The last words skittered like cold water down his spine. “Stephanie?”
“I didn’t have anyone else to call.”
Her entreat, her unspoken plea forced Nolan to his feet. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’m on my way. It’ll take me ten minutes. Can you hold on for ten minutes?”
“Yes.” He heard her strength in that one word and hoped she was right.
She screamed.
“Stephanie, what is it? What’s wrong?”
“The lights went out. The storm—” Thunder punctuated her shaky words and Nolan realized it was raining. Not just raining, but storming. He looked out the window. Lightning flashed, a bright stab of light against the night sky.
“I hate the dark,” she whispered.
“I’m on my way.”
“Nolan, thank you. I feel so stu—”
Several clicks followed by the dial tone made the hairs on the back of Nolan’s neck rise.
The storm knocked out the lines, he told himself as he put on his shoes and grabbed his keys and wallet. Cell service was spotty, and he couldn’t get through to Josiah Cave, a pack enforcer on Stephanie’s detail tonight. If her husband had shown up, why hadn’t Cave noticed him? Why hadn’t he protected her? Was her ex’s appearance just her imagination playing tricks? It didn’t matter. Stephanie needed him.
Neither the rain nor his self-reassurances stopped him from speeding down the expressway. The Mustang’s tires squealed as he exited, barely yielding for the stop sign. He fishtailed then straightened the car with a swift twist of the steering wheel. Within minutes, he was pulling up to Randall Draper’s house.
Cave’s car was parked across the street. Nolan would deal with his enforcer in a minute. He needed to check on Stephanie. The rain pounded him unmercifully as he jogged up the winding sidewalk to the front door.
The house, totally dark, stood like one of the mansions in a horror movie. Rain hit the sidewalk, sounding like a thousand pebbles rattling against stone. Thunder rumbled and lightning cracked the sky, a backdrop that reinforced Nolan’s initial impression of the house. He rang the doorbell and pounded on the solid wood of the door. “Stephanie!”
No one answered. Nolan tried the doorknob, but soon realized the door had been locked tight. “Damn it.”
He knocked again, ringing the doorbell at the same time. Why would she call him and not answer the door? With a sick tightening of his gut, he answered his own question. She’d been hurt or worse—by someone. And he hadn’t been here to protect her.
He jogged across the street to Cave’s car and looked inside. Cave’s head lolled to one side, the big man’s mouth open. Nolan banged on the window and called the enforcer’s name.
Goddamn it. Cave was also a cop, but like Nolan, he was a werewolf first. Protecting the pack and its members were the number-one priority of the enforcers. What was wrong with him?
Cave jerked upright, rubbed his face, and peered outside.
Cave lowered the window. “Shit. What’s wrong?”
“Stephanie called me and said she saw someone outside. What the hell are you doing sleeping?”
“Sorry, man. I pulled a double at the station.” He shook his head, ashamed. “That’s a sorry-assed excuse.”
“No shit. C’mon. She’s not answering the door,” said Nolan.
Cave eased his bulk from the car.
Motioning his enforcer to cover the backside of the mansion, Nolan pulled his 9mm and went to the door. “Stephanie?” he shouted. “Open up, sweetheart. I’m here.”
He heard a scream, then a crash. He stilled, the rain cold against his neck as he clicked off the 9mm’s safety and checked the chamber to make sure it housed a bullet. He’d loaded them with silver just in case. Silver hurt nearly ever kind of shifter, and he wasn’t taking any chances. Just as he raised his foot to kick at the door, it opened, and Stephanie’s pale face appeared.
“Nolan?”
Nolan’s thoughts disappeared under the onslaught of fear and relief shuddering through him. He gathered Stephanie’s into his arms, careful to hold the gun away from her, and buried his face into her hair. The citrus smell of her shampoo invaded his nostrils, and he inhaled deeply, trying to absorb the trembling of Stephanie’s body.
“Hey, is everything okay?” Cave’s deep voice startled them both, and they jumped apart. Nolan gently pushed Stephanie into the house as Cave stepped onto the porch and followed them inside. As they entered, the lights flickered on.
“Cool digs,” Cave said.
“Thank you,” Stephanie answered and peered at him. “Who are you?”
Cave’s gaze flicked to Nolan.
Nolan unloaded the gun, putting the chamber’s bullet back into the clip. He reinserted the clip, clicked on the safety, and put the gun into the waistband of his jeans. “This is Josiah Cave. He’s a pack enforcer—and a police offer.”
Nolan watched as Stephanie assessed the big man. Cave loved to pump iron and was four inches taller than Nolan. Cave was oversized even by werewolf standards. He saw the tremors in her fingers as she reached out and shook his hand. Brave Stephanie, he thought, knowing Cave’s size probably terrified her.
“Nice to meet you, ma’am.”
Nolan saw the interested look Cave gave Stephanie. Jealousy arrowed hotly into his gut. He walked his friend to the door, clapped a hand on Cave’s shoulder, and said, “Don’t even think about it.”
Cave stared at Nolan and grinned. “I get it. Hands off. Nice looker, though.”
“Yeah. Stay the hell away from her.”
“Okay, okay.” Cave stepped into the rain and turned. “I was probably only out for a few minutes,” he said apologetically.
“She’s all right. That’s what matters. But if you ever do it again, I’ll gut you.”
Cave nodded. “Yeah, man.”
Nolan watched Cave disappear into the rain, and then he shut the door, locking it behind him. When he turned, he saw Stephanie watching him.
“What was that all about?”
“Nothing.” He strode into the living room, grimacing when she took a step backwards. She shivered and wrapped her pale arms around her waist. “I heard you scream before the door opened.”
Her shaky laugh nearly undid him. She was being brave again, and he wanted to kiss her. “I knocked over a lamp. I couldn’t see anything, and when I bumped into it...I was being silly.”
“You were frightened. Tell me what you saw in the window.”
“I saw a face. Garrett’s.” She took a shuddering breath and hugged herself.
Nolan kept his distance, knowing that he shouldn’t have put his hands on her to begin with—but he couldn’t stop himself, and thankfully, she hadn’t protested. What the hell had he been thinking taking her in his arms … comforting her like that?
“At least. I thought so. But when I looked again, he was gone. I can’t be sure now if it was real.” He watched her lick her lips, her eyes wide when she looked at him.
Awareness buzzed along his nerves.
Emotions swirled in her green eyes—and he recognized the desire that twirled with her caution. A pink tongue flicked her bottom lip, and he swallowed back a groan. The urge to kiss her senseless riveted his feet to the floor. If he got within an arm’s length of her, that’s just what he’d do.
“You ready to go to bed?” he asked.
“What?”
“I didn’t mean for—what I meant was—are you ready to go to sleep?”
“Sleep?” The tongue appeared again, this time caressing the upper lip. The action wouldn’t be nearly so erotic if she had known what she was doing. Her nervous reactions were causing some decidedly ungentlemanly thoughts in his head.
Then she did something extraordinary. She put a cool hand against his cheek, her palm caressing the stubble. Her hands memorized his face: a finger stroking his brow, a palm on his cheek, a thumb tracing his lower lip. His control nearly snapped under her hesitant touches, but he knew this moment was brittle. He wanted he
r to trust him, so he kept still.
When her hands explored his neck, fingers dipping under his T-shirt, he groaned. The soft skin of her hands against his collarbone felt like silk. “Stephanie?”
Moments stretched into forever as she gazed at him, her head tilted. He saw the freckles sprinkled across her nose like cinnamon and wanted to kiss her there. Frustration—sexual and emotional—ravaged him. He wanted to take away the memories that haunted her. He wanted to make her happy.
He didn’t know what she’d seen in his gaze, but it made her step back, putting distance between them. She was retreating again.
Damn it! Nolan raked a hand through his hair. “How about a pillow and a blanket?”
She blinked at him.
“There’s no way in hell I’m leaving. So, I’ll take the couch.”
“Nolan, this house has ten bedrooms. You can have your pick.”
Nolan laughed. “Okay, then.” He smiled. “A room close to you would be great. In case you need me.”
“Thank you.” He could sense her apprehension; smell the rusty tang of her fear. But in that mix was her desire, too.
She led him to the staircase and helped him get settled in the bedroom next to hers. She left, and he heard the sound of her door closing. He left his own door open, so he could hear if anyone decided to sneak down the hall.
Or a certain beautiful woman decided she wanted him.
He fell onto the bed and put his arms behind his head. Staring at the ceiling, he thought about Stephanie. Her scent was still on him, and she smelled like sage and earth. He could feel the light touch of her fingers across his collarbone, and his cock hardened.
It was gonna be a long night.
3
THE LOUD CHIME of the doorbell startled Stephanie so badly she dropped her e-reader onto the floor. She’d gotten comfortable on the couch, feeling a little better in the big room with its huge windows and abundance of sunshine. Nolan had been in her thoughts from the moment she’d woken up. She was utterly attracted to him—on a primal level that scared her.
“Shit.” She picked up the e-reader and placed it on the coffee table. When she got to the door, she peered through the peephole. Her heart did a double flip. She unlocked the top two deadbolts and unchained the door, easing it open.
“Morning,” said Nolan, grinning.
“Good morning.” She stared at him. Like most werewolves, he was too goddamned handsome. He carried confidence as easily as he did the gun holstered on his hip. “I thought you were still asleep.”
“I was out hunting and gathering. There are two enforcers outside.” His gaze was earnest. “I wouldn’t leave you unprotected. Now. Do I need to cite you for obstruction?”
Her eyebrows rose. “What am I obstructing?”
“Me.” Nolan’s grin widened, and she noticed a small dimple in the left corner of his mouth. Oh, man. He had dimples. “I have coffee,” he said, drawing her attention to a white paper sack in his hand. “And donuts.”
Her stomach growled. “What kind of donuts?”
“Chocolate.”
“If there’s one with nuts and coconut flakes, you’re in.”
“Would you settle for candy sprinkles?”
Stephanie opened the door and allowed Nolan entrance. Her breath hitched when he passed her. The earthy scent of his masculinity wrapped around her, but it was the broadness of his shoulders and the muscles rippling under his shirt that made her feel like she’d fallen into lava.
She shut the door and walked past him. She ignored the trembling in her knees as her arm brushed his. The betraying ache of desire danced with that ever-present fear as she led him through the living room into the large kitchen. Her attraction to Nolan terrified her more than his size and strength.
God. She shouldn’t even think about jumping into a relationship—or even a bed—with Nolan until she’d gotten truly free of Garrett.
Stephanie sat on a bar stool next to the cook’s island. Fortunately, the other stool was on the opposite side. Nolan’s presence still disturbed her, but at least she could breathe easier with sixteen feet of granite between them. She watched as he removed two foam cups from the sack and a small box. Her mouth salivated at the plump, fragrant donuts inside. “I didn’t eat breakfast.”
She saw him glance around the chrome-and-white kitchen. “I imagine it’s because you gave up finding anything to eat. Do they give maps out at the door?”
“It is rather big, isn’t it?”
“You grow up in this house?”
Stephanie accepted the gooey chocolate donut and the hot cup of coffee. “Yes. And I grew up rich if that’s what you’re really asking. Rich, spoiled brat—that’s me.”
“Not anymore, I bet.”
She looked at him and saw the emotion gathering in his dark eyes. Sympathy. Understanding. Desire. She dropped her gaze and bit into the donut. The chocolate melted on her tongue but the taste lacked pleasure. She glanced at Nolan just in time to see his tongue gather a crumb off his bottom lip. Pure electricity zapped her stomach. Aw, damn.
“I have a confession.” He finished his donut casually and sipped his coffee. “I thought if I filled you up with coffee and donuts, you’d want to work off the calories.”
He glanced at her, apparently saw her shocked expression, and hurriedly swallowed the chunk of donut he’d crammed into his mouth. “Ice skating. There’s a rink close to here. It’ll be fun.”
Stephanie hid her discomfort by picking out another chocolate donut. “Oh. I—I don’t think that...I don’t skate. Ice skate or whatever.”
“If you don’t want to go ice skating, that’s fine. I just…I don’t want you to feel like you have to stay in this house. If you want to go have some fun, I’ll take you. I want you to feel safe.”
“Thank you. But…I can’t.”
“Okay.”
“Okay?”
“Yep.”
Stephanie looked into his eyes and realized that he understood her on a deeper level, as though he’d had experience dealing with fragile women. But the tilt of his smile and the dark flare in his eyes warned her of his attraction. She shook her head as if that slight action could fend off their sexual sparks.
“Nolan, I—”
The screech of tires accompanied a crash of glass. Shock coursed through her and she stiffened, watching Nolan draw his gun. She ran after him into the living room. The huge glass window was shattered, and the sheer white curtains billowed in the aftermath of the damage.
He sheathed his gun. He crunched across the carpet and crouched down. “What the fuck?”
Stephanie tread as carefully as she could, ignoring the stinging cuts inflicted on the bottoms of her feet. Bile rose in her throat as she looked at the object on the floor.
“Oh, God.” She clamped a hand over her mouth as a wave of nausea rose in her throat. It was a Totem, no doubt carved by Garrett. Totems were part of the Wendigo belief system, one of the traditions that somehow became entrenched in a few Native American cultures. This particular Totem was often called a “shame pole.” About six inches tall and three inches wide, the intricately carved being was the epitome of suffering. The creature’s grotesque face was out of proportion—its eyes gouged out and its tongue removed. The Totem was covered in viscous, blackened blood.
“I’m gonna get this thing outta here.” Nolan sniffed and she saw his wolf react to the foul scent. “Death.”
Stephanie hugged herself. “It’s a shame Totem. A message from Garrett.”
Nolan glanced up sharply at her. “He’s here?”
“He is, or maybe he sent one of his brothers. It doesn’t matter. Eventually, he’ll come for me.”
“He won’t get you, Stephanie.”
Oh, but he would. No doubt he’d spent every hour plotting revenge as he recovered from her attack. She’d learned the folly of trying to sneak away in the middle of the night. That’s why she poisoned the bastard before running away the second time.
She shoul
d’ve just taken a silver blade and stabbed him in the heart.
Her knees wanted to buckle, and she began to sway.
“Hey, now.” Nolan rose swiftly and gathered her close. Stephanie didn’t protest. For an endless moment, she let herself be needy, allowing his strength to seep into her, taking the security he offered. Eventually, she pulled back, feeling awkward about how easily she fit into his embrace.
“We need to call the alpha,” said Nolan. He looked down at the object. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”
“It’s Wendigo,” said Stephanie. “I’ve only seen one other shame Totem. And the person who received it is dead.”
“Wait. Wendigo?” Nolan frowned. “Those shifters went extinct. Why would—” He stared at her. “Are you saying your husband is a Wendigo?”
Stephanie nodded.
Nolan sucked in a shocked breath. “Well, shit.”
STEPHANIE SAT ON the couch, her cold hands wrapped around an even colder cup of coffee.
“Your father didn’t mention the Wendigo.” Kade Stonewell was young, probably about her age, but there was no mistaking his air of command. He was definitely the most dominant werewolf in the room—and right now, there were six of them.
Nolan sat next to her on the couch and pried the coffee mug out of her hands.
“I didn’t tell him,” she said. “I was already so ashamed about…everything.” She bit her lower lip. “I tried to kill Garrett. I put silver flakes in his bourbon. It took him down fast. I grabbed the car keys and left. I took my purse because it was by the door, but I didn’t put on shoes or grab a coat. I didn’t have any money. I was so scared. I drove the car until it ran out of gas in Sacramento. That’s when I called Dad.”
“Do you know how many Wendigos there are?” asked Kade.
“Dozens—at least that’s what Garrett told me. But if the man’s lips were moving, he was lying. The only other Wendigos I met were Garrett’s two brothers—and they’re just as vicious and vindictive.”
Kade nodded. He didn’t look angry, although he had every right to be upset with her for withholding certain pertinent facts.
“You said silver flakes incapacitated him?”
The Pack Rules Boxed Set: The Complete Series of Wolf, Bear, and Dragon Shifter Romances Page 14