She shrugged. “You’re like a furnace. What woman wouldn’t fall asleep wrapped up in your arms?”
He snorted. “I don’t make it a habit of wasting my time sleeping when I have a woman in my bed.”
Yeah, that’s no lie. Based on how women stare at him in town, it’s clear he’s taken a lot of them to bed. “Thanks for reminding me of what we don’t have.” Caress tugged free, delivered an elbow shot, and pinned a furious gaze on her mate. Her body thrummed for him. Couldn’t he tell how she responded any time he was near?
“You’ve slept through the night and most of the day. Are you hungry?”
“Coffee and toast, maybe.” Her Wolf rolled over. With a side order of Ford kisses, please.
She frowned. Hush. You’re just as bad as all the women who drooled over him before us.
Mate, her Wolf insisted.
Yes, well, he’s not ready to settle down yet. She forced her Wolf back down as she put distance between her body and Ford’s. His utter lack of interest in her, sexually, stung, yet she wouldn’t bug or beg for him to view her as a woman to be wanted. Doing so always ended up in a stalemate. He’d say it was his fault for not mating her, but he wouldn’t make a move to initiate the bond. At this rate, the never-ending ache in her body wouldn’t be appeased until she was old and gray.
Still glaring, she stretched and reached for a clean pair of yoga pants and tee. With her back to him, she stripped out of her sleep clothes and shrugged into her new set. “I think I’ll go for a run, maybe go into town. Do you need anything?”
“No, but we do have another matter to attend. For the foreseeable future, off pack land excursions are over unless I approve of the location. You’re not allowed to go unless your brothers or I are available to take you.”
She frowned. He can’t be serious.
“Forget asking Luck,” he continued. “He tends to give into what you want versus what you need. I know this will piss you off, but your safety and my peace of mind come first.” His lips pressed in a firm line, indicating he wouldn’t back down on this new directive.
Well, crap. Of course he’s serious. Caress tugged on a pair of socks and her boots. With a withering glance, she gave Ford the middle finger and slammed out of her bedroom. The man’s intelligence is seriously lacking. Her Wolf agreed. Behind them, the bedroom door opened and closed.
“Plan on being my shadow?” she snarked.
Deep, rumbling sexy chuckles followed her down the stairway. Let him tag along if he wanted. She headed toward Ravage’s study, opened the sliding wood doors, stalked to his decanters, and poured herself a healthy dose of medicine. Ford entered in time to see her toss the contents down her throat and give herself a refill. The scotch burned a nice path to her belly. In a few strides, he stood before her, picked up an empty glass, and motioned for her to pour.
“So, now we’re going to be drinking buddies?” Her Wolf whined, his scent overwhelming her.
His gaze followed her every move, looking past the outside, assessing, digging into her soul—he didn’t have the right. Her hackles rose. “Look, I don’t know what fucked you up so bad you can’t let anyone in, so just watch it. Don’t fuck with me because I will retaliate in kind.” She poured him a dash and held her glass up to his.
“Toasting?” he asked.
“To losing my civil rights and to sexist, controlling dominant male idiots.” She clinked her brandy snifter to his and drained hers in one swallow.
Ford’s gaze never wavered. The heat blazing in his eyes made her skin sizzle. He gulped his drink then set his glass down.
“While I find your temper tantrums quite entertaining”—Ford’s dark grin put her ill at ease—“don’t think your physical abuse is going unnoticed. Sooner or later, I’ll get tired of the sass and your bad impulse to hit. When that happens, you won’t enjoy the outcome.” He arched a brow. “Or maybe you will.”
“You wouldn’t dare. I’m not some Wolf who will blindly bow down to her mate’s orders. Not that we’re mates yet. Therefore, you hold no dominion over me. Do. Not. Make me fight you.” She growled and crossed her arms.
“Now, no. But, babe, I do know how to keep count until there is an appropriate time to give it to you like you deserve. Let me reiterate my stance on our private relationship. You can’t continue to lash out and not expect there to be consequences. This is not a human world you live in. Order exists for a reason. Just keep that in mind.” Ford brushed a kiss on her forehead, an ultimate sign of adoration. Like her brothers who did the same coddling. The condescending mannerism never failed to do anything but piss her the hell off, no matter who did it.
Caress slapped him in the face. “I detest being kissed on the forehead like a fucking child. Don’t touch me.”
Yeah, she’d pissed him off good and didn’t give a flying solitary fuck. The red print on his face disappeared, but the dark gaze promising retribution remained. The flare of his nostrils and scent of his Wolf riding close to the edge didn’t push her into submission.
“That’s what, five times now?” He shook his head. “Like I said, I’m keeping count.”
What a devious male. He turned her inside out and seemed to enjoy himself. His Wolf damn sure did. No matter, she stormed out of the den to the main house, running into a gigantic man with a chest made of solid steel. Bouncing off him, she landed on the floor. After picking herself up, she stared into the startled male’s face and snarled. Turning her head toward the end of the house where her brother’s bedroom lay, she yelled, “Raze, keep your playthings away from me.”
Markos, her brother’s love interest, appraised her for injury.
She slapped his helping hand away and stormed past. “I’m not an invalid.”
“Are you hurt?”
Pride maybe. “No. I’m fine.” She strode out the front door, pausing on the porch. Ford’s gaze drilled into her back. An urge to shift pulsed through her. Sensing he would give chase if she did, she ignored the calling. “No need to babysit me—just hitting up the convenience store for tampons. You can chalk up my bitchiness to my upcoming flow.”
Of course, he’d be able to scent the shift in her hormones when she was near her cycle. Still, it never hurt to be prepared.
Ford’s signature snort came from behind her, calling her on her lie, no doubt. “You have twenty-five minutes. I’ll come for you if you’re late. For your own safety, of course.”
The nerve. With sarcasm, she turned to salute him.
Her Wolf whined.
“Now you want to talk to me?” she muttered to her other half and took off, sprinting to the store. Lucky for her, the run cleared her head, gave a chance for the gut-eating anger to subside a smidge.
Who was she mad at? The whole fuckin’ world at the moment. She’d done the unthinkable—taken life. And her mate wanted to was put restrictions on her? How does that help? She gritted her teeth. Tying me down, backing me into a corner? All that does is piss me off. Ford should know that.
She pushed open the front door of the town’s convenience store and greeted the clerk. The young omega offered a welcoming smile. She perused the shelves and headed to the refrigerated section for a bottle of tequila then grabbed a box of tampons.
“I need to see your ID for the tequila,” he stammered and flushed bright red.
“Seriously?” Caress sighed and pulled out her wallet. Two months and she’d be twenty-one, legal to purchase alcohol in South Dakota. Of course, getting what she needed wouldn’t be an issue. She tossed a fifty on the counter. “Keep it.”
Outside, she checked her watch. Twenty minutes remained before she needed to get home. Veering toward the territory line, she stumbled to a stop.
“Enforcer Ryker.” Where the hell did he come from?
“Caress.”
She stared up at him, trying not to shiver.
His gaze dipped to the bottle gripped in her fist then returned to her face. “So, you were involved in an alterc
ation on the highway.”
“You heard about that.” Of course he heard about it. Ravage probably had to report the whole thing.
“The men. Myanna.” He raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t know you had it in you.”
She frowned. “I-I don’t.”
“Apparently, you do.” He strode past her and entered the convenience store.
What? Memories jammed into her head, the threats, the anger, the…blood. Death.
Turning, she sprinted into the forest. When she hit the main road, she kept to the woods, paralleling the asphalt strip as she headed in the direction of her recent nightmares. With each step she took, she swallowed a mouthful of tequila to calm her nerves, to shut her whiny bitch ass Wolf up. Damn animal demanded she go home and leave this place behind. Sensing others, she capped the alcohol and jogged the remainder of the way.
Not a trace of blood-streaked dirt remained. She stared at the exact location of her altercation, stunned at the cleansing the dominants had performed. Caress uncapped the bottle and took another swig. She leaned down and fingered a piece of red-and-yellow reflector plastic. The touch propelled her back to the attack. The choices she’d made to ensure the safety of her friend. Her inability to come to terms with taking life, no matter how much the attackers deserved to meet their deaths.
Her stomach roiled, panic setting in. Fighting the urge to vomit, she moved, searching for one piece of evidence, proof she’d made the right choice.
Being here again unnerved her, but she needed to prove to herself she could handle the memories of the altercation, that she was strong enough to face the scene and stare down the demons inside ripping her in half. What happened was real, and she needed to deal. A strong woman didn’t need her man to hold her hand and walk her through the crime scene.
Caress strode down the road to where she’d ripped the men to shreds, the spot their truck had once stood. She gripped the tequila bottle tighter, her hand shaking as she brought it to her mouth and guzzled. The burn churned in her stomach. The painkiller offered her nothing, her Wolf blood leaving her quite sober. Too sober.
A look at her watch revealed her time was up. Ford’s tracking abilities matched Ravage’s. With a detached laugh, she took another swig and swiped at the angry tears spilling from her eyes.
“Apparently, I didn’t make my stance on your traveling past pack lands clear enough.” Ford’s voice held rage with an undercurrent of worry. The crunch of his steps over the debris filled her ears. “Though, why am I not surprised you walked out of the store with a bottle of liquor, leaving behind a stunned clerk? At least you paid for your purchases.”
Caress tilted back the bottle and drank, refusing to engage in a verbal showdown she’d surely lose. He didn’t understand her, what she was going through, that she needed to deal with what she did. He just wanted to lock her up and throw away the key. She gave a half-assed shrug in response.
“Do you care how much you worry everyone who has your best interests at heart? At all? I’m guessing not. Drop the bottle. It doesn’t do anything except make your breath stink.” Ford moved next to her.
Locking gazes, she acknowledged they’d reached a virtual stalemate regarding control. Caress lifted the bottle to her lips and drank in unabashed defiance until he grasped the near-empty container and threw it into the woods.
“You in a fighting mood?” She licked her lips, her gaze dropping to his groin, and pulled his belt buckle open.
Ford grappled with her hands to avoid being pantsed in the middle of the road. Her action gave him a clear shot of cleavage—not what his dick needed at that particular time. With a growl, he forced her away from his junk, bringing her eye level. “I don’t fuck disobedient young women.”
“He seems happy enough.” She trailed her hand over his bulge.
“You’re sexy. I’d have to be a monk to not get hard around you. Like I said, I don’t fuck disobedient women, and this between us won’t happen while the dead are taking up permanent residence in your head. I deserve better than being a passing distraction.” Didn’t she understand what she meant to him? No. She doesn’t get it. If she did, she wouldn’t have run off. She was his mate, and he’d do whatever it took to protect her, but her constant acting out—fighting him, arguing, using sex to sidetrack him—made it damn difficult.
“So nice to see you’re upgrading me from little girl.” Caress stumbled.
He grunted. He’d been hiding behind that to keep her at arm’s length, the only way he could deny their connection. But after seeing the carnage she’d wrought…. She’d make a damn fine pack protector herself. Didn’t take too long to realize the pride swelling in him for her. But first, she needed to gain some perspective and work on her coping mechanisms without making him want to bare her ass and spank her until she couldn’t sit for weeks. “Now, are you ready to go home?”
“I don’t think so. I came here to get the visions out of my head.”
“I would’ve brought you here. If you’d asked me.”
“I needed to come alone. To clear my mind and forget.”
He sighed. Clearly, he needed lessons on how to deal with women. Even incensed, he’d help her move forward. His Wolf growled at him for continually ignoring their combined need. He pushed the beast down. “Christ. Babe, you are not alone. You can depend on me, lean on me. Ask me to back you up. I will in a heartbeat. Your weakness is not what you think it is.”
“Oh?” She lifted her chin, eyes flashing.
His gaze dipped to her lips. Damn, how he wanted to kiss that mouth of hers. Down, boy.
“And what’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means you don’t know how to ask for help. How to let someone take care of you. It’s okay to be broken, baby. I’ll pick those pieces up and put you the fuck back together. You don’t ride the memories of this shit alone. Got me?”
“What Wolf wants a broken mate? I’m a murderer.”
All those years of living with humans had distorted her view of who she was…what she was. No matter how badly he wanted to mate her, to spend his life with her, they would never fully bond until she accepted her nature. “We’re Wolves. It’s what we do. We protect the pack from those who threaten it.”
She frowned. “I’m a healer, Ford. Not a killer.”
He stepped toward her, praying his words would break through. “You are more than a healer, Caress. You are a protector. Why do you think you’re so adept at fighting, tracking, hunting? Those abilities? Not all of our kind excel at all three. You are intelligent, strong, and skilled. You are pack. I am pack. We all are.” He started to reach out to her but stopped himself, afraid she the contact might set her off again. Instead, he stared at her, waited for her to meet his gaze. “My Wolf is proud of what you’re capable of”—he’d never spoken truer words—“and we think you’re capable of much more. But do you know what? Deep down, if I could bring those men back to life just to kill them myself, I would to save you this grief.” But he couldn’t, and his heart ached for her. “Let me in to help you.”
“Let my mate, who keeps on rejecting me, help me?” She rolled her eyes, barricading herself behind that wall of sarcasm she’d built. “Good luck with that, Ford. You’re just as emotionally fucked up as I am. The only difference is no one fucking knows why. It’s not common knowledge.”
“You don’t want to put faith in me yet? Fine. I can accept that. You did what you were supposed to do. This”—he gestured toward her—“you acting out to this extent, is not normal, not for the woman I met six months ago. It’s time to go home and deal with the aftermath.”
“I’m dealing fine.”
“Bullshit.” He sliced his hand through the air. “Stop thinking of what could’ve happened. Stop second-guessing your choice to shift and let your Wolf take over. Stop blaming yourself for Myanna getting cut. She’s a Wolf and will heal as our kind do.” He grasped her upper arms, the action forcing her focus to his face. “Babe, believe in yours
elf and in your dual nature. Quit fighting your Wolf, and coexist.” Setting her back, he crossed his arms to wait out her stubbornness.
His mate’s gaze dropped to his utility belt. “Why do you have those?”
“What my Taser or the tranq?” He shrugged. “I’m always prepared for any given situation.”
She shook her head, her eyes narrowing. “You’re a deadly weapon yourself.”
“Why are you acting paranoid?” He set his hand on the butt of the tranq gun. “You think I’d use these on you?”
She snorted. “I’m far from stupid. Why else would you have them if not to use them?” She moved back a step.
He gritted his teeth. Damn, I should’ve never touched the tranq gun.
“You will never succeed in stunning or tranquilizing me.” Shifting her weight, she struck out, kicking him in the chest.
Anticipating her attack, he caught her calf, preventing her from doing damage to him. He frowned. He’d never understand the female mind. “Enough.”
“Let go. Don’t make me hurt you.”
He scented her fear. “If I wanted you tranqed, you’d be down by now.”
In a blink, her eyes glowed as she partially shifted. She sliced at him with a clawed hand. Pivoting, he evaded her, narrowly missing a gouging slash along his arm.
“Stop fighting me.” He snarled and knocked her down. He slammed his weight on top of her, pinning her to halt her attack. “I just want you to go ho—”
Wham!
The combative vixen head butted him.
Ignoring the pain, he wound her silken hair in his fist enough to immobilize her head, yet not cause her hurt or harm, and kept his other arm around her thighs. “Stop fighting me, Caress.”
“You want to control me. Why else would you have those on you?” She bucked against him.
Ford kept a light hold on her, preventing her from hurting him or herself. “For the third time, that is the last thing I want to do. Get up and walk.”
Chapter Four
From an early age, Ford figured the Fates hated him. The bundle of not-joy stumbling as she followed behind attested to that. Surrounded by thick foliage, he tried not to curse as they made the long trek to his place. Every few paces, she tossed rocks at him. He ignored the first few flying by, but then one struck him in the back of his head. Anger rose fast. Letting out a bellow of rage, he snapped, stalked to her, coming toe to toe, and dared her to strike him again. His little vixen leveled her gaze on him and smirked. Not knowing what else to do, he growled and hefted her over his shoulder. Maybe that had been her intent, to enrage his Wolf enough to take action.
Promiscuous Wolf Page 3
