Forbidden Attraction (4 page)

He probably meant that her skin was white and her hair light blonde while he was darker-skinned than the sun would ever make her. His shiny black hair and dark eyes made him stand out like a deadly protector next to her. His gaze burned over her like fire and made it damned hard not to put other meanings into his words.

“What is your name?” he asked, surprising her.

“Heidi Lutgard.” She doubted this would count as a formal introduction, but in some circles, such an introduction would traditionally allow the werewolf a bit more liberty with a female. “And you?”

“Nicolo Spalto. Get in the truck and out of the cold.”

Heidi pulled open the passenger door and climbed into the truck. Nicolo placed the battery in the back of the truck, then climbed in next to her, closing in smells of winter cold and his dangerous masculine scent. Pressure built inside her, desire raw and daring swarming to a level she feared would too easily be detected. Nicolo struck her as a predator who wouldn’t miss a thing.

“You’d be smart to contact your pack leader now.” Nicolo slid the key into the ignition but didn’t start the truck. “The only way to return you to your pack is to tow you there. It will protect your honor.”

“If Bob thinks I’m disgraced because several Malta werewolves were kind enough to help me, then he only makes himself look narrow-minded.” The last thing she wanted to do was call her pack leader and bring attention to herself.

Nicolo moved too quickly for her to react. He grabbed her by her neck. Strong fingers gripped her shoulder as he dragged her across the seat toward him. She fought for a moment, instinct kicking in without thought. Unable to get free from his grasp, she slapped her hand over his thigh, at least needing to balance herself.

Every inch of this werewolf had to be hard as steel. Solid muscle twitched slightly in his leg when she touched him. She stared into smoldering dark eyes that were now inches from her face.

“Do you think I don’t smell your lust and curiosity, little bitch?” he growled, his lips barely moving. “Any rank I may have in my pack would mean nothing to yours.

And I would never disgrace any bitch, whether they were from my pack or not.”

18

Forbidden Attraction

He let go of her with some force, shoving her back to her side of the truck. She hit the passenger door, fighting the urge to leap at him and strike out for being treated so brutally. Such an act would be fool’s play. She pulled down the visor, adjusting the mirror to look at her neck. He’d gripped her hard enough that she swore his fingers were still there, wrapped around her. Her flesh was red, but it was nothing that wouldn’t fade in the next minute or so. Her insides twisted with outrage over being pawed by this werewolf, although at the same time desire escalated so quickly her heart raced. Nicolo Spalto would be a rough lover, aggressive and demanding more than any werewolf she’d ever imagined.

“When I mark you, you’ll know it,” he told her and turned the key in the ignition.

Nicolo stopped the truck behind Heidi’s parked car. His littermate and Josie stood watch on the sidewalk, like two sentinels. The street appeared abandoned, the bad weather and werewolves in town enough to send all humans behind closed and locked doors. Good place for them to be. It would make rigging Heidi’s car to the back of the truck a lot easier.

She hopped out before he could tell her to stay put. Getting out on his side, Nicolo quickly told Dimitri about their luck in buying a new battery.

“Our bitches aren’t entering
lunewulf
territory,” Dimitri made clear after they’d secured Heidi’s car to the back of the truck.

“You don’t have enough room in your truck for all of you to ride.” Rosa waved one of her hands at the truck while scowling at Dimitri. “And I can take care of myself as well as you can, wolf man,” she hissed, lowering her voice while staring him down.

Nicolo gave Dimitri credit for not knocking the mouthy bitch into her place for speaking to her pack leader like that. Instead he turned from her, ignoring her last comment.

“Josie. Ride with the two bitches back to our pack. Nicolo and I will escort the
lunewulf
to her pack.” Dimitri didn’t wait for confirmation. He walked up to Nicolo.

“One of us drives the truck and the other rides in her car to navigate it.”

Nicolo didn’t hesitate. Something about this little
lunewulf
bitch appealed to him, although Dimitri would throw a fit if he told him that.

“I’ll drive the truck.” He ignored Dimitri when he cocked his head and searched Nicolo’s face, sniffing the air between them. Instead Nicolo walked over to Heidi, who stood a few feet away from the rest of them with her arms crossed, staring at the ground. “Get in the truck and call your pack leader like a good little bitch. We’re taking you to your pack.”

“I don’t have a signal,” she snapped at him.

The little
lunewulf
bitch dared to stare him down. He growled at her, stepping closer, until she jumped out of his path and hurried to get into the truck.

19

Lorie O’Clare

Snow stuck to the windshield, making the trip over the mountain a dangerous one, especially towing Heidi’s car. Nicolo doubted they’d get a thank you for their efforts, but he wouldn’t allow her pack leader to bash Heidi for her predicament. She sat quietly next to him, but her nervousness was easy to smell.

“Check your phone for a signal,” he told her, breaking the silence. It wouldn’t hurt to give her a distraction. “Let him know we’re bringing you to your den.”

She made a face, looking as if she’d rather do anything but place the call, but she didn’t argue. In the next minute, she explained to a growling werewolf at the other end of the line that they would be at her den soon. She spoke respectfully to her pack leader, but didn’t hesitate or stumble over her words. Heidi expressed appreciation for the Malta werewolves’ help and didn’t sound regretful over any of her actions. When she hung up, she straightened, tilting her head at him with an almost defiant look.

“He’ll meet us at my den,” she told Nicolo, clutching her phone in her lap.

The little bitch ran true and would acknowledge her actions to anyone without regrets.

“I’m sure he will.” Nicolo didn’t care about any reception they would receive in
lunewulf
territory.

Heidi hadn’t asked for this, and he would make damn sure her pack leader knew it.

Her actions were proof of a bitch to be honored. He wondered why she didn’t have a mate. Maybe none of those
lunewulfs
were good enough for her.

They pulled up in front of her small den, a cottage-type home set back from the quiet road with other houses lining the block in similar fashion. The
lunewulfs
had a quaint-looking town on their mountain. Nicolo experienced a twinge of envy. With proper funding, Malta werewolves could live as well. If only Werewolf Affairs would get over their fear for his kind.

“Do you live here alone?” Nicolo got out of the truck and walked around when Heidi jumped out into the snow on her side.

“Yes.” She glanced up and down the street while Dimitri started undoing the tow chains. “I finally have my own den.”

“Give me your keys.”

Heidi looked at him, her blue eyes hitting a deeper color while her scent turned toward something like hesitation.

She bit her lip. “It’s not locked.”

Nicolo growled. A bitch as fucking hot as Heidi, living by herself and not bothering to lock her den, needed a strong leash. He marched through the snow and climbed her porch steps, which were barely noticeable under the mounds of snow covering them.

He shook his head, his protector instincts kicking in when he grabbed her doorknob and pushed the door open easily.

20

Forbidden Attraction

He kicked snow off his boots, then ran his fingers through his damp hair before entering. What the fuck was he doing? Drop the bitch off and leave. She was a
lunewulf
, a breed quite possibly trying to destroy his kind. He’d be safer sniffing after a human.

Worse yet, he wasn’t looking for a bitch. Not at all. The pack barely had its paws on the ground. With so much work to do, he had no time to see any bitch.

He pushed her door open, sniffing the air inside her den. He’d make sure her den had no strays lingering and waiting, and then he’d leave. Instantly, his lungs filled with her scent. It wrapped around him, drawing him in and hardening every muscle in his body. And his cock.

He walked through her quiet, orderly den. All appearances showed she’d told the truth. One toothbrush in the bathroom, one towel, a clean kitchen and a nicely made double-sized bed in a sweet-smelling bedroom. Heidi lived alone.

That didn’t mean other werewolves didn’t stop by from time to time.

Which was none of his fucking business.

He smelled her before she spoke. Turning around, he took her in, arms crossed over her chest, her head cocked and an almost amused expression on her face.

“Are you satisfied?” Heidi’s blue eyes glistened. She scraped her teeth over her lower lip and sucked in a breath.

“Hardly,” he grumbled, loving how her eyes widened and streaked with silver when he approached her.

She’d taken off her coat, giving him the first full view of her hot little body. Her athletic build appealed to him, which struck him as odd because he’d always been partial to the more full-figured bitches. Heidi was anything but full-figured. She was slim and not too muscular. He hadn’t seen many
lunewulf
bitches that he’d cared for—

most of them were too petite. Her breasts were small and perky, her stomach flat and her hips perfect for grabbing a hold of while he slid her down on his cock.

“What would satisfy you?” she whispered, the words tickling his ears and making his skin prickle.

“I might take the time to find out.” He ignored the rational side of him, the side that told him there was no point in tasting her, seeing how her skin felt under his touch.

He paid no attention to any of that and instead stepped closer until she’d backed up against her wall. He didn’t smell fear, just curiosity. Closing in on her didn’t upset her—instead, lust hung heavily in the air around them. And on her, it had a rich, sweet smell.

Nicolo leaned down, nipping at her lip. He scraped the smooth flesh with his teeth, tasting her and instantly wanting more. Heidi cried out, grabbing his arms with her small hands.

“Are you this big everywhere?” she asked, her voice taunting while she dared flirt with him.

21

Lorie O’Clare

His cock stretched toward his belt, instantly eager to prove his size to her—to show her what she ached to know.

Her hair was short, but still long enough that he could grab it, pull her head back and devour her mouth. She stretched against him, but he pressed into her so that she couldn’t move with the wall behind her. In spite of her size, Heidi had little fear. Her gutsiness added to her incredible sex appeal.

She hissed into his mouth, opening for him, giving and taking while her tongue danced around his. Her fingers dug into his arms and then scraped a path to his shoulders where she held on. The slight pinch of her nails through his shirt gave hint to how wild a lover she’d be.

God! He ached to find out.

Moving his hand between them, he cupped her small breast, finding her nipple hard and erect and tweaking it between his finger and thumb. This time when she cried out, it was into his mouth, feeding him with a lust more savage and on fire than he’d experienced with any bitch before.

“Nicolo!” Dimitri’s bark sounded far away.

But Heidi jumped and quickly lowered her face. He hated the feeling of being caught doing something he shouldn’t have done. More than anything, he wanted Heidi to know they had unfinished business. But not once in his life had he made a promise he couldn’t keep. And he wouldn’t do it to this sweet little bitch now.

Turning, he put his hand protectively out, keeping her behind him. Dimitri stood on the front porch, staring into the den.

“What?” he demanded.

“Her pack is here. Get your ass out here,” Dimitri hissed and then stomped off her porch.

“Shit,” Heidi murmured from behind him. “They can’t come in here.”

He understood her meaning. The den reeked of their sexual craving. He wouldn’t disgrace her like that. With two long strides, he moved across her small living room and out onto the front porch. Heidi had her coat back on her, covering her lustful scent with smells from the outside when she hurried onto the porch following him.

Dimitri stood next to the truck, speaking with an older
lunewulf
. With a swat, Nicolo could have sent him flying.

“That’s our pack leader, Bob Abbey.”

“That’s right. I vaguely remember him.” Nicolo glanced at Heidi, who’d moved next to him on the porch.

“Don’t judge him by appearance.” She suddenly sounded defensive, as if she’d judged by his look that he didn’t think much of her pack leader. “He’s done a hell of a lot for our pack since we’ve been here.”

22

Forbidden Attraction

Suddenly, he had questions—lots of questions. Where had she lived before here?

Where was her den from? It bugged him how much he ached to know more about Heidi.

For now, he’d let her know one thing. “I want to see you again.”

She looked up at him, biting her lip as if he’d just shared a secret with her. Her eyes glowed when she nodded her head slowly. “You got it, wolf man.”

He shouldn’t have said it, should have left well enough alone. Their worlds could quite easily collide with each other, and he’d no more ask her to give up her heritage than he would give up his own. That reality settled heavily on his heart. Nicolo bounded down the stairs, stomping through the snow until he reached Dimitri.

“All I’m saying is that barbed wire sliced one of our pack members almost in two,”

Dimitri said to the
lunewulf
pack leader.

Nicolo didn’t regret missing out on this conversation. Bob Abbey didn’t look pleased. He turned his sour expression on Nicolo.