Werewulf Journals 3: Hungry Pleasures (21 page)

had he, apparently, for he’d clasped her to his chest, alternately hugging her close only to hold her at arms’ length and lecture her about the danger of her unthinking actions.

A day confined to her room as a reminder freedom came with responsibility had

convinced her it was better to give a more respectful nod to the rules and regs.

“Rub it in, why don’t you?” She pretended to grouse, tipping her chin to laugh up at

him. Her laughter died as she met the lazy heat in his astonishingly beautiful light green eyes.

He paused right there in the corridor, hands dropping to the round curves of her butt.

Both palms cupped and rubbed the full mounds as he nuzzled her neck. “I fear I should have rubbed it in that first day. It’s too late to impress you with my authority now.”

Kaila went up on tiptoes, so hungry for his mouth she couldn’t wait for him to initiate the kiss, but grabbed his head and tugged. She moaned when their lips met, clung, opened to each other as their tongues danced, gathering the moist heat and multiplying it a thousand fold.

Pavel broke off the kiss, breathing hard, his hands steel bands around her upper arms.

Eyes tightly shut so that his face seemed contorted in a pained grimace he leaned down until his forehead rested against hers. “If we don’t stop, I swear I’ll take you against the wall here in the corridor.”

Kaila swallowed back her lust, wanting nothing more than to shout at him to take her

and damn the consequences. With shaking hands, she smoothed the hair back from her face, nodding jerkily. “I’m sorry.”

“Oh, dear heart, don’t ever be sorry for your passionate response. I treasure the way you ignite, go up in flames for me.” He placed his hand under her chin and lifted her face until she was again gazing into his eyes.

“I need to deal with the groundskeeper’s concerns. Not that I think it’s anything more than a large predator establishing its boundaries, but it is my responsibility to guard against all possible danger where the spa’s clients may be at risk.”

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“I understand.”

Pavel sighed heavily. “It seems I am always putting you last, when I would give

anything to have you be foremost in my attentions.”

Kaila smiled. “Don’t sweat it. You’re top dog around here. I don’t think I’d respect you as much if you didn’t take your job seriously.”

“Thank you for that. I promise this shouldn’t take too long. It is, as I said, probably nothing.”

“So I shouldn’t go running through the jungle screaming, “Lions and tigers and

bears…oh, my!”

He laughed. The carefree sound made Kaila look up at him, glad to be even a tiny bit

responsible for giving him a moment’s relief from the constant pressures of his position. The merriment washed away years from his countenance, giving his face an almost innocent cast, though she had ample cause to know how far from innocent this man was.

He glanced down, eyes gleaming, inviting her to play with him. “You left off wulves.

Lions, when sated, will not chase after prey. Tigers and bears, unless you threaten their young or trespass their territory, will also leave you alone. But a wulf -- if you run from a wulf he will most definitely chase after you.”

She giggled. “A wolf, huh? Should I be afraid?”

Pavel waggled his eyebrows. “Most certainly. Wulves like to play with their prey.”

She guffawed. “You’re trying to scare me and it isn’t going to work. I watch National Geographic and I know wolves only kill when necessary. Even their dominance fights end when one of the wolves surrenders.”

All the expression drained from Pavel’s face, starkly highlighting the sharp angles of his cheeks, the strong line of jaw. “Yes, but there are wolves…and then there are wulves…”

They came, at length, to the end of the hallway and Pavel held the door for her as they passed through the lobby. The receptionist, a pretty petite thing with silver hair to her hips looked up and came to attention. “Sir, the pilot radioed in that the plane is on schedule to arrive in another hour. Alpha Hunter and company are on board.”

Pavel cursed under his breath. “Thank you, Elise. Hold all other messages. Call the

warden and tell him I’ll have to reschedule until tomorrow morning, and have him lock down the grounds until daylight. Send a bulletin out to the staff that there should be no late night strolls until I give the all clear.”

“Yes sir.” The uber-efficient aide flashed a smile at Kaila before turning to carry out Pavel’s instructions. Her fingers were soon flying across her keyboard.

Kaila tugged on Pavel’s sleeve. “Who names her son Alpha with a last name like

Hunter?”

Distracted, he patted her hand, fishing for his walkie-talkie. “His last name isn’t

Hunter; it’s McCallum.”

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“So where’d the Alpha come from?”

He froze, eyes focusing on her. For a moment, she felt like a deer caught in the glare of headlights. Then his gaze softened. “It’s a uh, nickname.”

A rueful smile lifted the corner of his mouth. “I need to meet with him alone. Will you dine with his wife this evening, help keep her occupied?”

“Sure, but who are they? Would I know them?”

“I don’t imagine their names will mean anything to you. Hunter works with the police

department in San Francisco. He’s a mover and shaker, very important in that

city’s…politics. He’s also a newlywed. His wife Melody and he are on their way to their honeymoon.”

That raised her eyebrows. “What kind of man conducts business on his bridal trip?”

“A busy one. Actually, they married a while back. It’s taken him this long to clear his schedule.” He snorted. “Hunter’s a lucky male. I’ve heard he’s deeply in love with his wife and she in turn, is totally supportive of his work…and him.”

Something about his tone -- a longing he couldn’t hide -- had Kaila bristling. “You

sound jealous of him.”

He stopped fiddling with the communicator to stare down into her face with such a

solemn look she grew uncomfortable. “I am. I want what he has. All of it.”

Kaila stared back, trying to decipher what he meant. Did he want Hunter’s woman, or

Hunter’s happiness? Where did she fit in his dreams and wishes…if at all?

Before she could think up something to say, Pavel seemed to shake off his

introspection. Giving her a wink, he tucked her arm in the crook of his elbow and set out across the compound, moving fast enough that she had to skip a few steps to keep up. His rapid pace made her glad she’d worn her cross-trainers.

Forcing her to keep up, Pavel plowed on ahead, muttering to himself and shaking his

head. She strained to catch his mumbled words.

“Damn it, I’ll barely have time to shower and change… How am I going to tell her? I’d hoped to have more time, time for her to become more familiar with me. Now…” He

frowned, firmed his lips. “Why now? This visit is so inconvenient and if it were anyone but Hunter… Damn and double damn! I don’t have any choice. I hate how this forces my hand.”

Unable to make sense of his long string of disjointed words, Kaila slowed, pulled back until he turned to see why she’d stopped. “What’s wrong?”

Kaila watched him carefully, not sure what she was looking for, only knowing

something wasn’t right. “I’m fine, Pavel but what on earth is bothering you? You’ve been distracted and antsy all afternoon.”

“Nonsense.” But he failed to meet her gaze.

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“You seem very nervous.” Kaila’s eyes widened as a thought crossed her mind. With

this company coming, perhaps she had become an inconvenience. It was okay to play slap and tickle with the lower class until someone of equal rank came around.

Fighting the burn at the back of her eyes, she firmed her shoulders and stood tall. She was not the clingy type and much as she’d come to care for Pavel, she wouldn’t try now to hold him against his will.

“If you’re tired of me, just say so.” It disgusted her how much her voice shook, but for the life of her, she couldn’t speak above a whisper. “Or maybe you think I’m not high class enough to know my way around your company.” She tried to keep her bitterness from

leaking out into her words, inhaled and held her breath while she battled the urge to cry. “I give you my word I’ll stay in my room until you come back from dinner so you won’t have to worry about the unaccompanied rule.”

Pavel’s eyes widened then narrowed. His mouth fell open. A moment later it snapped

shut and she was treated to an example of true anger. If she thought he’d been upset the day she disappeared into the forest, this was nothing short of full-fledged fury. “Tired of you?”

His hands gripped her shoulders, fingers digging into the flesh at her collarbone. “I don’t fucking believe this! Haven’t you heard anything I’ve been saying this afternoon?”

Kaila looked up into his burning eyes and felt the tears slipping down her cheeks. “I-I-I --”

“Shut up!” His growled command froze the half-formed sentence on her lips.

Pavel’s hands tightened and flexed as he fought for control. With a smothered curse, he shook her, the force of his hold setting her curls dancing about her face.

“I will never grow tired of you.” He emphasized each bitten off word with another flex of his hands. “And to think I would discard you as unworthy because of how much money you do or do not have… How can you think so lowly of me to even mouth something so

foully dishonorable?”

He gritted his teeth, his fierce frown driving home his displeasure. “Woman, I need

you in my life like I need air to breathe! I know I’ve moved too fast, probably scared you away, but I --” He broke off in midrant.

Kaila chanced a glance up to find his gaze pinned on her but the expression within his eyes vague and unfocused. She waited for him to continue, but after long minutes went by with no further movement, she waved a shaky hand before his face. “Hello? Earth to

Pavel…come in, Pavel.”

She’d gone beyond worried all the way to contemplating heading back to the main

building to get help when suddenly his body relaxed. Blinking in rapid succession, Pavel gazed about like he was trying to get his bearings. Kaila eyed him askance. If she believed in astral projection, she’d have said he’d been elsewhere -- in mind, if not in body. “You want to tell me what just happened?”

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He stared into her eyes and she stilled, meeting his searching gaze straight on. For a moment, she felt they both teetered on the brink of something momentous. She held her breath, anxious yet excited.

In the end he simply shook his head. “We can’t deal with this right now.” He glanced

about, and then focused on Kaila once more. “Come on, love, we’ll finish this when we get to our suite.”

Kaila trailed behind Pavel, her hand snug in his, a bemused smile tugging at her lips.

She looked down to be sure she wasn’t floating on air. He loved her…or at least, deeply lusted after her.

For a man accustomed to dealing with the public, of hobnobbing with influential

business persons and royal heads of state, Pavel’s declaration of love had sucked. Far from being polished and practiced, he’d tripped over his words, fumbled his delivery and totally lost his usual urbane demeanor. Instead of putting her off, his gauche actions had thoroughly convinced her of his sincerity. She grinned at his stiff back, giddy with joy.

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Dinner À la Carte

Two hours later, seated across from the visiting head of state, Pavel cursed his

emotional cowardice, ashamed of himself for wimping out. Kaila still remained ignorant of the true state of affairs, of his true nature.

In the hour he’d had before Hunter arrived, he’d tried numerous times to confess, but each time he geared up his nerve, the thought of Kaila turning from him in disgust made his gut burn, turned his knees to water. Teasing her about the predatory habits of wulves was one thing, watching her run screaming from him a whole other matter. Ultimately, it was a risk he hadn’t been capable of facing. Losing Kaila simply wasn’t an option.

Not for the first time, Pavel rued the psychic connection he shared with Orloffberg,

knowing Rickard had picked up on his agitation and the reason for it. His sovereign would soon be calling or emailing, sticking his nose in to make sure Pavel wouldn’t try to wriggle out from under the demands of the ancient law governing his pack’s relationship to the Drestovian royal family. That one required night of sharing loomed over his head, limiting his options, shortening the time he had to ease Kaila into her role as his mate. Which brought him right back to the sticking point: How did he tell her he was a wulf -- a member of an alien race stranded on Earth since the dawn of ancient history?

Pavel knew he was no coward, having proven his bravery long ago. Tales were still

being whispered of him throughout the Worldwide Confederation of Packs. In remote dens and around leaping fire pits, wulven bards howled the ballad of Duke Pavel Andreiavich Janecek who

-- through cunning, strength, and valor

-- single-handedly foiled the

assassination plot of a king’s brother and a wulven Alpha gone mad. Oh yes, Pavel Janecek was a bona fide hero…

Where is that hero when I need him? Pavel didn’t feel very heroic tonight. In his

youth, while still a wet-behind-the-ears cub, he’d challenged and beaten his rabid sire in a 120

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dominance fight to reestablish a young Rickard on his throne. He’d feared nothing because he’d had nothing to lose. Losing Kaila would mean losing everything.

“…reason for not claiming her.”

The tail end of Hunter’s comment broke through his thoughts and for the fourth time

that evening, Pavel was forced to ask him to repeat himself. “I’m sorry, Alpha. I seem to be somewhat distracted.”

Hunter picked up his glass and sipped the chilled white wine. A smile played about his lips as he met the other Alpha’s eyes. “If I had a beautiful round bitch tucked up in my den, I’d be distracted, too. Oh wait…I do have one of those!”