“Don’t,” she breathed out.
He touched her cheek. So soft her flesh, so delicate feeling. “Can’t wait to feel those orgasms wrap around my dick, milking my own release from deep in my soul. I hunger for you Natasha,” he lowered his voice.
“Hunger for you unlike anything I’ve ever hungered for in my life. Don’t let that hunger boil out of control. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Then let me go.”
Drake shook his head lowered it and pressed his forehead to hers with a sigh. “I can’t do that. I’m sorry, but I can’t let you go, Natasha. I just can’t.”
She surprised him by pushing him away. “Then I can’t go along with this kidnapping.” He took a step back. Her chin went up, “I’m not coming to you as a willing mate, Drake Draeger. I’m not acknowledging a claim. You kidnapped me, therefore, I’m unwilling to everything that is you.”
Drake narrowed his eyes on her and bit the inside of his mouth. A tick started in his cheek and the beast inside him howled to come out and take. “Then Natasha Millard, let our games begin. But I promise you one thing,” he held his finger up. “I’ll have all of you before the full moon.”
He left the bedroom before more could be said—before he did something that he might later regret.
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Chapter Four
Philip Millard stood in his office staring out at the night sky hating what he saw. Four days until the full moon, and forty-eight hours before the females of their race went through a needing cycle. Which meant his daughter was going to be having her cycle soon with the male that took her.
She was ruined. The bastard that did this was going to pay with his life.
“Nothing.” Ellie walked into the office with the simple word. Allen took a deep breath, turning around to face her. “No one has any idea where she’s at.”
“This rests on your shoulders,” he told her. “I blame you for this fuck up.” Elli didn’t flinch. “Someone has to know something!” he yelled.
“If they know, they’re not going to talk. The laws state a kidnapping of a female is allowed, and with you on the Cabinet still that law has to be upheld.”
Philip lost his cool and charged Elli. He grabbed her by the throat, shoving her up against the wall with a snarl. “Don’t quote the laws to me you bitch. I wrote the fuckers, I know them better than you do!” A hard yank and Elli went flying across the room, landing hard on the floor.
“Boris!”
The door opened, and in walked a male of great worth. He was also a hunter, one that always found what he was seeking. Philip looked at the male. He stood at six foot at least. Short, spiky black hair, cold, gray eyes. He had the body of a large football player wearing pads. He was that thick in the body. He also was a cold-blooded killer if need be.
“You find her,” Phillip said. “You find her, kill the bastard that took her, and then you can keep her. She’s useless to me now.”
Boris said nothing. He nodded, turned, and walked right out.
“You do this and the clan will turn on you,” Elli stated, her voice a bit scratchy after the way he grabbed her.
Philip looked Elli right in the eye. “Who’ll know?”
* * * *
Drake sat outside, on the freshly poured patio watching the crew work on the pool that should’ve been done a week ago. Half of the guys were painting the pool and the other half were on the other end fixing 42
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cracks and sealing spots. In his hand, he clutched a bottle of beer.
Between his legs, one raging stiff motherfucking dick!
Four days—four miserable, painful goddamned days until her cycle.
Until she might need him, depending on how she handled it. Some females he heard had to be restrained when they went to a safe house.
They tried to get free in order to mate. Some he heard just slept through it as if it wasn’t anything big.
Well however Natasha’s cycle was, he had four days to wait. Now what should he do in that time? Well, Drake thought he could always keep doing as he did last night, but then that wouldn’t work. Not since he informed her that if she ran, and when he caught her, he would do that anyway. So that one was out of the question right now. He had Nelly on his ass implying that he was going to rape Natasha any second and Tony walking around keeping his eye on him.
Fuck! Was this his house or theirs?
Drake finished his beer placed the bottle next to the others on the iron table and reached for another at the cooler next to this bare feet.
“Hitting them kind of heavy, aren’t you?”
He turned, ready to fight but eased up when he saw whom it was.
James Laswell from the party.
“How’d you know where I lived?” Drake asked the man, watching him closely as he took a beer and sat down on the other chair.
“Asked around.” James twisted the cap and took a drink. “I will say you’re somewhat hard to find. But this place is great.”
Drake frowned. It was another one of those things he noticed himself doing. Frowning and scowling a lot.
“Thought you might be interested to know there’s this strange rumor going around,” James said. “A hunter has been put on to locate Natasha Millard.” James sighed, sat back in the chair, and put his feet up on the table. He looked right at Drake. “Rumor she was kidnapped.”
“Really?”
James nodded. “Also heard that Philip Millard is, shall we say, going mental.”
“That’s interesting.”
James and Drake seemed to have a small stare off before James busted out laughing. Drake held his breath waiting.
“Man I can’t believe you did it. I mean, you really did take her?”
“Don’t know what you’re talking about.” Drake twisted off the cap of another beer, downed half of it, and looked back at the pool.
“Bullshit!” James went on. “I saw the way you looked at her at that 43
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party. I remember the fight you got into with her father. Hell that alone spread through the party like wild fire, man. Everyone’s talking about how you stood up to the fucker. And hey,” he held up his hand and lowered his head, “I’m not here to judge or turn you in. Not my place especially if she’s your mate.
Drake studied James Laswell. He was a different breed of man, not just shifter. There was something about his funny, lazy personality that had Drake at ease around him, and that never happened with people.
Drake was normally a loner. The only friends he had either worked for him or his father. True friends, he didn’t have.
“He doesn’t want to change things, but also doesn’t want to let his daughter be part of the world.” Drake shook his head, the bottle touching his lips. “Can’t have it both ways.”
“No, he can’t,” James sighed. “So have you mated her yet?”
“Kind of a personal question.”
James shrugged, staring at the pool work also. “Just asking.”
A few minutes went by with nothing said. Drake saw the workers finishing the painting. Heard them say they would start filling it in a couple days after everything dried. He was ready to get into it. Ready to swim laps, enjoy the cool water during the hot summer he was sure they were going to have.
“I can see why you picked this place,” James said. “It’s very relaxing.”
Drake snorted. “You got a mate?”
James shook his head, “Not so lucky yet.” He turned to Drake. “You don’t have many friends, do you?”
“People don’t like me.” Drake rested his head back on the chair, turned, and put his feet up on the table. “They think I’m scary. The big bogie man or some shit.”
“Is she scared of you?”
Drake thought about it for a second. “I think she was at first, but she sure as hell isn’t now.”
“So what’re you going to do?�
�
Drake closed his eyes, rubbing them in complete frustration. Even talking to James, drinking, and trying to relax he couldn’t. The urge to go upstairs, to see her, smell, and touch her was very powerful. Hell, he didn’t know if he was going to be able to wait the four days for her cycle before he had her.
“I don’t know,” he groaned. “I really don’t know.”
“Sounds like you’re in a pickle, my friend.” Drake glared at him and 44
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James smiled back. “Want some advice?”
“From you?” James nodded. “I don’t even know you that well.”
“Drake, I think we’re more alike than what you see. If Millard wants things to remain the way are, then he has to follow those rules, including for his own daughter. He refused you took matters into your own hands.
I’d do the dame same thing. But you also have to watch your back.
There’s a reason why he was able to break his own rules so easily now.
He’s one sneaky, conniving bastard who’s used to getting his way all the time. So watch your back.”
“That’s the advice?”
James smiled big. “Naw, man. Go old school on her. Mind seduction works wonders.”
Drake couldn’t help himself and laughed, “I don’t think it’s going to be that simple. Not by a long shot.”
* * * *
Natasha paced the bedroom, her anger, and frustration getting the better of her. The moment Drake left she dressed. Jeans to go with the sweater she now wore. Every clothing item she wore was baggy, covering every inch of her body. After last night, she couldn’t seem to face him, not after what he did to her. Still the thought of him kissing, licking, touching her between her legs had the rush of blood flowing in her veins and the heat spreading across her face. She admitted to herself that it had felt good, but she sure as hell wasn’t going to tell him that. No sir! If she did that then he’d want and expect to do it again and that just couldn’t happen.
“What am I going to do?” she groaned, hugging herself, stopping her pacing in front of the window.
She caught sight of Drake below. Tight cut off shorts, no shoes, no shirt, and his hair flowing freely in the wind. He’s so dark, so dangerous.
The kind of male she always stayed away from, not because her father told her so, because she never felt safe around males like him. They took without care to others. Took what they wanted, never worrying about the consequences of their actions. Drake was like that in so many ways. She felt when he looked at her that there were hidden demons inside him.
Demons that threatened to come out in a moment’s notice.
His muscles bunched when he moved. Powerful, thick muscles that had her finger tips itching to touch. They didn’t look real, and yet she knew they were.
Seeing another man with him, Natasha got a moment of hope. Her first thought was that someone else here might be able to help her leave.
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When she spotted his smile at Drake, and Drake laughing back, that hope diminished. They were friends, and she was pretty damned sure a friend of Drake’s wasn’t going to help her leave.
Natasha jumped at a knock on the door. She swung around quickly, moving away from the window. The door opened and in came the woman she had seen last night when Drake carried her back into the house. She had a tray in her hands.
“Thought you might be hungry,” she said, taking the tray over to the nightstand. “And since you didn’t come down, I brought something up for you.”
Natasha looked at the tray of food. A large triple stacked sandwich, which had ham, turkey, and chicken, cheese, lettuce, and tomato. Bowl of fruit and a large glass of ice tea.
“I’m fixing lamb for supper, do you like that?” she asked.
Natasha went over to the bed. Her mouth watered at the smell of the food. She nodded her answer, picking the sandwich up.
“Well you just let me know what you like and dislike. It’s my job to cook around here.”
“I like your cooking,” Natasha looked up at her before taking a bite.
She moaned with pleasure. “At school the food was boring. No flavor to it. Can you teach me?”
“Sweetie I’ll teach you anything you want.” She smiled. “I’m Nelly by the way. The young man you see around here that’s all quiet is Tony.”
“Who’s the one outside with Drake?” Natasha ate and talked at the same time. It was rude, and she had better manners than that.
“That I’m not sure. Hey, how about you come down and finish your lunch in the kitchen. When you’re done, if you want I’ll teach you how to make these cookies I’m doing now. Spicy pumpkin bread cookies with an orange glace frosting you just drizzle over the top while they’re still warm.”
“I thought I couldn’t leave the room.”
Nelly snorted, “Don’t you worry any about him. Come on, you need to get out of here anyway so Tony can do his job.”
Nelly took the tray, and with part of her sandwich in hand, Natasha followed her out.
The kitchen smelled heavenly. Natasha sat down at the table; Nelly placed her food in front of her and went over to the stove, taking out a tray of fresh bread. Natasha watched her every move as she ate. Back home, she wasn’t allowed in the kitchen, she had to stay away because it wasn’t her place to be there. That was for the staff. Thinking about it 46
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now, she thought her father was grooming her for something big. A lady doesn’t go into a kitchen, doesn’t dirty her hands with cooking and cleaning. Speak only when spoken to crap. It meant something.
“You make it feel very comfortable in here,” Natasha said, getting Nelly’s attention.
“It’s a kitchen Sweetie. Everything starts in a kitchen in my eyes.”
“My father didn’t want me in the kitchen. I could always smell the things that were cooking and baking, but was never allowed to go in and see it. He told me it wasn’t my place.”
“Sounds like he had grand plans for you.”
The tears formed again. Natasha put her sandwich down and wiped her eye before it could slip free. “Yeah, I guess he did.”
“Well you have a chance at a new life.” Nelly smiled, but it didn’t reach her green eyes. “And no one will keep you out of the kitchen or any part of the house for that matter.”
“This is your new home.” Natasha turned to Drake’s voice. He stood at the back door. He wasn’t alone. The one she saw from the window stood behind him. He walked inside, went over to the sink, and started to wash his hands. “Any idea when the guys are coming back to finish the dining room, Nelly? Got people waiting to bring furniture and shit.”
“They said sometime today,” Nelly answered.
Drake shook off his hands, grabbed a towel, and turned back around.
Leaning back against the sink, he stared at Natasha as he dried his hands.
She swallowed hard at the intent look she saw in his eyes, which chilled her.
“This is James Laswell,” Drake said. “I’ve invited him to stay for a few days, but he’s refusing me.”
“I’m just fine where I’m at, thank you very much,” James said.
“Well we have plenty of room if you change your mind,” Nelly said.
“You are staying for dinner?”
“Only if that’s what I smell.”
Natasha felt his eyes on her. She kept her own fixed on her play, rolling a grape around. She couldn’t look at him. Every time she did, her mind went back to what he did to her in that room. The way he touched her.
“You’re blushing,” he whispered right in her ear, walking around behind her to the fridge. His warm breath sent another shiver down her spin.
Saying nothing, she pushed away from the table and left. Only when she had some distance away from Drake did she breath normally.
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Natasha didn’t understand what it was about him. He seemed to take up all the air in a room.
She went across to the other side of the house. A sitting room, backed to the living space and right up to a built in bookshelf. The shelves were lined with books. Taking several deep breathes she tried to focus on the volumes, to see what they were and pick one to read. After all, what else was she suppose to do?
“You do know that running away only makes things worse.”
Natasha turned. James Laswell stood in the middle of the doorway separating the living space from the large sitting room. “A male doesn’t go through all this trouble for the hell of it either.”
Natasha gave him her full attention, arms crossed over her chest.
“And what would you know about this?”
“I know he’s risked a lot for you.”
“No, he risked his skin for something he can’t have.”
One golden eyebrow went up. “Can’t have? Kind of harsh there.”
“How should I act when I’ve been kidnapped and threatened?”
“Threatened?” Drake came up behind James. With a nod, James turned and walked away, shaking his head. “I never threatened you, Natasha. Only stated a fact.”
“And I say you threatened me, to keep me here against my will.”
“If you want to run, feel free to try again. I’m not going to stop you from running, only catch you before you get away.”
She lost her cool. Natasha went up to him with the intent to slap him again, only it seemed Drake was ready for it this time. He caught her wrists and before her hand could make contact, he pinned it behind her back. He held her close, tight, chest to chest and took the steps needed to push her up against the wall.
“Should I add another to it?” His voice was low, deadly sounding, eyes darkening further. “Should I add that every time you hit me, I get to have my head between your legs also?”
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