Scent of a Wolf's Mate (2 page)

The answer became clear the second the wolf
began to paw and slam against the driver’s side window. Serena
wasn’t going to hang around to see what he was going to do before
she made up her mind. He was after her, and going by his frenzied
actions, he didn’t want her to pet him. She struggled to her feet,
blinking against the pounding rain. It didn’t matter which way she
went, she only knew she had to run.

She turned toward the woods and didn’t think
twice about heading for them. Barely paying attention to the
branches and leaves that were striking her body, she ran as fast as
she could, blindly into the cold, wet darkness, aware that the
wolf’s mate was somewhere out there, too, and possibly with the
rest of the pack.

Serena ran until she couldn’t run any
further. Out of breath and with a painful stitch in her side, she
fell to her knees. She grabbed her side, wheezing and panting,
listening for any sound that indicated that the wolf was following
her. For a while, all she could hear was her own heavy breathing
and the fear pounding in her heart.

The rain was coming down in sheets, pelting
her body like slivers of glass. It was dark, and the forest
surrounded her like a black curtain. In spite of the noise of the
rain, she could hear the sounds of the wolf, or something, crashing
through the woods, coming her way.

Oh, God!
She got to her feet but it
was too late. He crashed through the trees and came to a halt.
Serena felt sick and helpless. She knew she couldn’t outrun him,
and looked around frantically for a tree that she may be able to
climb. With each move she made the wolf bared his teeth in warning.
The breath caught in her throat and she slowly slid her foot
backwards on the slippery ground. He moved closer, snapping his
jaws. Serena knew that if he lunged at her it would be all
over.

Then it happened. Serena watched as the huge
beast kicked off his hind legs and left the ground in an arch,
leaping through the air directly towards her. She screamed, bracing
herself for impact. Then to her disbelief, another wolf broke
through the trees, this one unbelievably larger and more
threatening than the other. He was beautiful, his sleek coat
shimmering silver. His gold eyes fastened on her before his great
head turned toward the black wolf.

What happened next seemed to move in slow
motion. The silver wolf intercepted the dark wolf just as he was
about to land on Serena, and they both slammed to the ground
several feet away. A vicious growl exploded from the silver wolf as
he jumped to his feet and made eye contact with the other wolf.
Serena swore it sounded like a threat. The black wolf growled back.
They circled one another in a frenzy and then lunged at the same
time.

Serena stumbled backwards, aware that this
was her opportunity to get away but unable to take her eyes off the
scene playing out before her. They crashed together violently,
biting and clawing to get to each other’s throats. It was the
craziest thing she’d ever seen. There was no way the silver wolf
was trying to protect her, it was more likely that the two wolves
were from different packs and that it was a coincidence, her being
there.

Serena’s gaze darted back and forth between
them as she continued to move until the trees blocked them from her
view. The wet leaves slapping together before her face, blocking
her view, reminded her that she needed to get out of there. She
swung around and began to run, hearing the savage fight of the
wolves behind her. No matter how far she ran she couldn’t outrun
their battle cries.

Then a cry echoed through the woods, followed
by a wolf’s victory howl. Serena stopped to catch her breath,
looking around with wild eyes. She was so lost! A new fear crept
over her as she began to shiver violently, soaked to the bone. The
thought of running to stay warm outweighed the thought of stopping
until morning.

She was just about to pull off her sodden
sweater, which seemed to be weighing her down, when she heard
something. Freezing, teeth clattering, she held her breath,
listening for more sounds.
Please, let it be a rabbit, let it be
a rabbit.
When it happened again she swung around in the
direction the sound was coming from. She could feel her heart
pounding in her chest. A rustling indicated that something was
coming toward her.

Her mind raced. Quickly, she took off her
sweater. It was wet and heavy. Serena didn’t know what use it would
be until the silver wolf came into view. Serena backed up, shaking
her head. The wolf walked steadily toward her in a non-threatening
way. Without thinking, she threw her sweater over the wolf’s head
and then turned to run.

Something, she didn’t know what, tripped her.
A scream escaped from her as she hit the ground hard. She tried to
push herself up, but a heavy weight held her pinned against the wet
earth of leaves and mud. She screamed, realizing the wolf was upon
her.

Flipped over without warning, Serena found
herself pinned to the ground by strong hands.
Hands?
She
felt dizzy with fright. In the darkness and the pouring rain, the
wolf seemed almost human. His golden eyes bore into hers. Water
dripped from his hair, falling onto her face. His muscular, naked
body covered hers completely.

“You’re safe for now, little red riding
hood.”

What?
Serena thought she heard the
wolf speaking to her. She was fading in and out of consciousness,
fear immobilizing her. She was going to die, and the big bad wolf
was going to eat her. It was her last thought as she sank into
unconsciousness.

****

Connor stared down at Serena as she slept,
satisfied that she was going to be okay now that she was dry and
warm. Once he’d gotten her back to his cabin he’d stripped her and
wrapped her in blankets warmed in front of the fire. Hypothermia
would have been the least of her troubles had his half-brother
Clive gotten to her first.

Even knowing that Serena was born his mate,
Clive had been hell bent on getting to her first and leaving his
mark on her. That would have ruined the elders’ plans, but it
wouldn’t have stopped Connor from claiming her as his. Wolves only
had one mate, and they mated for life. As the alpha male in the
pack, they could deny him nothing.

He’d sensed her presence almost from the
moment she’d arrived in Savage Hills, at his invitation, and under
the promise of a job. It hadn’t taken him long to locate her,
either. Her scent was a powerful aphrodisiac to him, tempting the
wolf in him to come out, to seek and protect. The urge to claim her
was stronger than he’d anticipated. Undressing her earlier had been
a test of his control that he’d almost failed. Her wolf’s scent
drove him wild.

Connor breathed in deeply, realizing even now
that he was highly aroused from her proximity. His cock had been
pounding with hunger from the moment he’d changed back into his
human form, while pinning Serena down in the forest. He’d felt her
alluring curves through her wet clothes. Now that he’d seen her
luscious full breasts with their large crowned tips, and her
delicious sex, he vowed to have her before the cycle of the full
moon ended.
I have to have her.

He pulled the quilt tighter around her and
quietly left the room. She would sleep for hours, thanks to the
sleeping pill he’d slipped her. When she woke she would have a lot
of questions, but until then he had to see to the wounds he’d
obtained during his battle with Clive.

Clive had been hell-bent on maiming or
killing him. There was no love lost between them. Connor should
have taken care of him a long time ago, because now Serena was
going to be caught in the middle of their hatred. Clive had made it
clear that if he couldn’t be the alpha male he would destroy
Connor’s life any way that he could. His jealousy and ambitions
were eating away at him like a cancer.

Connor flipped the light switch on when he
entered the bathroom. Clive’s attack had been savage, and he’d been
intent on inflicting as much injury as possible. Connor wasn’t
under any delusions when it came to Clive—if Clive could have
gotten away with killing him, he would.

Any superficial marks Connor had received
from the fight were already fading, and by morning they would be
gone. The two deeper bite marks would take a couple of days to
heal. The knowledge that he’d left Clive in far worse condition
gave him little satisfaction.

I should have killed him.

He opened the medicine cabinet for the
antiseptic and gauze. The wounds would probably heal okay on their
own, but Connor wasn’t taking any chances. He remembered what had
happened to his cousin Max after a rogue wolf passing through a few
years back had attacked him. The infection had nearly killed him,
and had left him with a permanent limp.

Connor doused the gauze with antiseptic and
then cleaned the tear at his shoulder. He squeezed it open so that
some of the antiseptic went inside the deep bite.
Jesus!
He
clenched his teeth at the sharp sting.
It didn’t hurt that much
when the bastard bit me.
He ripped off another piece of gauze
and did the same thing to the bite on his chest, clenching his
teeth until his jaw ached.

As he was putting the antiseptic away, he
heard the distant sound of a wolf’s howl, followed by the answering
howls of the pack. The urge to be out running the woods with his
pack was strong. Stronger was the urge to claim his mate in the
next room.

Connor had run with the pack the night
before. As alpha male, he’d led them through the woods to the
mountains where mated pairs played and fucked until dawn. He, Max,
and two others had wiled the hour’s away hunting and killing a huge
elk down at Savage Springs.

Opening the front door, he inhaled deeply,
taking in the pungent, yet pleasing scent of the woods. A primitive
awareness surged through his blood, and he fought the overwhelming
urge to change. A wolf’s nose was sensitive, even when he or she
was in human form. Then he caught something else in the air,
overpowering all else.

It was the scent of a wolf’s mate.

His mate.

Connor struggled not to give in to Serena’s
allure. As the wolves howled in the mountains he tried to focus on
that, but the vision of his mate sleeping in his bed wouldn’t go
away. He clenched his hands into fists and growled low. Closing his
eyes was a mistake, as it only emphasized the sensual cloud
hovering around him. Before he could stop it, he felt his fangs
slowly descend.

Fuck
, Serena’s scent was making him
crazy, and until mated, it would drive any male within a five-mile
radius into a lustful craze, too. Once he marked her with his
scent, it would be a warning that she was off limits, and any
self-respecting wolf would stay away.

If he didn’t have to worry about that, he
would have joined his family in the woods, if only for a little
while. The phone rang, and he thanked God for the timely
interruption. Anything that would take his mind off wanting to
mate.

“Hello?”

“Is she there?”

It was his mother. “Yes. She’s sleeping
now.”

“He didn’t touch her in any way?”

Connor wasn’t surprised that she knew about
the attack. News traveled fast in their small community. Clive had
probably returned home to her with his tale tucked between his
legs.

“Not for lack of trying.” Connor inhaled
deeply. “He’s going to be exiled, Mother. Tonight showed me how
ruthless and dangerous he is. If I hadn’t gotten to Serena in time
I have no doubts he would have raped and probably killed her.”

“You almost killed him,” she said sadly.

So, Clive had gone to her.
Connor
didn’t say what he was thinking—that he should have killed him. He
understood his mother loved both of them, but Connor was the alpha
male, and she couldn’t go against his wishes. Neither would the
elders once they fully realized the seriousness of the situation.
Protecting his mate went above all else.

“When will you meet with the elders?”

“This afternoon, the sooner the better. Now
that Serena’s here I want things to move quickly.”

“You’re eager to mate with her.”

Connor could hear the smile in his mother’s
voice. She and the elders had been pushing him to claim his mate
and produce an heir for years, but Connor had wanted to wait until
Serena was a full-grown woman and had lived a little. He grinned
inwardly. She was twenty-five now, and full-grown, but she was no
bigger than a sprite. He had a feeling that might cause problems
between them, because he was a big wolf.

“From the moment Serena was born it was clear
that she was your mate. Even at the age of six you were aware of
it, too. She was sent away from here for a reason.”

Connor knew what that reason was. It was
something the community still practiced, sending the baby away once
it became clear after birth that its mate was nearby. Sometimes the
urge to mate was overwhelming. The scent alone could make a wolf
change and become lethal if he couldn’t get to his mate.

No one wanted to take a chance that the
actual mating would take place until both parties were ready, so to
prevent any accidents from happening, separation had been the best
solution. With Serena’s mother dying shortly after giving birth,
the elders had made sure she’d been adopted out to a nice family in
another state.

Connor thought about the woman in his bed.
He’d been just fine without her, and now he was using every ounce
of his control not to go to her and take what was his.

“Why so quiet, son? You like her, don’t
you?”

“The wolf in me does.” Connor left it at
that. He could no longer hear the pack howling in the distance,
which told him that they’d either moved beyond the mountains, into
the canyon, or had returned home. It was almost dawn.