Bad Boy Romance: Nick (Romantic Suspense Alpha Male Romance) (New Adult Rock Star Contemporary Short Stories) (Hard Rock Star Series Book 2) (50 page)

****

"I don't understand," Ariel said, letting her
fingers fall away from the scar.

Max took her hands in his, a slightly desperate look on his
face as if he was afraid she was going to run. She was startled by how
beautiful he was with the moonlight touching his skin and illuminating the
melting color of his eyes.

"I knew you the moment I saw you," he whispered,
his voice no longer reflecting the worried look in his eyes but sounding
smooth, controlled, and irresistibly sexy.

"You did?" she asked back, stepping forward as the
strange, unexplainable magnetism from his body seemed to draw her toward him.

Max's face brushed lightly against hers, nuzzling her. He
nodded.

"You knew, too. I could see the way you looked at me. I
could smell you."

He whisper sent hot breath down Ariel's neck and her breath
caught at his words. She knew those words, what they meant.

"I can smell you now," he continued, his hands
leaving hers to trace the swell of her hips and the soft curve of her belly.

Ariel moaned softly and leaned into him to seek more of the
delectable pressure of his body.

"What do you smell?"

"Your body," he dipped his head and Ariel felt the
tip of his tongue glide across her neck, "Your blood," he bit the
curve of her shoulder just hard enough to create a thrilling, pleasurable pain,
"How much you want me." His hands slid around her hips to fill with
her flesh and hold her firmly against him where she could feel his hardness
pressing into her belly, "I can smell my mate."

Ariel gasped and Max caught the sound with his mouth,
drawing her into a deep, primal kiss that felt like their souls were reaching
out and melding, connecting after a lifetime of waiting. She pulled away from
the kiss and opened her mouth to speak, but instead let out a scream. Behind
Max she could see a silver wolf stepping out of the shadows, his sharp teeth
gleaming in the moonlight as he stalked toward Max.

Max spun around at the sound of her scream and she
immediately felt him push back on her, shoving her back toward the gate as he
faced the wolf. The silver animal took another step forward and in the middle
of his stride she watched him shift into a human. Ariel's eyes widened, but she
couldn't make any sound.

"Hello, Max," the other man said, the sliminess in
his voice sending a chill down Ariel's spine, "I see you found yourself a
snack."

"Back off, Laurence," Max growled.

Ariel covered her mouth with her hand, trying to hold back
the terrified sounds now trying to tumble out of her. She was watching what she
thought were just characters in a book come to life in front of her very eyes,
witnessing the chapters of an unwritten book unfurling somewhere between reality
and her fantasies.

"She is quite delicious," Laurence said, taking
another step forward, "And it looks like there is more than enough of her
for both of us. Maybe we can share."

At that, Max leapt forward, tackling Laurence to the ground
so he landed on top of him.

"She's mine," he snarled.

Laurence grappled with Max and Ariel could hear him let out
a mocking laugh.

"So that's what this is?" he said, finally pushing
Max away and climbing out from under him so that both men stood, staring each
other down, "The Alpha has mated a human."

Before Ariel even realized what was happening, Laurence
shifted back into a wolf and surged forward past Max so that he came down on
her. She screamed as she hit the ground, curling away from the stagnant breath
and sharp teeth coming toward her. A moment later she heard a blood-chilling
growl and felt Laurence torn away from her.

She looked up and saw a massive black wolf holding Laurence
by the back of his neck, his teeth sinking deeply into the other wolf's coat.
As he tossed Laurence away, Ariel realized that black wolf was Max. Despite the
terror, desire rolled through her as she felt the same intense, animal need for
him that she had since she first saw him.

The two wolves tangled and fought, teeth and claws tearing
at one another as they battled for dominance. This was the fight she had been
waiting for as she read the books, the conflict she thought would have
culminated after Laurence shot the crossbow at Lazar; at Max. As she watched
the fight in horror, she wondered what had happened in the months between that
moment and this one, how these rival Alphas had gotten here after what she
feared was her beloved character's death.

The need to protect Max surged through her and Ariel lunged
forward, reaching for the silver wolf.

Max turned to her and let out a sound that made her stumble
back, somehow knowing he was telling her he didn't want her involved. In the
moment that he faced her, Laurence was able to regain some control.

Suddenly Laurence slashed at Max, his claws cutting into
Max's shoulder and soaking his black fur with blood. An instant later, Max's
head reared back and he sank his teeth ferociously into Laurence, flipping his
head to the side to rip away at his flesh. The other animal yelped and fell
back away from Max, shifting back into a human as he tried to get away. Max
mirrored his shift, standing above him with blood streaming down his skin, his
rough breaths causing his shoulders to rise and fall rapidly.

"I won't kill you here," he said, his voice as rough
as his breath, "but if you ever touch her again, I will rip you apart like
I should have a long time ago."

Laurence stood shakily to his feet and disappeared into the
darkness of the cluster of palm trees where he had been hiding when they first
stepped onto the beach. A few seconds later, Ariel could hear muffled steps
retreated through the undergrowth, punctuated by yelps as if the plants were
continuing the punishment by scraping at his wounds.

Max turned to her and Ariel ran into his arms, allowing him
to sweep her against him and bury his face in her hair. She could feel the
warmth of his blood seeping through his shirt onto her skin and she stepped
back.

"You're hurt," she said, touching the tattered
fabric surrounding the deep gash in his shoulder. "I'm so sorry."

"I'll be fine," he said, brushing loose strands of
hair out of her face, "As long as you're alright, I'll be fine."

"No. Come with me to my room. Let me take care of
you."

Affection mingled with intense attraction flashed in his
eyes and he nodded. Ariel slipped her sweater off and draped it carefully over
his wound so that anyone they may encounter wouldn't notice the blood. She knew
this wound would not act the same as it would on a normal human; it would heal
much more quickly and didn't require stitches or other measures. Cleaning it,
though, would soothe his pain and help it to begin to heal.

She guided him through the hotel to her room and stepped
inside. Daniel was still sprawled across the bed, snoring deeply, and she led
Max carefully through the suite and into the bathroom. Locking the door behind
them, she started the faucet in the soaking tub and reached forward to unbutton
his shirt. Her hands shook slightly as she undressed him, revealing his
gorgeous body beneath the shirt.

She wanted to touch him further, but the wound on his
shoulder kept her back. Placing her hands on his hips, she guided him gently
backwards so that he sat on the wide edge of the tub. Ariel sat beside him,
positioning herself on her hip so that she could reach down into the tub and
fill a soft sponge with warm water. Kissing his chiseled arm muscle tenderly,
she brought the sponge to his shoulder and squeezed it so that the water flowed
out across his skin.

****

Ariel bathed his shoulder until as much of the blood as
possible was gone. Dropping the sponge back into the tub, she rested her hands
on his neck and swept one leg over him so that she straddled his hips but
stayed sitting up on her knees, propped up by the marble tub on either side of
him. Her mouth lowered to the curve of his neck and shoulder to kiss along his
warm skin until she reached the freshly cleaned wound. The primal urges within
her took over and she let the tip of her tongue slip out to run along the cut.

Max's hands gripped her hips and a low growl rumbled deep in
his throat. She knew that growl meant that the wolf inside him wanted to be let
out. She shook her head at him and licked his skin again, soothing him as his
kind would.

"I need you to stay human for me," she murmured
against his neck.

She gasped as Max pulled her down onto his lap, lifting his
hips to meet hers so she felt the hardness of his desire for her nudging into
her hot, wet core. She rocked her hips into his lap, reveling in the way the
firm swell of his erection built dizzying pressure low in her belly.

"For how long?" he asked through labored breath.

Ariel kissed him, drawing his bottom lip into her mouth and
biting it playfully.

"Until I've had you inside me."

Max growled and lifted her off of his lap, positioning her
on the edge of the tub. He pulled her shirt off, and then made quick work of
her bra. His mouth touched her breast and Ariel moaned, arching into the touch.
As he continued to kiss her breasts, Max slid his hands over her hips and
grasped the sides of her pants and panties. He stepped back to remove the
garments, and then stood to loosen his belt. She reached up to stop him.

Max met her eyes and she continued to gaze at him as she
unfastened his pants and carefully undressed him, lowering his pants and trunks
until he could kick them away. Parting her legs on either side of him, she
wrapped her hands around the backs of his thighs and gently pulled him forward
so he stepped between her knees.

Ariel finally looked down and saw him fully, his beautiful
cock standing so hard and strong, it made Ariel's mouth water. She indulged her
craving for him by leaning forward and running the tip of her tongue slowly up
the underside. Max's erection jumped slightly in response to her touch and he
gasped.

Pleased with his reaction, Ariel parted her lips further and
drew his erection in along her tongue until she held him completely. She felt
one of Max's hands grip her arm and the other come against the back of her
head. He groaned loudly and she took a moment to focus just on the tip, holding
the base so she could withdraw him nearly all the way and suck just on the head
before taking him in fully again, letting him dip into her throat.

Max gently thrust into her mouth and guided her into a
smooth rhythm with the hand on the back of his head. Ariel delighted in the
feeling of every ridge and vein as she worshipped his body. Suddenly he stopped
her and withdrew from her mouth.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

Max got on his knees in front of her and took her face in
his hands.

"Tell me you understand that we are meant to be
together."

"What?" she asked.

"Tell me that you understand, that you know what it
means to have me mate with you," she recoiled slightly and he sighed,
"to have me make love to you."

When she didn't answer, Max pushed back and stood up,
grabbing his clothes off of the floor and getting dressed.

"Max, wait," Ariel said, bounding off of the edge
of the tub toward him, "Why are you leaving?"

"I can't do this, Ariel. You are supposed to be mine,
my mate, my partner, but if you don't understand that…" he trailed off and
looked at her painfully, "I can't let myself go that far knowing that you
are just going to walk away."

"I want to be with you, Max."

"Will you want to be with me when I'm a wolf? Would you
still want me if I shifted in the middle of the night and you woke up to a wolf
in bed with you? Do you want me enough to join my pack and be my mate?"

Ariel touched his cheek.

"I want to be with you, Max," she repeated,
putting extra emphasis on the word 'you', "Isn't that enough?"

Max took her hand in his and turned it so that he could
press a kiss to the inside of her wrist.

"No," he whispered and rushed out of the room.

****

Ariel left the next morning before the convention even
began, knowing she couldn't bear to see Max again. Her mind was still reeling
from the brief time she had spent with him, but even more intense than the
confusion was the searing pain in her heart each time she thought of him. She
so badly wanted to give herself to him, all of herself, but she struggled to
make sense of what he told her, to bring herself to believe it.

Enough men had hurt her with words like those before. They
told her that they loved her, that they were meant to be together, but it would
all dissipate just as quickly as it had formed. It was a ploy meant to tell her
what she wanted to hear.

Several days after leaving the convention, Ariel was going
through her last conversation with Max again. She felt emptier than she ever
had in her life, as if a piece of her had been removed and she was having to
learn to live without it. Max's words washed over her, just the sound of them
in her ears comforting in the darkness that had seemed to form around her.

Suddenly a realization struck her, something different about
the conversation that she hadn't recognized before. Max had not told her that
he loved her—he had told her that they were made for each other and that he
couldn't bring himself to be with her if she didn't understand their
connection, but he had not told her that he
loved
her.

In that moment, Ariel realized that not saying those words
expressed their true meaning more than speaking them ever could. In not saying
he loved her, Max held their bond as precious and sacred, refusing to simplify
it into that phrase until she was able to fully express it on her own.

Her need for him surged within her, and Ariel knew that no
matter how frightening his world could be, it was not nearly as frightening as
the prospect of being without him. She was meant to be by his side, to truly
live in the world that she had fantasized about through his books, knowing now
that in his heart she already always was.

Ariel grabbed her phone and started to write an email to Max
to the address listed for fan mail, laughing at the thought that she had always
thought she was his biggest fan, but had never sent him a message, now she was
trying hard to craft a love letter to send to his fan mail in the hopes that he
would actually read it.

She struggled to come up with the right words to express her
longing for him. After several false-starts and frantic, almost violent hitting
of the "delete" key, she let out a long breath, typed a message, and
pressed send. It contained the name of the hotel where they met and a date
three days in the future above a simple message.

I need you. I understand. Please come back.