by Leah Blake
That gave Mik roughly ten hours to try and sort out the disarray of thoughts that plagued him since the unusual and severely unnerving encounter with the wolf. In all of his years hunting paranormals, never once had one repeatedly stabbed him with comments resonating a powerful truth.
Never once had he given a paranormal a chance to speak before he pulled his trigger.
So, what happened during the night? Why did he hesitate?
He had a clean shot. He could’ve pulled the trigger while the wolf was finishing off the lamabra and gone on his merry way, claiming another mark on his scorecard. He had time. Plenty of time. That wolf should’ve been dead, and yet…
Mik kicked at one of the kitchenette chairs, sending the wooden seat into a spin before it knocked against the wall. Flexing his fingers against the urge to launch a fist into the closest solid object, he let out a bark of frustration.
“What the fuck happened to you?” he muttered under his breath.
Closing his eyes to try and regain his composure succeeded in unleashing the very vivid memory of the encounter. The rage he normally felt toward any paranormal wasn’t there when the wolf peeled the lamabra off him. He could barely break free of the awe that restrained him as he watched the wolf shift in a fluid blend of dark fur and dark clothing. When the beast became a man, the sight practically knocked Mik senseless.
He had been beautiful, in a rough, edgy, big and brawny kinda way. There was no ignoring his massive presence or the power that flowed off him in hot waves. His hair was nape-length, thick and wavy. The darkness made it hard to determine an exact color, but he caught the shimmer of lighter strands.
Those eyes…
Mik’s heart skipped and his breath lodged in his throat. Heat spread along his skin and pooled heavily in his cock.
The wolf had eyes as golden as the summer sun and as fraught with emotions as a hurricane. Those eyes caught him, drew him in, held him hostage and made him forget what he needed to do.
“Fuck, man.” He raked his fingers through his hair and released a distressed groan. “Shower. It’ll help.”
Half an hour and a hand job that did nothing for his persistent arousal later, he dressed in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, pulled a baseball cap low over his eyes, and left the hotel. It was close to lunchtime, so grabbing a desperately needed beer wouldn’t tag him as an alcoholic. Besides, mingling with the townsfolk at a local joint might give him a hint to the level of panic civilians were suffering.
Sleep wasn’t coming to him easy. He might as well use his time wisely.
Downtown was a small, quaint area consisting of a dozen blocks along Main Street, and quiet side roads. A small grin quirked his lips when he found a bustling Irish pub. Nothing like a shot of whiskey and a good Irish stout to take the edge off.
He found a seat at the bar where he could watch the people come and go, and keep an eye out for any threats. Tables and booths were filling up around him, as were the empty seats surrounding the rectangular shaped bar. The place was warm and cozy, with dark wood, fun music, and loud conversations.
A bartender came over to him with a menu. “What can I get you to drink?”
“Best stout and a shot of Jameson.”
The bartender, a young woman with large tits and a shirt to show them off, smiled and winked. “See you’re starting early. Be right back.”
Mik offered her a polite smile in return, lowering his attention to the menu to keep the chick from reading it as flirting. Although his stomach was full from his meal a short while ago, he perused the items offered for a future visit. The bartender returned with his drinks, removed the menu after he turned down the offer for food, and left him to his thoughts.
Damn thoughts. The same ones that kept turning back to the wolf in the woods. The same thoughts he blamed for the warmth that simmered through his body and left his cock a half-erect mess. His damn mind taunted him. Every few minutes, he imagined seeing himself through that wolf’s eyes, sitting alone at the bar, and swatted down the vision with another gulp of stout.
He didn’t get hard-ons for paranormals. He. Did. Not.
The warmth increased, making his balls ache until he shifted his ass in his seat.
“Damn drink isn’t helping. It’s making it worse,” he muttered against the lip of his tumbler before he tossed the rest of the whiskey back. He washed it down with a healthy drink of stout.
Another one of his mind-twisting teases followed, one where a mixture of attraction and anger raked down his back. Emotions that were not his own. In the path of that gaze, his skin burned.
Mik flicked up the bill of the baseball cap and rubbed his forehead. Coming out wasn’t the best idea. He needed to sleep. It’d been over twenty-four hours since he last lay down. The attack during the night, the encounter with the shifter, and the doubt that kept him from pulling his trigger was catching up with him.
He waved over the bartender.
“’Nother beer?”
Mik shook his head. “Just my tab.”
The woman flashed him a white-tooth smile and disappeared to the side of the bar. Mik slipped his wallet from his jeans and removed a twenty.
His skin tingled and a flush threatened to consume him. Instinctively, he glanced around, his gaze falling on two large laughing men as they headed toward the exit. The tingling didn’t stop when they left. Frustratingly enough, it intensified until he felt like he had fingernails running up and down his arms in a sensual, mind-whirling manner.
“Here you go,” the bartender said, whipping out a huge smile and a twist to show the profile of her tits. Mik glanced at the total, pushed his money toward her and tipped the bill of his cap down.
“Keep the change.”
The bartender thanked him as he climbed out of the chair. When he turned to edge out from between the two bar chairs, his gaze fell on another large man.
He froze. Everything inside him froze, except for the sudden rush of his heart and the hardening of his cock.
The wolf’s attention focused entirely on him from behind dark lenses. A handkerchief covered his hair, keeping it from his hard-edged, drop-dead gorgeous face. A few days of scruff shadowed his jaw and chin. Downright sexy as hell.
The wolf continued toward the exit, finally releasing Mik from that intense stare and the spell it cast. He rocked Mik straight to his core, leaving his legs weak and his body trembling. He stumbled in his escape of the barstools and took off after the wolf, pinpointing him on the sidewalk outside the pub.
“Hey! You!” he called after he got a load of the beast’s delightful backside. A form-fitting black T-shirt stretched over honed muscle that highlighted the taper of a narrow waist. Dark blue jeans did little to hide the tight mounds of ass and hard swells of thighs.
Mik realized as he watched the wolf’s captivating gait that the damn guy didn’t stop walking.
“Hey! I’m talking to you.”
The wolf kept on going. His two buddies a few feet ahead stopped and turned, their eyes pinning Mik with curiosity.
Mik hurried forward.
“Nico, you’ve got a boy fawning after you,” one of the men taunted. “Pretty cute.”
Nico. What a name. A nice name.
Mik cursed himself at the thought. He reached out and grabbed Nico’s arm, forcing him to stop. He didn’t miss the sudden ferocious expression that fell across the dark, dangerous man who stood beside the guy who called him a “boy” as a shockwave of hot, electric desire shot through every cell in his body.
He wanted to pull his hand back but couldn’t. The connection was too damn…
Oh, fuck. Not good.
Nico’s lens-covered eyes turned down to where his hand gripped his bicep, then crept up Mik’s arm until he reached his face. He could’ve taken a torch to his skin, how pleasant a burn his gaze created.
“I’m good, guys. I’ll meet you in a few,” Nico said, his voice a nerve-teasing mix of growly wolf and husky man. He sounded so different than he had during th
e night.
A walking, talking embodiment of predator and…sex.
Reluctantly, Mik removed his hand once he was certain Nico wouldn’t leave. The two men—he was positive they were two more wolves—gauged Mik for a long moment before continuing down the sidewalk. Mik waited until they were out of sight, suffering the raw scrutiny of the wolf a few inches away. His body pulsed and ached in a way he’d never before experienced. His arousal was beyond insane, a wash of fantasies rushing through his mind that left him breathless.
“I don’t have a gun.”
What a pitiful way to break the silence.
The corner of Nico’s mouth twitched. “Your guns don’t scare me.”
“I could’ve killed you in the woods.”
“And I could’ve left you for dead.”
Mik swallowed. Nico had a point. He was as good as dead had the wolf not saved him, a small point that didn’t escape him despite his determination to believe he had the upper hand in the entire situation.
“Yeah, now you get it.” Nico growled, a sound that resonated down to Mik’s bones and teased the nerves along his cock. The wolf crossed his arms over his wide chest, a dark brow lifting over his sunglasses. “Tell me, Mikhail. What would your buddies say if they caught you chasing after the very thing you hunt?”
Mik tried not to look away. It took every ounce of control to hold a gaze he couldn’t see clearly.
“Or, talking to a monster you’re supposed to kill?”
“Listen, they’re not here.”
“Oh. And if they were? Would I be staring into the barrel of another gun even though I saved your sorry ass?” The way the wolf cocked his head and glowered at him filled Mik with shame.
What the hell is your problem? Why on Earth would you feel ashamed of killing the creatures that attack humans?
“I don’t have time for games,” Nico groused. He dropped his arms and started walking. Mik groaned, sprinting forward. He came up in front of the wolf, forcing him to stop. “What?”
Yeah, what? Why am I running after him? The enemy?
“How do you know my name?” Mik asked. In his adrenaline-packed state during the night, he hadn’t realized Nico knew his name. Having heard the wolf address him again a few moments ago, he was curious to know what the wolf knew about him. What dangers he presented.
“None, unless you go after my friends. Touch them and I’ll make sure you pay.” Nico’s upper lip pulled back enough to show off impressive fangs without drawing unwanted attention from passersby. Mik steeled himself against the flood of desire and the inconceivable notion of those teeth marking him as Nico’s.
Irrational thinking, Mik.
“You can read minds. Wolves aren’t supposed to have that power.”
“Little do you know, apparently.”
“Are you always so rude?”
Nico stared at him for a long, silent moment before he laughed. The sound was sinful, deep and rich and utterly condescending.
“Really? Rude? I killed that lamabra before it ripped your head from your body, and you shoved a gun in my face. Are you sure you don’t have the rude party confused?” Nico shook his head, a scowl crossing nice, firm lips. “And it wasn’t just one gun you tried to use.”
Mik sighed. Nico was making his points shamefully clear. Never since he stepped onto this path of becoming a hunter had he considered his actions. Paranormals were a nameless, faceless, evil race of creatures that needed to be exterminated. There weren’t different factions. There weren’t feelings. They had no consciences.
Paranormal hunting was like deer hunting. Mik found a target and pulled his trigger. There wasn’t much else to think about.
At least, that’s what he thought until now.
Standing before this man left him confused. It didn’t help that the man was mouthwatering and that Mik had an obvious reaction to his very presence, another notch added to his confusion.
“Okay, kid. Listen. I don’t have all day to stand here waiting for you to figure out your thoughts. I’m tired. I haven’t slept in three days because I’ve been hunting those fucking lamabra, trying to stop them before they kill more humans. I really don’t have patience for hunters who scream ‘hey you’ to get my attention and try to make themselves feel better for being a dick when they should’ve been dead. Quite honestly, I don’t have time to coddle your ego. So, if you have something to say, say it. Otherwise, I’m leaving.”
“Why are you hunting them? One bite and they can ruin you.”
If Mik were to guess, Nico just rolled his eyes at him.
“You hunters have such misconceptions about our kind. We don’t want humans harmed any more than you do. I’m aware of the danger they present to wolves, but they present more danger to humans.” Nico leaned down, his face close to Mik’s. Mik’s nostrils filled with the scent of crisp pine, warm whiskey, and an underlying sweetness that almost made him moan. It was bad enough he glanced down at the man’s sinful mouth and leaned a little closer. “Now, Mikhail. I can easily pop your perfect world bubble or I can let you go on your merry way with the warning that should we cross paths again, I may not be as lenient in my actions. I protect what is mine. Don’t ever forget that.”
“You wanted me to follow you out of that joint.” Mik knew it was a guess at best. A pretty good one, too, judging by the slight stiffening of the man’s shoulders. “And you didn’t answer my question about how you knew my name.”
“It’s hard not to know who you are. You’ve slaughtered a good number of my kind.” Nico’s voice was tight and he spoke between clenched teeth. He straightened up. “I’ve gotta go.”
“Wait.” Mik raised a hand, intending to press his palm to Nico’s shoulder, but thought twice when the man’s eyes lowered to his outstretched arm. “Why did you want me to follow you?”
“I didn’t. Don’t flatter yourself.”
“I’m not.” Mik stepped to the side, blocking Nico’s exit. This time, he did press his hand to the man’s hard pec. Another wave of hot electricity bolted through him, weakening him more than he cared to acknowledge. “Damn, what do you keep doing to me?”
Nico finally lifted his sunglasses and graced Mik with those gorgeous sun-glowing eyes. His pupils swelled, despite the brightness of the morning, and his nostrils flared.
When the man’s lips curled into a cursed grin, he thought he’d melt into a puddle right there on the sidewalk.
“Nothing, Mikhail.” Nico stepped forward, right into Mik. The motion stunned him, since he was expecting the man to try and side-step him again. “Nothing I have any control over.”
Mik swallowed a lump from the base of his throat when Nico drew the tips of his fingers from Mik’s navel to his chin. The airy touch lit a dangerous fire inside his body, one that centralized in his groin but burrowed deeper. Soul-deep.
He didn’t know what was happening. It made no sense. The sensations that woke inside him were strange and surreal, uncharted and frightening. The last because he had no control over them. The harder he tried to steel himself against the wolf, the stronger those sensations became. The town around him faded as he sank into the wolf’s predatory gaze.
Another trick of his mind occurred. One in which he felt a body not his own strain to remain controlled and calm. He stared at himself—a strange, vertigo feeling—pleased to find his mate submitting…
Hot lips touched his, washing that last thought from his mind in a rush of pure want.
“Ever kiss a wolf before?” Nico whispered. He gave Mik no time to answer, slipping his tongue between Mik’s parted lips. Mik swayed, his fingers biting into the shirt at Nico’s chest to stay on his feet. The man tasted like spice and liquor, an aphrodisiac if Mik ever tasted one. He opened his lips, accepting Nico’s hot kiss, one that swept through his mouth, traced his lips, and left him craving more.
Just when Mik started to raise his arms and wrap them around Nico’s neck, Nico leaned back, licking his lips. Mik dropped his arms, trying to catch his brea
th as Nico lowered his sunglasses over his eyes.
“Now you have.”
Nico stepped around him. Mik turned and watched the man head down the sidewalk until he disappeared around a building, leaving Mik bereft. He chewed his lower lip, drinking every last drop of Nico’s flavor into his mouth, savoring it. That kiss, dear god, that kiss was…intoxicating.
“Mik?”
Oooh, fuck.
Slowly, Mik turned to face Kelvin.
Damn, I forgot he’s scouting.
The man’s narrowed eyes lowered from the path Nico had taken to Mik. Mik’s face heated under the scrutiny of his comrade, but he straightened his shoulders and puffed out his chest a bit. No one knew he was gay. He wasn’t ashamed of his preferences, but he didn’t need to hand the guys more fuel for jabs.
As he remembered the last strange mind trick, he wondered if it hadn’t been a trick at all. If, in actuality, he had bigger problems than worrying about whether or not his comrades discovered he was gay.
“What is it?” Mik asked, ignoring Kelvin’s confused expression. “I needed a drink after last night. I’m heading back to the hotel.”
Kelvin’s gaze shot to Nico’s route, then back to Mik. He shifted on his feet, his growing discomfort palpable. Mik arched his brows.
“Spit it out, Kelvin.”
“Who was that?”
“A drunk.” Best to keep Nico under the radar, under the extremely conflicting circumstance. “Thought I was cute and thought he could cop a feel.”
Kelvin’s brows furrowed. “Um, okay.” He cleared his throat. “It just looked like you were kissing him. A guy.”
“And if I was? Would it make a difference?”
Kelvin shook his head. “Oh, no. Not at all. If that’s what, you know, you prefer.”
Mik gauged his comrade for a long moment. The man was raking him up one side and down the other, trying to fit puzzle pieces together. Unfortunately, that’s what Kelvin did. He liked puzzles, liked figuring out the mysteries, and loved detective work. Jude chose the right man for the scouting job.