by Terra Wolf
The massive wolf stalked towards her and lay down. Resting its head across her jean clad thighs, it looked up at her.
"I can't stay long today. The girls are taking me out to The Vibe for my birthday."
The wolf cocked its head at her and its eyes narrowed.
"Jessica scored us some fake ID's so we could get in."
Its eyes narrowed further as if scolding her. Giggling Adrianna gave him a pat on the head. "Oh stop looking at me like that. I am an adult now, you know. I can take care of myself, I'm pretty sure there won't be any wild cougars there."
The wolf's body relaxed slightly as if defeated by her argument, but its eyes still stared up at her intently.
"I went to mom's grave today." she swiped at the tears welling up in her eyes with the back of her hand. "It's been six months since her funeral and that was the first time." She sniffed. "I miss her. You know?"
The wolf edged closer and nudged her hand with its large head. Smiling softly she took the hint and stroke his thick coat and tickled it behind the ears. "And, I'm alone, you know..." The wolf huffed at her as if reminding her he was there. She began to relax slowly. "I know. I have you." On impulse, Adrianna wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him behind the ear.
The wolf jerked backwards and stared up at her, shocked by her sudden bout of affection. They stared into each others eyes for a long moment. Feeling a blush creep onto her cheeks, she was the first to look away and turned her focus to the river flowing beside them. The droplets of water gleamed under the final rays of sunlight of the day.
What was it about these wolves that kept her coming back to the clearing each and every day? Rain, snow, sub-zero temperatures, it didn't matter; she'd wrap herself up snugly and make her way to meet them. And they'd always be there - like an extended part of her family. After her mother's passing, they were her only family.
She turned her head to look over at the wolf, and frowned. "I wish you could answer me." Adrianna sighed. "Well, at least I you're a good listener."
The wolf groaned and lay back down, resting its head back down on her lap and watched the sun dip down and out of sight behind the mountains.
How many drinks had she had? Five? Six? Adrianna had long lost count and was too buzzed to bother to recall. All her anger and sadness over her mother’s death had vaporized as the drinking continued and, for the first time in over six months, she no longer hurt and the loneliness was gone.
"I think you need to slow it down birthday girl," her best friend Jessica stated, steering her away from the bar, as she was just about to place another order.
"Come onnnnnnn, Jesssssss. It's m-m-my birthday."
"Nope, I'm officially cutting you off, Addy."
Adrianna groaned her displeasure, but allowed herself to be escorted back to the table where her friends were sitting, enjoying a lively conversation, while flirting with the occasional guy as they approached the table.
"Here, drink this." Helping Adrianna into a vacant chair, Jessica then passed her a glass of water that Adrianna reluctantly accepted.
Such a buzzkill, Adrianna groaned inwardly as she peered up at her friend. After tonight she was beginning to see the appeal of alcohol to alcoholics. Life just seemed so much simpler. With her worries gone, her only focus was on having fun and it felt good.
"Hey Addy, do you know him?" A friend sitting beside her by the name of Pam asked as she pulled up a chair next to Adrianna and pointed to a tall, broad shouldered man with dark hair and a strong chiselled jaw. If Adrianna wagered a guess, she figured him to be in his late twenties.
Eyes narrowed, Adrianna tried to focus on his handsome features, but the combination of dark lighting, distance between them and her slightly intoxicated state made his facial features blurry. She finally shrugged, "Dunno."
"He's been watching you all night. I'm not sure if you should be flattered or kinda creeped out," Pam continued.
Adrianna focused her attention on the man once again, squinting her eyes, in an attempt to get a better look. It didn't help. She shrugged again, "Dunno." She had felt his intense stare on her a number of times over the past few hours, but she hadn't taken the time between drinking and dancing to find the source of the eyes.
She took another swig from the glass of water and cringed, it had none of the appeal of the fruity drinks she'd been consuming all evening. After ten minutes of nursing her drink, attempting to follow the numerous conversations going on between the women of her group and trying to ignore the stare of the handsome, dark-haired stranger, she couldn't handle another moment of it.
"Excuse me," she murmured and was pleasantly surprised to see that the time spent sitting had cleared her head somewhat and she could stand without wobbling. So immersed in their respective conversations none of the women paid her any mind as she made her way across the dance floor in the direction of the stranger. She was going to get to the bottom of who he was.
As she grew nearer to him and could make his features out better, she could hardly believe just how ruggedly handsome was. It was peculiar that someone that hot would be standing against the wall, by the exit alone.
He began to shift his weight nervously from foot to foot as she closed the distance between them and averted his gaze.
Too late to pretend you haven't been staring all night buddy, she thought as she closed the final few feet between them. She was about to confront him when her stomach grumbled and an uneasy feeling swirled within her. Oh-my-God! Horror rushed through her as she realized that she was going to be sick. She looked around her frantically. The washroom was across the room, with a sea of people between them. There was no way she was going to make it there. The exit was to her right and she ran towards it, breaking out of the club and into the cool, night air.
As she entered the night, the urge to vomit became too much and she found herself doubled over relieving herself of the massive amount of alcohol she'd drunk over the course of the evening.
It wasn't until the spasms subsided that she realized that someone was behind her, and had been holding her hair out of the way while she'd been sick. Still doubled over she coughed and the person behind her that she assumed to be Jessica handed her a napkin. Wiping her mouth and grateful there was no one around to see what had just happened; she slowly straightened up and turned.
With a gasp, her eyes widened and she took a step back, the napkin slipping from her fingertips. She could feel the heat rushing to her cheeks that she was sure was turning her face candy apple red from her embarrassment. She opened her mouth to speak, say something, anything, but nothing came out. She snapped her mouth shut and continued to stare up at the stranger who was looking down at her with a mixture of sympathy and amusement.
"You alright?" He asked his voice deep and thick with a slight accent she couldn't quite decipher.
His voice flowed through her and she felt her knees grow weak and a desire to step closer to him crept up within her. She pushed down the unexpected bout of desire and nodded. "Ummm, yeah. Embarrassed. But, yeah. Thanks."
He gave her a sympathetic smile. "It happens. You were partying pretty hard in there."
Eyes narrowing, Adrianna cocked her head to the side and frowned. "Have you been watching me?"
The stranger remained silent, indecision reflected in his eyes. After a long moment, he nodded. "Yeah."
"Why?"
Giving her a lopsided smile he shrugged. "It looked like you might eventually be in need of someone to hold your hair while you were sick."
The tension and suspicion evaporated and she found herself laughing. "That apparent, huh?"
"Afraid so," he confirmed with a chuckle. The amusement danced within his peculiar, yet beautiful, ice blue eyes.
Adrianna cringed inwardly. The combination of her being sick and the cool wind had sobered her up almost completely and a realization of how she'd been behaving over the past few hours in the club came rushing back to her. Another bout of embarrassment hit her. "It's my birthday," she
said in way of explanation, looking down at the concrete between their feet. She kicked at a small rock at her feet.
"I know."
Her gaze jerked back up to meet his eyes. Did she know him? How could he possibly know it was her birthday otherwise? She certainly felt an odd familiarity with him. Normally if she were in a darkened alley with a stranger who'd been watching her all night she'd feel uneasy and rush back to her friends, but that wasn't the case with him.
"Do I know you?"
He was silent once more, again the indecision shone in his gaze. Finally he shook his head and gave her a smile that sent her pulse racing. "Nah, but you and your friends have been pretty vocal."
Adrianna raised a cynical brow at him. "Over all of the music and people, you heard me - us?"
The stranger gave her a wink. "I have amazing hearing."
"So I assume that means you know who I am, my name and such."
"I do," he confirmed with a curt nod of the head.
"Well, you seem to know a fair amount about me. Mind telling me who you are?"
"I'm sorry." He thrust his hand out to her. "Ian Grove."
Adrianna looked down at his hand and hesitantly took it. "Adrianna Boyce." His hand eclipsed hers and the simple touch of his hand brought back the feelings of desire within her and she found herself unable to stop from stepping into him, closing her eyes and breathing in his scent - a faint woodsy musk smell.
"Nice to meet you Miss Adrianna Boyce."
The heat from his breath, teased the side of her neck in the cool night air. She sighed softly, and when she opened her eyes she came back to reality and realized her body was pressing up against him, her lips less than an inch from his neck.
The urge to touch him was undeniable. She placed her palms against his broad, t-shirt clad chest and felt the hard muscle underneath. Lifting her eyes, she tilted her head back so she could peer into his eyes and gasped.
There was specks of silver shimmering in his blue eyes that she was sure hadn't been there before, and the intense hunger within them took her breath away. Closing her eyes she gave her head a quick shake, she must have seen wrong. It had to be the alcohol playing with her mind. When she opened her eyes back up, a soft giggle escaped her lips. The specks of silver were gone, but the raw hunger remained.
He raised a curious brow at her. "Maybe I should take you home Adrianna."
She was about to tell him that she had her friends who would take her home, but she wanted to get to know more about him. Maybe even explore the feelings that he was stirring up within her. Of her close circle of friends she was the only one who hadn't had sex yet. It wasn't as if she didn't have opportunity, but the boys she'd dated throughout high school never carried much of an appeal to her and the few men she'd went out with as an adult were equally as unappealing.
But with Ian, however, her pull to him was unlike anything she'd ever experienced before. His close proximity was causing her pussy to throb and she could feel her juices forming between her legs.
She wanted him. Badly. It made no sense to her, he was a stranger. He could be a rapist or killer; the list was endless, but the pull was undeniable.
"Take me home Ian."
He nodded. "Okay."
Two
Take her home and get the fuck out of there, Ian coached himself as he drove Adrianna home.
He wanted her; worse than ever before. And he could see, feel and even smell her desire for him, making it almost impossible for him to resist her. His animal instincts demanded he fuck and bred her into exhaustion, and that side fought with his human side to be a gentleman and take his time courting her.
He was an absolute mess. No doubt about it. But at the same time there was no way he could have left her at the club. He'd seen how the men there looked at her and could sense their desire for her. And it pissed him off. She was his! She just didn't know it yet, but she would.
"So what do you do when you're not rescuing drunk girls at bars?"
Ian grinned and glanced over at her in the passenger side of his Jeep. "I'm in construction."
"Oh. Interesting."
Ian's grin widened. "Not really, but it pays the bills. The thought of being cooped up inside all day makes me cringe."
Adrianna gasped and her eyes widened. "Oh-my-God, did you go to the club with someone? Am I ruining your night?"
There had been a number of women who'd approached him throughout the night, but he had one and only one thing on his mind tonight; keeping Adrianna safe and away from the assortment of men he knew wanted her. When she'd told his wolf form earlier that day that she was going clubbing, he'd seen red. The thought of her meeting some schmuck and said schmuck fucking her was unthinkable to him.
"Nah. No one there interested me. I was getting ready to leave anyhow."
She frowned at him, as if she was deciding whether she believed him or not.
They continued on in silence, as he navigated the roads effortlessly. It didn't occur to him until they were turning off the main road onto the driveway that led to her house that he shouldn't have known where she lived. He prayed she was still a little too intoxicated to catch onto that fact, or perhaps she would dismiss his knowing, thinking she'd already told him. With bated breath he pulled up to the house and shifted the Jeep into park.
Her frown deepened as she peered at the house. "I told you where I lived?"
He shrugged and nodded. "Yeah."
"Damn, I really must have had a few too many." She gave her head a quick shake as if trying to clear the cobwebs. "You sure?"
He cocked a brow at her and grinned. "How else would I have known?" He hated lying to her, but it wasn't as if he could "wolf out" in the Jeep, reveal everything, and hope she didn't run screaming from the vehicle. No, he had to take his time with this so when the time came she'd understand.
"You could be some crazy stalker?" she teased.
He turned in the leather seat to face her. "You think so?"
She crinkled her nose up and pretended to consider it and then shook her head, her dark hair fanning out around her face. "I suppose not."
Satisfied that she was convinced, he opened his door and slid from the Jeep. Rushing around the front of the vehicle he made it to her door just as she pushed it open. Grabbing her elbow he helped her from the Jeep and slipped an arm around her waist to help steady her.
She inhaled sharply and he could feel her heartbeat accelerate as he pulled her tight and shut the Jeep door behind her. She looked up at him and her emerald green eyes met his steel blue ones. He could see a desire forming in those stunning green eyes of hers and his animalistic side fought to be unleashed as his cock began to thicken under the restrictive denim jeans he wore.
His eyes left hers to glance down to her lips. Her lips looked amazingly kissable, glossed over with a sheer rose glow. He licked his lower lip, and clenched his jaw. If he kissed her he doubted he'd be able to stop himself until he'd unleashed himself within her.
Step away, Ian. Step away, before this gets out of hand, he coached himself. With great reluctance, he stepped back though he kept an arm around her as he guided her up the stairs of her front porch.
She took a moment to pull her keys from her purse and fiddle with them as if she was trying to buy some time as she made a decision. With a soft sigh, she looked back up at him and there was disappointment in her gaze.
Damn and double damn. If only she knew. The temptation to throw down his hand and to tell her about him - to tell her everything - was great. But it wasn't just a matter of him and what he wanted; he had to keep in mind his pack. Telling her right now wasn't an option.
He touched her cheek and ran his thumb along her lower lip, wishing he could taste her. Just once. She closed her eyes and seemed to bask in the warmth of his hand.
"It was nice meeting you Adrianna." Taking her hand he brought it to his lips, flipped her palm up and kissed it softly. "Good-bye."
Releasing her hand he slowly backed away and down the front
steps regretting every step he took that increased the distance between them. When she whispered "good-bye" in return, he turned his back to her, hopped into the Jeep and sped off without another look back for fear his resolve to have her tonight wouldn't hold.
Clearing the woods Adrianna frowned. None of the wolves were waiting for her. Walking over to the oak tree she took her usual spot, sitting at the base. Leaning her head back against the tree she closed her eyes and let the tranquility of the area overtake her. The running stream beside her was soothing and the songs of the numerous birds uplifting.
Ten minutes past. Then twenty. She was about to leave, disturbed and worried by the absence of her wolf friends, when there was a rustling within the woods. A few minutes later a single wolf appeared. Her wolf. He eyed her a moment, with an unusual hesitation and the progressed towards her.
"I was about ready to leave," she told him as he finished closing he distance between them and sat beside her. He ducked his head and she proceeded to stroke his fur. "I was worried."
He tilted his head up and peered up at her with his big blue eyes and huffed.
"I have news."
His eyes narrowed and he patiently waited for her to continue.
"I met someone last night." she shrugged and smiled shyly. "Well, sort of. He is... so sexy. And he makes me feel..." she chewed at her lower lip trying to find the right words to describe the fluttering in her stomach when she was around him and the deep, primal urge to have him taking her - fast, hard and completely. "Just..." Her brow furrowed. "I want him... You know?"
The wolf made a low growl like sound, making her smile.
"I'm not sure what that was supposed to mean, but I'll assume you understand." She stroked him under the chin, and he raised his head, giving her better access. "I've never wanted a man like I wanted him." She shrugged. "But I guess he didn't want me cause he just dropped me off and left. No word about coming back, or getting together again."
She stopped rubbing under his chin and he lowered his head and stared at her.