Red's Wolf

by Piper J. Drake

  "And is a couple of days what you want?" Jenna spoke slowly, making Carri pause and think too.

  "It's what neither of us wants, Jenna. He's a bad actor. I don't think this is a little fling for either of us."

  "Good." Jenna sounded satisfied. "Not that you needed it, but I'll confirm for you he's serious. Bradley challenged him yesterday."

  "I know."

  "Your Jason sent Bradley back bleeding and broken in a few places. I'd say Jason is more than serious about his claim on you."

  Carri stopped short on the doorstep, the door snapping shut behind her. Jason's prints showed in the already deepening snow, but as more fell, those tracks would be filled in, and she wasn't a skilled tracker by any means.

  "So he's serious." Her breath hung as frozen mist in the air. "And you're not mad about Bradley?"

  "Ben's not happy, but he confirms it a fair fight. Bradley made his choice to face off with Jason and lost. It will teach the pup to train harder."

  "I'm going to look for him." Carri stepped out into the snow.

  "Ben is on his way." Jenna's voice took on a crisp, no nonsense cadence. "I'll be covering patrol. You keep your comm with you and report in to us if you don't find him."

  "I'm following tracks now, but if I lose them, I'll head to the surveillance building and check in from there." Carri ended the call and started into the cold, pulling her red hood close around her head.

  She followed the tracks for a while, but her legs faltered in the deep snow and she lost the trail as more fell. Not as fast as him and unable to tell if he headed in a particular direction, she stopped to get her bearings, realizing the tracks had taken her in a sweeping arc close to the surveillance building. If Ben tracked her and Jason, it would be a good place for him to catch up to her. Plus, she had to check in with Jenna.

  The surveillance building held welcome warmth as she kicked snow off her lower legs and stepped inside. Cold, aching and exhausted, she promised herself she would make Jason give her a good rub down for all of this trouble.

  If she found him.

  She shook her head in frustration. The truth? He might refuse to acknowledge this thing between them. It would break her heart into pieces if he did. Just a few days and all she could think of was him. It wasn't infatuation; she’d felt that before with other men. No, Jason wasn't like any other man she had ever met. He managed to be infuriating, stubborn, brooding and a stick-in-the-mud, but also thoughtful and considerate, tender under his gruff exterior. From somewhere deep in her soul, he struck a chord in her, and she could rely on him no matter what the situation, if he acknowledged her. She wanted to trust him, love him, if he would let her.

  She sent a text-only message to Jenna to check in then sat at the console to review the diagnostics she’d left running.

  "No!" Horrified, she warmed up the board and ran a real scan to confirm the diagnostics on the initial test sensor array Jason had installed earlier.

  An aerial incursion had been detected, not a false positive in the tests. Another hunter lurked out there, in pack territory, and Jason ran alone.

  Her hands flew over the board, sending the alert to Jenna and Ben's cell comms. Once she'd warned the alpha pair, she bolted out of the surveillance building and back out into the snow. She had to find Jason, had to warn him. No time to wait for Ben to catch up to her.

  She peered through the flurries, doubling back on her own trail to the point where she had left Jason's tracks. His had almost filled in, subtle indents in the white blanket over the forest floor. Half-running, half-wading, she hurried to follow.

  The snow seemed to muffle all of the sounds of the forest. She labored on with only the ragged sound of her breath in her ears, the cold burning her lungs with each intake of air. Her hood fell back, unnoticed in her rush, and snowflakes caught in her hair.

  The forest slowed around her when she felt the bite of a dart at her neck. Her pounding heartbeat marked the time as she fell to her side, her limbs suddenly too heavy to move, her voice caught in her throat.

  Fear lanced through her as she heard the sound of some sort of air intake nearby, out of place amongst the woods. It had a place in the cities, the technology more prominent there. When the hunter landed, she realized the sound came from a jet pack on his back.

  He, and she guessed it was a he, wore full body armor, obviously humanoid, but unlike any armor she’d ever seen. Shapeshifters didn't wear body armor at all. His steps sank heavy into the drifts, accompanied by the odd, mechanical sounds of servo-aided joints. As he came to a stop in front of her, she struggled to move but her limbs wouldn't obey. She could breath, hear and see, even blink, but had no real motor control. She was at his mercy.

  "Specimen is homo sapiens, female, average size." She understood the words, but couldn't understand why the thing spoke her language. "Phenotype suggests northern continent genetic stock. This is inconsistent with species of Canis lupus known to claim local environment as territory. Irregularity is of note. Hypothesis: subject is visiting the local pack. Subject is not identified as individual of note and will be terminated, considered creditable as trophy. BMKW-5134, transmission terminating."

  Close to panic, her thoughts moved at lightning speed as she tried and tried again to get her body to move. Stupid, she knew, to have been out there by herself in her bright red coat, almost begging to be taken down. She’d made herself easy prey.

  She could only watch as some sort of gun barrel leveled on her. It had multiple attachments, darts and deadlier looking projectiles. Her eye caught a shadow of movement beyond. Hope burst into her mind but she focused on the gun, didn't give away what came.

  Jason.

  He burst out of the trees in wolf form, slamming into the hunter and taking it down to one side, clear of Carri's inert form.

  Red haze covered his eye sight and rage beat through his veins. He didn't know if she lived or had already died, but he would kill the thing that dared threaten her.

  Wolf teeth could do little against body armor, so he shifted as they landed, but halted the shift so his hands and feet remaining clawed. Enraged, he grabbed the hunter's helmet and wrenched it to the side, slicing the soft fabric joining the helmet to the torso with his claws as he did it.

  A garbled scream issued from speakers. Blood flowed red in the snow.

  Furious and caught up in the kill, he pounded on the body armor, aiming at the vulnerable joints at the arms and knees until the limbs turned out at impossible angles. He would have continued if he hadn't heard Carri's gasp.

  "Jason."

  His rage drained away in an instant.

  "Red?" Barely a whisper as relief flooded through him. He shot to her side, cradling her in his arms. Golden hair spilled out from her red hood, and he could see the muscle of her jaw and neck struggling to work.

  "Hey, stranger." Her voice came in a strangled whisper, but she spoke.

  "Carri!" At the sound of Ben's voice, Jason's head shot up and he growled warning. Ben stopped short, taking in the scene. Even recognizing the alpha, Jason couldn't bring himself to stand down, not after such a close call and not with Carri still so vulnerable.

  Ben held up his hands, staying where he was, but the alpha didn't back away. Instead Ben let the power specific to alphas roll through the air, calming Jason's rage. "Jason. Stand down. Let us help Carri. There's an antidote for the dart."

  Resisting the more dominant alpha came easy for Jason, part of his problem. He was dominant, more dominant than Ben, but he wasn't an alpha.

  Only Carri could hold the reigns to his rage. "Need...help. Antidote, Jason."

  He scooped her into his arms, met the alpha's eyes. "Send the healer to the guest house. It's closer."

  Cradling her high against his chest, Jason ran through the forest, knowing the alpha would follow. As he raced to get Carri the help she needed, he berated himself for leaving her alone. Too late. He’d almost been too late, and she might die because of it.

  The hiss of an air gun nev
er sounded better to Carri as it delivered the antidote into her system. She lay cradled in Jason's arms, surrounded by the pack healer as well as Ben and Jenna.

  "She should rest, now." The healer informed the alpha pair, ignoring both patient and rescuer. "The paralytic effects will pass immediately, but the shock to her system is severe."

  "She'll stay here." Jason's voice still part wolf, allowing for no argument.

  "She'll be better cared for in our home." Jenna shot back at him.

  "Hello? Patient here. I think I get a say in this." Carri struggled to sit up before things escalated into an actual fight.

  "Obviously, the paralytic effects fade fast." Ben's dry comment brought a tiny smile to Carri's face.

  "I only need rest, right?" Carri looked to the healer for confirmation. Once the healer gave her a nod, she looked to Jenna and Ben. "Then I'll rest here." She squirmed around to see Jason's face, still blood-spattered. "If you're staying to watch over me."

  His growl rumbled in his chest under her hand. "That was the idea."

  "Fine then." She snuggled against his warmth. "It's decided. My decision."

  "We'll talk tomorrow morning." Ben steered Jenna out the door, but his words held no concession, they held a promise.

  Carri didn't want to think about tomorrow. Tired and happy to be alive, happy Jason was alive and in one piece. He’d pulled clothes on just before the healer arrived, but he hadn't taken the time to wash away the blood, or see to his own cuts and bruises. "We should take care of you, too."

  "I need to get you into the bed, get a mug of soup inside you, and then you need to sleep," Jason countered, shifting her in his arms so that he could carry her cradled against his chest.

  As much as she liked his arms around her, Carri squirmed. "You've got blood on you. Is any of it yours? Shapeshifter speed healing or whatever, we need to clean you up."

  "I'll shower after you're in bed."

  She glanced at the shower cubicle just off the bedroom. Time to change tactics. "I'm all sticky. My skin feels itchy after all the stuff in my system." She looked up at him through her eyelashes, trying to look innocent. "I might not be able to stand in the shower by myself, but you could help me."

  Jason paused, and when his eyes met hers, a storm brewed. Her heart kicked up and she took it just a little farther, tilting her head up to nip very lightly at his jaw.

  Excitement raced through her as he started walking again, carrying her towards the bathroom. When they reached the small tiled room, he settled her on the counter of the vanity, bending to take off her boots.

  "We need to talk."

  Even though his tone drew anxious shivers out of her, she mustered a small smile. "New for you."

  He straightened, his face still very serious. "You need to know why I don't have a pack."

  The tightness in her chest eased a fraction. She'd been worried he wanted to say something different. No. This, this was definitely something she wanted to know. Not an easy thing for Jason to tell her, but it might give him a little freedom in the telling.

  "Every pack is led by at least one alpha." Jason began, standing in front of her, his hands resting on the counter at either side of her. "Glacier Valley pack is lucky because they have the balance of a mated alpha pair. Not every pack is balanced and not every pack is as strong. My pack numbered barely half the size of Glacier Valley."

  He ducked his head. She reached out to touch his face and he leaned into her hand.

  "I'm dominant, but I'm not an alpha." The admission seemed to rip something loose in Jason, the words coming faster. "When I first hit puberty, I couldn't control it. My alpha sent me out of the pack on a lone run. It was only supposed to be for a season, to gain experience and rein in my temper. When I came home, the pack had been wiped out in a territory fight with another pack. No one survived."

  "Oh, Jason." Her heart bled for him. The pain in his voice sounded so raw, even after all this time.

  "I wasn't there." Jason's voice had quieted to a ragged whisper. "If I'd had control, been there, I would've been one more fighter, dominant enough to tip the odds in our favor. And today, you saw me out of control again, a killer."

  "Yes. You killed today." His eyes flashed silver at her statement, but she held them steady in her own gaze. "For me. And I would have died without you."

  Oh, but this man had captured her heart. She'd rather spend the rest of her days bickering with him, laughing with him, than anything else in the world. The city, awash with sound, all of its bustling people rushing back and forth about their day, only to return to their tiny apartments. Like background noise, it faded away.

  "I can't bring back your pack." She ran her fingers through his black hair, marveling at the softness of it. "But I can be with you, if you let me. Don't be alone anymore."

  "You deserve better than wandering around without a home." His growl had returned.

  She had a temper too, and it sparked. "I deserve to make an informed decision." She bared her teeth at him. "You are what I want."

  Jason had never been so turned on by a female baring her teeth at him. Of course, the females had never been friendly, or so cute. But Carri, his Carri, wanted him.

  "If you want a shower, we're going to have to get these clothes off." He grinned as her big blue eyes widened.

  "I guess the talk is over?" A little breathless, she bit the plump lower lip of hers.

  Jason leaned in and licked at the spot. "Sort of. For now."

  "Yeah." Definitely breathless now, the scent of her arousal began to warm the air. Sweetness, spicy and feminine, her scent intoxicated him. "Conversation has gone to a couple of words per sentence. That's the Jason I know."

  Chuckling, he decided he didn't need words. Reaching into the shower, he dialed up the showerheads for steaming water. Then, he took her mouth, settling his lips over hers and branding her with his kiss. He wanted to wash away the last residual scent of the hunter and the drugged dart, covering her skin in his scent instead.

  Using a controlled shift, he shredded her shirt with his claws, careful not to touch the fragile skin revealed. She opened her mouth to say something, but he caught it with a kiss. Delicate brows drew together as she frowned, frustrated, and he gave her a lazy grin, knowing she couldn't retaliate in kind. But his Carri surprised him with the elusive fire of hers, gripping his flannel in fists and yanking so hard the buttons popped off.

  A growl worked itself free from his chest, and he grasped her tiny waist, lifting her off the counter and setting her on her feet. Her jeans fell in shreds to the floor. Before she could move, he caught her wrists in one hand and lifted them above her head as he ran his other hand down her side. He kissed her, exploring her honey-sweet mouth with the sweep of his tongue while he used his hand to roam over the silken softness of her skin.

  She squirmed under his caress, but she didn't try to free her hands, even though he held her loosely. He kept his touch light, warming the subtle erogenous zones all along her torso, along her rib cage under her breasts and in the curve of her back. He’d save the best for later.

  Her eyes unfocused when he set her free, stepping back to strip off his jeans. He kicked away his underpants, loving the way she watched him. Her skin flushed, and she waited for him. He stood then, the full length of his erection standing out. Her tongue touched her top teeth as she stared. If anything, he grew under the heat of her regard.

  "Shower." He wouldn't be able to wait much longer.

  She didn't say anything at all, only nodded. He guided her into the shower, groaned as he saw the water slide over creamy skin. Watching droplets of water catch on her rosy nipples, he had to have a taste. Bending under the fall of water, he caught one nipple in his mouth, hearing her gasp. She clutched at his shoulders and he steadied her with one hand in the curve of her lower back. Then he suckled, swirled his tongue around that rosy tip until it tightened, and nibbled just a little.

  "J-Jason!"

  He chuckled, straightening to stand close t
o her. "No more sentences, Red?"

  "Uh, uh. No." She tilted her face up to him, parting her mouth in invitation, arching her back as she pressed against him.

  He gave in, kissing her until she began to melt against him. When her small hand slipped between them and grasped his cock, he groaned. "Wait, Red."

  "Wait?" Another squeeze.

  "Let me take care of you." Before he lost control with just the touch of her hand.

  He grabbed the soap then, and a soft washcloth. Rubbing them together until he worked up lather, he gently washed every part of her, lingering and teasing as he learned her most sensitive spots. She caught on, using the soap to wash him too, her hands small and gentle, inquisitive as they wandered over his limbs and back. Mischief sparked in her blue eyes as her hands washed his front, sliding along the length of his erection.

  Both clean and insanely turned on, he turned off the water and wrapped her in a big towel.

  "Hey!" Her muffled protest brought a smile to his face.

  In a lightning quick move, he had her bundled up and over his shoulder, striding back into the bedroom.

  "You're too tired to play for long in the shower, Red." He told her as he pulled aside the comforter and lowered her onto the mattress. "We'll do that another time."

  "Promise?"

  "Yes." He definitely planned to keep his promise. In the meantime, he leaned over her, sliding his hand along her torso until he cupped one full breast in his hand.

  "Nng." His Carri lost her words again.

  He grazed the tightening nipple with his teeth, enjoying her squirm. Playing with her breasts, he teased her until her hips lifted off the bed in a silent plea. He kissed his way down until he found her wet and waiting for him. Using a finger to trace the delicate folds of her sex, he found the little center of her pleasure hidden under its hood and tickled it just a little.

  "Ah!" Her hips jerked. So sensitive, her body responded to his lightest touch.

  Holding her thighs apart, he bent to feast on her. She called out his name as he explored her with strong strokes of his tongue, circling her clitoris and darting into her entrance. As he nibbled her tender skin, he watched her, her beautiful snowy white breasts tipped with rose moving as she writhed under his touch.