by Sky Winters
She turned to leave, but before she could even take a step, Bulk's hand shot out with a surprising quickness. He latched onto her wrist and held her in place.
"Sit that little ass of yours down. Now."
Panic rushed through Adelaide. She realized that there was nothing she could do. Bulk's face was twisted into an expression of frustrated anger, like that of a kid who wasn't getting what he wanted. But this kid was six-six and three hundred pounds.
"Let me go!" protested Adelaide.
"Not a fucking chance," said Bulk. "You're mine."
But before Adelaide could say or do anything else, a large hand clapped down onto Bulk's shoulder. Adelaide's eyes shot up to the hand's owner, and she saw that he was a tall, built man dressed in a tight white t-shirt that clung to his broad shoulders and defined pecs and a pair of dark jeans and combat boots. His hair was slicked back and as dark as India ink, and his face was so gorgeous that Adelaide couldn't believe it was real. His eyes were an icy blue, his lips were full and sensual, and his jaw was wide and strong. Adelaide couldn't tell his age, but he looked to be in his late thirties.
"Don't think she's interested, buddy," said the man, his voice low and rich.
Bulk shifted his weight around and looked hard at the man.
"What the fuck you think you're doing, asshole?" said Bulk. "How about you back the fuck off."
"Not gonna happen," said the man. "See, I'm an old-fashioned kind of guy. And old-fashioned guys like me know that when a girl's got a look like that on her face, one that I would call ‘abject terror,' it means they want you to leave them the fuck alone. So, I'm gonna make sure that's exactly what happens."
"The only thing that's gonna happen," said Bulk, “is that you get the fuck out of my goddamn face, pretty boy, and leave me to my woman."
The man shook his head.
"And because I'm an old-fashioned kind of guy," he said, "I'm gonna give you one last warning before I drop your ass to the floor. So, here it is: back the fuck off, and leave the girl alone."
Bulk took a step closer to the man, shoving him with his big, round belly. Adelaide watched with fear as he got as close as possible to the man.
"Fuck. You," he said.
"Hate to do things this way," said the man, "but you asked for it."
With lightning speed, the man pulled back his fist and sent it into Bulk's face in a tight arc. The fist connected, a sick crack sounding out through the bar. Bulk flew backward as soon as the fist hit him, moving faster than Adelaide would've guessed a fat man like him would've been able to. Bulk fell onto the floor in a heap, and the crowd around them yelled and whooped at the action.
Adelaide watched Bulk as he lay still on the floor, looking like a truck had just slammed into him. Eventually, a few of his friends arrived and, with a team effort, heaved him from the ground and dragged him out of the bar. Adelaide's heart raced, and she put her hand on the side of the bar to steady herself.
"You OK?" asked the man.
As Adelaide took in the sight of her savior, her heart picked up even more than before.
Holy fuck, she thought, this guy's goddamn gorgeous.
"Um, I think so," said Adelaide.
The man reached forward and took one of Adelaide's hands into his. The feeling of his skin against hers was like nothing she'd ever felt before. It was chemistry in the purest sense.
"Your hands are shaking," he said. "You need a minute. You alone here?"
"I'm here with my friends, but they're a little, uh, distracted at the moment."
"Name's Thorne," said the man.
"Adelaide," she replied.
"Adelaide," he said, as if trying the name on for size. "Now, that's a pretty name. Like something from another time."
"I'm sure an old-fashioned guy like you appreciates it, then."
One side of Thorne's mouth pulled up into a smile, which had to be the most charming smile Adelaide had ever seen in her life.
"You'd be right about that."
"A real gentleman, too," said Adelaide, taking one of the drinks that Bulk had bought her and placing it in front of Thorne. "Here, I think you've earned this. That is, unless you're too old-fashioned to let a girl buy a drink for you."
"Well, to be accurate, you didn't buy it for me. That brick wall of a gentleman currently being loaded into the back of a car did."
"Maybe you should go out and thank him," said Adelaide.
"I think he and I have done all the conversing we need to do for one night. Who knows – maybe this'll be the start of a beautiful friendship."
Adelaide smiled. Thorne was…something else. He had an easy confidence in him, as well as charm. And after a few moments of them talking, she realized she already felt safer, more at ease.
"You from here, Mr. Old-Fashioned?" asked Adelaide, taking a sip of her drink.
"Nope," he said, shaking his head slowly. "Here from New York. In town on business."
"Business, huh? What kind of business is that?"
"The kind that if I told you, I'd have to kill you."
He flashed her another sexy little grin. Continue Reading on Amazon
About The Author
Sky Winters is drawn to writing paranormal fairy tales with bad-ass shapeshifters. She likes her heroes and heroines to be the unexpected ones, and their passion to be steamy! She writes these sizzl'n and surreal tales for you, late at night, when the wolves are howling from her Northwestern home.
If surreal romance with shapeshifters is your thing, you best sign up for Paranormal Romance Publishers email list, and grab a copy of “Wolf Babies” for FREE
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