Irvine ran his finger along my cheek. My whole body lit up. Damn, how did his touch have such power over me?
“Take care of yourself, Willow Summers,” he murmured. “You’re too special to lose.”
His grey eyes bore into me, as if he saw straight into my soul. I almost didn’t leave him, but a car honked behind me, startling me from the trance.
“Bye.” I pulled away and raced across the street, before I changed my mind. I had to climb over the police tape to reach the stairs to my apartment. My stomach twisted with fear, but when I unlocked the door, the apartment was still untouched.
I had a quick shower, sitting on the stool I used in the stall to keep my balance while I soaped myself down. As my hands trailed over my body, I imagined what it would be like to see Irvine’s hands there instead. The ache inside me pulsed with renewed urgency, and it was all I could do not to turn the shower head between my legs and sate it however I could.
Instead, I turned the shower on the coldest setting and washed the soap off as quickly as I could.
I changed into a new, more professional outfit, grabbed my purse, went back downstairs (doing my best to ignore the police officers who were scrabbling around in the shop), and climbed into my car. I drove to Crooks Worthy with Irvine on the brain.
It wasn’t until I was halfway to Crooks Worthy that I realised I’d forgotten my organiser. Damn, Irvine Baird was messing with my head in a big way.
The marquee company took me on a tour of their factory and hiring centre. I walked through the warehouse in a haze, not hearing a single word they said about capacity or lighting options or mock cathedral windows. Around every corner, Irvine stared at me with those vivid grey eyes. The warmth of his lips still lingered against mine. My body still ached for everything he could give me.
As I drove back to Crookshollow after the meeting, my mind whirred with possibilities. Even when I was miles away from her, with a completely new name, my mother was still running my life. Despite my own good feelings about them, her voice in my head told me I couldn’t trust Irvine and his friends. And Irvine … he was supposed to be a monster, but when I looked into his eyes, all I saw was someone who looked right back.
He was the first person who really saw me – not the peg-legged wedding planner or the daughter of the crazy werewolf lady – but he reached right through into my heart.
And he wanted me. He’d seen my leg, and still he wanted me. I’d never thought I’d get the chance to be with someone … but Irvine was offering that.
Carol Winters would’ve run a mile from the werewolf who called her beautiful, but I wasn’t Carol Winters any longer. I could be whoever I wanted to be. I could ask for what I wanted, and bugger it all to hell, but what I wanted was him.
I cruised down the main street of Crookshollow. Instead of turning off onto Honeysuckle Road to return to my flat, I yanked the wheel hard around, and parked in front of the Family Planning Clinic.
My hands gripped the wheel so tightly, my knuckles turned white. My heart clenched with terror. Despite this, a shaky smile played across my lips.
I, Willow Summers, was going to lose my virginity. And I knew just the wolf for the job.
14
Irvine
BANG BANG.
My eyes flew open, my whole body instantly on alert. A lifetime of watching over my shoulder for the Macleans had hardened my instincts.
Someone’s banging on the door.
No one apart from the other pack members ken I was living in one of the rented artist’s cabins in Crookshollow Forest. Only Caleb came to visit me, and he wouldn’t knock since I’d given him a key. I bolted upright, my wolf clawing against my skin, ready to leap into action in case my visitor had violent intent.
I grabbed the wrought-iron poker from the ash bucket beside the stove. Brandishing it at my side, I approached the door.
It could be Willow’s stalker, here to finish me off before I can get to him.
My body tensed. I slipped across the room and flattened myself against the kitchen wall. The window over the bench looked out onto the cabin’s tiny porch. I’d pulled the shutter down before going to bed, but a tiny tear on the edge gave me a clear view of who was standing out there.
It was Willow Summers.
I dropped the poker on the table, grabbed a pair of jeans off the floor and tugged them on over my rising cock. I debated putting on a shirt, but then decided against it. In two strides, I’d crossed the tiny cabin and flung open the door.
Willow leapt back as the door flew open, grabbing at the porch railing to steady herself. She wore a crisp white shirt, perfectly tailored to fit tight across her tiny breasts, and a pair of wide-legged suit pants. Her brown hair tumbled loose over her shoulders, and she bit down on her lower lip as she studied me.
What’s she doing here? We weren’t supposed to meet until later tonight.
“Willow Summers, this is a surprise,” I said as I stared down at her. Willow glanced up, her huge brown eyes locking with mine. The electric charge sizzled between us, and it took all my self-control not to sweep her in my arms. “Did something happen? Did the stalker come back?”
“No,” she whispered, breathing hard. She dropped her gaze, staring at my bare chest and avoiding my eyes. “Can I come in?”
“Sure.” I stepped aside and held the door open. Willow shuffled inside with that slight limp of hers, still looking at her feet. I kicked aside some clothes and pulled out a chair for her at the rickety table under the other window. “You want some tea or coffee?”
“Y—y—yes. Tea, please.” Willow was still whispering. She didn’t take the chair, but hung back beside the door, shifting her weight from foot to foot. She was nervous. I wondered why. She hadn’t seemed this timid last night.
I went to the kitchen and put the kettle on, and wiped out two mugs. While I fished around for tea bags, I waited for Willow to start talking, but she didn’t. Finally, I set down two steaming cups of tea on the table, and sank into one of the chairs. I raised my cup to my lips. “So, Willow Summers, I thought I wouldnae have the pleasure of your company until later this evening. Is there something I can do for ye?”
“Yes, actually.” Willow grabbed her elbow with one hand, her fingers digging into her own skin. Finally, she looked up. Her eyes flicked over my body, hovering on my naked chest before settling on my face. Those deep brown pools swirled with emotions, but I couldn’t read what she was thinking.
“Well, go on. What is it you’re after?”
She bit her lip. “I … I’m ready.”
“For?”
“For you to take my virginity.”
15
Willow
I can’t believe I’m doing this.
As soon as I’d said the words, I wished I could take them back. A violent heat rushed to my cheeks, and I knew I must be as red as a tomato. I itched to turn around and run away, but that weird magnetic energy between us urged me to stay.
“Willow Summers, you do ken how to surprise a man.” Irvine’s eyes burned into me. In the daylight, he looked even sexier, although that might have something to do with that fact he was only wearing a tight pair of jeans that left nothing to the imagination. His torso was even more muscular than I’d imagined, and every inch was covered in those intricate tattoos. A huge crest on his shoulder showed a crouching wolf, teeth bared, and the latin epithet AMOR VINCIT OMNIA. A thin line of dark hair led from Irvine’s belly button down to the waist of his jeans, and my eyes couldn’t help but flick over the bulge of his crotch. A surge of heat mingled with the fear inside me.
No turning back now, Willow. You’re here. You’re doing this thing … with a werewolf.
Unless he doesn’t want to. Maybe he’s changed his mind. He’s gonna tell me I’m an idiot and he finds me disgusting and he would never even be able to get hard—
“Willow …” There was a note of sadness in Irvine’s voice.
This is it. This is where he rejects me.
; I closed my eyes, not wanting to see Irvine’s face crumple with disgust like Curtis’ had. “Please, before you say anything, just … hear me out. I know I said I wasn’t ready, but I’ve changed my mind. I came to Crookshollow to experience freedom, and it’s time I truly embraced what that means. I’m not good at asking for what I want, and I know I’m … not like other girls. I’m not beautiful. I’m broken.” My throat caught on the word. Please don’t let me start crying in front of him. “But I’m tired of feeling as though I’m missing something. So if you can stomach being with me and if you promise that you won’t turn into a wolf in front of me … then I … um, want to be with you.”
I dared a peek at Irvine. He stared at me with those daring eyes, silent as stone.
My face flared even hotter. “Um … so … right. I went and got the injection today, and an STI test, so we don’t even have to worry about protection, provided you’re clean … so, if you’re worried about—”
“I’m clean.” Irvine’s deep voice boomed inside my head. “And I’m not worried about that. I’m worried about you thinking I cannae … stomach being with you?”
“You can’t have forgotten that I’m missing a leg.”
“I ken,” he said. “I also remember I told you that you were beautiful.”
I hunted Irvine’s face for any sign that he was lying, or leading me on to be cruel. A boy had done that to me in high school – Raymond Keen. He’d told me all sorts of nice things – I had pretty hair, he loved my eyes, he thought it was cool that I was the smartest in the class. All the while, he and his friends were laughing about me behind my back. Raymond kissed me at a party – my first and only kiss until Curtis – but while I was swooning over him, he was taking a selfie with his phone of him touching my leg, which he sent to everyone at my school.
But Irvine’s eyes were warm, and they burned with an intensity I’d never seen before. My stomach flipped. He looked … hungry. And the same hunger was rumbling inside me.
“So …” I tore my gaze away from his, staring down at my feet. Piles of crumpled clothing hid the rough-cut floorboards of Irvine’s cabin. “Will you do this for me?”
A hand caught my shoulder, turning me back around. Strong fingers held my chin, lifting my face up. “Willow, look at me,” Irvine said.
I turned. Irvine’s face was inches from mine. I could see the shadow of stubble on his chin, the sharp angle of his nose. The silver coin still hung around his neck. That hungry look in his eyes burned into me, making an ache spread through my stomach.
“You’re a very fascinating woman.” Irvine’s gaze burned into mine. His lips were so close to mine that I could feel the heat of his breath. “I find you utterly … enchanting. And I’m nae going to deny that I would very much like to tear all your clothes off and fuck you up against a wall right now.”
I gulped. His words rolled over me, that rich, thick Scottish accent shooting an arc of desire down my spine. The ache in my stomach throbbed with need.
“But …” Irvine’s expression looked pained. “I cannae have a relationship right now. There’s something very important I have to do here in Crookshollow, and I cannae have any distractions, as welcome a distraction as you would be.”
“I’m not asking for anything serious,” I said. “I don’t think I can handle that right now, either. So this can just be a casual thing.”
Willow Summers can do casual. She’s a totally casual kind of girl.
Carol Winters, however, is ready to throw up on her shoes.
“Aye, just a casual thing.” Irvine reached up with his hand, and his thumb stroked my chin. That touch was the first we’d had since the kiss this morning, and it was like a jolt of electricity shooting through my body, drawing out the full force of the ache within me. “You’re okay with that?”
“I’m definitely okay with that.” I gulped as his finger traced across my lips. My whole body lit up, desperate for his hands to be on my skin, for all the things that he could show me. My stomach throbbed with a hunger that matched that in his eyes. “If you … if you promise that you won’t shift. Not in front of me.”
“Aye, I can promise you that. But I have one more question.” The corner of Irvine’s mouth turning up into a wolfish grin. “You ken what I am, so why me?”
“I—I—I don’t know. Because you’re the first person who’s wanted to.”
“I dinnae believe that.”
Because you’re the first person who’s ever seen me. But I couldn’t say that. I pressed my trembling hands against my thighs. “I’m a bit—”
“Terrified?”
I nodded.
In a moment, Irvine closed the gap between us, his naked chest pressed against mine. He wrapped one arm around me, his palm pressed against my back. My skin burned where he touched me, slivers of molten energy dancing across my body.
His lips hovered so close to mine, his breath caressed me. Every pore on his face stood out in high relief. My body froze, a perfect storm of tension and terror and pure, diabolical lust.
“Your first time should be special, Willow Summers,” Irvine whispered, his words rumbling through my core, “I promise I’ll going to make sure you remember it forever.”
“I … er …”
Irvine’s lips covered mine, and the stammering nonsense I was about to spit out fled my head. Nothing existed except that kiss – the warmth of his lips pressed against mine, hard and urgent as he teased my mouth open and slipped his tongue inside. The heat of his mouth drew me in, so I melted against him, drowning in his raw energy and primal scent.
Irvine’s hands snaked across my back, tracing the line of my bra through the thin linen shirt I’d worn. The ache in my stomach spread down between my legs.
Kissing Curtis had been hot, but it wasn’t anything like this.
Irvine’s hands moved over my body, his fingers snaking along the hem of my shirt. Electricity jolted through me as his skin brushed mine. I raised my hands around his neck, drawing us closer still. My fingers traced the thick muscles of his neck and shoulders, wanting to commit every inch of him to memory. I touched the leather throng that hung around his neck. His heady wolf scent drifted over me, but instead of being frightening, it intoxicated me. My head swam with the sensations of him.
So far, so good. What happens next?
I tried to recall my favourite sex scenes from movies, so I’d know what to do. My hands swept across Irvine’s chest, drawing the lines of his tattoos and the edges of his tight muscles. God, he felt so good. Who knew a man could feel that good? I traced the waist of his jeans. My fingers trembled as I unbuttoned his fly.
“Whoa there, lassie.” Irvine grinned, grabbing my wrists and pulling my hands away. “While I admire your enthusiasm, you dinnae have to go quite so fast. We’ve got all the time in the world.”
“Don’t you have important shifter things to do?” I gasped. Irvine laid a trail of kisses along my neck, sending a shiver of delight through my body.
“When a beautiful woman is in your bed, nothing else is important,” he growled, cupping my cheek and tipping my face up. His lips assaulted mine again, and I drank in the ecstasy of his attention.
Irvine walked me backward until my skin grazed the side of his bed. His strong hands gripped my hips, and he half lifted, half pushed me back onto the bed, laying me down on my back.
The bed was softer than it looked, and Irvine’s wolfish scent danced over the blankets. A flutter of fear circled my stomach as I lay back, knowing what was coming soon, but then Irvine crawled up beside me and his lips found mine again. The fear disappeared as I sank into the kiss.
Irvine’s leg pressed up against mine, and something hard dug into my thigh. It took me a few moments to realise it was his penis. He was hard as a rock. For me. He was hard for me.
My heart skipped a beat. I can’t believe this is happening. I can’t believe he’s real.
Irvine trailed kisses down my neck, pulling aside the collar of my shirt to snake his tongue a
long my collarbone. Every touch of his lips set my skin on fire. We were going to burn up together like comets entering the atmosphere.
He reached up with his fingers, and grasped the top button of my shirt. His eyes met mine, and he lifted his lips from my skin. “You sure about this?”
I nodded.
“And today’s the big day? You dinnae want to wait—”
I shook my head.
Irvine grinned, his whole face lighting up. “Good.”
His fingers grazed my bare skin as one by one he undid my buttons. Nerves fluttered in my stomach. He folded back my shirt, and tugged it free. As Irvine stared down at me, I thanked myself that I’d thought to change into my nicest black bra and panties before I came over. He gave me that wild grin of his again, and my nerves surged.
He’s looking at me. He sees me.
Nothing in his eyes said he was disgusted or scared of me. All I saw was that cold intensity. Irvine laid his lips on my sternum, his eyes locked on mine as he laid a gentle kiss upon my skin. He reached behind me. Almost without thinking, I lifted my torso. Irvine’s fingers grazed my skin as he pulled off my bra.
I sucked in my breath. This was the first time since Curtis that someone had seen my breasts. My stump tingled, and my stomach danced. That wild grin stretched further across Irvine’s face, and my heart flipped.
“You like what you see?” The words came out much sassier than I felt.
“I do indeed. Nice ink.” He traced a finger over the bleeding rose. “I recognise Elinor’s work.”
“Yeah. I had it done a few weeks agoooooooohhh …” My words turned into a moan as Irvine bent down and took my nipple in his mouth.
Oh, it was exquisite. Irvine’s tongue drew across my nipple, sending shivers through my body. He started slow and delicate, then dragged his teeth across my sensitive skin. A sharp pain flared up, but it only intensified the ache inside me. Irvine’s eyes remained locked on mine, and his hands roamed across my body as he licked and sucked until the ache inside me grew into a raging inferno.
Wedding the Wolf: A wolf shifter paranormal romance Page 10