by Afton Locke
Seeing Lara in her homeland made her even stranger and more exotic. When she’d spent time in his cabin and mill, he’d been fooled into thinking she was similar to him. At this moment, he realized he didn’t know her at all and had no idea what to expect from her.
“Let’s walk around. I’m still stiff from the long drive from South Dakota.” He placed a hand on her upper thigh and squeezed. “In more ways than one.”
Why didn’t she turn the engine off? Wasting gas at these long distances wasn’t a good idea.
“Mmm, you read my mind.” Dark lashes fluttered over gray eyes before she shot him a steamy look and wriggled her sweet ass against the seat. “Oh, Ogden. I’ve been wet the whole way here.”
He growled, his balls squeezing with the need to release his seed inside her. With his fingertips and his tongue, he intended to find out exactly how wet she was. He didn’t care if a bunch of tourists took pictures of it, either.
“Find us a nice flat rock, would you?” She looked in the rearview mirror, primping her hair. “I’ll catch up with you in a minute.”
Still uneasy but desperate to stand upright to rearrange his cramped cock, he opened the door and stepped out of the truck. He’d barely shoved his hand into his pocket when he heard the door slam and tires spinning in the dirt.
He blinked, dumbfounded, as the red SUV turned around and returned the way it had come. When he recovered his senses, he chased it.
“Lara!” he shouted.
But yelling was useless. She didn’t stop, and he obviously couldn’t keep up in human or wolf form. Why in the hell? But it wasn’t hard to figure out—she wanted him out of the way tonight so she could pursue her mission with the rancher.
He’d gotten to know her better, all right. He’d learned how masterful she was at manipulating men. Hiking the endless road, he smacked his fist into his other palm. Had he really taken precious time off from his pack responsibilities for this?
If he ever did get his hands on her again, she’d regret fooling him because he intended to teach her a lesson.
Adding to the insult, he started to shift. Lying in a fur ball of agony on the side of a deserted road was the last thing he needed. Taking her earlier advice, he struggled to focus on his human form. Despite the anger roaring through his muscles, he managed to fight off the lupine shift.
Next, he focused on how to get out of this beautiful hellhole. Dragging in deep breaths, he plucked the cell phone from his shirt pocket. After seeing the no signal indicator, he felt like throwing it as far as he could. Even Los Lobos had cell service.
The air grew colder, and he had no food on him, much less water. If he could make it to the main road without doing something dumb like twisting his ankle, he could only hope some tourist would dare to pick up a hitchhiker in the dark.
At the moment, he was not a fan of Yellowstone.
But none of it mattered. The worst part about his predicament was the fact he wouldn’t be around to protect her tonight.
“Lara, come back!” he yelled. But it was no use. She was long gone.
Chapter Five
Lara drove as far as Old Faithful, the huge geyser, which shot over a hundred feet every hour and a half. In the concession area, she bought two roast beef sandwiches to go.
Go back to Cody.
Time would be short enough as it was. She needed to return to her motel room so she could rest, fix up, and prepare herself for tonight’s performance. And she didn’t mean the musical one. So, why couldn’t she start the truck and go?
Ogden was probably so pissed by now he had more steam coming out of his ears than every geyser in this park combined. She hoped he knew she hadn’t left him as a joke. Ditching him was the only tactic she could think of to keep him out of her hair tonight and safe from harm. He probably wouldn’t see it her way, though.
She drove the way she’d come. She’d planned to fool around with him outside and leave him the bottled water and beef jerky she’d brought before taking off. But his touch would distract her and make her lose her nerve. As soon as he’d stepped outside the truck, she’d taken off.
Leaving a human in the wilderness with no food or water wasn’t humane. A wolf could fend for itself, but Ogden had problems in the animal area. Besides, he was part Lamar. There was no way around it. She had to pick him up and take him to Cody.
When she found him, he was close to the main road. He looked up with a hopeful expression, probably thinking a stranger had stopped to give him a lift. Hope turned to a flush of anger as red as her truck.
She stopped and unlocked the passenger door, bracing herself for the onslaught. He nearly tore the door off the hinges getting in. His eyes, so pale they were practically white, bored into her.
“What the hell, Lara?” He slapped the dash. “What the hell!”
Sweat prickled between her shoulder blades. “I’m sorry, Ogden. Getting you out of the way tonight was for your own safety.”
He gripped the dash and the back of his seat as if struggling for control. “Then why did you come back for me?”
“You had no food or water.” She pointed to the foil packages in the console. “I brought you a hot sandwich.”
When she tried to take the truck out of park, he leaned over and killed the engine.
“You think a lousy sandwich is going to excuse what you did?” He unhooked her seatbelt and dragged her by the hips onto his lap. “I ought to tie you to a tree and leave you here for your own safety.”
Her hands splayed across his chest as she struggled for balance. His scent was different. Instead of the serene woodsy smell she was used to, it reminded her of hot kindling—right before it burned. She was plenty hot herself. Imagining each way Ogden might punish her made the cream between her legs sizzle and pool in her panties.
“W-what are you doing?” she cried.
“Marking my territory.”
The deep resonance of his voice shot lightning bolts of excitement through her belly. His lips clamped on her neck, pulling the delicate skin into the vortex of his mouth. At the same time, he tweaked a nipple through her tee shirt until it enlarged and hardened enough to pinch.
Pushing against him, she turned and looked in the rearview mirror.
“Damn it, Ogden. You put a hickey on my neck. You’re ruining my plans tonight!”
She’d have to wear a bandana and make sure she seduced Tyler in the dark.
“That’s the whole idea.”
Because she sat on him sideways, his steely erection pressed into her buttocks. She wriggled a few inches, seating her cleft on his tantalizing bulge. Her core tightened and throbbed. Nothing mattered except squeezing his bare cock inside her. With every dominant thing he did to her, she lost ground.
Surrendering, she pulled up her shirt. He tugged her bra straps loose until her bare breasts bounced free. Palming them, he sucked the nipples, nipping them with his teeth until high-pitched yips poured from her throat.
He was marking his territory, all right. Everything she breathed and felt and smelled was him. How could she even smile at Tyler Brooks tonight when Ogden dominated her body and senses?
When he tugged off her jeans and soaked panties, she let him. The scent of her arousal filled the interior of the truck. It begged so hard for sex, she didn’t even have to say it. He didn’t bother taking his clothes off, so she scrambled to unzip his jeans.
Instead of helping, he pulled her body until she lay across his lap on her stomach, leaving her knees bent against the passenger door. Before she could wonder why, he slapped her bare buttocks. A stinging sensation bloomed across her flesh, spreading from her back to her thighs. She whimpered at the next slap but made no objection because she deserved it.
It also made her incredibly hot, for some reason. Her bare nipples ached as they rubbed across the seat. Each slap coaxed more cream from her cunt until every movement echoed with a symphony of her slick folds rubbing together.
She shivered as he touched her again, but this time
he caressed the stinging flesh. His touch was so soft and gentle it brought tears to her eyes. This was the Ogden she knew.
“Do you want my cock inside you, Lara?”
“Yes!” she cried.
His finger slipped into her wet folds, pressing deep and stretching her side to side. When he withdrew, she held her breath, waiting for him to fuck her. Instead, he left her lying there. The sound of a foil wrapper and the scent of roast beef filled the air.
“You’re eating? Now?”
He chuckled. “Taming you has worked up my appetite.”
The man was impossible! She shoved herself off his lap and scooted across the seat to press her back to the driver’s side door. Spreading her legs, she showed him exactly what he’d done to her.
He set the half-eaten sandwich on the dash and unzipped his jeans. She watched, cunt throbbing, as he rubbed his cock, spreading the clear juices from the tip until the whole thing was red and glistening.
Her fingers trembled as she traced the swollen veins, crisscrossing the shaft, and the round perfection of the ruddy head. Desire choked her, making her forget tonight and everything else. Coupling with her mate filled her entire universe. And, she had to admit, it felt damn good to lay down her burdens for a while.
“Please.” The single word was the most she could utter.
He pulled her onto him again. This time, her trembling thighs straddled him, easing her onto his erection. The joining, slick and perfect as silk, was even better than their last. His strong hands gripped the flesh at her hips, pushing her down until he flowed into her, impossibly deep.
Each thrust tore a cry of pleasure from her throat, but those turned to whimpers. Without warning, her eyes filled with unshed tears. Needing to touch more of his skin, she unbuttoned his shirt, which matched his sexy eyes, and caressed his chest.
“Are you all right?” Ogden slowed the pace. “I’m not hurting you, am I?”
“No. I wish….”
He slowed even more until fierce, punishing sex became slow and tender lovemaking.
“You wish what, honey?” His blue gaze, gentle as a summer afternoon sky, caressed her face.
Oh, no. She lost her edge with each sweet, lingering stroke. Instead of fighting the biggest battle of her life later, she wanted to fall apart in his arms and stay there. The woman who’d once stood in front of him and told him she didn’t fear anything was lost in the Yellowstone wilderness.
Maybe the Omega in him was more dangerous than the Dominant.
“I wish everything could be this good. This effortless.” Damp, sweaty hair filled her mouth as she formed the thoughts flying through her head into words. “This safe.”
“It can,” he said slowly, gazing into her eyes. “It will.”
“They all expect me to save them.” Her words tumbled out so fast she could barely understand them. “I don’t know if I can.”
He pressed a kiss to her cheek. “Sometimes things work out the way they’re meant to.”
“I don’t know how, but you make me forget everything.”
Still stroking with deep, velvety lunges, he smoothed the hair from her face. “Maybe you should.”
So she did, letting his hardness smooth off her rough edges until her core quivered. Digging her nails into his shoulders, she let the sweet contractions propel her to another world. In her mind’s eye, she was at the mill in Los Lobos. She was…home?
Biting down, Ogden erupted inside her with the force of Old Faithful, his seed as hot as the steam from the geyser. For several moments, she sat cradled in his arms with her face against his neck. His pulse thrummed, steady and reassuring, against her cheek.
“You were so gentle at the end,” she whispered.
“I couldn’t help it. It felt wrong to punish you.”
“Even though I was bad enough to deserve it?” she asked.
He toyed with the red streak in her hair. “You’re not bad. I admire you so much.”
“What time is it?” She squinted at her watch. “I have to get back.”
“No, you don’t,” he muttered, tracing big, lazy circles over her spine.
She wished he was right. Her body, languid from their lovemaking, wanted to lounge in bed with him for the rest of the night as they’d done in his cabin.
“I really do.” She slid back into the driver’s seat and straightened her shirt. “I made a commitment with McCain’s.”
“Maybe you should make a commitment with me.”
Her hands froze. “What kind of commitment?”
“A life with me in the Black Hills.”
Holy crap. Was he proposing? He sure had lousy timing. She was about to perform the biggest seduction of her life with another man.
“You know I can’t.”
“Which is why I didn’t formally ask you. I wanted you to know the offer is there.”
“I know you drove all the way out here because you care about me.” She touched his hand. “Believe me, I don’t take your feelings lightly.”
She had plenty of feelings of her own.
As she drove toward Cody, she went faster than usual to make up for lost time. On the way, they devoured their sandwiches. Smelling of mayonnaise and sex, she definitely needed a shower before performing tonight.
“We both want the same thing, you know,” he said, rolling his empty wrapper into a ball. “A home.”
“Exactly. Sometimes you have to fight for it, though. If someone tried to kick you off your land, would you lie down and roll over?”
He was silent a moment. “No, I guess not. Sometimes the best way to fight, though, is not to.”
“I don’t like change either, Ogden, but occasionally it’s necessary. And I’m really tired of arguing about it with you.”
“Me, too. Let’s call a truce.”
Would this night ever end? She felt as if she’d lived ten lifetimes today. Exhausted, she didn’t know where she’d find the strength to face the rest of the evening.
“Do you have money?” she asked. “Cody has plenty of hotels. I’ll drop you at my place so you can pick up your truck.”
“Yes, I have money, but I’m staying at your motel,” he declared. “I’ll get a separate room if it’ll make you feel better.”
She rolled her eyes. “It would.”
“I should tie you to the headboard so you’ll stay out of trouble,” he muttered. “But I won’t. I trust you, Lara.”
Unexpected warmth flooded her chest. “Thank you. Please don’t go to the grill tonight, though. It will do nothing but upset you.”
“It’s a free country. I have the right to poke my head in the door if I so choose.”
Her fingernails scored the steering wheel. So much for their truce.
“But I promise I’ll stay out of your way,” he added.
He might have the best of intentions, but they both knew those crazy shifts of his were completely unpredictable. Emotion brought them on, and watching her tonight would likely elicit the strongest emotions of his life.
She couldn’t wait to see the sunrise tomorrow morning because it would mean tonight was over.
***
When Ogden stepped inside R. McCain’s Bar and Grill later that evening, Lara was already playing. Like his cabin, the interior featured plenty of natural wood. Luckily, he’d brought his cowboy hat and boots on this trip, so he fit in with the other men. Because he wasn’t working, for once, he also wore a nice, white shirt and almost-new jeans. He took a seat at the long bar, close enough to keep an eye on her but not enough to crowd her.
She looked especially pretty tonight in a white ruffled blouse. Why couldn’t she button her damn shirts higher?
Boulders rolled inside his stomach. He hoped the mug of beer he ordered would calm them. McCain’s was bigger than Gee’s Bar and had better acoustics. Did her singing sound more haunting than usual, or was it his imagination? Last time, it had caused an involuntary half-shift. To be safe, he’d bought some earplugs at the drugstore across the stree
t before coming here.
Preferring to have use of all five senses, he tried to tough it out by leaving them in his shirt pocket. Instead, he concentrated on the polished wooden bar, admiring the craftsmanship. Reminded of molding, he sketched a simpler design on a napkin. A motif suggesting fangs would be easier to produce than the one with wolves. He hoped he could talk Drew into it when he got back.
Thinking about wood took all of fifteen minutes. How would he pass the rest of the time? Lara would probably play for hours. What was her plan, anyway? And which of these cowboys was Brooks? Was the jerk even here yet?
He sipped his beer slow so he wouldn’t be drunk by the end of the night when he most needed to be alert. As time passed, more couples headed to the big dance floor. Men spun women in circles while their booted feet did fancy footsteps. The dance must be some variation of the Texas two-step.
Ogden would love to try it with Lara sometime. Too many serious, life-and-death issues hovered between them. Instead, he wanted them to be a normal couple, going out for dinner and dancing.
Heavy, booted footsteps behind him made the other sounds in the room—even Lara’s mournful singing—fade out. Brooks. With a Wolf’s sixth sense, he recognized the stranger.
Turning in slow motion on his wooden stool, he eyed the man approaching the bar. He was big, over six feet tall. Everyone else seemed to know him, including the bartender. He must be important because men tipped their hats and an older guy with a bushy moustache even gave up his seat for him.
“Hey, Brooks,” the guy said. “Come and set a spell. The beer is good and cold.”
So it was him!
Tyler paused to stare at Lara. “The scenery isn’t bad either.”
He looked as if he wanted to carry her away. The man was younger and better looking than Ogden had hoped. Like his goatee, his dark hair was shorn close to his head. His beige Stetson and snakeskin boots looked as if they’d cost more than Ogden earned in a year.