Carter smiled at her. “Welcome back, gorgeous.”
She didn’t smile back. She did jerk upright, grab the sheet, and shove her back against the headboard.
His smile dimmed. “Easy.” Carter motioned toward the sheet. “You’re wearing your clothes, no need to stress.” But she kept right on looking highly stressed. “I slept with you, but we both kept our clothes on. I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“Get away from me.” Her words came out low and angry.
“Um…do you usually wake up…” Carter rose, rolling back his shoulders and stressing, “Like this?”
She jumped up from the bed—and stood on the other side. The bed was a barrier between them. Lauren shoved her hair back from her face and glared at him. “Where are we?”
“A safe house.” A werewolf safe house. Could she smell the wolf scent that clung to the place? A woodsy, wild scent? There had been no sign of other wolves while she slept, so maybe they’d be able to slip away without attracting any unwanted attention. There weren’t a whole lot of wolves in Georgia. The packs in the south tended to stay in Louisiana. They ran wild in the swamps. Werewolf safe houses were located all over the U.S., though. They’d been carefully positioned and set up as safety nets for any desperate wolves. Follow the scent, you’ll get shelter. That was a werewolf law.
Only vamps weren’t supposed to get that promised shelter. Just wolves.
Her gaze darted around the room. “It looks like a cabin.”
“It is.” A small, log cabin on the side of a mountain. Killer views, not that he’d mention that particular point just yet. “We needed a place to crash during the day, and this was the closest spot I could find.”
None of the tension left her body.
“Are you…um, hungry? Thirsty?” Mentally, he cursed himself because he sounded like a total ass. “You can drink from me, if you need your strength built up.” Had that sounded as desperate as he felt? He wanted her mouth on him, wanted her teeth in him, wanted to make the connection between them as strong as he possibly could. He’d held her all through the day, and he’d kept his control in place. Carter wanted her, hell the fuck yes, and now that she was awake…
Mate.
Her eyes narrowed. “I want a bite.”
Yes! He cleared his throat and stalked toward her, moving around the edge of the bed to get closer to her. “I will always give you whatever you need.”
Her lashes flickered. “Will you?”
He offered his wrist to her. “Always.”
She stared at his wrist, and then at him. She…shook her head.
His heart lurched hard in his chest. “Lauren?”
“This way instead.” And she put her body right against his. Her breasts pressed to his chest as she stood on her tip toes. Her arms wrapped around him as she pulled his neck toward her mouth. Her lips pressed to his throat. Her tongue slid over his pulse.
This way. Any way.
Then she bit him. Her teeth sank into his throat, and there was no pain. Only pleasure. It started as a flash, but deepened, strengthened, as she drank from him. His dick was rock hard, his whole body tight with tension, and he wanted to strip her, wanted to fuck her, right there.
Carter could feel the bite connecting them. A hot brand on him, forever linking the two of them together. She’d mark him in ways that others would never be able to physically see. A mark that went soul deep. He’d crave only her for the rest of his days. Would need only her.
His hands locked around her hips as he pulled her closer to him. There would be no more waiting. No more control. His beast wanted her, and he’d have her.
Her lips lifted. Her tongue swiped over the small puncture marks she’d left behind. “Why do you taste so good to me?”
“Because I’m yours.”
She blinked up at him.
“Just as you’re mine.” He caught her wrist. The same one he’d bitten before. He brought it to his mouth, and his lips feathered over her skin. He kissed her. He licked her racing pulse point, but he didn’t bite. His eyes stayed on hers, and he saw the bright lust in her gaze. “Mate.”
“What?”
“You’re my mate, Lauren. A werewolf only gets one mate. And he only gets that mate if he’s lucky.” He kissed her wrist again. Sucked. Her lips parted and her head tipped back again. “Some poor bastards live their whole lives and never find the one meant for them.”
“I don’t…what are you talking about?”
“I’ll show you.” He sucked the skin of her wrist.
She shivered. “Why…why do I feel this way with you?”
“Because the bite brings lust first. You want me, I want you, and it’s like a fire inside, isn’t it? A desire that grows more and more with every single touch.”
She squeezed her eyes shut. “It’s not natural.”
He laughed and lowered her wrist. His mouth moved to press against her throat. “You’re a vampire. I’m a werewolf. How is anything about us natural?”
Her breath came faster. Her scent had deepened. Gone lush. Her scent alone had his whole body tensing.
“I…tell me about the deal.”
“The deal is that I’m yours, baby, yours forever.”
Her eyes opened. “No.” She shoved against him. Hard.
Carter moved back—not because of that shove, but because there was fear and anger mixing with the stark need in her eyes.
“No!” Lauren snapped again. “You aren’t mine.” Her chin lifted. “I know how this works. I’ve taken your blood. I can make you tell me the truth.”
Anger began to build in him. “Is that what the bite was about just then? You’re trying to use a vamp compulsion on me?” When he’d been getting lost in her, she’d been trying to trick him? “Hate to break it to you, but compulsion doesn’t work on werewolves. And, um, future reference point, I don’t think you have to bite humans in order to use compulsions on—”
“Tell me about the deal!” Her voice was ragged, and he knew that whatever game she’d been playing, the need had been real for her. It was still real. She wanted him, just as badly as he wanted her, even if she had been trying to manipulate him.
Shit—that just made him want her all the more.
“I heard you,” Lauren fired at him. She retreated a few steps, putting more distance between them as she skirted around the bed. “You thought I was sleeping, but I heard you. You said…you said the deal was off.”
Sonofabitch. What else had he said? Because, hell, yes, he’d thought she was out cold. She’d looked as if she were sleeping.
“What is the deal? What are you planning to do with me?”
He unlocked his jaw. “To be brutally honest, step one was to fuck you.”
Her cheeks flashed deep red.
“It was to fuck you until neither one of us could barely move because the need I feel for you is about to rip me apart.” Brutal honesty. He wanted to give her that. He was trying. “I’ve never wanted anyone this way, and I can tell you with complete truth that I will never want anyone else as much as I want you.”
“Carter…tell me about the deal!”
“Compulsion doesn’t work on a werewolf.” He advanced toward her. His hands were up, as if he were showing her that he wasn’t a threat. He wasn’t a threat, not to her. “So next time, make sure you’re just biting because you want me. When you sink those cute little fangs into me, my control shreds.”
She backed up another step. Was she trying to make it to the door?
“Your bite turns me on. You turn me on. But the bite doesn’t put me under your power. That’s not the way it works with vamps and werewolves.”
“Werewolves,” she repeated and her body shook with a light tremble. “Just how many of you guys are there running wild in the world?”
There were a whole lot more werewolves than vampires. But they’d get to that, later. One explanation at a time.
“I made a deal to bring you back,” Carter began carefully. “I told yo
u that—”
“Isabella?” Lauren cut in quickly. “The deal is with her?”
He swallowed. “The deal is off. I’m not delivering you to anyone. You and I—something happened when we exchanged bites. I…I suspected the first time you bit me. I could feel your mark on me long after you’d stopped drinking. But when you gave me your wrist, when you let me take your blood…”
She took another step back. Definitely trying to make her way to the door—and escape. His nostrils flared.
Carter pulled in more scents from outside. New scents. Hell. “Don’t go out that door, Lauren.”
She stilled.
Talk, fast. “Werewolves mate for life.”
Lauren just stared at him.
“We recognize our mates through special bites. They’re called mating bites. When a wolf bites his mate, it’s like a brand that sinks past the skin. It goes straight to the soul—”
“So, what, werewolves just go around biting everyone they meet?”
Not exactly. “We’re a…physical group. And werewolves aren’t exactly known to be tender and gentle in bed.”
Her lips parted. “Are you telling me that werewolves have sex a lot?”
“And that we…bite, yes.”
Her cheeks had gone bright red.
“That’s how we find mates. Usually, our mates are other werewolves. And once you find a mate, you never want another.”
She rubbed her temple.
“But my mate isn’t another werewolf.” Carter risked a cautious step toward her. He wanted to get her away from the door. The scent outside was telling him that an intruder was advancing on the safe house. “You’re my mate.”
“No.” She shook her head. “I cannot handle this right now. I’ve got a psycho vampire on my trail, and I don’t need—”
“I am going to stop Antoine. I will kill him, and he’ll never hurt you again.” An absolute vow. “Tell me the truth, Lauren, don’t you feel the connection between us, too? The need? The hunger?” He pointed to her wrist. “Don’t you feel my mark on you, even now?”
The soft rasp of her breathing filled the room. “Yes.”
Inside, his wolf howled in triumph.
“And that terrifies me. I made one mistake with a lover that cost me my life, and now I’m staring at a werewolf. A werewolf that I…I don’t think I should trust.”
“Lauren?”
She spun and lunged toward the door. She moved fast—faster than he’d expected, and Carter should have realized she’d be at top power after a day of sleep and his blood donation. She rushed outside as he bellowed after her.
He knew the threat was coming for her. He’d caught the scent of the intruder approaching. When Lauren burst out of the door, he raced after her, letting the change sweep over his body. His bones popped and snapped. Fur exploded along his body and he let out a howl.
Lauren looked back, and her eyes widened. “C-Carter?”
He howled again. Carter could feel the teeth exploding in his mouth.
She rushed toward the truck, yanking the door open. She jumped inside and she bent to grab the wires beneath the dash. Did she know how to hot-wire a truck?
The truck’s engine coughed to life. I guess she does. Hell.
His paws hit the ground. He had the body of a beast as he hurtled toward the truck. Ran for it just as—
Another wolf burst out of the woods.
The truck’s headlights flashed on, catching the new wolf in their glare. Big and muscled, the other wolf had saliva dripping from its mouth as he bounded toward the truck—and toward Lauren.
Carter couldn’t let that werewolf get to her. Carter hadn’t explained to Lauren yet that most werewolves had one rule when they came upon a vampire…
Kill on sight.
The beast lunging toward Lauren jumped onto the hood of the truck. One of its paws slammed onto the windshield, shattering the glass. Carter could hear Lauren’s screams, and they enraged his wolf. He flew up after the attacking werewolf, and he drove his claws into the beast’s back. The other werewolf howled and turned on Carter, his eyes glowing with fury. Carter didn’t let go of his prey. They tumbled off the truck and crashed into the dirt.
The truck reversed. Lauren was going to flee, Carter knew it, but he’d find her. He’d always be able to find her now. Priority one was eliminating the immediate threat to her.
But the gray werewolf bit down hard on Carter’s body. Carter shoved the bastard away, and he went flying into the air. The gray wolf immediately bounded back to his feet and came charging at Carter again. The beast’s head was down, his body hurtling forward—
The truck rammed into him. The wolf let out a yelp as he went flying through the air and then he collapsed on the ground. Carter raced to him.
The truck’s engine died. The door squeaked open and then slammed shut. Lauren’s thudding footsteps hurried toward Carter. He turned his head, snarling for her to stay back.
She stopped. “Is he dead?”
No, it would take a lot more to kill a werewolf. But she had knocked the guy on his ass, literally, and as Carter held the fellow down with one heavy paw, the gray wolf began to transform. His bones snapped and popped. His features reshaped to become those of a man. Dark hair, deep, gold skin, angry eyes.
Carter transformed, too, because he knew he’d have to talk, fast…or he’d have to kill the other werewolf. He’d be ready for either option.
“He was going for you.” Lauren’s words tumbled out. “I was scared—I just shoved down the gas. I didn’t mean to kill him!”
“He’s not dead…” Carter was mid-shift so his voice came out as a terrible combination of man and beast. A reverberating growl that seemed to shake the land around him.
The gray werewolf glared up at him—not a wolf any longer, but in the form of a man. Tousled hair, furious visage, and hell blazing in his eyes. “I’m not dead,” the guy snapped, “but she is.”
“Well!” Lauren’s sharp cry carried easily. “If he’s going to talk like that, I’ll just run him over again.”
And she just might.
Carter’s prey tried to lunge up, but he slammed the guy right back down. “You don’t threaten my mate.”
The fellow’s mouth dropped in shock. “No—no way.”
Carter was staring at a werewolf he knew, a guy he’d crossed paths with several times before. A lifetime ago. Riley Dawes—part Cherokee, part Irish, all-hell raiser, and…a packless wolf. Riley always hunted alone.
A good thing for them.
“It’s been a long time, Riley,” Carter muttered.
“You know him?” Lauren demanded. She’d come closer.
Riley’s nostrils flared. “Your scent is all over her.”
“Because she’s mine.” He glared down at Riley. He’d actually saved the guy’s ass during their last meeting. Riley had found himself surrounded by five vamps who’d wanted to get a rush from werewolf blood. Riley and Carter had taken out those vamps in a storm of fury.
The memory was there between them. And, shit, Carter knew Riley was going to say—
“You go from killing them to fucking them?” Riley’s unusual amber eyes were chips of hate. “Since when? You were the best vamp killer I’d ever met! You took their heads as if they were nothing—”
Lauren gave a choked cry behind Carter. Hell. He spun and grabbed Lauren’s arms because he knew she was about to cut and run. “There was a war going on—” Carter began.
“There still is a war!” Riley yelled. “Vamps and werewolves have been battling for centuries, you know this shit. Just as you know the first rule for our kind. When a werewolf finds a vamp—the first rule is to kill.”
Her eyes were wide and stark. “Is this true?”
Don’t lie to her anymore. “Yes.”
She tried to jerk away from him. He just held her tighter.
Riley laughed.
“It’s true, in general,” Carter added quickly. “It’s not true for us! I would never hurt y
ou. You’re my mate.”
Riley stopped laughing. “Oh, shit.”
“You’re part of me. The other half of my damn soul.”
“You are screwed, buddy, screwed,” Riley announced.
Lauren stared at Carter. Gazed at him with hurt and confusion in her eyes. He swallowed and made himself continue as he said, “Vamps and werewolves have a long and bloody history. Things took a particularly dark turn when the vamps realized that some of them could mate with werewolves.”
“You keep saying mate,” she whispered as her eyes widened even more, “what is that? Like, marriage?”
Riley had risen to his feet. Carter spun toward him, but Riley lifted his hands. “Easy. I’m not attacking again.” A muscle jerked in his jaw. “At least, not yet.” His amber eyes gleamed. “Is she really your mate?”
There was nothing more sacred to a werewolf than a mate.
“Because I know who she is,” Riley added darkly. “I took out a vamp on my way here who was looking for her. Guy had her picture in his coat. She’s supposed to belong to Antoine.”
Lauren’s shoulders stiffened. “I belong to no one but myself.” She jerked hard against Carter’s hold. “And I’m not going to talk with you both while you’re standing here buck naked.”
Hell. Carter and Riley were both naked, a product of the shift.
“I’ve got extra clothes,” Riley mumbled as he dragged a hand over his jaw. Then he was heading toward the woods.
Carter didn’t let Lauren go. “Don’t run from me.”
“You’ve been lying to me. Why would a vampire—Isabella—send you after me? If vamps and werewolves are enemies…”
“It’s like I said, our history is dark. We were warring for a very long time, but recently, my friend Griffin mated with Isabella. They proved to me that some vampires and werewolves are meant to be. That they can make it work.”
She shook her head. “Carter…”
Desperate, he kept talking. “Centuries ago, vampires realized that they could mate with wolves. In order to find a potential mate, the vamps had to let the werewolves bite them. Unfortunately, there was an unforeseen, um, side effect that occurred when the wolves got vamp blood.”