by Kate Rudolph
Was he really willing? This wasn’t the Wolf that she’d heard whispered stories about. No, this man was something completely different. “Yes,” she answered. “That’s about it.”
“And what do I get if you don’t want to answer?” His fingers played with a tassel on the edge of the sofa and she tried not to stare too long or imagine what they would feel like against her skin.
“Frustration.” Was her answer.
He grinned and she felt an answering tug at her own lips. Oh no, this was bad. Very, very bad. “I already have plenty of that.” He took a breath. “Where—”
Jess held up a hand, “Ah, ah, you’ve asked all the questions so far. It’s my turn.”
He settled back, but somehow it didn’t give her more space. “Fine.”
“How long did you look for me?” She’d learned how to run at a young age and could almost feel her mother yelling at her, telling her to get enough information to get out and never be found again.
Rafe shrugged. “A few hours in all. Once we knew your name it wasn’t difficult to discover your workplace. Will your boyfriend miss you terribly?”
He was going to kill her, right? Why else would he keep asking? But they’d made an agreement and she would honor it. Even if he wouldn’t like the answer. “Seriously? What is this obsess—nope, that’s not my question. And I don’t actually have a boyfriend.” She held up a hand to keep him from talking. “Still my turn. What information do you have on me?”
The Wolf steepled his hands in front of himself and rested his chin on his fingertips. “I think that’s more than one question.”
“We didn’t specify the level of inclusiveness.” It probably would not have surprised him to learn that she had once considered being a lawyer. But law schools didn’t usually accept high school dropouts.
The Wolf got up and grabbed a folder that he’d set on his bedside table. He’d had it with him when he walked in but she hadn’t paid any attention. He came back and sat on the couch, patting the seat beside him. Jess could sense it was dangerous to sit so close, but she needed to know.
She sat beside him and leafed through the folder. The information was bare bones. He didn’t even have her home address.
“Are you afraid of me?” He asked, too close.
Startled, she turned, meeting his icy blue eyes. If she leaned forward just the tiniest bit she would be kissing him. Terrifying, tempting thought. “You’re the Wolf,” was all she said.
“That’s not an answer.” She tried to turn away, but he placed a hand on her knee and she looked back.
“It’s all you’re going to get.” She had to be suicidal. What was making her so casual with him? He could tear her heart out one handed and no one would care. “Why are you asking me these things?” He didn’t seem to care about Rebecca, but that was the only reason she was with him.
Wasn’t it?
“Can’t I be curious?” There was so much he wasn’t telling her, but she didn’t know how to ask or what to think. It made no sense. He couldn’t be attracted to her, they’d known each other all of an hour.
“Men aren’t curious about women like me.” She hadn’t meant to say it, it sounded needy and wasn’t exactly true. And she didn’t want to give this man any insight into her weaknesses.
“What would you do if I kissed you right now, Jessica Patrick?”
“It’s my turn to ask a question.” She couldn’t think of his because if she did she was going to imagine the feel of his lips on hers, of his hands in her hair, and the heat that she’d been desperately trying to keep at bay would consume her.
But she hadn’t been kissed in a very long time.
“I’m afraid I’m going to have to insist on an answer.”
“Is that your play?” she snapped. “Seduce me into giving you answers?” She had to remember that he had ulterior motives. Why on earth was it so hard to forget? “I don’t want a man faking attraction to get me to open up.”
He put a hand on her cheek. She didn’t soften, she kept her back ramrod straight and tried to make the air solidify between them. But she wasn’t a witch and her only magic trick was turning into a wolf.
Oh hell.
She closed the distance between them, wrapping her hand around the back of his head and digging her fingers into his thick, dark hair. Once he’d asked the question it felt inevitable, and if kissing him first was the only way to take what little control of the moment she could, then that was what she would do.
But the Wolf was not a man to be so easily led.
He held her close to him, his lips almost gentle. She expected him to conquer, to demand total control. Rafe wasn’t anything like she expected. She parted her lips for his tongue, reveling in the sensation. There was no time now to think of how long it had been since her last kiss, no thought of comparing his lips to any other’s.
But it had been far too long and none had taken hold of her so fully.
Before she knew it, her back was against the armrest of the sofa and Rafe was on top of her, her legs parted loosely so he could sit between them. He didn’t do anything but kiss her, his hands on her sides, holding her in place. Her heart was nearly beating out of her chest and she could feel sweat on her brow. Heat unfurled deep within her, the precursor to the pleasure they could take together.
She wanted it, wanted him. Right now.
When she moved her hands down his body, he stopped her, his lips grinning against her own. “Enjoy the moment, Jessica. There’s no need to rush.”
And yet the arousal within her said otherwise. She could feel the hard evidence of his desire against her, but he seemed content just to taste, to memorize the shape of her mouth and its feel against his own.
She surrendered to it, taking whatever he gave and turning it back on him. She would leave her mark on this alpha, one way or another. By the time she was done with him, he would never be able to forget her. This inevitable thing between them felt a lot like falling, parachuting or bungee jumping, she didn’t know which. She only hoped she could catch herself before she ended up a bloodied spatter on the ground.
The knock at his door should have made them jump apart like startled teenagers. But Rafe took his time, ending the kiss gently and pulling back with a smile. “I quite like the taste of you, Jessica.”
She pulled back and had no idea what to say.
The alpha seemed satisfied that he’d finally gotten in the last word. He stood and answered the door, stepping outside to talk to whoever it was that had called. She heard their footsteps walk away and sank back into the couch.
When had she become so stupid? He was the freaking Wolf. Of all the men in the city that she could make out with, he did not make the list. In fact, he was at the top of the list of men not to make out with or even look at for too long. And yet here she sat, in his bedroom, with swollen lips and his taste still lingering on her tongue.
She needed to get out of there. When he’d left the first time, she’d examined the window. But it was too high up to use the sheets as a rope and she’d be spotted the moment she tried it. Jess walked around towards the entrance. She wanted to see if there was anything she could use to either get her out or let her call for help, but she didn’t want Rafe - the Wolf - to walk in on her while she tried.
The door wouldn’t open, but leaning close with her ear to it yielded only silence. He had walked away. She had a little time.
And for once, luck was on her side.
The Wolf hadn’t taken away her bag. He hadn’t even searched it. She’d dropped it beside his bed and half-kicked it under, hoping he wouldn’t notice. And he hadn’t. She pulled the black bag out and reached for her cell phone.
Full charge, four bars. Finally some good news.
Unfortunately, there was only one person she could call. There was only one person she was willing to endanger if it meant getting out of the alpha’s clutches. The woman who’d put her into this situation in the first place.
Amazingly, Rebecca answ
ered the phone. “If you’re calling to berate me for taking a couple of bucks, I don’t want to hear it.” As always, her sister was a pleasant and welcoming voice.
“Tell me right now why I shouldn’t sell you out to the Wolf.” She had her own reasons to keep quiet, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t change her mind.
“We’re family, sis. I thought that was important.” Rebecca could not have sounded more false if she tried.
And Jess wasn’t interested in platitudes. “You’re the reason he kidnapped me. Where was family then? Or last night when you broke into my house and stole from me?” Rage burned deep inside her and she wondered, not for the first time, if she should simply sic the Wolf on Rebecca. Lord knew her sister deserved it.
“Shit. He’s got you? You can’t tell him about me. I’m serious, Jess.” And Rebecca’s tone had turned. Now she wanted to play nice.
Jess had no trouble believing it. Rebecca didn’t have any hang-ups when it came to looking out for number one. “Why not?”
“Because they’ll kill me?” Disbelief laced her tone, surprised that she even had to explain. “Really? Do you want my blood on your hands?”
“Only if I’m the one killing you,” Jess said sweetly.
“Listen, if you can get out of the castle, I can get you out of town. I’ll get you a new identity, the works. He’ll never find you.” She spoke quickly and quietly.
“And what’s the cost?” Rebecca didn’t help anyone out of the goodness of her own heart. Not even when the person was her sister, and Rebecca was the reason she was in trouble.
“That flash drive. I need it.” No hesitation in the demand.
Jess had completely forgotten about it in all of the excitement. But if Rebecca needed it, it couldn’t be good. “Why?”
“The less you know, the better.”
And that was the first thing she said that Jess believed. “You’re still not giving me a good reason.”
“Please, Jess.” She sounded sincere, but Rebecca had a lot of practice at manipulating people. Manipulating Jess.
“Not good enough.” It was hard to manipulate someone who was steaming mad and in the clutches of a dangerous man. At least it was hard when that person could easily remind herself why she was in his clutches in the first place.
“Just think about it. If you’re coming, meet me in five days at the train station. Three PM. Bring the flash drive.” She hung up before Jess could get any more information.
If Jess could find a way to get herself out, she’d give her sister the flash drive, no questions asked. Because while Rebecca was a horrible person who would steal from her own family, she’d also hold up her end of the bargain. Jess would have her new identity and probably enough cash to get out.
To get away from Rafe for good.
She chose not to examine the strange hollowness that thought left inside her. One really good kiss wouldn’t make her give up everything.
She looked for a place to stash the phone, turning it off in the meantime. It would be just her luck for the thing to ring the second Rafe walked in the door. She walked into his spacious closet. It was bigger than her room in her apartment. His clothes were arranged by color starting with whites and transitioning through the rainbow to blacks. There was a set of drawers connected to the wall. She opened them all up, ignoring his socks and underwear.
None of it would work. She didn’t know which items he wore most often. She was screwed if she chose the wrong one and needed the phone again.
She could hear the door opening and shot up. Screw it. She dug back deep into the row of sport coats and dropped the phone into a pocket of one far back in the closet. Hopefully, that meant he didn’t often wear it.
By the time Rafe found her, she was holding a soft yellow sweater in her hands.
“What are you doing back here?” He asked.
She held up the sweater. “I was cold.” He seemed to buy it, but she let out a silent sigh of relief when he turned around.
She needed to get out.
Chapter Seven
Jess slept in a shirt and pair of sweats pilfered from Rafe’s closet. She washed out her underwear in the sink and left them drying overnight. It wasn’t ideal, but she was low on options.
Sometime early Rafe came in with a carafe of coffee, two mugs, and two muffins. He set it all up on the table by the couch before throwing the curtains open and bathing the room in bright sunlight.
“Good morning, Jessica.”
“It’s a bit early for that, isn’t it?” She sat up, the sinfully soft comforter bunching at her waist. Her hair was a mess and she could almost feel the makeup caked under her eyes. At least her frightful looks would cure the alpha of whatever strange attraction had burst between them. That was a good thing.
Right?
“I’m a busy man, the morning starts when I say it does.” He poured out coffee and sat down, taking a bite of his muffin. “Now, come and eat.”
She got off the bed but didn’t move towards him. “Did you at least give me a toothbrush?”
He smiled, “There’s a whole kit in the bathroom. You should be all set.”
He was the most accommodating captor she could imagine. “I’m taking a shower.” She didn’t wait for his permission.
But after twenty minutes in the bathroom she’d run out of excuses. He’d even provided a hair dryer. She put back on his sweats and shirt, this time including her underwear, and squared her shoulders.
The Wolf still sat on the couch, now reading a newspaper, relaxed as could be. When he saw her, he smiled. It was the strangest thing. She’d seen genuine smiles from interested men before and she could have sworn their expressions were alarmingly similar to the Wolf’s.
But he couldn’t really be interested in her. That kiss was a fluke, a ploy.
For her own sanity, she had to keep repeating that.
“Eat up,” he said. “We’re going for a walk.”
“To the dungeon?” She couldn’t think well enough to hold her tongue when he spoke with her and that was going to get her in trouble. More trouble.
“Do you want to go to the dungeon?” He folded the paper up and set it on the table in front of him.
“Not particularly.” She had no need to see what he could do to her, she could imagine it well enough herself.
“Then we’ll stay away.”
They didn’t leave immediately. She had breakfast to eat, after all. He opened back up his newspaper and read while she took small bites of the lemon poppy seed muffin. She was more grateful for the newspaper than for the food.
She didn’t normally have an issue eating in front of others. Occasionally she was self-conscious, especially when her food wasn’t exactly healthy, but it wasn’t one of her major hang-ups. That didn’t mean she wanted an incredibly attractive man staring at her while she tried to keep crumbs off her clothes. Anyone would be unnerved.
Once she was done, he stood, setting the paper back down and offering her a hand up from her chair. Jess took it, his hand was warm and hers fit perfectly into it, but he dropped it once they were in the hallway.
The Wolf gave Jess an insider’s tour of his castle, from the kitchens to the battlements. There were four main floors of the keep, though most of the day to day activity happened on the first two. The top floors were mainly residential, with the Wolf’s inner circle and their families all residing there. Rafe had the east wing of the fourth floor all to himself. It was meant for the alpha’s entire family, but as he had none, he kept the suite to himself.
They walked into a huge library, the walls were lined with books from floor to ceiling and other smaller shelves were spaced evenly. There were thousands of books and yet no one was in the library to enjoy them.
“The entire pack is welcome to use the library,” he said.
“It’s all very nice.” She could have spent all day, hell, an entire week in this room alone. But the Wolf kept moving, leading her out the side door of the library and outside. The co
urtyard was a floor below them, down the stone steps. A team of wolves sparred in one corner and others walked to and fro throughout the rest.
“Thank you,” he said. “I’ve tried to make this place my home.” He stood so close their hands brushed, but he didn’t take hold. It didn’t disappoint her, even if she had to repeat that thought twice to herself. It didn’t. He couldn’t show favor like that to a prisoner, especially not to a werewolf who wasn’t in his pack.
She wondered if he’d told anyone about that. He must have. But she didn’t ask.
“Come on, there’s something I want to show you.” He walked her down the stairs and away from the keep. They crossed the courtyard and made it halfway to one of the turrets. She expected him to take her there, but he surprised her by stopping by a discrete wooden door.
He opened it up and led her inside. It was dim, only one incandescent light hanging from an incredibly high ceiling. It had to go all the way up the outer wall. He led her up a flight of old wooden stairs and through one more door. The Wolf closed the door behind them and flipped the light switch.
Compared to the rest of the castle, it wasn’t impressive. The room was small, she could nearly touch two opposite walls at the same time. But it was clearly a personal space. Even more personal than his bedroom.
There was a tattered old couch and a small coffee table stacked with books. Opposite the couch was a small TV hooked up to an old video game system. There was even a mini-fridge.
“As you’ve seen, my room is not exactly my refuge. This is where I come to be alone. No one bothers me when I’m up here. At least not unless everything is on fire.” He sat on the couch and patted the seat beside him.
This was personal. And it scared Jess more than the kidnapping. Why would he bring her here?
“I used to have a place like this too,” she admitted. It seemed only fair. “When I was a little kid, I mean.”
“Oh?” They didn’t quite touch, but she could feel him in the air next to her. She wanted to sit closer, but she held herself still.
“It was in the woods,” she explained. “There was this little clearing with an old tree fort. I used to go there to get away from my mom and Rebecca.”