Seducing Their Mate

Great Wolves of Passion, Alaska 1

Kiera West

Copyright © 2011

Chapter One

Eve MacMillan lifted her face to the sky and drew in a deep breath. The air was crisp and clean. God, she loved Alaska. From the moment she arrived three months earlier, she had found herself in tune like she had never been before. She had always felt like a fish out of water no matter where she was—until moving there. It was freaking cold, but it felt more like home than anywhere she had been before.

“Enjoying the last rays of the sun for today?” a deep, gravelly voice said from behind her. It sunk under her skin and set a flame to her libido. She opened her eyes and looked at Noah Dillon.

He was gorgeous. There was no doubt about it. Not in that movie star kind of way with perfect hair and teeth. No, there was something else to him. He was tall, as all the Dillon men were, with dark black hair, threaded with bits of gray. His dark blue, almost black eyes never missed a thing, always scanning the area as if waiting for an attack. He had a prominent nose and full lips, especially for a man. She had often found herself mesmerized watching him speak, watching the way they moved as they formed words.

He definitely wasn’t one for formal attire. Men she had worked with had always dressed in either suits, or the latest fashions. They had done little to raise her temperature. Not so with Noah. She had never seen him wear anything but flannel shirts and jeans, but he was more delicious than any sophisticated man in a tux. Broad shoulders, along with large hands and powerful legs, made him almost too rugged for her tastes. He was the Alpha, the one all the Dillons answered to.

Silently, she laughed at herself. She had been spending too much time with wolves if she was thinking of the Dillons as a pack. Although, they did resemble it in ways. The six cousins all seemed to take their orders from Noah, which was natural with him being the oldest. There was something else to it though. There were times when she was with them she sensed some kind of silent communication between them. She was sure some people had that with their families, but she felt this was something more. And she always felt left out when she was with them.

Worse, she found herself attracted to each one of them in different ways. It was difficult to concentrate when any one of the six were around. More than once she had found herself completely tongue-tied when talking to them—something she rarely had happen before meeting them. She pushed aside those thoughts and smiled at Noah.

“No, just enjoying some fresh air before I go back in to work on some new data.”

He smiled, one of those clever, quick smiles that did funny things to her insides. Why this man, and why now? Was it because she had been without basic conversation with other men outside of his family? Sure, she talked to the locals in the area, but they steered clear of her for the most part. And each one of the cousins did it to her. They had a way of concentrating on her that made her think she was the only woman in the world.

“We were wondering if you would be interested in dinner tonight.”

“We,” meaning his family. If it was odd to anyone else here that he lived with his brothers and cousins, no one seemed to mind. Their family founded the town about a century ago, claiming the land under some kind of strange law. They set it up as a wildlife preserve, protecting the animals and the people who chose to live here. The townspeople had nothing but wonderful things to say about the Dillon family.

“I could handle that.”

They invited her a lot, and she thought it might be out of pity. While she loved the area, she had yet to really get to know anyone in town. As she had thought before, they were wary of her, careful about what they did and said around her. They weren’t mean or even rude. They just seemed to be waiting for her to make some kind of move. What that was, she didn’t know. It was as if they were afraid to make a mistake around her. It always amused her that a town full of rugged Alaskans would be afraid of a nerdy little scientist like her.

So, she ate alone a lot, and being the keepers of all things in the town, the Dillons had invited her over for meals every now and then.

“Good. Venison stew is on the menu tonight.” Her stomach rumbled, and her face flushed with heat. It was so loud that Noah laughed at the sound. “I bet you forgot to eat breakfast again. Did you stay up working late?”

She nodded even though it was only partly true. The truth of the matter was that she had worked then tried to sleep, only to find herself tossing and turning, thinking about all of the Dillon men.

“I guess I better grab a bite to eat.”

She moved past him, but he placed his hand on her arm. She shivered at the contact. Odd considering they both had massive layers of clothing between them. She looked up at him and had to resist the urge to gulp.

“Do you mind if I join you inside? I have something to discuss with you.”

The seriousness of his tone had her worried. She had jumped through hoops to get the grant and gain the permission of the Dillon family to research the great wolves. It was the first time they had allowed someone on their land to study the animal.

“It isn’t something I’ve done, is it?”

He shook his head. “No, it is something I want to ask you.”

The tone sounded more personal, more intimate. She nodded, feeling light-headed. What did he want? Personal? Could it be that he wanted to ask her out on a date?

They removed the mountain of gear they both wore to protect themselves from the outside air, and she led him into the small kitchen. It always seemed even smaller with one of the Dillon cousins in it.

“Would you like a cup of tea?”

He shook his head, his gaze never leaving her face. Goodness, the way he looked at her made her nervous. She slipped her tongue over her bottom lip, and his eyes followed the movement. Heat danced over her nerve endings, and she had to fight the need that welled up inside her. Not wanting him to know how much his company disturbed her, she turned and busied herself with the tea.

“What did you want?”

She thought she heard a rumble from his chest, and she peeked back over her shoulder at him, but he was leaning against the counter, his arms crossed over his chest.

“I needed your advice. We think there are some people out there hunting the wolves.”

She inwardly sighed as she tried to compose herself. Of course. He wanted to discuss her work. What made her think that a man like him would be interested in a woman like her? She tucked away her disappointment, determined to make sure that he never knew just how much she wanted him.

“Although I disagree with it, I know it isn’t illegal here in Alaska. Is this from the air?”

He shook his head, his frown deepening. It took every bit of her control not to run to him. “No. And they do not have permits to hunt on our land, even by air. It is considered a federal offense on our land, even though that won’t matter.”

“Meaning you will take care of it without the federal government’s interference.”

He ignored that comment. “We found two. They were mutilated.”

The way he said the word sent a chill up her spine. She knew now that this was no simple hunting expedition. “Bad?”

He nodded. “If I didn’t know better, I would assume that the person took pleasure out of it. Like a serial killer.”

The idea stunned her. “You think someone is hunting these wolves out of pleasure? To what purpose?”

He shrugged. “There are a lot of people who don’t want them around. What I wanted to know is if you saw anything out of the ordinary?”

“No. I haven’t seen a stranger in all the months I’ve been here.”

He sighed and shoved his hand through his hair. “Some of the locals are a bit upset about it. They see the wolves as their own.”

She knew what he was talking about. Some of them still didn’t want her up there to study them. But she never feared them. They seemed more protective of the wolves than she did. “I’ll keep an eye out.”

He studied her for a few moments. “You will not engage.”

His tone had hardened, and the words lashed out at her. She hated when men told her what to do. It came from her father rigidly planning her entire life, until she took a chance on this grant. But for some reason, his harsh tone had an edge to it that spoke to her. It irritated her that her response was immediate every single time. Obey. “I didn’t say I would. I just know how to keep an eye out for changes.”

“Really?” His voice was filled with skepticism.

She rolled her eyes and opened the fridge. “Yes. I’ve been studying animals for years, and I cut my teeth in Africa. Poachers always leave signs.”

She stepped back and bumped into him. The heat of him burned into her back.

“Uh, Noah?”

“Hmm.”

His breath feathered over her ear, causing heat to flare deep in her belly. She couldn’t move, didn’t want to. Worse, she got the distinct impression that he was sniffing at her.

“What are you doing?”

He didn’t answer her. For a second, she wasn’t sure what he was doing until she felt his mouth on her neck. Sparks of heat lanced through her as she felt the flat of his tongue against the pulse in her neck.

“Noah.” She meant her voice to be more direct, but instead it came out all breathy. It made sense because she could barely catch her breath. Just the little touch of his tongue had her head spinning. She was losing control of the situation when a bang sounded at the front door. For a moment, she wasn’t sure if he would step away. With a sigh, he did then glared at the door.

“Who the hell would be coming out here?”

She frowned. “I have no idea, but I didn’t know that I had to clear my visitors with you.”

He tossed her a look that told her she should have known, but she ignored it as she headed toward her door. He prowled behind her as if stalking her every move. He was acting completely out of character, and she had no idea why. Maybe the long, dark hours were getting to him.

She opened the door to find Noah’s brother, Ethan, on her stoop. Taller than Noah, he was leaner, but he always had the same air of a predator all the Dillons seemed to have.

“Is Noah here?”

He had always been a little abrupt with her, but this was downright rude. She would’ve taken exception to his tone if she didn’t see the worry in his blue gaze. She knew the issue of the wolves being hurt would upset Ethan, the animal behaviorist, especially.

“Yes.” She stepped back, pulling the door wider for the large man to step through.

“Noah.” His tone had a wealth of relief and admonition in it.

“What are you doing here?” Noah asked. She had realized that, being the oldest cousin, Noah ruled the house as the Alpha. That had to be hard because each one of the cousins had a bit of Alpha in him. Noah just knew how to keep them in line apparently.

“Came looking for you.” And that was apparently all he was going to say in front of her. He glanced her way and then back to Noah. They were brothers, and anyone with eyes could see it. Ethan was about a half an inch shorter, and his face wasn’t as lean and hard. He wore glasses, which emphasized the prominent Dillon nose and his ever-vigilant blue gaze. Where Noah was all power and grace, Ethan was long and lean but just as virile.

“A call would have worked.”

Ethan rolled his eyes. “You wouldn’t have answered, big brother. We have that teleconference this afternoon with Fustian Refinery.”

With a narrowed look in Ethan’s direction, Noah gathered up his gear and started to put it on.