Moonsong (14 page)

A steady litany of curses left her lips, not particularly paying attention to where she was going, but heading in the general direction of the house. Not that she wanted to go back there, but where else was she going to go? Back home she had her room to hole up in when life’s problems stalked her, but there… she was acutely aware that she was in her grandmother’s house and there by her good graces alone. Would Gran turn her out on the street if she didn’t want to play their werewolf auction games?

All at once she stopped stock still, unable to take another step. What would she do if she returned only to be told she’d been bartered off like a prized cow? If they wanted to grab her and shove her into the limousine, was there anything she could do to stop them? Sick with that thought, Amelia sank to the ground.

How had things gotten so crazy so fast? Little more than a week ago she’d been in blissful ignorance, and her family had been alive and well. All of a sudden she was trapped with no future but what they dictated to her; lulled into thinking she had a choice, but that was laughable now. Adele would do what she thought best for the pack; Millie’s needs would come second.

Shoulders bowed as the tears began to fall, drowning in a rush of self pity. Millie wept for all she’d lost; past, present and future.

* * *

The dark wolf watched her from as close as he dared, emitting a high pitched whine as he noted her distress. Her cry back at the cabin had drawn him to respond immediately, shifting effortlessly to four legs to reach her all that much quicker. Fearing she was in danger as her roiling emotions were almost palpable to him, he followed her as he always did, to ensure her safely home. Only it appeared she was in no hurry to get there. Didn’t she stop to think what a target she presented?

Scenting the air, he could find no trace of any predator in that part of the woods, save himself of course, but that didn’t lessen his worry for her safety. Creeping slightly closer, he studied her as she wept, shoulders shaking with misery. He hated to see women cry in general, but that was nothing compared to how he felt at seeing Amelia in such distress. Cutter ached to gather her into his arms and kiss away those tears, stroke that velvety skin and murmur soft words of encouragement into her hair as he soothed her.

From her halting curses, he gathered she was upset with Adele, and that hardly surprised him, but it still confounded him as to how to make things better without getting involved. He couldn’t allow himself to become entwined in her life more than he already was. Almost against his own volition, his feet carried him closer, freezing when his paws crunched on dead leaves, paying more attention to her than to his own footing.

Amelia’s head came up at the sound, looking around for any sign of who might be approaching. She froze when her eyes lit upon the muzzle of the huge black wolf. “Oh please Lord, let this whole day have been nothing but a bad dream…” she whispered aloud. The wolf remained where he was, not wanting to scare her, but she seemed unafraid when he didn’t disappear.

“Great, just great. As if this day couldn’t get any worse, now I’m about to be gobbled up by the big bad wolf. Well, go ahead then, get it over with. If you’re gonna eat me then eat me,” she demanded crossly, throwing up her hands in exasperation.

The wolf regarded her in puzzlement, never having had anyone address it in that form before. His head cocked to one side as he studied her, tongue lolling out of his mouth to demonstrate he was amused by her show of bravado.

“Well? What are you waiting for, huh? I’ve been told by the highest authority I’m very sweet, so here you go,” she held out one slender arm in his direction. “No? Fine, suit yourself. So much for getting things over quick and easy like.”

Did she truly wish to be ravaged by wolves as a viable alternative to whatever bothered her? The wolf lost its amused look and stepped closer, moving slowly so as not to scare her. He let out another high pitched whine and stopped to sit beside her, his muzzle level with her face.

“You’re a friendly wolf then?” she asked, holding up her hand to let him sniff it if he chose to do so. “Maybe you’re a friend of Cutter’s even, hanging around in his woods?”

The wolf pushed it’s snout against her hand and gave it a tentative lick in response, surprised to find her so unaffected by such a dangerous animal. Didn’t the girl have enough common sense to run screaming from a wild animal that size?

“Hey, that tickles,” Millie laughed, snatching her hand away and wiping it on her lap. Reaching up again, her hand sank into the thick fur, gently stroking the proud head. “I should get back before they send someone after me,” Millie gave a long drawn out sigh. Nudging himself forward, the wolf lay his heavy head upon her lap, anchoring her there. “Or I could stay a bit longer,” she chuckled, stroking the animal’s back. “But if they send out a search party for me you’d better beat feet, fella. I’d hate for anything to happen to you on my account.”

The wolf lay there, enjoying her gentle touch as she sat lost in thought. Until she began to speak again, and he wondered if she was always so candid with wild animals.

“It’s really stupid for me to be out here, I don’t know what I was thinking,” she sighed again. “I obviously can’t count on him; I need to figure out things for myself. Even if that means leaving and taking my chances with the other packs trying to get their hands on me.” A gentle shove was given to the big head and then a little more firmly. “Come on, up you go, time for me to stop hiding and go home. Hopefully Adele isn’t waiting for me with a pair of shackles and a leash.”

The wolf chuffed once as she shoved him off, not wanting her to go, but unable to keep her from leaving in his present state without scaring her.

Kneeling, Millie stroked behind his ears and laid a kiss on top of his head. “Goodbye fella, I’ll see you in my dreams tonight,” she rose to her feet, continuing on her trek back to the house.

The comment about her dreams startled him enough to simply stare at her retreating form. Did she dream about him the same way he dreamt of her? But how could she if she’d never seen his wolf form before? Realizing he’d lost his precious charge, he hurriedly trotted after her to see her safely home.

Chapter Fourteen

Amelia slipped into the house as silently as possible, a ludicrous thought in a household of werewolves she supposed, but she encountered no one on the way to her room. Of course, more than likely they were all still tucked away in Gran’s study, haggling over her bridal price.

That particular train of thought propelled her up the stairs even faster, and she didn’t take another breath until she reached the dubious sanctuary of her bedroom. Feeling less and less like sticking around to find out what they decided to do with her, she started tossing clothes on the bed, deciding what to fit into her pack for a road trip.

A soft scratch came to the door, drawing Millie’s head up in surprise, and not a little fear. Would they be coming for her already? “Who is it?” she managed to ask, barely above a whisper.

“It’s me,” Chase’s low voice floated back to her through the door.

“What do you want?” Millie could hear his drawn out sigh at her question.

“Would you open the door and let me in?” Amelia drew the door open warily, figuring he could force it open at any time if he decided to. With the door opened, Chase pushed his way past her into the room and shut the door behind him. “Are you okay?”

“What kind of question is that; should I be okay? Isn’t Grandmother downstairs selling me off to the highest bidder?” she laughed bitterly.

“She’s not selling you off,” he dismissed her worries with a shake of the head. “She wouldn’t do that, it’s not part of her plan, and I wouldn’t let her even if she wanted to.”

“You really think she cares about what you want in this? Or what I want for that matter?” she gave him a scathing look and Chase stepped closer, cupping the sides of her face with his hands.

“Millie… I will never let them hurt you, do you understand? I don’t care what the hell Adele has in mind for you; I swear to you, I will not let them take you away from me,” he vowed, eyes blazing with intensity before he leaned in and took possession of her mouth, kissing her passionately.

Swept up in the emotion of his vow and the passion of his kiss, Millie tried to keep her wits about her. Could she trust him to take care of her? If she chose him as her mate it would settle things for her, give her a home there, a purpose. She wouldn’t have to worry about being fought over or kidnapped or sold. But did she feel more than physical attraction for him?

Chase pressed his advantage, wooing her with his mouth and hands; he gently backed her towards the bed as the kiss turned carnal. He was good, she had to give him that, everywhere he kissed her felt tingly and alive, and part of her was very, very interested in the way he made her feel. Amelia suspected that any physical relationship consummated between the two of them would have much longer reaching consequences for the both of them, whether she wanted them to or not.

Finding it difficult to let go and accept him the way he wanted her to, she pulled away from the kiss, pressing her forehead to his. She needed to think things through. “I can’t… not like this… I’m not ready.”

Clenching his teeth in frustration, Chase closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. “Millie, you know I’m crazy about you,” he said finally, pulling back enough to look into her eyes.

“You barely know me, Chase. That’s my whole point, all of this is happening too damn fast. I don’t know if you want me for me or because of the prophecy,” she sank down on the edge of the bed.

“Who says it has to be either or? Maybe it’s both,” he gave her a lopsided grin, leaning in to kiss her cheek as he sat beside her. “You can’t tell me you’re not interested. You couldn’t kiss me like that if you weren’t into me at least a little bit,” he pointed out.

“I never said I wasn’t interested, but you’re asking me for too much too soon. I just got here after making it through the biggest upheaval in my life. I need some time to catch my breath before I jump into the next life altering decision, okay? Besides, a girl likes to be wooed a little,” she smiled at him.

“You want to be wooed? I can do that. I can do that no problem.” Chase rose and gave her a deep bow, picking up her hand and pressing a kiss to the back of it. “Meet me tonight at midnight, out in the gazebo,” he waggled his eyebrows at her.

“Meet you out there in the middle of the night? What did you have in mind exactly?”

His brows waggled again comically, his smile growing wider. “A stroll in the moonlight, nothing more. You wanted to be wooed right? Well, I do my best wooing in the moonlight, ask anybody.”

“Yeah, I bet,” Millie smirked back. He was getting to her despite her best intentions to keep him at arm’s length. “Oh alright, I’ll meet you out there tonight, but just for a walk, nothing more,” her finger wagged at him to emphasize her point.

“I will bid you
adieu
then,
mademoiselle
. Until later… parting is such sweet sorrow.” Unable to keep the smirk from his face, he released her hand and disappeared out the door, leaving her sitting on the bed staring after him.

Millie flopped back to look up at the ceiling. Pleased that she’d successfully dodged a bullet and gained herself a little more time, she wondered if Chase really would be able to keep Adele at bay if push came to shove. Or would she be forced to leave the valley? Where would she go?

* * *

Meeting at midnight in the gardens sounded a lot more romantic than the reality of shivering in her coat in the chilly, autumn night air. Even in long pants and boots, her coat buttoned up tight, it was still cold enough for her to wish she’d thought of gloves and a scarf as she shoved her hands in her pockets and waited for Chase to arrive.

Luckily she didn’t have to wait long.

Chase appeared moments later, wearing dark pants and a poet’s shirt, open at the throat to expose the smoothly muscled chest beneath. “My lady,” he bowed before her, offering a single red rose.

“You know, when I said I wanted to be wooed, I didn’t mean you should risk catching pneumonia,” the corner of her mouth tugged up into a smile as she accepted the flower and held it up to her nose.

“I would brave ice and snow for one of your smiles, my angel, my sweet, my dulcet darling.” Punctuating each of those endearments with a kiss, he traveled up the length of her arm before kissing her cheek and Millie laughed at the outrageous statement.

“But I have your love to keep me warm.” Catching up her hand, he pressed it to the bare skin over his heart which was surprisingly warm to the touch.

“That’s not love; it’s something else fueling your behavior,” Amelia protested with a wry grin.

“Hmm true, I expect it would warm something else then wouldn’t it?” He dragged her hand lower before she snatched it away with a laugh. Now they were back on familiar footing and Millie eased a little.

“So… now that you dragged me out here in the freezing night and have professed your… whatever; what comes next? A moonlit serenade?”

“Ah no, I draw the line at serenades, sorry. I could manage to stand outside your window with a boombox held up over my head if that floats your boat.”

“No, that’s alright. You’d probably wake up the whole house, and I think I could do without the witnesses to the wooing. I’m in no rush to talk to Grandmother any time soon after our argument this afternoon.”

“I told you she wasn’t going to sell you into slavery,” Chase sat beside her with a shake of the head.

“Oh come on, you have to admit, it didn’t look good. Guys show up with a briefcase full of money to open negotiations? What was I supposed to think?”