“I thought you only owned jeans and t-shirts,” he couldn’t seem to unclench his teeth.
“We’re going to a club. Look at you, collared shirt, designer jeans.”
If he didn’t know better, he’d think she was actually checking him out. He responded with a sound that came out sounding more like a low growl. Damned if his cock wasn’t responding. Her voice, her smell, her body. Her. How was it that this little human, so un-wolf-like, had him so wound up? Why didn’t he feel this for Alisha? Every other hot blooded wolf on Wilderness lusted after her. Yet here he was feeling things he really shouldn’t for a pint sized woman. A human.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Like what?” Again it sounded too much like a growl which kind of happened when wolves were this turned on.
“Like I’m…um…food and why are your eyes glowing?”
Damn, he needed to get some control back and right now. “I’m angry and I’m not sure you should be dressed quite so…like that”−Sexy−“we’re supposed to blend in not attract attention.” That same self-satisfied smile was back. He cringed inwardly waiting for her smart ass reply.
“Look, I borrowed this dress to blend in and sure, one or two morons might look but I’m not going to attract any real attention.”
“Why not?”
“Dog…Gray, human men, like wolf men and probably all species of male, like curves and I guess they like their women compliant, soft, I don’t know giggly. Oh did I mention the curves. I’m…not…any of those things.”
Anger flashed through him. Were human men so stupid they didn’t recognize a beautiful, intelligent woman when she was standing right in front of them? “You’re curvy. Plenty curvy.” His eyes, hades help him, couldn’t help but to slide down each and every one of her blood heating curves, stopping at the tiny mound at the juncture of her thighs. He licked his lips, thinking where he’d like his tongue to be.
“Since when were Omegas so blind? Just wait for the next full moon and your pup…um…thanks Gray.”
Why was she being so nice to him? Twice she’d stopped herself from teasing him and just when he’d seriously started to look forward to their sparing. The one thing he loved about being around her was that she treated him like a regular guy. He didn’t feel like an Alpha or a mongrel, he just felt like…himself. “Say it.”
“No. It was rude of me unkind…”
“Since when do you care about my feelings?” Then it dawned on him. So that was why he hadn’t wanted her to see what had transpired at dinner, he’d been right to feel worried because she did think less of him. Even worse, she felt sorry for him and was trying to be nice.
“I do care and I would rather not−”
“I insist,” he growled.
Ash stood her ground outwardly showing that innate defiance, but he couldn’t help but sense an aura of vulnerability. It was unexpected.
“Fine. I was going to tell you to open your puppy dog eyes doggie boy because this”−Ash glanced down at herself before running her hands down the length of her body in a rush. She met his eyes before looking away while she continued to speak−“is not a body that was built for standing out in a club. In a fight maybe, but definitely not in a club. Can we go please?”
He walked to the corvette and opened the passenger door for her without looking her way. His teeth clenched to the point where he worried they might crack, but he couldn’t seem to let up. Part of him wondered if she was serious and the rest wanted to demand if she was just fishing for compliments. Doesn’t stand out? Christ, he was in the most stressful and demanding time of his life, and all he could think about was tasting her delectable body every time she got near. A body made for fighting. Not hardly. Petite, athletic with just enough curves to keep a man up nights. The muscles in his neck bunched as he clenched his teeth tighter still.
After Ash got in, he slammed the door closed behind her. She looked hurt for just a moment before she closed her expression down. He shook his head as if that would clear it. He had to take Alisha as his mate soon due to obligations. He couldn’t leave Ash thinking that about herself though, simply because it wasn’t true.
Gray opened the passenger door back up and leaned in. He slid his hand under her chin and forced her to look at him as he said, “For some reason, I don’t think you are actually fishing for compliments”—he closed his eyes for a brief moment before he opened them again and continued—“you actually don’t realize your own worth, and evidently the males of the human race don’t either. Think on that next time you look in the mirror.”
With that, he straightened out of the car and slammed the door in her astonished face. He walked around to the driver’s side and got in while thinking about the undeniable truth that if it weren’t for his pack, his responsibilities, Alisha, he’d prove to her exactly how much she stood out in his mind. Hounds, he’d show her with his hands, his tongue, every part of him on every part of her. Deep inside her. He’d make her come more times and in more ways than she could ever think possible.
Chapter 5
They drove for a while in awkward silence. Ash was finally the one to break the tension. “What’s the story with you and Alisha?” her glacial eyes widened and she slapped a hand over her mouth for a quick second. “Sorry that was rude.”
“I said to stop with the being nice.” He was glad she had asked although why, he could not say. “Alisha was always Bain’s girl. I don’t think she knows that he had decided to take another mate right before he died.” Gray thought back on the Omega Katy and how his half-brother had marked and chased her, planning on taking her as his life mate. This was the reason Cole had fought with Bain. Except Gray had been the one to deliver the death blow sparing Cole from having to take the Alpha responsibility. “She thinks I killed Bain to take the Alpha position and that I just expect her to fall in line and become my mate. I can’t blame her for hating me. I killed the man she loved. After our talk and the whole dinner debacle she thinks I plan on forcing myself on her.”
“But you won’t.”
“I’ve never had to force myself on a woman before, so why would I start now?”
Ash started to say something, but she clamped her mouth shut instead.
“Ask me,” he took his eyes from the road for a second and caught her playing with her belt buckle.
“It’s rude.”
He growled.
“Ooh, I kinda like it when you do that, maybe I’ll be even more polite from now on.”
It made him want to growl some more, but he didn’t.
“Um…you don’t seem to be in love with Alisha and she…hates you so why do you want her to become your mate?”
“I have to mate with the highest ranking Alpha female during a full moon in order to turn into a full demon wolf. It can only happen if the male wolf has won the right to be Alpha, and by killing Bain I have done that. Alisha is the most eligible demon wolf. The Lores are strict, I need to turn before I am challenged and there will be challenges. All I need is a bit of luck and a way to get Alisha on my side. There is one other Lore, but it’ll never happen so it’s Alisha or…”
“Okay, so that explains the whole three days or else thing.” He cringed and she continued. “How do you feel about her?”
His mind couldn’t help but to wander as he listened to her voice. There was definitely something there between him and the little Chaser. Sparks that could very easily ignite into something more.
His destiny was set.
It would also be wrong on all levels to admit that he didn’t love Alisha and that he never would love her. On the outside chance that she agreed and ended up becoming his mate, possible future mother of his pups, he could not disrespect her in such a way. It would be unacceptable. Yet, at the same time, the last thing he felt like doing was proclaiming feelings for someone else most especially to Ash which was really stupid since he could never have her.
“I wanted Alisha as a young wolf. Had the biggest, baddest crus
h on her. There are many differences and misunderstandings to iron out but I’m sure we’ll get there in the end.” He glanced at Ash in time to see her face cloud. For just a second she seemed hurt and then she smiled.
“Don’t worry. I’ll help you,” her smile grew. Peaches and cream. The smile of an angel.
“How?” he had to choke out the word.
“Duh! I’m a woman dummy, I know what women want. I’ll help you romance the toes, or should I say paws off of her.”
There were many things he wanted from this woman. Helping him romance Alisha was not one of them, but it was the way things were whether he liked it or not.
****
Ashlyn decided there and then that she would do anything to help Gray including teaching him how to romance Alisha. Even if the woman was a complete bitch and didn’t deserve a man like Gray. In order for him to stay alive he had to become the demon wolf’s mate. Had to. And she would have to help him do it. Ash had liked the way he had gone about things. How he had taken Alisha that plate of food. Simple yet meaningful. Flowers, chocolates were all bullshit at the end of the day. Ash knew that Alisha was a bullshit kind of a girl. The man needed help alright.
They arrived at the up market club. A line of would be patrons were wrapped half way round the block.
“Stay close and don’t talk,” Gray instructed as they got out of the car.
They walked straight up to the front double doors and as they approached Gray put his arm around her shoulders pulling her in close. When their bodies connected there was an almost audible crackle as electricity sparked between them. Her skin tingled. Gray didn’t react. Did he feel it?
Oh God…please make him feel it.
“Shhhh…,” he whispered, his breath tickling her ear. Hot. Seductive. She sucked back a needy whimper. Damnit, she wasn’t needy, she was a Demon Chaser. She ate demons for breakfast, lunch and supper.
She held her breath but no one tried to stop them or engage with them in any way. “How did we do that?”
“Wolves, especially Alphas have the ability to blend into their surrounds.” His voice had lowered back to a semi growl.
It had her nipples tightening, heaven help her but she felt herself go wet. “That wasn’t blending that was disappearing altogether.” She felt appalled to hear how husky her own voice had become.
Gray pulled away from her abruptly, she swallowed back a moan. Had to force her body from moving back into him. Her skin craved his contact.
“It was just an illusion, one very easily broken. Let’s go get a drink. We’ll be able to scan the crowd better from up there.” He moved ahead of her.
The bar top was made of ice, above hung crystal chandeliers. Below a sea of gyrating bodies. The beat vibrated through her. Ash closed her eyes trying to forget the feel of Gray’s touch. It was unnerving; no one had ever affected her this deeply and by a single touch alone.
The crowd surrounding the bar moved aside as Gray approached, he didn’t have to say or do anything. Two of the female bartenders saw him coming and almost tripped over themselves, and each other, as they raced for a chance to serve him. Although she would never fall all over a man, Ash couldn’t blame them when it came to a man like Gray. Tall, built and deadly. She pulled her eyes from his broad back and scanned the crowd while she waited.
Minutes later Gray stepped in beside her and handed her a pink cocktail. “It’s a virgin. I hope you don’t mind?”
Parts of her reacted to his deep voice. His presence. She shook her head. A bottle of water for himself. “What are we looking for?”
“Something or someone out of the ordinary. I have a picture of Brice to show around.”
Why hadn’t she thought of that? If her head wasn’t so fixated on a certain wolf demon maybe she would have. Enough, she needed to put her energy to good use. They were trying to find a brutal killer, one who would strike again. They were racing against a clock and here she was making googly eyes at a man she could never have.
****
There was too much going on to be able to fixate on one scent. It was all one big confusing mess of sights and sounds. Only one scent still burned his nostrils with crystal clear clarity. Peaches. Freshly picked. Oh so ripe. Peaches that had erupted with the unmistakable edge of arousal the moment he’d touched her. He’d been too busy trying to keep his cock from playing peck-a-boo with the waistband of his jeans, as well as keeping them masked from the bouncers at the door, to think on it. Hounds, but in that instant he’d wanted to take her more than anyone ever before. Wolf, human, all women, had vanished from his mind, only she remained, past, present and future.
He wanted, he wanted badly.
The tingling sensation had stayed until he couldn’t take it anymore and had to let her go. It wasn’t easy. Not when he wanted to embrace her further, much harder. He took another sip of the ice cold water trying to douse the flames. Keeping his eyes on the crowd so that she wouldn’t be able to distract him further.
Hades, that tight ass in a dress that was made for sliding up over hips that were made for riding, it all taunted him. Gray could feel himself thicken. He willed himself to think about something else. Anything else. It wasn’t working. “It’s no good. We’re not going to get anywhere by standing around.” She turned to face him as he spoke, but he kept his eyes on the nameless faces. Too many to count. “Time to show and tell.” He took the picture from his pocket. When he turned to look at her, she nodded once. “We’ll stick together. I’ll do the talking; you keep an eye out for anything unusual, agreed?” He quickly added the question at the end, knowing how she didn’t like to be told what to do.
There was a slight hesitation before she finally nodded her head. “Let’s start with the club employees before we start harassing half-drunk clubbers.”
“Yeah, sounds good.” What it sounded like was a wild goose chase but it was all they had right now. They worked their way around the club, before making their way back to the bar where they first started. Gray let Ash lead the way. That way he could keep an eye on her without touching.
Men looked plenty, they tracked her with their eyes. They reacted when she accidentally brushed against them. Had she lied to him about human men not being attracted to her? Why would she lie about something like that? One man in particular caressed her with his gaze. He knew how a man’s mind worked. The guy was undressing her mentally.
Gray’s jaw clenched, then his hands fisted at his sides. This from a man who had never been jealous a day in his life. He felt like beating each of those men senseless even though he couldn’t blame them. Boiling point neared, he needed to calm himself, so he reached for her placing his hands securely on her hips. Mine. Shock waves fired through his fingertips and she moaned. A sound no human would have heard. His body reacted and as much as he wanted to show the other men in the room that she was off limits, he had to let her go.
Thank hades they’d reached the bar, a different server surged forward to take his order. Her tight tank had been cut just below her ample breasts. She smelt like vodka, human, yet not. It was because he couldn’t zone in on her scent that he realized they’d found what they were looking for.
“You’ve been asking questions about a woman that was here.” Without waiting for an answer she nodded, reached for a glass and filled it with ice. She spoke for his ears alone. “Get ready to pay me. Take your drinks and then meet me in the parking lot in fifteen minutes.”
He nodded.
Damn, he didn’t like it one bit but instead of arguing, he paid, took the drinks, handing one to Ash before sliding his arm around her narrow waist. This time he anticipated the sensations, yet in amongst all these people and the situation they found themselves in, the contact still affected him. “Let’s walk.”
“What the hell was that?”
He smiled at the violence etched in her voice, at the scent of gunpowder that hit his nose. His little Chaser hated it when she wasn’t the one pulling all the strings.
“That girl wasn
’t quite human. She had the same scent as the one I picked up in the alley. She wants us to meet her outside in fifteen minutes.”
“That’s madness. We could walk straight into a trap.”
“That’s why I’m going alone.”
“Bullshit!” She pulled away from him, anchoring her hands on her hips. “I’ve been doing a bit of research and I think I know what we’re dealing with here.”
“Why didn’t you say anything sooner?”
“Maybe because I was scared you would pull a little stunt like this. Looks like I was right.”
He took a step towards her and her frown intensified. “Ash, I’m only going to ask once at which point I’ll…” What would he do to her? Sweet talk her until she told him. It wouldn’t work on a woman like Ash so he snapped his jaw shut grinding his teeth in frustration.
She cocked her head to the side and her mouth quirked up. “I’ll tell you but only if you take me willingly, because I’m coming whether you like it or not. I’m a Demon Chaser. Why do I have to keep reminding you of that?”
She didn’t look like a Demon Chaser and certainly didn’t smell like one, but he couldn’t tell her that now could he? “Fine Ash but I’m taking lead. If anything happens to you I’ll…” his hands bunched into fists at his sides.
****
He left the sentence hanging. His concern was touching. It made her want to believe that he might feel something for her which was ludicrous. Although he’d sort of admitted to finding her attractive, he’d made it clear that Alisha was his future when they were just partners working a case. It was normal for partners to feel concerned for one another.
“I think she’s a demon skin. That’s why you struggle to get her exact scent. Why she smells human but not.” Her cheeks burned with guilt. The reason she hadn’t told him all this was because she’d forgotten to. She wasn’t withholding information because she didn’t trust him. It was because he was making her lose her mind. Every time he looked at her, Lordie, every time he touched her whole clusters of brain cells turned to mush.
Alpha Page 3
