The Wolf's Heart

by Jenna Leigh

  “Marcus, please.”

  “Please what?”

  “I can’t, not again.”

  “It feels like you just did.” He spread her thighs a little wider, burying his face against her.

  Her body went tight as a bowstring. She arched her back, pressing her pussy against his face. He nipped her with his teeth and she screamed and came again. “Goddamnit, you’re so fucking sweet. Do it again, Lainie. Come for me again.” He moved his hands away from her hips and used them to spread her sex wide. He rubbed her clit with the flat of his tongue before flicking it. She drenched him with the honeyed juices of her orgasm.

  “Mmm. The taste of surrender.” He came up onto his knees behind her. “Up,” he commanded. When she lay still, he pulled her hips until her ass was in the air and her head pillowed on her arms.

  The ripping sound of his pants was loud in the room. She flinched, but he didn’t even pause, just began to slide his cock into her. She squeezed him like a hot, wet fist, her muscles clenched at the invasion before stretching to accommodate him. “So tight.”

  “I’m not, you’re just big.”

  “Is that a complaint?”

  “Um, no. Shut up, and get on with it.” The tone of her voice had him grinning. She must have sensed because she turned to glare at him over her shoulder. “Now.”

  “You’re somethin’ else, darlin’.”

  She scowled at him but in the next second that expression was replaced by one of wonder.

  He thrust his hips forward before rotating them, slowly grinding his cock around inside her.

  “Oh. My. God,” she gasped out, her breaths timed with each thrust. She began to rock her pelvis against his. “Yes.”

  This made her angry and he knew it. That fact that she was pissed at him but still felt this way in spite of it. “Lainie.” He caressed her back, his fingers pressing into her spine. She arched into his touch and groaned.

  The time for talk was over; he pulled her up so that she sat in his lap, facing away from him. He cupped her breasts, squeezing the soft mounds, tweaking her hard nipples. He pressed soft kisses against the side of her neck. She put her head to one side to give him better access. He moved inside her again and she moaned.

  Her hips were flush with his, her backside fitting perfectly into the fold of his body. “You’re made for me,” he whispered in a worshipful tone. She didn’t answer. Instead she rolled her hips again, tightening on his shaft, milking him.

  He spread his thighs so that hers opened, too. She slid down a little farther on his cock. Marcus put his arms around her, holding her tight as he sat back his heels. She cried out at this new sensation, and her muscles danced around him. He thrust up slightly and she came, drenching him.

  “God,” he gasped out when she did it again and again. Little bursts of light flashed behind his closed lids. He stilled for a long moment, savoring the sensation of her surrounding him, clutching him. Each breath he took made him shift inside her. His heart seemed to have moved to his cock, the pulse thundering.

  His balls tightened with the next thrust and he slid his fingers between her legs, determined to take her with him over the edge. Chills raced across his skin when she arched up against his hand. His cock swelled and tingles rocketed through his balls and cock as he spilled his seed straight into her womb.

  He lay there buried inside her. He pressed her face down in the bed and kept her still.

  She wiggled.

  He grunted and his cock twitched. “Be still, Lainie.”

  “I hate you.”

  “I know.” He closed his eyes when she began to cry.

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Marcus had a pounding headache. He winced when the pounding got even louder. With a groan, he pulled away from Lainie and looked at the clock. It was six in the morning. He could go back to sleep and not get up until the next day, except the pounding wouldn’t go away.

  “Get out from between that girl’s legs and come downstairs!” This was roared from out in the hall by none other than David, his soon-to-be-dead relative. His head wasn’t pounding after all. It was that man’s massive fist abusing his door.

  Lainie opened her eyes and looked around. “It’s all right, go back to sleep.” He kissed her temple and tried to ignore her hurt expression. She was exhausted, with dark circles beneath her eyes. Her mouth was swollen from his kisses. When he stood, the covers fell away to reveal the marks he’d left on her body. The part of him that was an animal reveled in them. The human part was horrified.

  He stroked his fingers down her back and winced at the sight of a particularly colorful mark on her butt. He’d bitten her, the print of his teeth was clearly outlined. “Honey, I’m sorry,” he whispered.

  She turned away from him so he pulled the covers up and tucked them around her. “I’ll be back as soon as I find out what the hell that old man wants.”

  Another spate of knocking had him jerking the door open with his pants still in his hand. “What the fuck is so important that you wake me up at this time of morning?”

  David snarled. “Get downstairs right now.”

  Marcus followed him, hopping first on one leg then the other as he put his pants on. “This shit better be good for you to wake her up.”

  “Like you let her sleep.”

  “Not your business, David.”

  “Yes, it is.”

  “No.” Marcus put his hand on the other man’s shoulder and stared deep into his eyes. “This time, it’s not. I mean it, you can’t interfere. She’s mine; she stays that way no matter what.”

  David stared back at him for a long minute. “Fine. You hurt her, I’ll kill you. There, settled. Now come on down here with me and your damned second.” He stalked down the stairs and into the den.

  Marcus scratched his head groggily and followed him. He yawned a good morning to Ben who sat on the couch looking as sleepy as he felt. “What are you doing here?”

  “David called and said you might need me.” Ben pointed at the television just as the commercial went off and the news came back on.

  As Marcus watched, all thoughts of sleeping left him. Rage burned inside, bubbling up from a place so deep and well stocked that it would probably never run dry.

  The morning announcer sat behind the news desk. Usually she was perky, but today she was going for solemn. He didn’t really think she pulled it off. “The bodies of Mr. Bei and his live-in girlfriend, reporter Elaine Westerbrook, were found at the scene, as was his driver. They are yet to be positively identified. As they are badly burned, it may be a while before they are. The sheriff’s department is puzzled as to how the accident happened.” She paused and tucked a strand of bleached-blonde hair behind her ear.

  “They are also unclear on how long the tycoon has been missing. They were reportedly at Caulder Incorporated’s ball last night, but officials state that the bodies were also the victim of scavengers. It appears that the area’s wolf population is much larger than we thought.” She attempted to smile, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “We have comments from Mr. Bei’s father when we return.”

  The commercials were loud, not quite loud enough to cover up Marcus’s howl of outrage.

  It didn’t help matters when the news came back on and the first thing he saw was his father’s smug expression as he stood on the steps of Bei International. Oh, he attempted to look like a man grieving over his only son, but Marcus wasn’t fooled in the least.

  “Mr. Bei, we’re sorry to hear about your loss.” A reporter thrust her microphone up into his face. “Can you tell us what your plans are now? We know you retired to let your son run the company. Are you going to come back now that he’s dead?”

  “How very rude.” Samuel purred in a dangerously low voice and pushed the microphone back. “However, in answer to your question, the answer is no. I don’t think I shall. In fact, I’ve had an offer today to sell to a man I hold in high esteem.”

  There was a flurry of activity and then, “Here he is
now. Say hello to the new owner of Bei International, Mr. Jacob Caulder.” Flashbulbs went off as the two men shook hands.

  “No!” With a scream, he picked up the large coffee table and hurled it against the wall at the other end of the living room.

  “What in the hell is this shit?” Ben bellowed. “I’m the vice president of Bei International!”

  “I have no idea, but I aim to find out.” Marcus started for the door only to have David stop him.

  “Ah, wait.” He smiled that smooth smile that had spelled the doom of more than one man. “Let your father have enough rope to hang himself. I’d love to see him twist.”

  “He’s stealing.” This from Allen who stood in the doorway. “He’s not on the board any longer. He doesn’t even own stock. Let him keep this up at least for the next twenty-four hours.”

  “Mr. Bei, what are your plans?”

  For a minute, Samuel stood there as if deciding. “I want time to grieve the death of my son and his sweet fiancée, Elaine. They were to be married, it’s so sad.”

  Marcus finally noticed his father’s fury. His eyes narrowed and he watched closely. Jacob looked like the cat that ate the canary.

  “Do you see?” David’s voice was right beside his ear.

  “I see.” Marcus’s smile was wide and sharp. “I see two dead fuckers. But, I’ll bide my time.”

  With a dark look on his face, he turned to go back upstairs. Maybe if he got on his knees and begged, she’d forgive him for being an ass. He doubted it, but it was worth a try. Plus, if he was on his knees anyway, he knew of a few ways to persuade her. “Where are you goin’?” David yelled.

  “I’m dead, so, I’m going back to heaven. You.” He looked at Ben and pointed at David. “Kill him if he puts his foot on the bottom stair. I mean it.”

  Marcus rehearsed what to say to get back in her good graces. Last night, she’d cried for a long time, angry that he couldn’t pull out of her, angry with herself for even wanting him to touch her. She’d raged at him, calling him a monster and a beast.

  The words hurt, he’d admit it, but the fact that she’d shuddered and sobbed hurt even more. He’d pretty much accepted the fact that he loved her. Not that she’d believe him even capable of such a thing. She’d say it was lust or chemistry or else hormones.

  The little brat had said all that and more in the dark room as they lay there pressed together with her voice hoarse from screaming in both passion and rage. She’d clutched at his forearm, hugging him close even when she called him every name in the book. And, he’d let her. As long as she didn’t leave, she could call him what she wanted. He didn’t give a damn.

  He flung the door wide and opened his mouth to tell her that only to close it again when the sight of the empty bed met his gaze. He listened, thinking she might be in the shower, but no sound came from inside. He went in and peered around it to be sure. Empty.

  With a feeling of dread, he moved to the room he’d foolishly put her in at first. That pink room as she called it in that snotty tone he loved so well. The door slammed back when he kicked it, but he already knew. It was empty as well. So was the bathroom, the closet and the rest of the house when he began to bellow out orders for her to be found.

  Hours later, Marcus sat on the couch, waiting. He’d become paralyzed with anger and fear the minute he figured out she’d left the grounds. Anger at her, and fear for her if she was found by anyone, including himself. Which was why he wasn’t out looking for her. He needed a chance to calm down. His emotions were out of control. He wanted to shake her and turn her over his knee and to fuck her so hard she’d never forget who she belonged to, or for that matter, walk straight again.

  “I think she’s gone out that little side gate, Marcus.” David came back in from the garden. “I’m not sure, because her trail suddenly ended.” He stopped talking then shrugged. “Plus, her scent’s changed.”

  “What do you mean changed?” Marcus snapped, at the end of his patience.

  “Precisely what I said.”

  “Why would it do that?” Ben came in the door from looking on the southern part of the property.

  “There are a few reasons.” David frowned. “One of which, I’m pretty sure you know.”

  “No.” Ben rolled his eyes. “I wouldn’t ask if I did.”

  “I swear, they didn’t teach you younger ones a damn thing.” David sighed and rubbed his face. “Fine, I’ll say it. I think she may be pregnant.”

  Marcus’s breath left him in a whoosh and he sat down hard on the couch. For a long minute, he stared into space without moving. Then he shuddered and snapped out of his daze. “Pregnant?” he finally wheezed out.

  “That’s what I said.” David put his hands on his hips and glared.

  “But how?”

  “You know that’s usually what happens when all you do is fuck like bunny rabbits.”

  “I have never fucked like a bunny rabbit.” Ben scowled. “I’m a wolf and that’s how I do it.”

  “She told me she was on the pill.” Marcus took a deep breath, then another in the hopes that it would make the room stop spinning. It didn’t help.

  “You’ve got super sperm, what can I say?”

  He snarled at David’s sarcastic reply. “It doesn’t matter right now. I want my woman back and if I don’t get her, somebody’s goin’ to die.” Marcus said it as calmly as he possibly could but the howl at the end gave him away.

  “We’ll find her.” David jerked his head toward the door. “Ben, come outside with me.”

  As they walked down the path to the fence, David prodded him. “What do you smell?”

  “Lainie, Marcus, Mick, us. The pack, I smell the pack.”

  “Right.” David waited for it to dawn on him.

  “One of us took her.” A muscle in Ben’s jaw ticked. “Who would dare?”

  “I can’t tell because I smell all of us here. I can’t differentiate between us. Which of us is missing?” David stared down the road.

  “There’s me and you and Marcus, Mick—” He closed his eyes. “Jordan is missing. You think he would betray Marcus?”

  David leaned on the fence staring at the road. “He is Samuel’s kin, not mine. I can’t vouch for him other than to say he was a good kid at one time. Ben, I haven’t been here for you all and I’m sorry. But you have to help me. Marcus will lose his mind if he thinks his cousin betrayed him. If it’s not true, fine, but if it is, you have to decide what to do. Don’t make him kill that boy.”

  “I won’t.” Ben’s expression was grim. “What if we’re wrong? It might not be Jordan at all. What if it’s one of the others?”

  David put his hand on the bars of the fence and glared at the road. “Who else could get that close to the house or for that matter to her? Who else would she trust? You and I both know how Jordan seems. He’s harmless, a flirt, the joker. Well, I can attest to the fact that the joker is wild, and he can be deadly.”

  “David, I can’t believe he’d do it. Why?”

  “Like I said, he’s Sam’s nephew. Maybe the old man offered him something Marcus didn’t.”

  Ben narrowed his eyes as if thinking. David knew that as Marcus’s cousin, Jordan had power without the responsibility to go along with it. To someone like Ben, this would be nirvana, but he couldn’t be certain this was how Jordan felt. Maybe he wanted both.

  “I’ll get my stuff and meet you back here in a few.” He turned and started back to the house.

  “Where are we going?” David moved to follow him.

  “Caulder’s little place in the country.”

  “You know where that is?” David was impressed. It was hard to see these men as anything but the boys they once were. He believed they were good men, but he couldn’t stop seeing them as the children he’d taken under his wing and taught to fish and hunt.

  “In Santa Fe.” Ben turned and started back towards the house, his long legs eating up the distance. He’d better hurry, David had a feeling time was running out.
/>   Chapter Twenty-six

  Lainie leapt out of the bed the minute Marcus shut the door behind him. She scrambled into her room, jerked on a T-shirt, a pair of jeans, tennis shoes and scooped up her bag on her way out onto the upper deck. There were no steps leading off the balconies. However, there was a tree she was sure she could reach from the rail. She was desperate to get away from his overwhelming personality. She sank further and further beneath his power with each subsequent minute in his presence.

  Marcus was taking her over. She couldn’t think straight, couldn’t see straight half the time. He kept her off balance, mostly on her back so that she couldn’t form a complete sentence much less think on the repercussions of finding out what he and the others really were. Then there was her own identity, genetic and otherwise that scared the shit out of her.

  He refused to leave her alone. He wouldn’t just allow her to run and hide. Hell, she’d probably come back within a day or two. She’d miss his smile, the way his eyes lit up when she came into the room, his hands on her skin and his mouth on her. She shook her head to clear it and concentrated on the branch just out of her reach. She took a deep breath and jumped, grabbing it on the way down.

  “Ha,” she grunted in triumph and shimmied down as she’d done as a child. She’d been pretty good then, it was nice to see that she hadn’t lost her touch. Unfortunately, she spoke too soon, because she missed and fell the last few feet and fell to the ground, landing in the shrubs planted at the base of the tree. “Ow, shit.”

  She managed to get out of the bushes and scurried away from the house, only wanting to get out of his reach, at least for a little while. She’d almost made it to that little opening when a big hand landed on her shoulder. She yelped and whirled. “You scared the hell out of me!”

  Lainie backed up a step and glared at the person attempting to ruin her escape. “I was just taking a walk.”

  “Really?” he drawled and threw a heavy arm over her shoulders. “Let me help you with your walk.”

  “I don’t need your help.” She tried to shrug his arm off, feeling uncomfortable for some reason. Why, she didn’t know. Hell, she’d known him almost as long as she had Marcus. He’d been there when she was a kid, and she’d even thought he was cute at one time.