by Sadie Carter
It didn’t matter what crazy hairdo Ella gave herself—and, at the moment, her hair was a lavender-gray color styled into a Marilyn Monroe hairdo—she always looked fantastic. With those cheekbones, her startling emerald eyes, sleek body, and innate grace, she could have worn sackcloth and shaved off all her hair, and she still would have been beautiful.
And Cassie sooo wasn’t ready to look.
Slowly, she opened her eyes, awed when she saw the woman sitting before her. The change wasn’t a transformation from boring to beauty. Ella wasn’t a magician. But what she had done was as close to a miracle as Cassie was ever going to get.
Eyebrows arched and finely plucked framed her eyes, making them appear larger and more dramatic. Her lashes had gone from lackluster and short to long and decadent. Some lightly applied makeup had brightened her eyes and made her lips appear plump and darker.
But her hair was the true delight. The cut was short. She’d always hidden behind long hair and baggy clothes. Now her hair was just a few inches long, her bangs choppy. Blonde highlights glistened in the light.
“I love it.”
“Of course, I am a genius after all.”
Cassie smiled. There was nothing modest about Ella. “You definitely are.”
“Ready to party?”
Cassie took a deep breath and stood. “You bet.”
* * * * *
Someone was watching her, and it wasn’t just the guys at the table in the corner—although they were doing plenty of gawking. Cassie figured they were mainly staring at Ella, who was dressed to catch attention with a formfitting little blue dress and four-inch heels. Cassie had chosen to wear tight jeans, high boots and a small top that fit tightly over her breasts then fell loosely about her stomach.
Just standing next to Ella meant she was getting plenty of looks. After years of keeping herself hidden away, it felt odd and a little frightening to put herself on display like this. But she was going to embrace her new life.
“Go big or go home,” she told herself.
“Huh?” Ella asked.
“Sorry, talking to myself.”
“It’s a sign of being horny, you know.”
“Ahh, isn’t it a sign of being insane?”
Ella shrugged. “Being horny can sure make you crazy, so I figure it’s all the same.”
Maybe she was going a little crazy. It might explain why she’d had this feeling off and on all week that someone was watching her, following her. Sighing, she peered around but couldn’t see anyone looking her way. Shrugging, she decided she was being silly.
Who’d watch her? All she did was work, eat and sleep.
“Come on, Cass, let’s dance.” Cassie barely managed to set her glass down before Ella had her on the dance floor. Determined not to worry about her two left feet or what people thought of her, she forced herself to relax and sway to the music. No one knew her. She could be whoever she made herself into.
She had a new home and new friends, as well as a new job waitressing at Fat Eddy’s. This was a new life, and she was determined to enjoy it.
Someone bumped into her from behind, causing her to jump. She attempted to relax as she recognized one of the guys from the corner table. They were cute in a rough sort of way, the four of them gathering around her and Ella, dancing to the beat of the music.
Cassie tried to lose herself in the moment, but with the men surrounding her, she felt hemmed in, suffocated. Each time the man behind her touched her, her skin crawled. She didn’t like having strangers touching her, wasn’t used to such attention from the opposite sex. She soon found herself overwhelmed.
“I think I’ll go sit down,” she yelled over at Ella, trying to move away. But the guy who’d first approached her grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back against his chest.
He watched her dance. She’d changed her hair. Thankfully she’d chosen a less radical style than her companion. She’d also ditched the baggy clothes for something more fitting and flattering.
He’d been watching her for days. He shouldn’t have spoken to her on her first day here. That had been foolish, had put her on edge. But he’d been eager to meet her. He’d longed to introduce himself, to tell her everything. But he couldn’t, not yet, not until he was sure she could handle his secrets. Their secrets.
Drawing the shadows around him, he made certain he was well hidden as he felt the werewolf enter. This one was banked fire and simmering possessive ire—and all that emotion was focused on her.
But there was no violence aimed her way. Not that he would let the wolf hurt her anyway. He hadn’t spent weeks tracking her down to let anything happen to her now. He’d watch, he’d wait, and if she needed his protection, then he’d make himself known.
Fury overtook him—a thin, red curtain of rage filming across his eyes. He’d never felt so volatile. The only thing stopping his rage from erupting was the fact that she was attempting to get away from the other man’s touch, trying to avoid him.
His leash on the wolf was wearing away, and the beast had no doubts about what they should do.
Take her. Claim her. She was theirs.
Mate, the wolf growled, our mate.
She was sweet, sinful temptation. He could understand why the men flocked to her. The short hairdo gave her a pixie-like look. With her hair off her face, everyone had a clear view of her smooth, lightly tanned skin. Without the baggy, ill-fitting clothes they could stare at and lust after the lush, full curves of his woman.
Growling softly, he strode onto the dance floor, prepared to take back what was his.
She never heard him, didn’t even feel him until the man behind her let out a loud grunt and was suddenly replaced by an entirely different, hard, swaying body. When he dragged her up against him, his hips moving in time to the beat, his strong body sheltering hers, she didn’t protest. She couldn’t. The feel of him stole her breath, chasing away every thought, replacing them with throbbing, liquid desire.
Cassie swayed against him as the scent of amberwood surrounded her. Closing her eyes, she felt his right arm rise, clasping her beneath her breasts, the sensitive undersides brushing against his muscular forearm. His free hand covered the front of her mound. She had to bite her lip to hold in a whimper as her clit throbbed in reaction.
Firm lips brushed her neck, and her head rolled to the side of its own accord, allowing him more access. Her body was no longer her own as he surrounded her in his erotic, sensual power.
Fire.
Tingling awareness.
Pain.
She gasped as he bit down on her neck, the very spot he’d been licking. Not even her breath was hers as she tried to protest, to cry out—he’d stolen it all. A quiet whimper was all she managed as her knees weakened. The only thing now holding her upright was his arm—an unmovable, unbreakable bond.
The throbbing from his bite eased, and sweet bliss melted through her bones. She fought to find herself once again, for control over her body. Pushing at his arms, she attempted to turn.
But he wouldn’t let her go.
Glancing back into his face, she saw he wasn’t paying her any attention. Instead, he was glaring at every other man in the bar, daring them to challenge him.
Like a man possessed.
Or a man in possession.
The sliver of sanity she still retained urged her to protest. But the feminine, aching part simply craved him. Now. He was here, and by the feel of the hard cock nestled against her lower back, he wanted her. Why shouldn’t she take what she wanted? Use him to ease the throbbing ache?
Eyes slumberous, she gazed at the other dancers, seeing them creep back steadily, intimidated by the sheer power and menace of the man behind her.
Then she saw no one else as he picked her up and carried her from the dance floor. She dug her face into his chest, her arms resting on his shoulders.
“I told you not to run from me. You can’t run from me, Cassie. I will always find you.”
She shivered at the so
ft growl. If anyone else had said those words, they’d sound stalker-ish. But on Jay, they were a promise. A warning.
Suddenly he came to a stop, stiffening. She stirred. Some of the arousal cleared, allowing her to think.
What the hell was she doing?
“Let me talk to her,” Ella demanded.
“Get out of my way.” Anyone else would have scrambled away from that quiet menace. Not Ella.
“No. That’s my friend you’re holding there. I don’t know you, but you look like you’re one scary motherfucker. I have to talk to her.”
“Does it look like I’m hurting her? Stealing her away against her will?”
“Jay, Ella’s my friend,” she protested, trying to wriggle free. “Ella, this is Jay. Laney’s brother.”
“Jay, let me down. Now.”
He let her slide down, but his gaze remained on Ella. “It’s admirable of you to try to protect her, but I am not going to hurt her.”
“Maybe not physically,” Ella remarked. “There are other forms of hurt.”
“I can assure you, I feel every bit of her hurt and I’m going to make damn sure that I never hurt her again.”
Cassie reached her hand out and touched Ella. “I need to talk to him. I’ll be okay.”
“She better be.” Ella glared at him.
Cassie looked over at Jay. She didn’t know what it was about him that made her lose her mind, but at least the conversation with Ella had cleared her head.
“Can we talk?” he asked.
“Fine.” She turned then walked outside. Maybe the cool air would help calm her libido. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here for you.”
He was? “Why?”
“You left me. You didn’t even tell me you were going.” There was anger in his voice. As well as hurt.
“I didn’t realize I had to.”
He sighed, running his hand through his hair. The light out here wasn’t very good so she couldn’t see his face well. “I know I hurt you. I left you when you needed me. I didn’t want to leave.”
“Then why did you?”
“Because Cooper ordered me to.”
“And if you’d said you couldn’t go? Would he have made you? If you’d told him you cared about me and that you needed to stay with me, would he have forced you to leave?”
“I don’t know. I guess not.” He frowned, obviously thinking. “You’re right. If I’d told him I wanted to stay with you, he wouldn’t have made me go. I’m used to following orders, to putting the pack first. Our old Alpha wasn’t someone to cross.”
He sighed. “I’m a werewolf. I’m part of a pack. There are times where I have to follow orders. When I have no choice.”
She frowned. She didn’t quite get it.
“Werewolves can be a volatile lot. We need order, a leader to keep us controlled, a pack to keep us centered. Without that, we’d all turn feral.”
“So are you saying pack always comes first? Then why did you follow me? I’m not pack. I’m not anything.”
Jesus, he was an idiot. He’d made so many mistakes. She was right. He could have told Cooper that she meant something to him. Cooper was a fair leader. The only reason he’d ordered Jay to go with Dusty was because he thought Jay cared about her. He realized he needed to explain some things about his past.
“Years ago, I met this human girl. I thought I loved her. That she loved me. Then she betrayed me. She came between the pack and me. I snuck around, kept our relationship a secret for her. After her betrayal, I told myself the pack would always come first. That I would steer clear of human females. Until I met you. I like control, and it confounded me that I couldn’t take charge of my feelings towards you.”
Jay stepped forward, cupping her face between his hands.
“Like I told you the other night, I want you, Cassie. I’m so sorry I hurt you. I tried to call. I hated not knowing if you were well. It nearly killed me. Why did you leave Landon, Cassie? Why did you leave the safety of the pack’s protection to come here?”
“I was never in danger.”
“You don’t know that.” He had to pause and rein in the fear-fueled anger racing through him. The thought of her injured and alone… She was safe now, though, and he was going to see she stayed that way. “You could have been the target,” he chided, even knowing it was highly unlikely.
She snorted. “As if. Who’d want to hurt me? I’m nobody. No one would be interested in me.”
Anger returned in a heady rush. “You are not nobody,” he growled.
“Hmm, maybe not. Those guys in the bar certainly seemed to notice me.”
Jay closed his eyes as he trembled with enraged possessiveness. The memory of her jean-covered hips swaying sensuously to the music, the way her top highlighted those full breasts, fueled his jealousy. Every man in the bar had watched her, lusted after her. Had desired his mate.
“Did you go to that bar looking for a man, Cassie?”
“I’m allowed to have fun, to go dancing, to see other men. It was sex, not a lifelong commitme— Oh!” She let out a noise halfway between a moan and a yelp as he drew her towards him and kissed her.
“You think it was just sex? It wasn’t just sex. What we had was more than a fuck. Did you go to that bar looking for a man, Cassie?” he repeated, trying to keep his voice calm. He could tell he’d failed as she stiffened, her eyes widening. His eyesight was just as good in the dark as the daylight.
“Answer me,” he demanded. “Were you there searching for another man? Did you hope to find someone to satisfy the ache, Cassie? To nibble on your pretty nipples, to fuck you?”
“No!”
He whispered a warning in her ear, “You won’t be swinging these hips or rubbing your luscious breasts against any man but me. Understood?”
“I can dance with whoever I like,” she panted. “And why wouldn’t I? We’re not in a relationship, Jay.”
He smacked her ass. “That wasn’t just dancing. That was a mating call, and those bastards in the bar couldn’t wait to answer it.
“You’re the one for me, Cassie. You. I’m here because I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I didn’t choose her over you. I’m sorry for the pain I caused. I’m sorry for being an idiot. I should have told Cooper how I felt about you. I should have been there to take care of you. But I can’t change what has happened. I can only make it up to you. I came here for you. If you’ll have me.”
Cassie bit her lip. Everything was rolling around in her head, making her nauseous. Could she trust him?
“Dusty’s prettier—”
“Hush.” He placed his fingers over her mouth, frowning down at her sternly. “Do not put yourself down in front of me, I won’t have it. I’m not interested in hearing that you’re not pretty or smart or any of that shit. Got it? I hear anything self-derogatory coming from your mouth, and your butt will feel the palm of my hand.”
Jesus. That totally caveman statement did not turn her on. It did not.
Cassie rubbed her forehead, trying to think. It was all a bit much, overloading her brain.
“Cassie?”
“I’m not sure we could work, Jay. Maybe you do need a werewolf. Someone who understands pack dynamics, pack loyalty. I think…I think I’d be the odd one out. I wouldn’t fit in.”
“It will take some time for everyone to adjust. But we can make this work, Cassie. And I’m going to stay here until you believe that. This time I’m not going anywhere. We’re meant to be together. I know I can make you happy if you’ll let me.”
She stared at him silently for a moment then shook her head. “I don’t know. This is all so much to take in. I have to think.” This was all happening so fast.
“Cassie—”
She shook her head again. “I need to go home, I have to be alone. This night has done a complete three-sixty on me, and I need some space to breathe.” When she was around him, everything seemed more intense. As though she’d been sleeping, now she saw everything in color,
it was brighter, sharper. She felt more, she hurt more.
“Cassie—”
“No. Look, when you’re so close I can’t think. Give me a chance to think. Please, for now, anyway.”
Chapter Six
“She’ll be out in a minute.”
Jay’s gaze was drawn to the tall woman moving toward him. He was glad Cassie hadn’t gone for a strange haircut and color like hers. He almost shuddered at the thought.
He peered around Ella, hoping to see Cassie walk into the dining area of Fat Eddy’s. The wolf prowled, making his displeasure known. He was starting to listen to the wolf more. When it came to Cassie, his wolf was determined to make his opinion known anyway. Their bond wasn’t completely repaired, but it was stronger. The more powerful it grew, the more possessive Jay felt toward Cassie. He could barely stand to be away from her, found himself thinking about her constantly. Wanting to reassure himself that she was okay.
Neither the wolf nor the man could believe his sister had waitressed in this dump. They definitely didn’t like the fact that their woman was working here, and as soon as he convinced her to trust in him and give their relationship a chance, he intended to whisk her out of this town.
The place stank of stale cigarettes and carpets damp with alcohol—and that was just the building. The residents were worse—rough, loud, and odorous. He wanted his woman far, far away from them.
But he knew he couldn’t storm off with her. It was taking all his patience not to grab her, steal her home, claim her. In order to build up her trust in him, he had to go slowly, ease her into the idea that she was his mate. The last thing he wanted was to overwhelm her, scare her off.
What he needed was to get her to open up to him, to talk to him about her feelings, her concerns.
“Listen, I was prepared to dislike you, on principle. But, well, you don’t seem that bad, I suppose.”
“Thank you,” he said dryly.
She scowled at him. “Laney vouches for you, and I have to give you props for sticking around. I thought you’d have left after a day or two, but a week later, you’re still here trying to win her over. For what it’s worth, I think it’s working. She gets this look on her face when she talks about you, it’s kind of sickening. Just remember, though, you do anything to hurt her, and I’ll kick your ass.”