“Dude, I am so not in the mood to play with you.”
For some reason, the word play drew her eyes to the thick length that hung between his legs.
Holy shit!
It hung half way to his knees, and it wasn’t even hard.
“You don’t need me, you don’t want me. Just go home and, I don’t know, knit a sweater for that thing or something before you get a cold.”
JT’s jaw was set, he never stopped his steady pace as he approached, and his voice was firm. “Get back to the fucking house. You can walk, or I will carry your ass. Either way, that’s only place you’re going.”
Lou looked at him in disbelief. “Dude, screw you. I hope, for your sake, your boyfriend comes back soon. Maybe a good lay will improve your attitude.”
His hands reached out to grab her and she spun away, bringing her elbow around in a dead aim on his nose, but his hand caught it. She raised her foot and stomped with all her might, his foot the intended target. Again he avoided the hit. Reaching down, she had every intention of grabbing his balls and squeezing them until they turned blue. He caught her wrist just as she attempted to wrap her fingers around them.
He growled low. “Are you done?”
She was snarling right back at him. She knew she could kick ass with the best, but this Neanderthal was blocking every move she made.
“I’ve only just started.”
Jab, punch, kick, she even tried to fight dirty, but he anticipated every move.
She might be slight of build, but she was toned to perfection, and could hit hard and fast, but he was faster. She noticed he didn’t attempt to hit her back, but he sure wasn’t going to let her hit him. He blocked, moved, shifted, ducked, and when she finally became winded, he stepped back. It seriously pissed her off that JT wasn’t even breathing hard.
She bent over, hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath, waving a hand in surrender.
“Are you done this time? I can do this all night.”
“Fine! You win, asswad. Just give me a minute to catch my breath.”
She waited until he seemed to relax, then stood up and started to walk. He fell into step right beside her. With a smirk on her face, she swung, and the right hook caught him firmly in the jaw. She never missed a stride. The growl did send her off and running, however.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
JT snarled at her, his palm itching to warm her ass for the trouble she caused, and then give Ryden his fist for his part in this shit. He growled at the hit she landed before she took off running, jumping through the woods like a gazelle.
Damn, she can run.
JT let her get ahead, allowing her to think she’d get away, then took off after her...barefoot...through the woods. Oh, yeah, she was gonna get that ass beating this time. Wolf though he may be, he couldn’t make shoes appear out of thin air.
She looked back over her shoulder, the deer-in-the-headlights look written all over her face. He gained on her, grabbed her arm, and spun her around. She landed chest to chest with him, and her eyes looked up in defiance.
“That’s it! I’m tired of this shit! I save your ass from a rabid coyote after you run off through the woods right at dark, get my feet cut up for the trouble, and have a dead coyote to dispose of before it infects the entire population of wildlife around here!”
She panted, trying to catch her breath and then started swinging her arms again. The knee coming up between his thighs, attempting to unman him, was the last straw. JT picked her up, none too gently, tossed her over his shoulder and tromped through the woods, making his way home.
“Put me down! Aaahhhrrrrrr! You are a beast, you know that? I demand you put me down!”
She beat against his back, struggled and tried to get free, but he had a tight grip across the backs of her thighs. There was no way she was getting loose. It didn’t even bother JT that she was staring down at his bare ass while she screamed and yelled.
“Demand, huh? Well, well, the princess demands. Guess I had better do it then.”
She couldn’t see where he was going, and before she could even react, he tossed her in the pond beside the house. She screamed, went under and came up sputtering.
She sank down again, the water covering her head, then came back up, gasping at the coldness of the water. “You DICK! You will so fucking pay for that!”
“Now, if you’re done running, I’d like to get that rabid coyote out of my territory, and get a shower before I sleep tonight. The house is that way. Make sure you get there or next time, I’ll let the coyote eat you.”
Without another word, he walked back up to the porch and dressed to head back into the woods. He was sure she’d go inside. She was stubborn, not stupid. Yes, she knew she was beaten and would come to heel soon enough.
She flipped him off as he walked back to the porch, and she watched him dress. She had never met a more infuriating man in her life. She made a promise to herself years ago. No man would ever get the upper hand, but he seemed to be doing exactly that and she was at a loss to change it. He walked past her on his way back into the woods and barely gave a glance in her direction.
“I hope you get rabies.”
His head tossed slightly, but he kept moving without a word. Lou’s teeth were chattering, and her butt cheeks were numb from the cold water. Swimming quickly to the bank, she crawled up the muddy edge to get out. All she could think of was getting into the house, getting warm, but she couldn’t run. Her muscles were frozen from the adrenaline and heat from the run and then the icy cold plunge.
As she made her way into the house, water and mud marked her route. She knew that she was leaving a trail as she went through the kitchen, down the hall and back to his bedroom. That part made Lou smile.
JT can just kiss my frozen ass.
It was all his fault; he should have let her leave. She stripped out of her soggy clothes and turned the water in the shower on hot, stepped in, and let the spray warm her and wash away the mud and pond scum.
Lou tried not to think that she was stuck here. The thought of being trapped, a hostage, or whatever, was not helping her nerves and was keeping her on edge. When she was sure all the dirt and grime was off, she stepped from the shower, leaving the last bits of mud and debris on the shower floor. That’ll teach GI Jackass. She dried off and left the second wet towel lying on the floor along with her muddy, soaked clothes. Shaking excess water from her hair, she went to his bedroom and rummaged through the drawers until she found a large black t-shirt and a pair of boxers, which had to be rolled down and twisted at the side to keep them from falling down. She then found a pair of his socks, typical military issue and put them on. They came clear to her knees, but she didn’t care, she was warm.
She pulled the comforter off the bed and wrapped it around herself as she made her way back to the kitchen. At least the coffee was still hot. She poured a cup and went back to where she started, the den, where she curled up in the chair with the blanket wrapped around her, sipped the coffee, and watched Wheel of Fortune.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Morning came and with it the sounds of Carlee’s soft breathing as she lay in Ryden’s arms. Sometime during the night, they had both finally fallen into an exhausted sleep, neither one having slept more than a few hours in the last few days. Ryden couldn’t recall how many days had passed since he’d gone looking for her, found her and went on the run, trying to stay ahead of the bastards who were after her.
Remembering when she got in that cab and left him behind, he cringed. His life had gotten in that car and drove away. All that mattered was getting her back, keeping her safe and making her his in every way possible. Last night’s impromptu proposal shocked him as much as it did her, but he had never been more sure of anything in his entire life. This was how it was supposed to be, and he had been a fool to stay away from Carlee as long as he did.
Lying to himself, he thought he was protecting her, keeping her safe from him. Truth was, he was protecting himself.
She had gotten under his skin long before he had been changed and he refused to see it. Too many times, he had let himself get attached to people, and all they’d ever done was tossed him aside like garbage, leaving him alone. Time and time again, through many foster homes and schools, no one had cared until that night in the store. Even then, he had maintained a sense of detachment when it came to others.
Carlee had wiggled her way into his heart, one date, one night, one phone call, and one text at a time. It took her getting hurt and nearly dying before he saw what had been right in front of him all along. Never again would he take these moments of just holding her in his arms, loving her body and soul, and having her beside him for granted. She was his, but he belonged to her as well.
She stirred a bit, pulling him from his deep thoughts, and he felt her kiss his neck. He turned and buried his nose in her hair, soothing the wolf and the man. He felt content to just stay here from now on, but he knew they couldn’t. Fact is, they were still on the run, but who exactly the enemy was, he still wasn’t sure.
“Morning, Buttercup. Sleep well?” She sighed and shifted so her legs spread, one rising up over his hip and her heated center poised right over his rising cock.
“Yes, very…” She moved against him, shifting, so the full head rubbed through her slick folds. Her mouth met his in a heated kiss, tongues tangling as their mouths fused together. He wrapped his arms more tightly around her as she slid down over his erect member, his hands caressing down her back. Her long hair tickled against his chest when she moved more fully on top of him, pushing him back into the bed.
“Greedy wench…” She chuckled against his mouth and began to ride him, easing up and down his shaft, her hot, wet sheath gripping his cock until he felt as if it would burst. “Hmm…”
He hissed at the friction, loving the feel of her around him, on him, her touch, her kiss, everything about her. Her eyes were glazed over with passion, her long, dark lashes resting against her cheeks as she closed them. Her hands splayed out against his chest as he gripped her hips. She could damn well do anything she pleased to him right now, and he knew he’d love every moment.
“Carlee…baby.” The hand caressed across her flat belly and eased down until he parted the dark curls hiding her pussy from his view. Her clit was swollen with need and his fingers pinched, stroked and teased until she shattered around him, crying out her release. It wasn’t until that moment he let himself go, flipping them over on the bed and thrusting hard into her still quivering body.
“God baby, you feel so good.”
“Ah, shit, Ry…Peach…God, yes.” Slamming into her core, stroke after stroke until sweat dripped down his face, he made love to her. This was so far from the sex they had shared in their past, there was no comparison. With one final thrust, he came, filling her as his cock pulsed out his release leaving him breathless beside her, their bodies still joined.
When he could finally speak, he cupped her face in the palm of his hand, his thumb rubbing across her swollen bottom lip. “No regrets, Carlee. From here to eternity, I will love you. Nothing matters but you. You’ve captured me, heart, mind, body and soul.”
She and Ryden had been up most of the night, seemingly unable to get close enough to each other. They fell into an exhausted sleep late into the night. She would have slept for hours had she not felt him tense. All it took was one deep breath, just the smell of him and she knew she needed him. He was like hot chocolate and snugly blankets. She sucked in her lip, and he ran his thumb across it as he spoke. She knew he was talking about the proposal.
Smiling, she spoke barely above a whisper, “Peaches, you don’t have to marry me. I don’t have any plans for running off. I mean, I do still have some things that I have to take care of, but I was planning on letting you in on those plans this time.”
He turned her so that his eyes were looking directly into hers. His expression was serious, and the tone of his voice was firm.
“No one said ‘have to’, Carlee. I want to. You could never understand this. Shit, I don’t understand it myself. What I do know is that the wolf part of me is more loyal than any human can ever be. When wolves mate, it’s for life. You are my life. Before you get that crazy head of yours going, it is not just for the wolf, but also for the man. Putting it simply, Buttercup, you are mine.”
The emotion in his voice as he spoke shook her. He was dead serious. There were no second thoughts in his mind at all. He spoke as a man who had absolutely decided on what he wanted. Her mind, on the other hand, was running the gamut of emotions. She had a hard time deciding what color socks she would wear. She tried to make him see what she already knew from her past.
“But, Peach, what if a year from now you decide that…”
Slowly shaking his head, Ryden smiled. “Not happening, Buttercup. You cannot possibly come up with a reason not to marry me.” He paused, became dead serious and whispered, “Unless you don’t love me.”
Golden eyes studied her face. She knew he was sensing her emotions. “Peaches, I can’t imagine my life without you in it. We have our whole lives. There is no reason to hurry.” She paused, becoming thoughtful. “I’ll tell you what, we’ll make a deal. Let’s go for a long engagement. That will give you time to see what you’re getting yourself into.”
A glint shined in his eyes as he pulled her closer. “I will not be changing my mind, and you know I won’t take that for an answer. I don’t have a lot of patience, Carlee. I usually get my way.”
He pulled her into a kiss that nearly had her ready to call a preacher. Her stomach growled. Giggling into the kiss, she pulled him out of bed. “Come on, feed me. Wait, no. Shower, then feed me.”
The shower was another test of exactly how soon they would be finding that preacher. She again stood as he washed her from head to toe. Loving hands moving across her body as his eyes and fingers took in every inch as if committing each touch and sight to memory.
When they finally made it to the kitchen an hour later, JT was standing at the sink. The scowl on his face and remembering the car ride here left no doubt in Carlee’s mind how he and Lou were getting along. Not at all. Lou jumped up from the table and blocked Carlee’s way to the coffee pot. “Oh, sweet! You can still walk. Now, let’s see if you can still talk. Would you please tell Mr. Neanderthal over there that I am not a doctor? This little vacay is bordering on a scene from Deliverance. I’m sure he has a banjo hidden in a closet somewhere around here. So if you don’t mind, set him straight so I can get the hell out of here and back to civilization.”
Carlee did a side-step getting past Lou, opened the refrigerator and looked at the contents inside. “I never said Lou was a doctor. She was just there, wrong place, wrong time…or right time. Do you seriously eat this stuff? Bacon? Sausage? Oh my God, that poor little piggy was probably rooting and playing in the mud one day, then the next he was hanging on a hook! The momma is probably still looking for her baby. Don’t you have anything non-animal in this place?”
Ryden sensed something and was at her side in the same instant that JT came to the refrigerator. Reaching in and grabbing a pack of cheese, he slapped it into Carlee’s hand.
“I eat meat. It’s the way things are supposed to be.”
The glance between Ryden and JT was tense. Ryden’s voice was firm, nearly a low growl. “Something you need to talk about, JT?”
Lou sat back down hard in the kitchen chair, the legs grating across the linoleum. “He isn’t a wolf; he’s a bear with a sore ass. He probably got a pricker in it while running naked through the woods last night.”
She kicked out the other chair, propping her feet on it as JT growled. Carlee was getting dizzy looking from one to the other.
“I think I’ll just have coffee. Got any French vanilla creamer?”
JT’s growl turned to a snarl. Moving quickly between him and Ryden she made her way to the coffee pot. “Black is fine…very good actually. Yum yum…who doesn’t love a good cup of black coffee?”
This was gonna be loads of fun…
Chapter Thirty
The tension was so thick in the room a bomb going off wouldn’t have provided a suitable distraction. Ryden moved in front of Carlee to keep JT from doing something that would surely mean his death.
“Back off, JT.”
Ryden growled out a warning and JT looked at him, diverting his eyes quickly before he crossed the kitchen and moved into the den.
Ryden turned back to Lou, seeing her smirk as she sat there drinking her coffee. “You’re treading on dangerous ground, lady. You wanna tease a dangerous animal? JT isn’t the one to mess with. What you saw in that room last night was nothing. I don’t want to have to kill my best friend because you insist on pushing his buttons.”
She gritted her teeth, flipped Ryden the bird, and then took a sip from her coffee mug.
Carlee opened the cheese and put a few slices between two pieces of bread. Ryden poured her a cup of coffee, adding a bit of milk from the fridge and handed it to her with a kiss. “Let’s go in the den. We got a lot to talk about.”
She followed him out, and he gave Lou another warning glance. Lou looked away and pretended interest in her nails. JT was sitting in the den looking at the paper while he drank his coffee. He was, hands down, the most reliable person Ryden knew. Even among his unit, JT would be the one Ryden could rely on the most. He trusted all of his men with his life, and they knew he would have their back.
Never in a million years would he have thought he’d find himself in a position of leadership, Alpha to a wolf pack no less, and looking at his unit as if they were his family. For all intents and purposes, they were family. Most of them had no family, so relying on each other was imperative.
While JT was deferential to Ryden when it came to his treatment of his mate, JT was much more dominant than Ryden who respected that. They played on an even field, neither looking to get the upper hand on the other. Within the pack, they were an anomaly. If Ryden could ever convince JT to come back into the field, he would gladly hand over the command of the unit. He was more experienced, stronger all around. But would JT take the offer? Not likely. For some reason, JT preferred to be in the background now. He had been the one leading the unit before Ryden’s change. He never had the desire to lead again, or so he said.
Wolf’s Heart Page 19