Taming Heather [Cariboo Lunewulf 1] (4 page)

“If I thought you were a doormat, I wouldn’t bother speaking to you, but would have just thrown you in your car.” He raised his hand and for a moment she wondered if he would grab her hair again. Instead his fingers brushed her cheek, almost a gentle motion, so unlike how he’d treated her so far. “Or maybe I would’ve just thrown you over my shoulder and carried you back into the woods,” he whispered, his tone turning sultry.

She didn’t need to ask him what he meant by that. His expression changed, his gaze dropping to her mouth. Fire rushed through her so hard and fast she almost stumbled into her car seat.

It was on the tip of her tongue to tell him to follow her home. Something about what he’d just said, about women running alone at night gaining reputations, had her holding her tongue.

She got in her car, managed to start it without fumbling her keys, and drove away, his scent still wrapped around her.

Chapter Three

None of it made any sense.

Marc ran his hand through his hair, knowing he would do well with a hot shower. Sweat clung to his skin under his uniform. And even though the air had remained chilly throughout the afternoon, and clouds hung low overhead, he was hot and irritable. It had been one fucking long day.

“So what’s the deal?” The spokesperson for the group of teenagers in front of him made an effort to sound bored. “You going to let us go, or what?”

The two human teenagers among them looked at the ground, the salty smell of their nervousness hanging heavy in the air around them. The three teenage werewolves in the group scowled at him.

Times were changing way too fast. In his day, werewolves never ran with humans.

Marc sighed. The teenagers weren’t who he’d expected to find when he’d responded to the call and hurried out of the station. And he was sure his fugitives were long gone by now.

“I’ll let you go when your parents show up to get you.” He gestured for them to start the hike back to where the police van was parked. “Now, march.”

Reluctantly they began hiking through the dense trees.

“This sucks,” one of the boys complained.

“Good luck waking my parents up.” The spokesperson of the group gave him the once-over. “They sleep days.” She curled her lip, hatred and defiance filling the air with its nasty stench.

They reached the van. He’d parked at the edge of the parking lot when he had been sure he could apprehend the humans who’d robbed the convenience store better on foot. The last thing he’d expected to find out here was this group, skipping school and smoking pot. Stumbling on them had ruined his chances of catching the men who’d managed to escape the human cop. He wasn’t in the mood for rebellious kids.

“Get in,” he growled, making the human kids jump, and the werewolf kids move slower.

Taking one last look at the trees he knew went on for miles, his gaze stopped at the opposite corner of the parking lot.

The night before he’d met the human woman there—Heather Graham—the strongly opinionated reporter for the
Prince George Tribune
. Suddenly he swore her scent wrapped around him, a mixture of lavender and desire. He pinched his nose, looking away from the spot where he’d held her in his arms.

Marc scowled, and slammed the van door closed.

Back at the station the smell of humans annoyed him. Usually working among humans didn’t bother him. But something about last night had crawled under his skin. Heather Graham had been on his mind too much today, and he didn’t like it. Her column was opinionated and whatever she’d been up to last night, he was sure it would bite him in the ass if he weren’t careful.

“Call the school and their parents.” He ushered the group of teenagers, every one of them now in a foul mood, into chairs surrounding the truancy officer’s desk.

“McAllister!” the Chief called from his office, and Marc gave the teenagers a final scowl.

Max Milburn wasn’t a bad man to work for, considering he was human. The Chief of Police was a fair and honest man. There had been some rocky ground when Marc first signed on several years ago, but the two of them had formed a respect for each other. Human or not, Milburn was a good cop.

“I know, you wanted two men and instead I bring you mouthy teenagers.” Marc stopped at the entrance to the Chief’s office. “I’ll head back out and see if I can’t pick up their trail.”

Milburn stood from the other side of his desk. “We sent backup out there. I hope to hear word soon. Go talk to Beuerlein.” The Chief lowered his voice, something he always did when he was about to mention werewolves. “Your pack leader has requested assistance. It’s a matter concerning humans and werewolves. Beuerlein will fill you in.”

“Rousseau called you?” Marc straightened in the doorway.

Johann Rousseau had been pack leader as long as Marc had lived there. He made it a point to make it to all of the pack meetings, knowing his job as a cop made him a useful tool for his pack. Rousseau was a good leader, and seldom sought him out unless matters were truly out of hand.

Milburn nodded. “Beuerlein just buzzed me. Go see what he needs.”

Five minutes later Marc was in his car, headed to the other side of town. Once again, Heather Graham consumed his thoughts. Apparently the rambunctious reporter had cornered a few bitches and their cubs in the city park. She’d upset the women enough that one of them had called their pack leader on his cell. The situation had escalated, and now he was being called in for backup. Beuerlein, another werewolf on the force, had suggested he look into it.

“It crossed my mind to send out one of the human female cops,” Beuerlein had said just minutes before while briefing him in his office.

“I’ll go.” Marc wasn’t sure why he’d jumped on the opportunity.

It wasn’t that he was thrilled about seeing Heather Graham again. Humans had never appealed to him. They were so fragile, not to mention their inability to change made them more shallow. Humans stuffed their emotions, instead of letting them out. For the most part he felt sorry for the species, half of a whole. No. He didn’t readily agree to take the call because he wanted to see her again.

“I’ve already had an encounter with this human,” he’d explained, although Beuerlein had seemed content to let him handle the call without explanation.

He parked the squad car on the edge of the park, somewhat surprised to see that a number of people stood where the playground equipment was. This little human bitch had attracted quite a crowd.

“So as leader of these werewolves, are you speaking on behalf of these women?” Heather was saying when he approached the group. “You would say that these werewolf children, these cubs, are safe to interact among human children even though they show a tendency toward fighting?”

“Just because our cubs got into a scrap doesn’t mean she has to come over and stick a microphone in our face.” The disgruntled bitch, who had a cub standing next to her and one in her arms, glared at Heather.

“You didn’t stop them from fighting.” Heather wasn’t in baggy clothes today, but instead wore a close-fitting dress and heels. She had pale pink pantyhose on which matched the darker shade of her dress. Instead of her hair being pulled back like it had been last night, today strawberry-blonde locks fell in a stylish cut around her face.

If it weren’t for the fact that she was human, Marc would say she looked damned sexy.

Johann Rousseau managed a pleasant expression, showing his true colors of being purebred
lunewulf
. He was always the friendly diplomat.
“Now don’t tell me that human children never fight.”

Marc took that moment to enter into the group, patting Rousseau on the shoulder and then moving in on Heather. Something resembling embarrassment and arousal filled the air around her when she looked up at him. Green eyes charged with life took him on defiantly. Marc didn’t miss the curious look Rousseau gave him and then the human reporter.

“Time to break the party up,” Marc told the surrounding group of humans and werewolves. Immediately his pack members began moving away, their attention on their leader but honoring his request. “If our reporter here has more questions, she can contact our pack leader for an appointment.”

He took Heather by the arm, wasting no time in pulling her away from the group of curious onlookers. Most of the werewolves around them were irritated, but amused curiosity floated toward him in the air. He knew what they were thinking.

The worst mix on this planet would be a Cariboo lunewulf and a human.
And they were right.

“Where are you taking me?” She almost ran to keep up with his long pace, but he didn’t care. “I’m not breaking any laws.”

“Try ‘disturbing the peace’.” He kept a firm hold on her when she almost tripped in her heels while hurrying to match his stride.

“How about adding manhandling to that list,” she added.

“You seem to like that manhandling charge.” He looked down at her in time to see her scowl, although her cheeks flushed a beautiful peach color.

“My car is on the other side of the park.” She rubbed her arm when he let go of it.

Marc opened the passenger side of his squad car. “I’ll give you a lift.”

She hesitated for a moment, but then climbed in, showing a fair amount of leg before running her hand over her dress to straighten it. He bet her legs were as smooth as silk with those hose on. He imagined ripping the hose from her body but then closed her door quickly, hiding the view of her legs. His cock stirred to life in his pants but he ignored it. There was no reason for fantasizing about this woman. She was human, and a pain in the ass.

“Why are you a cop and not pack leader?” she asked when he pulled out of the stall and headed to the parking lot on the other side of the park. “Your kind seem to have a lot of respect for you.”

“They respect me because I am a cop,” he told her. “And because I’m
Cariboo
.”

“What’s a
Cariboo
?” She turned in her seat, again allowing her dress to glide up her legs as she looked at him.

He only glanced at her briefly, needing to focus on his driving. The smell of her perfume wrapped around him, but she was aroused as well. The mixture of scents was rather appealing. Again his cock shifted in his pants. What would it be like to fuck a human?

He pulled into the other parking lot, spotting the car she’d been in the night before. “
Cariboo
are a particular breed of werewolf.”

Stopping the squad car behind her car he looked at her again. “You’ll show me any article you write about us before it goes to print. Is that clear?”

For a moment he thought she would argue with him. The flare of defiance made her eyes sparkle a magnificent emerald-green. She nibbled on her lower lip, and suddenly his pants seemed too tight. But instead of challenging him, she nodded, and then slipped out of the car. He watched her walk around the front of his car and get in her own before driving off.

A cold shower would be in order this evening.

Chapter Four

It was harder than she thought, learning where a police officer lived in this town, especially a werewolf cop.

Heather frowned, reluctantly walking out of the station after the dispatcher on duty had refused to be of any help whatsoever.

“What do you need McAllister for?” The officer who stopped her had a badge on his uniform that said “Beuerlein”. He was stocky, not fat, but muscular, with a blond crew cut.

“I have something I want to show him,” she said, wondering if she was talking to a werewolf or not. There was no way to know for sure without asking, and she wouldn’t do that. “Do you know where I could find him this evening?”

“A lot of the pack head down to Howley’s before their evening run.” So he was a werewolf, and she liked how he spoke so openly to her about pack routines. “Marc might be at home though.”

“Would you tell me where he lives?” She smiled when he didn’t answer right away. “You know it’s not like I could do him bodily harm. I just want to show him what I’m working on. He asked to see it.”

Officer Beuerlein pulled a cell phone from his belt and pushed a few buttons on it. He watched her with a nondescript expression while he held the phone to his ear. After muttering a few words that for the most part she didn’t catch, he hung up the phone.

“Okay. You can go see him. His address is 2900 Wright Creek Road. It’s out of town. Do you think you can find it in the dark?”

Heather nodded, already grinning. Granted, now Marc would know to expect her, but he hadn’t turned her away. And she knew she would have gone nuts sitting at home alone thinking about him. Now she would get to see him.

It was a hell of a lot harder finding the small ranch-style home that sat well off the highway than Heather had thought it would be. Her heart raced in her chest when she stepped out of her car, pressing her folder that held her article to her chest. The cold night air whipped around her but she wasn’t shivering from it. Unease and excitement rushed through her, making her knees feel weak.

Her excitement was because she was getting the chance to really sit down and talk to a werewolf, not because this particular werewolf turned her on. Just because the image of him naked, his powerful body and impressive cock, had taunted her all day, that wasn’t why she shivered now.