by Kimber White
“No,” I said. “I have to go.”
Shouts drew the firemen's attention away for a second. A beam cracked and part of the roof caved in on the Langleys’ store. Before either of them could react, I was on the run again.
My heart thundered inside of me as I headed south. Instinct drove me. God, why hadn’t I brought my car? The flesh burned at the base of my neck. It pulled me, forcing my legs to pump faster. I needed to get as much distance between myself and those men as I could. It would only take a split second for one of them to reach me. My only hope was that neither of them picked up on what I was.
Liam’s. I was Liam’s.
If they found me, if they caught me, they would know. I heard one of them call after me, warning me to stop.
Liam!
My thoughts, my heart called out to him.
A low, rumbling growl came at my back as Tenley broke away from his companion. I felt his footsteps falling heavy, vibrating off the pavement toward me. He knew. God. He knew. I must have been putting off some kind of wolf’s mate pheromones and even in the chaos of the inferno, he knew.
I chanced a look over my shoulder as I came to the end of the street. Ahead of me, past the town square, the edge of Mammoth Forest loomed. Tenley had broken away from the rest of the firemen. His eyes glowed red as he watched me run. Even from here, I could feel his urge to shift rumble through him. He held his hands in tight fists at his sides, but they trembled the way Liam’s did when his own wolf simmered.
Tenley snapped his jaw. Two other firefighters came to his sides, both of them shifters. They didn’t give chase. Not yet. I realized with cold clarity that they were waiting for orders from their Alpha. It meant I had one chance to get the hell away from them before their decision became clear.
I turned and ran as fast as I could toward the woods. It was too late to head back to the clinic and my car. In any event, I didn’t want to draw them there. Our work wasn’t done. If the Chief Pack caught wind of the clinic’s connection to Liam and the others, they might not survive the blow. The Langleys’ store was already in ruins.
God. Bernie. Ellie. Brady. The image of that body bag burned through me. I kept on running.
My heart pounded so hard it felt as if it might burst from my chest. The pavement gave way to soft earth as I left the edge of town and headed for the dark expanse of the woods.
Liam. I had to get to Liam. I had to warn them about what happened. If I closed my eyes, I could sense Tenley and the others, watching, calculating their next move.
Bare branches clawed at my arms. I stumbled over loose rocks. I had no sense of which direction I ran. I just knew I had to keep on going. Maybe the woods would mask my scent. It was my only hope if the pack decided to give chase.
Gnarled birch trees and tall poplars loomed all around me. I tripped over an uneven patch of ground and landed hard on my palms. Blood welled there where I hit the jagged edge of a rock. I cried out but scrambled back to my feet. I had to keep going. I had to hide. Every instinct in me warned me what could happen if the Chief Pack figured out who I was. I was a wolf’s mate. That’s all they would care about. They would take me to the Alpha against my will like they’d tried to do with Keara.
I took three staggering steps forward. Rotted tree roots clawed at my legs, threatening to drive me back to the ground. I cried out, desperate to keep moving.
A howl rent the air to the east of me. My thunderous heartbeat took my breath away. But, it wasn’t my heartbeat at all. It was his. I skidded to a stop and fell to my knees in the soft earth. When I lifted my head, I came face to face with Liam’s wolf.
He blocked out the sun behind his shoulders, casting me in shadow. Liam’s lips curled back, revealing long fangs. His ears pricked and his silvery fur shimmered.
We stayed frozen for a moment. Me on all fours in front of him. His hot breath blew through my hair. Liam stood tall, majestic. A soft growl rippled through him.
“Liam.” My voice came out as a choked sob. I reached for him, sinking my fingers into the deep fur of his flank. His outer coat was rough, but beneath that, as my fingers touched his powerful thigh muscles, his fur became sable.
Liam lifted his head and let out a baleful howl that vibrated through me. Then, he dropped his head. His fur shimmered and his muscles rolled. The shift was effortless. One moment he was the wolf. The next, this beautiful man crouched before me. Every muscle chiseled to perfection. Liam’s hair glistened with sweat. My hand was still on his thigh. His massive cock hung before me. He was rock hard.
Gasping, I drew my hand away. Liam got his hands under my arms and helped me to my feet.
“What happened?” he said, his voice ragged. “You’re hurt? I felt you. I came as fast as I could.”
Shaking, I ran my fingers through my hair. I couldn’t think straight. Liam’s power drew me to him. My knees knocked together. Raw desire flooded my senses.
“No. It’s not me. Oh, Liam. Oh, God.”
He came to me. Liam slid his arms around my waist and pulled me close. He laced his fingers through my hair and caressed my cheek with his thumb. His skin left a heated trail over mine. My lips parted and wild heat pooled between my legs.
“Bernie,” I gasped. “The Langleys’ store. They’ve burned it to the ground.”
I hadn’t wanted to let my mind go there, but now I’d given voice to my fears. The moment I did, I knew the truth. “The Chief Pack. They were all over it. They’re in the fire department. Someone died, Liam. They brought out a body bag. God. Maybe they all died. I don’t know. But the store’s gone. It’s all gone.”
Liam’s eyes darted over my face. He wasn’t even trying to hide the brilliant glow of his wolf within them.
I wanted him. Every cell in my body seemed to call out to his. Impossible. Maddening. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t breathe.
“Molly,” Liam said, his voice choked. He stood before me naked. Beautiful. My own raw need reflected back to me in his golden eyes.
“You’re all right?” he asked. His hands roamed along my jaw, down my shoulders, to the small of my back. “I thought...I felt...you were...terrified.”
Nodding, I brought my hand up and put it over his where he touched my cheek. “They saw me. The Chief Pack saw me. I don’t think they…”
“I don’t care. It doesn’t matter. You’re here. You’re with me.” I think he meant it to comfort me, but as he uttered those words, I could see fresh pain etching lines in his face. Standing this close to me seemed to tear him apart in the same way it did me.
I couldn’t take it another second. I went up on my tiptoes and found his lips. With my thumbs at his ears, I drew his head down. He sank into the kiss, groaning into my mouth. My nerve endings caught fire.
I was meant for this. So was he. There with the expanse of woods around us, it was as natural as breathing.
Liam tore himself away. His lips curled and his eyes blazed. I could see the beast within him, torturing Liam to get out. It wasn’t fair of me. I knew it. Touching him like that, tempting him. It was selfish.
“I can’t. Molly, I can’t hold back.”
I meant to tell him I understood. I meant to step away and remove the temptation of my body and my touch. But, the moment I tried, everything fell away.
“So don’t,” I said, breathless. Logic told me this was dangerous, but instinct drove me. Another wolf had gotten close enough to touch me. My body cried out for this wolf. It was as if I needed him to erase the threat of Tenley’s touch.
One beat passed. Two. Liam’s chest heaved as he made his choice. Then, he grabbed me, gently but forcefully. He threaded his fingers through my hair and crushed his lips to mine. The sheer force of it brought me down. We sank to the forest floor together until I was on my knees before him. Liam bent at the waist to keep his lips locked with mine.
He was so close. I reached for him without thinking. My fingers closed around his hardness. He jerked in my palm. Liam threw his head back and let out a plaintive howl
that shuddered through me.
Before I knew what was happening, I tore at my scrub top. Casting it aside along with my tank top, Liam was already helping me out of my pants. He laid me down in the cool, velvety moss. He hovered over me for a moment, his tender eyes searching my face.
“Please,” I begged.
It was so quick. With one powerful thrust, Liam parted my thighs and entered me, rooting himself deep. Still daylight, the stars came out anyway. I curved myself around him. I’d been starving for so long. As Liam began to move his hips, the world cracked open and my heart became his.
Thirteen
Liam
Molly. My Molly. I should have walked away. I should have heeded everything Jagger told me. But when Molly’s lips brushed mine and I felt her heat, there was no going back.
“Please,” she begged me again. She spread herself open. The soft, pink petals at the juncture of her thighs spread for me. She was wet, glistening, so ready. I picked up the faint scent of another wolf on her. It enraged me. She was mine. She had to be mine.
With my wolf spurring me on, I stroked myself and slid into her welcoming heat. Oh, God. She was heaven. I couldn’t be gentle. Thousands of years of primal instinct took over and I thrust myself home. Molly’s body curved to mine as she wrapped her legs around me. Her hard nipples brushed my bare chest, sending new waves of pleasure coursing through me.
“Molly.” I whispered her name over and over as I fucked her deep. How could I have ever thought to deny myself this? I could no more stop myself from breathing. Neither could she. With each pounding thrust, she opened herself even more. Her sweet juices flowed, coating us both.
I wanted to turn her, take her on all fours and feed my animal lust. I knew it was too dangerous. The urge to sink my teeth into the soft flesh at the base of her neck burned too strong. And she’d let me. I could feel her own throbbing need for it even if she didn’t understand what it meant yet. But, oh, God, how good it would feel. To mark her. Claim her. Make her mine forever.
“Liam,” she cried, squirming beneath me. She craved my bite just as hard. I felt it pouring through her, making her whole body quiver. How I found the strength to hold that part back I’ll never know.
This was enough for now. It would have to be. Molly started to come. I felt her hitch, trying to hold it back. I redoubled my efforts and drove my cock ever deeper. She clawed at the ground to get the friction she needed. I held myself still for a moment and let her fuck me back. One thrust. Two. Then her orgasm ripped through her. Her breasts shuddered. I leaned down and took one pink nipple in my mouth. God, she tasted so sweet. I wanted nothing more than to spread her legs and taste her sweet nectar as she coasted down.
But, my own pleasure crescendoed. The wolf took over. Digging my heels into the soft earth, I found purchase, driving my cock in as deep as it would go.
“Yes!” She cried. Oh, God, she wanted it. My nostrils flared as my breath came hard. Holding my weight on my elbows, I wanted to see her. I wanted Molly’s eyes as my seed poured into her, heating her core. She tightened her legs around my waist, locking them at the ankles. It was the sweetest prison on earth.
A howl ripped from my throat as I poured into her even as I knew how dangerous this was. If any of the Chief Pack had followed her, they would track us easily, my scent hitting them like a thunderbolt.
But, the woods stayed quiet except for the sounds of our passion. Molly left a trail of soft kisses over my chest as I crested down and lay beside her.
We were awkward with each other for a moment. Though I hadn’t marked her, we’d crossed a threshold neither of us could walk back. I didn’t have the strength to say it to her then. I don’t think she had the strength to hear it. For now, it was enough just to touch her.
“Liam,” she said. “That was.”
“Dangerous,” I answered for her.
Molly gathered her clothes. I helped her find them and held her shirt out so she could slip it back on. It killed me to see her cover her body. I wanted to warm it with mine forever. Once she was dressed, she sat hugging her knees. My wolf stirred again. We weren’t safe out here much longer. I could sense the Pack. They hadn’t followed Molly. They were in town, probably drawn to the fire Molly told me about.
“Are we...I mean...I know…” she fumbled for the words. I crooked my finger beneath her chin and lifted her gaze to meet mine.
“We’re like Jagger and Keara,” she said. Such a simple sentence. The truth of it ripped through me. Of course I’d known since the minute I saw her.
There was so much more to tell her. I settled for a quiet, “Yes.”
She rested her chin on her knees. “Okay.”
I couldn’t help it. Her straightforward acceptance of such an earth-shattering fact made me smile. It also shredded my guts.
“I have to get you home,” I said. It hurt to swallow. My heart lodged in my throat at the thought of leaving Molly again. But, it was the safest, smartest thing to do. As long as she didn’t bear my mark, she could still be safe in town.
“No,” she gasped, the same hurt flooding through her. She pressed her palm to her ear. My pulse beat in time with hers now. It would grow stronger. If I ever did mark her, we would be connected on an even more powerful telepathic link. For now, her body and mine would be drawn to one another like a magnetic pull. I’d never feel whole unless she was near.
“It’s safer for both of us,” I said, hating myself for it. It wasn’t fair to her. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. Now that we’d coupled, I should have her by my side. I helped her to her feet.
We walked in silence for almost a mile. Molly’s trailer park was just over the next ridge. Tonight, I would take little comfort from sleeping below her in the caves. She reached for me. I took her hand and kissed it. For now, this would have to be enough.
“What about Brady?” she said as soon as we saw the distant lights of the trailer park.
“I’ll find out what I can. I fear the worst, though.”
She stopped and turned to me. “Do you think the Pack found out that the Langleys were helping you?”
A knife twisted in my gut. I said a silent prayer that it was just some unlucky accident. I knew in my heart that wasn’t likely. Molly knew it too.
“Molly,” I said. “Until we know more…”
She took a deep breath. “Until you know more, it’s better if you and the others stay away from the clinic. For a few days at least. I was thinking the same thing.”
I pulled her to me, kissing the top of her head as she rested it against my chest. “God. I’m sorry. It’s killing me not to be near you every second of every day. It’s going to be worse now, not better.”
A single tear fell down her cheek as she looked up at me. “Will you be careful? Will you promise me you won’t do anything stupid or get caught? I mean it. I can bear to be away from you if I know you’re safe.”
Smiling, I smoothed the hair away from her face. “I was about to say the same thing to you. Don’t do anything heroic. Lay low. Don’t go to the Langleys’ store. Don’t ask around about them. I’ll get word to you as soon as I can.”
“They’re everywhere, aren’t they? The scene of that fire was crawling with them. It wasn’t just the firefighters. God. How could I have lived in this town for so long and not sensed something different?”
“We’re good at blending in when we need to,” I said. “And most humans believe what they need to. They explain away unusual things as something normal. It’s your nature. It’s how you stay safe.”
“So what do I do if I run into one of the Pack members?”
My heart lurched thinking about it. Every instinct in me wanted me to bring her with me to hide down in the caves. I knew it might come to that, but the simple truth was, she was safer away from me than with me. At least for now.
“Just try to act as natural as possible. I haven’t marked you. They won’t sense you.”
She put a hand the back of her neck. Desire flared hot
inside me. I knew it did for her too.
“You be careful too,” she said.
I kissed her one last time. Through the brush, she’d find her way home. “I’ll send word as soon as I can,” I said. “It’ll be all right.”
Molly gave me a trusting nod and I prayed it really would be. I watched her straighten her back as she walked up to her trailer. She gave a bright smile and a wave to a group of her neighbors walking by. She was bold and fearless. My heart ached to leave her, but I had no choice.
The others were waiting for me as I made my way into the great antechamber. Only Keara was missing. Jagger gave me a hard stare. Mac, Gunnar, and Payne had the decency to look sheepish.
I couldn’t lie. I couldn’t hide it. I knew they could scent Molly all over me. We didn’t have a pack link, but these men had spent enough time with me to know exactly what had happened.
“Are you out of your fucking mind?” Payne was the one to say it. That surprised me. His hair flamed even redder under the LED lights.
“What do you want me to say?” I said. The fight had gone out of me. Until Payne found his own mate, he’d never fully understand. I realized then that’s exactly why Jagger kept quiet. He’d be a hypocrite otherwise.
“I haven’t marked her. She’s safe. We’re safe. At least for now.”
Jagger squeezed his eyes shut and pounded the back of his head against the cave wall. There was news. Bad.
“Where’s Keara?” I asked, already knowing the answer.
“Bernie missed his drop,” Mac answered. “Keara went looking for him. I assume you know what happened by now?”
“Molly said there was a fire. She said someone was killed.”
