Wolf Bane (The Anthology Novella Series Book 3)

by Darlene Kuncytes

  “Then put them out,” he husked in response, his voice low and challenging, and he saw her eyes come to life and instantly snap with fire. Oh, he thought with a low chuckle, his mate was indeed a feisty one. She seemed to love a challenge.

  He watched in fascination as she narrowed her eyes, her mouth settling itself into a tight line of determination. After a few moments, when nothing happened, she puffed out a breath and shrugged her shoulders.

  “I’m still working on it,” she replied, trying hard to sound flippant yet giving him an obstinate glare that was nothing less than cute as hell.

  She cleared her throat and leaned back and he knew she was trying to put a little distance between them. He knew she was confused as to what was going on and was most likely just more than a little freaked out by the feelings she was having in the midst of all this chaos. The call of one’s mate could be a powerful force, and with the magic that she carried inside her, he was pretty sure that it only intensified that pull. He needed to tell her…soon.

  Melinda watched Colin as he studied her, his eyes skimming over her face in that way that had her pulse fluttering in her throat. Her breath caught in her throat and she watched in quiet anticipation as he moved closer, that incredible mouth whispering against hers. So warm and sweet…

  “I hope I’m not interrupting a tender moment here.”

  Melinda jumped as the unfamiliar voice drifted across the room. She jerked her head around to find a very tall…very muscular man standing in the doorway. He was at least six foot two, with deep chestnut hair, square jaw, and eyes that…Oh, God!

  Melinda’s breathing stopped and her heart began to race as her entire body went ice cold. This man had the same light blue eyes as the vampire who had bitten her. It couldn’t be!

  She jumped up from the sofa with a frightened yelp when he smiled at them and she saw his fangs. Vampire!

  “My, my, Colin,” he murmured, his voice smooth and even - yet carrying an underlying hint of amusement that was impossible to miss. “She is a pretty one, isn’t she? And she really does smell delicious.”

  Melinda backed up slowly, taking a step away from where Colin sat. Oh, shit! Had this all just been a set up? Had he saved her only to turn her over to another vampire? Was there a price on her head that he couldn’t resist? She braced herself as she tried to think of her next move.

  “Easy there, Max,” she heard Colin warn the man and watched as he too stood and took a step toward her.

  “Don’t,” she whispered viciously, holding up a hand in warning to keep him at bay as she took another step back, trying to put some distance between herself and these two men, even as her heart clenched painfully in her chest. Had he actually betrayed her? She had trusted him and the mangy bastard had betrayed her!

  “Melinda…”

  The vampire laughed and Melinda watched as Colin glared at him. “Is she always this jumpy?” The arrogant ass asked and she swore that it looked as if Colin wanted nothing more than to stake him right where he stood.

  “You lying son of a bitch,” she hissed, taking another step away from them. She quickly scanned the room, looking for a way out other than the doorway the vampire so casually blocked. She took another small step toward the French doors and prayed that she would be quick enough.

  “Melinda, it isn’t what you think,” Colin responded, his eyes so warm…so mesmerizing…and she really wanted to believe him, but she gave herself a swift mental kick. Oh, hell no! Who knew what kind of mumbo jumbo he could be pulling on her. His eyes seemed to penetrate her very soul and she didn’t know if her head could be trusted. She knew the rest of her body sure as hell couldn’t!

  “Why don’t you tell her what it is then, Colin old boy,” the vampire snorted, and Melinda spun around and took off running toward the glass doors, praying they were unlocked.

  Just as she reached for the handle, strong, powerful arms slid around her and held fast, and she screeched in terror.

  The room was suddenly filled with little bursts of light and they popped and exploded around them as she struggled to free herself.

  She was suddenly aware of Colin’s soft, soothing voice in her ear as the vampire laughed once again, seeming to enjoy her terror immensely, which did nothing to calm her already frayed nerves.

  “Melinda, stop! Max is only here to help.”

  “How?” she spat out, trying desperately to pull away from him, but he was just so blasted strong! “By sucking me dry?” The pops increased, lighting up the room like the fourth of July, and she felt Colin’s strong hands turning her around toward him.

  “Oh, wouldn’t I love that,” the vampire chuckled, and she had the deep, sudden desire to stake the damned oaf herself! Arrogant Bastard!

  “You’re not helping here, Max!” Colin growled.

  “Who said I was supposed to?” He responded with a grin.

  Colin spit out a string of curses as he tried to calm Melinda down, and the fact that Max was being his usual aggravating smart assed self wasn’t helping the situation at all.

  “Damn it, Melinda,” he ground out. The feel of her body wriggling against his as she tried to get away was doing dangerous things to his, and he needed to keep himself in check. “Calm down. Max is a friend! He’s not here to…to do what you think he is.”

  After a few very tense moments, Melinda relaxed slightly, Colin noticed with a soft sigh of relief…but very slightly. Well, he thought with a grim smile, at least she had stopped struggling.

  She watched them warily, those damned eyes of hers darkening as the pops of light going off around them began to slowly die down.

  “Hey, don’t speak for me,” Max snickered, moving into the room and walking over to the small bar in the far corner of the room. Colin watched Melinda closely as she kept her eyes glued to his friend as he poured himself a tumbler of bourbon and raised it in salute. “But, don’t worry, beautiful. I’m definitely a night person,” he chuckled before downing his drink. “I don’t need to walk around during the day. It’s way too peoplely out there for me.” He poured himself another drink and gave Colin a grin. “I have to say, my friend, you sure got yourself one feisty little ma…” he began, but Colin cut him off, his body practically vibrating with his fury.

  “Maxwell!”

  “What?” Max asked, feigning innocence, and Colin wanted nothing more than to throttle the smarmy asshole to within an inch of his life…or un-life as the case may be.

  He and Max Rogan had been friends for decades, yet the bloodsucker knew exactly how to push his damn buttons. And…he enjoyed every freaking second of it!

  Max looked at them both a moment before breaking out into a full-fledged smile. “Ah…I see.” He laughed and Colin knew he had finally realized that he hadn’t yet told Melinda about their mate status. He said a quick prayer that for once the bloodsucker would show just a little restraint and keep his mouth shut. “It’s your funeral,” he finally mumbled with a shrug of his shoulders.

  Colin turned his attention back to Melinda, who was silently watching their exchange, her mouth set in a tight line and her eyes narrowed.

  “Melinda, I asked Max to help take care of your disappearance,” Colin explained softly.

  “And just what in the hell does that mean?” she snapped back, and he realized that he should have told her sooner. He just hadn’t expected Max to show up so quickly.

  “It means that vampires can compel you mere mortals into doing our bidding. It’s all very Halloweeny,” Max chimed in, and again Colin shot him a murderous glare.

  Colin watched as the blood drained from Melinda’s face and he had the overpowering desire to stake his friend.

  “Melinda, it just means that he’s planted the idea in your father’s and the people you work with minds that you are away on an extended vacation and that everything is fine,” he explained quickly. “It’s only to keep people from asking questions that can’t be answered. They won’t know any different.”

  She seemed to think abo
ut this for a very long, very quiet moment, and Colin breathed another small sigh of relief when her face finally relaxed. She took a tentative step back from of his hold, and seemed to gather her thoughts as Colin stood there quietly.

  “So, you won’t bite me?” she asked finally, looking toward where Max stood, still looking thoroughly amused by the entire exchange.

  “Not unless you ask me to, Kitten,” he replied evenly, and Colin felt his entire body jerk as if he had stepped on a live wire. Jesus, he was going to deck the bastard!

  “Well, believe me, Boris…I’ll be making myself some stakes…just in case.”

  Max broke out into laughter once again. “Damn, but I do like her, Colin,” he chuffed with a grin that belied his admiration.

  “Like me all you want,” she replied sourly. “Just remember that I am not on the menu.” She turned her attention back to Colin, and he saw her take a deep breath. “I think I might turn in for the night,” she said quietly. “I’m getting a headache and just want to lay down for a bit. I’ll let you two do your male bonding in peace.”

  “Of course; top of the stairs, first door on the right.”

  Colin silently wondered how she would react to being settled into the master bedroom, and hoped that she wouldn’t freak out on him.

  He caught her eyes quickly flicking back to Max before sliding back to meet his gaze. “And…it’s safe?” she whispered, and Colin nodded, wanting nothing more than to sweep her up in his arms.

  “I told you, Melinda, you’re safe with me,” he responded softly.

  She gave him a quick jerky nod before stepping around him and heading for the stairs, not taking her eyes off Max for a moment.

  When Colin was sure that she was out of earshot, he turned and glared at his friend, who by this time had taken a seat on the sofa and was sitting there with a shit-eating smile plastered across his mouth.

  “What in the hell is wrong with you?” he ground out. “She was just attacked by a fucking vampire for God’s sake, Maxwell!”

  “Oh, come on, Colin,” Max huffed good-naturedly, his icy eyes gleaming with amusement. “I’m fairly certain that lovely little creature of yours has absolutely no problem whatsoever holding her own. She’s a little firecracker! By the by…” he chortled. “Just when were you planning on telling the little witch that she’s stuck with you for eternity?”

  Colin dropped down onto the chair opposite of where his friend was sitting, and shrugged. “How did you know?” he asked darkly. It wasn’t as if he had been expecting to come face to face with his mate when he had agreed to take on this endeavor. It was a promise made long ago, yet there was no denying it. With each moment that he spent with her, his desire to bond only intensified.

  “I can sense the connection between the two of you,” Max explained. “It’s like a fucking hammer to the head, and quite annoying really. Why haven’t you told her?”

  “Jesus, Max,” Colin said, shaking his head. “She barely knows me. Not to mention the fact that she’s had a shit load of crap dumped on her in the last two days. I’m not exactly ready to dump me into the mix quite yet.”

  “Yes, I can see you not wanting to make it worse by informing her that she’s going to be stuck with your ugly mug for the next few hundred years.”

  “Funny, Max,” Colin spit out irritably, his mouth set into a tight scowl, “real freaking funny.”

  Melinda opened the door to the room Colin had directed her to and sucked in a breath through her teeth. The enormous master bedroom was something right out of Better Homes and Gardens.

  She slowly stepped through the door and spotted her bags sitting by the bureau and knew that she was indeed in the right room. She glanced around and realized with a strange fluttering in her chest that this had to be Colin’s room.

  She walked over to the closet and tentatively pulled it open, her hand trembling ever so slightly. Yep, she thought with a slight shiver when she saw his clothes hanging there…definitely his room.

  She swallowed with difficulty as she admitted to herself that there was a small part of her that was excited. No matter what she tried to tell herself, she was beyond attracted to the man as she had never been to anyone ever before. Yet, there was that other, insecure part of her that was just the tiniest bit stunned. He was absolute male perfection.

  She touched the shirts hanging there so neatly and sighed. His smell was everywhere -strong, musky, and so masculine. She mentally shook herself and walked over to the bed, eyeing the enormous piece of furniture apprehensively. Would he sleep here tonight, she wondered as goosebumps skittered across her flesh. Or, was he just being the perfect host and giving her the master bedroom and would take another room? It was as if her mind was working overtime, and she needed to make it stop.

  She silently reprimanded herself as she walked over to her bags. Grabbing her overnight case, she headed for the door she hoped was the bathroom. A nice hot shower and a comfortable bed was all she needed at the moment. She didn’t want to think about him sliding into bed next to her…or about the vampire sitting downstairs. As long as that jackass kept his fangs to himself…she would deal with the rest as it came.

  “On a serious note, my friend,” Max said as they sat there quietly, nursing their drinks. “Word getting around is that Roland did, indeed, walk in the sun-but it was for a very short period and he’s furious and desperate to get his hands on your little mate. You must have gotten to them before he could get too much from her.”

  Colin nodded distractedly, a muscle in his jaw twitching and his eyes flashing with anger. “One drop was too much,” he seethed, and Max knew he was beating himself up for not getting to her sooner.

  “Colin, you got to her before he could lose control and drain her,” Max responded. “That’s a win for our team in my book. Roland is vicious. And, believe me, if she tastes as good as she smells…I guarantee you that he would have suffered blood lust and killed her. That beast has no restraint at all.” Colin winced slightly at the thought, and Max gave him a knowing grin. “Never thought I’d see it happen to you, my friend, but your mate has you twisted up in knots. It’s really quite amusing.”

  Colin nodded slightly, not about to even try to deny it. All he could think of at the moment was dashing up the stairs and slipping into bed beside her. It was a deep, gnawing need that was getting harder and harder to fight.

  Max smiled knowingly and stood. “Go,” he said with a shake of his head. “I need to go into town and see if I can find myself a suitable donor in this God-forsaken tundra,” he laughed. “I wouldn’t want to lose control and nip at your woman.” With that he stood and left the house.

  Colin waited a full thirty seconds before jumping up from the sofa and running for the stairs. Now that was what he called restraint!

  Colin silently slipped into the room, trying to be as quiet as possible. He stopped dead in his tracks when he spotted her, curled up in sleep, her glorious golden hair spread out around her and her perfect features relaxed.

  He felt his heart jump in his chest when she snuggled deeper into the bedding with a sexy as hell sigh. Christ on a crutch, but she was beautiful!

  He shed his clothing down to his boxers and carefully pulled back the thick comforter. A half smile cracked his lips as he saw the sweatpants and sweatshirt she wore and a low chuckle passed his lips.

  “Bite me,” she husked sleepily, “I was cold.”

  Colin groaned deep in his chest as he slid in beside her. His body instantly igniting as he spooned his body against hers and his arm slid over her waist protectively.

  “Hi,” Colin murmured against her ear, and he felt her smile as another soft purr passed her lips.

  “Did Barnabas Collins leave?” she asked. “Or did he find a coffin somewhere to crawl into?”

  Colin chuckled against her neck, his mouth whispering along the line of her pulse and he felt her shiver. “He’s really not that bad,” he rasped, not caring at the moment what she thought of his friend in the least. �
��But he went into town. He’ll be back before sunrise.”

  “Oh, joy.”

  “There’s nothing to worry about, Melinda. You won’t even have to see him if you don’t want to.” He turned her over onto her back so he could look into her eyes, and the fire he saw in them was almost his undoing. His wolf howled in need. Deep, intense…all-consuming need.

  “Good,” she replied, her mouth turning down in a frown, but after only a moment, those amazing lips of hers lifted once again, “And…hi yourself, by the way.”

  “Are you all right now?” he asked, needing to make sure she was at ease. That she was comfortable in what he hoped above hope would be their home.

  “Oh, you mean me freaking out because of the vampire in your house that you failed to tell me about? Not to mention the other one hundred and one other things I’ve discovered in the past few days? Yeah, we’re all good. It’s just a whole hell of a lot to take in all at once, but I’m getting there.”

  Colin pressed his lips against hers, his mouth soft and gentle. “I didn’t realize that he would show up so quickly,” he explained, his breath deliciously mingling with hers, and he felt that need swelling up in him. “And, well…Max can be a total ass sometimes.”

  “That’s putting it mildly,” she replied, and he felt his body shiver when she automatically snuggled up a little closer to him. “And you’re sure that it’s safe?” she questioned again, and Colin felt that need to protect come creeping forward. He didn’t want his mate to ever experience a moment’s worry. The thought that he could feel this way about someone was daunting, to say the least, but it was also exhilarating. He had never put anyone else first before. It was new, yet it felt so right. He knew that he would gladly die to protect her.

  “He’ll be gone tomorrow evening,” he promised and felt her entire body relax.

  “Um…so, this is your room?”

  “Yes.” He wanted to tell her that it was now their room, but knew he needed to wait…no matter what his wolf thought to the contrary.