Beast Untamed: Beasts of Bodmin Moor, Book 3 (3 page)

Nathan has a way about him
, Talia had said. Well, he certainly had that. The problem being it wasn’t the type of
way
Erin hoped to experience again.

Except he wasn’t a man you could ignore. With those deep green eyes and slash of dark brows, the strong jaw with its designer stubble, the wide forehead, and lush full mouth…

Erin pushed the duvet away from her shoulders. Bloody hell. She was feeling hot all of a sudden. What the hell was that about? Yes, the man was built. So what? She wasn’t in the market for any sort of hookup with his sort, or any other sort come to that. She’d had enough of bloody men to last a lifetime.

From now on it was her and Willa. That was all she wanted. All she’d ever want. Period.

* * * * *

“What the fucking hell’s her problem anyway?”

Nathan spun the wheel and turned along the road that led back to Bodmin. He’d been spitting nails ever since they’d left Truro, and it seemed he wasn’t done yet.

Beside him, Tynan cursed under his breath. “For God’s sake, bro. Give it a goddamn rest.” He glanced over his shoulder toward the backseat “It’s just as well Naomi fell asleep thirty minutes ago, or she’d be giving you the evil eye about now. She likes Erin, and she’d tell you to shut the hell up about the woman.”

“The woman bloody insinuated I’d actually hook up with a tight-ass female like her. Like I’d choose to spend my time having her shove fucking accusations at me.”

Tynan laughed softly. “The way I see it, you did more than insinuate. You said you let Caroline believe Erin was your current squeeze.”

“I panicked,” Nathan said, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. “I screwed the woman once, and now she’s all about me having driven fifty miles for the express purpose of taking her home from a hen party.”

“At least you’d have gotten lucky. As things are, seems to me you’ll be sleeping alone tonight, buddy.”

“Not the point,” Nathan complained. “That woman Erin said I don’t have the guts to tell a woman to her face that it’s finished.”

“You already told me that. Twice.”

“Said she couldn’t see why any woman in her right mind would put up with the likes of me.”

“Told me that too.”

“Stuck her fucking chin in the air while she spewed all that crap. Like she’s too good to breathe the same air.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Tynan turned in his seat to face Nathan. “Why’s she got you so worked up anyway? You normally don’t give a rat’s ass what people think of you.”

“It was that freaking chin did it. Poking it in my direction like some kind of vengeful sword.”

Shit. And now he was thinking of that chin again, and the plump little mouth above it. All succulent and pouting and…shit, shit, shit.

“Think I’ve about had my fill of human women,” Nathan decided, swinging up to Tynan’s house. “I’m sticking to shifter females. Less trouble.”

“Not sure I’d agree,” Tynan said with a smile, unhooking his seat belt. “This one put me through the wringer before I got her to admit she can’t live without me.”

Nathan glanced back. “Yeah, well you got lucky.”

His mind drifted back to when he and Naomi had been fuck buddies. He thought of the easy, down-to-earth nature of their arrangement. Since neither of them had wanted commitment, screwing a hot woman without obligation or the need for promises had been a perfect arrangement at the time. Add a big dose of friendship and admiration into the bargain and a man had the female of his dreams. But then Tynan came on the scene and royally screwed up the arrangement.

Nathan couldn’t seem to work up a full-out resentment of his friend’s good fortune, but now and again, it pissed him off some. He glanced over his shoulder when Tynan opened the door and reached for his sleeping bride-to-be.

“Need some help back there?”

Tynan wrapped a sleeping Naomi protectively in his arms. “Fuck off.”

Nathan grinned. He wasn’t past baiting his friend where Naomi was concerned. But he had to admire Tynan’s strength of character, that he could put away Naomi’s past relationship with Nathan and move on toward a future with the woman he loved.

When Tynan came around to the driver’s side, Nathan wound down the window.

Tynan leaned close, moving Naomi gently in his arms. She sighed and snuggled closer, her arms loose around his neck. “If we get that new software working tomorrow, we can get a head start on loading the data before our meeting with Mallory next week. Naomi’s on call, so I’ve got to be at home for a delivery. Want to load my system first, then do yours on Sunday?”

“Yeah. That’ll work. I’ll be over early. You can shout me breakfast.”

“Not too early.” Tynan grinned. “My female’s not on call until ten, if you get my drift.”

This time it was Nathan’s turn to mutter, “Fuck off.” After which he drove away.

Chapter Three

“Didn’t expect it to take that long,” Tynan complained, watching the last stream of data load on the computer system in his home office. “At least we’ve teased out the problems. Downloading your system should be a breeze.”

Nathan swigged back the dregs of cold coffee and grimaced. “I’ll copy the coding and get it started tonight.”

“Another night without a hot date?”

“Right now, this is more important.”

The two partners were involved in a government security detail for a visiting dignitary and were tasked to monitor online activity which strongly hinted at a possible kidnap attempt on his family.

“You must be losing your touch,” Tynan prompted. “You were once the quintessential multi-tasker when it came to combining work and pussy.”

“My touch is the same as it always was. Maybe better.” Nathan gathered up the array of mugs they’d used for coffee during the day. “I’ll put on fresh. You got anything to eat around here?”

“Naomi shot me a text thirty minutes ago. She’s grabbing some sandwiches for us on her way home. Said she knew we probably hadn’t eaten since breakfast.”

Nathan checked his watch, surprised it was almost four in the afternoon. He headed down to the kitchen and put up fresh coffee. While he waited, he planted his feet and rolled out his neck. Working at computers all day took its toll on a man. He didn’t know how Tynan did it but thanked the gods that he was the real techie of the team. Nathan enjoyed fieldwork more. He liked being in the thick of the action. There were times he missed Special Ops. Missed the excitement of it, the strategy of battle, the feeling that each moment could be your last. A man seemed to live to the fullest when he lived on the edge.

It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy what he did now. But sometimes he felt the need to kick ass. Like now. He felt edgy, restless.

The run last night when he’d gotten home hadn’t done him much good. Normally when he shifted into panther form, he was able to run off any tension and agitation. Maybe Tynan was right and he shouldn’t have cut his nose off to spite his face where the breathy Caroline was concerned. At least a hot piece of ass might have taken the edge off.

He rolled out his neck again, stuffed his hands in the pockets of his pants and stretched his back.

“Oh.”

At the exclamation behind him, Nathan turned and met the startled gaze of the woman from last night. Erin. That was all he damn well needed.

“Err, Naomi told me to put these out here.” She held a grocery bag in each hand, a bunch of yellow flowers poking out of one. “Sandwiches and fruit and…she’s gone upstairs to see Tynan.”

She was pretty easy on the eye, Nathan decided. Even if she was an overopinionated human female with a Goody Two-shoes complex. With a talent honed from years of enjoying and appraising the female form, he allowed his gaze to scan her assets. Slim, bordering on skinny, but her breasts would fill his palms. And there was a curvy little ass, one he’d taken a good look at when she’d walked away from him last night. Her brown hair was cut short, reminding him of a pixie, and her average height and slight build added to her youthful appeal. But though her light blue eyes seemed innocent, there was a depth to them, a wariness.

Because staring into them made him uncomfortable, he let his gaze slip to her mouth. While that didn’t make him uncomfortable, it gave him a definite jolt to the system. Shit, but he bet the female could kiss. His cock jerked its agreement, and Nathan could almost feel those moist, wet lips taking him in.

Fuck.

He swallowed, took a breath, then reached out for the bags she still held. “What the hell? This weighs like you’ve bought up enough food to feed the troops.” He popped them on the counter. “Are you expecting a siege of marauding armies fixing to take over Bodmin?”

The downward turn of her mouth was almost a sneer. “Some of it’s mine. I met Naomi in the store, and she invited me back for coffee. Since my cottage is the other side of town, she said to put my perishables in her refrigerator while I’m here.”

Not waiting to be told, Nathan dug in the bags. His prowess in the kitchen didn’t amount to much, but he knew what needed to go where. “Which part?” he asked, stacking butter and cheese on the top shelf of the fridge.

“Excuse me?”

“Your cottage. Which part of town?”

She turned away from him. “West,” she said, wrapping her arms across her chest. “Up toward the moor.”

“Nice area.”

She nodded, still avoiding his gaze. For some reason, it pissed him off. “I’d offer to take your coat, but since you look like your nerves are strung tight as a freaking drum—”

“There’s nothing wrong with my nerves.” Now she looked at him, that accusatory chin angled in his direction and her eyes spitting fire.

He held up his hands, palms out. “Whatever you say, sugar. But I’m still not taking your coat. You might get the wrong idea, seeing as you’ve got me down as some lecherous bastard who uses women.”

Pink speared across her cheeks. “I didn’t say that. Exactly.”

Taking his time, he leaned back against the counter and crossed his own arms. “Good as.” And he hadn’t realized until that moment that it still rankled. “You want to get your facts straight before you accuse people of that kind of stuff. It could get you in trouble.”

She visibly swallowed, one hand sliding up to cover her throat, and her eyes again filled with that wary quality. He thought that if she had anywhere to go right then, she would have backed away from him like a frightened animal. As it was, she was flat against the wall.

Last night she’d taken him on, yet now she seemed almost scared of him. Before he could think further on that, he stepped forward, and she visibly flinched.

Nathan immediately backed away. While he liked to put women on their back foot—he was perverse that way—he didn’t enjoy having them recoil from his presence.

Naomi chose that moment to breeze through the door. “Bloody hell, Nathan. Why haven’t you taken Erin’s coat?” She reached out toward Erin. “Give me that, and go sit down. Is that coffee almost ready?” she asked Nathan.

He was still watching Erin, trying not to fulfill all her expectations by ogling her breasts beneath the cream sweater she wore. If a woman was so obviously nervous in his company, it didn’t seem right to cop an eyeful. But, shit, his brief glimpse confirmed how fucking well she filled out that sweater. And away went his cock again.

“Couple more minutes, I’d say,” Nathan managed, forcing himself to answer Naomi’s question. He pushed away from the counter, nodding toward where Naomi got out fresh mugs from the cupboard. “Not for me. I’ve got to be heading out.”

He glanced at Erin and saw the look of relief flash over her face and the way her shoulders visibly relaxed. Well, damn. What was wrong with the woman? He’d never given her one reason to act like this around him. Okay, he’d implied she was his latest skirt last night, but damn it to hell, it wasn’t as if he’d pushed her into a dark corner and shoved his hand down her panties to prove it.

That perverse side of him battled for supremacy and he deliberately chose the chair right next to Erin. “Come to think of it, I guess I’ve got time for another coffee. What type of sandwiches are on offer?”

Naomi sorted plates and cutlery. “Meat for you and Tynan, brie and grape for Erin and myself. Plus, I’ve got your favorite. Tortilla chips.”

He groaned for effect. “I always knew I should have fought Tynan a lot harder for you.” He leaned back in his chair, making sure to let his knee brush Erin’s. She didn’t jolt, but he felt her discomfort flow like a wave of tension between them. Almost imperceptibly, she moved her leg away from his.

Erin hoped that Nathan couldn’t hear the rapid boom of her heart beating against her rib cage. God. What was wrong with her?

It was him. Nathan. There was something in him, some quality. Predatory and menacing. What was it about her that seemed to attract that type? Not that Nathan was anything like Justin. Nathan was in-your-face intimidating and didn’t even try to hide behind a façade of anything different, whereas Justin had been the epitome of charm, good manners and gallantry. At least on the surface. But when you even remotely scratched it, you saw an entirely different animal. She often wondered how she’d ever been taken in by Justin’s good-guy act. When had been the moment she thought it okay to simply give herself up to him, let him call the shots? Now, she didn’t know how she was ever supposed to fully trust anyone again. How would she know what sort of person they were? At least before it was too late. The only way was not to get close to anyone. To stay at arm’s length.

Nathan overwhelmed her, but she didn’t have to see him that much, did she? If she planned things better, she wouldn’t have to see him at all. She just had to make sure that she politely refused invites from Naomi, and Talia come to that, because it seemed Nathan was good friends with their men.

What had Nathan meant about fighting harder for Naomi? That implied he and Naomi had been an item at some stage. Yet Tynan didn’t seem in the least fazed that Naomi was still close with Nathan.

Erin suddenly felt incredibly alone, a sadness lying heavily on her chest. It really was true that sometimes you could feel more alone with people than you did in your own company. She had the desperate need to get back to her cottage, to Willa.

“Naomi, I don’t think I can stay,” she decided, gathering up her bag. “I’ve got to get back and walk Willa before it gets dark.”

“I’ve got everything ready now. Just have a quick sandwich. Nathan will drop you off on his way home.”

Not in a bloody million years. “No, really.”

Coming behind, Naomi pressed Erin’s shoulders, forcing her back down into the seat. “It’ll take you over thirty minutes to walk and ten for Nathan to drive. Which means you’ve got twenty minutes to enjoy coffee, a sandwich and a chat.” She leaned around the open kitchen door. “Tynan. Food’s up.”

Erin worried her hands together in her lap. How in God’s name was she supposed to sit next to the man in the confines of a car? Regardless that he made her feel uncomfortable, she didn’t like him. And she sure as hell knew he didn’t like her.

When Tynan joined them a couple of minutes later, he sat next to Naomi and opposite Nathan. “Before you go, I’d appreciate it if you could take a look at that partition wall we found.”

“Oh yeah,” Naomi agreed, swallowing the bite of sandwich she’d taken. “We knocked out this old cupboard when we were clearing things to make way for Tynan’s home office,” she explained to Erin. “We found this partition wall but can’t seem to see what it blocks or what it’s hiding. The screws are so tight and painted over, we can’t get it down to see what’s behind. Nathan’s good at architectural things. He built his own home. Out on the moor.”

“Designed it,” Nathan corrected. “You make it sound like I built it brick by brick.”

“You virtually did.”

Pride shone in Naomi’s voice, and Erin glanced at Tynan. He smiled at his friend, his free hand wrapping around Naomi’s. “You might as well take the compliment, bro,” he advised Nathan. “You know she’s your biggest fan.”

Nathan shrugged and bit into his sandwich.

“I thought the moor was protected land,” Erin offered, fascinated by the easy interaction between the trio. “Can people buy plots of land and build on it?”

Nathan glanced at her. “It’s not easy. But if you know the right people.” He raised his eyebrows. “Why? You interested?”

She shook her head. “I just wondered. It would be a travesty if they kept selling off chunks of the moor to private developers to build houses on. It’s so beautiful and unspoiled.”

Nathan’s eyebrows drew together in a scowl. “Meaning?”

“They wouldn’t,” Tynan said, smiling across at Erin. “But small pockets are privately owned and it’s sometimes possible to buy them and get permission to build. There’s plenty of hoops to jump through, which puts most people off anyway.”

Erin nodded, feeling Nathan’s critical gaze. She hadn’t meant to rile him or insinuate he was part of the destruction of the moor in any way. She’d simply been interested, having fallen in love with the place and felt a connection with it. Not that she was about to confess that. It had taken a while before she had been able to confess it to herself.

They fell into a discussion of simpler…safer…subjects until Erin started gathering up her empty plate and mug. “Thanks, Naomi. I enjoyed that. But I really have to get going.”

“No worries. Leave that,” she instructed. “Nathan, don’t forget to look at that partition on your way out.”

Minutes later, the four of them stood gazing at the corner section, which had been partitioned off. Erin made a point to stand next to Naomi and tried to ignore Nathan. But she couldn’t resist the odd glance.

Bloody hell but the man just seemed to ooze confidence. He simply radiated it. She wondered if he ever suffered self-doubt, had moments where life shoved him into a corner and beat the hell out of him. He had to have. Naomi had told her he was in the army with Caleb, Special Forces. He must have done things, seen things, that made a man question himself and his world. But watching him now, it was hard to believe anything could ever knock the stuffing from him. On some levels, it was appealing, and Erin wasn’t so immune to raw sex appeal and blatant masculinity that she didn’t experience the odd flutter of feminine appreciation when she looked at him. But she couldn’t afford to dwell on it, and besides, the man might be amazingly attractive but he had an ego to fly to the moon on, and from what she’d experienced of him so far, he didn’t seem to take women too seriously.

If ever there was a man not to be attracted to, it was this one. Not that she was attracted to him, exactly. But still…

“Wouldn’t think it’s load-bearing,” Nathan said, perusing the ceiling above the wall and its surroundings. “And it’s not positioned to hide pipe work or anything electrical.”

He gave it another knock with a light fist, which sounded hollow even to Erin’s inexperienced ear. When he tapped it again, this time harder and with more force, Erin felt her stomach roll. She made herself look away from the size of his fist, and the corded muscles in his arms. Her earlier attraction to his masculinity disappeared beneath a shudder of fear.