Tall Dark Handsome Lycan (5 page)

It did.

The kitchen was as everything else was in the house. Big and elaborate, with every mechanical convenience a homemaker could wish for. Sam placed the tray on the counter and was about to turn on the tap when she heard Maria’s voice coming from an adjoining room. The older woman sounded alarmed. Without another thought, Sam followed the sound of Maria’s voice.

As she got
closer, the older woman sounded more and more distressed. Sam opened a door and found her standing with a phone to her ear, her face taut and ashen.

“What is it?”
Sam asked, gently taking her arm.

Maria turned a pair of stricken
eyes on her and without questioning Sam’s sudden appearance, said, “My…my daughter, Nitsa, is pregnant. Something is wrong. She is in pain.  She saw some blood.”

Sam’s concern
mounted. “How far into her pregnancy is she?”

“
Seven months.”

“Has the pain been regular?”
Maria looked at her with stricken eyes and Sam took her gently by the shoulders. “Maria, please ask her,” she repeated, trying to sound calm.

The older woman
did as she was told and looked back at Sam. “Yes.  Every hour.”

Sam pursed her lips.
“Tell her to call an ambulance.”

Maria’s
eyes widened. “You don’t mean—but she is seven—
Themou!
She is alone. Her husband is coming back from a fishing trip tomorrow.” The older woman sobbed into her hand. “I have to get Leo …he will know what to do”

Sam
saw the alarm mounting on the woman’s face and made up her mind. “Where is his bedroom?”

“At end of your hall, on the left.”

“How quick can we get to your daughter’s house?”

Maria
’s eyes gathered tears. “She is not far.
Five minutes.”

“Good,” Sam replied firmly.
“Tell your daughter we’ll be right there.  I’ll go wake up Leo. Meet us outside in a few minutes.”

Maria
stared back in shock and nodded.

Sam took her hand and squeezed it gently.
“Don’t worry. Everything’s going to be all right. I don’t know how to deliver a baby, but I can make sure your daughter is comfortable until the paramedics get there.”

“
Efharisto
, my dear girl
,
” Maria whispered.

Sam remembered the crash course Toni had given her and how
efharisto
meant thank you.

She smiled at Maria and sped
back to the front hall. At the foot of the stairs, she gathered her nightgown to her knees and sprinted up the stairs. She raced down the corridor, her heart beating wildly in her chest. Without bothering to knock, she flung open Leo’s door and squinted in the semi-darkness.

“Leo,” she
whispered urgently. “Leo!”

She spotted his bed
to the far right of the room and ran to it. Sam stopped dead in her tracks and found herself standing above his sleeping form.

Sam couldn’t help
, but stare at him. He was bare-chested,
the white, silk sheets draped just below his taut abdomen.  An alarming rush of awareness made her catch her breath as she stared at the sparse, dark hair exposed past the edge of the sheet. His muscular chest was tanned and chiselled as it rose and fell steadily. One sinewy arm was flung carelessly above his face, and she glanced in wonder at his mouth, softer and more vulnerable in sleep. Sam had almost forgotten why she was there.

“Leo,
” she whispered hoarsely, her throat dry. “Wake up!”

He didn’t budge.

She had already wasted precious seconds staring at his male splendour and she wasn’t about to waste any more. She thought about Nitsa and grabbed the edge of his sheet, flinging it off him.

“I said wake up!”

Sam froze.

Beneath the sheets he lay completely and utterly naked
.  The blood drained from her face as she stared at his penis. She gasped softly, raising a hand to her mouth as she ran her gaze over his long, tapered legs, his taut, flat abdomen, his strong arms.  She looked up at his strong, sexy face and inhaled sharply as he opened his eyes.

H
is dark gaze locked with hers and his expression registered a brief look of surprise. 

“Is there anything you require?”  He asked, his
voice hoarse and deeper in his semi-awake state.

Sam ignored the
veiled meaning behind his words, praying he didn’t notice how red her face must be.

“Get dressed,” she said, her throat dry.  “
Maria’s daughter is in labour.” A glimmer of understanding fell over his expression and she pressed on.  “She’s all alone, Leo. I think she’s going into labour.”

Realiz
ation dawned on him and he clenched his jaw, muttered a curse word, and sprung out of bed so quickly, she jumped back. He reached for his pale blue denims and shoved them on.

“Are you sure
?” He asked roughly, tossing her a dark look.

“No, but we shouldn’t take any chances,” she replied, keeping her
eyes glued to his face.

A few feet lower and she would have been staring at his—Sam frowned.
Annoyed with herself, she went to the door.  “Maria is waiting for us downstairs,” she said.

S
he turned and watched him throw on a white shirt. He left it loose around his muscular frame as he grabbed a set of keys from his dresser. Her stomach flipped as she glanced at his taut abdomen and finely honed chest. This man oozed male energy.  Strong and sexy, he stood there like an ancient Greek warrior ready to do battle. Sam swallowed hard.

He drew
in a harsh breath and she tensed as the air in the room grew thick.

His expression darkened as he dragged his gaze over her semi-undressed state. 
His eyes narrowed as he continued his thorough appraisal of her body draped in silk. Sam couldn’t move as she watched his face darken with desire.  An amber flame flickered behind his eyes as his gaze slipped to her breasts. She heard a barely discernible sound emanate from his throat.  A small, yet perceptible groan followed by a low, deep growl.  The amber in his eyes grew, taking her aback and she took a small, shaky step back.  His gaze held hers, holding her captive.

The tension still hung in the air, running through the both of them.  It was wild and passionate and it frightened her. 
Nervously, she cleared her throat.

“
Give me a second.  I’ll go and get my robe,” she managed to say.

“Stay here. You
have done the right thing waking me up. I will take over from here,” he replied hoarsely.

She
pursed her lips.  “I have first aid training.  What will you do if Nitsa’s water breaks and the ambulance hasn’t arrived? Are you prepared to deliver a baby?” His face whitened. “I’m coming with you,” she stated firmly.

                        
           * * * *

Thirty minutes later,
Saw watched as Nitsa was safely secured on a gurney by one paramedic while another one opened the back door of the ambulance. She was thankful Nitsa’s water hadn’t broken.

Maria hugged Leo and Sam before she tumbled her ample body into the back of the ambulance. “Sam, you are an angel.
Efharisto, koritsakimou
.”

“You’re welcome.  Good luck,” she smiled as she watched the paramedic shut the door and the ambulance sped away.

Sam glanced up at Leo standing silently by her side.  Their gazes locked and she noted the quirk in his mouth, the softening of his eyes.

S
he released a shaky breath.  “What a night!  Can you imagine if we had to deliver a baby?”

Leo remained silent
as his expression warmed with admiration and interest.  “You seemed to know what you were doing when you examined her.”

Sam shrugged self
-consciously. “I was shaking with fright.”

“Yes, but you did
not show it,” he remarked. “You never once betrayed your fear to Nitsa. She clung to your serene, calm countenance as though it was a life preserver. You were very brave, Sam.”

She laughed nervously.
“Anyone else would have done the same. I did what anyone would do in this situation, keeping the woman calm and comfortable.”

“No.
What you did was beyond normal. You kept checking her pulse, taking her temperature.  I must say, I was very impressed by how you handled the crisis.”

She could handle his arrogance and cruelty, but this gentler side of him made her
feel out of sorts. “John’s a doctor and he encouraged me to take first aid training.  I volunteer at an orphanage back home and being able to treat cuts comes in handy.”    

He seemed momentarily shocked by what she said, but he recovered quickly.  “Granted, but you were prepared to deliver a baby had the need arisen. And that makes you very brave,” he added softly as he took her by the shoulders and pulled her gently toward him.

Sam
inhaled softly as she looked up into his eyes. Suddenly, the air was charged between them. He flicked an interested look at her mouth and she caught the immediate glint of determination on his face.  Her heart fluttered.  He was going to kiss her.

Leo dipped his head a fraction of an inch,
his gaze still locked with hers.  Slowly, she parted her lips as his head dropped another fraction of an inch, bringing his chiselled mouth closer to hers.  Sam closed her eyes.

“You are a very beautiful woman.
What other surprises do you have in store for me?” She heard him murmur deeply.

“No
ne,” she whispered, his warm breath on her skin as he bent even lower, cupping her face with his big, strong hands.

“I want to kiss you
,” he said softly, his deep voice sending shivers of delight up her spine.

She opened her eyes and nearly melted at the look of desire on his face. 
Sam’s legs gave way and she reached out, grabbing his shirt to steady herself. Everything around them stilled and disappeared, making her feel as though they were the only two people left in the world. She was drowning in this man’s seductive energy and she tried grasping onto any last coherent thought.

Katina.

Her mind raced.

This man was getting engaged soon
and Sam was not going to be anyone’s short, summer fling. She was going home in two weeks and she wanted to return to her life in one piece. That was all she needed
to think to give her the strength to bring her hands up to his chest and push herself away from him. “No!”

H
is eyes smouldered as he stared at her. He looked like he was going to say something, but he clamped down on his jaw and remained silent. A telltale muscle twitched along his jaw and Sam could tell he was struggling with something she couldn’t define. Was rejection alien to him? Had no other woman ever said no to his advances?

He cursed
under his breath and reached out to take her back into his arms, but her words made him go still.

“I don’t know what’s worse
, a man with a girlfriend, trying to kiss me or a man thinking I’m the kind of woman who goes for short summer flings.”

He clenched his jaw.  Sam
held her breath and struggled with her mixed emotions.  She longed for his kiss and she knew kissing him was the last thing she should do.  She could no longer deny she was madly attracted to him.  Slowly, he dropped his hands to his sides.

“Very well.
We will return to the house.”

He didn’t even seem in the slightest bit perturbed at the mention of his girlfriend and Sam wondered if he wa
s accustomed to fooling around. Sam didn’t doubt he had a slew of women waiting in line to be with him. He was probably a walking menace to women’s senses everywhere.

They made their way to his car in silence, and she shivered slightly in the cool
, night air. She drew her arms around her for warmth. Without saying a word, Leo removed the white shirt from his shoulders and slipped it around her shoulders.

“No. I’m fine. You need—”
  She kept her eyes averted from from his naked chest.

“You’re practically naked, or have you forgotten your state of undress
?”

She
looked down at herself and cringed with embarrassment. He was right. The cool air had made her breasts peak and she wondered, mortified, how long she had been exposing herself to him. Quickly, she slipped her arms through the sleeves of his shirt and fastened a couple of buttons. It’s warmth settled comfortably around her and Sam shivered again from his male scent still lingering on the soft cotton.  It smelled like fresh rain mingled with woodsy soap. 

Leo opened her door and she slid into his car.
She watched him walk around the front of the car, her gaze running over his bare, powerfully built torso and his form-fitting denims outlining his muscular legs. Leo was all male, she concluded, and wondered at the havoc he’d wreak when he stepped foot in the little town where she lived.