He abruptly pulled away only to hoist her onto the desk. With a swipe of his arm he cleared her neatly arranged desktop and lowered her to her back. His eyes held a menacing glint. He didn’t talk, only acted.
Garret’s breathing was heavy, coming out in near growls. When his lips parted to breathe, she saw the sharp tips of his wolf fangs, sending her arousal soaring to a new level. These were no ordinary men. They were part beast, yet they were still capable of love, capable of protecting her from the world. Maybe they were more alike than she ever realized.
He leaned over her naked body, stretching her arms up above her head. As he smoothed his hands back down her arms, he dared her to move with those hauntingly dark eyes. He firmly cupped her tits, positioning himself between her legs. She wanted to see his sculpted body, those beautifully defined muscles. But he remained fully clothed, leaving her only to her imagination.
“Do I still taste like a wolf?”
“You taste like mine.” He dipped his head and sank his fangs into the fleshy part of her side next to her left breast. The sudden jolt of pain and pleasure was unexpected. She arched her body, completely wanton. Every fresh bite brought her closer to orgasm. When he neared her pussy, she tensed. He wouldn’t dare, would he?
She braced herself, panting as she watched his dark head and broad shoulders lower between her legs. He held each knee, holding her completely open for his ministrations. “This will feel…different.” Then he dared the impossible, sinking those razor-sharp incisors into her sensitive folds. Cassidy screamed for all she was worth. It was like every sexual experience she’d had to date had been diluted. He’d struck her core, the pleasure center, and infused it with new, raw stimulation.
“Oh my God,” she chanted, writhing on the desk, her hands reaching for anything to anchor her. The pressure in her cunt built to impossible levels. As he slowly slid his fangs out, he proceeded to suckle her clit, bringing her over the final edge. She detonated right there in the office trailer, her pussy contracting under his mouth until she didn’t have the energy to even think straight.
He stood up, wiping the back of his hand across his mouth and goatee, his fangs now hidden away. She was naked and vulnerable on the desk while he stood there wearing his rough work gear, looking down at her. Her body still quivered. “You’re mine now. Tomorrow you’ll belong to the pack.”
She felt Garret’s gaze as it traveled along her heated flesh—her open legs, heaving chest, and swollen lips. Then he left the trailer without another word. He hadn’t even sought his own satisfaction, or was biting a woman the same as sex to a werewolf? Although sated, she still wanted more, wanted it all. She slowly sat up, her pussy feeling uncomfortably empty and achy. She yearned for the intimacy of sex, to feel Garret inside her, joining them as one. He likely wanted to wait for tomorrow before continuing. It wouldn’t be so easy for her after the sample he left her with.
Cassidy redressed herself, cautious not to touch her bite marks. They were still so sensitive, like unprotected erogenous zones. She could barely stand the light drape of fabric against her side or the gentle current of air passing over her neck. Her cunt was afire with need, throbbing where he’d sunk his teeth. What would it feel like to be marked by five men at once? Would she be able to handle it?
One more day.
Cassidy took her time, kneeling down to pick up her papers and supplies from the floor, but the sound of sirens wailing froze her hands in place. She’d never heard this particular one before and had to focus to recall what it meant. There were different sounds for varying alerts and emergencies. She had a feeling this one was serious. After a moment of collecting her thoughts, she remembered. Fire.
She dropped the papers and ran over to the door, swinging it open. The yard was already chaos, the workers rushing out of the pit, a sense of urgency snapping in the air. Cassidy couldn’t see a fire or smell smoke, but something was definitely wrong.
She let the door slap shut as she walked into the melee, half in a trance. Her heels were still somewhere in the trailer, but it didn’t matter now. She had to know what was happening. When Travis rushed by with a group of men, she grabbed his sleeve.
“What’s going on?”
He did a double take before stopping and pulling her close to his body. “It’s a fire, baby girl. You shouldn’t be out here.”
“What fire? Where?”
“Up in the mountains. You’re not in any danger.”
Patrick collided with Travis as the last bunch of men pushed their way to the front gates of the mine where she could see Garret addressing the growing crowd. It was a blur of yellow construction hats and orange safety vests. “It’s the loggers,” he said. “They’re trying to burn us out.” Patrick continued on with the other men, too hyped up to stay still.
She looked up at Travis, her mind racing while her body was still uncomfortably needy. “I don’t understand,” she said.
“It’s nothing new, darlin’. When they don’t get what they want, they try to force their will by scaring off the landowners. In this case, Gregor land. They just don’t realize who they’re dealing with.” He kissed her atop the head and joined the others, leaving her alone on the periphery. She couldn’t even see Garret from all the workers crowding him. Cassidy assumed her mating ceremony would be indefinitely postponed.
* * * *
Patrick knew a fight was close at hand. His wolf thrashed inside him, desperate to be free in the old-growth forest. First the loggers tortured his pack mate and then tried to steal his woman. Now they dared to destroy their very home, the forests they knew like the backs of their hands? He would never sit idly by and let their pack’s legacy burn to ashes, and neither would his alpha. The warnings came on all the radio frequencies, impossible to ignore. Once Garret settled the regular crew, Patrick knew they’d be breaking out the fur and seeking some old-style revenge.
“The water trucks and planes are en route. In the meantime, I want the mine running as normal. If by chance the fire spreads this far south, close down Gregor and get Cassidy to a safe location.” Garret ordered the men back to the pit after his speech.
Patrick didn’t like the idea of leaving Cassidy alone, but the mine was the safest place now with the fire raging far up in the northern mountains. Everything had happened so fast. One minute he was working a loader, the next he heard the garbled message on the radio that Gregor land was afire. He didn’t have to be told it was the loggers. Their claims were cleared, and they were desperate for more land.
As the crew disbanded, Garret and Travis approached him.
“How bad is it?” Patrick asked.
“Apparently, it’s real bad. I just heard myself, so there’s no way it’s natural.” Garret raked a hand through his hair, continually pacing back and forth. “I was just running in the forest this morning before coming to work. The ground was moist and there was no sign of trouble.”
“I can’t believe they’d go this far,” said Travis.
“You know as well as me how ruthless humans can be.” Patrick had his own hatred locked inside him for mankind. It was Cassidy who taught him that not all humans were created equal.
“And it’s not the first time they’ve tried the same thing. They tried it on Rockford land not too long ago. And you both know—” Garret’s words caught in his throat, but no explanation was needed. It seemed the three of them realized the magnitude of the problem in the same instant.
“Evan…” Patrick’s voice was barely above a hoarse whisper. Would his pack mate be stupid enough to face off with the loggers on his own? It seemed Evan had a penchant for trouble lately.
“He’s terrified of fire,” said Travis. “He wouldn’t, would he?”
“Matthew’s gone, too.” Garret shook his head as he walked to his truck. “We just get him back and he’s going to risk it all for revenge. Fuck.” He slammed the driver’s side door shut. Patrick and Travis joined him in the truck.
The roads up the steep mountain were unpaved a
nd bumpy. The truck protested, jostling wildly. Patrick braced a hand on the dashboard as Garret barreled forward with reckless abandon.
“I won’t let them take him from us,” said Garret. “And I won’t have them tear apart our pack.”
“Evan’s lost his fucking mind,” said Travis, leaning over the center console. “He used to kiss your feet, now he’s completely out of control.”
“This just hits him close to home. I doubt he’s thinking straight.” Garret veered the truck to the right when they reached a fork in the road. The forest canopy was a tightly woven tapestry, letting little light filter to their level. It felt more like dusk rather than a new day.
The heavy scent of burning wood finally drifted into their open windows, making the threat to the forest suddenly all too real. This was the playground for their wolves, and without it they were no better than humans, trapped in a concrete, superficial world.
* * * *
They’d left. All of them. Cassidy returned to the office trailer when Mike stopped her on the path.
“There was a message for you,” he said.
“What are you talking about?”
“It was your brother. Something about never giving up and wanting to meet tomorrow.”
“How’d you get that message?” Peter must know she was at the mine. Was he watching her every move? Was she safe without her men close by? Their routine was so predictable—nights in the cottage and days at the mine. Anyone with two cents could figure out where she’d be at any given time. She wondered if the fire was a tactic by the unscrupulous loggers or actually the act of a crazed man out for vengeance.
Mike tossed her a bulky two-way. Even in their day and age, modern cellphones were a rarity in Climax. The town seemed to exist on the fringe of the world, a private paradise away from civilization. “I’ve got to get back to work. The number’s in the history.”
He left her alone when she wanted to be anything but. The regular employees were oblivious to the paranormal drama unfolding beyond business hours, and they were all busy in the pit. She stared at the two-way. It was one of the older models like the one left behind at her house. She wondered if Peter was able to eavesdrop on all their conversations. He’d know where her men were and what they were doing. He’d know she was alone at the mine.
The office phone was ringing when she reached the trailer. Her heart clenched. She couldn’t just let it ring. It could be an important business call, information about the fire, or something equally vital. Or it could be Peter.
Ring, ring, ring.
She did a visual sweep of the yard. The rumble of engines was far off, the immediate area eerily quiet. She pulled the door shut tight and flipped the latch to lock it.
Curiosity finally won out, and Cassidy answered the phone, her fingers trembling. “Hello!”
“I’m sorry to hear about the fire. That’s just…just terrible.”
Her nerves settled slightly. It was only Corbin. Although he was capable of becoming a threat, she was so used to him and his flirtation that he didn’t inspire immediate fear in her. He was an icon in Climax just as Garret was, and she couldn’t imagine he’d ruin his pack and mine’s reputation by starting a fire to kidnap her. In the far north, nature was revered. Even the Rockford miners wouldn’t sink so low.
She was terrified of Peter and his unpredictable behavior. He may have returned to the city or he could be prowling around Climax with more deluded ideas about their future together. The unknown was like a black cloud threatening to rain down on her at any given moment.
“I’m sure you’ll be losing sleep over it,” she said. As much as she wanted to hang up on him, a familiar voice was comforting.
“It could spread. We’re neighbors, remember?”
“Then you should be out fighting the fire with everyone else, not talking to me on the phone.”
There was silence for a few moments, and she wondered if he was still on the line. “But I have a secret. One you’ll be very interested in.”
Cassidy couldn’t believe a word he said. From their very first encounter, he’d lied to her, telling her he’d found her brother deep in the woods. It had all been a plot to get her alone. She assumed the same was true today.
“I’m not interested in your secret, Corbin. I have enough real problems in my life right now.”
“This one will pique your interest. It certainly did mine.”
“Let me guess, I have to venture deep into the woods, alone, and then you’ll tell me?”
There was a sudden clawing sound on the metal door of the office, like nails on a chalkboard. She cried out and dropped the phone. Although they rarely spoke of it, she’d heard Garret talk about his theory on Peter. He thought her crazy ex-coworker was a wolf-shifter like them. The same blood that attracted her five lovers was also having the same effect on Corbin and Peter. It was only a theory, and she refused to believe it.
What if a wolf showed up to claim her? How would she defend herself?
She stepped closer to the door, making sure her footsteps were lighter than air. Cassidy focused on her hearing, trying to listen for breathing, footsteps, voices, or anything out of the ordinary. All remained silent. What would scratch on her door like that? There were no dogs on the property and the staff weren’t nearby. She could hear Corbin’s faint, muffled voice calling her name from the receiver on the floor.
When the door handle turned, she leapt back, nearly falling over. Her heart pumped in her chest at a dizzying speed. She’d locked the door, so it remained shut. Cassidy turned and rummaged frantically on her desk for the old two-way Mike had given her. She wondered how soon Garret could get back if she called him.
But it was too late. The door burst open, the lock breaking off as it rammed against the inside wall. She screamed from the horror of it all, her hands cupped over her mouth as she looked to the entrance.
It was Matthew, his nude body covered in blood.
Chapter Four
Evan was lost in the choking smoke. He’d followed the trails he knew well, certain he’d find his way without needing to see. A predator relied on all his senses. But the deeper he got to the heart of the fire, the more disoriented he became. Memories of the past flashed left and right. What was real and what was a figment of his imagination? The smells, the sounds, the urgency—it was all exactly the same as the day he’d lost his family. Their cries still echoed in his head, a haunting reminder of the mistakes he’d made and couldn’t undo.
Matthew had tried to stop him from going further, his telepathic voice hammering in his head. But he forced his wolf to run faster without responding. He wouldn’t let these same humans take from him again. He’d rebuilt his life with Garret and the Gregor Pack, and he’d become a changed man after falling in love with Cassidy. There was no way he’d lose anything else to the loggers. Even if the fire claimed every last tree, they would not win, would not take his life away as they once had.
He finally dropped to the ground, disoriented and torn. It was difficult to breathe, even harder to think clearly. Evan began to doubt himself. Maybe he didn’t deserve Cassidy, not after what he’d done in the past. He should never have taken off without getting permission from Garret. He was acting on his own accord, which was exactly what got him into trouble as a youth. The very foundation of a pack required all members to abide by the alpha’s wishes, not their own. A sense of self had to be put aside for the benefit of the whole.
“Get up. I can’t carry you.” The male voice broke through his unconsciousness, bringing him back to reality. When Evan moved, he realized he’d shifted back into his skin. He remembered nothing but the tears clouding his vision, the darkness slowly consuming him. Now he was awoken in the bowels of hell. Red flames flickered in the near distance. The sound of fire raged like the engine of a jet. It was sheer pandemonium, and if it wasn’t for Corbin Rockford, he may have succumbed.
He struggled to his feet as the other man tried to help heave his weight off the ground.
Evan looked at Corbin and his brother, Ryder. Why were they not more concerned with the flames threatening to engulf them any minute?
“I’ve seen no wolf. I have to find the loggers who started this.”
“Well, there’s a blood trail not far behind you. And you don’t look injured. Whose blood is it?”
His faculties came back to him as soon as he considered that one of his pack mates could be in danger. Matthew. He needed answers. “What exactly are you looking for? A member of your pack is deserting?”
“No, he’s gone feral. It’s in Climax’s best interest that we find him before he can wreak any havoc. The humans you seek are just beyond the crest in the forest.” Corbin nodded to his brother and they both shifted into their wolves, no longer interested in conversing. They dashed off toward the town, away from the wall of heat.
Should he follow or pursue his original targets? Could Matthew have been hurt by the feral Rockford wolf? No, his pack mate was no fool. He was strong and an excellent tracker. The crest Corbin spoke of was in the heart of the fire, not too far off. He couldn’t turn back now.
Evan ran a hand over his hair, beads of sweat trickling down his temples. If he followed the path north, he knew he may never return home. He thought of Cassidy and her beautiful blue eyes. What he wouldn’t give to have her in his arms right now. But should something happen to him, she still had four other mates to care for her.
Maybe dying a martyr would erase all his sins.
* * * *
“Matthew!” Cassidy rushed to Matthew and cupped his face. “Is this your blood?”
“Some of it.” He sounded so nonchalant when she felt such potent fear.
“What happened?” She pulled the door handle out of the drywall and closed it. “Are you hurt?” Cassidy instinctively began to touch him, feeling for injuries. The fact her hands were becoming red from the blood painted on his body was only an afterthought.
Climax for Six [Wolves of Climax 7] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Forever - Serialized) Page 3