, it's okay. I'd rather just keep it private. I don't need the whole department showing me pity all semester.”
"Kara, there's nothing wrong with easing your way back into school. The teachers would understand," Amy added.
"We miss you at the house. You're not coming back, are you?" Trish asked, hooking her arm around Kara's.
"I'm sorry," she started, "I just can't. Not right now. With my parents and everything else, I just need some space."
"Everything else?" Amy stepped ahead and halted the trio’s walk. "Would everything else have anything to do with that?" She turned and pointed across the lawn.
Kara followed Amy's hand until her gaze came to rest on Luke. He was leaning against a tree, arms folded across his broad chest, just staring.
"We didn't even get to talk to you at the funeral. The VonBrandt family had you surrounded like they were your personal bodyguards." Amy started walking along the sidewalk again and Kara followed silently.
Trish didn't say anything, but she could feel her friend's desire to know the answer to that very same question hanging in the air, just as thick as the August humidity right before a thunderstorm.
"Luke and I -"
"Are an item." Trish giggled. "Girl, we know that. You blush redder than a ripe tomato every time he looks at you."
"I still can't believe you dumped Vincent." Amy turned to face her. "You've been together forever. I thought you two were soul mates."
Kara scoffed. "Hadn't you heard? His dick is soul mates with half the campus. I can't believe he hid it from me as long as he did." She shuddered, wondering just how many women he'd slept with while they'd been together. Thank God they'd always used protection.
Her friends gasped at her blunt statement. But, whether they already knew why she and Vincent parted ways or not, they did an excellent job of making her believe it was news to them. She smiled. Amy and Trish were the reason she'd joined KAS last year. They were fun and great at rallying school spirit, but now after everything that had happened with her roommate and ex-boyfriend, she was ready to just stay at home.
Driving the ten minutes back and forth from campus to the house held a certain appeal. Private, quiet, and away from the prying eyes of the campus gossip mongers. Not that she could really escape that. If she and Luke really did become an item, the whole town would start talking about it. Everything the VonBrandt's did was scrutinized and gossiped about. They had a lot of money, and most of the campus considered Luke and Noah two of the most eligible bachelors on campus.
It didn't hurt that they were sexy as sin either.
"Earth to Kara," Trish teased. They reached the doors and had to part ways. Neither of her pals were taking classes in the BD Lewis Math Building during this period.
Kara smiled at Trish and waved her hand. "Gotta run. I'm fine. I'll see you girls at lunch, okay?"
They waved back and nodded.
***
Math class had been uneventful, except that the professor thought it would be nice to give a crap load of homework on the first day. Kara wandered out of the building and into the sweat-inducing,
sweltering heat outside. Damn, it was hot. And it was only ten in the morning.
She had a free period before lunch. Might as well head to the Sub and wait for Trish and Amy to catch up. Turning, she took a few steps before freezing in place. Vincent was approaching, his gaze locked onto her. She glanced around quickly, but didn't see either of the VonBrandt brothers. Shit. She really didn't want to talk to his sorry-no-good-cheating-ass.
He waved and she frowned.
"Kara."
She tried to walk past him, but he blocked the sidewalk. So she just walked around him. He didn't get the hint and followed along beside her, heeling like a well-trained dog.
"I don't want to talk to you, Vincent. I don't want to see you." She glanced up at him for a second and grimaced. He had a black eye, cuts above both eye brows, a busted swollen bottom lip, and a swollen nose. Dear God. They had wailed on him good. She felt only the tiniest bit of sympathy for the obvious pain he must be in, but mostly she was glad. He'd used her and lied to her. She deserved better.
"Kara, baby -"
"Don't you dare ‘baby’ me!" She stopped and shoved him away. He was so close to her she could smell his familiar minty aftershave. It was a scent she used to enjoy, but now it made her want to gag. "You cheated on me with my roommate! And God knows how many other women from what I've heard."
"You can't listen to him."
"I. Saw. You." She shook her head and took a step away, only to be yanked backward by her arm. Pain shot through her shoulder.
"He just wants to get into your pants. He's always wanted you."
"Let me go." She twisted from his grasp and gasped, stumbling back as a large figure knocked Vincent to the ground.
It was Luke. And Vincent wasn't faring any better in this fight than the last. Luke straddled him, connecting his fists over and over with Vincent's face and ribs. She winced at the sickening sound of bone breaking and ran forward.
To Save A Mate (A Western Shapeshifter Werewolf Romance): Somewhere, TX (VonBrandt Family Book 1) Page 8
