by Anya Bast
Caroline bobbed her head at them. "It's nice to meet you. Sorry I couldn't be at the weddings but I was in a different dimension."
Everyone laughed. Well, they all seemed nice enough.
Torrent took her by the arm and led her toward the house. "You can relax now. We're at my home." He led her within the magnificent log house that appeared to be part of the forest surrounding it. Once inside, she gave a small gasp of appreciation. She’d been a real estate agent once, before the economic recession had forced her to take an office job editing a database, and she'd seen plenty of homes, but none as beautiful as this one. To make the place even more spectacular, she could tell that no construction company had built this place. Lycaon hands had constructed this house.
The floor of the small foyer was made from smooth, polished stones that ended where a gorgeous wood floor began. The walls had been constructed from rough-hewn logs. The floor plan was open, with a vast sitting room opening up from the foyer. A dining room and kitchen lay to her left. A flight of stairs led up to a loft, where she bet Torrent's bedroom was located.
“Oh, wow,” she exclaimed, stepping forth into the living room. “This is amazing!” Towering, majestic trees had been incorporated into the design of the house. Their trunks rose up through the roof, which was spotted with skylights. An immense river stone fireplace dominated the living room, which was decorated with comfortable looking couches and chairs.
She walked over to one of the trees and looked up into the branches, which started about four feet above her head. She expected to hear the twittering of birds at any moment, but it looked like the place was wildlife free. "This place is amazing," she breathed.
"I'm glad you like it. It’s not an easy design to maintain. The places where the roof meets the trees are in regular need of alteration to prevent leaks, but I love the work. It's not a very human house style, much more Lycaon. I never expected to bring my human mate here or I would have made a few changes."
It was perfect the way it was. She shot him a sidelong glance. "You keep using that word."
"What word? Mate?”
“Yes.”
“I use it because you are my mate." Torrent moved away from her, denying her chance to retort.
Her sisters and their husbands had hung around outside, presumably to give Torrent a chance to bring her into the house with some privacy. Now they came in and led her to the kitchen where food was already set out on the table. Her mouth watered at the sight of it. The rabbit they'd had the night before hadn't lasted all that long.
"We made food for you both," said Kaitlyn. "Eat, bathe, sleep. We’ll come back this evening. I know you must have questions."
Panic erupted. "Wait. What? Don't leave!"
"You need to relax," answered Paige, taking her by the shoulders. "Don't worry. There's nowhere you could be safer than with Torrent."
Caroline didn't doubt that.
Her sisters each kissed the top of her dirty head and then moved to the door with their spouses. "We'll see you in a few hours, Caroline. Okay?"
She stared at them glumly as they turned to leave, the heavy wood door closing behind with a final sounding snick. Her sisters looked amazingly happy and healthy. All this time she'd been worried about them, they'd been here living dream lives with gorgeous men. She shook her head. It was still hard to believe any of this was happening.
Her stomach growled, bringing her back to her immediate needs. And maybe that's what she needed to focus on now—trying to feel a little less like she'd been hit by a truck and left to die.
“Eat,” said Torrent, gesturing at the table. “I’ll be right back.”
Tucking the blanket around her like a towel, she sat at the table and peered at the dishes in front of her. Something hot and meaty. Something cool and fruity. Some kind of green leafy salad. Overcome suddenly with a need for nutrition, she grabbed the plate in front of her and began to help herself.
She was eating like a starved animal—because she felt like a starved animal—when Torrent returned. He set a bundle on the kitchen counter. "Here is a towel and some clothes for you. Your sisters thought to bring some things."
In between swallows she managed thanks. She didn’t even care what she looked like, gobbling food this way. Her only concern was getting food into her body. Torrent had gone still and silent. She glanced up at him. He was staring at the food, too.
“Eat!” she commanded him. He’d had even less sustenance than she’d had and he was a much larger person.
He gave his head a shake. “You eat first. Take all you need.”
“Oh, come on!” She stood grabbed a plate and piled food on to it. Then she set it at the place next to her. “Sit down, Torrent, and eat!”
He didn’t move.
She gave an exasperated sigh. “Now!”
He grinned at her, sank down, and tucked into the food. She sat back down too, but her belly was finally starting to feel full. It probably wasn’t wise of her to eat so much food after being nearly starved to death. She guessed she’d be sick later. Honestly, though, she didn’t care.
“There’s enough here to feed an army, Torrent. You didn’t need to worry.”
“I am an army,” he said between bites.
Eying him up and down, she figured that was probably true.
Now that she had food in her stomach, she could assess her state of dirtiness. Never, ever in her existence had she been this unwashed. Not even when she’d gone camping with her previous boyfriend, Eric, for a week and they’d gotten lost in the forest.
“I’m going to take a bath, if you don’t mind.”
Torrent seemed in love with his food at the moment, too in love to answer. That was good. She smiled at him in complete understanding as he hooked a thumb upward.
She nodded. “The bathroom is upstairs. Got it.”
She picked up the bundle of clothes, left the kitchen and walked through the living room. The railing of the stairway felt smooth beneath her hand as she ascended. She could imagine Torrent polishing it smooth out in the front yard, shirt off, muscles working as he moved, skin golden from the sun….
She shook her head. Yep, she was feeling better. Her libido was perking up.
At the top of the stairs was a sitting room with a couch, a chair, and filled bookshelves. A library? Checking out some of the offerings, she found a selection of books she was familiar with, classics from her dimension. Odd. She frowned. She’d have to remember to ask Torrent about that.
The short hallway led to two bedrooms and a very nice, spacious bathroom. The end of the hallway opened up into a huge master bedroom suite. She walked around with her mouth hanging open, exploring. This was a beautiful house by any measure, but to find it here, in the middle of nowhere, and knowing that it had been built by the hands of men—and likely without much heavy equipment—blew her mind.
Clutching her clothes, she wandered into the master bathroom. It looked like her bathroom at home—except much bigger and nicer. Setting down her bundle, she turned the spigot on in the shower and out came hot water. Way out here in the middle of the forest. How had he managed that?
At the moment, she didn’t care. Ditching the blanket, she stepped into the shower and had the most orgasmic experience of her life. The water sluiced down her body, mixing with the healthy lather of soap she gave herself. She washed her hair and body three times, until her skin was a beautiful, polished pink, then scrubbed all the grime out from beneath her nails.
After drying off, she picked up the clothes her sisters had brought for her. Among the garments she found a soft, loose nightgown made of something that felt like cotton. There was also a pair of white slippers. Thank goodness her sisters had brought comfortable clothing. She slipped into the gown, towel-dried her hair, and slipped out the door.
Halfway down the hallway, she found Torrent emerging from the other bathroom in a cloud of steam. He was shirtless, a pair of baggy pants encasing him from the waist down. Water droplets glistened on his s
mooth, tanned skin and he smelled good enough to lick.
She stopped short and tried not to swallow her tongue. Now that some of her basic needs as a human had been met, her awareness of Torrent as a man rushed through her. “Um.”
“Do you feel better?”
“Incredibly.” She tore her gaze away from his torso. “How do you get so much hot water way out here in the middle of nowhere?”
“The pipes for the showers draw from a hot spring. There are many such springs in Lycaon territory.”
“And where does the power come from? I see you have electricity.”
“We use solar power and wind. It’s better to use what we can from nature, isn’t it?”
She realized she was staring at his chest again. Damn it. “Um. I’m tired.”
“I could sleep for a week.” He grinned at her.
“Let’s do it, then. Where’s a bed? Uh. For sleeping. You know, for a week.”
His grin widened and she blushed. “This way.”
He led her back into the master bedroom. His bed was huge and covered with soft blankets and pillows. It looked like heaven. “But this is your room. I saw you have several bedr—”
“It’s big enough for the both of us, don’t you think?
Chapter Four
She glanced at the bed and back at him. “Listen, Torrent—”
“I won’t touch you in any manner that you don’t wish, Caroline. I might want to touch you. I might be fantasizing about it right now in spite of my incredible fatigue, but I will not. Not until you invite me.”
She believed him. How could she not after the way he’d already behaved with her? He’d been nothing but a knight in shining armor. Anyway, after all she’d been through, she wasn’t sure she wanted to be alone. “Okay.”
“I’m glad you trust me.”
“I do.”
He flipped back the sheets and blankets, then slid into the bed. “Come on, then,” he beckoned.
Seeing him there in those comfy sheets made her regret feeling so prim and protective of herself. This was the hottest man she’d ever seen her life. Why wasn’t she jumping his bones already?
She hesitated a moment, toed off her slippers, then slid into the bed beside him. His strong arms wrapped around her and his body heat bled through their clothes and into her skin, muscle and bone. She felt safe, protected and, oddly, cherished.
Her head hit the pillow and she was out.
* * * *
Torrent grit his teeth at the sensation of Caroline’s perfect body flush against his. He loved everything about her. Loved her strength and spirit. Loved her dark hair and eyes. Loved her sharp little chin and the thin press of her lips when she was deep in thought.
Every muscle ached and he was so tired his very hair follicles hurt, yet he’d been waiting all his mature life for this moment—to have his mate in his bed. It was all he could do not to slip his hands down her body and tempt her into giving that invitation he’d need.
But he couldn’t. Not just because they were both so exhausted, but because Caroline needed to retain her trust in them if they were going to make this work. And there was nothing more in the world he wanted than to make a relationship with Caroline work.
Even if it was only a short time they could be together.
That was one reason why her presence here was so dangerous. The prophecy had not yet been fulfilled. Without Caroline’s presence he would have been ready to sacrifice his life or anyone else’s in the pursuit of Lycaon freedom. That was all in question now because he could not say he would be ready to sacrifice Caroline’s life.
He would need to keep her safe, safe from any chance that decision might need to be made.
The prophecy meant he would die—there was no help for that. They would need to appreciate every moment they had together until that time. But he would not allow the same fate to befall Caroline.
Her presence in his life was a beautiful, miraculous thing that filled his heart with love and hope—things he had not felt in many, many years. It was also the most horrible thing that could have happened to him and perhaps to her as well.
Torrent nestled his head behind Caroline’s on the pillow and pulled her sweet body up against his, holding her around the waist as though he’d never let go. Inhaling the scent of her still damp hair, he closed his eyes and put all troubling thoughts from his mind. For now, he would enjoy this.
* * * *
Caroline awoke cradled in the comforting heat of Torrent’s huge arms. She sighed and nestled closer to his chest, inhaling the soapy scent of his skin. Warm, safe and peaceful was quite a contrast to the last week of being cold, terrified and starving. It was like waking up in heaven.
It shocked her how easily she’d come to trust this man. Normally, she was not a woman who did that. She’d lived her life very carefully, watching and weighing every male that came into her life with suspicion born from feeling betrayed by her father. He’d married a woman who had not liked children, knowing that fact about her. For her and her sisters, it had made growing up with their stepmother Susan very turbulent. They’d been made to feel unwelcome in their home, made to feel her displeasure at their existence every single day.
It was only in adulthood that any of them had managed to find common ground and have a semi-civil relationship with her. Finally, all of them had made their peace with her.
Caroline couldn’t speak for her sisters, but she still resented her father for marrying Susan. Wasn’t a parent always supposed to put their kids first? He’d sacrificed their childhoods for his selfishness. Caroline was probably the most resentful of him and it had leaked into her romantic relationships. She never wanted to pick a partner anything like her father, so she’d had fewer boyfriends than her sisters, owing to her pickiness and caution. Always she’d been the one to dump, rather than be dumped. Overcautious was her middle name.
Then there was this man.
Torrent…he was an entirely different animal—no pun intended. From the first moment she’d touched his hand back in the prison, she’d felt compelled to have confidence in him. It made her almost believe in that whole “soul mate” thing.
Whatever it was that lay between them—physically that was only some pesky fabric—it was deep and she trusted it. Not only did he waken her emotionally, but sexually too. Resting here next to him, her body had ignited to a slow burn. Moving her hand up to smooth across his upper arm, she found a pleasing mixture of warm, soft skin covering muscle. In the past her boyfriends had all been brainy, non-jock types—as far from her father as she could get. Touching Torrent was an entirely new experience for her.
Biting her lower lip and closing her eyes to more fully enjoy the sensation, she ran her palm along his shoulder and down his back, exploring every smooth plane and ridge of him that she could reach. Finally, she cupped his incredible, lovely ass. Paradise.
Sighing with pleasure, she opened her eyes and found herself looking straight into his hungry, dark gaze. His arm, circling her waist, tightened a bit. Suddenly she felt like a little kid sneaking a cookie. “Uh, sorry,” she whispered.
“You never need to be sorry for touching me.” His voice sounded scratchy and a little raw.
She frowned at him. “Are you getting sick?”
His focus on her sharpened. “No. I’m struggling not pounce on you like a starving animal, that’s all.”
A little jolt of awareness went through her. She could cause a reaction like that in a man like him? Of course, considering the state of affairs in this reality, it was likely he hadn’t had sex in a long time.
Well, neither had she.
Caroline never slept with a man until they’d had many dates. And, owing to her pickiness, there weren’t many men who’d made it that far with her. The thought of engaging in such an intimate act with someone after a mere week of knowing him would normally be inconceivable.
But, again, all the rules seemed to be different with Torrent.
“For years I knew y
ou existed, had brief glimpses of you through the veil. Knowing my fate, I prayed you would never be pulled through, so I never dared imagine having you in my arms.” He paused and his gaze grew fierce. “Now that you’re here I can’t believe I didn’t wish for this every second of my life.”
He sounded so sincere, so loving. Never had a man said anything even so remotely romantic to her. From any other man’s lips she would have suspected it a lie to get between her legs, but not from this man.
Caroline’s lips parted and her eyes widened, but she’d been rendered speechless. It didn’t matter; Torrent seemed to know what to do. Moving over her body, he slid her beneath him, then slipped his hand to her nape and slanted his mouth across hers.
His lips explored hers slowly, raising goose bumps all over her body. She shivered and his tightened his embrace, crushing his lips to her mouth and gently coaxing her lips to part. His tongue slid within and touched her tongue, sending shivers of desire up her spine.
Her fingers grasped his upper arms as he dragged her lower lip through his teeth ever so gently, then slipped his tongue back into her mouth. Her nipples tightened where her breasts brushed against his chest. It was amazing what he could do with his mouth alone. Her body was making itself ready for him, intimate areas tingling and priming.
She shifted under him, pressing her breasts more firmly against him and sighing into his mouth. Her hands stroked over his shoulders, slid down his back and cupped his tight buttocks once more. God, he was beautiful.
He broke the kiss and stared hard at her. There was a twinkle of mirth in his eyes. "What are you doing, Caroline?"
She grinned. "Enjoying the hell out of this."
"You’re pushing me too far. I want you, Caroline. I want your sweet body. I want to watch you come. If we do all that, I’ll feel terrible afterward."
She frowned, perplexed. “Why?”