"I only came out here to flip the burgers."
Raed took hold of her by the upper arms, gave her a little shake and bent down until they were almost nose to nose. "Next time you do what I tell you. Do you know how close you came to being the wolf's next meal?"
Lexi's back came up at his bossy tone. She wasn't about to stand here and let Raed order her around as if she had no brain in her head. "You aren't the boss of me, Raed; so stop ordering me around as if you were. If you saw the wolves, why didn't you do something to scare them away?"
Raed gave her another shake. "I'll order you around when I deem the situation necessary."
Lexi became really annoyed with that comment. She tried to wrench her arms free, but Raed held on. "Who the hell died and made you king? Just because we slept together does not mean you can tell me what to do. That kind of thing died out in the Dark Ages, buddy."
"Times like this, I wish I could go back to them. At least women knew their place then."
Lexi's mouth fell open. Had she actually thought Raed could be everything she wanted in a man? Now that his true colors had come shining through, she knew there wouldn't be a repeat performance of what had taken place in his bedroom earlier. He would be lucky if she didn't smack him a good one upside the head for thinking she should 'know her place'.
She glared at him. "You know what? I think today may have been a mistake. If you want some woman who will do your bidding, you've chosen the wrong one. I may come across as timid, but I'm no pushover. I don't have to take the bullshit coming out of your mouth. I think it best I go back to my flat."
Raed's face lost the stern look he wore as he slowly released her. He ran a hand through his hair. "Look, Lexi, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."
"The hell you didn't."
Raed took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Let's go back inside. We'll eat our supper and talk." He tried to reach for her, but she shook her head, walked around him and headed for the back door. Raed followed behind her. "Can you at least give me a chance to explain?"
"You've done enough explaining already. Will you take me back to the flat or do I have to find my own way there?"
Back in the kitchen, Raed walked over to the stove and shut off the heat under the frying pan. He turned and gave her a pleading look. "I don't want you to go, Lexi.
Not like this. I have to turn off the barbeque and have a brief talk with the others.
Maybe once we have both settled down you'll be in the mood to listen."
Lexi crossed her arms over her chest. "Whatever."
"I promise I won't be long."
As soon as Raed went back outside, Lexi left the kitchen and headed for the front door. She picked up her purse where she had left it on a small table in the foyer. She was in no mood to hear what Raed had to say. She'd dated a man like him once before who had thought a woman's place was in the house, barefoot and pregnant. At least that time Lexi hadn't been stupid enough to sleep with the male chauvinistic pig.
Hoping she didn't run into any of the others, she opened the front door and hurried down the stairs to the long drive. After she got far enough away from the manor, she jogged to the bottom of the driveway. She started to walk along the side of the road in the direction she thought would take her back to her flat.
At the sound of a car coming up behind her, she stuck out her hand to flag the vehicle down. As if fate was on her side, it was a taxi. She waved frantically to get the driver's attention. The car slowed and stopped beside her. She bent and looked through the open passenger door window. "Are you free?"
"Sure," the driver said. He reached behind him and opened the back door.
Lexi got in. Once they were on their way she told him the address of her flat. She looked out the back window, but didn't see anyone appear at the end of the drive.
Another car followed them, but the vehicle wasn't familiar, and she didn't think it was Raed. He probably didn't even know she was gone yet, but once he figured it out he'd probably be pissed at her for running, but she didn't really care.
She paid the taxi driver then headed up to her flat. So much for her first full day in England. Determined not to let this one day get her down, Lexi decided starting tomorrow she would do the sightseeing she had planned. She wouldn't waste her entire vacation thinking about Raed. What was done was done.
* * *
The driver of the car who had followed the taxi watched Lexi as she entered the door next to a bookstore. He waited a few minutes to make sure she would be upstairs in the flat before he got out and crossed the street. He leaned back against the door as he pretended to tie his shoe then he brushed up against the brick wall beside it, marking it with his scent. He smiled as he crossed back over to his car and drove away.
His evening just kept getting better and better. He'd thought he'd done well to have discovered the hunters' home base, but to find a mortal with those immortals had been an added bonus. Earlier, when he had cornered her in his wolf form, she had the scent of the shifted warrior he had fought all over her, the scent so strongly mixed with her own, he knew she had to have slept with him.
He pulled up to the front of a non-descript farmhouse and got out. To passersby, the property looked like any small farm in the area, but the building was much more than that. It was the den of his werewolf pack. They'd dug a series of tunnels and a large cavern under the farmhouse. Not even the servants of the Anglo-Saxon god, Tiw, knew about this place.
He went inside the farmhouse, then down to the root cellar and opened the door that led to one of the den's tunnels. The dark earth walls and ceiling closed around him as he went deeper underground. When he reached the large central cavern, he walked by members of his pack and headed to the back of the open space. Some still inhabited their wolf forms, while others had taken on their human or half-human and half-wolf forms. Their numbers changed frequently, added to by the newly turned who instinctively found their way to the pack, and reduced by those the immortal warriors took out during their nightly hunts. At the moment, the pack had twenty members, including himself and their pack leader, Nathan. They were all male.
At the very back of the central cavern an opening led to a smaller cavern, Nathan's private quarters. He poked his head inside and waited for Nathan to acknowledge him. His pack leader shifted from wolf to human and signaled him to enter with a wave of his hand.
"I didn't expect you back so soon," Nathan said. "I hope you haven't come back unsuccessful. I would be greatly disappointed."
None of the pack wanted to disappoint Nathan. When Nathan became upset with one of them they usually ended up torn to pieces, literally. Nathan ruled with an iron fist, and had claimed the leadership by being the toughest and cruelest werewolf in the pack, killing everyone who stood in his way.
He shook his head. "You won't be disappointed, Nathan. I was more than successful. I found the home of the immortal warriors as promised, but what I found there will interest you even more."
"And what would that be?"
"A mortal woman, who had the scent of one of the warriors all over her."
Nathan's grey eyes focused on his face. "Now, that is interesting. If they have a mortal in their midst, she could be quite useful. Even if we can only use her to eliminate one of the warriors, it's one less out hunting us each night."
He nodded. "That is what I thought. And as luck would have it, when I drove by their manor to return here, the woman was outside on the road. She flagged down a taxi and I followed her back to her flat. So now we know where she lives as well. I even managed to spread my scent around her building. What I did should piss her warrior off when he smells and recognizes my mark," he said, pleased with himself.
Nathan crossed his arms over his chest and scratched his chin. "Where can I find the warriors' manor and the flat of this mortal?"
He rattled off the two addresses as he watched his pack leader circle around him once before he came to stand in front of him again. He would have thought Nathan would have
been more than pleased with him, but a look of disgust never left his face.
Nathan moved closer. "Now tell me why the warrior would recognize your scent?"
He swallowed as a shiver of unease ran down his spine. "I only thought to have a little fun with the mortal. I cornered her in the warriors' back garden. Her warrior chased me away."
"I never told you to think," Nathan growled.
That was all the warning he got before Nathan's razor sharp claws slashed across his throat. As his blood sprayed, Nathan said, "You're a fool. Now the warriors know we have found their home. I may be able to salvage this by using the mortal, but sadly you won't be around to see."
The last thing he saw was Nathan, in his werewolf form, lunge for him and finish what he had started with his claws.
* * *
After talking with his men, Raed returned to the kitchen only to find the room empty. Where was Lexi? He headed for the living room; she wasn't there either. He took the stairs two at a time to his bedroom. Empty as well.
Back downstairs, he met Garrick, who had just come in the front door. "Did you see Lexi out there?"
Garrick shook his head. "No. I thought you said she was inside."
"Bloody hell."
Raed rushed outside. Even though they hadn't been able to find the werewolf that had invaded their property, it didn't mean he couldn't still be hiding somewhere nearby. Raed came to a stop when he reached the top of the long drive. He sniffed the air, trying to zero in on Lexi's scent. There. Faint, but the scent was definitely there.
"She ran, didn't she?" Garrick asked as he came to stand next to Raed.
"Yes." He followed Lexi's scent down to the end of the drive.
"I guess the werewolf scared her off."
Raed turned his head left and right until he picked up her scent again, heading up the road to the left. He followed it until it abruptly ended. "Damn. She must have managed to get a lift from someone." He headed back toward the manor. "No, a werewolf didn't make her run. I did."
"You?" Garrick scoffed. "I thought the two of you hit it off pretty well."
"I angered her when I told her the next time I told her to do something she had better do it."
Garrick laughed. "Yeah, that would piss off any modern woman."
"I acted on my gut reaction. Seeing her cornered by the werewolf . . . the sight scared the shit out of me. I got angry at her for putting herself in danger."
"But she didn't know danger lurked outside the house."
"I realize that. I overreacted."
As they walked back into the manor, Garrick asked, "So what are you going to do now?"
"I'll give her until tomorrow then I'll go see her."
"And if she won't see you?"
"She's mine. I'm not going to let her go so easily." Raed headed down the hallway, but turned back to Garrick before he went very far. "Tell the others we're going to start the hunt earlier tonight. I want to find the bastard who dared threaten my woman."
Raed caught the look of surprise that flashed across Garrick's face before he continued down the hall. He knew he sounded possessive of Lexi, but he couldn't help himself. Seeing her cornered by the werewolf had conjured images of her mangled body lying in a pool of her own blood. The images scared him.
* * *
Even though he and his men did an extensive search of the property around the manor, they couldn't find any trace of the werewolf they hunted. The absence of signs as to his whereabouts didn't sit well with Raed. That this one had been able to sneak in and out of the grounds so easily had Raed coming to believe their prey had started to get smarter; the werewolf's ability to be out in wolf form in broad daylight only added to his unease. If Raed didn't know better, he would think the beast had been on a reconnaissance mission, sent to find where they lived. The werewolf had given up the fight far too easily.
More than halfway through the night, and unable to find any prey, Raed decided to swing by Lexi's flat. He parked his car halfway down the street and traversed the remaining distance on foot. At this time of night, the street was quiet. No one else moved but him.
Raed lifted his head to look up at the windows above the bookstore as he neared the flat's entrance. They were completely dark. The urge to go to Lexi and hold her in his arms once again became almost overwhelming. His body grew heavy with need as he remembered the small cries Lexi had made as he had plunged his cock in and out of her. He knew she probably would still be mad at him, but he wasn't about to let her just walk out of his life. Somehow, she had managed to worm her way under his skin. He felt protective, possessive of her. All the feelings he hadn't felt for a very long time.
Ones he had promised himself never to have again. He did not want to fall in love only to lose the woman he loved to old age and death.
Raed's nostrils flared as he picked up the scent on the brick wall next to the flat's entrance. His upper lip curled and he growled quietly, deep inside his throat. It was the scent of the werewolf who had cornered Lexi. Rage and fear for her warred inside him when he found the scent on the entrance door as well. Fear won out.
Their argument now forgotten, Raed yanked open the door and took the flight of stairs in a couple of bounds. He turned the flat's doorknob, but found the lock engaged.
Fear of what he would find on the other side allowed his wolf side to take over. Raed turned the handle until he heard the lock's tumblers break. As he stepped through the doorway, his eyes went wolf and his claws came out.
Chapter Seven
One minute Lexi had been in a deep sleep, and the next, she found herself pulled out of bed and wrapped in a strong embrace. As she tried to figure out what the hell was going on, she pushed at the hard chest under her cheek, which only resulted in her being held tighter. She felt something sharp prick through her pajama top at both shoulders.
"Let go of me, Raed." Lexi didn't know how she knew the intruder was him, she just did. A part of her recognized the feel of his large body pressed to hers.
"Just give me a minute to calm down." His voice sounded strained, as if he only held on by a thread.
"What are you doing in my flat?" She shoved at his chest again. "You have no right to break in here in the middle of the night. I know I locked the door before I went to bed. If you damaged it, you'll be paying to have it repaired."
"Be still, Lexi. You aren't exactly helping here."
"Why should I be still? I didn't invite you to come over and rip me out of my bed while I'm asleep. Let go of me and get out." She managed to pull her head back far enough to look Raed in the face. Not that she could see much of it in the dark. That was also when she felt his erection pressed against her belly. She started to struggle. "Let.
Me. Go."
A low growl rose from Raed's throat. "I can't do that. You're mine. And I protect what is mine. You're in danger."
Lexi smacked him on the arm. "I'm not yours. And for your information, the only danger I can see is you. So, as you British say, sod off."
Raed took a deep breath. "I can see you aren't going to be reasonable about this.
You leave me no choice." He scooped her up in his arms and headed out of her bedroom.
"Put me down this instant, Raed."
When he didn't, she grabbed a fistful of his hair and gave a hard yank. Raed stopped in the middle of her living room, but he didn't put her down. He threaded one hand through the hair at the back of her head and brought his mouth down on hers. His kiss was by no means gentle. His lips were hard and possessive. Much to her utter shame, Lexi found herself responding. Her traitorous body melted against Raed as he shoved his tongue inside her mouth and thoroughly tasted her. She still felt angry at him, but it didn't stop her from growing wet. Her fingers tightened in his hair as she kissed him back with equal fervor.
With his lips still devouring hers, Raed crossed the room and slammed the open front door shut. He had her back up against it a split second later. He literally ripped her pajama bottoms off. Lexi bit his bot
tom lip as his fingernails, which felt a bit on the sharp side, ran down her thigh.
Raed lifted her legs around his waist then fumbled with the front of his jeans. He pushed them down only far enough to free his cock before he rammed into her, sheathing himself to the hilt. Lexi knew this would be no gentle lovemaking as Raed pumped into her hard and fast. The door at her back banged with each of his thrusts.
His kisses became harder and he used his teeth more than his tongue. Something wild burst to the surface inside Lexi. She squeezed her inner muscles around his hard shaft as she met his hips with her own. She pulled on his hair, ground her teeth against his mouth, all of which seemed to excite Raed even more.
His cock grew even harder as he continued to ram into her. He cupped her bottom, and Lexi felt her climax edge closer. His sharp nails dug into her flesh. She pulled away from his mouth and yanked his head to the side. Remembering how Raed had bitten her, Lexi dragged her tongue down his neck then bit him where his shoulder and neck met. He rammed into her faster, harder. When she felt his cock swell even more as his shaft pulsed deep inside her pussy, Lexi fell over the edge. She moaned against Raed's neck as wave after wave of pleasure surged through her. Her inner muscles clamped down on his cock in a tight fist.
The sounds of their harsh breathing filled the room. Raed remained thick inside her. He slowly sank down onto the floor with her straddled across his lap. Lexi moaned as she felt another jet of cum splash against her inner walls, causing them to contract.
She lifted her head and looked at Raed's face. In the darkness, his eyes looked different, but the lack of light made it hard for her to see why. She shifted on his lap and found his cock had swelled to the point where they were locked together. She also felt another splash of cum. "Raed? Are you still coming? Your cock . . . why is it swelled like that?"
He kissed her gently. "I promise to answer your questions in the morning. Just give me the rest of the night to make love to you. That's all I want. Just you, with nothing coming between us."
With Raed still lodged so deep inside her, Lexi knew she couldn't say no. When he touched her, her body went up in flames. They may have their differences, but when it came to sex, they were explosive. Each time they came together, the sex just got better and better.
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