Her Wanted Wolf (5 page)

He was nobody’s science project.

Grasping the two halves of his whole, he willed the man to dominate the
wolf. It took a lot of effort to shove back the rage which held him in the grip
of his were’s body. Their eyes widened with shock as his fur receded, honed
tendons covered bone, and his body bulked out. Drew pulled himself up his six foot
four inch height to glare up at the women. He caught their gasps, and their
shocked expressions soothed his wounded male pride…a little.

He’d bet his last dollar they’d think twice about letting him go now.

With an experienced eye, he measured the depth of the hole. It had to be
thirty feet at the very least.

Even gripped by his fury, Drew’s body responded to the siren call of the
she-wolf’s scent who lured him into the mess he found himself. The familiar
achy pull in his groin preceded the tightening of his ball-sac and the slow
persistent rise of his erection.

Angered and aroused by her unique bouquet, Drew fixed his gaze on the
moon-washed figure, taking in every minute detail. His mouth dried up as he
felt himself respond to the sight of her full breasts, narrow waist, and the
wide sweep of her pelvis. His eyes lingered on the silver-gilt down covering
her mons. He kept his eyes fixed on her body, but not because he was a horn
dog. If anything, he feared if their gazes collided, he might have to
acknowledge something he didn’t want to.

His body and senses recognized her on a primal level. She’d give him
strong, healthy cubs. All he had to do was claim her. The possessiveness of his
thoughts gave him pause. He’d claim no woman as his own, never again.

To prove to himself that the connection didn’t matter, he lifted his eyes
to meet her intrigued gaze.

Drew shook off the intoxicating effects of her fragrance and addressed
her in the low, commanding timbre of an alpha reprimanding one of his
subordinates.

“To deliberately lead a wolf into this pit is tantamount to killing him.
I have the right to sink my teeth into your ruff,” he gritted out between bared
teeth.

The warm expression in her eyes cooled, her brows lifted in mock alarm,
and a smirk twisted her lips. “It seems we’ve caught ourselves a big, bad alpha
wolf. One who has delusions of dominance.”

The amused derision in his tormentor’s voice took Drew aback.

“You’re in no position to threaten us. I’d say you’re at a bit of a
disadvantage.” His captor crossed her arms under her lush breasts, and shot him
a fuck-you sneer.

“I’d disagree. That’s some weapon he’s wielding there.” The amused remark
from the last female elicited a snort from the woman Drew found damned near
impossible to drag his eyes from.

“It’s not much.” Her declaration piggybacked a dismissive grimace.

His ego stomped into to the ground again, Drew invited, “Come on down
here and repeat that. You’ll change your tune when you’re under me.”

“Oh for Heaven’s sake, Sabine, don’t rile him up any more. We need his
cooperation.” Gesturing with her hand, the nervous little she-wolf introduced
the three. “We’re Sabine, Ishbel, and Ala Silverwolf. We need your help. Our
apologies for using this method to get your attention, but we are desperate.”

Ala’s shorter, curvier stature set her apart from her taller sisters. He
surmised she’d be the one least likely to give him any trouble. Drew already
identified the ringleader as the wolf he’d chased. Sabine. He now had a name
for his nemesis.

“Don’t apologize to him, Ala. He ran, nose first, blinded by visions of
mounting me, into our trap,” Sabine derided. “We need an alpha a little
brighter, one who’s not so easily led by his cock.”

Did she just call him stupid? Hell, what a ball buster.

Ala ignored her. “If you agree to at least listen to us, we’ll lever a
tree trunk down and you can climb out.”

“I won’t be coerced to make bargains.” Drew eyed them, marking the
subtle, but telling differences of their fragrances.

He memorized the anxious sweetness of the nervous sprite, and the
tartness of the nonchalant blonde beside her. The spicy, challenging allure of
the woman whose bait he’d sucked in like a nectar-drunk bee he already knew.

The little one turned to the other two. “He’s not as amenable as I
thought he’d be to help werekin in need of aide. He’s going to be difficult.”

“He’ll stay there until he gives us his word to at least listen to us,”
Sabine stated with a belligerent thrust of her chin.

Drew considered the confident glitter in her eyes and met it with a stony
glare of his own. This Sabine believed she had him right where she wanted him.
In a short time, he’d disabuse her of that erroneous belief. “If you think I’m
going to do anything to buy my way out of here, you can think again. I’ll be
getting out of here sooner than you think.” He shot them a smile showing all
his teeth. They fell silent and stared at him, wide-eyed. His nostrils flared
at the sharp tang of unease emitting from the trio.

Yes, let them be afraid. They’d corralled a dangerous predatory were with
a single purpose. Anything standing in his way was expendable—including these
three women.

“A few days without food might change your way of thinking.” The
conviction in Sabine’s tone wasn’t as firm as before.

“Hell will freeze over first.” Drew’s laconic reply brought a scowl to
her face.

It was way past time to show them their plan had gone awry. With were
strength, he could make the leap up to where they were. They had no inkling
they were about to be eye-to-eye with him.

“I’m not about to be dictated to by a trio of girls who haven’t got a
clue what they’re up against.” Drew dropped down on his haunches and began to
shift into were form.

Mid-shift, he stopped, and gathered the strength of his were. He couldn’t
get out of the trap as man or wolf, so he’d use the two halves of his whole. The
powerful muscles in his legs bunched, and he used them to propel himself
upward. He grabbed onto an outcropping of rock, biceps and massive shoulders
burning under the strain of his weight. He used the stony projection to vault
himself skyward. He sailed over the women’s heads, and landed directly behind
Sabine with a loud, joint-rattling thud.

Drew wrapped his arm around Sabine’s neck before she had a chance to
react. He dragged her back to separate her from her sisters, careful to keep an
eye on them. He wasn’t in the mood to get caught with his pants down again,
figuratively speaking, by a bunch of girls. His battered ego couldn’t take it.

Sabine’s heels drummed into his shins and her fingernails raked over his
forearm. Drew winced but kept his mouth shut. The pain from the gouges she put
in his flesh served to rekindle his rage and another unwanted emotion.

Need.
The kind that sank into your soul, became ingrained, and
rode you until you slaked the wanting.

The sweet curve of her butt wiggled over his groin. Drew’s cock hardened
to a painful rigidity. The tart, anger-driven aroma Sabine emitted prodded him
to take her there and then.

Drew whispered in her ear, “You need to stop rubbing your sweet ass
against my cock like that. I might not be able to stop myself from putting you
on all fours and taking you.”

“You mutt!” Her snarl accompanied another round of frantic wiggling.

A faint brush of fur over his belly alerted him that Sabine had started
to slip into were form.

Drew shook her to break her concentration. “Don’t even try it. If you
change, I’ll shift too. My wolf will mount you. It’s straining to shed the
restraints my human psyche put on me.”

“I wouldn’t let a mongrel like you cover me,” she snarled at him. She
didn’t shift, but the tension in her body told him she would the moment it was
expedient.

“You can’t say I didn’t warn you,” he growled into her ear. Unable to
help himself, he nipped Sabine’s neck.

The other two she-wolves rushed him. The intimate act of placing his
mouth on Sabine’s neck was an insult to their sister, but he was so pissed, he
wanted to do something to put some fear in her.

He tightened his arm around Sabine’s neck until she gasped for air. “Stop
or I’ll snap her neck.”

Ala and Ishbel skidded to a halt, confusion on their faces.

“You wouldn’t. You are an alpha male. It’s not in you to harm a she-wolf.
You’re duty-bound to protect us,” the little one declared, her tone unsure, but
hopeful.

“Didn’t I mention I’m not a toe-the-line kind of guy?”

Sabine stopped struggling, but her tense body warned him she hadn’t given
up. She twisted her body to face him and aimed her clawed fingertips at his
vulnerable belly.

Drew caught her hand inches from wounding him. “Don’t ever try that
again, or I will make you sorrier than you’ve ever been in your life,” he
whispered.

Her silvery-blue eyes widened with fright at the menace in his voice, but
she recovered quickly, glared at him, and tried to knee him in the crotch. A
twist to the side saved his balls from being shoved up into his throat.

“I’m already the sorriest I’ve ever been in my life. I met you. There is
no honor in holding a smaller wolf captive,” she fumed, her voice a little
shaky, but she strained against his grip.

“Insults at every turn. You might want to keep a lid on that. Don’t talk
to me about honor. You just led me into a trap using a lure you had no business
using unless you were prepared to deliver.” His shaft pulsed between their
bodies as if to give emphasis to his words. Sabine’s body stiffened and she
fell silent.

“Where is your alpha and what the hell is he thinking allowing you to run
wild on your own?” He wrapped his other arm around her waist when she tried to
sink to the ground to slip out of his hold.

He had to give her credit, she didn’t give up. Drew shook her again when
she refused to answer.

“He’s in our den, and he sent us out to bring another alpha to him,” Ala
blurted out.

“Ala, shut up,” Sabine snapped.

“Well, he’ll be coming with us anyway. He’s the first alpha we’ve found
who smells right,” Ala pointed out to her sister.

His interest caught, Drew turned to Ala. “Smells right?” The possibility
of his hunt not being totally lost caught his attention. “Tell me what you
meant by the wolves smelling strange and I’ll consider your request.”

“A pack of wolves exuding abnormal spoor has encroached on our territory.
We’ve avoided them by cloaking ourselves. Our alpha is dying, and since he
doesn’t have a son to succeed him, he sent us out to seek a viable alpha to
take care of our pack.” The words spilled out of Ala’s mouth in a rush.

Her story explained a lot. They shielded themselves and inadvertently
helped the Redmavens to remain undetected.

“You can go to hell. We don’t need you. I can take care of my family!”
The aggrieved statement came from his captive. The intimate press of Sabine’s
body was too much to bear. She wouldn’t keep still despite his warning.

Drew sighed and released Sabine. “By pack law, the strongest male in your
clan can challenge your father for the position of alpha.” He stepped back to
put some distance between them.

Sabine exuded hot fury. She’d take a swipe at him if she got the chance.
Ala shook her head. “That’s the problem. For the last three generations, only
girls have been whelped. We are now a clan of twenty women. Our father is the
sole male in our pack, and he’s gravely ill. Will you come?”

Drew couldn’t dismiss her heartfelt plea. Shit, he needed to resume his
hunt, but honor and pack law compelled him to see to their safety.

Drew closed his eyes and groaned inwardly. He could not leave the women
out here on their own unprotected. Being in the presence of a score of women
was going to play havoc on his hair-trigger libido. No, let him amend that. It
was his close proximity to Sabine. Her scent roused the dormant needs and
desires he thought long dead. It wasn’t just sex. A persistent singular mating
call tugged at his base form. This she-wolf called to him now, and no other
would do.

Drew let out a deep sigh. “I need to find the dead wolf’s den as soon as
possible.”

Sabine took a step forward. “I know where their den is. Talk to
Balthazar. After that, I’ll show you where it is.”

Drew shot her a hard glare. “I think I can manage to find it on my own
once I move beyond the influence you use to obscure your presence. It would
have been easier to get the information from the cub, but you screwed that up
for me. You could have masked yourself and let him go on his way.”

“I sent out a lure for
you
, and he picked up on it. He tried to
take me. I had no choice but to defend myself,” Sabine said matter-of-factly.
“Besides, what would you have done once you caught up with him? The two of you
would’ve fought. There is so much untapped rage in you, stranger, it emanates
off you in waves.”

Drew didn’t need her to point that out to him. He lived, breathed, and
embraced the anger in him. It traveled with him like a constant welcome
companion. He used it to keep himself focused on the only goal that mattered.
Finding his sister.

“I’ll see your sire. After that, you’ll point me in the direction of the
dead wolf’s den. I don’t need you getting in the way.” Drew jerked his head for
her to get moving.

Sabine’s laughter raked over his raw nerves.

“You won’t get within a mile of the den without my help to mask your
scent. The spot where the den is located is almost perfect. It’s in a narrow
canyon, with only one way in or out. It seems you’ve got a bit of dilemma on
your hands.” Her little got-you smirk annoyed him to no end. She had him over a
barrel, and she knew it.

Drew gritted his teeth. Fuck, he felt like beating his head against a
wall.

He’d stumbled on a tool that would allow him to creep up on his elusive
enemies. That was the plus. The downside came in the form of a sharp-tongued
she-wolf.