Blood for Wolves (12 page)

I paused again.

“Look my love, as much as I find
being near you irresistible, if you touch me I’ll have to tie you up and carry
you the entire way.”

After another
moment I nodded and we headed out.

We didn’t talk at all as we
traveled. Wolf kept sneaking glances at me, as if expecting me to go for his
throat at any moment. All that paranoia was kind of nice, actually. A
satisfying change after what I’d experienced so far in this place. But he had
good reason to suspect me. I
was
conspiring to get the necklace away
from him. I could feel it tugging at me. I silently tugged back. The old woman
had said it would help keep me grounded. Hah. With that necklace I would grow
wings again and sail away into the clouds. But first I had to figure out a way
to make Wolf part with it. I was glad he didn’t want to wear it. The idea of
him sprouting wings and flying off to leave me all alone was unbearable.

It didn’t take too long to reach
the trail, and we hiked on it the rest of the day. Once the sun began to set
Wolf said we should move off path, mumbling something about the full moon only
three days away and a strange scent.

I dumped the pack, and within
moments he had a good fire going. He sat with his back against a tree,
occasionally glancing my way. I sighed and walked over to him, stopping a few
feet away.

“I’m not going to try and take it,”
I said, rolling my eyes.

He snorted.

“You’d kick my ass ten ways from
Sunday. Besides,” I moved closer and leaned against the tree, “I’ve felt a lot
better ever since you took that thing away from me.”

He looked up, eyes narrowed. “Really?”

I nodded. “I have no idea why she
gave that thing to me. We ought to dump it in a lake or something.”

“Hmm. I guess maybe it is wearing
off. She wasn’t a bad witch. That was easy to see. I just don’t know why she
handed over something so dangerous.”

“Maybe she’s old and senile. I
mean, I almost got eaten by
harpies
because of that stupid necklace.”

I reached down and ran my fingers
through his hair. In a second he jerked away, glaring up at me with blazing
eyes.

“Geez, will you chill out? I don’t
want the damn thing anymore.”

He huffed and his nostrils flared,
but eventually he sat back again. I resumed gently stroking his head. Strange—though
his hair looked human enough, it felt almost exactly like a wolf’s fur. This
time he didn’t stop me. Instead he let his head drop forward a little, clearly
indulging in the sensation. I grinned. He began to make short, faint howling
noises. I combed my fingers through his hair, slowly, and then gently ran my
fingernails down the back of his neck. He let out a long contented sigh coupled
with an appreciative growl. I knelt down beside him. His eyes were closed.

“There. Feel better?”

“Mmm.”

“More relaxed?”

“Mmm.”

“I’m glad. You deserve it.” I
rested my head on his shoulder, continuing to stroke his hair. “I’m sorry I’ve
gotten you into so much trouble.”

He turned to rub his cheek against
my forehead. I settled my other hand on his face and ran my thumb over his
cheek the same way he’d touched my face earlier. His eyes opened slightly to
stare into mine. I stared back for just a few moments before moving closer,
pressing my lips to his. His arms went around me at once, pulling me closer. A
raw, animal noise escaped him. The stubble on his face scratched my skin, and
his hands gripped at my clothes. I slipped one hand to the back of his neck,
the other down his bare chest.

Suddenly he jerked back, his eyes
wide and awake. “No, Caroline. I know what you’re doing.”

“I’m not doing anything I don’t
want to do.” I made my voice low and husky to hit him just in the right spot. It
worked; he growled.

“
No
. As much as I would
love,” he inhaled deeply and then refocused, “to…all of this, I know you’re
only trying to get the necklace.”

“
Forget
the necklace.” I
worked my hand lower, ran my fingertips over the newly formed scars on his
abdomen.

He grunted and snatched my hand
away, linking my fingers with his in a tight grip. “You are not yourself.” He
seemed to wrestle with himself for a moment. “Stupid, annoying, interfering old
sorceress.”

“It’ll make finding Marianne so
much easier,” I cooed, “and when we’re done, I can throw it away. Easy.”

“No. Get off.”

I grinned and ran my fingers along
the edge of his belt. “Make me.”

He shut his eyes and whimpered
slightly like a dog that had been staring at a treat for too long, a sad,
deeply desirous sound. I kissed his forehead, his nose, and left a feather
light touch on his lips. He smiled, losing himself again. I shifted over until
I straddled him and inched the coat off his shoulders, sliding my hands down
his back until the fabric lay in a crumpled arc behind him. I could feel him
under me. Hard. Ready. Ideal.

He flung the coat sleeves off his
arms to free his hands and slid them under my t-shirt. He sat up and buried his
face into the side of my neck, inhaling deeply, grazing his teeth against my
skin. Every part of me was hot. The fire at my back, the wolf at my front.

“I shouldn’t,” he breathed heavily
on my neck. “I really shouldn’t.”

I ground down hard on him, drawing
an aching, hungry groan from him.

“Quit crying about it,” I breathed
in his ear. I wanted more. I wanted more of
him
. I snatched up his coat and
flung it away into the dying sunlight. “That make you feel better?”

In a flurry of movement, I became
as naked from the waist up as he was and his mouth closed over one of my
breasts, sucking gently. A shuddering moan escaped me and I clutched at his hair,
writhing against him. He ran his tongue up from my breast to my neck, a hot
trail that ended as he fastened his mouth against mine. My heart hammered in my
chest. I knew he could feel it. Hear it. He ran his hands up my thighs, his
fingers inching under the fabric.

“So soft,” he panted against me,
“so rich. A heart so strong. Full of life. Like a doe under the hunt. Running
so fast under the trees. If I weren’t a good wolf and you weren’t my mate, I
just might have to devour you just so I could taste it.”

Something like that ought to have
scared me, worried me, but instead I unfastened his belt buckle and reached
inside to touch him. He growled, long and ravenous, and I let go to hold his
face in both my hands.

“Are you going to leave me alone?”
I whispered, staring down into his eyes. “Leave me alone in the dark?”

His golden eyes burned into mine. “Never.”

I stood. Wolf quickly followed. I
slipped out of the rest of my clothing and he from his. I pushed him back
against the tree, running my fingertips over his chest. He grinned at me
hungrily, his sharp canines glinting in the firelight. I walked around him,
around the tree, his gold eyes following me with every step. I stopped in front
of him to give him a long kiss, running my hands down to stroke him. He groaned
into my mouth and licked at my lips. Then I let go again. A primal growl
escaped him as I teased, turning around to rub my entire backside against him. He
pressed his face against my hair and inhaled deeply. He wrapped his arms around
me, holding me against him. I could feel him, the most animal part, against my
lower back, hot and pulsing.

I tilted my head back, exposing my
neck to him, and reached up to brush my fingers though his hair again. He
alternately kissed and nibbled the spot just above my shoulder, one of his
hands resting over my heart, the other dipping lower with every moment.

Then he touched me, parting the
folds and dipping deep. I cried out, arching against him, and that seemed to be
the last straw.

He dragged me to the ground with
him, dropping to his knees and keeping my back to his chest. He guided me down
and slid inside of me and suddenly the whole world was alive. His arms went
around me again, holding me close. He held my breast in one hand, his thumb
stroking my nipple, the other hand cupping me, firmly caressing that single
sweet spot while he glided in and out. I threw my head back on his shoulder,
whimpering in bliss with each thrust. Every movement, every touch of his
fingers, every breath on my neck brought me closer and closer to the edge of
that glimmering precipice. That spot so high, I could spread my wings.

I put my hands over Wolf’s, took
what he gave and pushed back. He grunted and drove harder, more. I was consumed
by his heat, the friction of our skin, the flames of the fire, the sun dying on
the horizon. If I didn’t fly I would fall, and both were just as good. Faster
now, more, harder.

“Wolf!”

I came hard, linking my fingers
with his and holding on tight as if I might collapse into pieces. I didn’t fly.
I fell, and he caught me. He let out a breathless stream of strange words and
shuddered against me, gently stroking a few times more before leaning against
me, panting. We held each other up, me weakly smoothing his hair and Wolf
licking my shoulder with the tip of his tongue.

Then he shifted, and together we
lay on the ground beside the dying fire. Surprised at how exhausted I was
again, I fell asleep with Wolf’s arms around me as the stars came out.

I awoke, cozy, refreshed…and naked.

I sat up instantly. Something fell
away from my front. Wolf’s coat. And I had absolutely nothing on underneath. I
snatched it back up, holding it in front of me and wondering just how the hell
I’d ended up naked. Then I heard a soft whimper next to me and looked down.

Wolf lay alongside me, half curled
up and also completely naked. I stared at him, my mouth hanging open. Then a
half-crazy laugh escaped me when I saw the other thing that singled out wolves
from humans.

Wolf had a wolf tail.

A real wolf tail, almost two feet
long, a mix of tan, cinnamon, and gray but mostly sable like so many other wolf
coats I’d seen in my life. It certainly explained the baggy pants. But it
didn’t help explain why I was beside him and my clothes were strewn about the
campsite along with his. I closed my eyes and tried to remember. Something to
do with a necklace…though how the hell a necklace could translate into a night
of wolf sex was beyond me.

“Oh my God,” I croaked, burying my
face in my hands. What had I done? A necklace, I’d wanted a necklace…

“Good morning my mouth-watering
delight.”

I yelped as Wolf’s face peered at
mine through my fingers.

He grinned, his tail thumping in
the leaves behind him. “Would you like some breakfast?”

“Wolf…” I paused, uncertain of how
to start the conversation, “did we…?”

“Did we what?” Then his eyes
widened, though he looked more amused than insulted. “Oh yes my pretty, we did.
You don’t remember?”

“I remember something about a
necklace and then—” I gasped and clapped a hand over my mouth. “I seduced you!”

“You certainly did.”

“Why didn’t you stop me? I was
under the influence of that stupid witch’s necklace.”

He chuckled and nuzzled my neck. “Well,
you’ve kissed me. I’ve kissed you. This was the next logical step.”

“No,” I said, more emphatically
than I’d intended. “The next logical step would be going out on a couple of
dates and making out.”

He shook his head slowly, still
smiling. “Oh Caroline.
Wolf
, remember? Do you have any idea how hard it
was to dismiss you? Mind you, I tried. But with all your stroking and rubbing
and teasing and touching; you were begging for it and I’m your mate and I
certainly wasn’t going to turn you down. Especially after you lost interest in
the necklace.”

“I did?” And then I thought about
it, snatches of memory seeping through the magic-induced haze in my mind. “I
did. Wow.”

Then even more of the night came
through. Wolf
had
turned me down, more than once, and I’d kept coming
and I
wanted
him. Wanted him so much I finally threw away his coat with
the necklace in its pocket. What the hell was
that
supposed to mean?

Wolf let out a rough, contented
sigh. I gazed down at him. His happy little grin was still in place. I should
have been angry, at least with myself. Yet I wasn’t. I was…comfortable.

I pushed
myself up—the lavawort had done its job on my arm—and poked Wolf in the chest. “Come
on. We need to go find Marianne.”

We headed out, getting back to the
trail within a few minutes. We skipped breakfast, instead snacking on the dried
meat Wolf had bought. I didn’t know what it was—it didn’t taste like beef—but I
wasn’t sure I wanted to find out, so I ate it and said nothing. Wolf, on the
other hand, ate ravenously, growling and snarling more than I thought necessary
over a large chunk of jerky. I still couldn’t quite believe what I’d done the
night before, but it was clear as a bell in my mind now. All the magic gone,
replaced by my actions, everything I’d said, everything I’d felt, everything
I’d
touched
… I tingled, and this time the sensation wasn’t on my back.

“Why didn’t you want to use the
necklace?” I asked as we walked, trying to shake off the feeling.

“Probably because it was meant to
work with you,” Wolf said through a mouthful of jerky. He swallowed. “I don’t
know what it is with humans and their fascination with flying, but as much as
I’d like to get away, wolves have no desire to fly.”

“Get away?”

Wolf gobbled up the rest of the
jerky and sucked on his fingers for a few minutes. “Yes. That’s what I saw in
your eyes. You have a deep desire to disappear, my love, and yet last night you
were afraid of being alone.”

That was it. The nail on the head. I
tilted my head back and stared up at the forest canopy as it passed.