by Sadie Carter
He was off limits. He wanted someone else. She had to keep reminding herself of that. She couldn’t let him know how much she wanted him.
“T-thanks,” she said, grabbing hold of the towel.
She squealed as he placed his hands around her waist and lifted her over the large puddle, placing her down by the doorway.
“Stay there. I don’t want you slipping over.”
Cassie watched in amazement as he set about cleaning up the water. “You don’t have to do that.”
She took a step towards him, and he looked over his shoulder at her with a growl. “Didn’t I tell you to stay there?”
“But Jay—”
“Why don’t you go grab a quick shower while I tidy this up?”
Warmth filled her. When was the last time someone had looked after her? She couldn’t remember. Damn, it felt nice though.
“You need to warm up and get changed.”
“Okay, if you’re sure?”
He just gave her a look.
“I won’t take long.”
“No rush,” he told her. “We’re early. We have plenty of time.”
Fifteen minutes later, she walked into the kitchen to find it completely cleaned up.
“All tidied up, but you’ll need a new faucet, this one is stuffed.”
“I’ll get onto the landlord. Thanks. I’m really sorry to cause such problems.”
He frowned slightly. “No problem. I’m glad I arrived when I did. You all warmed up?”
She stared at him, studying his gorgeous face, his strong body. Yes, yes, she certainly was warm. Very warm. She cleared her throat as she realized she’d gone too long without replying.
Get it together, Cassie.
“Yes. Thanks. I, umm, made a salad. I’ll just grab it from the fridge, and we can go.” She moved to the fridge and grabbed the bowl of salad.
He peered down at the salad. “That looks great.”
She blushed slightly. “It’s just a potato salad. I wasn’t sure what to bring.”
“You’re going to a barbeque filled with werewolves. We’re always hunger. We eat anything.”
“So I shouldn’t worry if it tastes like crap?” she teased.
“Nope, we’ll eat it no matter what,” he drawled.
He took the bowl from her and followed her out, waiting while she locked the door. She fumbled slightly, nervous at having him so close, but eventually, she managed to lock the door.
When he pulled his truck out from the curb, she peered over at him, trying to study him without seeming to. “Thanks for picking me up.”
“No problem, Laney said you don’t have a car.”
“I never learned to drive.” No one had ever offered to teach her.
“No? You want to learn?”
“What?”
“If you want to learn to drive, I could teach you.”
“Really? Thanks but I couldn’t take you up on that.” He was just being nice. The idea of being trapped in a small space with him…no, it wasn’t a good idea. She’d find it impossible to concentrate.
“Why not? I’d be happy to teach you.”
“I don’t have a car.”
He grinned. “I do.”
“I might crash it.”
“I’ve got insurance. Got any other excuses to throw at me?”
She frowned. “They’re not excuses.”
“If you don’t want to do it then all you have to do is say no.”
Cassie straightened her shoulders. “Thank you. I’d be grateful if you’d teach me to drive.”
He pulled over. “Great, we’ll have the first lesson now.”
“Wait. What?”
Oh crap.
Jay looked over at Cassie sitting beside him, her hands clenched so tightly on the steering wheel that her knuckles were white. His wolf stirred, growling at him for making her do something that obviously made her extremely nervous. He’d noticed his control on the wolf slipping when he was around Cassie. The wolf liked her.
And perhaps the man did as well.
He’d certainly been stirred by the sight of her earlier, her clothing plastered to her body, her tight nipples pressing against the wet, white shirt, her curves clearly displayed. The wolf stirred again. The beast wanted her. He didn’t care that she was human. Didn’t care that Jay had sworn to never get involved with another human female again.
“Jay? Have you changed your mind?”
He shook his head, trying to clear it. While he’d been sitting here, thinking, she’d been growing increasingly more nervous.
“No. Don’t be so scared.”
She bit her lip, drawing his attention to her mouth. All he had to do was lean a little bit closer…
“Jay? Are you okay?”
“What? Yeah, of course.” Shit, he needed to get himself under control. This was his sister’s friend. His sister’s human friend. She wasn’t for him. The wolf snarled at him, and he shoved it down, closing off communication between them.
“Your eyes went golden for a moment.” She gave him a worried glance.
“Sorry. The wolf is in a grumpy mood today,” he joked.
“Oh. Okay. The wolf? You talk like it’s separate from you.”
“It is. In a way.” He’d stopped listening to the wolf after Lia. “Enough procrastinating, we’re doing this.”
“All right. But if I crash your car, you can’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“You’re not going to crash, Cassie. We’ll take it nice and slow. It will be fine.”
Chapter Two
It wasn’t fine. It was terrifying!
“Brake! Brake! No, not the accelerator. Brake!” Jay stomped his foot down on an imaginary brake as his truck headed straight for a fence. Fuck!
At the last moment, Cassie slammed on the brakes. Jay slammed against his seatbelt, his breath whooshing out of him as his neck snapped back. He sat there for a moment, fighting for breath, his body trembling. But he recovered quickly. Turning, he looked over at Cassie.
“Cassie? You all right?” He undid his seatbelt.
She turned to him, her face pale, her breathing coming rapidly.
“T-t-think so.”
“Jesus. Stay still, I’m coming around to check on you.”
He raced around, pulling at the truck door. Reaching in, he turned the truck off and undid her seatbelt, pulling her out gently. Her scent surrounded him, and he had to take a moment to clear his head, to push the image of pressing her up against the truck and smashing his lips against hers from his mind.
What was wrong with him? This was not the time or place.
Or person.
“Can you stand? Are you hurt anywhere?”
“No. No, I’m fine.”
He ran his hands over her anyway, as she rested back against the truck, catching her breath. She didn’t appear to be injured, but he still didn’t like how pale she was.
“Here. Sit down. I’ll get some water.”
He made sure she was sitting before he rummaged around in the back for a bottle of water.
“Why are you being so nice?” she asked as she took the water. Her hands shook as she attempted to undo the cap and he grabbed it back, undoing it for her. “I nearly crashed your truck.”
“Nearly. And I don’t care about the damn truck. I’m worried about you. I think you’re in shock.”
“Yeah, shock from nearly crashing into a fence.” She drew her knees up to her chest and rested her forehead on her knees. “I’m such an idiot.”
He frowned. He didn’t like hearing her talk about herself that way.
“What kind of fool can’t tell an accelerator from the brake?”
“Stop being so hard on yourself. Everyone has hiccups when they’re learning to drive.”
“Yeah, well, no more hiccups for me. Obviously, I was not meant to drive.”
“Cassie. You’ll be fine. I don’t think you’re going to mix up your accelerator and brake again, right?”
She looked up
at him. “Nope, I’ll probably mix up the accelerator and clutch next time. I’m just going to wait until those driverless cars come out. It’s far safer. I’m a menace.”
He grinned. “Yep. Next, you’ll be doing burn outs and holding drag races. Cassie, it was one mistake.”
“I could have killed you,” she whispered.
“I’m a werewolf. We don’t die easily. That fence was no match for me.” He was far more worried about her safety. “On second thought, maybe you’re right. You shouldn’t drive.”
Now he was consumed by the idea of her crashing, of her hurting herself.
She sighed. “I knew you’d see it my way. The roads will be a much safer place without me on them.”
He was at war with himself. His protective instincts didn’t want her putting herself at risk, but he’d seen the flash of disappointment in her gaze. And he didn’t like her putting herself down.
“What we need is a wide-open area. And a helmet. A motorbike helmet. Maybe one of those cars that have a brake on the passenger’s side as well.”
Her mouth dropped open. “You’re not serious.”
Oh, he was.
“I can’t drive with a motorbike helmet on.”
Why not? Seemed like the perfect solution to him.
“You are serious.” She just laughed and shook her head.
“We need to go.” He held out a hand, helping her up. Her hand felt tiny in his. Small and fragile. He ran his thumb over the back of her hand, watching as her eyes flared with arousal. Her scent, sweet and clean, reached him. She wanted him.
This wasn’t the first time he’d scented her arousal, but he’d tried to be polite and ignore her reaction to him. However, the more time they spent together, the more difficult it was to ignore her reaction to him.
Oh, he was in so much trouble.
* * * * *
“What are you doing sitting over here alone?” Laney sat on the seat beside Cassie and took a sip of her beer.
Cassie smiled a little as she stared over at the werewolves currently charring meat on the grill. Jay and his brother Marcus were standing shoulder–to-shoulder in front of the grill while Cain, Dusty, and some other pack members stood around them drinking.
“Just thinking,” she answered. “How was Cooper?”
Laney sighed. “He was calling to say he won’t be home until tomorrow, he’s run into a few problems with some of the other council members.”
“You mean they’re not immediately jumping to do what he wants?” Cassie was only half-joking. The Shadowpeak Alpha exuded power and authority. Cassie wouldn’t want to get on his bad side.
Laney snorted. “I know. It’ll do him good. Knock down his ego a peg or two. But unfortunately for me, it means I get some housemates again tonight.”
“The enforcers still haven’t found out who sent you that hate mail and slashed your tires?” Cassie asked.
Laney shook her head. “Reed’s certain HAW is to blame, though.”
“Oh no, really?” Humans Against Werewolves was a vocal, sometimes violent group who believed werewolves shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near humans. Many of the extremists longed to annihilate every werewolf on the planet. Cassie felt sick at the thought of them targeting Laney.
Laney continued, “I can understand them sending the hate mail, but the slashed tires and the rattlesnake—”
“Whoa, hold on,” Cassie interrupted her. “Rattlesnake? What rattlesnake?”
“Oh,” Laney replied, looking a little sick. “Didn’t I tell you about that?
“You most certainly did not.”
Laney sighed. “A couple of weeks ago, I was getting into my car when I heard this noise. I peered beneath the driver’s seat and, well, I was lucky the snake was under the seat and couldn’t strike out.”
“Laney.”
“I know, I know. I thought Cooper was going to lock me in the house until he’d found whoever was doing this. After what happened with Justin, these latest incidents have put him into overprotective mode.” She shook her head, but her voice was full of obvious love for her mate. Cassie knew Laney still struggled over the fact that a few months ago her half-brother, whom she’d had no idea even existed, had tried to kill her.
“And Reed thinks HAW is behind everything? They don’t have a group here, do they?” Cassie was alarmed. Laney could have been seriously hurt, or worse, by a cornered rattlesnake. This was a big step up from hate mail.
Laney shrugged. “Cooper has been working hard to build up good relations with the residents in town, and it’s happening, slowly. He believes integration is the only way forward for the pack. Most people tolerate us, some even like us, but not everyone. There are always going to be those who detest or fear us.” She spoke matter-of-factly.
“Is that why you decided to open the bookstore? To help foster ties between the pack and the residents of Landon?”
Laney snorted and shook her head. “Cooper was totally against the store when I first brought the idea up. Oh, he’s all for the pack owning more businesses. But he was not impressed by the idea of me working in town. If Cooper had his way, I’d never leave the house. I had to fight hard and long to get him to agree, and then I had to compromise by promising to always have two enforcers with me. Until they find who’s behind these threats, that is. I’m hoping he’ll ease up after that.”
“Can’t blame him. Seems like someone’s always trying to kill you. They don’t know something I don’t, do they? You’re not a tiny tyrant, are you?”
Cassie grinned as Laney gave her the finger.
“I am not a tyrant. As far as we know, there’s no HAW group here in town, but they wouldn’t necessarily live around here. Reed’s got some of the pack keeping an eye out for strangers, anyone who looks suspicious or anyone known to be associated with HAW.”
“Sounds a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack.”
“Yeah, so, for the foreseeable future, I’m stuck with my guards. Cooper thinks that it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
“He really loves you.” A pang of envy hit her as she gazed over at Jay, who was chatting with Dusty as he flipped meat on the grill.
“You know she’s just teasing you, don’t you? About your name.”
“My name, my clothes, my hair, my job… Yep, she’s having real fun with me. Can’t you find her another job, get another bodyguard?” Cassie complained. “I mean, she obviously dislikes me. Why make her spend time with me?”
“Actually, Dusty keeps volunteering. I think she likes you.”
“Get real, Laney. She’s bored, and picking on me gives her something to do.”
Laney shook her head. “I'm serious, she likes you. If she didn’t, she’d either ignore you or be outright nasty. This is just her having fun.”
“Having fun? It’s as though she’s a cat playing with her favorite toy, and her claws aren’t sheathed.”
Laney winced. “Not a good analogy. Wolves don’t like being called cats.”
“I still feel like she’s eyeing me up as a tasty snack.”
“So, bite back.”
“That’s what she’s after.” Besides, Cassie had spent so long teaching herself not to bite back she wasn’t sure she’d know how.
“Maybe. I still think you should do it. You’ll feel better, and I think she’ll back off a bit.”
Cassie sighed, watching Jay laugh and give Dusty a high five.
“Do werewolves ever take humans as mates?”
Laney was quiet for a long moment. “Ahh, yes they do.”
“Are there any living here on the estate?”
“No, Zachary banned all humans from Shadowpeak. But Cooper’s lifted that ban now.”
“Oh.”
“She’s no good for him, you know. Plus, she’s not interested,” Laney murmured.
“Hmm?”
“Dusty. Even if she were attracted to Jay, she’s not right for him.”
Cassie gazed at the others joking and laughing behind her. Th
ey all belonged together. A unit. She was the outsider.
“He thinks she is.”
Laney snorted. “Does he? He’s an idiot. He’s convinced himself that he needs a werewolf as a mate and he’s blinded himself to everyone else around him.”
Cassie forced herself to smile through her pain. “She’s gorgeous.”
“Yes, she is,” Laney agreed. “She’s also argumentative, bitchy, provocative, and scrappy. She requires someone a lot calmer and a lot more stubborn than Jay is. Hell, I don’t think one man would even be enough to catch Dusty.”
Cassie frowned. “Jay seems pretty calm to me.”
“Most of the time he is. But still, he and Dusty would be fighting within a week—no doubt about it. Jay would try to smother her, pamper her. Dusty would end up trying to kick his ass, and I’m not sure who would come out on top. Jay needs someone he can take care of, he always has. He’s a good listener. You can open up with him, trust him.”
Cassie frowned over at her friend suspiciously. “Are you suggesting what I think you’re suggesting?”
“Come on, who are you trying to fool, Cass? You’re into him. Hell, you can barely speak when he comes near you, you’re so tongue-tied. And the way you look at him… well, it’s as if he’s a stallion and you’re in—”
“Laney,” Cassie whispered, blushing. She dropped her forehead onto her upturned palm. “Oh God, does everyone know?”
“Well, it’s kind of hard to miss,” Laney remarked, throwing a log on the fire.
Shame held Cassie frozen until her lungs screamed for air. She forced herself to take a shuddering breath, then another. For a few endless moments, she sat there and absorbed the humiliation of knowing she’d put her desire on display for the whole pack to see. She should have realized. She knew they could hear and smell things humans couldn’t. But she’d never thought about them sensing her arousal. Blinking back tears, she finally found the courage to speak.