by M. L. Briers
“I’m warning you!” She spat out- as his head and upper body filled up the inner space of her car, and the growl that rumbled through him rubbed her fragile nerves the wrong way…
“I’ll take that on board,” he growled out, and yet it didn’t stop him from reaching out one big hand towards her as she thrust her back against the glass and pushed herself into the smallest of corners- banging her head on the dipped roof and cursing his heritage as his fingers closed on the top of the back seat and he yanked it free of its moorings…
“Don’t you come any closer…” she shook her head in denial of what was happening, and went to lift her hand once more, but he already had a vice like grip around one ankle- and heaven help her but she knew what came next…
She lifted her other leg and booted him right in the chest. The back of her head thudded against the glass from where her bare foot had connected with what felt like a brick wall of muscles in his chest, and she yelped, and then cursed again.
He twisted his head on his neck at the sound of her pain, but he yanked anyway, and her backside skidded over the carpeted boot- her skirt riding up around her hips once more, as his body came down over hers, caging her in and panting like a wildman…
Beast of a wolf. The man seemed more feral than human with those black eyes glaring holes into her very soul, and those fangs partially down.
Janette felt the heat of his body between her inner thighs and far from being scared to death there was the strangest sensation that travelled through her body. Her naked flesh was wrapped around his- the hard press of his length was against her panty-less sex, and there was a long moment when everything seemed to slow down, and her body felt the rush of heat that started somewhere deep within her before it literally whooshed through every last inch…
There was a jolt of excitement that fired her womb to life- life that had laid dormant for too long. Her stomach flipped before flopping, and when she slapped her palms against the bare skin of his muscled chest, there was a delicious tingle that ran from her hands, up her arms, and across her body, making every hair stand to attention- hardening her nipples to an ache that screamed to be touched, and causing her to involuntarily clench those inner muscles of her channel…
To say he took her breath away would have been an understatement…
“Don’t…” It was the only word that she could force out of her lips- even if it wasn’t the word that was actually pinging around her brain- and it seemed to resonate inside of his mind- a mind that was locked on one thing and one thing alone- claiming his mate before she could run again…
~
CHAPTER FIVE
~
Maverick’s black eyes took her in. His beast was growling and clawing to be set free within him- allowed to claim her- to bond with her before she had another chance to do him ill.
He had tried to calm the beast, but the fact that she had run had set off a chain reaction within him that was overwhelmingly powerful…
Then she hit her head and cursed with the pain and his anger had softened. But it was that one word… don’t… that had felt like a knife going into his gut and twisting.
Maverick twisted his head on his neck and stared into her wide blue eyes- his heart pounding. He scented the fear that came from her… and roared at his beast to back the hell down…
This was his mate. This was his love. This was the woman that he would worship for all of his days. He opened his mouth to reassure her…
A heartbeat later and he was being torn backwards out of the car and away from his mate. As her head came up and her eyes locked onto his, he felt that loss. If timing was everything- then his brothers were surely lacking in it to say the least.
“I’m….” good! He never got to finish that sentence. Something like a brick wall hit him side on and he was face down in the grass before he could even try.
He tried to push up, and he got so far with the weight of his brother on his back, and yet, just as his elbows were about to lock into place- so another heavy thud at his back planted his face back in the grass once more…
“Stay down,” Justice, his alpha and elder brother, growled somewhere near his ear…
“Don’t do it man, she’s your mate,” Rowan added, and he would have rolled his eyes in his head and groaned- had he not been eating dirt.
“Get off me…” his muffled words went unheeded as both men fought to secure his weight stayed firmly against the hard ground.
Maverick forced his head to one side to drag in a breath and to tell his idiot brothers to let him the hell go when he saw her naked feet- slowly his eyes climbed up her body as she stood there staring down at him, eyebrows raised high on her head, and an evil glint in her eyes.
“Look what you did to my car,” she raised her arm and pointed an accusing finger at the wreck.
“Love too, if my idiot brothers would get the hell off of me!” He growled out, still struggling to be set free.
“You,” she turned that finger on him, and he had to flinch, wondering just how loaded with magic it was. “Are a despicable non-human being!”
“He’s got too much hair to be the guy from despicable me,” Rowan chuckled… seeing the funny side of thing now that they had him right where they needed him to be.
“That can be rectified,” Janette’s lips curled in anger as her eyes narrowed on his and he felt the rush of panic go through him. He didn’t want to be a bald human or a furless wolf, and he tried to get out from under his brothers before she could carry out her threat, but it just wasn’t happening for him.
“Now let’s not be hasty, love,” he swallowed hard as she snatched her head back on her neck and twisted her face down at him in disdain.
“Don’t you dare call me that!” she hissed. “I am not now, nor will I ever be, your love.”
“Technically,” Justice started, and when she snapped her eyes to him- he gave her a knowing look, then one that questioned her sanity. “You are his soul mate.”
“I don’t need you to point out something that is glaringly obvious, thank you.” She folded her arms across her chest and huffed.
“Good manners,” Rowan teased her and Justice shot him a look. He shrugged. “She did say thank you.”
“So, technically,” Justice started again, turning his eyes back towards her, and she dropped her arms and rallied against him before he could finish.
“Technically this, technically that… mating doesn’t come with a manual!” she snapped.
“It comes with a rule book that says don’t run from your mate,” Maverick growled once more, aggrieved that a witch of all people wouldn’t know that, and he’d just started to feel a little better in himself as another wave of annoyance swept through him at what could have been so very, very wrong.
“You accosted me in the water,” she tossed an absent hand in the air.
“You did that?” Justice growled out, more than ready to batter his brother if he so much as said the wrong word. Female should always be respected- it was a damn code that they lived by and he wouldn’t have any member of his pack breaking that code.
“No,” Maverick scowled in hot denial, then he grimaced at the memory, “well, not really-”
“Oh reeaally?” She shot back, bringing his eyes up to hers and giving him the death glare to boot.
“Well, I might have overplayed my hand, a little,” he admitted and she grunted.
“Overplayed those paws too,” she snapped back, and he gave her one of those lopsided grins that he remembered had served him well before.
“I did not paw you-” He denied it again.
“You were all over me like a nettle rash,” Janette hissed back and folded her arms once more.
Now that her body had a chance to relax, she had become painfully aware that she wasn’t wearing anything under that thin summer dress… oh the shame of it- standing in the middle of a damn field with three strangers- knicker-less!
Maverick had a kind of dopey look on his face that sh
ould have been reserved for cartoon characters and people who had spent to long sucking the barmaid’s apron dry. She snorted her contempt for him.
Justice nudged Rowan and nodded for his beta to move. If anything had become clear from the mate’s little exchange it was that Maverick was back in control of himself, and far from being a danger to his mate, was more than likely to set his wolf free to lick her to death…
“Thank you, about time,” Maverick growled out, disgruntled by his brothers interference when he had been perfectly in control of the situation to begin with.
He bounded to his feet- stark naked and harder than steel, and she noticed- how could she not with the damn thing waving its hello at her… jutting out towards her like it wanted to shake hands or something- if a penis had hands… She couldn’t seem to drag her eyes away.
“Like what you see?” Maverick’s deep taunting tones did the trick and her eyes snapped back up to glare at him as the colour rose brightly in her cheeks, and she took to chewing a wasp for a few seconds.
“If being at the bottom of a male scrum pile makes you… happy,” her eyes snatched down to his length before rebounding back up, accusing him, and to the deep frown that was now etched onto his forehead, “then what do you need a mate for?”
“That’s…” he raised his hand and pointed his index finger at her as his eyes narrowed in annoyance, for one moment he was lost for words and then he gave just one shake of his head, “so not damn right.” He growled.
“They say actions speak louder than words,” she gave a slow innocent shrug off her shoulders, “and the proof is in the pudding.” Cliché’s did have a place in her heart after all, especially when she was getting her own back on a man who had killed her car. She let her gaze travel south again.
Maverick snapped his whole body to attention at her not-so-subtle innuendo. Rowan spat out a chuckle, and he heard Justice clear his throat, but his attention was solely on his mate…
“Look,” he started, pointing that finger of rebuke at her, but she raised her own index finger and cut him off.
“It’s ok, be out- and be proud!” She fisted her hand and punched the air, and Rowan almost choked on the laughter that burst out of him.
“I’m not gay,” Maverick spat out with disbelief and wondered how the hell his mate could come to that assumption.
“I’m not judging,” she shrugged again, innocent to the last.
“I’m not gay!” he repeated, but his voice raised a couple of decibels, and she raised her eyebrows at him, questioning his stance. He cleared his throat and deepened his tone, “I’m not gay.”
“I think the man doth protest too much,” Janette tossed back, and Maverick took a long step towards her.
“I’ll show you just how gay I’m not,” he growled, and both Justice and Rowan lunged for him, grabbing him by the upper arms and holding him back.
“I always thought there was something… feminine about you,” Rowan teased and his brother growled, but not as hard as Justice did.
“Don’t wind him up, Rowan- his mate’s doing enough of that for everyone,” he shot her a hard look along with the rebuke.
“I’m just stating the obvious…” she looked back down at his length and spluttered a laugh, “more than obvious reaction that he has in being restrained by two, big, strapping men like yourselves.”
There was a mischievous look in her eyes, along with a big dollop of amusement, and Justice knew that look well. Did every witch in the world have to be so… wicked?
“They’re my brothers,” Maverick shot out in disbelief and she snapped her head back on her neck while her eyebrows clawed up towards her hairline.
“Wow, you really do have problems,” she shrugged her shoulders and brought her hands up in the air in a helpless gesture.
“First you’re berating me for being all over you like a rash, and now you’re accusing me of being gay and incestuous,” Maverick shot back in disbelief.
“I see you’re conflicted,” she gave him a sympathetic look as he tried to break free of the hold that his brothers had on him, but to no avail.
“Con…?” he growled long and hard in annoyance. This woman was a witch alright- she was enough to drive a man insane.
“It’s ok,” Janette used her soothing voice, “nobody is judging you here- this,” she circled her hand between the group, “is a safe space.”
“Oh for the love of…” Maverick would have planted his face in his hands if he’d been free to do so. “Let me go so I can wring her damn neck.” He growled with pleading eyes towards Justice.
“Sorry,” Justice answered blandly and Maverick snapped his head around to look at Rowan.
“I’ll make it fast, she won’t feel a thing,” he whispered and the beta chuckled.
“Maybe later,” Rowan replied with a shake of his head. He hadn’t been inflicted with the mating curse yet, but from what he’d witnessed from certain member of his pack- it wasn’t good and could be a cruel, cruel affliction.
“Wow, you’re fickle.” Janette announced, enjoying every last minute of his torment. “How quickly you turn from love to hate…” she snapped a look at Justice, “did no one get him tested for psychotic tendencies when he was a child?” she asked and Rowan sniggered as Maverick groaned.
“Please let me go so that I can kill her,” Maverick bit out. “It’s best for everyone.”
“See what I mean?” Janette offered back and Maverick closed his eyes for a long moment and gave a small shake of his weary head.
“You win,” he announced, snapping back to life. “Ok, you win, you’ve won. Go…” he nodded his head across the field, “be gone, scurry away, run rabbit run…”
“Oh dear, I think he’s having some kind of a break,” she whispered the last word as if it was a secret and Maverick raised his eyes to the summer sky before turning his head towards Justice.
“She’s right, I am,” he nodded, solemnly, “kill me now.” He hissed out.
Rowan couldn’t hold onto to him a moment longer. He was practically doubled up with laughter, and Justice groaned as Maverick yanked his arm free of his grip and stalked straight towards his mate.
Janette hadn’t expected him to be freed so suddenly. She saw his eyes, locked onto hers, and the sinister look within their depth as he narrowed them on his prey, and she stumbled backwards against the car and went to lift her hands to protect herself with her magic, but was too fast for her and he snatched at her wrists and had the backs of her hands pressed against the warm metal of the car before she could make her move.
~
CHAPTER SIX
~
Maverick leaned his whole body in against hers, pressing everywhere that he could, and enjoying the feeling of his length being squished between her soft body and his hard one. She had it coming, teasing him, tormenting him, and that wicked look in her eye was now gone…
“Let’s talk about how not gay I am,” he growled long and hard, and that rumble went through his chest and right through hers, making every inch of her body pay absolute attention to him and only him.
“I…” she started, leaned her head to one side and considered her words carefully.
“Yeeessss?” he growled again, leaning his head in so close to her that his lips were but a breath away from hers.
Those dark eyebrows of his raised slowly up on his forehead as he questioned her stance. Janette pouted, her right eye twitched a little, and then it was as if someone had slapped her backside and startled her back to life.
“Fine, not gay,” she bit out begrudgingly. Maybe she’d overplayed her hand a little there, she had to admit that a testosterone fuelled beta that had just found his mate probably wasn’t exactly the best choice in the world to challenge his over inflated sense of manhood- but it had been fun while it lasted.
“Good,” he snatched his head back on his neck and regarded her with a curious look…
“I’m sensing a punch line,” Janette bit out blandly, mistrustful o
f him being able to leave it there.
“No punch line, just the opportunity that has arisen to scent you,” he grinned like the predator that he was- signalling victory- signally her lack of choice in the matter…
“That’s…” it was as far as she got before he dipped his head and nuzzled in between her neck and her shoulder- her heart punched her ribs, that rush of heat swept back through her body, and her stomach pitched and rolled, as she felt the air being dragged in against her skin…
Oh- wow, how can sniffing feel so damn good?
Janette had to fight to keep her eyes from closing as her body became so overwhelmingly aware of every inch of him that it ached. The feel of his cheek brushing against hers, the drag of breath against her skin… It was like eating the world’s most moist chocolate cake… only better.
“Mine,” he growled against her ear and causing her to snap the hell out of it.
“You said that already,” she hissed as she snatched her wrists from his grasp and palmed his naked chest- pushing against the hard muscle in the hope of getting him to get him to back the hell off. She was not unaware by any means of the way that her hands tingled as that sensation rushed over her body. “Change the damn record and back off.”
“And where would I go?”
That easy going, lopsided smile was back on his lips, and she didn’t like it, not one little bit. She preferred him all stern and growly, beastly, because at least then she could dismiss him as an overbearing feral jerk. Whereas, right then, his black eyes were sparkling with amusement and he looked like the wolf that got the damn bunny, and she was that damn bunny- the blaggard.
“Give me a moment with google maps and I’m sure I can find a cliff for you to jump off,” she heard the chuckle of laughter that rumbled through his chest and that of his brothers, and tried to shore up that last nerve before she unleashed her magic on all of them and did something that she’d probably come to regret…