Seduced by the Wolf
Seduced by the Wolf
Bonnie Vanak
Jarrett Lawson can't fall in love—but he needs a woman.Pack rules dictate that as the alpha male, he must mate before the rest of his shifter community can. But after losing his cherished wife, Jarrett has vowed never to risk his heart again. A vow that is tested when Ariel Abidos reenters his life.Jarrett and Ariel once shared an explosive sexual chemistry, but Ariel left him with no explanation just before they became lovers. So when the sexy Lupine Fae needs his help to investigate why her people are vanishing on his ancestral land, he asks one thing in return: that she become his new mate…
Jarrett Lawson can’t fall in love—but he needs a woman. Pack rules dictate that as the alpha male, he must mate before the rest of his shifter community can. But after losing his cherished wife, Jarrett has vowed never to risk his heart again. A vow that is tested when Ariel Abidos reenters his life.
Jarrett and Ariel once shared an explosive sexual chemistry, but Ariel left him with no explanation just before they became lovers. So when the sexy Lupine Fae needs his help to investigate why her people are vanishing on his ancestral land, he asks one thing in return: that she become his new mate….
Seduced by the Wolf
Bonnie Vanak
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Chapter One
The scent trail was fetid, laced with undertones of spice and pine. It hurt her nostrils like the smell of shaved metal did, but she continued up the mountain. She wound through the pine forest to a recess in the rocky cliffs. Straight through Lawson pack territory and past a battered sign: Trespassers Will Be Dealt with Swiftly.
Ariel Abidos swallowed hard. Torn apart by fangs and claws by the pack wolves.
Sharp as needles, a cold wind swept down from the Colorado mountains, rustling aspen leaves touched by brilliant fall hues. A lonely howl of a wolf calling for its mate echoed through the valley.
If Jarrett Lawson found her, he’d mete out a different punishment…in his bed. Ariel shivered, her breasts tingling with memories. Jarrett, his strong, muscled body, his slow, crooked smile. His slow, deep kisses that promised explosive pleasure.
His fury when she’d walked out on him before they’d become lovers.
He might forbid his pack from touching her and save the honors for himself. Ariel swayed on her feet, remembering the slow caress of his hands over her flesh, arousing her as no man ever had. The dangerous passion that could kill.
No matter. Her people were counting on her.
I have to find them before it’s too late.
Ariel lifted her arms. She called upon the ancient magick running through her blood. She felt pain as her bones lengthened, the transformation brutal and slow.
The slender, delicate Fae had now transformed into a small gray timber wolf. Ariel loped past the sign, following the dark scent—the odor of metal shavings more prominent now. Ariel’s heart raced as she focused. There, up in the recess…her quarry. The answer to why her people were vanishing.
Hope pushed her onward as she raced to the rockslide leading to the cavern, even as she heard the distinct howl echoing off the Colorado mountain.
They’d found her.
Her paws slid on the gravel. Ariel grappled for purchase. And then the blood-chilling howls piercing the air turned to snarls. Six wolves burst out of the thick pines to her right. Fangs bared, they barreled toward her.
Terror immobilized her. Couldn’t shift, couldn’t outrun them. Ariel glanced upward at the cavern holding all the answers. She turned to run and lost her foothold.
Yipping, she tumbled headfirst down the mountain, sharp rocks scraping her nose, digging past the thick fur. Ariel crashed into a boulder, the granite stopping her decent. She struggled to her feet. Heart racing, the stench of her own fear clogging her nostrils, she ran, driven by the wolf’s animal fear. The pack snapped at her heels as she raced through the thicket of trees. She turned for the dividing line between her territory and the pack’s, but a wolf cut her off, forcing her to turn right. Blood dripped into her eyes, blurring her vision.
Panting, she reached the meadow. A yellow pine cabin stood in the distance. Teeth snapped behind her, herding her straight toward it. Wolves flanked her, cutting off escape. Fear fogged her brain.
The porch! With a last burst of strength, Ariel leapt over the railing. She crashed through the screen door. Wood cracked, the screen split, tearing at her sensitive skin.. Howling, she fell onto the polished wood floor, her paws sliding out from her. Ariel felt the hot breath of the wolves leaping through the ruined door.
She raced down the hallway, praying the house was empty. Ariel ran toward one of the rooms she sighted, claws digging into the wood, her breath coming in sharp, stabbing pants. She skidded through the doorway and collapsed, expecting the hot agony of fangs sinking into her throat. Ariel closed her eyes. It was over.
“What the hell?”
Opening her eyes, she blinked. The room was dominated by an acre-sized bed near the window. But it was the man standing up before a desk that caught her attention. He turned with natural grace, his wide shoulders blocking out the light, an expression of astonishment on his handsome face.
Oh crap. She closed her eyes.
The wolves had chased her into the enemy’s lair. Right into Jarrett Lawson’s bedroom.
Chapter Two
Jarrett Lawson had been pouring over paperwork, idly wishing someone would interrupt him.
Now he glanced downward at the gray timber wolf at his feet. She panted with obvious exhaustion.
Not exactly what he’d planned.
He breathed in her luscious scent and the smell of sweet wildflowers shot through his body like an intoxicating drug. Damn, he knew this… His body tightened with arousal. Then he looked closer. Anger bloomed hot and hard as he saw blood matting her gray fur, the fear pooling in her gray eyes.
No one hurt females on his land. Females were revered, protected and cherished. Jarrett felt his claws emerge, ready to deal with whoever had injured her.
Six of his strongest males padded into his bedroom. One pawed at the floor, lifting his muzzle with a grin.
“Pleased with yourself, Sam? Tell me what the hell’s going on here.”
The males shifted back, clothing their bodies through magick. His Beta nodded at the female.
“We brought you a gift. Found her snooping along the old mining trail.”
The wolf whined. Lifting her head, she stared, weakly thumping her tail. She tried to struggle upright and collapsed. Jarrett rested a hand on her head.
He glared at the six, who lowered their gazes. “Who did this?”
“She slid down the mountain. We didn’t touch her.” Sam gave a knowing smile. “Saved her for you, Jarrett.”
He turned his attention to the injured wolf. “Easy now. Save your strength to shift back. Can you do that for me?”
He kept his voice low and soothing. Jarrett encouraged her as she tried to shift back, her form shimmering between wolf and human. His mouth went dry as he envisioned her stuck between two forms, the worst death for his people.
“Come on,” he coaxed. “You can do it.”
Then he deepened his voice. “Do it. Now.”
The wolf’s head snapped up, defiance in her clear blue eyes. Light shimmered and suddenly a naked, shivering woman appeared. Curls the color of autumn leaves shielded her face, spilling past slender shoulders. She hung her head, as if hiding. With one hand, Jarrett lifted the curtain of her hair.
Shock pummeled him as she raised her chin.
Long, slender legs, curved hips and a slim waist, full breasts that could fill a man’s palms. Her skin looked soft as peach fuzz. Elegant and delicate features, she had a full, lush red mouth made for kissing. Her eyes were the deepest blue, and sparked with life.
The tips of her ears were slightly pointed.
“Ariel?” Jarrett felt the ice surrounding his heart crack a little. His pulse beat harder. “It’s been a long time.”
Was that his voice, growing husky with old longing? Remembering the innocence of those times they’d shared, before he’d grown hardened and cold?
Sam cleared his throat. “We brought her to you, Jarrett. We knew how you’d felt about her, before you got mated…”
His Beta’s voice trailed off. Knifelike pain sank into Jarrett’s chest. Ariel gave him a questioning look. “You have a mate?”
“Her name was Chloe. She died in a fight with jaguars a few years ago,” Jarrett told her.
Ariel’s eyes grew a deeper shade of blue. That Fae quality, the ability to sense emotions, even tough ones he’d successfully masked. She touched his cheek. The contact trebled his pulse.
“So much pain. So much sadness in your eyes.”
Sadness? Hell, it wasn’t sadness. It was a cold tomb encasing him since he’d held Chloe’s bloodied body in his arms, begging her to live for him, for their unborn child.
Then watching the light fade from her eyes.
Claws dug into his heart. Not guilt. His guilt was gone and buried in the ground with Chloe.
A luminous glow shone in Ariel’s eyes. Compassion. The Lupine Fae cherished their ability to connect with those who hurt. Jarrett threw up the emotional shield that had helped him endure the past thirty-one years since Chloe’s death. He drew back from her concern. He was Alpha, and couldn’t be seen as weak. Especially before a lovely Fae who’d almost stolen his heart years before.
“What the hell are you doing here, Ariel? You trespassed. I deal swiftly with trespassers. Or slowly. Very nice… and slow.”
White lines of tension edged her full mouth. “I had no intention of coming here.”
Ariel struggled to her knees, fell back. He reached out, cupped her elbow. “Easy now. You’re in no shape to leave.”
“And I suppose your men intended on that.”
Her melodious voice was low and hoarse, as if sandpaper rubbed her throat raw. She cupped her breasts in a protective manner. Jarrett glared at his men, who shuffled their feet. “Talk. You know the rules. You’re supposed to chase any four-legged intruders out of our lands.”
Sam shook his head. “She smelled too nice to throw back.”
“I am not a fish.” Ariel glared at him.
“No, but you’re a gift. For you, Jarrett. We knew how much you craved her.”
Jarrett rubbed the back of his neck, feeling his muscles tighten with unwanted sexual arousal. Ariel Abidos. Years ago, the lovely Fae shifter had teased and tempted him to the point of panting, and then slipped out of his bed before they consummated their bond. She’d even fled her own beloved colony and never returned.
Until now.
He needed a mate. Jarrett concentrated on Ariel. Those huge blue eyes, innocent and wide, were watchful. Her skin was nearly translucent, blue veins running close to the surface. Heat filled him as he remembered nuzzling her neck, tracing the delicate shell-like ear, licking the tiny pointed tip while his hands stroked over her trembling body….
Never again would he fall in love. But a new mate, that was different. Ever since their release from prison six months ago, the males refused to impregnate their mates. It was forbidden until Jarrett took a mate. The Alpha’s duty to the pack was to provide them with an heir.
His dreams of happiness had died along with Chloe and their unborn child. But he couldn’t bear to see his people suffer any longer.
“We’d die for you, Jarrett,” Sam said, spreading his hands out. “We love you, man. You kept our sanity all those years in prison. You’d do anything for us, and we can’t bear to see you go on like this anymore.”
His men, strong and loyal to the end. Emotion tightened his chest. He went to Sam and clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Go, back to your homes, all of you. I’ll call for you if I need you.”
The men nodded, spared a knowing glance at Ariel. Jarrett shut the bedroom door behind them. Ariel glanced up.
“I’m sorry about Chloe. What happened?” Her voice was so soft, so melodious and soothing. He closed his eyes.
She’d said her name. No one else in his pack even whispered it, as if they were afraid of his reaction. The dull ache always present in his chest deepened into a sharp knifelike twist. He walked to the window, lifting the lace curtain with the back of one hand. Chloe had sewn the window coverings. They were too feminine for his taste, but he couldn’t change them. They were a small connection to the past.
Emotion tightened his throat. Jarrett swallowed past it. He would never love again. It hurt like a bitch when you lost someone you loved. His heart hadn’t been broken when he’d held Chloe’s broken body in his arms. It shattered.
“One of the Ancients, the powerful soldiers who fight evil for the Society for the Prevention of Malevolent Magick, came onto my land looking for my sister. She’d killed hunters who had killed her mate while he was in wolf form. I found out the Ancient took my sister’s life, and went after him, then all hell broke loose.”
Every muscle in his body tensed as he remembered. “Chloe was killed when she rushed out to find me. She was terrified and wasn’t thinking, and she got killed by a jaguar. The jaguars said it was an accident. I’ve forgiven them.” Even though there had been so much blood that day, teeth, claws and violence. “My men and I went to prison because of the fight. So did the jaguars. We’ve made our peace and moved on.”
Well, his men had. It was time for him to move on as well. He whirled and saw Ariel sitting on the floor, delicate features marred with dirt and blood. Pity shone in her eyes.
He hated pity. Pity made him weak.
“Why were you on my land, Ariel? Don’t tell me it’s because you missed me so much. I’ve been back home for half a year. If you wanted to welcome me home, you could have knocked at the door instead of crashing through it.”
“I didn’t plan on running into you again. I shifted to scent out a trail on your territory. I need to see what’s up in that cavern.”
“Why?” He went to her, crouched down and trailed a thumb over her soft cheek, enjoying the silky texture. Too long since he’d felt a woman’s soft skin beneath his fingers. He couldn’t fall in love, but he needed a woman.
Needed a mate.
Ariel quivered beneath his touch, her skin flushing to a delicate rose. Arousal pumped hot and heavy into his loins as he scented her sweet, faintly spicy feminine fragrance.
“My people are vanishing. One by one. Something or someone is abducting them at night. Thirty are gone now.” Ariel pulled away, her breathing hitched. “No blood trail, no signs of a struggle. Just empty beds in the morning and a dark scent pervading the space.”
He studied his would-be lover. She’d never lied before. Then again, years ago she’d sworn she wanted him as much as he’d wanted her, leaving him hungry and panting. Teased him to the point of going mad.
And walked away.
Even with the dirt and ugly scratches marring her heart-shaped face, she looked tempting as a fresh peach dangling from a tree. Jarrett’s mouth watered as he remembered running his tongue over her bare skin. Before she’d left. Now she was back.
“I need access to that cavern, Jarrett.” Ariel’s mouth wobbled. “Something is taking my people at night. Cael, our leader, asked me to track down the source. I’m the strongest wolf shifter in the colony. We need your help, Jarrett. I have to see what’s inside the cave.”
“I’m no Boy Scout. I stopped assisting little old Fae cross the street years ago.” He flashed a grin, feeling his canines lengthen. “Now I just eat them.”
“Cael needs your help.”
“Cael never helped me when I came looking for you, worried what the hell had happened to you.” The Fae leader had been hard as the granite mountains. He talked only of the balance necessary in nature, saying Ariel being with him would upset the balance.
She tilted up her round chin. “Then forget him. Help me, Jarrett. What do you want me to do?”
He brought his face close and said softly, “Beg.”
Long, dark lashes feathered her cheeks as she closed her eyes. He inhaled deeply, drawing her delicious scent into his body. He could almost taste her beneath his tongue, warm and wet. The smell of sex. A throbbing began in his loins, reminding him of how he’d reacted in the past.
“If that’s what you want, then I’ll beg. Want me to lose my pride?” Ariel spread her palms wide, revealing her pale breasts tipped with raspberry nipples. “I’ll lose it. I’ll do anything to save my people.”
He watched her nipples grow hard as pearls. He had to touch her. Couldn’t help himself.
“And I’ll do anything to save mine.” He slid a palm over her cheek, feeling warmth beneath his fingertips. “They’re going to die out. Unless…”
He took a new mate and fathered an heir.
For the first time since Chloe had died, hope filled him. Ariel still turned him on. It wasn’t her body, lush and lovely as it was. It was her spirit and life burning bright as the hot sun in the sharp blue sky. He was the moon, sultry and filled with secrets. Ariel was light and warmth. He needed her heat to counter the coldness inside him.
Balance, he thought. Life’s about balance, just as Cael had once said.
Ariel never surrendered. No, she’d go down fighting, tooth and claw. A hint of the passion she’d display in bed.
“I’ll help you on one condition. But you won’t like it.”
“Anything,” she insisted. “Anything you want.”
Jarrett fingered a strand of her silky hair. “Mate with me.”
Chapter Three
Stunned disbelief shot through Ariel. Was she really listening to Jarrett telling her he needed to father a child? How he would instruct his pack to assist her only if… She closed her eyes as naughty fantasies she’d abandoned resurfaced. She was naked, lying beneath him in that big bed. Sweat glistened on his brow, his chocolate-brown eyes darkened in fierce concentration as he pushed into her body, his flesh slapping against hers as they made love to conceive his longed-for heir.
It was sex. Just sex.
And dangerous. If his men were around…
“You want me as a mate to give you a child. But nothing more.”
“Yes.”
“Do you still have feelings for me, Jarrett?” She had to know. “Or is it just the sex?”
His mouth thinned to a tight slash. “I have no more feelings left to give, Ariel.”
The Fae inside her cried out to draw him closer and offer comfort. She had to leave. Now, before she capitulated. Because with Jarrett, it wouldn’t be comfort. It would be mind-bending, wild sex that could send them both spiraling out of control.
She pushed to her feet, and a violent trembling seized her muscles. Ariel grabbed onto a nearby bedpost, missed and began to fall.
Jarrett stood and caught her, hefted her into his arms. A lock of blond hair spilled into his face. So handsome, the face of an angel with devilish dark eyes. A beast looked out of those eyes, the wolf held at bay.
“You’re freezing. Let’s get you warmed up.”
For a wild moment she thought he would toss her onto the big bed. Instead, with the toe of one boot, Jarrett pushed open the bathroom door. He elbowed aside the glass doors and stepped inside a shower the size of a walk-in closet. Very gently, he set her down on the seat. Closing her eyes, Ariel sagged against the wall. She felt so damned exposed and vulnerable. She wanted to collapse in a shivering heap on the floor and curl up in the fetal position.
Sheer will prevented her from doing so.
The slow rasp of a zipper caught her attention. Jarrett shrugged out of his jeans, tugged his mulberry sweater over his head. His chest was broad, dusted with dark blond hair. A scar slashed across the thick muscles of his right shoulder. It looked like a claw mark.
Black boxers fit snug against his lean hips. He was leanly muscled, six feet of lethal wolf in a man’s strong body. Ariel’s breath hitched as she remembered the passion between them that had once threatened to consume them.
And then she’d slipped out of his bed before things got too dicey. Went too far.
Jarrett stepped into the shower, helped her to stand. One arm locked around her middle as he stood behind her and twisted the knobs. Warm water cascaded over her battered body. Ariel flinched, sagging against him as he murmured assurances. He pushed a hand through her hair, his touch oddly soothing. Her life was literally in this wolf’s hands.
He could snap her neck for intruding on his territory.
Jarrett reached for the soap and began washing her. His touch was gentle as he slid the bar over the scrapes and bruises on her arms, washed the lacerations on her face. Delicious warmth stole over her body. Ariel closed her eyes.
“I can’t give you what you want, Jarrett.”
Water beat against her overly sensitive skin. A slow glide of soap over her midsection. She felt his big body grow taut as he stroked the bar back and forth.
“You’re a Lupine Fae. You have shifter blood mingling with your Fae genes. You can mother my children.”
“Your people would never accept such a child.” Ariel couldn’t do this. Not with Jarrett. Too much was between them.
“They would. They need an heir. I need you, Ariel. I want you.” His voice became rough with desire. “You belong in my bed.”
“There’s nothing between us but the past.”
He set down the soap. Cupping her chin in one hand, he forced her to turn.
Jarrett took her mouth.
His lips were firm and commanding as he kissed her. His scent of pine and spice filled her senses, sent the wolf inside her whining with excitement, ready to mate. Jarrett coaxed her lips apart and plunged his tongue inside. Sexual need made her body soft and pliant, willing. Ariel turned into the kiss, tasting him, her mouth moving against his. She sensed rather than saw the glow of white sparks, like tiny fireflies, rising from her wet skin.
No. Not again. Not ever. Ariel pulled away.
His mouth was on her skin now, lips lightly tasting the droplets on her shoulder. Ariel’s breasts tingled. She opened her eyes, saw her lower body shimmering with white light. Panic raced through her.
He must not see. But soon he would, and then…
“I can’t do this. There’s nothing between us anymore.” Ariel wriggled, trying to free herself, but he held her tight against him.
“Liar,” he said softly. “I can scent your arousal.”
Jarrett stroked the bar of soap up and lathered one breast. He trailed a finger lazily over a pebbling nipple. She ached for his touch. Moisture gathered between her legs, her body betraying her.
She threw her head back in a small moan as he thumbed her nipple, flicking it expertly.
“Give in,” he murmured. “Let it go, Ariel. Let it go.”
“I can’t.”
The pleasure built higher and higher, her body growing tight and hot. No longer was she cold, she was fire, molten fire with the heat at her core intensifying….
Through the silk boxers, his erection prodded at her backside. It grew thicker and longer. His strokes grew harder, more intent. She sensed he was slipping, his arousal becoming painful and urgent. Soon…he’d lose control.
Jarrett growled deep in his throat. “Damn,” he grated out, the roughness of his voice turning guttural. “Have to have you. Now. On your knees and spread your legs.”
“No. Stop, please.”
Words whispered, fear seeping from her pores. Ariel wriggled against his grip, but he was stronger and taller. He could force her easily.
“Jarrett.” She said his name louder. “Jarrett!”
Then his arm loosened around her waist. She turned and backed against the shower knobs. They dug painfully into her back, but not as painful as the stunned realization on his face.
Jarrett stepped back, shock whitening his mouth. Amber flashed in his eyes, the glow of the wolf’s change emerging. Ariel slid her hands down her hips, willing her desire to fade. Slowly, he breathed in and out, wrestling for control of the beast.
“Shit,” he murmured. “That never happened before.”
“I wouldn’t let it. Because we never got to that point before, Jarrett. And that day in your bed, I felt it happen, felt myself becoming aroused to that point…” Ariel gulped down a breath. “That’s why I left you and never looked back. It was too dangerous.”
Claws poked through his fingertips, then slowly receded. Jarrett wrestled the beast back into its cage.
“This is why I can’t mate with you, Jarrett.” Her throat closed tight. Too many memories and regrets. “I am a Lupine Fae and it’s safest to have sex with another of my kind. None of your people have ever seen this. Experienced it. And if the males do…”
“They’ll be unable to stop themselves from coming after you.”
Ariel nodded, shielding her breasts with her hands, feeling her nakedness. “It’s in your blood, the pheromones my body emits are irresistible to male werewolves. It will drive them mad with lust, and they’ll come after me. You won’t let that happen.…”
“And I’ll be forced to take them down. Fight my own damn pack. To the death.”
Chapter Four
Jarrett’s jaw clenched. The need for Ariel was burning, his body tight, his cock painfully thick and hard. Never before had he craved release so badly. Having Chloe as a mate, oh, he’d loved her. Protected her, kept her safe. Theirs had been a relationship filled with pleasantries.
Not like this, the crazed, mindless frenzy to mate driving him blind with lust. He could barely think.
Inside, the wolf howled for release. Passion drove it to the surface. Jarrett grimly forced down the beast, his human half struggling for control.
He rubbed the nape of his neck. “We’ll work around it.”
Ariel shrank against the wall of the shower as he reached past her to turn off the water. He hated the flash of fear in her eyes.
“I won’t hurt you,” he promised. Damnit, he would claw himself apart before allowing that.
Had to get out, get away from her delicious scent shooting through his body and firing his blood. Jarrett stepped out of the shower. He stripped off the boxers, wincing as the silk scraped against his erection. He reached for a towel, glanced at Ariel, and tossed it to her.
Wrapping the towel around herself, she left the shower. He hated the misery on her face, her own sexual need reflecting in those deep blue eyes. A white glow tinged her pale flesh. She smelled sweet as chocolate and sinfully dark. His hands reached out for her. Jarrett forced them to drop.
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Bonnie Vanak
Jarrett Lawson can't fall in love—but he needs a woman.Pack rules dictate that as the alpha male, he must mate before the rest of his shifter community can. But after losing his cherished wife, Jarrett has vowed never to risk his heart again. A vow that is tested when Ariel Abidos reenters his life.Jarrett and Ariel once shared an explosive sexual chemistry, but Ariel left him with no explanation just before they became lovers. So when the sexy Lupine Fae needs his help to investigate why her people are vanishing on his ancestral land, he asks one thing in return: that she become his new mate…
Jarrett Lawson can’t fall in love—but he needs a woman. Pack rules dictate that as the alpha male, he must mate before the rest of his shifter community can. But after losing his cherished wife, Jarrett has vowed never to risk his heart again. A vow that is tested when Ariel Abidos reenters his life.
Jarrett and Ariel once shared an explosive sexual chemistry, but Ariel left him with no explanation just before they became lovers. So when the sexy Lupine Fae needs his help to investigate why her people are vanishing on his ancestral land, he asks one thing in return: that she become his new mate….
Seduced by the Wolf
Bonnie Vanak
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Chapter One
The scent trail was fetid, laced with undertones of spice and pine. It hurt her nostrils like the smell of shaved metal did, but she continued up the mountain. She wound through the pine forest to a recess in the rocky cliffs. Straight through Lawson pack territory and past a battered sign: Trespassers Will Be Dealt with Swiftly.
Ariel Abidos swallowed hard. Torn apart by fangs and claws by the pack wolves.
Sharp as needles, a cold wind swept down from the Colorado mountains, rustling aspen leaves touched by brilliant fall hues. A lonely howl of a wolf calling for its mate echoed through the valley.
If Jarrett Lawson found her, he’d mete out a different punishment…in his bed. Ariel shivered, her breasts tingling with memories. Jarrett, his strong, muscled body, his slow, crooked smile. His slow, deep kisses that promised explosive pleasure.
His fury when she’d walked out on him before they’d become lovers.
He might forbid his pack from touching her and save the honors for himself. Ariel swayed on her feet, remembering the slow caress of his hands over her flesh, arousing her as no man ever had. The dangerous passion that could kill.
No matter. Her people were counting on her.
I have to find them before it’s too late.
Ariel lifted her arms. She called upon the ancient magick running through her blood. She felt pain as her bones lengthened, the transformation brutal and slow.
The slender, delicate Fae had now transformed into a small gray timber wolf. Ariel loped past the sign, following the dark scent—the odor of metal shavings more prominent now. Ariel’s heart raced as she focused. There, up in the recess…her quarry. The answer to why her people were vanishing.
Hope pushed her onward as she raced to the rockslide leading to the cavern, even as she heard the distinct howl echoing off the Colorado mountain.
They’d found her.
Her paws slid on the gravel. Ariel grappled for purchase. And then the blood-chilling howls piercing the air turned to snarls. Six wolves burst out of the thick pines to her right. Fangs bared, they barreled toward her.
Terror immobilized her. Couldn’t shift, couldn’t outrun them. Ariel glanced upward at the cavern holding all the answers. She turned to run and lost her foothold.
Yipping, she tumbled headfirst down the mountain, sharp rocks scraping her nose, digging past the thick fur. Ariel crashed into a boulder, the granite stopping her decent. She struggled to her feet. Heart racing, the stench of her own fear clogging her nostrils, she ran, driven by the wolf’s animal fear. The pack snapped at her heels as she raced through the thicket of trees. She turned for the dividing line between her territory and the pack’s, but a wolf cut her off, forcing her to turn right. Blood dripped into her eyes, blurring her vision.
Panting, she reached the meadow. A yellow pine cabin stood in the distance. Teeth snapped behind her, herding her straight toward it. Wolves flanked her, cutting off escape. Fear fogged her brain.
The porch! With a last burst of strength, Ariel leapt over the railing. She crashed through the screen door. Wood cracked, the screen split, tearing at her sensitive skin.. Howling, she fell onto the polished wood floor, her paws sliding out from her. Ariel felt the hot breath of the wolves leaping through the ruined door.
She raced down the hallway, praying the house was empty. Ariel ran toward one of the rooms she sighted, claws digging into the wood, her breath coming in sharp, stabbing pants. She skidded through the doorway and collapsed, expecting the hot agony of fangs sinking into her throat. Ariel closed her eyes. It was over.
“What the hell?”
Opening her eyes, she blinked. The room was dominated by an acre-sized bed near the window. But it was the man standing up before a desk that caught her attention. He turned with natural grace, his wide shoulders blocking out the light, an expression of astonishment on his handsome face.
Oh crap. She closed her eyes.
The wolves had chased her into the enemy’s lair. Right into Jarrett Lawson’s bedroom.
Chapter Two
Jarrett Lawson had been pouring over paperwork, idly wishing someone would interrupt him.
Now he glanced downward at the gray timber wolf at his feet. She panted with obvious exhaustion.
Not exactly what he’d planned.
He breathed in her luscious scent and the smell of sweet wildflowers shot through his body like an intoxicating drug. Damn, he knew this… His body tightened with arousal. Then he looked closer. Anger bloomed hot and hard as he saw blood matting her gray fur, the fear pooling in her gray eyes.
No one hurt females on his land. Females were revered, protected and cherished. Jarrett felt his claws emerge, ready to deal with whoever had injured her.
Six of his strongest males padded into his bedroom. One pawed at the floor, lifting his muzzle with a grin.
“Pleased with yourself, Sam? Tell me what the hell’s going on here.”
The males shifted back, clothing their bodies through magick. His Beta nodded at the female.
“We brought you a gift. Found her snooping along the old mining trail.”
The wolf whined. Lifting her head, she stared, weakly thumping her tail. She tried to struggle upright and collapsed. Jarrett rested a hand on her head.
He glared at the six, who lowered their gazes. “Who did this?”
“She slid down the mountain. We didn’t touch her.” Sam gave a knowing smile. “Saved her for you, Jarrett.”
He turned his attention to the injured wolf. “Easy now. Save your strength to shift back. Can you do that for me?”
He kept his voice low and soothing. Jarrett encouraged her as she tried to shift back, her form shimmering between wolf and human. His mouth went dry as he envisioned her stuck between two forms, the worst death for his people.
“Come on,” he coaxed. “You can do it.”
Then he deepened his voice. “Do it. Now.”
The wolf’s head snapped up, defiance in her clear blue eyes. Light shimmered and suddenly a naked, shivering woman appeared. Curls the color of autumn leaves shielded her face, spilling past slender shoulders. She hung her head, as if hiding. With one hand, Jarrett lifted the curtain of her hair.
Shock pummeled him as she raised her chin.
Long, slender legs, curved hips and a slim waist, full breasts that could fill a man’s palms. Her skin looked soft as peach fuzz. Elegant and delicate features, she had a full, lush red mouth made for kissing. Her eyes were the deepest blue, and sparked with life.
The tips of her ears were slightly pointed.
“Ariel?” Jarrett felt the ice surrounding his heart crack a little. His pulse beat harder. “It’s been a long time.”
Was that his voice, growing husky with old longing? Remembering the innocence of those times they’d shared, before he’d grown hardened and cold?
Sam cleared his throat. “We brought her to you, Jarrett. We knew how you’d felt about her, before you got mated…”
His Beta’s voice trailed off. Knifelike pain sank into Jarrett’s chest. Ariel gave him a questioning look. “You have a mate?”
“Her name was Chloe. She died in a fight with jaguars a few years ago,” Jarrett told her.
Ariel’s eyes grew a deeper shade of blue. That Fae quality, the ability to sense emotions, even tough ones he’d successfully masked. She touched his cheek. The contact trebled his pulse.
“So much pain. So much sadness in your eyes.”
Sadness? Hell, it wasn’t sadness. It was a cold tomb encasing him since he’d held Chloe’s bloodied body in his arms, begging her to live for him, for their unborn child.
Then watching the light fade from her eyes.
Claws dug into his heart. Not guilt. His guilt was gone and buried in the ground with Chloe.
A luminous glow shone in Ariel’s eyes. Compassion. The Lupine Fae cherished their ability to connect with those who hurt. Jarrett threw up the emotional shield that had helped him endure the past thirty-one years since Chloe’s death. He drew back from her concern. He was Alpha, and couldn’t be seen as weak. Especially before a lovely Fae who’d almost stolen his heart years before.
“What the hell are you doing here, Ariel? You trespassed. I deal swiftly with trespassers. Or slowly. Very nice… and slow.”
White lines of tension edged her full mouth. “I had no intention of coming here.”
Ariel struggled to her knees, fell back. He reached out, cupped her elbow. “Easy now. You’re in no shape to leave.”
“And I suppose your men intended on that.”
Her melodious voice was low and hoarse, as if sandpaper rubbed her throat raw. She cupped her breasts in a protective manner. Jarrett glared at his men, who shuffled their feet. “Talk. You know the rules. You’re supposed to chase any four-legged intruders out of our lands.”
Sam shook his head. “She smelled too nice to throw back.”
“I am not a fish.” Ariel glared at him.
“No, but you’re a gift. For you, Jarrett. We knew how much you craved her.”
Jarrett rubbed the back of his neck, feeling his muscles tighten with unwanted sexual arousal. Ariel Abidos. Years ago, the lovely Fae shifter had teased and tempted him to the point of panting, and then slipped out of his bed before they consummated their bond. She’d even fled her own beloved colony and never returned.
Until now.
He needed a mate. Jarrett concentrated on Ariel. Those huge blue eyes, innocent and wide, were watchful. Her skin was nearly translucent, blue veins running close to the surface. Heat filled him as he remembered nuzzling her neck, tracing the delicate shell-like ear, licking the tiny pointed tip while his hands stroked over her trembling body….
Never again would he fall in love. But a new mate, that was different. Ever since their release from prison six months ago, the males refused to impregnate their mates. It was forbidden until Jarrett took a mate. The Alpha’s duty to the pack was to provide them with an heir.
His dreams of happiness had died along with Chloe and their unborn child. But he couldn’t bear to see his people suffer any longer.
“We’d die for you, Jarrett,” Sam said, spreading his hands out. “We love you, man. You kept our sanity all those years in prison. You’d do anything for us, and we can’t bear to see you go on like this anymore.”
His men, strong and loyal to the end. Emotion tightened his chest. He went to Sam and clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Go, back to your homes, all of you. I’ll call for you if I need you.”
The men nodded, spared a knowing glance at Ariel. Jarrett shut the bedroom door behind them. Ariel glanced up.
“I’m sorry about Chloe. What happened?” Her voice was so soft, so melodious and soothing. He closed his eyes.
She’d said her name. No one else in his pack even whispered it, as if they were afraid of his reaction. The dull ache always present in his chest deepened into a sharp knifelike twist. He walked to the window, lifting the lace curtain with the back of one hand. Chloe had sewn the window coverings. They were too feminine for his taste, but he couldn’t change them. They were a small connection to the past.
Emotion tightened his throat. Jarrett swallowed past it. He would never love again. It hurt like a bitch when you lost someone you loved. His heart hadn’t been broken when he’d held Chloe’s broken body in his arms. It shattered.
“One of the Ancients, the powerful soldiers who fight evil for the Society for the Prevention of Malevolent Magick, came onto my land looking for my sister. She’d killed hunters who had killed her mate while he was in wolf form. I found out the Ancient took my sister’s life, and went after him, then all hell broke loose.”
Every muscle in his body tensed as he remembered. “Chloe was killed when she rushed out to find me. She was terrified and wasn’t thinking, and she got killed by a jaguar. The jaguars said it was an accident. I’ve forgiven them.” Even though there had been so much blood that day, teeth, claws and violence. “My men and I went to prison because of the fight. So did the jaguars. We’ve made our peace and moved on.”
Well, his men had. It was time for him to move on as well. He whirled and saw Ariel sitting on the floor, delicate features marred with dirt and blood. Pity shone in her eyes.
He hated pity. Pity made him weak.
“Why were you on my land, Ariel? Don’t tell me it’s because you missed me so much. I’ve been back home for half a year. If you wanted to welcome me home, you could have knocked at the door instead of crashing through it.”
“I didn’t plan on running into you again. I shifted to scent out a trail on your territory. I need to see what’s up in that cavern.”
“Why?” He went to her, crouched down and trailed a thumb over her soft cheek, enjoying the silky texture. Too long since he’d felt a woman’s soft skin beneath his fingers. He couldn’t fall in love, but he needed a woman.
Needed a mate.
Ariel quivered beneath his touch, her skin flushing to a delicate rose. Arousal pumped hot and heavy into his loins as he scented her sweet, faintly spicy feminine fragrance.
“My people are vanishing. One by one. Something or someone is abducting them at night. Thirty are gone now.” Ariel pulled away, her breathing hitched. “No blood trail, no signs of a struggle. Just empty beds in the morning and a dark scent pervading the space.”
He studied his would-be lover. She’d never lied before. Then again, years ago she’d sworn she wanted him as much as he’d wanted her, leaving him hungry and panting. Teased him to the point of going mad.
And walked away.
Even with the dirt and ugly scratches marring her heart-shaped face, she looked tempting as a fresh peach dangling from a tree. Jarrett’s mouth watered as he remembered running his tongue over her bare skin. Before she’d left. Now she was back.
“I need access to that cavern, Jarrett.” Ariel’s mouth wobbled. “Something is taking my people at night. Cael, our leader, asked me to track down the source. I’m the strongest wolf shifter in the colony. We need your help, Jarrett. I have to see what’s inside the cave.”
“I’m no Boy Scout. I stopped assisting little old Fae cross the street years ago.” He flashed a grin, feeling his canines lengthen. “Now I just eat them.”
“Cael needs your help.”
“Cael never helped me when I came looking for you, worried what the hell had happened to you.” The Fae leader had been hard as the granite mountains. He talked only of the balance necessary in nature, saying Ariel being with him would upset the balance.
She tilted up her round chin. “Then forget him. Help me, Jarrett. What do you want me to do?”
He brought his face close and said softly, “Beg.”
Long, dark lashes feathered her cheeks as she closed her eyes. He inhaled deeply, drawing her delicious scent into his body. He could almost taste her beneath his tongue, warm and wet. The smell of sex. A throbbing began in his loins, reminding him of how he’d reacted in the past.
“If that’s what you want, then I’ll beg. Want me to lose my pride?” Ariel spread her palms wide, revealing her pale breasts tipped with raspberry nipples. “I’ll lose it. I’ll do anything to save my people.”
He watched her nipples grow hard as pearls. He had to touch her. Couldn’t help himself.
“And I’ll do anything to save mine.” He slid a palm over her cheek, feeling warmth beneath his fingertips. “They’re going to die out. Unless…”
He took a new mate and fathered an heir.
For the first time since Chloe had died, hope filled him. Ariel still turned him on. It wasn’t her body, lush and lovely as it was. It was her spirit and life burning bright as the hot sun in the sharp blue sky. He was the moon, sultry and filled with secrets. Ariel was light and warmth. He needed her heat to counter the coldness inside him.
Balance, he thought. Life’s about balance, just as Cael had once said.
Ariel never surrendered. No, she’d go down fighting, tooth and claw. A hint of the passion she’d display in bed.
“I’ll help you on one condition. But you won’t like it.”
“Anything,” she insisted. “Anything you want.”
Jarrett fingered a strand of her silky hair. “Mate with me.”
Chapter Three
Stunned disbelief shot through Ariel. Was she really listening to Jarrett telling her he needed to father a child? How he would instruct his pack to assist her only if… She closed her eyes as naughty fantasies she’d abandoned resurfaced. She was naked, lying beneath him in that big bed. Sweat glistened on his brow, his chocolate-brown eyes darkened in fierce concentration as he pushed into her body, his flesh slapping against hers as they made love to conceive his longed-for heir.
It was sex. Just sex.
And dangerous. If his men were around…
“You want me as a mate to give you a child. But nothing more.”
“Yes.”
“Do you still have feelings for me, Jarrett?” She had to know. “Or is it just the sex?”
His mouth thinned to a tight slash. “I have no more feelings left to give, Ariel.”
The Fae inside her cried out to draw him closer and offer comfort. She had to leave. Now, before she capitulated. Because with Jarrett, it wouldn’t be comfort. It would be mind-bending, wild sex that could send them both spiraling out of control.
She pushed to her feet, and a violent trembling seized her muscles. Ariel grabbed onto a nearby bedpost, missed and began to fall.
Jarrett stood and caught her, hefted her into his arms. A lock of blond hair spilled into his face. So handsome, the face of an angel with devilish dark eyes. A beast looked out of those eyes, the wolf held at bay.
“You’re freezing. Let’s get you warmed up.”
For a wild moment she thought he would toss her onto the big bed. Instead, with the toe of one boot, Jarrett pushed open the bathroom door. He elbowed aside the glass doors and stepped inside a shower the size of a walk-in closet. Very gently, he set her down on the seat. Closing her eyes, Ariel sagged against the wall. She felt so damned exposed and vulnerable. She wanted to collapse in a shivering heap on the floor and curl up in the fetal position.
Sheer will prevented her from doing so.
The slow rasp of a zipper caught her attention. Jarrett shrugged out of his jeans, tugged his mulberry sweater over his head. His chest was broad, dusted with dark blond hair. A scar slashed across the thick muscles of his right shoulder. It looked like a claw mark.
Black boxers fit snug against his lean hips. He was leanly muscled, six feet of lethal wolf in a man’s strong body. Ariel’s breath hitched as she remembered the passion between them that had once threatened to consume them.
And then she’d slipped out of his bed before things got too dicey. Went too far.
Jarrett stepped into the shower, helped her to stand. One arm locked around her middle as he stood behind her and twisted the knobs. Warm water cascaded over her battered body. Ariel flinched, sagging against him as he murmured assurances. He pushed a hand through her hair, his touch oddly soothing. Her life was literally in this wolf’s hands.
He could snap her neck for intruding on his territory.
Jarrett reached for the soap and began washing her. His touch was gentle as he slid the bar over the scrapes and bruises on her arms, washed the lacerations on her face. Delicious warmth stole over her body. Ariel closed her eyes.
“I can’t give you what you want, Jarrett.”
Water beat against her overly sensitive skin. A slow glide of soap over her midsection. She felt his big body grow taut as he stroked the bar back and forth.
“You’re a Lupine Fae. You have shifter blood mingling with your Fae genes. You can mother my children.”
“Your people would never accept such a child.” Ariel couldn’t do this. Not with Jarrett. Too much was between them.
“They would. They need an heir. I need you, Ariel. I want you.” His voice became rough with desire. “You belong in my bed.”
“There’s nothing between us but the past.”
He set down the soap. Cupping her chin in one hand, he forced her to turn.
Jarrett took her mouth.
His lips were firm and commanding as he kissed her. His scent of pine and spice filled her senses, sent the wolf inside her whining with excitement, ready to mate. Jarrett coaxed her lips apart and plunged his tongue inside. Sexual need made her body soft and pliant, willing. Ariel turned into the kiss, tasting him, her mouth moving against his. She sensed rather than saw the glow of white sparks, like tiny fireflies, rising from her wet skin.
No. Not again. Not ever. Ariel pulled away.
His mouth was on her skin now, lips lightly tasting the droplets on her shoulder. Ariel’s breasts tingled. She opened her eyes, saw her lower body shimmering with white light. Panic raced through her.
He must not see. But soon he would, and then…
“I can’t do this. There’s nothing between us anymore.” Ariel wriggled, trying to free herself, but he held her tight against him.
“Liar,” he said softly. “I can scent your arousal.”
Jarrett stroked the bar of soap up and lathered one breast. He trailed a finger lazily over a pebbling nipple. She ached for his touch. Moisture gathered between her legs, her body betraying her.
She threw her head back in a small moan as he thumbed her nipple, flicking it expertly.
“Give in,” he murmured. “Let it go, Ariel. Let it go.”
“I can’t.”
The pleasure built higher and higher, her body growing tight and hot. No longer was she cold, she was fire, molten fire with the heat at her core intensifying….
Through the silk boxers, his erection prodded at her backside. It grew thicker and longer. His strokes grew harder, more intent. She sensed he was slipping, his arousal becoming painful and urgent. Soon…he’d lose control.
Jarrett growled deep in his throat. “Damn,” he grated out, the roughness of his voice turning guttural. “Have to have you. Now. On your knees and spread your legs.”
“No. Stop, please.”
Words whispered, fear seeping from her pores. Ariel wriggled against his grip, but he was stronger and taller. He could force her easily.
“Jarrett.” She said his name louder. “Jarrett!”
Then his arm loosened around her waist. She turned and backed against the shower knobs. They dug painfully into her back, but not as painful as the stunned realization on his face.
Jarrett stepped back, shock whitening his mouth. Amber flashed in his eyes, the glow of the wolf’s change emerging. Ariel slid her hands down her hips, willing her desire to fade. Slowly, he breathed in and out, wrestling for control of the beast.
“Shit,” he murmured. “That never happened before.”
“I wouldn’t let it. Because we never got to that point before, Jarrett. And that day in your bed, I felt it happen, felt myself becoming aroused to that point…” Ariel gulped down a breath. “That’s why I left you and never looked back. It was too dangerous.”
Claws poked through his fingertips, then slowly receded. Jarrett wrestled the beast back into its cage.
“This is why I can’t mate with you, Jarrett.” Her throat closed tight. Too many memories and regrets. “I am a Lupine Fae and it’s safest to have sex with another of my kind. None of your people have ever seen this. Experienced it. And if the males do…”
“They’ll be unable to stop themselves from coming after you.”
Ariel nodded, shielding her breasts with her hands, feeling her nakedness. “It’s in your blood, the pheromones my body emits are irresistible to male werewolves. It will drive them mad with lust, and they’ll come after me. You won’t let that happen.…”
“And I’ll be forced to take them down. Fight my own damn pack. To the death.”
Chapter Four
Jarrett’s jaw clenched. The need for Ariel was burning, his body tight, his cock painfully thick and hard. Never before had he craved release so badly. Having Chloe as a mate, oh, he’d loved her. Protected her, kept her safe. Theirs had been a relationship filled with pleasantries.
Not like this, the crazed, mindless frenzy to mate driving him blind with lust. He could barely think.
Inside, the wolf howled for release. Passion drove it to the surface. Jarrett grimly forced down the beast, his human half struggling for control.
He rubbed the nape of his neck. “We’ll work around it.”
Ariel shrank against the wall of the shower as he reached past her to turn off the water. He hated the flash of fear in her eyes.
“I won’t hurt you,” he promised. Damnit, he would claw himself apart before allowing that.
Had to get out, get away from her delicious scent shooting through his body and firing his blood. Jarrett stepped out of the shower. He stripped off the boxers, wincing as the silk scraped against his erection. He reached for a towel, glanced at Ariel, and tossed it to her.
Wrapping the towel around herself, she left the shower. He hated the misery on her face, her own sexual need reflecting in those deep blue eyes. A white glow tinged her pale flesh. She smelled sweet as chocolate and sinfully dark. His hands reached out for her. Jarrett forced them to drop.
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Bonnie Vanak
Тип: электронная книга
Жанр: Современные любовные романы
Язык: на английском языке
Издательство: HarperCollins
Дата публикации: 16.04.2024
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О книге: Jarrett Lawson can′t fall in love—but he needs a woman.Pack rules dictate that as the alpha male, he must mate before the rest of his shifter community can. But after losing his cherished wife, Jarrett has vowed never to risk his heart again. A vow that is tested when Ariel Abidos reenters his life.Jarrett and Ariel once shared an explosive sexual chemistry, but Ariel left him with no explanation just before they became lovers. So when the sexy Lupine Fae needs his help to investigate why her people are vanishing on his ancestral land, he asks one thing in return: that she become his new mate…