by Bella Night
Etti spun toward him, narrowing her beautiful dark eyes. “Oh, you want to talk now? Are you sure you don’t need to shower?”
Grey swallowed. He probably deserved that. He’d take whatever Etti wanted to dish out as long as it meant protecting her. “I don’t need to shower,” he said calmly. “I need to talk to you.”
“Fine, we can talk right here,” she replied, stubbornly crossing her arms.
Wes looked at his bare wrist and whistled. “Wow, look at the time. I’ve gotta run. Things to do, people to see.”
“Who the hell do you have to see at this hour?” Etti asked snarkily.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Wes winked. “Anyway, give your mother my love. Hope she isn’t too alarmed when she reads about what really happened at the Painted Wolf in the paper. And gosh, I hope no one’s reported your accident yet. I’d hate to see Pat’s Towing turn that sweet machine of yours into a heap of scrap metal. Might not be much left of it if you don’t get there soon. You know how Pat is . . . always trying to make a buck. Anyway, have a great day, you two.”
Etti insisted on driving and gritted her teeth the whole ride through the forest to find her motorcycle. Grey was just happy she’d let him tag along. He was counting his tiny victories today. He had a feeling he was going to need them.
A dark trail of rubber marked Etti’s crash site. She eased Wes’s truck to the shoulder when she came upon it. Grey’s stomach dropped remembering the awful sound of the wreck. His gaze followed the careening path off the road. Etti was lucky she survived, let alone walked away. It was another astonishing thing about her. He was learning she wasn’t as fragile as he thought. She parked and grabbed her gloves, setting off to look for what was left of the motorcycle without a word to him.
Grey followed silently behind her. She was still wearing Wes’s sweats. They were rolled at the waist, her alluring hips peeking from the low waistband. She’d exchanged her baggy t-shirt for one of Wes’s tight, sleeveless undershirts. The skin-tight black material clung to her in all the right places. She looked sexy as hell. Grey tried to keep his eyes from wandering to the outline of Etti’s perfect nipples. The morning air was cool, making them hard and plainly visible through the thin shirt. Grey found himself fighting to ignore the pangs of jealousy that rippled through his wolf seeing his mate in another man’s clothes. Maybe it was a good thing Grey hadn’t driven them. Etti had an uncanny ability to distract him.
Up ahead he heard her let out a sigh of relief when she spotted her motorcycle. But a second later the sigh turned to a groan as she surveyed the damage. The motorcycle looked much worse by the light of day. Grey swooped past her and scooped up the dented metal frame with ease.
“What are you doing?” Etti called as he carried it back up the steep bank to Wes’s truck.
“I thought you came here to save it from the junkyard.”
“Look at it. There’s nothing left to save.”
“That’s not true. It doesn’t look that bad.”
“And what do you know about motorcycles?” she demanded, hands on her hips.
Grey slid the mangled bike into the back of the pickup and closed the tailgate. “Not much actually,” he admitted putting his hands in the pockets of his borrowed gym shorts.
Etti sighed and gave him a weak smile. “Well, I guess I can’t leave all this junk out here mucking up the beautiful forest.” She reached down to pick up a stray piece of plastic that had come from her bike.
Grey joined her and helped gather scraps from the wreck. “It’s beautiful out here,” he said, absently.
He felt Etti’s eyes on him, but when he looked at her she quickly dropped her gaze. After a few moments she finally spoke to him. “It reminds you of home here, doesn’t it?”
Her question caught him off guard. How was she so perceptive? “It does,” he answered cautiously. “How can you tell?”
She smiled. “Relax, I’m not psychic or anything.”
“I didn’t think that.”
“Sure coulda fooled me with the way you ran out on me this morning.”
“Etti—” he started but she cut him off.
“It’s your tattoo that gave it away. The one of the trees. It looks like this forest.”
Grey smiled. “It does.”
“You miss it?” she guessed.
Correct again. He nodded.
“Sometimes I feel like I miss my home, too. But Covington is the only home I’ve ever known,” Etti mused. Then, seeming to catch herself, she laughed, shaking herself from her moment of fragile honesty. “It’s stupid, I know.”
Grey was at her side in an instant. His hand grazed hers. “It’s not stupid at all. I know exactly how you feel.”
“You do?” she asked, letting him take her hand in his.
“Etti, take a walk with me. There are some things I want to tell you.”
22
Etti
Etti’s legs were burning by the time they reached the peak of Willow Ridge. It wasn’t that grueling of a hike but she was still sore from her wreck. The worst of her injuries were nearly healed, but still, she didn’t need to be exerting herself for no reason. She was about to complain that they’d gone far enough when they crested the tree line and emerged atop the rocky bluff. The view was spectacular. The whole Georgia valley sprawled beneath them. Varying hues of greens, blues and browns bled life into the lush trees, rolling hills and winding streams.
“Breathtaking,” Etti murmured.
“It is,” Grey agreed softly, but when she turned to look at him, he wasn’t staring out at the scenery. He was looking directly at her.
That unexpected attraction flared in her again. She couldn’t explain the overwhelming way she was drawn to him, all she knew was it was growing stronger with each moment. The way she wanted the sexy shifter was almost paralyzing. It slightly terrified her that she was letting her sex drive drown out reason. But then again, Etti had never been a big fan of reason.
She took a step toward him. Then another—so close their chests were touching. She boldly reached up to stroke the side of his face. Etti ran her fingers down Grey’s chiseled jaw and he let out a growl that turned her insides to molten lava.
Holy hell! She shouldn’t be doing this. This was the same guy who turned her down this morning. He made her feel like a fool. He didn’t deserve another chance. Especially since he hadn’t explained anything yet. Grey hadn’t told her why he was here, why Derik was hunting her or what the hell was with the whole claiming nonsense.
From what Etti had read last night, Grey hadn’t actually claimed her. She’d been surprised to find she was a tinsy disappointed when she learned claiming couldn’t happen from just a bite. Then she managed to be disappointed in herself for feeling disappointed. She had a good life. Good friends. Her own business. What right did she have to want more?
But she did. Deep down, Etti had always wanted more. She didn’t want to be stuck in the old ways of her parents, and she didn’t want to live in a small town forever. She’d never truly felt like she’d found her niche in life. And in the fleeting moments that she’d thought maybe she’d been claimed, Etti had reveled in the idea of escaping her ordinary existence. She’d let herself envision a life with supernatural gifts, a life where she could be a shifter—fearless and free. A life where she could be herself, yet a part of something bigger.
But all of those hopes had been for not, because Grey hadn’t claimed her. He’d only bitten her. It was called marking in the shifter community. Usually done to tell other males that a particular female was someone else’s property and soon to be mate. How backwards was that? Etti was a self-sufficient, strong woman. She had no desire to be under anyone’s authority. She’d lived that roel enough as a child. She would certainly never settle to be someone’s property—no matter how sexy he was.
And though it seemed Grey had lied about the claiming to protect Etti from Derik, she believed there was more to it than he was letting on. She’d felt that primal male
jealousy rise up in Grey at the Painted Wolf and again today with Wes. Maybe Grey had only marked her but Etti was determined to find out if he wanted more. Because that bite had awoken a part of her that she hadn’t known existed. The fleeting moments she’d spent with Grey made her feel more alive than she’d ever been and she’d rather die than go back to her small boring existence.
Etti didn’t want to give up these new feelings. Being with Grey opened up her eyes. It was like she was experiencing the world differently somehow. Everything was brighter, better, more spectacular. He certainly was. Etti indulged herself, letting her hands trail down Grey’s rippling chest. She dragged the edges of her nails along his waistband. Her heart was pounding. There was so much she didn’t know, but one thing was crystal clear, she wanted Grey. And from the size of the tent he was pitching in his shorts, he wanted her, too.
She ran her hand over the outline of his manhood and nearly gasped out loud. Shit! He was huge. Maybe she really hadn’t recovered from her motorcycle wreck. Perhaps she had a brain injury? She was never this bold. She was pretty sure Grey’s bite must’ve melted the part of her brain that controlled common sense and self-preservation because she’d been reckless since she met him. Perhaps he’d rewired her hormones, too. She could usually keep herself from jumping a guy’s bones when he’d done little more than stand near her in the woods.
“Grey?” His name escaped her lips like a plea.
He closed his eyes, trembling with restraint.
“I need you to explain what’s happening,” she whispered.
“Happening?”
She nodded. “Why do I feel this way?”
“What way?”
“Like I can’t keep my hands off of you.” She pressed her lips to his.
Grey’s next growl rumbled to her core, deliciously exciting her.
Shit! Etti was in way over her head, but she didn’t care. She wanted Greyson West and she didn’t care about the consequences. She peeled the damp t-shirt from his body and ran her hands over his flawlessly inked chest.
“Etti . . .” he panted her name, his voice rough with warning. He gripped her hips, hard. To keep her at bay . . . or control his own urges, she wasn’t sure. But his hands were fire against her exposed skin and she couldn’t stop now if she wanted to.
“Tell me you want me?” she begged.
The muscles in his jaws tightened but he didn’t respond.
“Please. I want you, Grey. I want you right now.”
She kissed him again, harder this time—biting his lip and tugging it toward her. And this time . . . he bit back.
Grey’s hands were no longer restraining her hips. Now they were everywhere, frantically devouring her body as if memorizing her by touch. He buried them in her hair, raked them down her neck, her chest, following the curve of her breasts, cupping each one before tracing a slow trail down her stomach that made her feel as though she were on fire from the inside out. He pulled her shirt off slowly, savoring every moment, making her pray he wouldn’t stop. He dropped to his knees and buried his face in her chest, drinking her in as he traced his mouth around every curve, sucking and tugging until she was on the edge of ecstasy. Etti moaned and Grey stilled.
“Don’t stop,” she begged.
“Etti . . . this is . . . complicated. We can’t just do this.”
“Yes we can. I want this. I want you. I’m giving you permission.”
She pulled him back to her, already missing the feel of his hands on her. She turned his own tantalizing tricks on him, running her hands down his bare chest, kissing a path to his nipple and biting. He growled so loud birds took flight from the nearby trees. He cupped her ass and lifted her off her feet. She wrapped her legs around his waist in response.
“Etti, you don’t understand. This is more than casual sex,” Grey warned when he found his voice.
Casual? There was nothing casual about the five-alarm fire that was threatening to incinerate her panties. “I know,” she murmured. “And I’m giving you permission.”
“If we do this, we’ll be mated,” he warned.
“Claimed,” she corrected.
“Do you know what that means? The risks?”
“Yes. I researched everything there is to know about it last night.”
“Etti . . .” Grey set her back down, scrubbing his face with frustration.
She didn’t give up. “Derik thinks I’m claimed, right?”
Grey nodded slowly.
“And we’re both in danger because you didn’t actually claim me?”
He nodded again.
She moved closer, reaching up to touch his face again. “Then claim me. For real this time.”
“You don’t understand all of it, Etti. You’d have to shift and as my mate you’d become property of the hunt. And once you’re part of the hunt . . .” his voice trailed off.
“What?”
His eyes darkened. “There’s only one way out of the hunt, Etti.”
“Death?”
He nodded.
“So we’re damned if we do, damned if we don’t right?”
“Yeah?”
“Then I say we do. We’re more powerful together, right? So claim me, Grey. Make me yours. We belong together. You can’t deny you don’t feel it.”
“Yes but . . .” The hesitation in his eyes wavered. “You’re sure?”
She circled her arms around his neck. “Yes, I want this, Grey. But I have a few stipulations.”
Grey arched a fine eyebrow. “Go on.”
“I’m not okay with being your property. I want to be your equal, so that means no chauvinistic caveman bullshit.”
Grey smirked. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
“There’s more.”
“Of course.”
“My friends, Wes and Marc, we have to protect them from the hunt, too.”
“Done.”
Etti felt her confidence building. “And the Painted Wolf is mine. That shop is my baby and I’m not sharing it.”
Grey barked a laugh. “Babe, shifters don’t really do pre-nups.”
She crossed her arms. “Well, maybe they should.”
“Is that all?”
“No.” She moved closer, her voice more timid. “Promise you won’t hurt me.”
Grey pulled her closer still, his lips feather light against her ear. “I can promise you that, Etti. That and so much more.”
23
Greyson
Grey couldn’t believe what he was hearing. There was no way this beautiful, feisty woman that he wanted with every fiber of his being actually wanted him back. And not just that, she wanted him to claim her—to become so connected to him that death would part them both before their souls would be separated.
Could he do it? Could he actually go through with claiming her?
Christ he wanted to. Holding her body against his without tearing the last of her clothes off was testing his willpower to no end. His wolf was snarling inside, ready to pounce and take her right there on the rocks. But it was risky. If Etti didn’t accept the shift, she’d die. But if Derik found her unclaimed he’d kill her. She was in danger either way . . . and it was his fault. Grey put her in this situation and he was going to find a way out.
Etti stared at him with those dark eyes he already loved, begging him to take her, to claim her, to share his world with her and there was nothing he wanted more. The steady, assertive look in her eye made his decision—she knew what she wanted, and who the hell was he to tell her no? Shit, she already had him wrapped around her finger.
Grey saw a future where he worshiped Etti and gave her anything she wanted . . . and he loved it. He knew he couldn’t bear to lose her. And if they both wanted this, then there was no way in hell he’d let anything stop them. Especially not Derik. He’d taken too much from Grey already.
Grey hoisted Etti into his arms again and stalked back further into the forest. He carried her into the shade of the trees while kissing her with abandon. She seemed
to sense his decision immediately and he could scent the arousal and anticipation radiating from her. He moved her beneath him and laid her down gently on the moss-covered ground. She arched her back to meet him when he let his fingers roam teasingly over her sexy body. He kissed her perfect breasts, the cool air making her nipples pucker. His every caress made Etti moan with delight but Grey barely heard her over the growl of his wolf. The beast inside him was pressing at his skin, wanting out—wanting a taste of Etti, too.
It was one thing to want his human form, but would she really want his wolf?
Grey’s pulse pounded in his ears as he stared at her. Their eyes met; his silver-rimmed and gray, clashing with her deep, endless darkness—darkness that could rival the night sky. He felt that her eyes could swallow him whole if he stared into them long enough.
“I won’t ask you again, Etti,” Grey panted. “Are you sure you want this?”
She nodded.
“I need to hear you say it.”
“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life, Grey. Make me yours. Claim me.”
He kissed her deeply and peeled off the rest of her clothes in one swift motion. Christ! She was fucking gorgeous. And she was all his. Grey pulled off the rest of his clothes and caged himself over Etti, devouring her with desire. He guided himself to her sweet wetness and she pushed against him like she couldn’t stand to wait. He dug his nails into the soft earth on either side of her head and whispered in her ear. “I’ll try to be gentle.”
She gazed back at him with unyielding hunger. “Don’t.”
24
Etti
Holy mother of hell. Now that was sex! Etti was breathless and covered in sweat—her sweat, Grey’s sweat, wolf sweat . . . and she didn’t care. She couldn’t think straight. Grey had fucked her senseless! She suddenly understood where that saying came from. She was still reeling from the mind-blowing orgasms she’d had. That’s right, multiple!